Russell Simmons tweeted his support for President Obama after the president announced his support for gay marriage. (Photo: AP)
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NEW YORK (TheBlaze/AP) — Russell Simmons said he wasn't making a direct comparison between people and animals when he used references to "holocaust" and "slavery" in talking about animal welfare recently.
Russell Simmons (Image source: AP)
The hip-hop mogul and entrepreneur spoke at an event last week calling for a ban on carriage horses in New York City and was lambasted for saying animal abuse was a "holocaust." The Anti-Defamation League was among those criticizing him.
“It’s a holocaust,” Simmons said, according to the Wall Street Journal. He later added that there were "people for slavery, remember? Slavery was fine. There were people who put people in ovens. There are all kinds of ethnic cleansing, people for it.”
He told The Associated Press on Sunday that he wasn't comparing the conditions of carriage horses to the experiences of Jews in World War II or to slavery. The committed vegan and animal rights activist said he was talking more broadly about animals globally and the conditions they face.
He said he didn't intend to offend anyone and would use different words in the future.
The following report came prior to Simmons' response:
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