Rap star attacks Bush at benefit

From BBC News:

Hip-hop star Kanye West criticised President Bush's response to Hurricane Katrina at a televised benefit concert in New York on Friday. The show, which raised funds for relief efforts, featured Leonardo DiCaprio, Richard Gere, Glenn Close, Harry Connick Jr and Wynton Marsalis. But West told the audience: "George Bush doesn't care about black people." The comment went out live on the US east coast, but was cut from a taped version seen on the west coast.

West also claimed the US was set up "to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off as slow as possible". He appeared alongside comedian Mike Myers for a 90-second segment which began with Myers speaking of the devastation Katrina has caused to southern states of the US. But to Myers' surprise, West departed from his script and said: "I hate the way they portray us in the media. If you see a black family, it says they're looting. See a white family, it says they're looking for food." He conceded "the Red Cross is doing everything they can", but said authorities were deliberately holding up getting aid to the Gulf coast.