Dave Chappelle receives heat from some, understanding from others following controversial "SNL" monologue on antisemitism
NEW YORK -- Dave Chappelle is facing backlash from the Jewish community over what some view as antisemitic remarks.
CBS2's Jessica Moore looks into what he said and why some people say he was just doing his job.
"I denounce antisemitism in all its forms, and I stand with my friends in the Jewish community. And that, Kanye, is how you buy yourself some time," Chappelle said during his monologue on "Saturday Night Live" this past weekend.
Chappelle kicked off his appearance by giving Kanye West a playbook on how to avoid blowback after making antisemitic remarks, a move that cost West $1.5 billion in partnership deals.
"I grew up around Jewish people. I have a lot of Jewish friends, so I'm not freaked out by your culture. I know a little about it just from hanging around. Yo, let's go out after school tomorrow. Like, we can't. It's Sha-na-na tomorrow. What is Sha-na-na?" Chappelle said, referring to Jewish holidays.
The president of the Anti-Defamation League blasted NBC on Twitter, saying, in part, "We shouldn't expect @DaveChappelle to serve as society's moral compass, but disturbing to see @nbcsnl not just normalize but popularize #antisemitism. Why are Jewish sensitivities denied or diminished at almost every turn? Why does our trauma trigger applause?"
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Moore asked David Schwartz, an attorney, for his reaction after seeing the monologue.
"Were you offended?' Moore asked.
"No, but I tend not to be offended by humor. Comedians say offensive things all the time. When I saw that and he was referring to 'Sha-na-na,' I was laughing. I mean, I thought it was really funny," Schwartz said.
But Schwartz, a former president of his Long Island temple, did take issue with Chappelle's defense of NBA star Kyrie Irving, whose repost of an antisemitic film and initial refusal to apologize got him suspended from the Brooklyn Nets.
"I know the Jewish people have been through terrible things all over the world, but you can't blame that on Black Americans," Chappelle said. "Kyrie Irving's black a-- was nowhere near the Holocaust. In fact, he's not even certain it existed."
"I think it's very dangerous for even a comedian to allude to the fact that the Holocaust didn't take place, the execution of 6 million Jews," Schwartz said.
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Psychiatrist Dr. Carol Lieberman said she didn't find Chappelle's remarks offensive, but was confused.
"By the end of it you're left wondering whose side is he on -- Kanye and Kyrie or the Jews? And perhaps that's what he wanted, you know, for nobody to be offended, to have it be left in this sort of ambiguous kind of way," Lieberman said.
"For me, the ultimate takeaway was that the criticism of them was overblown and what they said was not that bad," TV critic Eric Deegans said of West and Irving. "When you are talking about like antisemitism, there's already concerns that it's rising in society and Jewish people are facing increasing dangers because antisemites feel emboldened by the current atmosphere. So, we have more reason than ever to ask our most prominent comics and performers to be definitive about where they stand on antisemitism and not play these rhetorical tricks."
CBS2 reached out to Chappelle's reps and BC for a comment but did not immediately hear back.