41 Comments

Beyond his special, what jokes has he ‘continued’ to tell? Genuinely curious. Becz I promoted the hell out of that special bcz of what he was being accused of and that which wasn’t true. I’m for one getting tired of the trans community (I am a queer Black woman and it’s a totally separate community) dictating everyone else’s speech and word choice to not hurt their feelings. It’s BS and reeks of white male privilege. The ‘movement’ is a red flag. Removing the word ‘woman’ from the reproductive conversation is one HUGE and very concerning example. Leah Thomas is another.

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I disagree Shaun, the very fact that people are telling him he can’t tell transgender jokes is a form of oppression. Dave is not promoting hate by telling jokes, please understand he’s a comedian and that’s comes with the territory. As a black man I was a fan of Andrew Dice Clay and presently I’m a fan of Bill Blurr imagined if I was mad at their black jokes….that’s ridiculous. Dave have an right as an entertainer do to his art form as he see fit. If Dave wasn’t the greatest comedian of his generation would we really be having this conversation.🤔

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What Trans jokes he needs to stop telling? How about you tell the Trans people to lighten up and stop trying to “cancel” Dave? Or how about the idiot that tried to attack Dave in concert, how about we tell the Trans people ease up on Dave he meant no harm. Or the ones who tried to get Netflix to cancel his special. How about we tell the Trans people to lighten up.

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Meh. They have more protections than black people. They’ll be fine.

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Dave Chappelle is doing something most entetainers unable or unwilling to do. They tried to cancel him like they have done so many others but they can't. Leave him alone. He is his own man and he wiĺ decide when to move on not anyone else. Because your tired of the jokes doesn't mean we all are.

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I'm a fan of Dave as well Shaun, and always will be. I believe that Dave should stay on his path. One of the many benefits of living in this country are certain freedoms not afforded anywhere else - the same freedoms that have offended races and groups for centuries, yet we have carried on. My point is this, how much more powerful are one groups opinions over another? Cause that’s the bottom line. One groups thinks this, and another thinks that. I’m offended, I’m not offended. Who's right? Both. Who acquiesces? Both. Why? Because what Dave is doing is not unlawful, whether ones believes it's tasteful or not? Dave is a genius! The awareness, the reason for this post, and the varying degrees of conversation from his Netflix special has sparked outrage. Truth be told, many who are offended have jumped on the bandwagon with those who have never even heard his special in its entirety - And refuse to. So in fairness, is the opinion truly sound?

Had they done so, it my opinion that they’d come out informed, rather than conveniently offended. Still, we’re dealing with opinions.

Dave is right for voicing his opinion and those “offended” are right for speaking up. Words indeed inspire consequences, but that is never a reason for not being accountable when emotions go awry. But who draws the line of freedom? Again, genius. I’m of the opinion this part of his point. And he should continue telling jokes that affect the world, provoke critical thinking and promote change across the board, not just for one group.

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Jul 27, 2022Liked by Shaun King

I agree with you Shaun, Chappelle done over filled the glass on this one. But he will move on from this because there are so much other issues and more shit to talk about and keep making us laugh

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Thank you for a very clear and concise essay to explain this issue!

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I don’t believe he would still be talking about it if there weren’t trans activist protesting his performances and demanding that his shows be canceled. And I’m willing to bet $1 million that at most there are a handful of people within those groups who have watched any of his specials

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I don’t agree with your opinion on this. Dave is a grown man with agency to handle his career & art as he sees fit.

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I took his jokes as a way to question how can newer marginalized group then black people have more success then black people when it comes to civil rights. Him pointing out that the majority of that group being white is how they've gained influence and power quicker then black people.

If the majority of the lgtb community was black there is no doubt on my mind they would have had nowhere near the progress they have made.

How would the minority of a minority ever dream to reach those heights in this white supremacy driven society of America?

The funny thing to me is that I see conservatives trying to use him as their champion when he was basically showing how white supremacy can make mountains move in America regardless of where they stand.

I'm sure he's done with those jokes because I think he got his point across and I honestly don't think he has a problem with that community.

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Real question -- should Dave quit using terms like bitch, ho, etc.? Those terms are pretty much staples in his act. I've never heard an uproar about it, and he does not belong to that disadvantaged group (women) either. It's not even a topic of conversation.

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Shaun I addressed this on my FB page.

I don’t care that you’ve met him and your friends with his friends…you’re wrong.

Dave pokes fun at every one, no one or group is safe and that’s ok it’s comedy.

Should he then stop joking completely and just end his career?

I do feel you now addressing this is an attempt to gain/further support from a group in which you know is now trending.

Stick with your black side it makes more sense. 💯

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From the beginning of the episode, I was ready to invoke the question, “what is the measurable to know when Dave should stop telling jokes specific to the trans community?”. I understood the position of content majority rules. However, this position seemed arbitrary when comparing to other comedians with their subject focus.

YET, my viewpoint shifted when the Jan6 riots were mentioned: Leaders, whether formally assigned or publicly assumed, should be self/publicly held accountable for their actions which may impact a follower base (negative or positive).

There are different types of followers where individual behaviors range from total defiance of any authority type to blind obedience/acceptance. What is ideal, in my opinion, is follower-ship in the midrange: one who will practice critical thinking/self reflection on a frequent basis for deciding action. We know any “ideal” scenario falls outside reality….

If we use the Jan6 riots as an example, Donald Trump should be held accountable for his role in propagating violence within a crowd of followers which do not reside in the “ideal” category, in my opinion.

To be clear, I’m not synonymously linking Trump’s action to what Dave Chapelle is doing in severity. However, if we agree that Dave is a social leader and his words of trans comedy have high potential to propagate violence within/outside of the Trans Community, I agree with the suggestion for these jokes to cease.

Is this propagation likely? Are there any indicators of possible violence in social media, for example?

Even though it’s understood that comedy is intended to celebrate outrageous topics within a frivolous tone, I agree the ultimate goal is to uphold individual safety, mentally and physically.

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Thank-you for this. I have been really trying to sort out in my mind, the love I have for Dave, Respecting Free Speech and the Feelings of the Oppressed. This definitely helps me process my feelings on this one. TY

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I don't even know why you feel the need to use your platform to tell Dave what he needs to stop doing! Dave is one of the few entertainers who actually has some balls pun intended.

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