Chappelle's Show Conspiracy
There is now a website up that purports to tell the truth about Dave Chappelle's immensely popular show's abrupt cancellation earlier this year. Highly intriguing. Highly scary. Highly unsubstantiable (new word for ya). The website's author holds that a group of highly influential Black political and entertainment figures conspired over the course of over two years to destroy Chappelle's Show and stop it from "setting race relations back 50 years." The group is referred to as "The Dark Crusaders" and reportedly is made up of Bob Johnson, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Cosby, Whoopi Goldberg, Louis Farrakhan, Al Sharpton, and Jesse Jackson. This mixture of conservative and liberal, Muslim and Christian, activist and actor is amazing and may have caused the biggest television (or entertainment PERIOD, for that matter) event of 2005 to never occur--Season Three of Chappelle's Show. In my opinion, the site lacks absolutely any established credence as legit. However, as George W. Bush's election and subsequent re-election (stupid Ohioans!) tells us, credibility is not always necessary in today's wacky world. What are your thoughts, readers?!?
posted by Chimaobi Amutah @ 4:13 PM
5 Comments:
I just finished reading the website and I have to agree that it is highly unrealistic and absurd. Come on now, Oprah standing over his body holding a gun to his head?! Al Sharpton threatening his children? Oprah using her money and connections to broadcast a special message just to Dave Chappelle's television? I think it's pretty obvious that the "theory" displayed on the website is not even intended to be taken seriously. My question is, do you think the website is an intentional satire pointing out the ridiculousness of the accusation that the Chapelle Show was degrading black people? Or is the website just the product of somebody who had wayyy too much time on their hands to develop this conspiracy theory?
I don't know if I'd call the assertion that Chapelle's Show was degrading Black people "ridiculousness". Sadly, this is the only window many White U.S. citizens (and others in the world) have of Black Americans and many take it as truly representative of Black people's actions or views. Chappelle's whole show is social commentary. ALMOST ENTIRELY. Nevertheless, how many of its viewers just laugh at his jokes and don't reflect on deeper issues the show raises (i.e. with the "Racial Draft" sketch, why does someone like Tiger Woods have to identify with a particular "race"? Aren't we all supposed to be of mixed ancestry anyway?)
On your main question, however, I'm not sure if the site is intentional satire or not. I keep my mind open. As the saying goes, "truth is stranger than fiction."
I mean, it's obviously fake in that Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson hate each other. That's common knowledge. While Louis Farrakhan may be a fan of post-"I hate poor people" Bill Cosby, it is certain that the feelings are not mutual from Cosby's end. Oprah would probably never set foot in the same room with Farrakhan for fear someone might find out and cancel her show like they did Arsenio Hall. Moreover, if all of these black people are so powerful, why didn't Chappelle just call on all of the white people making hundreds of millions off of his work at whatever conglomerate owns Comedy Central? The closest that any group of blacks has ever had to having this type of power over other blacks is the Tuskegee Machine run by Booker T Washington at the turn of the 20th century. The theory has so many ridiculous holes in it, just from its cast of characters that the main interesting thing about it would be why the author wrote it more so than is it actually true. Is this a commentary on black politics? Some sort of science fiction/political thriller for internet purposes? Or is it just someone being a huge asshole? Perhaps we shall never know...
Just because people don't like each other doesn't mean they can't work together. Think George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton being bitter rivals during their 1992 Presidential campaigns and then collaborating on tsunami and now Katrina relief at the behest of President Bush. Think Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens not liking each other going into the regular season but still connecting for six touchdowns and over 750 yards while T.O. was still active this season. Think Larry Summers and Black people or women (such as Senior Vice Provost Evelyn Hammonds...no other provost has such a title, mind you).
Chappelle not calling on the White people making hundreds of millions of dollars off his work can be attributed to numerous reasons. Maybe he didn't want to have Whites rally to his side against his own people (a la Clarence Thomas or C. Delores Tucker). Maybe he has strong misgivings about those White people who he is making SO much money. Maybe he feared for his life and that of his father, wife, and children.
As far as power over other Blacks is concerned, don't forget about my homeboy Marcus Garvey. Please.
Motives for the author writing it? Who knows.
Dave just tell,s it like he wants to,,,,all is[network] cut ,that bosses dont like,Dont blame messinger,he made money,went to africa,gave some to less fortunate people,dave is,,,Akwaaba,here,and in ghana,nim nyansa,dave chapelle,haw me ma dave[twi,akan]BE WELL!G WRITES FROM CALIFORNIA
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