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Jay Z Will Keep Barneys Collaboration Amid “Disturbing” Racial Profiling Scandal

Jay Z
"I will not leave the outcome to others," said Jay Z in his statement on Friday, Nov. 15.

Hold up — Hov is staying put. Rap mogul Jay Z took to his Life + Times website on Friday, Nov. 15 to announce that he will keep his holiday collaboration line with Barneys, amid accusations of the luxury retailer racial profiling black customers.

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The entrepreneur, 43, still under pressure to sever ties with the brand after reports surfaced that two black customers had been subject to racial profiling by store employees, once again defended his business partnership with the brand. "While I await the findings of the Attorney General’s Office, I have agreed to move forward with the launch of BNY SCC collection under the condition that I have a leadership role and seat on a council specifically convened to deal with the issue of racial profiling," he wrote.

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"As I previously stated, the collaboration with Barneys has always been about giving and The Shawn Carter Foundation," added the star, who again signed off on the statement under his birth name Shawn Carter. Beyonce's husband first addressed the backlash on Oct. 26 and said that we was being "demonized" for not speaking immediately on the issue: "I move and speak based on facts and not emotion," he wrote.

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On Friday, Jay Z emphasized that the decision to continue his partnership with Barneys was his: "I am in a unique position to use my voice to affect change to this disturbing issue," he said.

"The easy position would have been to walk away and leave policy making to others hoping that someone addresses the problem. I will not leave the outcome to others. I will take this into my own hands with full power to recommend, review and revise policies and guidelines moving forward. I am choosing to take this head on."

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