Larry Wilmore's last line at the WH Correspondents Dinner

[EffieBlack]

Discuss

[1StrongBlackMan]

1. What was his last line?

[EffieBlack]

2. Here you go:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/04/30/larry-wilmore-roasts-the-press-in-white-house-correspondents-monologue.html

[LiberalArkie]

6. That must be why Obama set up the CPT line at the start and "jokes that white people should not make

[1StrongBlackMan]

8. Thanks.

[Spacedog1973]

3. No biggy

Black people don't have to watch what they say - its a tiresome sign of white supremacy - The response from a white audience to Wilmore is irrelevant. We shouldn't care, nor should this be in any way significant. A black comedian made some jokes referencing 'the current situation' - if people don't like it, to me, its immaterial.

Its one of those things where some white people could take it better coming from a white comedian, like Louis CK: 'Its more easily palatable'. Fuck them.

[EffieBlack]

10. I think this goes beyond "watching what we say."

And it wasn't only white people who were uncomfortable.

I'm black and I was horrified watching anyone - whatever their race - call the President of the United States the n-word to his face in public. And every black person I know was just as horrified and disgusted.

[Spacedog1973]

15. I thought he called him my nigga -= which is not the 'N-word'

Come on. This self management of the 'black community' is old. Be polite, don't offend, don't say anything off color, don't be riske, don't do this, don't do that, especially when concerning any issues regarding race.

This is my point; lets say that it was a white comedian who made sexist joke (Very common), racist joke (even more common), culturally insensitive jokes (Par for the course) - this would not have caused any self examination and nail biting flagellating nonsense of the white community and you know it.

This is the fact of the matter; since 2008, the Hispanic vote has doubled, it is set to increase year on year for the foreseeable future until White people will be a minority. This impacts upon every aspect of american culture, including black culture.

We have to understand that old school folk - and it may be a demographic of the people that you know dependant upon age and profession/class, that have been forced to assimilate and be sensitive of white sensibility to get on in life and be successful, will become less and less relevant. Specifically to that idea of; 'Lets not upset them white folk' mentality in order to 'get on'.

Comedians use comedy usually to say what we cannot. Except black comedians apparently. Is that what we are saying? We do know the origins of political comedy and the power of the comedian in that setting? We need to get used to this power growing significantly and being comfortable with it.

[1StrongBlackMan]

40. President Obama didn't seem to have a problem with it.

[LiberalFighter]

4. Obama's last line was much better.

[SusanCalvin]

7. Heh.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/reliable-source/wp/2016/05/01/the-complete-transcript-of-president-obamas-2016-white-house-correspondents-dinner-speech/

[SusanCalvin]

5. I don't feel entitled to an opinion on the last line, will be interested to hear others'.

I sure enjoyed the article. Made me regret not having watched much of the event live. Thank goodness for YouTube.

[1StrongBlackMan]

9. I don't have a problem with it ...

Wilmore is a Black comedian ... but I suspect it makes/made white folks uncomfortable.

I expect post after post about how white folks are outraged and Black folks should be, too.

[EffieBlack]

11. *I* was outraged and I'm not white. n/t

[1StrongBlackMan]

12. Okay ...

I wasn't.

[EffieBlack]

13. Maybe it's generational

[1StrongBlackMan]

17. I'm a late Boomer. You?

[EffieBlack]

18. Me, too

There goes THAT theory . . .

[iandhr]

14. Wanda Sykes disagrees with Larry Wilmore

This is a great routine where she discussed this issue.

Given I am not black it is not my place to comment. I am just posting this because it is on the same topic and it is very funny.

[SusanCalvin]

16. Just looking at Wanda Sykes makes me smile. nt

[EffieBlack]

19. You have every tight to have an opinion and to comment on it

I tend to draw the line at being lectured about what MY opinion should be ...

[Jackie Wilson Said]

21. Amazingly talented, funny and important person to our times.

I wont be surprised if she loved it though, because she is a comedian, she gets it.

[Jackie Wilson Said]

20. Larry Wilmore is one of the most important voices in media today, and funniest.

His last line is barely noticed by millennials, I would think.

But I am not one so not sure.

We are still not appreciating what Obama's presidency means historically nor the incredible accomplishments he has made.

I guess only history will.

[FrenchieCat]

22. Depends on who writes that history.....

Lookit how they wrote Reagan's!

[FrenchieCat]

23. Didn't care for it....

especially in mixed company, but I see how it would be debatable.....
as the use of the word itself, even whether with the Ah or the Er ending is in the Black community....

I just think the Prez has been disrespected enough by White Folks...
although perhaps I should lighten up....but I still cringed, to be honest....
but again...that's just me!

But the Zodiac Killer Jokes weren't really funny.....he should have used the Lucifer moniker instead....IMO.

He kinda bombed, or maybe I was expecting better????

[La Lioness Priyanka]

24. I really didn't see the issue with it

Obviously I'm not black, so This could well be an issue that as an ally I may not fully get but if there was an lgbt president and a gay comedian said something similar I would not see the problem with that too.

But as I said this may not mean much

[lib87]

25. I Enjoyed it.

I also enjoyed seeing all of the journalists look uncomfortable during Larry's jokes about Black culture (coco butter for example).

[Gomez163]

26. I did not find the guy that funny. His delivery was off.

[underthematrix]

27. I turned Larry off after he made these two jokes

The Steph Curry/PBO air bombs and the Bill Clinton one. TASTELESS in the extreme.

And I only heard about the "my nigga" ending. And as an African American I was totally offended for that level of disrespect of my beloved President, I'm done with Larry Wilmore

[La Lioness Priyanka]

31. i thought the Bill Clinton one was funny, and i like Bill

[JoePhilly]

28. As a white guy who has watched Prez Obama ...

... be attacked not only by racist nobodies, but also by racist elected officials ... I got the sense Wilmore was trolling THEM.

