Speaker 1: My league books has how the knowledge you want, Lee,
Speaker 1: but has how the knowledge you need. But yeah, they
Speaker 1: have all the works that the whole wild world want
Speaker 1: to read. Malik Books. Welcome, Welcome, Welcome to Melik's book
Speaker 1: bringing a world together with books, culture and community. Hi,
Speaker 1: my name is Malik, your host of Malik's Bookshelf. Okay,
Speaker 1: last week my episode was voting for the Lesser of
Speaker 1: Two Evils. Now I was able to have some conversations
Speaker 1: about this last segment with some of my audience who
Speaker 1: was listened to Malik's book show. Now, I even was
Speaker 1: able to do a few interviews with people on the
Speaker 1: stump at some of the events I was doing this
Speaker 1: weekend and asked them their thoughts about the mid term election.
Speaker 1: So this, this particular episode is a attenuation of last
Speaker 1: week's voting for the Lesser of Two Evils. Also, want
Speaker 1: to talk about a new segment that we're bringing to
Speaker 1: Malik's Bookshelf. You know, about a month ago I started
Speaker 1: the Bobby Shop Talks and what I'm gonna do instead
Speaker 1: of continuing that from week to week, just bring that
Speaker 1: as one featured episode instead of breaking it up and
Speaker 1: having five six minutes segments each week. I mean, we're
Speaker 1: bringing just one episode of that, but I'm starting this
Speaker 1: new segment. And what we're gonna do with this new
Speaker 1: feature is give my audience a way they chime in
Speaker 1: and ask me some questions. So on this new feature
Speaker 1: on the podcast, it's called Malik's mail Bag. Now my
Speaker 1: email is available to you, twenty folks seven and the
Speaker 1: email is called Real Malik Mohammed at gmail dot com.
Speaker 1: Let me say that again now, Real Malik Mohammed at
Speaker 1: gmail dot com. Now Mohammed is spelled m u h
Speaker 1: A M m A D and of course Malik is
Speaker 1: m A l I K. Now Real Malik Mohammed at
Speaker 1: gmail dot com. So bring your questions, your comment, anything
Speaker 1: at all. You can email me direct and Malik's mail
Speaker 1: Bag is gonna be a vital feature in a segment
Speaker 1: on the podcast throughout the month. So I'm looking forward
Speaker 1: to my audience or anyone reaching out to me and
Speaker 1: so we can discuss whatever it is on your mind.
Speaker 1: I also have a few questions from Malik's mail Bag,
Speaker 1: and so I'm gonna discuss that on this segment. So
Speaker 1: stay tuned, enjoy the episode because it's a continuation of
Speaker 1: last week's episode Voting for the Less of two Evil.
Speaker 1: But the title of this episode is called Voting mid
Speaker 1: Terms and White Supremacy. Mid Term elections coming up, and
Speaker 1: I just want to get your thoughts real quick. To
Speaker 1: be honest, I don't really pay things to the election.
Speaker 1: This is my point. I said my last podcast last week.
Speaker 1: Vote we vote for the less tree, and it's hard
Speaker 1: trying to survive paying attention to politics every two years.
Speaker 1: You agree, Yeah, yeah, that's well, that's been my thought.
Speaker 1: Thank you, brother. Appreciate what's your thoughts about the upcoming
Speaker 1: melation the same way, But I can't really pay attention
Speaker 1: to it. It's just tough to pay attention to it,
Speaker 1: so I don't really follow it. Yeah, Like, somebody told
Speaker 1: me a question. They asked me a question. They said,
Speaker 1: the KKK wrote Republican every time, So what's your thoughts
Speaker 1: about that? If that's the case, I see, Like, like
Speaker 1: I said, I don't know nothing about that. I don't
Speaker 1: even know none of that, So that's news to me. Yeah,
Speaker 1: my brother, I said, somebody told me said, the k
Speaker 1: k K vote Republican every time. What's your thoughts on that? Um?
Speaker 1: I think a lot of spacy a lot of vote Repblicant.
