D.L. Hughley slammed Tony Hinchcliffe over the comedian’s George Floyd joke during “The Roast of Kevin Hart” that aired over the weekend.
In a video shared to his Instagram account Wednesday, Hughley broke down his problems with the “Kill Tony” star’s joke about Floyd, noting that he felt Hinchcliffe was an odd choice for the roast.
“I find it ironic that a comedian, who appeared at a Nazi rally for Trump a couple of years ago, and told a very incendiary joke, would end up with the [n-word] that was in ‘Jumanji,’” Hughley said. “I just don’t think those audiences mesh.”
He added: “I remember years ago when it was the Dean Martin roast, you got the sense that those people liked each other. That those people have an affinity for each other. That it was kind of tongue-in-cheek. I don’t get that sense at all.”
Hinchcliffe’s set during the roast earned quick criticism online following his joke about George Floyd. He also targeted fellow roaster Sheryl Underwood with a joke about her late husband’s suicide.
“The Black community is so proud of you… right now George Floyd is looking up at us all, laughing so hard he can’t breathe,” Hinchcliffe said.
Hughley added that the “free speech” argument often trends down “a one-sided street.” He noted that the same people laughing at the Floyd joke are often balking whenever someone makes a joke about Charlie Kirk.
“You are entitled to tell a joke,” Hughley said. “But it cannot be just jokes when the very audiences that support that kind of comedy got upset when someone said anything about Charlie Kirk.”
Hughley recalled the effort the late conservative commentator’s supporters made to get comedians fired “for just saying anything about Charlie Kirk,” seemingly referencing Donald Trump’s ongoing feud with Jimmy Kimmel.
“I would say, the same people who like Trump, like these comedians,” he added. “Same people. How is [that] when you do it, it is called comedy, when they do it … it’s something entirely different.”
Watch his full commentary above.
Floyd’s family also spoke out against Hinchcliffe’s jokes. A spokesperson for The Gianna & George Floyd Foundation called the joke “sad for the culture.”
“We are trying to rebuild things for our community and make things better in our community,” the foundation said to TMZ following the roast. “Let’s try to be a little bit more positive and not sit up there doing colon inspections by white comedians.”
