#NotAllWhitePeople will like Aamer Rahman

If you’re a white person and you go to an Aamer Rahman show you will probably end up feeling a little bit victimised. It’s natural to feel like you’ve been bullied by the former law student activist turned scintillating political comedian when white people are the butt of the majority of his jokes. And these jokes aren’t just of the ‘white people can’t dance’ type- they’re more the ‘white people have been the colonising, oppressive, dominant perpetrators of racism in the world’ kind, jarring jabs that can hit a bit too close to the bone for some of the pastier looking folks in the audience, a few of whom will inevitably end up in a bit of a sulky post-show malaise:

The politics of racial inequality are the bread and butter, (or should I say, in a naff way that is relievingly absent in Rahman’s writing, the rice and curry) of Rahman’s routines. His show, depending on the colour of your skin, is various shades of confronting or comforting. And while he must be tired of hearing this all the time, Rahman’s is a fresh, and yes, ‘important’ voice on the circuit- a young, brown, whip-smart Australian comedian whose insights pierce through the gauzy veil of multiculturalism to the bare mores of modern Australian society. Rahman excels at riffing Bill Hicks-like on such a society where casual racism is pervasive, and more sinisterly, administered through the mainstream media and government policies on refugees, Indigenous Australians and even the Racial Discrimination Act.

The 32-year-old is unashamedly political- the Cronulla riots, post 9-11 hysteria, Pauline Hanson and tabloid pot-stirrers are all touchstones in his comedy, as are Star Wars references, rap lyrics and family anecdotes. His particular brand of racial comedy has been described on numerous occasions as being ‘unapologetically’ honest, and it’s true, Rahman makes no concessions to the white members of his audience, but at the same time, those who get his comedy and appreciate it the most will know there isn’t anything to be apologetic about. And in a comedic landscape which is still fairly whitewashed, having a brown comedian up on stage who steers away from the sing-song accents and other tropes of ethnic humour is a very welcome thing.

His video last year on ‘reverse racism’ went viral around the world, boosting his profile overseas. In that cracker of a clip, Rahman ruthlessly and methodically flips the idea of reverse racism on its head, painting a hypothetical that marvels at a world in which the countries of Asia, Africa and the southern Americas colonized Europe and enslaved and belittled their people and culture for centuries, instead of the other way round.

Beyond his talent for presenting clear-eyed political commentary in witty layman’s terms, Rahmen is also gifted in his execution. He is a superb storyteller: handsome, charming, deceptively laidback and assured in both his political convictions and comedic talents. In fact his delivery is so smooth that when he skewers both major parties for their abysmal track record on Indigenous policy and refugees, it’s done so cleanly that you can imagine the blood seeping out in a tidy fashion, coalescing neatly into a pool on the floor as Rahman goes off on another deadpan tangent, the knife wiped clean and hidden at his back. “Australia is the lucky country right… so we get to have two racist political parties”. Such tangents and political rants can be a tad too long, and that’s where the audience’s attention wanes, but such flaws are really only cosmetic.

To end his show, he once again addresses the accusation that he is the racist one, with his jokes targeting white people. His response is classic: “It really hurts me to hear that, it really does. I can’t be racist towards white people! Some of my best friends are white.” He takes them to parties and stuff.

Aamer Rahman presented his debut solo show, ‘The Truth Hurts’, at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney on May 17-18 . Tickets: $38

You can view many of his jokes here.

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