Mean Girls queen Tina Fey appeared on SNL’s Weekend Update: Summer Edition Thursday to condemn white supremacist rallies that took place in Charlottesville last weekend. Sporting a University of Virginia sweatshirt in honor of her alma mater, she declared that she was heartbroken by the “evil forces” that invaded the city and even more disheartened by the complacent remarks made by President Donald Trump.
Tina lamented, “Donny John comes out and he says that he condemns violence on many sides, and I’m feeling sick because I’ve seen Raiders of the Lost Ark and I wasn’t confused by it. Nazis are always bad.” In her almost seven-minute rant, she also called out Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, so-called independent militias across the country and hoards of Republican voters who obsessed over Hilary Clinton’s emails during the 2016 election.
Although the rant was funny—as Tina always is—it was also passionate. She urged good Americans to avoid upcoming rallies. “I don’t want any more good people to get hurt,” she said pleadingly. Instead, she had some strange advice for anyone feeling frustrated or overwhelmed by recent events. “I know a lot of us are feeling anxious and we’re asking ourselves, ‘What can I do?’ So I would urge people this Saturday instead of participating in the screaming matches and potential violence, find a local business that you support—maybe a Jewish-run bakery or an African-American-run bakery. Order a cake with the American flag on it, like this one, and just eat it.”
She proceeded to do just that, all while unabashedly condemning the actions of neo-Nazis. She made the stark comparison between how peaceful protesters at Standing Rock were treated for protecting land that was rightfully theirs to how law enforcement reacted to the torch-bearing mobs armed with semi-automatic weapons that took to the streets of Charlottesville demanding their country back. She didn’t miss this opportunity to remind us all that “their country” was actually stolen from the Native Americans. Seriously, she did not hold back.
She urged co-hosts Michael Che and Colin Jost and the audience not to yell at the Klan, but to “yell it into the cake.” She even named her grassroots movement “sheetcaking,” saying that women have been doing it at least once a week since the election. Fans on Twitter immediately quoted her, praising her sense of humor and her awareness.
@SNLUpdate “Treat these rallies like you would a thoughtful comedy with 2 female leads…don’t show up.” -Tina Fey #smartwomen #girlcrush pic.twitter.com/hbXKxBlY2b
— Chica Grande (@ChicaGrande50) August 18, 2017
But not everyone found her contributions amusing. Many took to Twitter to accuse Tina of making light of a serious, violent and even deadly situation, while some argued that she was only further silencing marginalized people.
Love Tina Fey, but I’m REALLY not feeling her “Ignore racism and stress-eat instead” take. It strikes me as willfully naive and privileged.
— Tom & Lorenzo (@tomandlorenzo) August 18, 2017
tina fey telling people who historically don’t show up to fight white supremacy not to show up is…
well, it’s consistent
— Kindred @SPX E10 (@itskindred) August 18, 2017
While I agree that this week’s events should never be glossed over, I think Tina’s message was clear. It’s not about cake. It’s about finding a safer, more effective way to make your activism count. She’s right; a screaming match with the Klan in the heart of New York City can only lead to more violence and more lives lost.