Nightly Show host Larry Wilmore has a clarification to make about his comedic performance at the White House correspondents’ dinner.
It’s about the most controversial moment of his monologue, its penultimate line. Closing the barb-filled spiel with a more heartfelt reflection on the significance of having a black president, Wilmore ended the speech with a tribute to US President Barack Obama: “Yo Barry, you did it, my, my [n-word].”
At least that’s how The Washington Post transcribed and published it. Wilmore, though, has a distinction to make about the use of that controversial word.
During his Comedy Central show on Monday night, Wilmore brought up a critique of his performance by Mail Online editor Piers Morgan, who quoted the line as ending with [n-word]. That’s how Post’s Jonathan Capehart quoted it, too (he actually spelled it out in his piece).
But Wilmore said he actually said the word “n***a” — a more casual pronunciation. There’s a huge distinction between “n***er” and “n***a,” he said.
The former “is what white people use to denigrate, demean and dehumanise black people,” Wilmore said. But the latter is “a term of endearment some black people use between each other to take back that power.”
“Piers, you didn’t properly conjugate that slur,” Wilmore said.
Conjugations aside, one person who’s definitely not offended? Barry himself — er, that is, President Obama. His spokesman said on Monday that POTUS got it. “He said that he appreciated the spirit and the sentiments that Mr. Wilmore expressed,” spokesman Josh Earnest said.
