Netflix reportedly fired an organizer of trans employee walkout sparked by Dave Chappelle controversy
Netflix has fired a leader of the company's trans employee resource group helping organize a walkout on Oct. 20, The Verge reports Friday. The company has been embroiled in controversy surrounding comedian Dave Chappelle's latest Netflix special The Closer, in which he jokes about transgender people and the LGBTQ community. The resource group has thus been "encouraging trans employees and allies to walk out of work in protest," explains The Verge.
The employee, who is Black and also pregnant, was terminated for allegedly leaking to Bloomberg News internal metrics related to Chappelle's special, per The Wall Street Journal. "We understand the employee may have been motivated by disappointment and hurt with Netflix, but maintaining a culture of trust and transparency is core to our company," said a Netflix spokesperson.
Also on Friday, comedian Hannah Gadsby tore into co-CEO Ted Sarandos for having included her in his continued defense of Chappelle — Sarandos reportedly cited Gadsby's hit Netflix specials as evidence the company values inclusivity and ensures "marginalized communities aren't defined by a single story," per The New York Times.
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"Hey Ted Sarandos!" said Gadsby in an Instagram post. "Just a quick note to let you know that I would prefer if you didn't drag my name into your mess. Now I have to deal with even more of the hate and anger that Dave Chappelle's fans like to unleash on me every time Dave gets 20 million dollars to process his emotionally stunted partial world view." She went on to call the company an "amoral algorithm cult." Read more at The Verge.
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Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
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