Kanye West sued for allegedly discriminating against black staff

 

Controversial American rapper Kanye West is facing a lawsuit alleging discrimination against black employees.

Benjamin Deshon Provo, a former employee at West's Donda Academy, has filed a lawsuit accusing West of mistreating black employees and terminating his employment for refusing to cut his dreadlocks.

Provo, who worked as a security guard at Donda Academy since 2021, claims in the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles that he experienced "emotional distress" due to West's actions, including allegedly firing him for his refusal to cut his hair. He asserts that West instructed staff to "shave your heads," a request Provo declined citing his Muslim faith.

Additionally, Provo alleges that white staff members were paid $5 more per hour than their black counterparts. He further claims that West prohibited books about Black history, including works about figures like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., echoing similar allegations made by former Donda Academy teacher Cecilia Hailey in a lawsuit filed in April 2023. Hailey's case is scheduled for trial in April 2025.

Provo seeks damages for alleged discrimination, a hostile work environment, retaliation, violations of labor codes, and other grievances.

In a separate incident, Kanye West previously made statements in a viral video suggesting that his family is not "Black but Indian."