Dave Chappelle Says He’s a TERF, Stops LGBTQ Jokes in Netflix’s ‘The Closer’

Netflix

In the early hours of Tuesday morning, Dave Chappelle gave up The closest, his ninth stand-up special overall (and sixth for Netflix). The hour-long ensemble was recorded at the Fillmore in Detroit, Michigan, in August of this year.

“Everyone has a seat, be comfortable, relax. I have to tell you … let’s go, let’s go», Says Chappelle, dressed in a perfectly groomed suit and white sneakers, to the noisy crowd at the start.

The 48-year-old comedy legend then adds, “I need you to know something, and I’m going to tell you the truth, and don’t panic: this will be my last special for a minute,” later explaining that The closest will complete its “body of work” for the streaming giant.

Once the applause has died down, Chappelle takes the plunge, tackling the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak and his own battle with the deadly virus after contracting it in January.

“I don’t want you to worry about me. I am vaccinated. I received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. I have to admit, this is probably the most n —– ish decision I’ve made in a long time. I walked into the doc like, ‘Give me the third best option! I will have what the homeless have! ‘ So far, so good!”

“I don’t know if you heard on the news: I made contracting the coronavirus – and that was something else, ”he continues. “I felt dirty. I felt disgusting. Because I was walking around Texas just touching doorknobs and shit, my hands all wet, tipping n —- s with money. Here, bring this to your family. I must have killed thousands of people just trying to put on the show tonight so I hope you enjoy it.

Chappelle further admits that he “did not get sick at all” from contracting COVID, calling himself “the Magic Johnson of the coronavirus,” but that he was stressed out watching so many videos of blacks beating Asians in the streets during the pandemic – before I cracked up, “I couldn’t help but think that when I saw these brothers beat up these Asians, that’s probably what’s going on inside my body . “

During The closest, which was directed by Emmy winner Stan Lathan, who has shot all of Chappelle’s specials on Netflix, the comic addresses issues of racism, discrimination, sexuality and gender identity, often found in oppose the struggle for the liberation of blacks to LGBTQ and feminist movements, as it has done on several occasions in the past.

Address “the LBGTQ [sic] community directly, “Chappelle says he comes in peace while wishing to” negotiate the release of DaBaby “- the chart-topping rapper who made homophobic comments during his set at Miami’s Rolling Loud festival in July – before d ‘expressing how jealous he is at the progress the LGBTQ community is making in relation to blacks, and recounting the time a gay white man called the police in Austin, Texas, after Chappelle confronted the man about filming him and his wife in a bar.

He then awkwardly follows a disturbing story about a supposed incident where he says he beat a butch lesbian woman for throwing a punch at her (the woman later, he claims, tried to sell the story to TMZ): ” I’m glad TMZ didn’t believe it – because I beat her, I’m not going to lie. It was his fault. I had no choice. “

There’s more, of course, including Chappelle weighing in on the “edgy as shit” (his words) ways white Hollywood women have handled the #MeToo movement, arguing that it somehow fell to the hands of the victims of Weinstein’s A-List to protect those under them on the call sheet for his abuse, and how the transgender community ‘wants me to die’ for their habit of making transphobic jokes, offering as evidence a few times angry transgender people or allies confronted him because of these jokes.

“Those of you who have watched me know that I have never had a problem with transgender people. If you listen to what I’m saying, clearly my problem has always been with white people, ”he argues.

Chappelle then tries to convince the audience – in the crowd and at home – that he has never made any explicitly anti-transgender jokes, asking the audience to “go back” and review his specials. (He most certainly did, and you can read great transgender writer Samantha Allen about it here.) He defends JK Rowling from being “canceled” for his transphobic remarks (which he deeply misrepresents), before saying : “I’m the TERF team!” – the term for radical trans-exclusionist feminists, or feminists who are transphobic and don’t believe trans women are women.

“Gender is a fact,” he argues. “Every human in this room, every human being on Earth, had to go through a woman’s legs to be on Earth. It’s a fact. Now, I’m not saying that to say that trans women aren’t women, I’m just saying those pussies that they have… you know what I mean? I’m not saying it’s not pussy, but it’s Beyond Pussy or Impossible Pussy. It tastes like pussy, but it’s not quite it, is it? It’s not blood, it’s beet juice. (Chappelle’s anti-trans jokes often boil down to human anatomy, which shows how blunt his opinions are on the subject.)

He later tries to qualify this material by telling a story about Daphne Dorman, a white transgender woman who liked her trans jokes and who Chappelle befriended before committing suicide in October 2019, shortly after she was killed. he shouted it. in his Netflix special Sticks & Stones. Chappelle reveals that he started a trust fund to pay for Daphne’s daughter’s college education and that he won’t make any more LGBTQ jokes “until we both are sure to laugh together.” I’m telling you, it’s done. I’m done talking about it. All I ask of your community, in all humility: please stop hitting my people.”

Here, Chappelle is referring to the black men he has previously cited in The closest—DaBaby, Kevin Hart and himself — who have been, in his eyes, victimized (translation: missed some job opportunities, yet still very rich and popular) by the LGBTQ community for telling transphobic and homophobic jokes, or made homophobic comments, and initially refusing to apologize for them.

With that, he threw up the microphone, drank to the applause and walked off the stage.