Last night on HBO Real Time with Bill MaherThe host accused most protesters and activists of being misguided narcissists, focusing his criticism on pro-Palestinian social justice warriors.
Maher opened his “New Rules” segment, which you can watch above, with a message to protesters blocking traffic in the name of a cause: “No one likes you.”
He then made his general point, which is that protesters need to realize that they are not winning over anyone by making them “late to pick up their kids from daycare.”
“You can stick your hands to the street because they don’t have to do any work today,” Maher said, adding that, for many social justice warriors, “it’s more about the fight than the causes.”
Speaking directly about the Gaza conflict, Maher suggested that those who truly care about injustice should start by fighting for women who are forced to wear burqas in many countries. She also mentioned those suffering from food deprivation in North Korea, China placing people in concentration camps, and Burundi’s anti-gay jihad.
“Are you really speaking truth to power or do you think you look good in a keffiyeh?”
He also joked that defacing artwork in the name of a cause is “just stupid,” and declared that “no one sees mashed potatoes in a Monet and thinks ‘he’s right, I should recycle my cans!’”
Maher concluded his rant by saying that activists should ask themselves if the most important thing in their lives is “something I hadn’t heard about six months ago.”
You can watch the clip above and see new episodes ofReal Time with Bill MaherFridays at 10 pm ET on HBO or streaming on Max.