Speaker 1: I think a lot a lot of RACI people vote
Speaker 1: the Democrats to honestly, hello, hello, absolutely absolutely white supremacy
Speaker 1: of both parties. Yeah, yes, I think so. Yes, all
Speaker 1: over the world. There you have it, white supremacy. Vote
Speaker 1: Democrat and vote Republican. And that's my take on that
Speaker 1: as well. I'm going deeper when I get my thoughts
Speaker 1: about a few questions that I got uh email to me,
Speaker 1: and I'll talk more about that. I'm at a festival
Speaker 1: called to Do It. Actually, I think that's the name
Speaker 1: of this, the biopic book. I mean festival here with
Speaker 1: auching crafts and multicultural Anyway, I'm still doing the Leak's
Speaker 1: Bookshelf podcast and I'm out here asking some of the
Speaker 1: people are here about the upcome the mixed term elections.
Speaker 1: And I wrote up on a brother and I wanted
Speaker 1: to hear his thoughts on that about to see participating
Speaker 1: in an upcoming election and if not, why definitely participate.
Speaker 1: I haven't been following as much as I should, but
Speaker 1: I think us, as you know, young black people and
Speaker 1: older black people, we should be aware of who's gonna
Speaker 1: be controlling how we live and decisions we make, so
Speaker 1: I do think it's important. Do you think I needed
Speaker 1: diving in more than I am now? But I guess
Speaker 1: talking are you're gonna vote this next selection? In midtimand
Speaker 1: okay and and also um my last podcast were called
Speaker 1: voting for the lesson too, it was what you think
Speaker 1: about that? Well, I think that's what I think. That's
Speaker 1: what I always think about before every election, because at
Speaker 1: the end of the day, you know, both sides are
Speaker 1: not really for you, but trying to pick the side
Speaker 1: that may benefits you the most. That's been my take
Speaker 1: on it is that, hey, I mean, it is what
Speaker 1: it is. And I said that if we need to
Speaker 1: focus more on economics and not politics, no, true, true, true.
Speaker 1: I think that that's where the real power is that
Speaker 1: and I think we've spent too much time every two
Speaker 1: years trying to find out who's the saving grace And
Speaker 1: I don't think it won't exist, No, I don't think so.
Speaker 1: I don't think so just trying to find what what
Speaker 1: what would improve life a little bit moving forward. So
Speaker 1: we're not saying that no good comes out of voting,
Speaker 1: no good comes up. You know what got power and
Speaker 1: they got married. What we're saying is that the results
Speaker 1: and the interest in the amount of time that we
Speaker 1: spend focusing on voting. In the sixty years that we've
Speaker 1: been voting system rights have not equal to proper gains.
Speaker 1: And other coaches have been here just as long and
Speaker 1: they have bigger gains and they don't even participate in
Speaker 1: voting or having amount of politicians. Yep. But I do
Speaker 1: believe as us as black focus is an incremental process.
Speaker 1: So I think one vote at a time and we
Speaker 1: can get the right people in place, and I think
Speaker 1: we might see change, hopefully for the future. I concur
Speaker 1: thank you brother, to appreciate it. Appreciate it, thank you.
Speaker 1: I got to get your look. We have stirred about
Speaker 1: nice conversation about the mid She asked me about want
Speaker 1: to vote. This ain't about I just want to get
Speaker 1: her thoughts about what she's gonna vote. But hey, but
Speaker 1: we got this brother here too, so he can chime
Speaker 1: in as well. But hey, I just want to get
Speaker 1: your thoughts on the mid term relation. And I got said,
Speaker 1: I do pay attention to propositions and some of the
Speaker 1: things locally as far as nationally. Sometimes I just you know,
Speaker 1: vote for less st without my last pocket so anyway,
Speaker 1: it's on you know, spotlight. So here's the thing. Until unfortunately,
Speaker 1: we are in a position of power, we're going to
Speaker 1: continue to vote for the lesser two evils. So the
Speaker 1: goal is do everything at a grassroots level. It's get
Speaker 1: the young people here, young black people. We need to
Speaker 1: get out in the streets, get motivated and knock on doors,
Speaker 1: talk to each other so we can become in power.
Speaker 1: Because the goal is not to have our kids and
Speaker 1: grand kids voting for the lesser two evils. We've been
Speaker 1: doing that for decades and the time has come. Nobody
Speaker 1: let's do that ship no more. So that's the reality.
Speaker 1: And and so yeah, so until we get in a
Speaker 1: position of power, until we're running you know, our financial institution,
Speaker 1: medical institutions, schools, everything that we're gonna continue in the
Speaker 1: same boat. So yeah, that's I gotta roll little. I say,
Speaker 1: vote your interests. I don't do that vote for the
Speaker 1: less two evils theme, because you're still gonna get evil.
