1
00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:14,800
Speaker 1: Good morning, peeps, and welcome to woke F Daily with

2
00:00:14,840 --> 00:00:19,239
Speaker 1: me your girl, Danielle Moody recording from the Long Island Bunker.

3
00:00:19,520 --> 00:00:21,680
Speaker 1: You know, I often say to you that you need

4
00:00:21,720 --> 00:00:23,680
Speaker 1: to take a break so that you do not have

5
00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:27,960
Speaker 1: a breakdown. And with all of the compacted crises that

6
00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:31,440
Speaker 1: we are dealing with at this time and making the

7
00:00:31,520 --> 00:00:36,280
Speaker 1: march to midterms, there never seems like the right time

8
00:00:36,600 --> 00:00:40,680
Speaker 1: to take a break. But I say that you have

9
00:00:40,840 --> 00:00:45,080
Speaker 1: to make that time. And so for me, dear friends

10
00:00:45,159 --> 00:00:48,120
Speaker 1: here on woke F, I am going to be taking

11
00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:51,800
Speaker 1: a much needed vacation so that I can rest and

12
00:00:51,960 --> 00:00:55,440
Speaker 1: recharge as we head into what I believe is going

13
00:00:55,520 --> 00:00:58,960
Speaker 1: to be one of the craziest falls we've ever seen.

14
00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:04,000
Speaker 1: I have left you with eight amazing episodes that we

15
00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:08,319
Speaker 1: have recorded back in twenty twenty one with some of

16
00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:14,959
Speaker 1: the most thoughtful, engaging and insightful commentary that looks at

17
00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:20,200
Speaker 1: our politics, our spiritual nature, our emotional well being, and

18
00:01:20,600 --> 00:01:23,960
Speaker 1: a look inside frankly with some of the guests that

19
00:01:24,360 --> 00:01:28,440
Speaker 1: we are bringing to all of you. These conversations have

20
00:01:28,480 --> 00:01:33,759
Speaker 1: been heard by our amazing Patreon supporters who get video

21
00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:39,640
Speaker 1: episodes every single day. Because of their belief and financial

22
00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:43,520
Speaker 1: support of woke F throughout the years, and so I'm

23
00:01:43,600 --> 00:01:46,840
Speaker 1: really excited to bring all of you across all the

24
00:01:46,880 --> 00:01:50,639
Speaker 1: platforms that you listen to woke F daily on these

25
00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:55,480
Speaker 1: episodes and these interviews that I think will be enticing

26
00:01:55,520 --> 00:01:57,560
Speaker 1: to all of you. They hit on all of the

27
00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:02,600
Speaker 1: major topics that we consistently discuss here on woke F,

28
00:02:02,600 --> 00:02:08,680
Speaker 1: from racism to gender inequality, to police misconduct to wealth inequality,

29
00:02:08,760 --> 00:02:11,600
Speaker 1: which my God, and the need and the need and

30
00:02:11,639 --> 00:02:16,320
Speaker 1: the need upmost for spiritual connection and wellness practices that

31
00:02:16,440 --> 00:02:22,560
Speaker 1: allow us to successfully maneuver all of the things that

32
00:02:22,600 --> 00:02:25,359
Speaker 1: have been thrown at us over the past couple of years.

33
00:02:25,400 --> 00:02:29,040
Speaker 1: And so, friends, while I will be out from the show,

34
00:02:29,160 --> 00:02:32,640
Speaker 1: I will not be out of sight for the next

35
00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,120
Speaker 1: several days, and so you can continue to follow me

36
00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:39,280
Speaker 1: on Instagram and on Twitter at D two Cents, D

37
00:02:39,360 --> 00:02:42,639
Speaker 1: E two c E n TF. Of course, I will

38
00:02:42,680 --> 00:02:46,520
Speaker 1: be dropping in with my two cents and you can

39
00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:50,520
Speaker 1: check me out on TikTok, where I'm sure certain that

40
00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:53,040
Speaker 1: I will drop a few videos in the next couple

41
00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:55,880
Speaker 1: of days, and there you can find me at Danielle

42
00:02:56,040 --> 00:03:01,160
Speaker 1: Moody Underscore. I hope that you all enjoy these next

43
00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:05,080
Speaker 1: fantastic episodes that we have. Do drop your thoughts in

44
00:03:05,120 --> 00:03:08,079
Speaker 1: the comment section, do hit me up in the socials.

45
00:03:08,160 --> 00:03:10,960
Speaker 1: Just don't draw my attention to anything that is terrible

46
00:03:11,440 --> 00:03:15,000
Speaker 1: because I'm taking a break from the news. But dear friends,

47
00:03:15,040 --> 00:03:17,960
Speaker 1: I really do hope that you enjoy these next eight

48
00:03:17,960 --> 00:03:22,600
Speaker 1: episodes and I will see you with brand new episodes

49
00:03:22,880 --> 00:03:27,240
Speaker 1: after Labor Day. Hey there, I want to tell you

50
00:03:27,280 --> 00:03:30,080
Speaker 1: about another podcast I think you'll love. The Brown Girl's

51
00:03:30,120 --> 00:03:33,160
Speaker 1: Guide to Politics, hosted by a Shanty Goehler, the president

52
00:03:33,280 --> 00:03:36,560
Speaker 1: of Emerge BGG, is the one stop shop for women

53
00:03:36,560 --> 00:03:38,440
Speaker 1: of color who want to hear and talk about the

54
00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:41,200
Speaker 1: world of politics. Join a Shanty this season as she

55
00:03:41,320 --> 00:03:43,760
Speaker 1: talks to incredible women of color who are changing the

56
00:03:43,800 --> 00:03:46,400
Speaker 1: face of politics and tackling some of the most important

57
00:03:46,400 --> 00:03:50,240
Speaker 1: issues facing the United States, from reproductive justice to voting rights,

58
00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:53,520
Speaker 1: to climate change and more. Tune in every Tuesday wherever

59
00:03:53,560 --> 00:03:58,840
Speaker 1: you get your podcasts. It's no secret that the news

60
00:03:59,000 --> 00:04:02,640
Speaker 1: is horsepill hard to swallow. Thankfully, there's The Bituation Room

61
00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:07,240
Speaker 1: podcast hosted by comedian and commentator Francesca free Erantini. For

62
00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:09,840
Speaker 1: a lighter take on the heavy stuff. Each week, the

63
00:04:09,880 --> 00:04:13,760
Speaker 1: Bituation Room brings you progressive comedians, experts, and activists to

64
00:04:13,800 --> 00:04:15,800
Speaker 1: break down the issues in a way that won't just

65
00:04:15,960 --> 00:04:18,960
Speaker 1: leave you crying under a weighted blanket. Get the Bituation

66
00:04:19,080 --> 00:04:22,960
Speaker 1: Room on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and streaming on YouTube

67
00:04:22,960 --> 00:04:29,880
Speaker 1: and Twitch friends. I am so excited to welcome to

68
00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:34,120
Speaker 1: Wika affadaily for the first time. Jim Freeman, civil rights

69
00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:37,960
Speaker 1: lawyer and head of the University of Denver's Social Movement

70
00:04:38,040 --> 00:04:42,320
Speaker 1: Support Lab and the author of Rich Thanks to Racism,

71
00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:47,480
Speaker 1: How the ultra wealthy got rich off of Racial justice.

