It looks as if the Jewish community has taken issue with Dave Chappelle’s recent appearance on “Saturday Night Live” over the weekend as several organizations have slammed the comedian, saying that his monologue was partly anti-semitic. If you caught the episode, you’d already be aware that Dave had touched on the recent anti-semitism controversy involving Kanye West as he jokingly told the studio audience that there were two words in the English language people should never say in a sentence.
“And those words are ‘the’ and ‘Jews,’” he quipped. Also in his monologue, Dave said, “I denounce antisemitism in all its forms and I stand with my friends in the Jewish community. And that, Kanye, is how you buy yourself some time.” And while Dave went on to receive a lot of praise for his hosting gig, several Jewish groups, including StopAntisemitism, have fired back at the 49-year-old.
In October 2021, we featured Chappelle as an Antisemite of the Week
Many, including those in the Jewish advocacy world, expressed dismay, stating his commentary was “humor”
Last night on SNL, Chappelle showed us once again what a vile antisemite he ishttps://t.co/MF5sO3uOZk
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) November 14, 2022
“In October 2021, we featured Chappelle as an Antisemite of the Week,” the organization wrote in a tweet on Sunday. “Many, including those in the Jewish advocacy world, expressed dismay, stating his commentary was ‘humor.’ Last night on SNL, Chappelle showed us once again what a vile antisemite he is.” The Anti-Defamation League also chimed in, with its CEO Jonathan Greenblatt asking, “Why does our trauma trigger applause?”
Jonathan seemed very passionate about his thoughts on Dave’s monologue, which he clearly didn’t find funny as he lashed out against the funny man in his own tweeted posted on Sunday implying that there should be no platform given to those who want to spew problematic comments about the Jews to the public.
“We shouldn’t expect @DaveChappelle to serve as society’s moral compass, but disturbing to see @nbcsnl not just normalize but popularize #antisemitism,” he wrote on Twitter. “Why are Jewish sensitivities denied or diminished at almost every turn? Why does our trauma trigger applause?”
The SNL writers who boycotted Dave Chappelle ought to be Elon Musked; the first half-hour was a Chappelle monologue that was funnier than anything on that show in thirty years.
— Will Anderson (@will_show2020) November 13, 2022
Of course, this is not the first time Dave has received backlash for his comments on a public platform. Just last year, he ignited an entire protest supported by members of the LGBTQ+ community, who felt he had crossed the line by making jokes about transgender people, which they deemed as off-limits.
Calls were made for Netflix to stop working with Dave, but the streaming giant defended the Washington D.C. native, saying the company does not censor its talent from freedom of speech.