Speaker 1: Vote your interests, get what goes for what you want,
Speaker 1: usually what you want if you're black like I am,
Speaker 1: it's gonna be for the greater good of your people.
Speaker 1: But vote your interests. When we do that lesson to
Speaker 1: evil ship. History has proven that that don't get us
Speaker 1: to down far vote for your hood. But you're my choice.
Speaker 1: I'm a big choice this time. That's a question as
Speaker 1: far as may Yeah, you're voting for you know me.
Speaker 1: So when it comes to mayor's I do my research.
Speaker 1: I don't know yet. I do my research. You gotta
Speaker 1: have your business. Oh do you even have time? I look,
Speaker 1: I'm at work. On my down time, I go on YouTube.
Speaker 1: I look up everybody. He has voted for. Karen Baths
Speaker 1: will be straight. He's not voting for Crusoe. You're not
Speaker 1: because he's not because of his his views on pro choice,
Speaker 1: and that was your determining fact. I'm not. Yeah, I'm
Speaker 1: very produced, so I live, but I mean proproach, demote rights.
Speaker 1: Now I have this next question, all right, because somebody
Speaker 1: said to me, they asked me. They said, the cookus Klan,
Speaker 1: white supremacy, they vote on Republican all the time. And
Speaker 1: my answer to that was, so US Democrats that we
Speaker 1: vote at I said, did white supremacy? Republicans? They vote
Speaker 1: Republican one percent of the time. And as black people
Speaker 1: basically saying like, what are we gonna do in terms
Speaker 1: of you know, US unite now vote because they say
Speaker 1: white supremacis vote Republican one hundred percent at a time.
Speaker 1: My argument that was that white supremacy vote democratic as well.
Speaker 1: They do. They record if you look at Joe Biden
Speaker 1: track the three strike laws, the main thing that put
Speaker 1: a lot of our So you got Carus already got
Speaker 1: the Democrat you got, you got Carus a Rudy as
Speaker 1: a Democrat, you got Trump. It was a democratic before.
Speaker 1: So everybody switching side, Like I said, the goal is
Speaker 1: we needed young black people have to get into power.
Speaker 1: So you gotta tell your friends, your family members, people
Speaker 1: who you know would be good in these positions. Young
Speaker 1: black people have to empower each other. You don't have
Speaker 1: to get into power because you have that your people
Speaker 1: to empower you to get power. So how did the
Speaker 1: Jewish community, Asian community come into power Because they don't
Speaker 1: vote on they don't have a lot, they don't have
Speaker 1: a lot of politicians, they don't have a lot of politicians,
Speaker 1: but yet they got power. They empowered themselves. I tell
Speaker 1: everybody like what how did they empower themselves? Working with
Speaker 1: each other? And what else? Economics? Right, I look at
Speaker 1: it like this. My business is in a predominantly Mexican neighborhood.
Speaker 1: When you see them, they work together. I'll come from
Speaker 1: the car industries, a lot of Asian people that work there.
Speaker 1: One of my best homies that I used to work
Speaker 1: with would tell me, hey, we got a Chinese restaurant,
Speaker 1: will build up. Help one person to help one person.
Speaker 1: We gotta learn to help each other at the same time.
Speaker 1: It's also having a foot on your neck and your back.
Speaker 1: You still gotta know how to work with each other.
Speaker 1: We got a lot of place to work. We don't
Speaker 1: get a lot of bullshit out of our mind that
Speaker 1: has been fed to us from other people, and then
Speaker 1: you know, work with each other's They definitely work together,
Speaker 1: and that's one thing that we need to notice. But
Speaker 1: I think that's the point. At the end of the day,
Speaker 1: they'll do whatever they have to do to get to
Speaker 1: the next level, and they will always make sure they
Speaker 1: look out for it. So we can agree that we
Speaker 1: don't do this, we don't do it. We can agree
Speaker 1: we don't do at some levels, but we don't do
Speaker 1: it enough. That's the problem, because if we didn't do it,
Speaker 1: then you wouldn't have your bookstore. He wouldn't have his
Speaker 1: water store. I wouldn't have my event space. So we
Speaker 1: do do it, we just don't do it enough. And
Speaker 1: so when I say selling meaning they're they're all about
Speaker 1: sticking together and it's them against everybody. And there's nothing
Speaker 1: wrong with that. But I feel like black people we
Speaker 1: need to do the same thing, to learn how to
Speaker 1: highlight the good and keep it highlighting. Like we highlight
Speaker 1: the bag because I mean, we all products of our environment,
Speaker 1: but if you can highlight the good that comes out
Speaker 1: of the environment as well, because let's keep it real.
