Australian comedian Isaac Butterfield has refused to apologise after a sketch about Aboriginal people, which he dubbed 'the most offensive Aboriginal jokes', went viral for the wrong reasons. The 29-year-old from Newcastle posted a clip from a recent show on TikTok and Instagram, sparking widespread backlash.
In the now-deleted video, Butterfield made a series of jokes, including a pun on the word 'Corroboree' and comparisons of Aboriginal pornography to National Geographic. He also joked about cultural appropriation and made a transphobic remark about Aboriginal women. The clip drew heavy criticism online, with users calling the jokes racist and unfunny.
Butterfield later released a longer video addressing the furore, explaining that the jokes were 'deliberately bad' and that the audience was laughing at the joke's poor quality, not at Aboriginal people. He said he was 'horrified' if he genuinely hurt anyone but stopped short of apologising.
This is not the first time Butterfield has faced controversy; a 2019 joke about the Christchurch massacre also drew criticism. He stated, 'I've been cancelled three times before and I'm sure it'll happen again in my comedy career.'
