The National Holocaust Museum in Amsterdam says it does not support a public invitation for Kanye West to visit, after Arnhem Mayor Ahmed Marcouch suggested the rapper tour the museum while in the Netherlands.
West, who legally goes by Ye, is performing in the country despite objections from local Jewish groups. Marcouch told AT5 that a visit to the museum could serve as a gesture of goodwill, calling it a “place for explaining, communication and education.”
According to NOS, the National Holocaust Museum said it had not been consulted before the invitation became public.
The museum says it is “a loaded and vulnerable historical site that offers visitors a safe space to open themselves up to an extremely sensitive and emotional history,” adding that the visit was “announced in the media without any form of prior consultation,” which it said created an “undesirable impact on other visitors” and concerns about the “integrity of this memorial site.” The museum also said it is “not a platform for brandishing any public image blemished by antisemitic remarks.”
The dispute comes after years of controversy around Ye’s comments about Jewish people and repeated use of Nazi-related language and imagery. He apologized in a full-page Wall Street Journal ad on Jan. 26, writing, “I am not a Nazi or an antisemite” and “I love Jewish people.”
Still, Jewish leaders in the Netherlands tried to stop Ye from entering the country. The Central Jewish Board of the Netherlands also placed a display near his concert venue in Arnhem featuring some of his past remarks.
Israel’s ambassador to the Netherlands, Zvi Vapni, wrote on X, “Can antisemitism be normalized to such an extent? The promise ‘Never again’ is being tested right now.”
France, the United Kingdom, Poland, and Italy had already barred Ye from performing on his European tour.
