Dave Chappelle’s controversial special sparked a 100-person protest at Netflix headquarters in Los Gatos, California. Attendees took issue with Chappelle’s use of transgender slurs in parts of his standup, which led to the comedian being chastised for not being sensitive enough to the LGBT community. The Netflix walkout came two days after Dave Chappelle’s second comedy special premiered on Netflix earlier this week. The specials are only available to subscribers through the streaming service and have been met with mixed critical reviews so far. Chappelle’s special has been criticized for his use of “graphic transphobic and homophobic language.” The site also noted that Chappelle appeared to be “taking shots at the transgender community” and criticized the comedian for “spewing” his views on transgender while “pretending he was a supporter of the community.”
According to the petition, some of Chappelle’s comments in special were” transphobic jokes and slurs “and that they promote violence and intolerance. The protest was organized by the activist group “Queer Resistance,” which aims to push Netflix to bar Chappelle’s work or the most offensive jokes. The group said in a statement that the company had” ignored queer people of color, and our cries for accountability.”
Chappelle’s created controversy after an LGBT-hating joke aired on his new show, which targeted transgender people. The comedian and actor said, “A lot of (transgender people) like to play with your emotions and trick you into seeing them as a woman.” The comedian also said he has” dated multiple transvestites, and I’m not looking to date a man. I’m just saying, we don’t run this town,” where he mocked people who thought transgender people should be able to change their gender.
The protesters are calling out for the company to repair its relationship with the LGBTQ+ community; they want the company to apologize for releasing this content and invest in queer artists. “If these things are not done within a reasonable amount of time, we will continue to take direct action where we find support from our community,” the organizers said. Chappelle’s Netflix special has gotten mixed reviews; some praised the comedian for his comeback gig while others complained that Chappelle joked about transgender people and gave other offensive jokes.
The protest also involved Netflix employees, who walked out of the office and raised a thumbs down symbol. They were not happy with how the company handled the story of Chappelle’s offensive jokes. The company released a statement on Thursday saying that it does not usually comment on its content decisions, but it is aware of the group’s petition. “While we know that everyone has the right to express their views, some of the comments in this new special are extremely disturbing and do not reflect the company’s views,” Netflix said.
Chappelle’s new stand-up show has garnered mixed reviews from fans and critics alike. There were many who felt that the comedian had lost his touch and that the gig was nothing like his earlier work. However, others spoke well of the comedian’s comeback. It was not immediately clear whether Netflix had any plans to pull the special from its service. Still, the protesters say that they will continue to rally against Chappelle if he does not apologize. The show is still available on Netflix, but it could change in the future if enough people are angry about Chappelle’s content.
