The Green Alliance thinktank tells peers in the House of Lords the actor's views are "damaging" to the government's plans for phasing out petrol and diesel vehicles.
He wrote: “As a lifelong beneficiary of the freedom to make jokes about religion, I do think that Boris Johnson’s joke about wearers of the burka resembling letterboxes is a pretty good one.”
Atkinson added: “All jokes about religion cause offence, so it’s pointless apologising for them. You should really only apologise for a bad joke. On that basis, no apology is required.”
That doesn’t sound like bigotry to me. He’s a comedian who’s been making fun of religions his entire career.
“It does seem to me that the job of comedy is to offend, or have the potential to offend, and it cannot be drained of that potential,” Atkinson said of cancel culture. “Every joke has a victim. That’s the definition of a joke. Someone or something or an idea is made to look ridiculous.”
“I think you’ve got to be very, very careful about saying what you’re allowed to make jokes about. You’ve always got to kick up? Really? What if there’s someone extremely smug, arrogant, aggressive, self-satisfied, who happens to be below in society? They’re not all in houses of parliament or in monarchies.”
He added, “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
This is an entirely reasonable point. I disagree with his framing of the concept, which I think has affected his conclusion. Specifically, I disagree with his point that comedians are “cancelled” because of the subjects of their jokes. More important than the subject is the intent.
I think Boris Johnson is a bigot, but I don’t think Atkinson is one. But Atkinson is treating Boris like a comedian, when in fact he’s an elected official. Johnson represented British citizens of all faiths, and being deliberately disrespectful to their religious practices is inappropriate for an elected official. Johnson knows this, and said it anyway because it scored points with his bigoted supporters. The intent was not to make people laugh, but to make some people feel superior to others. For that, he deserves the backlash he rightfully received.
Atkinson, on the other hand, hasn’t said or done anything that would indicate or imply that he’s a bigot.
This just in: famous rich white man who jumps, unprovoked, to the defence of another famous rich white man openly being Islamophobic, to defend said Islamophobia, and who, years later maintains the position that punching down at marginalised and oppressed people is perfectly acceptable (nice selective quoting there) - not a bigot!
Oh no, wait, looks like it’s actually bigots defending bigots all the way down… ¯\(ツ)/¯
(E: also, because apparently it still needs saying - being a comedian isn’t a magic bullet that somehow nullifies bigotry, just like saying “it’s just a joke!” after saying something vile isn’t)
I wasn’t selective in the quotes, I copied his entire statement. But I don’t really care if you think he’s a bigot, and I’m not trying to convince you he’s not. Maybe he is, I don’t know him personally.
All I’m saying is that you haven’t presented anything convincing to support he is. I disagree with him, but I don’t see anything bigoted about his statement.
Or, are you implying that I’m a bigot too because I disagree with you?
That doesn’t sound like bigotry to me. He’s a comedian who’s been making fun of religions his entire career.
This is an entirely reasonable point. I disagree with his framing of the concept, which I think has affected his conclusion. Specifically, I disagree with his point that comedians are “cancelled” because of the subjects of their jokes. More important than the subject is the intent.
I think Boris Johnson is a bigot, but I don’t think Atkinson is one. But Atkinson is treating Boris like a comedian, when in fact he’s an elected official. Johnson represented British citizens of all faiths, and being deliberately disrespectful to their religious practices is inappropriate for an elected official. Johnson knows this, and said it anyway because it scored points with his bigoted supporters. The intent was not to make people laugh, but to make some people feel superior to others. For that, he deserves the backlash he rightfully received.
Atkinson, on the other hand, hasn’t said or done anything that would indicate or imply that he’s a bigot.
The Burka deserves to be made fun of.
As well as anyone who supports the treatment of women that it accompanies.
All religions deserve to be made fun of. Religious justification for oppression deserves prosecution.
This just in: famous rich white man who jumps, unprovoked, to the defence of another famous rich white man openly being Islamophobic, to defend said Islamophobia, and who, years later maintains the position that punching down at marginalised and oppressed people is perfectly acceptable (nice selective quoting there) - not a bigot!
Oh no, wait, looks like it’s actually bigots defending bigots all the way down… ¯\(ツ)/¯
(E: also, because apparently it still needs saying - being a comedian isn’t a magic bullet that somehow nullifies bigotry, just like saying “it’s just a joke!” after saying something vile isn’t)
I wasn’t selective in the quotes, I copied his entire statement. But I don’t really care if you think he’s a bigot, and I’m not trying to convince you he’s not. Maybe he is, I don’t know him personally.
All I’m saying is that you haven’t presented anything convincing to support he is. I disagree with him, but I don’t see anything bigoted about his statement.
Or, are you implying that I’m a bigot too because I disagree with you?