Amy Schumer has a habit of highlighting the most controversial issues with just the right notes of poignant and funny.
Whether it’s the cultural standard of beauty for women, rape culture, or Hollywood’s treatment of women of a certain age, Schumer knows how to make her views known, all while making us laugh. Last night’s Saturday Night Live hosting gig was no exception. Amy Schumer, an outspoken advocate for gun control, made light and laughter out of the ammosexual gun love displayed by so many on the Right.
The families of gun death victims demanded Schumer speak out on her views regarding gun control since the premiere of her movie, “Trainwreck,” was shadowed by the violence of two shooting deaths and nine injuries after a gunman opened fire in the theater. Schumer has since done so passionately, emotionally, and now, hilariously.
In an impassioned plea for a new look at gun control in the United States following the “Trainwreck” premiere, Schumer stated that
“Two lives were tragically lost and others injured, and I have thought about these victims each day since the tragedy. Jillian Johnson, 33, a mother, daughter, sister, and a wonderful wife. She was an artist. I think we would have been friends. And Mayci Breaux, who was 21, who planned on marrying her high school sweetheart. She was an honor student at Louisiana State University where she was studying to become a radiology technician. She was kind and loved her family very much and she always made time for them…
We need a background check system without holes and fatal flaws. We need one with accurate information that protects us like a firewall. The critics scoff and say well, there’s no way to stop crazy people from doing crazy things but they’re wrong. There is a way to stop them. Preventing dangerous people from getting guns is very possible. We have common-sense solutions. We can toughen background checks and stop the sale of firearms to folks who have a violent history or history of mental illness. We can invest more in treating mental illness instead of slashing funding.”
On SNL, Schumer translated these common-sense statements into comedic irony. Watch the skit below, and enjoy.
