The unspoken reason people are so upset about Kanye West and Chance the Rapper’s latest political tweets

We need to talk about Kanye Omari West.

In anticipation of any new project of his, Kanye does what he does best — he hops online to ruffle up feathers and cause headlines to scream nothing but his name for weeks (remember the Taylor Swift/Kim Kardashian phone leaks before The Life of Pablo rolled out?).

This time, though, things are a bit different. Kanye's wading in treacherous waters with his recent alignment with Donald Trump. While he claims that all he does is out of "love" and "free-thinking," many fans have chosen to pivot away from the rapper — but it's not because of what party he aligns himself with. Things have switched for a more sinister reason.

Kanye has let himself be turned into a pawn right before our eyes in a dangerous political game orchestrated by the conservative right.

Kanye's tweets expressing love for Trump (not to be confused with agreement of his policies, apparently) and showing off his signed "Make America Great Again" cap was the catalyst for not one, but two tweets this week from the president expressing his support for the rapper.

It ushered in an onslaught of critiques of 'Ye — from fans and peers in the entertainment industry alike, but it also sparked thoughts from fellow Chicago artist, Chance the Rapper, who tweeted his seeming support along with two statements: "Black people don’t have to be democrats" and "Next President gon be independent."

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The former of the two tweets was picked up by conservative voices and even got a retweet from Donald Trump Jr., who added his own thoughts to the statement.

"The same goes for all the intersectional groups of the left that say you HAVE to be a democrat," Trump Jr. tweeted. "That isn't true. Be free, think for yourself."

Trump Jr.'s tweets supports the incredulous notion that a lack of free thought and individual thinking is what keeps people of color, particularly black people, from co-signing the ideas touted by the Trump administration. It's an absurd, and not new, idea — but what's incredibly important to stress is that it isn't about political parties right now. Are you listening Chance?

People aren't jumping off the Kanye ship because of which party he's registered under or Kanye's insistence that we all operate as "free thinkers" — they are upset because by co-signing the way Candace Owens thinks or by wearing "MAGA" proudly, Kanye is aligning with white supremacy and Ye's idea of "free thought" is actively harming people who look like him.

Ultimately, this outrage is about the alarming way Trump and his political peers have continually used cultural figures — like Kanye and Chance today, somewhat similar to Ben Carson, Stacey Dash, and former RNC leader Michael Steele — as token black supporters of an agenda that oppresses communities of color across the country. 'Ye, who can be seen by them as a representation of the black American community, makes it easier for Trump and his ilk to justify their views on deportation, incarceration, and so much more. "If Kanye loves Trump, he must also love the new tax cuts," etc.

Need evidence? Consider Donald Trump's sixth tweet of the day.

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"Kanye West has performed a great service to the Black Community - Big things are happening and eyes are being opened for the first time in Decades - Legacy Stuff!," Trump tweeted. "Thank you also to Chance and Dr. Darrell Scott, they really get it (lowest Black & Hispanic unemployment in history)."

Even Trump speaking of "eyes opening" within the "Black Community" should raise concern, given his racist rhetoric over the course of his life in the public eye.

Those who refute movements like "Black Lives Matter" are now praising Kanye West (who's most famous political statement before all this was "George Bush doesn't care about black people").

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But what's also glaring is the president's inclusion of Chance, who has not said anything publicly on Twitter about unemployment rates. Yet, Trump has swept him up into the narrative he's constructed.

All of this mess prompted a statement from Chance, who was forced to explain that he was simply attempting to support Kanye, whom he considers family. "I’d never support anyone who has made a career out of hatred, racism, and discrimination," Chance tweeted, seemingly calling out Trump and people in power, and admitting that his tweets "stemmed from a personal issue" about Chicago's public leaders.

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Kanye has always pushed boundaries when it comes to conventional thinking and the music industry, but his time tucked away in his Calabasas mansion might have finally diluted his realization that his thoughts and how he shares them have consequences to the lives of many in this country.

To Kanye, perhaps the hat can be chalked up to an aesthetic choice, à la Darius and his Confederate flag cap in Atlanta this season. In his references to the way conservative pundits like Candace Owens "think" or the "dragon energy" he shares with Trump — he's commenting not their policies, but rather the way they move in the world.

But regardless of whether or not it's all symbolic or just Kanye continuing to chase affirmations from white men in power, it will never be all subversive fun and games if it ultimately perpetuates policies and ideologies that are harmful to the same black people Kanye once defended in a 2005 telethon. Back then, he sparked praise from the same fans who today, are left in the dust and confused by 'Ye's dangerous politics.