Jimmy Fallon has established his late-night talk show as one that is filled with parlour games, celebs doing musical impressions, and a wide array of other fun and lighthearted segments. In fact, he was widely criticised for having Donald Trump on his show two weeks before the election, and subsequently apologised for not going hard enough on him.
Times have certainly changed, with Fallon now calling Trump out over his recent inaction denouncing white supremacists.
The usual puppy-dog vibe of Fallon made it even more powerful when he opened his latest show with an extremely serious monologue. He used the time to reflect on the recent awful events in Charlottesville, Virginia.
What happened over the weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia, was just disgusting. I was watching the news like everyone else, and you’re seeing Nazi flags and torches and white supremacists, and I was sick to my stomach. My daughters are in the next room playing and I’m thinking, ‘How can I explain to them that there’s so much hatred in this world?’
He then explicitly called out Trump for his delayed and shitty response to those events.
The fact that it took the president two days to come out and clearly denounce racists and white supremacists is shameful. And I think he finally spoke out because people everywhere stood up and said something. It’s important for everyone—especially white people—in this country to speak out against this.
And explained that he was doing it because he couldn’t look at his daughters and continue to stand by and say nothing about what was going on.
And remember: there are people who have given their lives to make sure this kind of hate doesn’t spread. They’ve fought and died on the right side of history. One brave woman in Charlottesville, Heather Heyer, died standing up for what’s right at the age of 32. I can’t look at my beautiful, growing, curious daughters and say nothing when this kind of thing is happening.
Watch the powerful monologue in full:
