The joke has caused controversy.
Netflix has been called on to remove a controversial joke from Jimmy Carr’s latest stand-up special His Dark Material.
Released in December, towards the end of the special, the comedian says the following:
“This should be a career-ender. Strap in everyone. You ready?
“When people talk about the Holocaust, they talk about the tragedy and horror of six million Jewish lives being lost to the Nazi war machine.
“But they never mention the thousands of gypsies that were killed by the Nazis.
“No one ever wants to talk about that because no one ever wants to talk about the positives.”
A clip of Carr making the comments has since gone viral on social media, with many people and organisations slamming the joke.
In a statement, Chief Executive of UK charity the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust Olivia Marks-Woldman said the following:
“We are absolutely appalled at Jimmy Carr’s comment about persecution suffered by Roma and Sinti people under Nazi oppression, and horrified that gales of laughter followed his remarks.
“Hundreds of thousands of Roma and Sinti people suffered prejudice, slave labour, sterilisation and mass murder simply because of their identity – these are not experiences for mockery.
“The widespread ignorance of this recent history needs to be addressed and we urge everyone to learn more about the past and the experiences of Roma people today.
“Roma and Sinti people still face dreadful prejudice as this incident shows. Please show your support by learning more, challenging hateful comments like these, and following accounts such as Roma Support Group, The Traveller Movement, and Friends, Families and Travellers.”
Here is a statement from our CEO @OliviaRMW on the abhorrent jokes made by Jimmy Carr about the Roma genocide.
We urge everyone to learn about Nazi persecution of Roma people and follow accounts such as @RomaSupport, @GypsyTravellers and @GypsyTravellerM.https://t.co/lqkdIQ6bWN pic.twitter.com/9SweGA8rOV
— Holocaust Memorial Day Trust (@HMD_UK) February 4, 2022
Meanwhile, UK charity The Traveller Movement has launched a petition calling for Netflix to remove “the segments of His Dark Material which celebrates the Romani genocide”.
The group called Carr’s comments “truly disturbing”, stating in its petition: “We appreciate that comedy is subjective but in our view when punchlines are indistinguishable from the genuinely-held views of fascists and Neo-Nazis, a line has very clearly been crossed.”
We've launched a petition to Netflix calling for the removal of the segments of His Dark Material which celebrates the Romani genocide.
Join with us to send @NetflixUK a clear message: #StopTravellerHatehttps://t.co/cuNqYllYPn
— The Traveller Movement (@GypsyTravellerM) February 4, 2022
Labour MP Nadia Whittome also posted on Twitter a letter she wrote to Netflix Chief Executives Reed Hastings and Ted Sarandos.
In it, she urges the streamer to remove what she called the “vile anti-GRT and antisemitic material”.
I have written urging Netflix to remove Jimmy Carr’s vile anti-GRT and antisemitic material.
I have also requested an update from @DCMS on progress to bring streaming platforms under Ofcom regulation.
My full solidarity with GRT communities, today and always. pic.twitter.com/We6MRJVyjb
— Nadia Whittome MP (@NadiaWhittomeMP) February 4, 2022
JOE has reached out to Netflix for comment.
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