Amy Schumer wants you to know she isn't racist
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Comedian Amy Schumer apparently did not appreciate The Guardian's take on her occasional forays into race jokes. The article, published Sunday, read:
For such a keen observer of social norms and an effective satirist of the ways gender is complicated by them, Schumer has a shockingly large blind spot around race. Her lacklustre stint hosting the MTV Movie awards (a rare misstep) featured lazy jokes about Latina women being “crazy” that left Jennifer Lopez as unimpressed as the online commentariat. While a much-lauded sketch from the show featured an ad for a training centre where old people learn not to be racist, Schumer’s stand-up repeatedly delves into racial territory tactlessly and with no apparent larger point. [The Guardian]
In a time-honored celebrity tradition, Schumer responded via lengthy Twitter screenshot statement:
She made clear it's her job to make light of potentially uncomfortable topics like race, and she doesn't plan on stopping anytime soon.
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"It is a joke and it is funny. I know that because people laugh at it," she wrote. "Trust me. I am not a racist."
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Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.
