SNL spoofs Al Sharpton's coverage of the Eric Garner case

Luther Vandross was outed as gay after his death.

Saturday Night Live opened up their show last night with a spoof of Rev. Al Sharpton and his coverage of the Eric Garner grand jury decision on his MSNBC show Politics Nation. SNL cast member Kenan Thompson reprised his teleprompter-stumbling impersonation of the civil rights leader turned cable news host.

“Now what happened in Ferguson has come to New York; this Eric Garner decision has upset me so much that in three days I have gained over 100 lbs,” Thompson said mimicking Sharpton’s raspy voice. The sketch included the usual mishaps with the prompter.

“But not everyone agrees that our country has a twotter… excuse me, a two-tiered justice system.”

The skit also features Sharpton abruptly cutting off a guest, played by cast-mate Jay Pharoah, and then having a comical exchange with another SNL cast member, Bobby Moynihan, who plays a “deputy spokesman for the Patrolmen’s Benevolence Association on Staten Island.”

During the routine, Sharpton asked the spokesman, “What evidence does the jury need; they got the whole thing on video?” His guest responds, “But it’s not in HD. In New York law, if you’re gonna record a police infraction on video, it must be 1080p resolution.”

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