72
00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:51,799
Speaker 1: Let me see, Jim, one of the things that really

73
00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:56,240
Speaker 1: concern me as this pandemic has gone on is that

74
00:04:56,279 --> 00:05:01,560
Speaker 1: we have seen how much disparity there is in the

75
00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:05,440
Speaker 1: United States, like we have always known, right UM. But

76
00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:09,280
Speaker 1: when you see who is essential, who is not, who

77
00:05:09,400 --> 00:05:14,200
Speaker 1: is actually profiting off of this pandemic, and who needs

78
00:05:14,240 --> 00:05:17,760
Speaker 1: the twelve hundred dollars that uh that were that was

79
00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:20,839
Speaker 1: put together in the COVID nineteen relief plan that was

80
00:05:20,880 --> 00:05:24,719
Speaker 1: just passed by UM and signed by the Biden administration.

81
00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:28,359
Speaker 1: What comes up for you when you think about the

82
00:05:28,440 --> 00:05:32,960
Speaker 1: context of your book and how people have gotten rich

83
00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,440
Speaker 1: off of racism, Like this is not just a oh

84
00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:41,000
Speaker 1: like you say, this isn't just about educating people out

85
00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:45,719
Speaker 1: of racism. This is a policy. Well, then there's there's

86
00:05:45,720 --> 00:05:48,640
Speaker 1: a lot that comes up for me, as you might imagine. Um,

87
00:05:48,680 --> 00:05:53,040
Speaker 1: I mean, certainly, you know the you know how the

88
00:05:53,839 --> 00:05:59,120
Speaker 1: cashier at your local pharmacy is now recognized properly as

89
00:05:59,120 --> 00:06:03,800
Speaker 1: an essential worker, but yet we've never felt it appropriate

90
00:06:03,880 --> 00:06:06,880
Speaker 1: to pay that essential worker a living wage. Certainly that

91
00:06:06,960 --> 00:06:10,120
Speaker 1: comes up for me. But you know, generally, I mean,

92
00:06:11,440 --> 00:06:17,640
Speaker 1: you know, I think this is really an acceleration of

93
00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:19,880
Speaker 1: a lot of the things I talk about in the

94
00:06:19,920 --> 00:06:24,400
Speaker 1: book and and and what that really is is, you know,

95
00:06:26,120 --> 00:06:28,440
Speaker 1: it's very exciting that there are a lot of people now,

96
00:06:28,440 --> 00:06:33,240
Speaker 1: particularly after last summer, who started to recognize the urgency

97
00:06:33,279 --> 00:06:37,000
Speaker 1: to end systemic racism. And it's very exciting that lots

98
00:06:37,200 --> 00:06:41,120
Speaker 1: more people are joining this movement, joining these efforts. I mean,

99
00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:43,280
Speaker 1: I think the movement that's being built right now can

100
00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:47,039
Speaker 1: can finally achieve that goal. But I wrote the book

101
00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:50,400
Speaker 1: because there's very little understanding of what and who stands

102
00:06:50,400 --> 00:06:52,960
Speaker 1: in the way of that. And it's a lot of

103
00:06:53,000 --> 00:06:56,880
Speaker 1: these dynamics that you're talking about Right, because I wanted

104
00:06:56,920 --> 00:07:01,440
Speaker 1: people to understand that the biggest reason why systemic racism

105
00:07:01,560 --> 00:07:05,880
Speaker 1: persists is that these dynamics pre COVID and during COVID,

106
00:07:06,279 --> 00:07:09,440
Speaker 1: which are so devastating for so many people of color

107
00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:11,880
Speaker 1: and so many communities of color, are for a lot

108
00:07:11,920 --> 00:07:16,880
Speaker 1: of large corporations and Wall Street banks enormously profitable. They

109
00:07:16,920 --> 00:07:20,920
Speaker 1: are the biggest reason why we have these deeply unjust

110
00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:24,160
Speaker 1: policies on the books, and they're also heavily invested in

111
00:07:24,240 --> 00:07:28,560
Speaker 1: preserving and expanding racial inequities, which I refer to as

112
00:07:28,800 --> 00:07:32,640
Speaker 1: as strategic racism. So the book is really intended to

113
00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:35,320
Speaker 1: give people a roadmap of what it's going to take

114
00:07:35,760 --> 00:07:39,720
Speaker 1: to truly dismantle systemic racism, because while it's very doable,

115
00:07:40,080 --> 00:07:43,360
Speaker 1: there's still not enough people supporting racial justice efforts and

116
00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:45,360
Speaker 1: far too many people opposing them. And as you say,

117
00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:48,320
Speaker 1: a lot of those people are getting even more wealthy

118
00:07:48,360 --> 00:07:50,760
Speaker 1: and more powerful as a results of this global pandemic.

119
00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:53,440
Speaker 1: I mean, we're looking, you know. One of the things

120
00:07:53,440 --> 00:07:58,000
Speaker 1: that come up for me is a recent headline Jeff

121
00:07:58,040 --> 00:08:03,200
Speaker 1: Bezos right is now worth one hundred and forty three

122
00:08:03,200 --> 00:08:09,000
Speaker 1: billion dollars, and in the headlines, right, are the workers

123
00:08:09,040 --> 00:08:13,120
Speaker 1: that work in the Amazon factories, right, that have been

124
00:08:13,640 --> 00:08:16,400
Speaker 1: working around the clock to ship us all our packages

125
00:08:16,440 --> 00:08:18,840
Speaker 1: so that we could work from home, who don't have

126
00:08:18,920 --> 00:08:23,080
Speaker 1: proper healthcare, who don't have the ability to sue their

127
00:08:23,080 --> 00:08:31,280
Speaker 1: employer for unhealthy work environment. And yet he's the becoming

128
00:08:31,320 --> 00:08:33,520
Speaker 1: the richest and richest and richest. I mean, he's going

129
00:08:33,559 --> 00:08:36,800
Speaker 1: to probably reach at some point a trillion dollars in

130
00:08:36,920 --> 00:08:39,400
Speaker 1: net worth, and yet the people that work for him

