“I apologise to anyone at Cambridge who was hoping to talk with me, but perhaps some of you can find a venue where woke rules don’t apply.”
-John Cleese
#freespeechmatters 15.11.2021
Monty Python comedian John Cleese was scheduled to make an appearance at Cambridge University, but the appearance was called off by Cleese himself. According to the Cambridge alumnus, he canceled his own appearance after learning that art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon was blacklisted by the Cambridge Union president for doing an impersonation of Adolf Hitler while making a point about whether or not “good taste” exists.
Cambridge Union, whose motto is literally “Defending Free Speech Since 1815,” is the oldest debating society worldwide and the largest student society in Cambridge. Cleese, who did a Hitler impersonation for Monty Python decades earlier, took to Twitter that he is blacklisting himself before somebody else has the opportunity.
For those too young to know, Monty Python is similar to Saturday Night Live, but utilized comedy rather than social justice rhetoric for entertaining audiences.
Who was actually outraged by Dixon's Hitler impersonation? Why is it that Hollywood can make films depicting the most horrendous people in the world without the left batting an eye, but an art historian is blacklisted for doing an impersonation of one awful human being as part of a point? The mob is inconsistent with their outrage, which leads me to believe that they're not really outraged at all: People only play victim for the likes and shares.
Cleese’s self-cancellation makes sense, as he was making the appearance at Cambridge as part of a documentary series titled ‘John Cleese: Cancel Me' that will explore “why a new ‘woke’ generation is trying to rewrite the rules on what can and can’t be said.” His main focus will be on cancel culture’s impact on comedy, and he will sit down with a number of celebrity personalities to discuss their views on the mob’s current attack on the principles of free speech.
The comedian and documentarist took a proactive step against cancel culture. He refused to fall a victim to the vocal minority who can’t stand speech deviating from the dictated script. Cleese, who has had a successful career in comedy, didn’t give the mob the opportunity to take his career away. While he may have canceled himself, he offered to still meet with students from Cambridge at “a venue where woke rules do not apply.”
Cambridge University lost out on the opportunity to speak with Cleese as a direct result of cancel culture’s actions. The mob puts a chilling effect on speech,and many people are refusing to talk to younger generations in fear of their words being taken out of context and broadcasted across the world. Jerry Seinfeld, for example, reportedly will not perform at universities because of how younger audiences react to comedy. Comedians such as Cleese, Seinfeld, and Dave Chappelle refuse to allow their craft to be destroyed at the hands of a miserable mob.
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