Lena Dunham contributed a new piece to the New Yorker, but it wasn’t her usual musings about her life. Instead, it is a list of statements, asking readers to determine if she’s talking about a dog or her Jewish boyfriend. Of course, that caused quite the controversy and the New Yorker was forced to defend publishing it.
The piece is titled “Dog or Jewish Boyfriend? A Quiz” and asks readers, “Do the following statements refer to (a) my dog or (b) my Jewish boyfriend?”
The list of 35 bullet points includes “He’s crazy for cream cheese,” “He doesn’t tip” and “He never brings his wallet anywhere.” Other statements include, “He’s really more of an ass man,” “When I go out of town on a business trip, he sleeps with a pair of my underwear” and “Every week it’s some new health issue: urine crystals, sprained foot, beef allergy.”
Some found the humor of the piece tasteless, especially the Anti-Defamation League, one of the leading Jewish rights groups in the U.S.
“The piece is particularly troubling because it evokes memories of the ‘No Jews or Dogs Allowed’ signs from our own early history in this country, and also because, in a much more sinister way, many in the Muslim world today hatefully refer to Jews as ‘dogs,’” Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director, said in a statement. “We doubt that Ms. Dunham had any intention of evoking such comparisons. While we understand that humor is its own special brand of expression and always try to give leeway to comedians, we wish that she had chosen another, less insensitive way to publicly reflect on her boyfriend’s virtues and vices. We are surprised that the New Yorker chose to print it.”
New Yorker editor David Remnick sent a statement to TheWrap, defending its decision to publish the story, noting how there is a long history of Jewish comics making fun of stereotypes.
“...Considering all the real hatred and tragedy in the world, the people getting exercised about the so-called anti-Semitism of this comic piece, like those who railed at Philip Roth a generation or two ago, are, with respect, howling in the wrong direction,” Remnick said.
Dunham, who is half-Jewish, is currently dating fun. guitarist Jack Antonoff. Dunham currently stars on HBO’s Girls.
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