131
00:08:39,800 --> 00:08:42,600
Speaker 1: can't afford to put food on the table. We see

132
00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:46,960
Speaker 1: these stories and we kind of just shrug Jim about it,

133
00:08:47,000 --> 00:08:49,640
Speaker 1: Like we get mad, and we're mad, and we're on

134
00:08:49,679 --> 00:08:53,120
Speaker 1: social media for a day or two, and then we

135
00:08:53,200 --> 00:08:55,960
Speaker 1: all go back to business as usual. How do you

136
00:08:56,080 --> 00:08:59,760
Speaker 1: sustain you think the outrage and the attention where the

137
00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:02,839
Speaker 1: tension needs to be due, which is that we have

138
00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:09,040
Speaker 1: a very wrong sized capitalistic structure that is based on

139
00:09:09,520 --> 00:09:13,080
Speaker 1: racism and injustice and ensuring that some people stay on

140
00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:15,719
Speaker 1: the bottom while other people stay on the top. How

141
00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:20,800
Speaker 1: do we sustain the attention and the outrage. Well, I

142
00:09:20,800 --> 00:09:22,560
Speaker 1: think a big part of it, I mean, you're absolutely right.

143
00:09:22,600 --> 00:09:25,920
Speaker 1: I mean I think a big part of it is

144
00:09:27,320 --> 00:09:33,040
Speaker 1: exposing the full circle of that injustice, right, because there

145
00:09:33,080 --> 00:09:36,600
Speaker 1: are there are a lot of people who are starting

146
00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:40,600
Speaker 1: to recognize the injustice of what of what you just said.

147
00:09:41,440 --> 00:09:42,440
Speaker 1: There are a lot of people who have for a

148
00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:44,920
Speaker 1: long time, obviously, but more and more people are recognizing

149
00:09:44,920 --> 00:09:47,920
Speaker 1: the injustice of what you just said. What I think

150
00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:52,760
Speaker 1: people didn't have much understanding of is how not only

151
00:09:52,880 --> 00:09:57,440
Speaker 1: are billionaires like that making a tremendous amount of money

152
00:09:57,600 --> 00:09:59,720
Speaker 1: off of people who aren't being paid a living wage,

153
00:09:59,720 --> 00:10:03,720
Speaker 1: who can pay for, you know, all the things that

154
00:10:03,760 --> 00:10:10,160
Speaker 1: we should take as a given for you know, for

155
00:10:10,320 --> 00:10:13,000
Speaker 1: meeting people's basic human needs. Not only are they doing that,

156
00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:17,800
Speaker 1: they're then taking their money and reinvesting it in strategies

157
00:10:18,040 --> 00:10:22,080
Speaker 1: to further oppress those people, right, and particularly communities of color.

158
00:10:22,679 --> 00:10:26,240
Speaker 1: And most of the time that's done in secret. It's

159
00:10:26,280 --> 00:10:29,200
Speaker 1: not done in public view. Like they're not passing all

160
00:10:29,240 --> 00:10:32,360
Speaker 1: these criminal justice policies with their name on it, right,

161
00:10:32,360 --> 00:10:35,560
Speaker 1: They're not passing all these immigration policies with their name

162
00:10:35,600 --> 00:10:39,680
Speaker 1: on it. Right. They're doing this mostly in secret through

163
00:10:39,800 --> 00:10:45,520
Speaker 1: organizations like ALEC American Legislative Exchange Council, And so they're

164
00:10:45,559 --> 00:10:47,560
Speaker 1: making money off of us, or they're taking the money

165
00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:49,880
Speaker 1: that we give to them for the products that we

166
00:10:49,920 --> 00:10:53,120
Speaker 1: need to survive, and then they're using that to make

167
00:10:53,120 --> 00:10:56,160
Speaker 1: our lives harder on the back end. So I think

168
00:10:56,160 --> 00:10:58,920
Speaker 1: there's a lot of strategies and tactics that we need

169
00:10:59,080 --> 00:11:01,840
Speaker 1: to employ to to, like you say, sustain the outrage.

170
00:11:03,400 --> 00:11:06,080
Speaker 1: What I hope that this book contribute was shedding some

171
00:11:06,200 --> 00:11:08,440
Speaker 1: light on what that looks like and how that contributes

172
00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:11,440
Speaker 1: to systemic racism in particular. You know, in your book

173
00:11:12,400 --> 00:11:16,600
Speaker 1: Rich Thanks to Racism, you look at three particular areas

174
00:11:16,600 --> 00:11:21,400
Speaker 1: of focus. You look at our education system, criminal justice,

175
00:11:23,040 --> 00:11:28,480
Speaker 1: and immigration. Walk me through those three and why those

176
00:11:28,520 --> 00:11:31,000
Speaker 1: three were chosen, as I mean, obviously they should be.

177
00:11:31,160 --> 00:11:33,800
Speaker 1: I talk about this unwoke a of all the time

178
00:11:33,840 --> 00:11:36,560
Speaker 1: as a former educator. I say that there is no

179
00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:44,360
Speaker 1: better mechanism to support the consistency of white supremacy without

180
00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:49,439
Speaker 1: the public education system, Without us telling kids who is important,

181
00:11:49,480 --> 00:11:51,640
Speaker 1: who is not, who is worth studying, who is not,

182
00:11:51,960 --> 00:11:55,760
Speaker 1: what is considered classic literature, what is not right. We

183
00:11:56,800 --> 00:12:01,680
Speaker 1: are purposefully educating under the guys that racism will die

184
00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:04,560
Speaker 1: out with generations. And if that were the case, it

185
00:12:04,600 --> 00:12:08,120
Speaker 1: would have died out hundreds of years ago. So why

186
00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:11,000
Speaker 1: did you look at these particular areas and what do

187
00:12:11,080 --> 00:12:15,839
Speaker 1: they show us about how racism is exacerbated and how

188
00:12:15,880 --> 00:12:19,600
Speaker 1: the ultra wealthier profiting off of it in these particular areas.

