‘SNL’ Dave Chappelle monologue draws criticism for ‘normalizing’ anti-Semitism

Dave Chappelle returned for his third run as host of Saturday Night Live this weekend and the comedian has drawn a wave of criticism by discussing Kanye West’s anti-Semitic rants.

Chappelle’s opening monologue on SNL has been blasted by the head of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt, for popularizing anti-Semitism.

“We shouldn’t expect @DaveChappelle to serve as society’s moral compass, but disturbing to see @nbcsnl not just normalize but popularize #antisemitism,” said the ADL CEO on Sunday.

“Why are Jewish sensitivities denied or diminished at almost every turn? Why does our trauma trigger applause?,” he added.

Chappelle’s 15- minute long opening monologue addressed recent anti-Semitic row from the rapper, who also goes by Ye. He said, “I denounce anti-Semitism in all its forms and stand with my friends in the Jewish community,” he started out.

“And that, Kanye, is how you buy yourself some time,” he said, adding that, “I’ve probably been doing this for 35 years now and early in my career I learned there are two words in the English language you should never say together in sequence and those words are ‘The’ and ‘Jews,’” he said.

He added the “delusion that Jews run show business” was not crazy to think, but “it’s a crazy thing to say out loud at a time like this.”

Jewish rights activist Rudy Rochman called the SNL skit “a meticulous & calculated move to desensitize the population from anti-Semitism.”

Time Out New York theater editor and critic Adam Feldman tweeted, “That Dave Chappelle SNL monologue probably did more to normalize anti-Semitism than anything Kanye said. Everyone knows Kanye is nuts. Chappelle posits himself as a teller of difficult truths. It’s worse.”