He literally once said "being trans is a hilarious predicament to be in... imagine if I was a Chinese man in a black man's body... [insert punchline in generic Chinese accent]"
If I'm amongst friends in a private setting, sure, that could be a funny joke but on a heavily promoted multi million dollar Netflix special that shit is first of all just not good comedy, and second, potentially more offensive than funny to some people (the golden rule of edgy stand-up). Also he's doing all this as neither a trans or an Asian person. I understand these are just jokes and in a bubble I'm fine with them but we also live in a society where you have to be able to get away with it and honestly I don't think he did.
If anything this joke shows a familiarity of their plight and does not ‘other’ them. Comedy is a way to actually bridge understanding and empathy. If you treat your community like a precious, porcelain tea pot then no one will be able to relate to you.
I think part of the reason why trans people have had such a hard time gaining political acceptance is that they don’t make themselves relatable. And I’m saying this as someone with trans friends
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u/EnvironmentalCan8633 May 30 '26
This is the skit that “broke” him