'SNL': 'Claire From HR' Gives the 'Weekend Update' Crew Sexual Harassment Training
As we head back to work week—one that will almost certainly feature more sexual harassment allegations, because that’s life in 2017—we can’t stop thinking about Cecily Strong’s newest SNL character, “Claire From HR.”
Claire made her debut on the “Weekend Update” of Saturday’s episode, and she’s freaking exhausted. She’s been working overtime—and picking up lunch from CVS—giving seminars and quizzing workers about what is and is not appropriate behavior in the workplace. “It’s been a crazy week,” she says. “I haven’t been home in three days.”
Claire has a little quiz about that behavior for co-anchor Colin Jost—and the rage simmering beneath the surface of her questions is palpable. Boy, can we relate: Sometimes it all just makes you want to scream. Like when she asks Jost—with a visual aide of a woman in business attire, “You run into your co-worker at the office. Is she, A: Giving you a seductive look that says, ‘Hey come get this?’ B: She said no in the past, but that little skirt is saying, ‘Yes, yes, me horny?’ Or C: She is living her GD life and it has nothing to do with you?” He correctly answers C, to which Claire responds, “YES, LEAVE HER ALONE.”
Jost then asks if she’s mad at him. “Yes, I think I am actually. It’s hard to explain,” she responds.
Yes, yes, yes to this—and it is hard to explain. All of Claire’s reactions are relatable and incredibly hilarious. I mean, the woman is chugging Purel to “cleanse” herself. But even while we laughed as she admonishes, “Yes, your penis never needs to be out of your pants at work,” we couldn’t help but feel pretty sad that the sketch even needs to exist in the first place—and that the points Claire makes actually do need to be explained to certain people.
Even the fictional Claire knows this is only just the beginning: “I will probably be back next week and the week after that forever and ever,” she said. “Because this isn’t just a scandal. It didn’t just start this week. It’s just actual reality for half of the population.”
Watch the entire sketch below:
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