American TV host Bill Maher delivered a monologue on Saturday addressing what he describes as “gender apartheid” and critiquing the selective outrage of some modern activists.
Maher’s commentary touched on the oppression of women in various parts of the world, drawing attention to issues often overlooked by Western protesters. “For the last couple of years, women in Iran have been saying ‘take this hijab and shove it’ after a young woman named Mahsa Amini was arrested in 2022 for wearing her mandatory hijab incorrectly and subsequently died in police custody,” Maher stated.
Maher began by challenging the integrity of college protesters, suggesting that their advocacy should extend beyond brief demonstrations.
“If you’re out protesting for a couple of hours wearing this, you have to go all the way and spend an afternoon running errands wearing one of these,” he quipped, highlighting the need for protesters to fully understand the implications of what they support. “You can’t side with the people who ruthlessly oppress women without at least getting a taste of what you’re supporting.”
Acknowledging the idealism of youth, Maher didn’t shy away from critiquing the education system and the misplaced focus of some young activists. “I actually admire your youthful idealism and our world would be poor without it. Much like your parents who just wasted 200 grand on that ignorance factory you call a college,” he said, emphasizing the disconnection between their intentions and their actions.
Activism misses
“Not that I think it’s your fault being this poorly educated and morally confused. That takes a village—shitty schools, over-indulging parents, social media. But three cheers to you for at least having the impulse to seek a cause and something bigger than yourself. It’s just that the one you picked, you missed the boat by a fucking mile.”
Maher then shifted focus to what he considers a more pressing issue: gender apartheid. “You want a cause? Cuz I totally got one for you. Apartheid. Yeah, apartheid – the thing you’ve been shouting about with Israel for months, never mind that Israeli Arabs are actually full citizens.”
Protestors gather at the gates of Columbia University, in support of student protesters who barricaded themselves in Hamilton Hall, despite orders from university officials to disband or face suspension, during the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in New York (credit: REUTERS/David Dee Delgado)
He continued, “Hundreds of millions of women are treated worse than second-class citizens. When you mandate that one category of human beings don’t even have the right to show their face, that’s apartheid. And it goes on in a lot of countries.”
Maher further highlighted the ongoing human rights abuses in Iran, citing Amnesty International’s report on the government’s war on women, which includes “constant surveillance, beatings, sexual violence and detention. What P. Diddy calls a hotel stay.”
Maher also brought attention to the story of Yasmin Muhammad, a human rights activist who was forced to wear the niqab by her fundamentalist husband. “Yasmin Muhammad … got married off to a Muslim man with fundamentalist views about women … Here’s what Yasmin said about veiling: ‘It just suppresses your humanity entirely. It’s like a portable sensory deprivation chamber, and you are no longer connected to humanity.'”
In concluding his monologue, Maher called for reevaluating priorities among social justice advocates. “This is what should be the social justice issue of your time. How about from the river to the sea, every woman shall be free?”
He urged activists to recognize that non-white individuals can also perpetuate oppression, stating, “White-on-black racism certainly has been one of history’s most horrific scourges. But also, it’s true that in today’s world, being non-white means you can get away with murder.”
