Trevor Noah responds to backlash after offensive joke about aboriginal women resurfaces

Trevor Noah is learning the hard way that in this age of social media "receipts,"  bad jokes have a way of haunting you years after the fact.

 

Trevor Noah is learning the hard way that in this age of social media “receipts,”  bad jokes have a way of haunting you years after the fact.

The South African comic and “The Daily Show” host has come under fire after a 2013 clip of him insulting aboriginal women suddenly resurfaced. What makes this even worse is it is happening right before his Australian tour, which starts in Melbourne next month.

“All women of every race can be beautiful,” Noah says to an audience in the footage. “And I know some of you are sitting there now going, ‘Oh Trevor, yeah, but I’ve never seen a beautiful Aborigine'” he jokes.

“Yeah, but you know what you say? You say ‘yet’, that’s what you say; ‘yet’. Because you haven’t seen all of them, right?’

”Plus it’s not always about looks, maybe Aborigine women do special things, maybe they’ll just like, jump on top of you,” Noah, 34, concludes, before imitating the sound of a didgeridoo while inferring oral sex.

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Since the video went viral social media has erupted with people calling for the comedian’s upcoming Australian tour to be boycotted. The clip, which was uploaded to YouTube under the title of “Women of all Races are Beautiful,” has been removed after “The Daily Show‘s” segment director and director of Trevor Noah films, David Meyer, filed a copyright complaint with the site.

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“He grossly sexualises and objectifies First Nations Australian women for a ‘joke’,” Katelyn Jones of the Feminism & Decolonisation Facebook page said.

“He perpetuated incredibly harmful stereotypes … that indigenous women aren’t beautiful, that indigenous women are only good for their bodies; and indigenous women are over-sexualized sex starved beings.”

Round Two 

This isn’t the first time the comedian has caused controversy with his tweets. He’s also gotten in trouble for tasteless jokes in relation to women, Jewish people and rapper Chris Brown‘s abusive behavior.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Monday, Noah, who took on the role as host of “The Daily Show” host three years ago from Jon Stewart, issued an apology for his comments on Twitter.

“After visiting Australia’s Bunjilaka museum and learning about aboriginal history first hand I vowed never to make a joke like that again. And I haven’t. I’ll make sure the clip from 2013 is not promoted in any way,” he tweeted to his followers.

 

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