Speaker 1: We all like wrap, I like wrap the ship talking
Speaker 1: about killing all us all the time. But also know
Speaker 1: on the other side, we know good. But I can
Speaker 1: point to you a gang of my younger home is
Speaker 1: that don't know you know what's right and what's good,
Speaker 1: I mean, what's bad for these times, so you have
Speaker 1: to there are no more old g s. When I
Speaker 1: was coming up on thirty, I still have olds to
Speaker 1: tell you like don't do that. Yeah, you can do
Speaker 1: something stupid, but they'll still tell you like, all right,
Speaker 1: that's too stupid. Nobody telling nobody that. No more, So
Speaker 1: we keep leading the younger to learn that we you
Speaker 1: know that get us lost in the mix, then we
Speaker 1: ain't gonna be able to empower each other. We've been
Speaker 1: voting for sixty years now civil rights and do you
Speaker 1: agree with the empowerment that's taking place in these our
Speaker 1: communities or if we fall short? Um, I think it's fake.
Speaker 1: A lot of it was being take was taking place
Speaker 1: in the communities. A lot of people. You have people
Speaker 1: with power and the money and the resources who show
Speaker 1: up on a on a random Saturday, smile, kiss babies,
Speaker 1: and then they go back to wherever they live or
Speaker 1: whatever they do. Like I said, I'm always about a
Speaker 1: grassroots level. If the person next door to you can't read,
Speaker 1: that's your issue. If he owns a business and he
Speaker 1: doesn't teach us, a little neighbor next door how to
Speaker 1: own a business, then that becomes all of our issues.
Speaker 1: So we we absolutely have fallen short. And I feel
Speaker 1: like a lot of the people we have representing us
Speaker 1: today it's nothing but fake. Just yes, Well that's why
Speaker 1: I say we vote for that stupid because I agree
Speaker 1: because I think all the issues we sew from teenage pregnancy,
Speaker 1: alcoholic liquor stoles on every corner, fast food on every corner.
Speaker 1: All that's because politicians in power allowed just to happen,
Speaker 1: knowing that ditbeat these high potension, high blood pressure, all
Speaker 1: of these issues, guns everywhere, come in here, and then
Speaker 1: this is where I like, I'm a YouTuber, so I
Speaker 1: get on YouTube and I look at all what's right,
Speaker 1: what's wrong from every Kennedy. But my issue is homelessness
Speaker 1: is out of control, and I live like I'm confident.
Speaker 1: So over there and they're pushing all the Harvy's over there,
Speaker 1: and you got crackheads walking around everywhere, and it's it's
Speaker 1: it's in Gardena, a predominantly Hispanic and black part of
Speaker 1: Gardena is nothing but white drug addicts walking around, and
Speaker 1: you start to get the wonder, like, what the hell's
Speaker 1: going on? So we got a lot of stuff to
Speaker 1: work on before we started to get to the bigger stuff.
Speaker 1: They're pushing all these factories from downtown to you know,
Speaker 1: the South Bay area in the hood. Have a lot
Speaker 1: of stuff to work on. But we can also be
Speaker 1: our own worst enemy too, like that that's a problem
Speaker 1: with an that can So when you talk about working together,
Speaker 1: we are we are our own worst enemy. I always
Speaker 1: say that we need to get our own way because
Speaker 1: we stopping our development, our growth, and our elevation. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and so when you ask about other cultures, I think
Speaker 1: that's that's what they have to be their greatest resource.
Speaker 1: They're not in a lot of times are not in
Speaker 1: their own way. They're working together, and yeah, they're building
Speaker 1: each other up, but it's not it's not that we
Speaker 1: haven't been built down for centuries. Like, don't get its
Speaker 1: with it. But we do have the power, and clearly
Speaker 1: everyone looks at us, everyone follows us. So we're the
Speaker 1: most powerful. We don't even realize we are. We're just
Speaker 1: not exercising our true power because it's unit is more
Speaker 1: powerful than autommy bomb. We need to unite money, intellect, resources,
Speaker 1: every interest, every hu minute that we need to unite,
Speaker 1: and we don't, and so we fall short absolutely. And
Speaker 1: I'm sure if you were to ask any like when
Speaker 1: you mentioned like Jewish cultures, Asian cultures, Latin cultures, if
Speaker 1: you were to ask them from a mentoring perspective, what
Speaker 1: would they recommend? They will probably say the same thing
Speaker 1: you got. You guys have to stick together. You guys
Speaker 1: are charity. I mean it sounds hard, but it's the truth.
