During an interview with Peter Hamby on Snapchat’s show Good Luck America , Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg spoke about comedian Dave Chappelle’s controversial Sticks & Stones comedy special, in which he made a joke about transgender people.
Although Buttigieg said there is a “debate” about what should be allowed to be humorous, he claims that comedy that includes “hurtful” and “hateful” things should be “turned off,” Breitbart reports.
“When a piece of art that is out there to challenge conventions, does something that’s really harmful, then I think it’s time to turn it off. But we get to have these debates,” he said.
When pressed about Chappelle’s controversial special, Buttigieg admitted he hadn’t seen it yet but warned against its controversial style of humor.
“I will say that there comes a point where you’re just straight up hurting people, I don’t know what goal you’re hoping to achieve,” he said.
Per People , transgender comedian Daphne Dorman, who Chappelle gave a shoutout to in his Netflix special, committed suicide at age 44. She reportedly took her life following a suicide note that was posted on Facebook early on October 11.
“I’m sorry. I’ve thought about this a lot before this morning. How do you say ‘goodbye’ and ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘I love you’ to all the beautiful souls you know? For the last time,” it read.
Dorman and Chappelle were reportedly friends, and Dorman celebrated her appearance in his special via an Instagram post.
As for Buttigieg, he is currently in fourth place in the Democratic presidential primary with 5.2 percent support in the polls. He recently addressed fellow contender Beto O’Rourke’s comments that institutions or organizations that oppose same-sex marriage should not receive tax breaks.
According to Buttigieg, O’Rourke was not aware of the implications of his comment. He said he believes anti-discrimination laws should be applied to all institutions except for churches and other religious organizations, and suggested that O’Rourke’s proposal was akin to “going to war” with churches. He also said that such a policy would be a violation of important principles, such as the separation of church and state.
CNN reports that Buttigieg recently took aim at Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders ahead of tonight’s debate in a digital ad that blasted the pair’s Medicare for All proposals. According to Buttigieg’s campaign, the ad is meant to promote Buttigieg’s more middle-of-the-road healthcare plan, which would allow people to maintain their private healthcare and select the plan that best suits their needs.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741. For readers outside the U.S., visit Suicide.org or Befrienders Worldwide for international resources you can use to find help.