189
00:12:20,200 --> 00:12:25,120
Speaker 1: I focused on those three areas in particular because you know,

190
00:12:25,160 --> 00:12:28,439
Speaker 1: there may not be a more significant racial justice issue

191
00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:32,920
Speaker 1: in the US right now than the massive overinvestment in

192
00:12:32,960 --> 00:12:37,600
Speaker 1: the criminalization of people of color, alongside the dramatic underinvestment

193
00:12:37,640 --> 00:12:41,679
Speaker 1: in the systems and strategies that would create healthier, safer,

194
00:12:41,679 --> 00:12:46,280
Speaker 1: and more equitable communities nationwide. Right So, on those three issues,

195
00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:49,600
Speaker 1: you know, we've dramatically expanded the criminal justice system, made

196
00:12:49,600 --> 00:12:52,760
Speaker 1: it the catch all solution for an enormous variety of

197
00:12:52,800 --> 00:12:57,920
Speaker 1: public health and safety issues, and particularly within black and

198
00:12:57,960 --> 00:13:00,760
Speaker 1: brown communities. Then we took that same coach, that same

199
00:13:00,880 --> 00:13:04,800
Speaker 1: destructive and ineffective tough on crime approach, and we exported

200
00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:09,080
Speaker 1: it to the immigration enforcement system while implementing a variety

201
00:13:09,080 --> 00:13:14,080
Speaker 1: of cruel and discriminatory policies targeted undocumented folks. And then meanwhile,

202
00:13:14,160 --> 00:13:16,120
Speaker 1: like you say, we have never in the entire history

203
00:13:16,120 --> 00:13:18,480
Speaker 1: of our country been willing to create a truly equitable

204
00:13:18,600 --> 00:13:21,440
Speaker 1: education system. We've never been willing to put youth of

205
00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:26,439
Speaker 1: color on equal footing with white youth. So the harm

206
00:13:26,559 --> 00:13:30,479
Speaker 1: caused by each of those within communities of color is astronomical.

207
00:13:30,760 --> 00:13:32,520
Speaker 1: But what they also share in common is that the

208
00:13:32,600 --> 00:13:36,679
Speaker 1: ultra wealthy are heavily invested in maintaining and even exacerbating

209
00:13:36,840 --> 00:13:39,920
Speaker 1: those inequities. So if you follow the money behind all

210
00:13:39,920 --> 00:13:44,880
Speaker 1: the public policies that create those systems, what you soon

211
00:13:44,920 --> 00:13:48,800
Speaker 1: find is that you wind up coming back to the

212
00:13:48,840 --> 00:13:52,920
Speaker 1: network that the Koch brothers created of billionaires and multi

213
00:13:53,000 --> 00:13:57,480
Speaker 1: millionaires who are investing in those systems. You find organizations

214
00:13:57,520 --> 00:14:00,520
Speaker 1: like ALEC with large corporations and Wall Street banks that are,

215
00:14:00,760 --> 00:14:04,400
Speaker 1: like I said, pushing these policies, usually secretively, and those

216
00:14:04,960 --> 00:14:07,800
Speaker 1: two groups in particular have made huge investments in think

217
00:14:07,800 --> 00:14:11,640
Speaker 1: tanks and advocacy organizations and media outlets that have been very,

218
00:14:11,720 --> 00:14:17,000
Speaker 1: very successful in advancing that that agenda. But then what

219
00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:19,000
Speaker 1: I also want to do is breakdown why, like what's

220
00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:22,960
Speaker 1: the strategy behind it? And I obviously spill a lot

221
00:14:22,960 --> 00:14:24,600
Speaker 1: of ink about this in the book, but the short

222
00:14:24,600 --> 00:14:28,000
Speaker 1: answer is because it's all those things are economically advantageous

223
00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:31,640
Speaker 1: for them, you know, they I refer to them as

224
00:14:31,760 --> 00:14:37,840
Speaker 1: racism profiteers. They make money off of mass incarceration through

225
00:14:37,840 --> 00:14:40,280
Speaker 1: the prison industrial complex and those dynamics, but a variety

226
00:14:40,280 --> 00:14:43,440
Speaker 1: of others too that before writing book I wasn't even

227
00:14:43,440 --> 00:14:46,600
Speaker 1: aware of. They also make money off immigrant attention. They

228
00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:49,200
Speaker 1: make money off of school privatization. That's one layer. But

229
00:14:49,240 --> 00:14:52,680
Speaker 1: another layer is they pay less in taxes when we

230
00:14:52,840 --> 00:14:56,400
Speaker 1: as a society choose to dehumanize people rather than meeting

231
00:14:56,400 --> 00:14:58,800
Speaker 1: their basic human needs, which is a big part of

232
00:14:58,840 --> 00:15:01,560
Speaker 1: all those systems. And I would also say that systemic

233
00:15:01,640 --> 00:15:05,760
Speaker 1: racism is extremely effective at controlling us, at dividing us,

234
00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:09,400
Speaker 1: at causing us not to recognize our common interests. So

235
00:15:09,480 --> 00:15:12,560
Speaker 1: all of those dynamics help them maintain their political and

236
00:15:12,600 --> 00:15:17,240
Speaker 1: economic power. You know, it's so depressing because the reality

237
00:15:17,360 --> 00:15:20,000
Speaker 1: is is that none of this is shocking or surprising.

238
00:15:20,600 --> 00:15:23,400
Speaker 1: It is it's just a matter of connecting the dots,

239
00:15:23,520 --> 00:15:26,680
Speaker 1: you know. A couple of um Like a year or

240
00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:30,920
Speaker 1: so ago, we had the president and CEO of Color

241
00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:35,000
Speaker 1: of Change on and Color of Change was very instrumental

242
00:15:35,320 --> 00:15:39,440
Speaker 1: in unearthing although the things that ALEC had been doing

243
00:15:39,600 --> 00:15:43,600
Speaker 1: right basically taking the black and brown communities money by

244
00:15:43,680 --> 00:15:47,520
Speaker 1: day right, and then voting and then creating legislation that

245
00:15:47,560 --> 00:15:50,240
Speaker 1: would upend our lives at night. That's that is their

246
00:15:50,520 --> 00:15:53,440
Speaker 1: m O. And but when you bring these things to

247
00:15:53,480 --> 00:15:57,160
Speaker 1: the forefront, I feel like the conversation that we continue

248
00:15:57,160 --> 00:16:00,800
Speaker 1: to have is trying to shame the it's your shame

249
00:16:00,960 --> 00:16:04,200
Speaker 1: Republicans into doing the right thing. We try to appeal

250
00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:06,960
Speaker 1: to their moral character. Shouldn't we do more? Right? We

251
00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:11,360
Speaker 1: are the eleventh wealthiest nation in the world, and yet

252
00:16:11,440 --> 00:16:15,120
Speaker 1: our poverty levels in the and the issues that affect

253
00:16:15,120 --> 00:16:19,760
Speaker 1: our country look similar to those that are in developing nations, right,

254
00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:22,360
Speaker 1: and so we know then that it isn't about money

255
00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:25,040
Speaker 1: or access to money. It is about a choice. And

256
00:16:25,080 --> 00:16:28,480
Speaker 1: so given that fact that we know that you're making

257
00:16:28,640 --> 00:16:31,560
Speaker 1: profit off of people's back, which is the whole premise

258
00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:35,520
Speaker 1: of your book, how do we stop it? What is

