There has reportedly been a wave of controversy surrounding Dave Chappelle’s visit to his Washington, D.C. high school. We previously reported on Chappelle hosting a fundraiser at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts where he graduated from back in 1991. It was reported that a select group of students of the school were upset about Chappelle’s appearance and threatened a walkout due to his remarks made on his hit Netflix comedy special, The Closer.
The fundraiser was reportedly postponed until next Spring and the school even gave a lengthy statement about the controversy, but it seems that Chappelle & Co. decided to go ahead with the event, anyway.
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The comedian spoke to the students and reportedly gave away Thanksgiving meals, but many reports noted that there were students who lashed out. Chappelle was reportedly called a “bigot” while on the campus, but Andrew Yang has come to Chappelle’s defense by blaming the press for the poor reports.
Yang is well-known for his bids for the presidency in 2020 as well as the New York City Democratic mayoral primary in 2021. He lost both races. On Twitter, he shared a photo of himself with Chappelle and praised the comedian for his political support.
“I was endorsed by a number of celebrities. Dave Chappelle is the only one who came to Iowa and South Carolina to perform on my behalf – with proceeds going to the campaign – and even made phone calls and hung out with staff. He did it because he wants to help people. Great guy,” Yang tweeted.
“The press hit job on his visiting his high school is awful,” he added. “Successful alum who fundraises for school returns, speaks to students and gives everyone a free meal for Thanksgiving. But of course in 2021 an obvious positive gesture is framed negatively in the media.” However, Yang was hit with backlash of his own—not necessarily for defending Chappelle, but for blaming a “press hit job” for the reports about the comedian’s visit.
Check it out below.
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