It's a hangover from the old blatantly offensive minstrel shows. I would rather the NAACP got defensive about their own black comedians constantly degrading their own race with sterotyping. I don't believe today there's any black comedian that doesn't feel compelled to use Mother F... in every sentence.

I don't believe today there's any black comedian that doesn't feel compelled to use Mother F... in every sentence

Bill Cosby... one of the few prominant blacks willing to tell the truth.

As for the white face/black face thing, I think the argument would go back to how "evil" minstrel shows were in perpetuating white stereotypes about blacks, and thus racist. But since, to a liberal, blacks can't be racist, acting in white face is not only not racist, but possibly "empowering." It comes down to the same rational as blacks can use the N-word but whites can't.

That's an interesting observation.

Hmmm,*sarcastic* As a white person, I am offended by the movie white chicks, I demand theaters stop showing it.

If the comedian offends you, then don't go to his show..... easy thought!

I wonder if the NAACP if also offended by Micheal Jackson?

lol I was thinking about Michael Jackson when I read this..

Ashlee

Aren't they? the NAACP

I thought every movie with Ashton Kuscher in it was a crack at white people?

You might be a redneck if.....

And let's not forget guys, the movie White Chicks is supposed to be humorous. They aren't trying to offend anyone.

Umm, it doesn't sound like the comedian is trying to offend anyone either.

Don't get me wrong, I don't see the point of the blackface, and don't see how it enhanves one's act...but I do think there's a definite double standard going on here (neither Eddie Murphy nor the Wayans brothers has ever offended me as a caucasian, but both have done the same thing this comedian is doing).

If the NAACP wants to go after the people who truly are perpetuating negative black stereotypes, I suggest they start with their own; many of the lyrics that today's "gangsta" rappers put out do FAR more harm to the image of blacks in America (read the liner notes, folks...). I'd have to find out more about this guy to know what I truly think about his act...

I'll be honest... The whole blackface thing kind of irks me. I think I'd be more all right with it if his material was racially-biased, then I'd find it funny, because over-the-top racism is funny, but being racist unintentionally is just uncomfortable. It is funny though how black activist groups can be. It's like with the Wayans brothers' movie, "Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood." Supposedly, that was racist while other gangsta movies were works of art, even though that movie's making fun of stereotypes, while the other gangsta movies aren't making fun of stereotypes, but promoting them. Special interest groups are stupid though.

Does anyone know if this guy makes a point of his facepaint in his act? It sounds strange to me that he would choose to appear black anyway unless he thought he could get a cheap laugh out of it. Surely anyone who saw him would be able to tell from his facial features that he wasn't an African American/Aborigine/Pacific Islander/etc. Personally I would have considered it more of a weird gimmick than a "racist" move, but then I've never heard of the Black Minstrels show, so perhaps I don't understand the whole context.

I can see how it would be a bloody stupid gimmick to have purely because someone is bound to take offence. Why did he even agree to do the show if he knew that the organisers were operating under a false assumption, even if it's one based on racist overtones? I don't want to judge this man without meeting him or seeing his act, but there are serious questions about his intentions.

but we see it all the time on shows like SNL and MadTV and Comedy Central, and its usually against blacks, asians

This is completely incorrect. My television hangs out on a select few channels, and one of those is Comedy Central. I obviously end up watching a ton of stand-ups. I even watch some of the stand-ups on BET sometimes. Anyway, I would say when it comes to one race joking or making fun of another race (i.e. a black guy joking about the white race, or a white guy joking about the black race), there are VERY few that make fun of black people. VERY few!! Now, when it comes to black comedians making fun of white people, it's no holds barred.

A lot of comedians do make fun of their own race though. This makes up almost the entire set for some comedians, like Dat Phan who won last years Last Comic Standing.

It is interesting though that white people are the only ones that I've never heard get offended by jokes directed toward their race. I know that I've never cared.

A perfect example of this is how often do you hear a white comedian say the 'N' word? VERY rarely if ever...
How often do you see black comedians say 'cracker' or any other term that could be considered racially derogatory?