Speaker 1: All I know is I probably like to be a
Speaker 1: door knob in your house when y'are sitting around talking
Speaker 1: like this. Have my glass of wine because y'all y'all
Speaker 1: going deep, y'all lit toy. I feel impossive between y'all,
Speaker 1: I feel it. Yeah. Great, thank you, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1: Appreciate that y'all gave me some good content. Malik's Book
Speaker 1: Show bringing the world together with books, culture and community.
Speaker 1: I thank you, thank you. Well, I'm gonna get into
Speaker 1: my new segment is called Malik's mail Bag. Now. I
Speaker 1: get emails from listeners from time to time. But wait,
Speaker 1: last week's segment on voting for the lesser of two
Speaker 1: evils sure got people rowed. Now, some of you agree
Speaker 1: with me and some of you didn't. That's okay. I
Speaker 1: welcome all feet by, but some of you have some questions,
Speaker 1: and I wanted to address some of them right now.
Speaker 1: This is from Anthony and Culver City, Malik. I agree
Speaker 1: with a lot of what you say about voting Obama,
Speaker 1: but one thing I keep in mind that KKK votes
Speaker 1: Republican every time, no matter what. We need to counter that.
Speaker 1: Who man, that's an extremely important question. I love it
Speaker 1: and it has is is loaded though is loaded because
Speaker 1: we're splitting some hairs here and we're dealing with a
Speaker 1: counter move that is very important. My answer to that
Speaker 1: question is white supremacist vote Democrat one of usenting the
Speaker 1: time two both parties have white supremacists k k k
Speaker 1: and historically declude kluss Klan were Democrats. It was formed
Speaker 1: by the Democrats. It was an extension of the Democratic Party.
Speaker 1: Are we just to forget that? Are we gonna just
Speaker 1: throw that under the bid, throw it in the closet
Speaker 1: and act like the Democratic Party wasn't white supremacists and
Speaker 1: that they burned lynch murdered black people all across this
Speaker 1: country and nation, that they exploited us during the reconstruction period.
Speaker 1: Did they have put together policies that kicked the man
Speaker 1: out of the house just to get so a wef
Speaker 1: I checked, A WEE can to forget all of that?
Speaker 1: And I just know the Republican Party are the only
Speaker 1: white supremacist and clue Klusklan members right when the history
Speaker 1: of the clue klus Klan started from the Democratic Party.
Speaker 1: And I gotta keep it one hundred. This is a
Speaker 1: podcast about what bringing the world together with books, culture,
Speaker 1: and community. I've read the votes and it's no way
Speaker 1: that you can fool me that Republicans are the only
Speaker 1: KKK members and white supremacists when a lot of suffering
Speaker 1: has happened by the hands of both parties, but in particular,
Speaker 1: mostly the Democratic Party historically. Is that to say that
Speaker 1: they ain't do nothing good didday some policy wasn't beneficial.
Speaker 1: All I'm saying is we vote for the lesser of
Speaker 1: the two evils. And that's my argument is that we
Speaker 1: know subconsciously, mentally and fundamentally that is that both parties
Speaker 1: have issued in policies that the white supremacists and only
Speaker 1: benefit white people. And we have suffered far too long
Speaker 1: from these both of these parties. So what's our kind
Speaker 1: of move is that we need to unite, we need
Speaker 1: to bring our money together, and we need to vote
Speaker 1: what's in our best interests. And and don't think that
Speaker 1: everybody running for the Democratic Party is about the interests
Speaker 1: of our community and our people, because that's a lie.
Speaker 1: And I'm tired of hearing that we already know where
Speaker 1: where the Republican Party stands. We're neither both. To be honest,
Speaker 1: some things were a great democratically party, and some things
Speaker 1: were great on the republic a good party. Let's keep
Speaker 1: it one on it. Some of we were not on
Speaker 1: every issue with the Democratic Party, and we certainly not
Speaker 1: one hunted issues on every issue of the Republican Party.
