Amy Schumer fires back on Twitter: "You can call it a 'blind spot for racism' or 'lazy' but you'd be wrong. It is a joke and it is funny."

The comic jumps into the P.C. wars after a Guardian writer criticizes her edgier material on race

Published June 28, 2015 9:42PM (EDT)

  (Comedy Central)
(Comedy Central)

Amy Schumer is the latest comic drawn into the war of political correctness.

After a Guardian article this weekend claimed that Schumer has a "large blind spot about race," Schumer posted a long and earnest tweet calling that wrong -- and asking fans to trust her comedy, good intentions and "resist the urge to pick me apart."

She also made clear that she will not shy away from making jokes about race or other sensitive topics.

Here's her post in full. It begins: "Put down your torches before reading this so you don't catch on fire" and continues...

I am a comic. I am so glad more people are laughing at me and with me all of a sudden. I will joke about things you like and I will joke about things you aren't comfortable with. And that's OK. Stick with me and trust that I am joking. I go in and out of playing an irreverent idiot. That includes making dumb jokes about race. I enjoy playing the girl who  time to time says the dumbest thing possible and playing with race is a thing we are not supposed to do, which is what makes it so fun for comics. You can call it a "blind spot for racism" or "lazy' but you'd be wrong. It is a joke and it is funny. I know that because people laugh at it. Even if you personally did not. I am not going to start joking about safe material. And don't ask that of me. I love what I do and won't let anyone take that away. I ask you to resist the urge to pick me apart. Trust me. I am not racist. I am a devout feminist and lover of all people. My fight is for all people to be treated equally. So move on to the next person who is more deserving of your scrutiny and not the girl in your corner. Sincerely Amy (a dirty half Jew)

And this is from the Guardian piece she is apparently responding to:

For such a keen observer of social norms and an effective satirist of the ways gender is complicated by them, Schumer has a shockingly large blind spot around race. Her lacklustre stint hosting the MTV Movie awards (a rare misstep) featured lazy jokes about Latina women being “crazy” that left Jennifer Lopez as unimpressed as the online commentariat. ...  Schumer’s stand-up repeatedly delves into racial territory tactlessly and with no apparent larger point. ... much of her character’s dumb slut persona is predicated on the fact that the men she sleeps with are people of color. “I used to date Latino guys,” she says in an older stand-up routine. “Now I prefer consensual.”


By Salon Staff

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Amy Schumer Comedy Political Correctness Race Twitter