Controversial comedian Isaac Butterfield has been slammed over a 'joke' in which he said the saddest thing about the death of Muslims in the Christchurch massacre was that it led to a shortage of taxi drivers.
Butterfield made the shocking joke at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival last year, but it has now reemerged as part of his latest YouTube special 'Anti Hero'.
Known for his outspoken and dark sense of humour, Butterfield has previously come under fire for joking about the Holocaust and telling a Jewish woman to 'get back in the oven'.
But his latest sick gag came at the expense of the 51 people gunned down inside two Christchurch mosques by extremist Brenton Harrison Tarrant on March 15, 2019.
Tarrant, from Grafton in New South Wales, livestreamed the attack on Facebook and posted an 'anti-Islamic manifesto' online in the minutes before launching the attack.
In the joke, Butterfield said the people worst affected by the New Zealand massacre were the locals who had no way of getting home that night because 'all the cabbies' had been killed.
Controversial comedian Isaac Butterfield (pictured) has been slammed over a joke in which he said the saddest thing about the Islamic deaths in the Christchurch massacre was that it led to a shortage of taxi drivers in the city
'This Australian extremist stormed this mosque, this room where people were saying their prayers and going about their business,' Butterfield explained to the crowd.
'For me, the saddest thing about that, it wasn't the 52 people who were killed. It was not the countless others who had their lives changed forever because their family members were taken from them.
'It was the hundreds of people that night who couldn't make it home from nightclubs in Christchurch because all the cabbies were dead.'
His joke initially drew a shocked response from the audience, before they eventually burst into laughter and applause.
But Islamic community leader Almir Colan did not find the joke funny.
In a series of Tweets over the weekend he explained that while appreciating some of Butterfield's humour, this joke was unfair on families who had lost loved ones.
'I think people like Isaac Butterfield argue that there is too much political correctness (and that's a fair point) and that comedians should be free to talk about anything and nothing should be off limits,' Mr Colan wrote.
'That is also fair enough. We don't want to live in a totalitarian society where people are scared to demand their rights and live in fear from too powerful government or corporations.
'But in his joke about victims of the Christchurch massacre, Butterfield is not going against some powerful forces nor is he using his voice to speak truth to power.
'Butterfield is bullying the most powerless and voiceless amongst us - he is haunting the survivors.'
Australian white supremacist Brenton Tarrant (pictured) killed 51 people when he opened fire at two mosques in Christchurch in 2019. Hours earlier he posted his anti-Islam manifesto to an infamous right-wing website
The horrific terror attack in Christchurch, which left 51 worshipers dead, has been described as New Zealand's darkest day (Pictured are 40 of the victims)
Masjid An-Nur mosque (pictured) was the first location of Tarrant's horrific attack on March 15, 2019
Islamic community leader Almir Colan (pictured) explained that while appreciating some of Butterfield's humour, this joke was unfair on families who had lost loved ones
'Butterfield is bullying the most powerless and voiceless amongst us - he is haunting the survivors,' Mr Colan said
Mr Colan's outrage was echoed by many on social media, however some defended it simply as 'dark humour'.
'He actually did make a holocaust joke and he was almost shutdown but he says it was just a joke,' one person wrote on Reddit.
'This person does have some really good views and I respect him for that but he should try to be more respectful when making these jokes.'
'Did he not watch the videos and see the brutality and horror of it all? What sort of sick, twisted individual would actually make a joke about that?' asked another.
'I get it. It's totally despicable and no doubt hurtful to a lot of people. However... that is what black and dark humour is... it's meant to be uncomfortable and taboo,' wrote another person.
'There are countless comedians who have made jokes about other catastrophes and they are rife throughout pop culture.'
In a post on YouTube on Monday, Butterfield explained that he had actually visited the scene of the Christchurch attack in the months that followed and said a prayer.
'I will continue to say f***ing horrible things because that is what I find funny and if you don't find it funny all you have to do is not watch it,' he said.
'I'm not going to be mad at you, you just don't have to watch it.'
Opinion was split among commenters on Reddit, with some slamming Butterfield and others saying his joke was simply 'dark humour'
Members of the the public grieve at a makeshift memorial at the Al Noor Mosque on Deans Rd in Christchurch, New Zealand after the attack in March 2019
Students place candles at a makeshift memorial at the Botanical Gardens in Christchurch, New Zealand, in the days after the attack
Tarrant pleaded guilty to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and a single count of engaging in a terrorist act in March this year.
The 29-year-old white supremacist will almost definitely be sentenced to life in jail in the Christchurch High Court at a three-day sentencing hearing from August 24th.
Tarrant last month sacked his Christchurch lawyers in favour of representing himself.
Despite his guilty plea, he has never shown any remorse for his actions.
The Link LonkAugust 03, 2020 at 01:24PM
https://ift.tt/3flvPOj
Isaac Butterfield slammed over Christchurch massacre joke - Daily Mail
https://ift.tt/2BsGM2G
Joke
No comments:
Post a Comment