Kenan Thompson is supportive of college protests as long as they don’t involve his daughter in ‘SNL’ cold open

CNN
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“Saturday Night Live” made news last week in its final episode, when cast members played concerned parents of New York City students involved in outdoor protests this weekend.

In Saturday’s episode — hosted by Dua Lipa (who also acted as a musical guest) — Michael Longfellow played a talk show host who greeted the parents played by Heidi Gardner, Mikey Day and Kenan Thompson.

Longfellow noted that college campuses across the country are facing troubling times and sought comments from his guests.

While Gardner and Day’s characters expressed concerns about their children’s activities during protests against Israel’s war against Hamas, Thompson said he supported those efforts.

“Well, I think it’s just great, it’s wonderful,” he said. “Nothing makes me more proud than young people using their voices to fight for what they believe in. »

But when Longfellow asked Thompson what he thought about the specific involvement of his daughter, a Columbia student, the latter replied: “What is it now?” When is whose daughter there? No man, you’re kidding!

“Alexis Vanessa Roberts better get her ass in class.” Let me find out she’s in one of those damn tents instead of the dorm I paid for,” he added.

When Day remarked, “I thought you were in favor of the student protests,” Thompson responded, “Brother, I support your kids’ protests.” Not my children. My kids know better, shoot.

Thompson later added that her daughter wouldn’t talk about “free this, free that” at a protest, “because I’ll tell you what’s not free: Colombia!” »

He also mentioned how the school had “the nerve” to charge “$68,000 a year” for tuition, and how he was struggling to pay it.

” I do all. Uber all day, Uber Eats all night, cutting grass on the weekends, selling Gucci wallets out of my trunk,” he continued. “Life coaching on IG, bounty hunting whenever possible .”

At Columbia University on Tuesday, dozens of protesters entered the university’s Hamilton Hall and barricaded themselves inside before the facility requested assistance from New York City police .

During pro-Palestinian protests in Columbia and the City College of New York, 282 people were arrested, according to the New York Police Department.

Of the 112 people arrested at Columbia, 32 (or 29%) were not affiliated with the university, according to an NYPD official. At the City College of New York, 170 people were arrested and 102 (or 60%) of them were not affiliated with the college.

CNN’s Shimon Prokupecz, Mark Morales and Celina Tebor contributed to this report.