SNL criticized for Dave Chappelle's monologue on antisemitism, Kanye West

Dave Chappelle
(Image credit: (Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/For The Washington Post via Getty Images))

NBC's Saturday Night Live is getting criticism after comedian Dave Chappelle made comments about Kanye West's antisemitic remarks during his 15-minute set.

"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 prefaced his opening monologue.

NBC News says the comedian is "known for courting controversy and defying his most vocal critics."

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The CEO of the Anti-Defamation League Jonathan Greenblatt accused SNL of "popularizing anti-Semitism," reports The Hollywood Reporter.

In a tweet, Greenblatt wrote: "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?"

During Chappelle's SNL appearance, he also mocked Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving, who was recently suspended for sharing a link to the Hebrew to Negroes: Wake Up Black America documentary on social media, which "contains anti-Semitic sentiments," the Reporter notes. Chappelle said the NBA star was "slow to apologize."

Kelsee Majette, The Week US

Kelsee Majette has worked as a social media editor at The Week since 2022. In 2019, she got her start in local television as a digital producer and fill-in weather reporter at NTV News. Kelsee also co-produced a lifestyle talk show while working in Nebraska and later transitioned to 13News Now as a digital content producer.