259
00:16:35,560 --> 00:16:38,680
Speaker 1: the What is if the incentive isn't, oh, we're going

260
00:16:38,720 --> 00:16:41,520
Speaker 1: to give you tax breaks if you keep your businesses here,

261
00:16:41,640 --> 00:16:44,120
Speaker 1: or we're going to try and you know, give you

262
00:16:44,160 --> 00:16:46,720
Speaker 1: these breaks. Because Republicans still believe in some type of

263
00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:49,200
Speaker 1: trickle down when there isn't a desire for there to

264
00:16:49,200 --> 00:16:51,000
Speaker 1: be a trickle down. There never was, which is why

265
00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:54,840
Speaker 1: after thirty years, we haven't seen a trickle down. So

266
00:16:54,880 --> 00:16:57,560
Speaker 1: what do we do here? Because the naming and the

267
00:16:57,680 --> 00:17:01,480
Speaker 1: and the shaming is important, right, recognizing you can't fix

268
00:17:01,520 --> 00:17:04,440
Speaker 1: something unless you actually see the problem. But the reality

269
00:17:04,560 --> 00:17:08,600
Speaker 1: is many people like yourself see the problem, articulate the problem,

270
00:17:08,640 --> 00:17:13,320
Speaker 1: and yet still here we are. Yeah, you're right. I

271
00:17:13,320 --> 00:17:20,560
Speaker 1: mean the I think trying to expose those issues, like

272
00:17:20,640 --> 00:17:23,959
Speaker 1: you say, is it's part of you know, popular education,

273
00:17:24,000 --> 00:17:26,840
Speaker 1: just letting folks know what's going on with with their

274
00:17:26,880 --> 00:17:29,840
Speaker 1: money and with the politics that affect their lives, but

275
00:17:30,000 --> 00:17:34,080
Speaker 1: ultimately solving it is, which is really, you know, the

276
00:17:34,119 --> 00:17:36,760
Speaker 1: only purpose of writing book. I'm a civil rights lawyer.

277
00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:39,199
Speaker 1: I'm interested, and I support social movements. My interest is

278
00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:44,520
Speaker 1: in getting more people involved, and so what I really

279
00:17:44,560 --> 00:17:47,639
Speaker 1: wanted to say was that, you know, if you actually

280
00:17:47,680 --> 00:17:50,439
Speaker 1: break down that agenda and the power behind it. You know,

281
00:17:50,640 --> 00:17:52,480
Speaker 1: for a long time, I thought as a civility, So

282
00:17:52,640 --> 00:17:56,159
Speaker 1: I thought I was working against ignorance. That's what I thought.

283
00:17:56,200 --> 00:18:01,760
Speaker 1: I thought if I educated enough people, then then people's

284
00:18:01,960 --> 00:18:04,040
Speaker 1: best intentions would come out and we would solve all

285
00:18:04,080 --> 00:18:07,640
Speaker 1: these issues. And turns out I was the one who

286
00:18:07,680 --> 00:18:11,800
Speaker 1: was deeply ignorant early on in my career, and now

287
00:18:11,920 --> 00:18:15,359
Speaker 1: you know, I've recognized that the only there's only one

288
00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:18,919
Speaker 1: source of political power that is comparable to that of

289
00:18:19,040 --> 00:18:22,120
Speaker 1: organized wealth, and that's the power of organized people. Right.

290
00:18:22,400 --> 00:18:26,280
Speaker 1: I think ultimately it's going to require stronger multiracial mass

291
00:18:26,359 --> 00:18:30,720
Speaker 1: movements to dismantle systemic racism and create a society that's

292
00:18:30,760 --> 00:18:33,680
Speaker 1: far more attentive to the well being of all its people.

293
00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:38,560
Speaker 1: Because the solutions to the issues, the policy issues that

294
00:18:38,560 --> 00:18:41,560
Speaker 1: I talk about in the book, they're not complicated. They

295
00:18:41,800 --> 00:18:44,280
Speaker 1: you know, folks of color in the communities most directly

296
00:18:44,320 --> 00:18:46,240
Speaker 1: impacted by these issues have been saying the stuff for

297
00:18:46,280 --> 00:18:49,399
Speaker 1: a very long time. The problem is is not the

298
00:18:49,480 --> 00:18:52,399
Speaker 1: ideas or you know, the folks were supporting. The problem

299
00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:55,920
Speaker 1: isn't the opposition. So we need to build strong enough

300
00:18:55,960 --> 00:19:02,000
Speaker 1: movements to implement those those solutions. And like you say, also,

301
00:19:02,040 --> 00:19:03,720
Speaker 1: we have to be able to get to the point

302
00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:07,240
Speaker 1: where we can make a collective demand the ultrawealthy as

303
00:19:07,240 --> 00:19:10,960
Speaker 1: a group that they stop advancing strategic racism and not

304
00:19:11,040 --> 00:19:14,000
Speaker 1: only do that, but support the effort to dismantle the

305
00:19:14,040 --> 00:19:17,360
Speaker 1: systems that perpetuate racial inequity and that lead to profits

306
00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:21,080
Speaker 1: for them, and they either do that or we find

307
00:19:21,119 --> 00:19:23,320
Speaker 1: other solutions that limit their powers so that the rest

308
00:19:23,320 --> 00:19:26,320
Speaker 1: of us can do it. But you know, my other

309
00:19:26,400 --> 00:19:29,040
Speaker 1: question is where is the incentive to limit their power

310
00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:32,239
Speaker 1: when in fact they're the ones that are funding the

311
00:19:32,320 --> 00:19:36,240
Speaker 1: packs right of the members of the members of Congress

312
00:19:36,480 --> 00:19:39,840
Speaker 1: who vote against their constituent's best interests as a way

313
00:19:39,840 --> 00:19:43,679
Speaker 1: to fill their coffers. And so it's there there is

314
00:19:43,720 --> 00:19:47,439
Speaker 1: the understanding that we need this collective movement, and we

315
00:19:47,520 --> 00:19:50,119
Speaker 1: know that we've been working on that. We've been telling

316
00:19:50,160 --> 00:19:52,280
Speaker 1: people you need to vote, you need to vote in masks,

317
00:19:52,320 --> 00:19:55,080
Speaker 1: they show up, they do it. Historic numbers. Now we

318
00:19:55,160 --> 00:19:58,639
Speaker 1: see a historic number of voter suppression pieces of legislation

319
00:19:58,680 --> 00:20:01,080
Speaker 1: that are being offered up in over forty states across

320
00:20:01,119 --> 00:20:05,480
Speaker 1: this country. And so while we see the power is

321
00:20:05,520 --> 00:20:08,720
Speaker 1: actually in the people, right, but we see that the

