On January 21, the day after the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th POTUS, Aziz Ansari hosted Saturday Night Live. The show, which has a recent history of upsetting said POTUS, had high stakes following inauguration day. SNL has always been left-leaning but has become decidedly more so during the past year's election cycle. To many Americans, it is comedic relief from the craziness going on in the political world around us, and one of the few things that keep us sane.
Aziz Ansari, the comedian known for his beloved Tom Haverford in "Parks and Recreation," took on the responsibility of the inauguration episode. And he did it perfectly, hitting the nail on the head and putting into words what many Americans, disgruntled by the election results and US political climate, were thinking.
Aziz started his monologue by addressing the fact that Trump watches the show, saying it's "pretty cool to know he's probably at home right now watching a brown guy make fun of him." He also poked fun at the Women's March, saying "an entire gender protested against" the President.
Aziz goes on to say that we shouldn't demonize everyone who voted for Trump, saying, "I'm sure there's a lot of people who voted for Trump the same way a lot of people listen to Chris Brown... I don't condone the extracurriculars." This was a bold but necessary statement because there are many anti-Trump citizens who do think negatively of every person that voted for Trump, which only further divides us. Chris Brown responded to the joke in an almost comically racist Instagram post in which he referred to Aziz as "Aladdin."
Aziz goes on to talk about a certain, small portion of voters who have always been racist but are no longer hiding it. He coins the term "lowercase kkk" when talking about this group of people's "casual white supremacy." Though it isn't a laughing matter at all, Aziz is able to find the right balance while still getting a very important point across.
Aziz then talks about Islamaphobia. He makes a powerful point about how many people have only heard of people of color in the news for crimes and haven't interacted with law-abiding people of color in their daily lives. Aziz even mentions President George W. Bush's speech after the 9/11 attacks about the difference between the Islam religion and terrorist groups. Aziz brings humor to the message by saying he never thought he would miss George W. Bush.
Aziz ended the monologue with a reassuring note that change comes from "large groups of angry people." Referencing the Women's Marches around the country, he says, "If day one is any indication, you are part of the largest group of angry people I have ever seen."
