Nicki Minaj Under Fire After Posting Video Appearing to Mock Woman With Mental Illness

Nicki Minaj fans are not happy with the rapper after she uploaded a video to Instagram where she appears to be mocking a woman with a mental illness.

The video, which has been viewed more than 1.9 million times since Monday, shows a seemingly distraught woman walking up and down a street in South Beach, Florida, repeatedly telling Minaj she doesn’t need the star’s help. “Come here,” Minaj replies, laughing, “What did I do?”

Minaj’s Instagram followers have commented questioning the star’s choice. “Why would you post this if she didn’t want any help thats invading her space,” one commenter wrote. “So disgusting,” another commenter added. “Mental illness is real. You wouldn’t make fun of a cancer patient, how is this any different? People in south beach know this lady is very mentally ill. Think before you post.”

“Mental illness is no laughing matter, but unfortunately attitudes like the one Nicki Minaj shows in the Instagram video are a consequence of the stigma and ignorance that mentally ill patients endure,” the Miami chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) said in a statement. “It is sad to see a big star like Nicki Minaj using her influence among young people in a negative manner such as this. Nobody would make fun of a cancer patient, and mental illness is an illness like any other. Also, Minaj invaded a woman’s privacy, and in so doing dehumanized and objectified her. That is not acceptable behavior toward any other human being.”

This isn’t the first time Minaj’s behavior towards people with disabilities has been called out. In 2015, the star was caught on video pointing the wand she was wearing as part of her Halloween costume at a person in a motorized scooter saying, “Walk! I command you to walk,” while laughing. Minaj shrugged off the event saying the person wasn’t a disabled person in a wheelchair but her friend using a mobility scooter.