322
00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:14,600
Speaker 1: people and their ability to utilize that power is being

323
00:20:15,119 --> 00:20:19,240
Speaker 1: dead ended by a political party. And so it's you

324
00:20:19,359 --> 00:20:22,280
Speaker 1: have this information, you know what will stop it. I

325
00:20:22,320 --> 00:20:27,119
Speaker 1: guess my feeling is that we're headed towards a powder

326
00:20:27,240 --> 00:20:30,960
Speaker 1: keg moment in America right like, where there are so

327
00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:33,760
Speaker 1: many ills and so many problems and we're pointing at

328
00:20:33,800 --> 00:20:36,800
Speaker 1: the ultra rich, and we're saying you're a root of

329
00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:39,040
Speaker 1: a lot of these problems. Money is a root of

330
00:20:39,080 --> 00:20:42,679
Speaker 1: a lot of these problems. How do we how do

331
00:20:42,800 --> 00:20:47,680
Speaker 1: we move forward if the masses are being silenced? Right,

332
00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:51,800
Speaker 1: if communities of color continue to be surveiled in a

333
00:20:51,840 --> 00:20:55,080
Speaker 1: way that doesn't allow us to exercise our vote and

334
00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:59,560
Speaker 1: our power to stop to stop this, because just to

335
00:20:59,600 --> 00:21:01,919
Speaker 1: say that you need to do better, Bezos, you need

336
00:21:01,960 --> 00:21:04,400
Speaker 1: to do better Murdock, and this, that and the other,

337
00:21:04,480 --> 00:21:09,359
Speaker 1: they're not going to Yeah, you're right, I mean they

338
00:21:09,720 --> 00:21:12,560
Speaker 1: have um. Currently they have no incentive to stop what

339
00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:17,000
Speaker 1: they're doing. Um. They don't UM. And we haven't created

340
00:21:17,040 --> 00:21:22,480
Speaker 1: that incentive for them. And so you know, I so

341
00:21:22,920 --> 00:21:28,000
Speaker 1: it's not enough, um, just to educate ourselves and and

342
00:21:28,680 --> 00:21:33,440
Speaker 1: vote better. Yeah. And you know one thing I argue

343
00:21:33,440 --> 00:21:39,280
Speaker 1: for in the book is um um more of what

344
00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:42,960
Speaker 1: we might call participatory democracy. Right. If if our version

345
00:21:42,960 --> 00:21:47,359
Speaker 1: of democracy is just you know, voting every two years,

346
00:21:47,359 --> 00:21:50,640
Speaker 1: every four years and then tuning out and and appealing

347
00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:53,680
Speaker 1: to the benevolent paternalism of those who are in office,

348
00:21:54,160 --> 00:21:56,280
Speaker 1: then we are going to be sorely disappointed by what

349
00:21:56,480 --> 00:21:59,280
Speaker 1: comes out of it. So what I what I suggest

350
00:21:59,640 --> 00:22:04,800
Speaker 1: is is folks finding other ways to get involved in

351
00:22:04,880 --> 00:22:09,359
Speaker 1: a more consistent basis far more often. And you know that.

352
00:22:10,920 --> 00:22:12,920
Speaker 1: And really what I'm arguing for in the book is

353
00:22:12,960 --> 00:22:19,199
Speaker 1: people powered organizations, you know, building strong mass organizations. In

354
00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:22,560
Speaker 1: this work, it's the difference between winning and losing, right,

355
00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:25,600
Speaker 1: between having a powerful organized force pushing for change and

356
00:22:25,680 --> 00:22:30,239
Speaker 1: merely having a large number of isolated voices in the wilderness. Right,

357
00:22:30,280 --> 00:22:32,480
Speaker 1: there can be a million protesters out in the streets

358
00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:36,080
Speaker 1: yelling about various injustices. But if those million folks are

359
00:22:36,160 --> 00:22:40,760
Speaker 1: a million atomized individuals, then whatever impact is created by

360
00:22:40,760 --> 00:22:43,040
Speaker 1: their actions will quickly dissipate. We'll be back to business

361
00:22:43,080 --> 00:22:47,560
Speaker 1: as usual before long. But if those million protesters are

362
00:22:47,560 --> 00:22:50,040
Speaker 1: members of organizations that can start to build off of

363
00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:52,640
Speaker 1: the momentum created by that protest and channel it into

364
00:22:52,680 --> 00:22:55,240
Speaker 1: positive social change, then we can start to collectively shift

365
00:22:55,280 --> 00:22:59,440
Speaker 1: a needle. So I give I only offer two action

366
00:22:59,480 --> 00:23:06,800
Speaker 1: steps in the book. UM. One is supporting UM grassroots

367
00:23:06,920 --> 00:23:11,520
Speaker 1: racial justice organizations that are that already exist. UM. There's

368
00:23:11,600 --> 00:23:13,920
Speaker 1: hundreds of them out there in every state. UM. They're

369
00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:17,560
Speaker 1: usually severely underresourced relative to their opposition in the fights

370
00:23:17,920 --> 00:23:19,679
Speaker 1: UM that they're taking on and have been taking on

371
00:23:19,720 --> 00:23:22,400
Speaker 1: for a very long time. UM. So they need financial

372
00:23:22,400 --> 00:23:24,600
Speaker 1: donations and they need you know, every other kind of

373
00:23:24,600 --> 00:23:27,240
Speaker 1: support UM that folks can offer as well. And the

374
00:23:27,280 --> 00:23:29,920
Speaker 1: other thing I say is that we should be creating

375
00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:33,800
Speaker 1: what I call community equity assemblies in every community in

376
00:23:33,800 --> 00:23:37,680
Speaker 1: the US. Which so what does that look like, Well, yeah,

377
00:23:37,720 --> 00:23:42,040
Speaker 1: it's yeah, it's UM. Initially it can be very informal,

378
00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:45,600
Speaker 1: you know, just groups of people coming together to talk

379
00:23:45,640 --> 00:23:48,560
Speaker 1: about equity issues and their issues, talk about systemic racism

380
00:23:48,560 --> 00:23:55,120
Speaker 1: and other um, you know, other UM equity issues and

381
00:23:55,119 --> 00:23:57,639
Speaker 1: and just to learn about it and and start to

382
00:23:57,640 --> 00:23:59,800
Speaker 1: think about how you can address it locally. It could

383
00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:01,240
Speaker 1: be just a few people, doesn't have to be a

384
00:24:01,280 --> 00:24:06,040
Speaker 1: formal body, but UM. And by the way, you know,

385
00:24:06,320 --> 00:24:09,439
Speaker 1: little groups like that create enormous change around the country

386
00:24:09,440 --> 00:24:11,960
Speaker 1: every day. I'm fortunate enough to you know, to work

