Arturo Castro on Alternatino's mass shootings sketch: "It’s a responsibility to reflect what we’re living in this society through media"

The Washington Post

Castro published a Washington Post Op-Ed last night explaining why he and Comedy Central aired the Alternatino episode Tuesday containing a mass shooting sketch that was pulled last week in wake of the Gilroy Garlic Festival mass shooting. "For my show Alternatino, we wrote a sketch a year ago called 'Welcome to America,' about trying to explain mass shootings in the United States to a recent immigrant from Central America; these shootings make absolutely no sense to him because they have nothing to do with drug wars," Castro writes. "This is a very personal sketch for me because, as someone who grew up in Guatemala, I’m no stranger to gun violence, and I condemn it in any way, shape or form, as I’ve seen firsthand the tragic effects it can have on a society. Yet this particular brand of gun violence — fueled by racism and xenophobia — is very hard to understand and impossible to accept." Castro explains that "it will always be 'too soon' when gun violence happens so frequently. And it’s never too soon to demand meaningful gun reform and to stop using hate against people of certain ethnicities to gather votes. I’ve realized this will always be an issue until we do something about it." Castro adds: "My art is all I have to express what I feel. It’s my voice. Having a platform and not using it to talk about the things I care about — particularly when it feels like my people are under siege — would be irresponsible. In no way is our intention to make light of tragedy, but rather, it’s a responsibility to reflect what we’re living in this society through media." ALSO: Mass shooting sketch was a tricky tightrope to walk in the writers' room.