On Thursday night, comedian Dave Chappelle criticized the Biden Administration’s decision to back Israel’s attack on Gaza at a live performance in Boston.
While Chappelle condemned Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, which killed 1400 people, he blamed Israel for its attack on Gaza, and said the U.S. was responsible for their support of “the slaughter of innocent civilians.”
This sparked some pushback from the crowd.
A person in the audience called for Chappelle to “shut up” after he remarked that people shouldn’t lose their jobs when they publicly express their support for the Palestinians.
In response to the heckler, Chappelle slammed the Israeli government’s decision to cut Gaza off from food, water and electricity.
Israeli defense forces have killed over 4,300 Palestinians, as they continue to pummel the enclave with more than 6,000 bombs.
Many members of the audience cheered in support and shouted “Free Palestine!” Others shot back, “What about Hamas?”
As a result, several audience members walked out.
At the end of his show, Chappelle said two wrongs don’t make a right, in reference to Israel’s military response to Hamas’ attack.
As the war between Israel and Hamas continues to be widely debated, people in the United States and across the world have faced backlash for their public support of Palestinians.
Madonna had to increase her security at her Celebration world tour in response to her comments from the stage that called for peace.
Other celebrities have shown their support for Palestine on social media, including Emma Watson, Mark Ruffalo and Dua Lipa.
Chappelle is known for his controversial takes – he previously angered LGBTQ advocates with his comments in his Netflix special.