387
00:24:11,960 --> 00:24:14,080
Speaker 1: with a lot of them. But over time, you start

388
00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:17,200
Speaker 1: building in more people, bringing in more people rather UM

389
00:24:17,720 --> 00:24:22,280
Speaker 1: and UM, and start getting more involved in local political

390
00:24:22,320 --> 00:24:26,160
Speaker 1: processes or state political processes. All of a sudden, UM,

391
00:24:27,119 --> 00:24:31,399
Speaker 1: we can start shifting things very very quickly. We can

392
00:24:31,440 --> 00:24:35,439
Speaker 1: we can have um folks um getting a much bigger

393
00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:37,479
Speaker 1: seat at the table when it comes to budget decisions,

394
00:24:37,520 --> 00:24:40,720
Speaker 1: when it comes to policy decisions, And it really doesn't

395
00:24:40,760 --> 00:24:44,879
Speaker 1: take um that many people or that much time for

396
00:24:45,520 --> 00:24:48,080
Speaker 1: um UM for all of a sudden things to change

397
00:24:48,080 --> 00:24:52,240
Speaker 1: pretty dramatically once we start shining a light on equity

398
00:24:52,280 --> 00:24:56,600
Speaker 1: issues and we have people who are educating themselves about

399
00:24:56,640 --> 00:24:58,639
Speaker 1: these issues in a in a national level and an

400
00:24:58,640 --> 00:25:02,280
Speaker 1: international level, but also in very very local level who

401
00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:07,640
Speaker 1: are building together and taking ownership over those things. And

402
00:25:07,720 --> 00:25:12,360
Speaker 1: that is that can be transformative. And it's also, by

403
00:25:12,359 --> 00:25:14,960
Speaker 1: the way, what the ultra wealthy probably fear the most.

404
00:25:15,240 --> 00:25:19,440
Speaker 1: Well last question for you is this just going back

405
00:25:19,480 --> 00:25:24,399
Speaker 1: to the pandemic and what it has illuminated, especially for

406
00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:27,040
Speaker 1: folks who are not steeped in this work in the

407
00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:31,040
Speaker 1: way that you are, is that we have been relying

408
00:25:31,080 --> 00:25:36,479
Speaker 1: on the benevolence of billionaires and millionaires essentially to do

409
00:25:36,520 --> 00:25:40,320
Speaker 1: the work that our government has not. When it's done well,

410
00:25:40,320 --> 00:25:44,439
Speaker 1: we're looking at the Bill Gates is of the world

411
00:25:44,440 --> 00:25:47,760
Speaker 1: and the Warren buffets and who is trying to reinvest

412
00:25:47,960 --> 00:25:52,159
Speaker 1: into community right or spend down their wealth When we

413
00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:55,040
Speaker 1: look at it in the bad way. Right, We're looking

414
00:25:55,080 --> 00:25:59,639
Speaker 1: at the Murdocks and the Koch brothers right well one

415
00:25:59,720 --> 00:26:02,840
Speaker 1: of them now, who have been using their money and

416
00:26:02,880 --> 00:26:06,720
Speaker 1: their power and their influence for bad How do we

417
00:26:06,800 --> 00:26:10,479
Speaker 1: move from this space where they wield so much power

418
00:26:10,920 --> 00:26:12,679
Speaker 1: to be able to decide do I want to be

419
00:26:12,760 --> 00:26:16,840
Speaker 1: charitable today or do I want to be greedy tomorrow? Right? Like,

420
00:26:16,880 --> 00:26:21,280
Speaker 1: we know, my question really is about how if you

421
00:26:21,359 --> 00:26:24,680
Speaker 1: had the opportunity to work inside of our government. Now

422
00:26:24,720 --> 00:26:27,200
Speaker 1: we have a new administration, we have one that actually

423
00:26:27,200 --> 00:26:30,280
Speaker 1: believes in equity. What are some of the steps that

424
00:26:30,560 --> 00:26:33,960
Speaker 1: they can take at this moment where we are moving

425
00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:39,680
Speaker 1: away from the philanthropic community to save us and we're

426
00:26:39,720 --> 00:26:44,120
Speaker 1: looking back at our government institutions and agencies that were

427
00:26:44,160 --> 00:26:50,320
Speaker 1: created to do just that. Yeah, I mean, I think

428
00:26:54,640 --> 00:26:57,960
Speaker 1: I do think we have to be careful about even

429
00:26:58,000 --> 00:27:01,359
Speaker 1: giving them too much credit for the so called good

430
00:27:01,359 --> 00:27:07,240
Speaker 1: things that they do, because you know, as you say

431
00:27:07,240 --> 00:27:09,480
Speaker 1: in the book, I write a devote a chapter to

432
00:27:09,720 --> 00:27:17,679
Speaker 1: education and specifically the school privatization movement and the you know,

433
00:27:17,720 --> 00:27:20,199
Speaker 1: while somebody like Bill Gates has gotten a lot of

434
00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:23,920
Speaker 1: positive press over the years for his investments in charter schools,

435
00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:30,960
Speaker 1: what hasn't really been exposed is that the Koch brothers

436
00:27:31,160 --> 00:27:33,280
Speaker 1: and their network were investing heavily in a lot of

437
00:27:33,280 --> 00:27:39,720
Speaker 1: the same organizations as Bill Gates. And and I you

438
00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:41,679
Speaker 1: know what I what I say in the book is

439
00:27:41,720 --> 00:27:47,040
Speaker 1: that I don't think Bill Gates's intentions were bad, but

440
00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:50,359
Speaker 1: I do think that what he has done has been very,

441
00:27:50,440 --> 00:27:54,160
Speaker 1: very destructive in ways that hasn't gotten enough to attention.

442
00:27:54,440 --> 00:27:59,040
Speaker 1: And it's also contributed to somebody like Charles Cooke advancing

443
00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:04,960
Speaker 1: a radical school voucher agenda that has taken hold in

444
00:28:05,000 --> 00:28:07,120
Speaker 1: lots in lots of places around the country. In fact,

445
00:28:07,160 --> 00:28:11,399
Speaker 1: there's a major voucher bills right now in Florida. And

446
00:28:11,480 --> 00:28:13,800
Speaker 1: so I think we have to be I think we

447
00:28:13,840 --> 00:28:17,800
Speaker 1: have to be very careful about the enormous influence of

448
00:28:18,920 --> 00:28:23,880
Speaker 1: extreme wealth in all aspects, regardless of whether we think

449
00:28:23,920 --> 00:28:27,119
Speaker 1: it's you know, positive in one case or negative in another.

