With an American flag as a backdrop, Kanye West took the stage in North Charleston in body armor.
He didn’t use a microphone, the standard tool of the trade for rappers, pointing to the young crowd that was there to chat.
West attracted hundreds of people Sunday afternoon to the Exquis Event Center as it makes an 11-hour effort to have thousands of signatures appear on the South Carolina ballot for President.
The audience applauded the star and raised their phones to record and photograph him as he appeared on stage for the nation’s first campaign rally.
West bounced from topic to topic: how social media brainwashes people, the dangers of opioid addiction, his anger at the lack of diversity on corporate boards. He said he would walk away from Adidas and other companies if they didn’t improve.
He confronted Harriet Tubman, saying that the abolitionist “did not free the slaves, she only made them work for other white people.” West said he doesn’t like the black iconography that whites tell blacks to admire.
Driven by a call from the audience, he spoke about his pro-life policy. West cried when he spoke that his father wanted to abort him.
“We love you Kanye,” the audience yelled.
Some members of the audience were more hostile and interrupted him on the posture. Some yelled, “What’s your point?”
He stipulated that he would not make abortion illegal, but he wanted the “maximum increase” option, which he said would mean that a woman with a baby would receive “a million dollars or something” based on income.
From the start of his profane remarks (he’s prone to dropping F-bombs), West asked the audience to quietly raise their hands if they wanted to go on stage to pose a problem.
After his speech on abortion, one stood up with him and said that he recently had an abortion and did not agree with his position. He praised her.
Throughout his rally, West spent time taking others on stage to hear his thoughts on changes or issues that affected him. He calmed the audience when it became difficult to listen, saying he would leave if they didn’t listen.
At times, he became a little more hostile to the audience or people on stage if he felt they were not listening.
A heckler was escorted. West accused a few in the audience of trying to “(expletive) increase their concentration” as TMZ.
Recruit voters
The crowd in the Ashley Phosphate Road Ballroom was young, many seemed ready for a concert rather than a presidential campaign event.
While waiting for them to be allowed in, some people encouraged them to sign the petition to have West on the ballot. Most did, passing the clipboard.
Before they were allowed to enter the room, attendees’ temperature was checked and they were required to sign an exemption exempting West from any responsibility for hiring COVID-19. Attendees received masks.
West’s campaign began Saturday to run voter petition campaigns in area locations and tweeted the petition information to his nearly 30 million followers on Twitter.
FILE – Kanye West answers questions during a service at Lakewood Church on Sunday, November 17, 2019 in Houston. He is slated to appear in North Charleston on Sunday for his first 2020 presidential campaign event. (AP Photo / Michael Wyke, File)
The points named by the campaign did not see much action on Sunday afternoon.
A place on Rivers Avenue, the TIA Banquet Hall and the Events Center, was locked, trash littering the steps to the door.
At Blue Note Bistro, a bar on Dorchester Road, one table contained a signature clipboard. At 3 p.m., no one had come to sign for the two hours he had been available, an employee said. They had received a call the day before asking if they could have a station, and a colorful blackboard sign announced it outside.
Elsewhere in the campaign-named Dorchester, Inspired by Annette Events employees said there was no request there and they should check elsewhere.
A third place on the way, Scott’s Grand Banquet Hall, used on Saturday, said its location saw the most signatures of any station in the area, about 80, according to an employee. She said a radio station had contacted them about being a place.
Melanie Williams drove her 15-year-old son almost two hours from Bluffton to see West.
I had seen him on Twitter and wanted to come since he is interested in politics. “We wondered if it was real,” said Williams.
She said her son hates the bipartisan system and is eager for change. She is more cynical and believes that the only effect of West’s campaign will be to take away the votes from the Democratic candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden.
Daniel and Kaya Clavier decided to come just to see what West’s campaign was about.
“And it’s Kanye, so I just want to see it,” said Daniel.
They had heard about the event through friend’s Snapchats. They have not yet reviewed West’s policies.
“It looks like a concert,” said Daniel.
A group was on vacation in the area and decided to stop by the rally, which they saw on Facebook. .
Would they vote for West for president? “Possibly,” two said in the group.
“I’m on the fence,” said Lindsay Ramsburg. She likes that he has supported President Donald Trump in the past.
West has a deadline for Monday
West is trying to enter the presidential race just 3½ months before Election Day.
The campaign must obtain 10,000 valid signatures of active SC registered voters by noon Monday to be included on the November ballot, according to state law.
He announced his bid for the White House on July 4, tweeting: “We must now deliver on America’s promise by trusting God, unifying our vision, and building our future. I am running for President of the United States!”
West filed documents four days ago with the Federal Election Commission to participate in the 2020 presidential race. The filing lists BDY, short for birthday, for party affiliation.
He is already on the ballot in one state, Oklahoma, where he only needed to pay a $ 35,000 fee.
West was a supporter of Republican President Donald Trump until last month. The rapper told Forbes that he was not happy to hear reports of the president’s removal to a bunker during protests that erupted after George Floyd’s death while in custody of Minneapolis police.
Gibbs Knotts, a professor of politics at Charleston College, said it is the first demonstration he has seen where a candidate was wearing a bulletproof vest and burst into tears.
Many people are running for president, he said, but “West has near-universal recognition of the nearby name. It could have an impact on race in nearby states,” Knotts said.
Getting to the ballot before the deadline could be a “difficult task,” he said.
West’s candidacy could harm Biden’s campaign by withdrawing votes, Knotts said. Some young voters may be interested in your campaign.
West could also be trying to get publicity, he said, though like other third-party candidates, his campaign gives him an opportunity to influence the platforms of top candidates.
The rapper said he had never voted and insisted that his bet on the White House was not a trick to promote music sales.
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