Larry Wilmore shot first and asked questions later.

The Emmy-winning comedian debuted Monday night on Comedy Central’s The Nightly Show, which took over Stephen Colbert’s The Colbert Report timeslot.

Wilmore joined The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as “senior black correspondent” in 2006. Wilmore’s television pedigree is impressive: he wrote for In Living Color and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, created The Bernie Mac Show and co-created the animated series The PJs. Wilmore was set to be executive producer of ABC’s new sitcom black-ish before Stewart offered him the opportunity to host his own late-night show.

Wilmore came out swinging in his monologue, taking advantage of the show’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day premiere to frankly address racial inequality and the protests that have gripped the country since last summer.

“Are we protesting too many things here?” he wondered. “Since it’s MLK Day, and since he’s the patron saint of non-violent protesters — suck it, Gandhi! — we’re going to talk about the state of the black protest… Even as I speak tonight, there’s a demonstration going on in Grand Central Station, because there’s no better way to win the hearts and minds of white people than making them miss their train to Connecticut.” The rest of Wilmore’s opener was equally pointed, skewering the recent outrage over the Academy Awards snub of “Selma,” along with the Rev. Al Sharpton and Oprah Winfrey.

Wilmore continued his exploration of controversial topics with a roundtable discussion featuring comedian Bill Burr, rapper Talib Kweli, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and “Nightly” contributor Shenaz Treasury. He rounded out the program with a segment titled “Keeping it a Hundred,” which referred to Wilmore’s intention to “keep it one hundred percent real,” and present potentially uncomfortable questions to his guests.

The Nightly Show airs on Comedy Central at 11:30 p.m.