Online petition calls for School of the Art Institute to rescind Ye’s honorary degree

An online petition calls on the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to rescind the honorary doctorate it awarded the artist Ye, formerly known as Kanye West.

Ye has been spewing antisemitic hate speech in recent weeks, sparking a group from the SAIC community to create the online petition on change.org.

The petition went live Thursday. As of Tuesday morning, it had collected nearly 1,100 signatures.

SAIC representatives didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment.

The SAIC awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2015.

“This award bestows the legitimacy and luster of the School on a figure who has in recent months made repeated public statements expressing and justifying anti-semetism [sic],” the online petition states.

“Regardless of his contributions prior to receipt of this award, it is harmful to allow Ye, as he is presently known, to continue to use the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to help legitimize hatred and violence.”

The petition called on SAIC President Elissa Tenny to immediately rescind the honorary degree.

Ye attended the American Academy of Art and Chicago State University for brief periods. However, he dropped out of school at age 20 to pursue his music career.