Chappelle is unapologetic in his first public statement on ‘The Closer’ controversy
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Dave Chappelle during the Mark Twain award at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Chappelle has spoken out about the controversy over his Netflix special The Closer in a new standup video posted to Instagram.
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Netflix employees are staging a walkout as a fired organizer speaks out
«I said what I said, and boy, I heard what you said. My God, how could I not? You said you want a safe working environment at Netflix. It seems like I’m the only one that can’t go to the office anymore,» he said.
Chappelle was referring to pushback from Netflix employees who participated in a walkout last week after the company stood by the comedian and allowed The Closer to remain on the streaming platform.
Netflix also recently fired an employee connected to the blowback over how Chappelle and the comedy special are being handled. Netflix officials allege the employee leaked «confidential, commercially sensitive information» to Bloomberg.
The controversy over The Closer — which has been available on Netflix since early October — has been brewing for weeks. In the special, Chappelle jokes about trans women and their genitalia and defends J.K. Rowling against critics who say she is transphobic and more.
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Earlier this month in an interview with CNN, several trans comedians said they felt that Chappelle’s comments were an example of «punching down» on those with less power and how the comedian continues to «scapegoat trans people.»
But according to Chappelle in Monday’s video, «everyone I know from that community has been nothing but loving and supportive. So I don’t know what this nonsense is about.»
If Netflix employees were to meet with him, Chappelle says he has three conditions for them: «First of all, you cannot come if you have not watched my special from beginning to end. You must come to a place of my choosing, at a time of my choosing. And thirdly, you must admit that Hannah Gadsby is not funny.» Gadsby is an Australian comedian and queer woman.
- dave chappelle
- comedians
- transgender
- Netflix
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