Dave Chappelle controversies explained: Trans jokes & more

Due to his recent Netflix special, Dave Chappelle has been thrust back into the spotlight as viewers reflect on his past controversies.

The divisive comedian has become a contentious figure once again, thanks to the recent blowback to his new Netflix standup special The Dreamer.

Viewers quickly noticed how much the comedian focused on the transgender community in his material, as he made plenty of distasteful jokes at their expense.

However, this is not the first time that Chappelle has cruised through controversies over the last few years, so here’s a timeline of all of his major backlashes. Warning: some may find this content upsetting.

Dave Chappelle controversies timeline explained

2017

During his show at Radio City Music Hall, Chappelle took a couple of shots at the trans community with jokes and backhanded statements.

According to Vulture, the comedian spent the first 20 minutes of his set talking about trans people and making jokes that were “sloppy and shallow.”

For example, Chappelle said he was “shocked” by former US president Donald Trump’s ban on trans officers in the military. “Sounds like a secret weapon to me. If I was in ISIS in the trenches fighting against the United States and all of the sudden I see a man with a beard and big D-cups titties just rushing my foxhole and sh*t, I’d be horrified,” he said.

Chappelle also said that, despite not understanding trans people, he didn’t think his ignorance “disqualifies them from being a human being that deserves a life with dignity and happiness and respect.”

But, he went on to add that the only reason why trans issues are being addressed in mainstream media is because “white men want to do it” otherwise the community would be shut down or flat out ignored if it was made up of only minorities.

2019

Chappelle and Netflix’s fruitful partnership continued with his fifth special, Sticks and Stones, which featured more material aimed towards the trans community.

During the special, Chappelle never apologized for his harsh words towards trans people, instead bringing up his interactions with trans comedian Daphne Dorman.

According to the comedian, Dorman thanked him for “normalizing transgenders” and explained that she laughed at every trans joke he made while she attended his sets in San Francisco. Some viewers felt he was using her as a shield from criticism.

One such joke ultimately led to the punchline of him misgendering her. “As hard as it is to hear a joke like that, I’m telling you right now — Daphne would have loved that joke,” he said.

He also told the audience: “If you’re in a group that I make fun of, just know that I see myself in you. I make fun of poor white people because I was once poor.” However, he never explained why he targets the LGBTQ+ community.

In the same special, he made a joke about how he didn’t believe sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson. “I know more than half the people in this room have been molested in their lives. But it wasn’t no goddamn Michael Jackson, was it? This kid got his d*ck sucked by the King of Pop! All we get is awkward Thanksgivings for the rest of our lives,” he said.

2021

Netflix premiered Chappelle’s new special The Closer, where the comedian continued his trend of punching down at trans people.

During this set, Chappelle misgendered a fellow comedian, made fun of trans women’s bodies, and continuously called trans people “the transgenders” as he kept stating that “gender is a fact” because “every human being on earth, had to pass through the legs of a woman to be on Earth.”

Chappelle also inadvertently blamed the community for Dorman’s death as he claimed she took her own life due to the criticism she received for defending Chappelle.

Because of his rampant targeting of trans people in his specials, LGBTQ+ people and their allies called for Netflix to take his specials down, which the company staunchly refused to do.

In an internal email acquired by The Verge, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos responded to calls for Chappelle’s work to be scrubbed, writing, “We don’t allow titles on Netflix that are designed to incite hate or violence, and we don’t believe The Closer crosses that line. I recognize, however, that distinguishing between commentary and harm is hard, especially with stand-up comedy which exists to push boundaries. Some people find the art of stand-up to be mean spirited but our members enjoy it, and it’s an important part of our content offering.”

Netflix then suspended three trans employees, including software engineer Terra Field, for trying to get into a director-level meeting they weren’t invited too. Field received extra heat from the company because of her viral Twitter thread which criticized Chappelle’s treatment of the trans community and Netflix’s willingness to give him a platform. The employees’ suspensions have since been overturned.

Chappelle did address all this criticism during a standup set in Nashville along with comedian/podcast host Joe Rogan.

In a video posted to his Instagram, Chappelle explained that he would meet his “transgender community” critics, but they “will not summon me. I am not bending to anybody’s demands.”

The comedian added that the media was circulating a false narrative that he had turned down the opportunity to speak with the trans Netflix employees who had a problem with his special and how he never got the chance to speak with them at all.

“If they had invited me I would’ve accepted, although I am confused about what we’re speaking about,” Chappelle told the audience, “You said you wanted a safe working environment at Netflix. Well, it seems like I’m the only one who can’t go to the office anymore.”

The comedian ends the five-minute clip by telling his fans that they shouldn’t “blame the LBGTQ community for any of this shit” because the issue was more about “corporate interest and what I can say and what I cannot say.” Chappelle added that the community had been “loving and supportive.”

2022

During his set at the Netflix Is A Joke festival at the Hollywood Bowl in May, Chappelle was attacked by audience member Isaiah Lee who was brandishing a replica handgun that also contained a knife blade.

Lee explained that he rushed the stage due to Chappelle’s discussion of “triggering” subjects such as the LGBTQ+ community, homelessness and pedophilia.

“I identify as bisexual and I wanted him to know what he said was triggering,” Lee said, “I wanted him to know that next time, he should consider first running his material by people it could affect.” Lee was later sentenced to 270 days in county jail.

Months later, Saturday Night Live announced that Chappelle would be returning to the stage as its post-November midterms host and the production was quickly met with backlash.

Page Six reported that several writers from the show were boycotting the show due to Chappelle’s transphobic material, but the comic’s agent refuted that claim, saying: “There was no evidence of a boycott. The room was full of writers. They all pitched ideas and they seemed very excited about it. Dave is looking to have some fun.”

Chappelle’s appearance during that particular show was also notable due to the inclusion of SNL’s first nonbinary cast member Molly Kearney, which had a lot of fans wondering how they felt about the show’s decision to hire Chappelle as the host that week.

2023

Netflix releases its seventh standup special with Chappelle, titled The Dreamer, and it wasn’t long before people highlighted his continued targeted jokes at the trans community. He explained that he loved “punching down” towards trans people, but noted that he was done “doing trans jokes” because the community “wasn’t worth the trouble.”

However, the loudest discourse coming from the special was viewers pointing out Chappelle’s hypocrisy when it comes to mocking trans people.

Chappelle famously stepped away from comedy at the tail-end of his Comedy Central series The Chappelle Show, as he felt like he was being used as a tool for people to be overtly racist towards Black people and felt like he was doing “blackface” while shooting the show.

Viewers took to X/Twitter to vent their frustration at how Chappelle re-educated himself after realizing the harm he was doing towards the Black community, but he felt no remorse about mocking trans people despite anti-trans laws and commentary floating around on a near daily basis.

Despite the backlash Netflix receives every time Chappelle releases a new special, it doesn’t look like the platform will be parting ways with the comedian any time soon, with CEO Reed Hastings confirming the streamer will continue to work with Chappelle for as long as he’s willing.

You can check out more of our Netflix coverage below:

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