Why Louis C.K. MUST headline the New York Comedy Festival

It is crucial that we revive the career of this mostly unapologetic creep!

Is the admission of a crime a form of exoneration? If O.J. Simpson had simply—and mostly unapologetically—confessed to those murders rather than treating them as allegations, might he today be a beloved comedy star, an NFL commentator, or host a true crime podcast where he interviews other mostly unapologetic murderers? I believe so, and undoubtedly, O.J.’s presence would have been a boon to American culture.

Celebrity male apologies are typically insincere and cursory. Louis C.K.’s apology for abusing his power in comedy to lure women comedians into situations where he would masturbate in front of them without consent was honest in barely being remorseful. While I do not condone his actions, I respect this display of a truthful lack of introspection or even basic understanding of the wrongs he had committed against these women. If a comic’s job is to tell the truth, Louis C.K. succeeded in that by telling the world transparently—and reinforcing it later with reductive and cheap stand-up comedy—that he is a cool guy, except when he non-consensually cranks his peener in front of women who ostensibly respected him.

For these reasons, and the fact that he is a true artist and completely self-aware truth-teller, it is incredibly exciting for mostly male, douchebag audiences that Louis C.K. is one of the New York Comedy Festival headliners. But more vitally, this booking is important to the continuation of predators maintaining their platforms and putting them in unimpeachable positions where they can continue to abuse their power.