I had no idea who Ben Bankas was until I heard that all of his sold-out stand-up comedy shows in Minnesota were abruptly canceled. So I had to do a little digging.
The internet tells me that he’s originally from Toronto, but now based in Austin, Texas, and he has a podcast that’s pretty popular, as well as a solid, cult-like following. He regularly sells out shows in the United States, Canada, and Europe.
I took a look at his social media pages, and he’s actually pretty funny. His humor is dark, just the way I like it, and he’s outspoken, edgy, and doesn’t shy away from controversial topics, including politics, social issues, and current events. From what I saw, he’s not a leftist, but he does make a lot of fun of them. Many people seem to find him offensive. I’m guessing they are the leftists he mocks.
But to the point, Bankas sells out shows pretty easily, and it looks as if he has several sold out this year already, including six at the Laugh Camp Comedy Club in St. Paul, Minn. that were supposed to happen this weekend. But as we’ve learned recently, Minnesota is a state that takes itself way too seriously. Or at least its Democrats do.
Last week, the Laugh Camp Comedy Club announced that it was canceling those six shows. Bill Collins issued a statement to People magazine that said, “After discussions with, and concern from public authorities, legal counsel and staff, combined with heightened threats, increasing media attention and civil disorder we have determined the risks and related liabilities cannot be overcome.”
So what warranted all of this? A joke.
In a video posted on his Instagram page on Jan. 13, Bankas does a bit on Renee Good, the woman who was shot while attempting to run over Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Minneapolis earlier this month.
“Now for a moment of silence for Renee Good,” he begins. “Really hope that dog’s okay…and her pet.” He’s referring to Good’s dog, who was in the car at the time of the shooting, as well as Good’s wife.
“That’s what you don’t want when you’re dealing with the police — your lesbian wife saying ‘drive, baby, drive.’ Yeah, her last name was Good; that’s what I said after they shot her in the face. Renee Good. She’s dead. No, I’m joking — obviously I’m not a liberal, so I don’t celebrate the death of people that I… I didn’t hate her, I didn’t know her, but now that I know her, I hate her,” he said.
“That’s the left’s Charlie Kirk. They’re gonna get shirts ‘I am Renee Good. I am a dumb, retarded lesbian.’ Get your shirts right now. Benbankas.com,” he continued. “I mean, if you watch the footage, she should have been shot ten minutes before that. The way she was acting, driving around with cops, and they gave her a break. They didn’t shoot her right away because they’re like oh, she’s a dumb, retarded, crazy lesbian; she doesn’t know what she’s doing; she’s white, so she’s never committed a crime before… they gave her the benefit of the doubt.”
You can watch that here:
Two days ago, Bankas posted another video of one of his performances in Washington, D.C., during which he said that he’d just found out that his Minnesota shows were canceled. He joked that they must have gotten a voicemail from a liberal saying they can’t have a guy on stage who made a joke about Renee Good. He also said he was planning to spend his own money to hire security because the people of Minnesota “deserve to f***ing laugh,” because it’s “cathartic.”
You can watch that here:
Bankas has received some support from some big-name comics, such as Jim Norton, but at the same time, there are a lot of people saying nasty things about him. I don’t have too much more to add — I’m fine with edgy comedy. Sometimes you do just have to laugh, or the world gets too heavy. It doesn’t mean anything. It’s just entertainment. Plus, how many times have I heard Donald Trump compared to Nazis, Hitler, etc., or heard comedians wish harm upon him and his voters?
But I also respect the comedy club’s right to do what it needs to do for its business purposes… I mean, if my business was receiving threats and security was going to be an issue for a particular event, I’d have to think about how to handle it.
That said, how sad is it that an actual comedian can’t make a joke without receiving so many threats that both he and the comedy club where he was set to perform have to consider how it might impact security?
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t recall any non-conservative comedians facing this problem. I think this issue says more about the “tolerant left” than it does the comedian or the comedy club owner.
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