Emily Smith
I am proud to say that I was one of the students who attended the evening comedy event hosted by 7220 Entertainment, but I am ashamed to say that I stayed for the duration. On the surface, it was a fantastic idea, but what I didn’t expect was 90 minutes of raunchy, racist spectacles.
Comedian number one, Jasmine Ellis, was much of what one would expect: funny, somewhat self-deprecating, but good natured. Yes, some of her jokes were racist, but it was okay, because she’s black—so she’s making fun of her own people. That makes it okay, right? No.
Comedian number two came out for her slice on stage, and Jenny Zigrino was more than anyone expected: more blond, more rude, and more raunchy. Sure, some people chuckled, but hearing an hour of cracks about sexual fetishes, social stigmas, and the current green card situation was beyond too much. That is the heart of why I’m upset I stayed.
Angie Thomas, the author of the award-winning book, The Hate U Give, put it this way: “That’s the problem. We let people say stuff, and they say it enough that it becomes okay to them and normal for us. What’s the point of having a voice if you’re gonna be silent in those moments you shouldn’t?”
Recently we celebrated Indigenous People’s Day, and so it’s especially fitting to write about current attitudes towards racism. While most of us would say we aren’t racist and would be appalled to be labeled as such, each of us sitting in that auditorium that night were at fault. One could argue that it was okay to hear black jokes from the stage because the woman giving them was black herself—but the minute we laugh at it places us as participants, too, and we shoulder some blame.
We only foster racist culture when we fund events such as these and further notions that it’s okay and it’s expected. I’m not saying these women are terrible people, terrible speakers, or terrible comedians—AT ALL. But I am asking why, in a day and age where we try so hard to be politically correct about everything—we force women like Jasmine Ellis to spout stuff about her skin color just for some friendly laughs. Let’s be better, people. Use your voice.
