You’ve probably heard at least one person say, “There are no boundaries for comedy,” especially if that person is known for liking or telling jokes founded on offensive stereotypes about minority groups. But there’s a fine line between poking fun at someone’s expense and disrespecting an entire group of people.

There should never be any tolerance for discriminatory events and shows in entertainment spaces, especially in a city that wants to pride itself on diversity and inclusion like Toronto.

Comedians are notorious for landing themselves in hot water over jokes they’ve made, and famed comedian Dave Chappelle is no exception. After his newest Netflix comedy special The Closer was released on Oct. 5 this year, Chappelle became the center of controversy after making a slew of jokes that targeted the transgender community. These jokes amplified many transphobic stereotypes and ignored scientific knowledge about trans bodies and gender identity.

At one point during the special, he mentioned how many people called J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series, a trans-exclusionary radical feminist (also known as a TERF) for her past tweets invalidating the struggles of transgender women. Chappelle admitted he is now “Team TERF” and defended Rowling’s words. The comedian was known for his jokes that often addressed topical issues in a comedic manner but many think he took it too far this time.

Audiences rightfully criticized Netflix for permitting these jokes to be in the special and Netflix employees even held a walkout, protesting the streaming service’s lack of support for the transgender and non-binary community. A larger issue arose when Netflix had fired the trans employees who expressed their frustrations online about Chappelle’s comedy. Countless celebrities including Dan Levy, Elliot Page and Billy Eichner sent words of encouragement to the employees fighting for change. Netflix co-CEO Tim Sarandos ended up standing by Chappelle and decided against removing the special off the platform.

Most people would think that after the internet slammed Chappelle’s transphobic rhetoric, the comedian would take time to reflect on his jokes. Instead of apologizing, however, he said in an Instagram video: “To the transgender community, I am more than willing to give you an audience, but you will not summon me. I am not bending to anyone’s demands,” and used the opportunity to advertise the dates for his upcoming tour in November.

This tour was intended to show a new documentary focusing on his career, Untitled, in movie venues across North America. Toronto was one of the major cities he would visit. The screening, shown at the Scotiabank Arena on Nov. 15, sold out immediately. Kanye West and Toronto rapper Drake were two of the thousands of attendees at the show. The decision stirred mixed reactions among Toronto residents. Some applauded Chappelle’s bravery to dismiss cancel culture.

Others called out the arena for allowing the event to happen. The venue even turned off their comments section under any social media content related to the show.

A spokesperson for the venue’s organization, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), told CTV News Toronto in a statement that the event’s content matter did not reflect the views of the organization. Non-profit organization Pride Toronto addressed their frustration on Twitter, saying the comedian should not have been allowed to screen his documentary at the arena after his transphobic remarks.

Dave Chappelle’s situation makes up only a fraction of the normalized homophobia and transphobia present in media and film on and off-screen.

In GLAAD’s 2020 report, they found that out of 118 films released from major studios, zero transgender characters were featured in them. This marks the third consecutive year they have been absent from major studio films.

The few times trans people are represented in films are riddled with transmisogyny. Either trans women become the butt of the joke or become the antagonists of the story. In comedies, trans women are mocked for their appearance and generally disliked by the protagonists. The hit sitcom Friends always had issues with queerness but their frequent jokes about a character having a trans mother became excessive.

The horror genre is riddled with this issue. Movies like Psycho (1960), Silence of the Lambs (1990), and Sleepaway Camp (1983) have a complex history of villanizing characters implied to be transgender or struggling with gender dysphoria. All of these tropes are made to portray transgender people in a negative light and send a harmful message that all trans people are not worthy of respect.

Not only that, celebrities like DaBaby, Kevin Hart, and Eminem have all used slurs and mocked queer people’s existences. Although these instances garnered negative press, they are still continuing to thrive in the industry.

This brings up an important question: why is transphobia persistent in film and media? Just like every facet of our world, transphobia is ingrained in our society and continues to thrive under capitalism.

This year became the deadliest year for transgender people in the United States, with 45 homicides as of now. What makes matters worse is every time a gender-based hate crime is reported, the same negative things are said.  Some people have the skewed perception that transphobes are permitted to be mad if a trans person does not immediately out themselves. Often, the perpetrators will defend the crime, saying their violence was out of “frustration and shock” of finding out someone is trans. No matter how bad the situation is, somebody will always find a way to blame the victim.

Transphobia is being swept under the rug because businesses and major film studios see no value in diversifying their spaces and stopping bigoted celebrities. Dave Chappelle is one of the most famous comedians and brings a huge audience to Netflix for his comedy specials. Of course the CEOs would side with him in the name of monetary gain. It’s been proven constantly that as long as money can still be made, the protests of minorities will be unheard.

Back to the lack of representation in film and television — casting in film and capitalism are correlated. Movie studios want to appeal to the broadest audiences. These studios are scared to create diverse roles because it potentially means less success at the box office and outcry by close-minded individuals. Rich people with discriminatory ideals will only continue to thrive in a system built to uplift them.

Every day, trans people are fighting for survival in a world designed to oppress and silence them, and cisgender people may not even realize this. It’s a privilege to never be worried about having your body, health, and existence policed.  It’s a privilege to not worry about using the washroom or walking out in public. It’s a privilege to express yourself without worrying about being assaulted.

Internet users trying to defend Chappelle for his jokes fail to realize the impactful damage these jokes have. These jokes aren’t solely isolated on the internet but are allowing a climate that normalizes hate speech and violence to continue.

Not only is it tasteless and unoriginal to joke about the lives of others, but it’s also simply unfunny. It is not groundbreaking to punch down on the lived experiences and struggles you will never have to endure in life. Pandering to the most close-minded and bigoted people makes Chappelle, frankly, a bad comedian.

It is time for us as consumers to start being selective about the celebrities we give platforms to. Let’s stop the idea that opposing the wrongdoings of a celebrity is creating a toxic “cancel culture.” Calling it that does nothing but gaslight and silence the concerns of marginalized communities. Famous people are not godly beings, but regular people who still need to take accountability for their actions.

Toronto venues need to start actively preventing these bigoted celebrities from performing in the city. The decision to keep doing so reflects a lack of care towards the 2SLGBTQ+ community because actions speak louder than words.

To Toronto venues, it’s time to step up and do better because people will not stop fighting the disparities and transphobia present in society and it starts with being selective about the celebrities we choose to uplift in our city. Toronto needs to stick to its word about caring for marginalized communities and stop supporting Dave Chappelle’s future shows.