FACT CHECK: Did Dave Chappelle Make This Statement About Compassion?

An image shared on Instagram claims comedian Dave Chappelle said a lengthy quote that includes: “You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate.”

Verdict: False

There is no record of Chappelle saying the quote. It was actually authored by Christian pastor Rick Warren.

Fact Check:

Chappelle made jokes in his stand-up comedy special “The Closer,” which was released on Netflix in early October, that some have condemned as transphobic, according to CNN. He shared a video of himself responding to the controversy on Instagram on Oct. 25.

The viral image quotes him as saying: “Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe, say or do. Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate.”

There is, however, no record of Chappelle making the statement. Check Your Fact reviewed “The Closer” in its entirety, as well as transcripts of all Chappelle’s specials dating back to 2000, but found no instances of the quote attributed to him in the Instagram post. A search of Chappelle’s Instagram account found no mention of the quote, either. Had Chappelle made the comment, media outlets likely would have reported on it, yet none have.

“This is not a quote from Dave,” Chappelle’s publicist Carla Sims told Check Your Fact in an email. (RELATED: Did Ellen DeGeneres Say, ‘8 Years. No Scandals. We Sure Are Going To Miss The Obamas’?)

The comment was made by Warren, an Evangelical Christian pastor of Saddleback Church in California, in a 2012 interview with Brandon Cox and The Christian Post in response to a question about why he thought Muslims were the subject of hateful remarks by some self-described Christians.