Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
Netflix Employees Who Walked Out To Protest Dave Chappelle's Special Demand A More Inclusive Workplace
A group of several protesters outside the Netflix office building rally against the new Dave Chappelle special.
(
Phoenix Tso
/
LAist
)
More than 100 people rallied outside the offices of Netflix on Wednesday to protest the company's release of comedian Dave Chappelle's standup special, "The Closer."
Critics of the special, released earlier this month, say Chappelle's comments about transgender people crossed a line.
Wednesday's planned protest was kicked off with a walkout by Netflix employees who made several demands of the company, including:
- More investment in content for — and about — people who identify as transgender or nonbinary.
- More recruitment of trans men and women to leadership roles at Netflix.
Activist and producer Ashlee Marie Preston organized the rally to show solidarity with the employees.
Support for LAist comes from
"We're in the age of the conscious consumer and so it's no longer acceptable to provide a good product," Preston said, "but your values have to be in alignment with the product that you're producing and putting out to the public."
I stand with the trans, nonbinary, and BIPOC employees at Netflix fighting for more and better trans stories and a more inclusive workplace #NetflixWalkout https://t.co/LU8FPSBdwE
— Elliot Page (@TheElliotPage) October 20, 2021
Employees planned the walkout after CEO Ted Sarandos defended Chapelle. In an interview Tuesday, on the eve of the planned walkout, Sarandos told Variety that he'd handled the fallout badly.
"Obviously, I screwed up that internal communication," he said. "... I screwed it up in two ways. First and foremost, I should have led with a lot more humanity. Meaning, I had a group of employees who were definitely feeling pain and hurt from a decision we made. And I think that needs to be acknowledged up front before you get into the nuts and bolts of anything. I didn’t do that."
The company also fired a transgender employee for allegedly leaking confidential information to the press, and briefly suspended others, which Netlfix said was connected to a crashed meeting.
Netflix has reinstated me after finding that there was no ill-intent in my attending the QBR meeting. I've included the statement I requested below.
— Terra Field (@RainofTerra) October 13, 2021
I'm going to take a few days off to decompress and try to figure out where I'm at. At the very least, I feel vindicated. pic.twitter.com/lYxemYgRkJ
In response to the walkout, Netflix put out a statement Wednesday morning:
Support for LAist comes from
"We respect the decision of any employee who chooses to walk out and recognize we have much more work to do both within Netflix and in our content."
Corrected October 21, 2021 at 12:04 PM PDT
This story was updated to clarify what Netflix said was the reason for briefly suspending some employees.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs. -
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA.
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons Thursday after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
Best of LAist