Comedian Dave Chappelle had a sold-out show scheduled Wednesday in Minneapolis. But at the last minute, the theater cancelled the show after group of protesters threatened to become violent if Chappelle was allowed to perform.
Chappelle’s show was originally set to take place at First Avenue, a popular venue in Minneapolis, the Daily Mail reported.
But at the last minute, First Avenue canceled the show, allegedly in response to demands from MnUprising, an activist group that claimed that Chappelle was transphobic.
The group complained that Chappelle “harmed” them with his “transphobic views.”
In a Tweet, the group specifically called out Chappelle and his fans for being hateful.
There is no world that should exist where TERFS and transphobes feel comfortable oppressing our trans comrades. Show up tonight to let Dave Chappelle, his fans and First Ave know their hatred isn’t welcome here.
⏰6PM 7th St and 1st Ave
?Cover your face and stay dangerous? https://t.co/mxPB2Erj9b— MNUPRISING (@MnUrising) July 20, 2022
After that, First Avenue canceled the show.
Though First Avenue did not specifically say that it was cancelling the show just due to the protestations over Chappelle’s comedy concerning transgenderism, in a Twitter post the venue said, “We hear you. Tonight’s show has been cancelled at First Avenue and is moving to the Varsity Theater.”
We hear you. Tonight’s show has been cancelled at First Avenue and is moving to the Varsity Theater. See our full statement for more. pic.twitter.com/tkf7rz0cc7
— First Avenue (@FirstAvenue) July 20, 2022
The venue’s statement said that it believed in “diverse voices and the freedom of artistic expression,” and it was sorry that it had let down its “staff, artists, and our community” by booking Chappelle.
First Avenue did forgo quite a bit of profit, though, by cancelling the show.
They had sold 1,500 tickets at $129.50 apiece, the Daily Mail reported. That’s nearly $200,000 total, and a good chunk of that would have gone directly to the venue.
Instead, the show was moved to Varsity Theater.
But even once the show was moved, protesters still showed up.
Fans lined up to see the comedian and were met by about 50 protesters who wanted the show canceled in support of transgender rights, the Star Tribune reported.
“Trans rights matter!” the protesters chanted, the Tribune reported.
Some asked fans to show support by leaving the line for the event.
The event was clearly popular, though, as the line to get in was more than three blocks long.
Chappelle and his jokes about gender, transgenders and other sensitive cultural issues have been the subject of controversy for several months.
Last fall, there were calls for Chappelle and his comedy special, “The Closer” to be removed from Netflix after LGBTQ+ groups complained of Chappelle’s comedy being insensitive, NPR reported.
Netflix employees even had a walkout and there were calls for boycotting Netflix.
Unfortunately for those sensitive souls hurt by Chappelle’s comedy on Netflix, the platform did not remove the special.
Even worse for anyone nursing a grudge against Chappelle’s transgender jokes, “The Closer” received two Emmy nominations. Chappelle has not stopped cracking jokes about the transgender community, Newsweek reported.
Fortunately, though Chappelle has faced backlash and many would like to see him and his comedy canceled, his shows have gone on.
Do you like Dave Chappelle’s comedy?
Chappelle is not some noble crusader for freedom, but it is crucial for the sake of freedom of speech, culture and even human sanity that comedy like his be left unbound.
The ability to make fun of things is absolutely necessary in order to open people’s minds, help them remember that there is levity in everything and that humans have the basic right to talk about that.
Not all comedy will be funny to all people. There are different senses of humor. And that’s fine.
As the legendary comedian and actor Rowan Atkinson told The Irish Times, “The job of comedy is to offend.”
Chappelle can be coarse and his comedy might not be funny to everyone.
But if you don’t laugh at his jokes, that doesn’t give you a license to cancel him.
Lighten up.
