What can be said about Dave Chappelle and Chappelle’s Show? The media calls it ‘edgy’, ‘racy’, and ‘raw’. People either love the show or feel it’s too racial. I have to admit, I love the show, but I must also confess that during a fit of laughter, I also realize that different cultures are laughing along with me sometimes at the expense of blacks and how we are sometimes portrayed in sketch comedies. Dave Chappelle is married to an Asian woman and while I was disappointed to hear him admit this, it also made me wonder if he is disenchanted with his own race. That may be an unfair statement to some of you, but I had to consider his comedic style and portrayal of blacks vs. his decision to marry outside of his race.

Let’s face it, some insensitive, crude, and stereotypical material is funny and that cannot be denied about this show. The shit makes me laugh but I have been accused several times of liking ‘dark comedy’ (no pun intended). I can laugh at most of his skits because either I know or have seen someone similar to the characters portrayed. It’s the exaggeration and exploration of stereotypes that he plays with. Some comedy is truth and if the truth is ugly and tasteless, how can the comedy be anything but?

I am not so racially sensitive that I cannot enjoy a good skit when it is funny, however, I am also careful to pay attention to any red flags that pop up in my subconscious. As a litmus test, I ask myself “What will a diverse America think of black people after watching this show?” or “What messages is this show sending to children?”

80% of the negative feedback about the show is concerning the usage of the word nigga and its various forms. We need to realize that no matter how many concerted efforts to eradicate or un-stigmatize the word are implemented, it is ingrained in the American psyche forever as referencing a person of African-American decent - period. You can take the word and use it as an acronym for Never, Ignorant, Getting, Goals, Accomplished if you want, but the fact remains that it will always be a racial slur, and still is even when the comedienne is black. There is nothing that is going to take the sting out of it. Dave can keep using the word on his show if he wants and other races can get comfortable using it if they want to, BUT if they use it around the wrong person there is going to be a rash of ass kickings across the country.

The word bitch is another word that can be spoken in a friendly context but no matter what will always be considered hostile and degrading towards women. Although the word ‘bitch’ is not a racial slur it is a very harsh word when spoken in anger. However, women are able to call each other ‘bitch’ in a friendly manner, although it can also be used by a woman towards another woman and all hell breaks loose. There is an unspoken rule that says that women whom share a bond can call one another bitch but bitch becomes a fighting word when used outside of that relationship whether the user be male or female.

While most of us may not consider ourselves to be niggas, if a white person says to one of us ‘nigga’ - we will know just to whom they are talking to. People standing in earshot aren’t going to be gazing around scratching their heads, they are going to be looking at us awaiting our reaction. You are not going look around or wonder to whom the word was directed at either, you are going to react - even if you don’t consider yourself to be a nigga. It is a word that is used in the black community and that is also not going to change. I use the word from time to time and that doesn’t make me a bad person. If someone of another race thinks I am a nigga, they are going to do so regardless to whether I say the word or not. If that’s their mindset my self-image won’t change that. Now if you ask me do I agree with the word being used on Chappelle’s Show and I will have to say that at first I was a bit uncomfortable because it was on television. Had it been a DVD only, I wouldn’t have been the least bit uncomfortable. Don’t ask me why. Racial issues are just funny like that. There’s an unspoken rule in most races and maybe in human nature that says we can make fun of ourselves or our own culture, but other cultures are not allowed to do so. This rule isn’t logical nor does it make sense but it explains our level of public disclosure about cultural inadequacies.

During all of the commotion due to ‘Nipplegate’. I had to ask myself during the controversy that if it were Madonna, Britney, or Courtney Love who had bared their breasts, would America react with so much negative and far reaching criticisms, boycotts, and negative exposure? Was it because it was a black nipple that upset the very fabric of America? Did they not want their boys and girls exposed to the mammary glands of a black woman? I’m not here to debate Janet’s situation, to me she used bad taste by allowing Justin to be the one to rip it off cuz he didn’t have her back after the shit hit the fan - but anyway. Anything that African-Americans have done and prospered from professionally has always come under attack until the suburban kids start spending their money - then it’s a fad. Let me caution the suburban white kids, do not use the word ‘nigga’ as a slang term, you will get your ass beat in 99% of America no matter how ‘cool’ you think the black kid “Dante” is.

So, I’ve thought about this long and hard and I’ve come to some conclusions about the Chappelle Show::

1. The show is funny as hell, inappropriate humor and all

2. Some of the stuff he portrays is racially accurate, stereotypes do not pop out of thin air, even if the behavior is not true of all people belonging to that particular ethnic group

3. I am biased. Had Dave Chappelle been a white comedian I would be leading the protests and boycotts against his ass

 

So what I have decided is that I am still undecided about Chappelle’s Show. I have mixed feelings about the show and him but I enjoy watching it. Because the host is black it does make it easier to swallow and it only becomes uncomfortable when I think about other races laughing at the same things that I find funny about my own culture. My feeling is, I can laugh at a black crack addict because I know some, and I also know that our race is far more diverse than that. I can understand that a black person has made a decision to smoke crack, it was their choice and has no reflection on who I am as a person. It’s not due to the color of their skin or their gene pool that people become addicted to drugs. Drugs, thugs, hoes, and pimps are social problems - birthed by the inequality in the law, in economics, in politics, in education, and in opportunities that did not provide equal footing for the downtrodden. These are simply people, my brothers and sisters that have lost hope and it affects us all, which makes it a social problem - not a race problem. I identify with the poor, the addicted, and the hopeless because I know that despite their conditions, they are people who live and breathe as I do. In fact, the only thing that does bother me is that other races may believe that the entire black race is somehow the same, however, I do not hold myself personally responsible for what other people think about my race. They will form their own opinions. I have nothing to prove. If someone can’t look at me or speak to me and tell that I am not a ‘thug misses’ or some other stereotype then what can I do about that? Does that mean that I have to work extra hard to change their opinion about me and/or my people? No, it means that I am not responsible for the images that other cultures associate with my people. There are some that may feel that I am the stereotypical ‘angry black woman’ and I can be - see some myths are grounded in reality. But who has the time to worry about how others see us? It’s how we see ourselves that will force the masses to deal with us as individuals. I think black people are the only ones who really have hang ups about our social perception. I don’t see whites criticizing or even discussing their trailer park relatives or meth-manufacturing relations. They don’t seem to be embarrassed for their entire race when people like that are on the nightly news because they realize that that one person does not epitomize an entire race. Yet, they don’t extend that courtesy to other races and cultures.

In this country, we pay too much attention to race and but are in denial that the structure of our society is systematically against black people. I won’t include all people of color because some cultures are just beginning to understand what it’s like to be treated like a ‘nigga’ since 9/11. In closing, I will say I watch the show and will continue to do so until it ceases to be funny or he fucks up really badly and does some shit that I’m not down with. Yes, some of the material is tasteless, stereotypical, and crude but our society is in a downward spiral morally so why wouldn’t comedy reflect that?

Bitter B

Released: March 31st, 2004

The views and opinions expressed herein by the author do not necessarily represent the opinions or position of Playahata.com.