It's equally my obligation as a comedian to point out what is wrong with us and get us talking about our problems as it is pointing out what's wrong (with) the way, for example, the government is treating us. |
Looking out, I see a lot of Muslims. It's supposed to be Islam Awareness Week ... evidently, the campus isn't aware. |
People are looking at me like I'm responsible for 9/11. Me? 9/11? No ... 7-Eleven, maybe. |
People are looking like I was responsible for 9/11. Me 9/11? Seven-Eleven, maybe. |
Preacher likes to say something in his act which is that you know, Muslims, you got to get over this '9/11-itis.' You know, if you didn't do anything, act like you didn't do anything. |
The standup is quintessentially an American art form and is a form of political protest. There's a history of the underdog using standup comedy to speak truth to power. People take notice and are transformed by the experience. |
There have to be some boundaries. The butt of the joke cannot be God or the prophet or the religion itself. I'm very careful about sacrilegious humor. I'm not a shock comic who's going to do something that will inflame Muslims. |
To me this is not just about standing on stage telling jokes. There's a lot riding on this. |