Ramy Youssef Offers Prayers for Palestine and Israeli Hostages in ‘SNL’ Monologue
In his promos ahead of this weekend’s Saturday Night Live gig, comedian Ramy Youssef joked that he’s not even the first Egyptian-American named Ramy to host the show (that would be Rami Malek), let alone the first Arab American. But in his opening monologue, he used his out-sized platform to share a message of peace for the Israel-Palestine war.
After rehashing some of the stronger material from his recent HBO special More Feelings, Youssef tried out a newer bit about wanting a trans woman as president (“She would be like, ‘A lot of politicians talk about change’”) before saying it was “just an idea.”
“I’m out of ideas,” he continued. “All I have are prayers. That’s all I can do right now.” Youssef told the story of getting a call from a friend in a custody fight over a dog who asked him to “please pray for me.” At the same time, he said he has another friend who asked him to pray for his family that is “suffering” in Gaza.
Ramy Youssef Takes on Haters Who Think He Should Like Hamas
“So that night, I go to pray, and my prayers are complicated,” he said. “I’ve got a lot to fit in. I’m like, God, please stop the suffering, stop the violence. Please free the people of Palestine.” As the live audience cheered, Youssef added, “And please free the hostages, all the hostages, please.”
“And while you’re at it, free Mr. Bojangles, he’s a beautiful dog,” he concluded, before promising a “great show.”
For more, listen to Ramy Youssef on The Last Laugh podcast.
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