Source: Paras Griffin / Getty
Dave Chappelle continues to stand in stark defiance of the critique raised after his latest Netflix stand-up special The Closer went wide. After being told he was no longer welcome, the Washington, D.C. native returned to his hometown to visit his alma mater and was met with jeers and tough questions from the student body.
POLITICO provided a detailed account of Chappelle’s surprise visit to the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, with the famed comedian hosting an hourlong Q&A session on Tuesday (Nov. 23) that found him being called a “bigot” by one student and complaints of his visit from some of the parents of the students.
In response to the 16-year-old student who called him a bigot and reportedly said that Chappelle handled the situation “like a child,” the comedian reportedly fired back saying, “My friend, with all due respect, I don’t believe you could make one of the decisions I have to make on a given day.”
Chappelle’s spokesperson said of the uproar regarding his visit is offset by his donations to the school and elevating its presence nationwide.
“They are complaining that he talked and said the n-word. If anything, Dave is putting the school on the map,” the spokesperson said.
It wasn’t all malice and ill intent as Chappelle willingly took on the questions from around eight students, and was accompanied by a camera crew for the event. Hearing of death threats levied upon members of the school, Chappelle reportedly said, “This is my family, and whether they know it or not I love these kids. I don’t want to hear about any threats to these kids. These kids don’t deserve that.”
Chappelle then gave out tickets to the screening of his Untiled documentary at the Capital One Arena and vacated the premises.
On Twitter, reaction to Dave Chappelle visiting his old high school cropped up and we’ve got the reactions below.
—
Photo: Getty