Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado touched off a controversy last week after she posted a photo of comedian Dave Chappelle with her on X, using the image as part of America’s ongoing gender wars.
The incident began Thursday when Chappelle was at the Capitol. Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida had stopped Chappelle for a quick word.
As their conversation ended, Boebert approached Chappelle, according to Newsweek.
Reps. LAUREN BOEBERT and ANA PAULINA LUNA grab a selfie with Dave Chappelle. “Thanks for all you do,” said Luna. pic.twitter.com/KQku73E4GU
— Pablo Manríquez (@PabloReports) November 30, 2023
“May we get a selfie with you? I know you’re trying to leave,” Boebert said according to a video posted to X.
Boebert posted the image to her X account with the caption “just three people who understand there’s only two genders.”
What do you notice about this picture of Lauren Boebert, Anna Paulina Luna, and Dave Chappelle? pic.twitter.com/Hr1lqyuCLD
— Really American ?? (@ReallyAmerican1) November 30, 2023
Chappelle has made waves with jokes that have been called transphobic.
I’ve been highly critical of Chappelle’s transphobia and aligning with Musk, but this is just a picture Lauren Boebert took.
What is he supposed to do, be gracious for a second or two or screech at her to stay away from him? https://t.co/xeXSCCz7El
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) December 1, 2023
The group Call to Activism then turned the selfie into a controversy with a post on X in which it quoted what it said were Chappelle’s comments about the incident.
“Dave Chapelle responds to criticism for Lauren Boebert tweet. Says he was ‘tricked.’ Here’s what he said,” the post said.
“On stage at his DC show, Dave Chapelle claimed that while in the city preparing for his comedy show, he visited the Capitol. He claimed that while walking through the halls, several members of Congress approached him and asked him to photos. ‘What I didn’t expect was to see Lauren Boebert,’ he claimed. ‘SHE TRICKED ME!'” the post said.
???CALL TO ACTIVISM EXCLUSIVE:
Dave Chapelle responds to criticism for Lauren Boebert tweet. Says he was “tricked.”
Here’s what he said ?
On stage at his DC show, Dave Chapelle claimed that while in the city preparing for his comedy show, he visited the Capitol.
He… pic.twitter.com/tQnqzEQB0T
— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) December 1, 2023
“Chapelle claims that Boebert asked him for a photo and ‘I saw her there rubbing her mitts together.’ ‘What was I supposed to do?’ He asked,” the post said.
“Chapelle went on to say that in the most politically divided time, he simply felt it was a human moment. He was blindsided by the tweet that claimed he ‘understood that there were two genders,'” the post said.
“It’s a shame she tricked me, Chapelle said. ‘I had two tickets to Beetlejuice and I was gonna’ give her one!'” the post said.
The reference was to Boebert and a male companion being forced to leave a Denver production of Beetlejuice after allegations of disruptive behavior.
Chappell has not made public comments about the incident.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.