SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio City Councilwoman Misty Spears is in the hot seat after Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones publicized Spears’ request for tickets to Ye’s upcoming concert.
Rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye, has sparked controversy over the last week after the San Antonio City Council learned he is expected to perform at the Alamodome on July 4.
Jones initially said she supports canceling the concert. However, she said the council does not have enough votes to cancel the show.
“I think it’s extremely important that we are much more thoughtful about the message that we send when we invest their time, their energy, their resources into providing somebody a platform who has years worth, years worth of hate speech and anti-Semitic rhetoric,” Jones said during a press conference.
Craig Berkowitch, CEO of the Jewish Federation of San Antonio, also spoke out against the decision to have Ye perform in San Antonio.
“We believe the wrong choice was made,” Berkowitch said.
The mayor said she only learned the concert was happening after seeing a “reply all” email from Spears accepting three tickets to the concert.
Spears’ office released a statement after Jones brought to light the office’s acceptance of the tickets.
“Councilwoman Spears initially indicated she would accept complimentary tickets for a staff member and a guest,” the councilwoman’s statement read in part. “At the time, she was unaware of Ye’s anti-Semitic comments and hateful rhetoric.”
KSAT tried several times to schedule an interview with the councilwoman, but she was unavailable. Spears’ staff said the councilwoman is on a personal trip to Israel and will not return to San Antonio until after the weekend.
“Councilwoman Spears’ position has been clear and consistent: there is no place for antisemitism or hate speech in San Antonio,” the letter from Spears’ office stated.
Related KSAT coverage: