If entertainer’s work offends you, don’t go

Jeff Dunham’s jokes clearly insult minorities and women. However, he doesn’t cross the line into inciting hatred or violence, or come close

A fabulously wealthy comedian infamous for the racial and sexist insults his act is built on and a drag queen who was the guest star at a storytime reading for children walk into a bar (but not together).

Some people might find that opening paragraph flippant, or even insulting. They might have already stopped reading.

It’s not intended as the opening line of a joke. Protests in Peterborough over the coming performance of Jeff Dunham, the U.S. ventriloquist and comedian with a racist bent, and the appearance of local drag queen Betty Baker at a public library reading for children last Saturday dealt with serious concerns.

But not so serious that either event should be called off, as protesters on both sides wanted.

It that sounds flippant — that racism, sexism and the right to be something other than a “traditional” man or woman are not serious issues — it is because those are not the issue.

The question is how far municipal officials should go in deciding what people are allowed to hear, see and experience.

The chair of Peterborough’s Community Race Relations Committee and three members of city council, including Mayor Diane Therrien, think Dunham should not be allowed to perform at the city-owned Memorial Centre, where he drew a record crowd three years ago.

Many would agree. Dunham’s act has drawn has continuous criticism over the several decades of his exceptionally successful career.

But more, it seems, disagree. At least, more of the people who are paying attention to him. Dunham is credited with selling two million tickets on his last tour, a record for a comedian, and his YouTube videos have more than four billion views.

His shtick is to interview puppets — Achmed the dead terrorist is perhaps best known — and put racist and sexist insults in their mouths. His audiences presumably agree, and pay to hear what they wouldn’t say themselves.

Baker is Dunham’s polar opposite: An 18-year-old from Peterborough just starting out in the drag field and trying to build a career as an entertainer.

Her reading at the Peterborough Public Library was on Pride Day and coincided with the annual Pride Parade downtown. Like Dunham, she attracted a record crowd, an estimated 140 kids and their families.

The protesters who wanted Brand’s reading cancelled were mostly from Hill City Baptist Church, a hardline congregation of literalist Bible believers.

Their position on gender and sexuality is deeply held, but wrong. God did not make people. And since God didn’t make them, she/he couldn’t have made them as only two binary sexes, no shading allowed.

That’s simple science. The Hill City group goes with faith, which is their right.

Dunham’s opponents are on stronger ground, factually. His jokes clearly insult minorities and women.

However, he doesn’t cross the line into inciting hatred or violence, or come close. If what he does is enough to be banned from public performances a very large number of comedians and musicians are also in trouble.

Therrien, defending Baker’s performance, defined the best approach to both situations: “Let people be free to make their own choices if they want to go see her or not.”

The mayor, along with the people who will be out protesting when Dunham performs here in November, don’t see that approach applying to him, but should.

He’s offensive, but that’s a comedy tradition, not a crime.

Protest and criticism are the right response, censorship goes too far.