Camilla Jessen
Joke about Renee Good leads to cancelled comedy shows.
Ben Bankas had been scheduled to perform six sold-out shows at the Laugh Camp Comedy Club in St Paul.
The venue cancelled all dates after backlash over a joke Bankas made about Renee Good, a mother of three who was shot dead by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent on January 7.
The Laugh Camp Comedy Club owner Bill Collins said the decision was based on safety concerns.
“The risks and related liabilities cannot be overcome,” Collins told People, citing threats, media attention and civil disorder.
Joke sparks outrage
The controversy stems from footage of Bankas performing in Poughkeepsie, New York, earlier this year. In the clip, which later circulated widely online, he mocked Good’s death using slurs and compared her widow to a “dog.”
Shock footage shows Bankas referring to Good as a “dumb, crazy r****ded lesbian” and saying she should have been “shot 10 minutes before” the ICE agent fired.
The clip drew some laughter from the audience but was met with widespread condemnation online.
The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that local residents planned protests outside Bankas’ scheduled Minnesota shows.
Venue defends decision
Collins said the club consulted with authorities, lawyers and staff before cancelling.
“A small club like ours does not have the needed resources to mitigate current risks,” he said.
He also claimed that Creative Artists Agency, which represents Bankas, demanded compensation and threatened to block other performers from appearing at the venue.
LADbible Group said it had contacted CAA for comment.
Bankas responds on stage
Bankas addressed the cancellations during another performance, dismissing the venue’s concerns. “Well, yeah f**k em obviously,” he said after an audience member shouted support.
He claimed the club “pied out” after receiving complaints and said he was prepared to “hire armed security,” comparing the situation to performing in “fing Mexico City.”
Bankas said he was still seeking a way to perform in Minnesota, adding that locals “deserve to laugh” and calling comedy “cathartic.”
He also compared the Laugh Camp Comedy Club to “Auschwitz,” a remark that drew further criticism online.
Sources: People, Minnesota Star Tribune, social media footage, LadBible