450
00:28:29,440 --> 00:28:31,399
Speaker 1: But I would what I would say is that is

451
00:28:31,440 --> 00:28:37,440
Speaker 1: that we need to in all aspects of these issues

452
00:28:37,520 --> 00:28:40,240
Speaker 1: that I talk about, we need to get back to

453
00:28:40,400 --> 00:28:44,760
Speaker 1: aligning our systems with the values and needs of the

454
00:28:44,760 --> 00:28:50,240
Speaker 1: people who are directly impacted. So you may think somebody

455
00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:52,200
Speaker 1: may you know, one of your listeners may think it's

456
00:28:52,200 --> 00:28:54,000
Speaker 1: a great idea to put a bunch of money into

457
00:28:54,040 --> 00:28:59,120
Speaker 1: charter schools. Fine, but if that money is not being

458
00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:01,720
Speaker 1: put in their neighborhood but in somebody else's neighborhood in

459
00:29:01,840 --> 00:29:05,760
Speaker 1: a way that is not responsive to that community's history,

460
00:29:05,760 --> 00:29:11,520
Speaker 1: that communities needs, that community's perspectives, then I would say

461
00:29:11,560 --> 00:29:17,280
Speaker 1: that that's, you know, unequivocally wrong. And since it's almost

462
00:29:17,280 --> 00:29:19,360
Speaker 1: always black and brown communities that that's happening to, I

463
00:29:19,400 --> 00:29:23,880
Speaker 1: would also say that that's racist. So if we are,

464
00:29:25,200 --> 00:29:29,320
Speaker 1: if we're going to fix these problems, then we need

465
00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:32,640
Speaker 1: to start structuring our systems so that you know, we're

466
00:29:32,680 --> 00:29:36,840
Speaker 1: not making decisions about how black communities should be policed, right,

467
00:29:36,880 --> 00:29:40,120
Speaker 1: Those communities should be able should have the right to

468
00:29:40,160 --> 00:29:43,840
Speaker 1: self determination around those decisions. We're not making decisions about

469
00:29:44,400 --> 00:29:46,240
Speaker 1: how we're going to close down public schools and open

470
00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:48,920
Speaker 1: up a bunch of schools in black and brown communities.

471
00:29:48,920 --> 00:29:51,040
Speaker 1: We're going to involve those folks in the decision. Right,

472
00:29:51,080 --> 00:29:53,320
Speaker 1: how do we address the education debt that we owe

473
00:29:53,360 --> 00:30:00,280
Speaker 1: to you through generations of neglect and under investment, Right, So, um,

474
00:30:01,440 --> 00:30:04,680
Speaker 1: I think that's the biggest step that this administration and

475
00:30:04,960 --> 00:30:07,880
Speaker 1: state governments and local governments around the country could make

476
00:30:08,120 --> 00:30:11,080
Speaker 1: is Now, we're going to start partnering with you, We're

477
00:30:11,080 --> 00:30:12,640
Speaker 1: going to start listening to you, and we're going to

478
00:30:12,760 --> 00:30:19,000
Speaker 1: start utilizing our public investments in ways that are addressing

479
00:30:19,040 --> 00:30:22,960
Speaker 1: equity issues head on. It's not sort of an ancillary

480
00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:28,280
Speaker 1: benefit of some universalized investment strategy. Now our priority is

481
00:30:28,280 --> 00:30:31,440
Speaker 1: going to be repairing the harm and creating an equitable society.

482
00:30:31,560 --> 00:30:34,680
Speaker 1: We've never done that at any level of government now everywhere,

483
00:30:35,200 --> 00:30:38,200
Speaker 1: and so that's where I think that's where I think

484
00:30:38,240 --> 00:30:41,120
Speaker 1: we have to move to. Yeah, I mean I think

485
00:30:41,120 --> 00:30:43,920
Speaker 1: that we have to move to having the will as well.

486
00:30:43,960 --> 00:30:46,720
Speaker 1: I think that the great thing about your about your

487
00:30:46,720 --> 00:30:51,520
Speaker 1: book is that it shows us very clearly in these

488
00:30:51,560 --> 00:30:54,880
Speaker 1: three issue areas that we have been working in, and

489
00:30:54,920 --> 00:30:59,160
Speaker 1: we have seen the problems become bigger and bigger and

490
00:30:59,240 --> 00:31:03,800
Speaker 1: bigger with our criminal justice system, with our education system,

491
00:31:03,840 --> 00:31:05,720
Speaker 1: and we're saying to ourselves, you know, we're in the

492
00:31:05,760 --> 00:31:09,200
Speaker 1: midst of this pandemic, and millions of kids didn't even

493
00:31:09,240 --> 00:31:12,520
Speaker 1: have access to broadband, don't have computers at home. But

494
00:31:12,600 --> 00:31:16,280
Speaker 1: we knew this a decade ago, right, And so when

495
00:31:16,280 --> 00:31:18,680
Speaker 1: we think about the things that are a necessity in

496
00:31:18,720 --> 00:31:23,160
Speaker 1: this country for living out your American dream, whatever that is.

497
00:31:23,440 --> 00:31:27,239
Speaker 1: It's like the basics are not being met, and you know,

498
00:31:27,320 --> 00:31:29,880
Speaker 1: we have to look at who is actually to blame

499
00:31:29,960 --> 00:31:33,440
Speaker 1: for that, rather than becoming these crabs in a barrel

500
00:31:33,480 --> 00:31:36,400
Speaker 1: that are fighting amongst ourselves for scraps when there are

501
00:31:36,400 --> 00:31:39,360
Speaker 1: people that are literally eating high off the hog, literally

502
00:31:39,600 --> 00:31:43,000
Speaker 1: working and living off of our backs. I thank you

503
00:31:43,040 --> 00:31:46,200
Speaker 1: so much for one taking the time to join willk F.

504
00:31:46,320 --> 00:31:50,400
Speaker 1: But for this book, friends, the book is titled rich

505
00:31:50,640 --> 00:31:56,520
Speaker 1: thanks to Racism. How the ultra wealthy profit from racial injustice. Jim,

506
00:31:56,520 --> 00:31:59,280
Speaker 1: thank you so much for coming, and I hope that

507
00:31:59,320 --> 00:32:02,320
Speaker 1: you'll join us again because this is a heavy weighty

508
00:32:02,400 --> 00:32:04,880
Speaker 1: issue that I don't think that we pay enough attention to.

509
00:32:05,600 --> 00:32:07,240
Speaker 1: Thank you so much, Danielle. I was great being with

510
00:32:07,280 --> 00:32:15,640
Speaker 1: you as always, dear friends. Power to the people and

511
00:32:15,760 --> 00:32:19,800
Speaker 1: to all the people. Power, get woke and stay woke

512
00:32:19,840 --> 00:32:25,320
Speaker 1: as fuck. See after Labor Day.