Adele and SNL come under fire for sketch about sex tourism in Africa

Adele returns to Instagram 0:41

(CNN) -

"Saturday Night Live" is facing harsh criticism for a

in which Adele, Kate McKinnon and Heidi Gardner portray white divorcees who desire African men.

The scene, which is intended to be a mockery of sex tourism, sees the trio encouraging visitors to come to Africa, repeatedly boasting about their "tribesmen" and "giant bamboos."

At the same time, black male extras lead women across a beach in the background.

Adele on Saturday Night Live.

Criticism of Adele and SNL

Commenters on social media accused the show of propagating stereotypes about fetishizing black men.

Some said it was inopportune, given that its transmission occurred during the EndSARS protests taking place in Nigeria.

"That Africa parody was defiant, callous and inappropriate," Shenequa Golding, a journalist for the R&B news website Vibe, wrote on Twitter.

advertising

"Men and women in Nigeria, Namibia, South Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are fighting for their lives and it is shameful to reduce the continent as a sexual destination for white women."

MTV host Dometi Pongo added: “If you're going to try to address that, it has to be a little bit smarter and more nuanced or you don't address it at all.

Not now)".

Simulated tourism commercial

Adele, who hosted the fourth episode of the show's current season on Saturday, got out of character and laughed multiple times during the scene.

The mock tourism commercial advertises Africa as "the number one destination for divorcees of a certain age."

It features the character of McKinnon who repeatedly brags about the "tall, tall tribesmen" of the continent.

All three describe how they were welcomed by tribes after their divorces, using suggestive puns to encourage other women to move to Africa.

During her musical performance in the same episode, the singer of the band HER wore T-shirts with the slogan #ENDSARS.

This is in solidarity with protesters in Nigeria protesting against police brutality and the notorious police unit of the country's Special Anti-Theft Squad, known as SARS.

CNN has reached out to NBC Universal for comment.

A representative for Adele declined to comment.

Adele, who is believed to be working on her fourth studio album, faced a controversy in August after posting a photo of herself on Instagram sporting Bantu knots, a Jamaican flag bikini top, and other popular carnival clothing in Afro-Caribbean cultures.

• Why was Adele wearing a bikini with the Jamaican flag?

  This is the reason

The singer was celebrating what would have been the Notting Hill Carnival, the second largest carnival in the world, which usually takes place on the streets of West London every summer.

This year, the authorities canceled it due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Adele