Trevor Noah may have low ratings, but he certainly knows how to make a speech that makes people come together. He spoke of the shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile on Thursday night.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmXLxo399N4
“You guys see that shooting that happened two days ago? Don’t worry, if you missed it, there was another one yesterday,” Noah somberly told the audience before noting that the black men did nothing to warrant the shootings — at least based on the videos.
“And you know the hardest part about having conversations about police shootings in America… You always feel like in America that if you take a stand for something, you automatically are against something else,” Noah eagerly continued, before humorously pitting people as either a cat person or a dog person.
Noah also said people are either Red Sox or Yankee fans. He also joked that people are either in the “LOL” or “Ha Ha Ha” groups when they text. This lead into him seriously pointing out that you can be pro-Black and pro-police, and vice versa. His statement, which was made before the police shootings in Dallas, received a thunderous applause. Many people in the comments after The Daily Show ‘s YouTube clip are praising Noah.
“Very well said, it’s an American problem. Now we have five dead police officers… this is unreal!” claims SheAnatural B.
“It really is. And its sad those cops died, people are saying they deserved to die?? People are sociopaths smh. 2 racist cops = 5 dead cops. People need to realize that we all have a common enemy and a common problem. We cant let race divide us,” responds SirLucifer.
Libby Hill of the Los Angeles Times praised Trevor Noah’s speech, which also addressed police violence and how, for some, video isn’t enough.
“Comedy Central’s Trevor Noah gave an impassioned speech on Thursday night’s episode of ‘The Daily Show’ in the wake of the police-involved killings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile…Taped earlier in the day, Noah’s words became particularly prescient as the events of Thursday night unfolded, when a peaceful protest in downtown Dallas regarding police violence ended in gunfire, resulting in the killing of five police officers.”
Hill added that Trevor Noah took to Twitter to offer thoughts after the police shootings took place.
One step forward, ten steps back. The point is to save lives not trade places. ? https://t.co/46Nfg4VyUm
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) July 8, 2016
The comments after the article are far more negative than they are elsewhere on the internet.
“Yuck yuck yuck…expertly written and delivered, yet, devoid of substance and personal experience,” says Robert Kinsler.
“Honestly, who cares what Trevor Noah says? He tanked the Daily Show’s ratings, he’s rarely funny, and he always takes the politically correct angle,” claims TKLA-67.
According to the Daily Beast, Trevor Noah defended former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson, who sued Fox News’ Roger Ailes over sexual harassment, earlier in the week.
“‘You know when something you always assumed was going to happen finally happens—and yet when it actually does happen, you’re still surprised?’ the host asked Thursday night. ‘That’s how we felt yesterday when this happened,’ he added, showing highlights from the media coverage of the scandal.”
The article adds that Noah criticized Ailes for being “unfu**able” and praised Gretchen Carlson for coming forward, an act that he said took as much courage as sleeping with Ailes. It’s important to note, however, that Ailes completely denies the allegations against him and has even been defended by other Fox News anchors such as Jeanine Pirro.
It remains to be seen if Comedy Central renews Trevor Noah’s contract this fall. However, for now, Mr. Noah can be comfortable in knowing that he is producing a lot of laughs and speeches that make people talk.
[Photo by Brad Barket/Getty Images]