In his candid response to the Hollywood Walk of Fame star, Ricky Gervais talked about cancel culture after receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Ricky Gervais.
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In his candid response to the Hollywood Walk of Fame star, Ricky Gervais
Recently, Ricky Gervais revealed his candid response to being awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
“I had to sit through all these people saying wonderful things about me and my career,” the comedian remarked in an interview with Extra after receiving a star. And all I can do is laugh uncomfortably, but I made it through.
During this moment, the Office alum also recalled his late mother, stating, “It’s crazy. First, I consider what my mother might have said if she were still here.
“It would have been incredible. When I passed my examinations, she was pleased with me. The 63-year-old said, “So, this would be off the charts.”
In case you haven’t heard, Ricky is well-known for his series of stand-up comedy shows and his vicious jabs at celebrities while hosting the Golden Globes five times.
In his candid response to the Hollywood Walk of Fame star, Ricky Gervais
According to Entertainment Weekly, the After Life actor also made a reference to overcoming cancel culture during the ceremony.
When discussing his success, the British celebrity said, “I’d want to say that it was due to my unequaled genius, but truth be told, it’s a cocktail of chance, persistence, and a little bit of pushing against the tide.”
It’s interesting to note that the Derek actor clarified, “Many people both adore and despise you. However, you shouldn’t be impacted by those who despise you. The people that care about you purchase your home!
They’ve had some strange years of cancel culture, Ricky noted, adding, “They tell you what you can and can’t talk about or laugh about, but we pushed back, and we won.” Till the next occasion.
A play about a disabled child who was raped inside a Sikh house of worship was written in 2004 by a woman in Birmingham. The fact that this fictional plot was set at a gurdwara (Sikh temple) infuriated some Sikhs, who staged a protest that descended into violence. It was necessary to end the play. The author, a Sikh woman, was wanted by several organizations to be arrested for allegedly inciting anti-Sikh sentiment.
Here is the second story. The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, who ruled over what is now India several hundred years ago, was incensed that Hindus would not convert to Islam. A Sikh guru sacrificed his life to defend their religious freedom, which is the right to hold beliefs that the emperor deemed objectionable. He urged the populace to defend religious freedom since it impacts everyone.
Both of these stories and occurrences had a significant impact on my life, and although they both concern Sikhs, they could be about anyone and anywhere. I also bring them up because disputes over “offense” have arisen throughout history and the problem is far more extensive than a single comedian cracking jokes.
That being said, I chose to see Ricky Gervais’s new Netflix special, SuperNature, over the weekend, in part because of the controversy it has been generating. His remarks, especially those pertaining to the trans community, have drawn criticism from a number of people. I will not rate comedy for you because it is a completely subjective matter. About 60–70% of the jokes were funny to me, but I appreciate other people’s right to find them unpleasant and repulsive.
Gervais states right away that he is not required to do anything. He already has a lot of money; he doesn’t need to stir up trouble to increase it. He is acting on a significant premise. He basically defends his right to be offensive throughout the show. The point is the offensiveness. I completely agree with him on that point for two key reasons.
First of all, we lose the ability to question beliefs and conventions when we are deprived of the ability to offend. Whether Gervais is offensive or not, or good or awful, is not a point of contention for me. If you find him and his jokes offensive, that’s okay. However, I’d much rather live in an aggressive world than one where everyone is in agreement. There wouldn’t be any diversity of ideas or ways of thinking.
Since I stood up for the writer’s freedom to speak the truth, I became quite involved in the Sikh play dispute about 20 years ago. Some Sikhs called us both “traitors” for that. Although they were justified in finding her disrespectful, they shouldn’t have the authority to silence her.
For instance, even the notion of gay marriage was considered disrespectful by religious establishments. LGBT+ individuals put up a fierce fight to be allowed to question those standards. Or consider the pious preacher on the high street in your neighborhood. When they tell me I’m going to hell, I disagree. However, they cannot preach if they have no right to insult people, and I am not free to believe what I choose. I must thus live in a world where some people believe that I will burn in hell.
Even more crucial is the second argument in favor of offensiveness. Minorities are always the first to be targeted when we use the law to suppress “offensive” speech. We, not wealthy, middle-class white men, are the first victims.
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Muslim organizations began advocating for anti-hate speech legislation to guard against “insulting words and behavior” around the same time as the Sikh play. Rowan Atkinson and other comedians voiced their opinions. However, the rule was mostly applied to Muslim preachers and not to comedians. It was applied to those who opposed the war on terror. We must fight for greater freedom, not less, because the most disadvantaged members of society are always the first to suffer from any restrictions on free speech.
This is not just a problem for comedians. People can be imprisoned or even put to death in 69 different nations for the crime of “blasphemy,” which is the belief that one’s beliefs should not be questioned or refuted. Extremist Hindus commonly exploit such viewpoints to lynch and terrorize Muslims throughout India.
We somehow moved from opposing discrimination to opposing all forms of offensive behavior. That’s risky enough already. The notion that somewhat obnoxious persons should be totally avoided—that is, “cancelled” and never heard from again—is much worse. Either someone has to be cancelled or they are on the side of angels. They are either “racists” or “awake.”
However, there are hundreds of shades of grey in the world; it is neither black nor white. It’s possible that I disagree with some or all of Ricky Gervais’s statements. However, that’s okay since defending people’s rights to be unique is more significant than being inoffensive.
