In the last two years, Chelsea Handler has shifted from Hollywood stardom to grassroots activism and advocating for gender equality.

The comedian and five-time bestselling author spoke at Syracuse University’s Goldstein Auditorium in the Schine Student Center on Thursday night for a talk titled “Get with the Times: Fearlessly Forward Chelsea Handler.” The event was presented by The New York Times and University Union and was sponsored by The North Face and Refinery29.

Handler was joined on stage by Megan Twohey, the event’s moderator and one of The New York Times journalists who broke the sexual harassment story on Harvey Weinstein.

The crowd, primarily made up of women, began arriving about an hour before the event. Standing by several six-foot-tall, white banners with the words “Questioning authority since 1851,” SU graduate student Maitlan Ann Sullivan was going into the talk with high expectations.

“I think she has a really unique perspective on politics, and you know, women in general,” Sullivan said. “To me, your political life is also your personal life, so whatever she has to say will probably impact us pretty heavily.”

Opening the event was American professional rock climber Emily Harrington, who spoke of the challenges and victories of facing one’s fears. Her short story bridged the main event to Handler and Twohey.

After the opening applause died down, Handler started the night off with a joke about the lighting. She kept the evening light but on topic with her dry humor.

Moments after the two speakers settled in their chairs, Twohey brought up Weinstein’s predatory behavior, directly asking Handler if she was ever harassed or assaulted. She also invited Handler to interpret the women’s voting record in the 2016 election.

The comedian openly addressed that she does not share experiences with those she is advocating for — Handler said she was never sexually harassed or assaulted and never experienced college dating culture. She did note the shift in how women are perceived in various arenas today, though.

“I think there’s been a shift in every arena for females,” Handler said. “I think that things are changing because we’re getting louder, because we don’t sit down and shut up.”

She added that she also has never experienced racial discrimination and that she “didn’t have a tough time with anything.” But that disconnect pushes her to learn and understand more.

“I think that it’s about a conversation, and the lack of conversation is what led us here in the first place,” she said.

Once the live-streaming portion of the event ended, the crowd was invited to ask questions. After Handler told the crowd she would like to speak with a Trump supporter, a student wearing a red sweatshirt and cap with the words “Make America Great Again” approached the stage.

The student suggested that Handler’s view on the gender wage gap was merely a theory and not backed up by facts, which Handler shot down. Maili Lampe, a sophomore political science major at SU, applauded the student for voicing her opinion but ultimately felt she didn’t present enough evidence to support her own claim.

“I think that it’s very important to have diversity in opinion at college campuses … she came into this event knowing that she would have an unpopular opinion, and I think that takes a lot of courage,” Lampe said.

After the exchange, students’ questions continued. One student strayed from the social justice theme of the evening and asked Handler about her former relationship with rapper 50 Cent. The comedian detailed their short romance and noted the rapper’s refreshing qualities that surprised her.

The final question of the night left the room speechless: “Yesterday was Maya Angelou’s birthday, and she said that courage is the most important virtue. My question for you is how can you inspire courage in the people who know what is right but have a hard time getting to do what is right?”

The room was silent and members of the crowd looked left and right for someone who might have the answer. Still speechless, Handler’s humor kicked in when she gave a response that elicited claps and cheers in agreement from the audience: “You sound like Maya Angelou.”

Published on April 6, 2018 at 6:24 pm

Contact Lydia: lnilesst@syr.edu