Larry Wilmore on Alton Sterling: ‘The punishment for being a black man shouldn’t be death’
Comedy Central
Larry Wilmore dedicated a segment of Wednesday’s “The Nightly Show” to angrily address Alston Sterling’s death.
First, he wondered if the shooting death of Sterling, which occurred while the victim was pinned down by police, should even be discussed on a comedy show.
“We’ve covered this type of thing in the past,” the host said. “And to be frank, we’re just tired of it and feel like we have to address it some way.”
Wilmore said he was thankful for mobile phones with cameras, since in the past these killings went undocumented. In this case, a video of the police pinning Sterling on the ground went viral earlier this week. The Baton Rouge policemen also have body cameras, but they fell off during the fatal struggle incident.
“Things don’t just fall off, unless you’re talking about Cisco and the face of the f—ing earth,” the host joked. “I mean, seriously Cisco, where’s ‘Thong Song 2′?”
He continued to rail about “the immediate takedown of the victim’s character,” such as pointing out that Sterling had a previous criminal record.
“Martha Stewart has a criminal record,” Wilmore said. “I don’t remember her being executed in a convenience-store parking lot. Maybe I missed it.”
In response, Wilmore said the following powerful statement:
“No matter what his crimes were, Alton Sterling did not deserve to be executed for it. The punishment for resisting arrest shouldn’t be death. The punishment for selling bootleg CDs shouldn’t be death. The punishment for carrying a gun in an open-carry state shouldn’t be death. The punishment for being a black man shouldn’t be death.”
And as for those who oppose the “Black Lives Matter” slogan and prefer to counter with “All Lives Matter,” he wondered where they’re protesting after Sterling’s death.
Watch the segment below:
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