Trevor Noah in social media storm over ‘ignorant’ joke
The comedian has apologised, saying he only meant to use comedy as a way of dealing with pain.
Comedian Trevor Noah speaks at a press conference hosted by M-Net at Montecasino in Fourways, 10 August 2017. Noah, who is the host of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show and is based in New York, is in South Africa putting on a number of shows in Johannesburg and Durban. Picture: Michel Bega
Comedian and The Daily Show host Trevor Noah recently found himself in the middle of a social media storm after a joke he made on his show.
Noah poked fun at the conflict between Pakistan and India, then received criticism from those who labelled his joke “racist, stereotypical and downright offensive”.
Noah said: “I hope India and Pakistan don’t go to war, but if they did go to war it would be the most entertaining war of all time, because the Indian soldiers would run into the battlefield and shoot while singing and dancing.”
He then sang “time for you to die” in an Indian accent, and accompanied the ‘lyrics’ with an Indian beat, in a demonstration of how he thought Indian soldiers would behave on the battlefield.
He further said: “It would also be the longest war of all time.”
This is just vile & despicable. You’ve called out racial injustice, violence against women, bigotry & colonial oppression in the past. And now @Trevornoah you’ve undone all you claimed to have stood for with this racist, insensitive & ignorant attempt at a quick gag. #TrevorNoah pic.twitter.com/L397Q7pTIc
— Arunoday Mukharji (@ArunodayM) March 2, 2019
The comedian was referencing Bollywood movies that were mostly longer because they incorporated singing and dancing in them, but some of his fans and followers were not impressed.
Noah took to Twitter following the backlash to defend his joke and said people were angrier at his joke than the actual conflict.
“It’s amazing to me that my joke about the conflict in India and Pakistan trended more than the story of the actual conflict itself. Sometimes it seems like people are more offended by the jokes comedians make about an issue than the issue itself,” he said.
It's amazing to me that my joke about the conflict in India and Pakistan trended more than the story of the actual conflict itself. Sometimes it seems like people are more offended by the jokes comedians make about an issue than the issue itself.
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) March 2, 2019
Another Twitter user, Zainab Sikander, asked Noah how he would have felt had someone had made a joke about his mother’s shooting incident.
“It’s sad when someone who’s had a violent past mocks war through a Bollywood stereotype. @Trevornoah’s mother was shot in the head by her husband (Trevor’s stepfather). Imagine someone making fun of it with a Xhosa stereotype – the tribe his mum belongs to,” she said.
But Noah said he had made a joke out of the incident because comedy was his way of dealing with pain, and further apologised to those who were offended by his joke.
Actually if you watch my stand up you'll see that I did make jokes after my mother was shot in the head. As a comedian I use comedy to process pain and discomfort in my world but I am sorry that this hurt you and others, that's not what I was trying to do. https://t.co/OuVnkHyIfG
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) March 2, 2019
There were also those who defended him and said they saw nothing wrong with his joke.
Its sad how people are unable to take a joke as a joke. I mean chill out every one! It was just a joke! Let it be a joke! I am sorry on behalf of all those pathetic & hopeless souls who can’t appreciate someone who is spreading happiness and giving these idiots a reason to laugh!
— Mashal Hassan Sahibzada (@mash_hassan) March 3, 2019
(Compiled by Vhahangwele Nemakonde)
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