Dave Chappelle’s Grammy Win for ‘Transphobic’ Netflix Special Slammed

Dave Chappelle’s Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album on Sunday for his controversial stand-up on Netflix The closest sparked backlash on social media.

Her 2021 stand-up show caused an uproar within the LGBTQ+ community as she was called “transphobic” by many. Last year he stood by his comments during another Netflix special, calling students who criticized him “instruments of oppression”.

Despite the uproar, Chappelle, 49, was the winner in his category at the 65th Grammy Awards, beating Louis CK for SorryJim Gaffigan (Comedy MonsterRandy Rainbow (A little brain, a little talent) and Patton Oswalt (We all scream).

His victory comes a year after Louis CK won the award for Sincerely, Louis CKhis first comedy album after the revelation of his past sexual misconduct.

While Chappelle was not present at the Grammys premiere ceremony to collect his trophy, which was accepted on his behalf by presenter Babyface, there was an outcry from a number of users. from Twitter.

Eric Deggans, television critic and NPR media analyst, writing on the micro-blogging platform: “Wow. The Grammys really don’t care; a year after awarding acclaimed stalker Louis CK, they gave one to Dave Chappelle’s homophobic and transphobic Netflix special. Sigh.”

Another describe Chappelle’s comedy as “a Thanksgiving-level drunken uncle. Someone, anyone, must have produced a funnier stand-up special last year.”

“But cancel culture ruins entertainment,” joked another sarcastically, ending his tweet with a dazed face emoji.

Echoing this sentiment, another commented: “But wait, I thought the cancel culture was out of control??? Isn’t that what Dave, Elon [Musk] and Fox News idiots always say, but they constantly get rewards.”

Following Chappelle and Louis CK’s nominations for this year’s Grammy Awards, Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said The Hollywood Reporter that the organization did not control who received the nods.

“We don’t control who voters vote for,” he told the outlet. “If voters think a creator deserves a nomination, they will vote for them.

“We’re never going to be concerned with deciding someone’s moral standing or where we rate them on the scale of morality. I think our job is to assess the artistry and the quality We can make sure that all of our spaces are safe and people don’t feel threatened by anyone. But when it comes to nominations or awards, we really let the voters make that decision.

Following the release of The closestLGBTQ advocacy group Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) said in a statement that “Chappelle’s brand has become synonymous with ridiculing trans people and other marginalized communities.”

One of the comments involved Chappelle saying, “Gender is a fact.”

“Every human being in this room, every human being on earth, had to go through a woman’s legs to be on earth,” the comedian said. “It is a fact.”

Chappelle, who is expected to release more specials via Netflix, also included a line about trans women’s genitalia, saying it’s “not quite what it is.”

Amid the controversy, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos initially defended Chappelle saying, “We believe that on-screen content does not translate directly into actual harm.”

With the backlash showing no signs of waning, however, Sarandos later said The Hollywood Reporter that he “screwed up” when it came to internal communications within the company about the special.

As the controversy escalated, approximately 100 Netflix employees staged a strike in October 2021. Netflix’s handling of the situation ultimately led to the resignation of Terra Field, a top company engineer and founder of its research group on transgender employees.

Ahead of the walkout, Netflix said in a press release, “We appreciate our trans colleagues and allies and understand the deep hurt that has been caused. We respect the decision of any employee who chooses to leave and recognize that we have much more work to do both within Netflix and in our content.”

Chappelle eventually responded to his comments, saying that while he’s open to meeting with transgender rights groups, he “wouldn’t bow to anyone’s demands.”

“I said what I said, and boy, I heard what you said. God, how could I not?” Chappelle said in a post on his Instagram. “You said you wanted a safe working environment at Netflix. It seems like I’m the only one who can’t go to the office anymore.”