Being only slightly familiar with Aziz Ansari’s personality and stand-up practices, I had no idea what to expect from his monologue. I was listening and waiting for his motive. Then I hear, “Donald Trump is basically the Chris Brown of politics. And “Make America Great Again” is his “These Hoes Ain’t Loyal”.” Just before stating this he imitated people who listen to Chris Brown’s music and “don’t condone the extracurriculars!” I could tell that the tone of this speech was meant to be lighthearted among a heavy subject.
Moving forward, he addressed a group on the rise as the “lower case kkk.” Talking about people who think that because Trump was elected, they can stop pretending they aren’t racist. This group definitely seems to feel empowered. Especially with the rise in visibility of the alt-right party and the mass amount of hate crimes being committed. Ansari asks Trump to make a speech denouncing this group instead of making a tweet about the show making fun of him.
His touch on Islamophobia suggests that a lot of fear towards Muslims comes from the media. The news only shows us the bad stuff, armed and dangerous people rather than regular people. Ansari utilizes a quote from a speech by George W. Bush after 9/11 that read, “Islam is peace. The perpetrators of these attacks, they don’t represent Islam. They represent war and violence. Our enemies are not our Muslim brothers and sisters. Our enemies are a network of radical terrorists.” And I think that’s where many Americans have gone wrong. Their blind fear prevents them from learning more about a situation and recognizing other people as people. Undefined by their religious beliefs or sexual orientation or gender identity, ethnicity, or disabilities. We live in a world where it’s necessary to wear those labels while we fight for equality for all people.
Ansari left us with the perfect closing statement. “If you look at our country’s history, change doesn’t come from presidents. Change comes from large groups of angry people. And if Day 1 is any indication, you are part of the largest group of angry people I have ever seen. Good luck to you.”