Trolling whites who are angry that they can't use those words.

Larry's show has included a segment called "keeping it real".

I think that's what he was doing.

[1StrongBlackMan]

41. I suspect you are right.

[gwheezie]

29. Old white woman here

My opinion, I don't feel comfortable when black people use nigger in front of white people because there's always those white folks who make some bizarre reverse racism argument and get mad because why can't white people say nigger. I usually say is that the only reason you don't call black folks niggers is because you're not "allowed". I mean who's stopping them. So for that reason, I feel uncomfortable because I'm sick of the how come white people can't fill in the blank argument.
Otoh wilmore put it in their face using it as a term of fondness for the president, and yeah you white folks you know who you are have been calling him nigger for almost 8 years.
I liked wilmores set. I thought he was pretty funny.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

30. Responsibility Politics does not work on me. He did nothing wrong.

I'm keeping it 100: The president IS 'Ma Nigga,' and he will always be. Notice the president didn't even flinch. He knows what's up.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

32. i agree with you. responsibility politics don't work for us queers too.

in fact the corporate conservative gay men (and they are for the most part white men) who seem embarrassed about the rest of the community (esp embarrassed about those who are genderqueer) to me are the least helpful in creating change. the rest of us who show up to the parades, who come out in the workplace, and place a premium on queer visibility are the ones that have moved this dial forward.

[Number23]

34. Oh, is the "my nigga" bit what the OP is talking about??

I didn't think that was bad at all. Now if a white person had said it, that would be an entirely different thing.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

35. Context matters. About 95% of black people in this country knew what Willmore meant...

...from all walks of life. Context matters.

[fleabiscuit]

38. +1 K&R!

[Number23]

33. I don't know what you're referring to

but this line "MSNBC got rid of so many black people I thought Boko Haram was running the network." is like the funniest thing I've seen all damn month.

[kwassa]

36. Larry Wilmore making correspondents uncomfortable is a man doing his job.

I liked his routine, and I loved Obama's routine.

[Chitown Kev]

37. Fine by me.

Comedians should always get certain latitude. Plus "blackness" was a strong motif in Wilmore's schtick Sat. night.

[ecstatic]

39. I enjoyed Larry up until the last line. I'm not old,

I just happen to think it was extremely disrespectful. Not every black person is OK with the n word being thrown around, regardless of the 'a' vs 'er' ending. I realize not everyone will agree, but I associate the word with racism and self hate.

Larry's point about black quarterbacks (or lack thereof) was excellent. A thought provoking moment that was quickly soured by his tacky sign off.

[UMTerp01]

42. NOAP!!!!

I cringed when he said that. I hate that word in every way. I enjoyed much of his routine, albeit some parts fell really flat. But that last line I was like oh no. I just did not think that it was appropriate. But the rest of making people uncomfortable I was fine with.

[Jackie Wilson Said]

44. Nobody would have heard what he said BEFORE he said that if he had not done this. And what he said

before was very important, especially about the progress our president represents.

[EffieBlack]

45. If you have to call the President of the United States a racial epithet to get people to hear what

you said, your routine was an epic fail.

[ismnotwasm]

43. One of those issues where I defer to present company

Aside from the comment that I believe that cultural patois is often misunderstood--when or if not outright appropriated--by those outside such cultures.

[Tarheel_Dem]

46. I'm a boomer, and didn't care for it one bit. Of course, I didn't think much of his whole routine.

He seemed out of place. And YES, it is about respect, AFAIC. Wilmore said he did it "to start a conversation". WTF? I've heard this debate for most of my life, and thought it was settled. Some things are best left for the family reunion, and not directed at the first black POTUS, with his wife sitting mere feet away. Extremely bad form.

[EffieBlack]

47. I agree 100%

And not only his wife sitting feet away. Thousands, perhaps millions of black folk of various ages and sensibilities - not just millennials and youngsters - many of whom fought their asses off for years just to be treated and addressed with respect and not called out of their names, for whom the word (whether it ends in "er" or "a&quot is like a punch in the stomach and a dagger in the heart, had to listen to one of their own calling the first black President of the United States, a man in whom they have such pride, the n-word to his face.

Not cool at all.

[kwassa]

48. I'm not getting this ....

only in that the n-word has been appropriated and changed by younger blacks in the hip-hop community as a term of affection and identity for decades now. They differentiate by the "a" instead of the "er". I am not trying to say that your reaction is wrong, I am just saying that I took Wilmore's use of the word in that context, the "a" context. I saw it as Wilmore expressing an affection for Obama, not remotely as an insult.

Are you as offended by its common use in the world of hip-hop? You seem to have a very strong reaction to its use in any context.

[EffieBlack]

49. Yes, I am deeply offended by it

Hip hop sensibility does not dominate our community. Just because the word may not be offensive to one segment of a community does not mean that it does not deeply offend others. Certain curse words roll off my back. But that doesn't mean I think it's ok to say them in front of my grandmother.

That word has a long, deep and ugly history centuries in the making. A few years of some hip hop artists using it in what they claim to be a different way does not erase that. Assuming that they have somehow managed to "fix" it just because they say it over and over assigns a power to them that they do not possess.

I don't care how HE meant it. I don't care if there are some younger people who don't understand or weren't impacted by the history and are therefore not offended by it. He didn't say it in a small private group of like-minded people. He said it TO THE PRESIDENT'S FACE in front of a roomful of people who do not understand the context he supposedly was within, on national television, allowing the entire world to see the black President of the United States called a "nigga" (i.e.., "nigger&quot .

Wilmore's use of the word, in my view, was crass, arrogant, insensitive and just outright ignorant.