Equanimity

Dave Chappelle spends a significant portion of his 2017 special addressing the very people who were angry at him earlier in the year. Returning to his hometown of Washington, D.C., to tape at the Warner Theatre, Chappelle addresses the backlash from his previous Netflix releases, particularly regarding his material about the transgender community. Instead of backing down, he uses a letter sent by a disappointed trans fan to talk about his own perspective on political correctness and class, maintaining a relaxed posture with a cigarette in hand. The set also focuses heavily on the 2016 presidential election, with Chappelle recounting his experience standing in a voting line with working-class white voters in Ohio, pointing out the irony of poor Americans voting for a billionaire who is actually fighting for the wealthy. He closes the hour by shifting tone to tell a detailed, somber story about Emmett Till and his mother’s choice to hold an open-casket funeral, using the historical tragedy to comment on modern political reckoning.