Dave Chappelle speaks out about the death of George Floyd in surprise Netflix special
Dave Chappelle has released a surprise Netflix-produced special for free on YouTube that tackles the events following the killing of George Floyd.
On Thursday, the ever-candid Chappelle unveiled 8:46, which was the length of time police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd's neck, causing his death (though Chappelle's video itself is nearly a half-hour). During the special, the comedian discusses the death of several black men at the hands of police, such as Floyd in Minnesota, Michael Brown in Missouri, Trayvon Martin in Florida, and Eric Garner in New York City. He also blasts cable news stables Don Lemon, Candace Owens, and Laura Ingram.
"Are you guys having a good time or is this weird?" Chappelle asked the social distancing Ohio crowd. "This is the first concert in North America since this has happened. Like it or not, it's history, it's going to be in the books. Other shows were like in drive-ins, and if you like the jokes you honk the horn."
Chappelle opened by talking about how he was once in an earthquake that lasted around 30 seconds and how terrifying it was and how he thought he was going to die. "This man kneeled on a man's neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds! Can you imagine that? The kid thought he was going to die, he knew he was going to die. He called for his dead mother. I've only seen that once in my life – my father on his death bed called for his grandmother. When I watched that tape, I understood this man knew he was going to die. For some reason I still don't understand, all these f— police had their hands in their pockets... I don't mean to get heavy, but gotta say something."
On the protests, Chappelle said: "I was watching [CNN's] Don Lemon and he said, 'Where are these celebrities? Why aren't you talking?' I was yelling at the TV: 'I dare you to say me!' ... Have I not ever said things bout this before? Now, this n—r expects met to step into the streets and talk over the work these people are doing? Do you want a celebrity right now? Do we give a f— what Ja Rule thinks? This is the streets talking. I kept my mouth shut. But don't think my silence is complicit, trying to get everyone to sing these f—ing songs. I know all these songs. I was raised on these songs. why would anyone care what their favorite comedian thinks after seeing a man kneel on a man's neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds? I can't get that time out of my head because it was the time of my birth on my birth certificate."
"...Lebron James once said something about racism and [Fox News host] Laura Ingram ... told one of Ohio's greatest residents to 'shut up and dribble,'" he continued. "He exceeded every expectation they had for him. Good man, Lebron James. He's a family man, didn't let anyone down. Bitch told my friend to 'shut up and dribble.' My friend is the best at something. She's not the best at anything"
"I see Candace Owens trying to convince white America 'don't worry about it, he's a criminal anyway,'" Chappelle said regarding the Floyd protests. "I don't care what he did. I don't care if he kicked Candace Owens in her stanky p---y. She's the worst. I can't think of a worse way to make money. She's the most articulate idiot I've ever seen in my f--king life. She's so articulate she'll tell you how stupid she is precisely – 'he's a drug addict, and he's not a hero, why did the black community make him a hero, why do we choose him as a hero?' We didn't! You did! They killed him and that wasn't right so he's the guy. We're not desperate for heroes in the black community. Any n—r that survives this nightmare is my goddamn hero."
At one point Chappelle noted, "This is not funny at all."
The concert includes a disclaimer: "From Dave: Normally I wouldn’t show you something so unrefined, I hope you understand," and contains a link to the Equal Justice Initiative.
Watch the full video above.
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