A comedy of manners
It was unsurprising to watch Dave Chappelle prod the boundaries of American propriety in his latest special on Netflix (Lexington, October 16th). Flirting with inflammatory rhetoric is the hallmark of his work. Thus his special, “The Closer”, is peppered with the usual jokes lobbed at African-Americans, Chinese and Jews and, mostly these days, trans people. What was surprising was his support for “team terf”, a pejorative term applying to those who argue that trans women are fundamentally not women. Some would call this gender realism. But to many trans people, to be “trans-exclusionary” is to deny their right to be themselves, the very right to exist.
Declaring oneself to be a trans-exclusive feminist is surely just a different type of the “group politics” that Lexington describes as “zerosum and exclusionary”. And it was clear who was being excluded from Mr Chappelle’s compassion. There was no punchline. If he was being sarcastic, the point was lost. Standing ovations don’t make it good, or right, or funny.
Once upon a time, yet not that long ago, a popular position on homosexuality was that same-sex attraction was biologically deviant, domestically pernicious and deserved to be derided. Discrimination against gays isn’t extinct, but thankfully the culture has changed. jedd horvath
Victoria, Canada
As the parent of a trans young adult, and seeing first-hand the challenge and joy of watching someone I love becoming more and more truly themselves, I watched “The Closer” with a mixture of understanding and dismay. I applauded Mr Chappelle’s emotional story of Daphne Dorman, a trans woman, and his friendship with her. But Sir Terry Pratchett, a more thoughtful and empathetic social observer, got it right when he said, “Satire is meant to ridicule power. If you are laughing at people who are hurting, it’s not satire, it’s bullying.” sarah murphy Hillsborough, California
I appreciated Lexington’s take on Mr Chappelle. As a liberal, socially progressive gay person, I have been impressed by The Economist’s clear-headed analysis of topics that are too hot to touch in most other media, such as transgender rights versus women’s rights and the rise of the “illiberal left”. Mr Chappelle’s new show did not receive good reviews, which is surprising because, as the column pointed out, the woke left’s take on transgender issues is a fringe opinion. It makes one wonder why these reviewers felt obliged to pander to this vocal fringe. james jiang
New York