Speaker 1: Both have harmed the black community, Both have censored the
Speaker 1: black community, and both had gentified the black community and
Speaker 1: marginalized the voice of Black America. So don't try to
Speaker 1: sell us one party no more. We're gonna be whid
Speaker 1: to woke today and we need a new strategy this
Speaker 1: so we can counter was on both sides of these parties.
Speaker 1: That's my take on that question. Next is from Jordan's
Speaker 1: in avalon Gardens Malik, great segment on voting for the
Speaker 1: less of two evils, but I can't agree with you
Speaker 1: on suggesting not voting they There are many reasons that
Speaker 1: the system is stacked against black people and other people
Speaker 1: of color. One is that white people never miss a
Speaker 1: chance to vote, especially old white people. It's younger people, women,
Speaker 1: black people, and other people of color that could control
Speaker 1: everything if we would just vote. You're right that people
Speaker 1: in power help the people that look like them. The
Speaker 1: more we vote for, more people who looks like us
Speaker 1: will get that empower man. That question was louded. But
Speaker 1: let me break you break it down how I see it.
Speaker 1: First of all, all white folks don't vote all right,
Speaker 1: Maybe larger segments white male female might vote a little
Speaker 1: more than us, but let's keep it real. Their voters
Speaker 1: there ain't never a vote is around seventy mons and
Speaker 1: sometimes fifty. You know, they got people riled up. So
Speaker 1: this last election they had a lot, had a higher
Speaker 1: percentage of so called registered voters voting. But white folks
Speaker 1: don't all vote. They're dissatisfied, and many of them abstained
Speaker 1: from voting because of the fact that they don't like
Speaker 1: the choices. Okay, and that's the same with black people.
Speaker 1: We sometimes don't like the choices and the city and
Speaker 1: say that you gotta vote just because you can win both.
Speaker 1: You know, whoever was running is not even a good
Speaker 1: you know, selection to even choose from. But and that
Speaker 1: happens a lot of times. That's why I said, we
Speaker 1: vote for the less of the two evils. Now, as
Speaker 1: far as not voting, okay, that's a political strategy as well,
Speaker 1: whether we like it or not. You know, there ain't
Speaker 1: nothing absolute, but deaf and taxes. All right, you're not
Speaker 1: gonna get on the percent of people to agree on nothing.
Speaker 1: So the reality is that to say that not voting
Speaker 1: is not a political strike, when an absolutely is because
Speaker 1: they need to do something to get your vote. So
Speaker 1: let's say the election coming up and the masses of
Speaker 1: black people say I don't like neither candidate and we're abstaining.
Speaker 1: You know, don't you think that they're gonna have to
Speaker 1: come to us to get our vote now instead of
Speaker 1: us just giving them my vote. You see, we gotta
Speaker 1: do something different. We can't keep thinking that just because
Speaker 1: this is the only selection, that we need to just
Speaker 1: go and show up and vote. Now. I'm not saying
Speaker 1: ain't no voting, There ain't no power in voting. Absolutely
Speaker 1: there is power in the voting, all right, But the
Speaker 1: reality is we don't have no money behind the vote.
Speaker 1: America wasn't established. We're talking about power. Did America gain
Speaker 1: power because they voted? Or did American game power because
Speaker 1: they had wealth from Britain and brought it over here
Speaker 1: and took the land. And I'm not saying take nothing,
Speaker 1: but I'm saying that's not how America. You gotta stole
Speaker 1: it established. It wasn't about no voting. What no vote?
Speaker 1: The king is a dictator from Britain, the monarchy over there, whatever,
Speaker 1: they made a decision to come over here and expand
Speaker 1: their kingdom. They had complete control into the independence War
Speaker 1: of Independence right seventeen seventy six. Then they got a
Speaker 1: president and made a party. The congress and judicial system
Speaker 1: and the presidential system. But none of that is what
Speaker 1: established America and the and the way I see it,
Speaker 1: the system is stocked against the masses of the people,
Speaker 1: so it only reinforces a system so they can maintain power.
Speaker 1: The reality is that voting didn't establish America. The power
Speaker 1: came from wealth and conquest, not voting. It wasn't a
Speaker 1: vote to slaughter the American Indians enslave the black people
Speaker 1: were weren't no choice when slavery was was was was
Speaker 1: was set upon a whole nation of black people, and
Speaker 1: then the slaughter of the American Indians and genocide. There
Speaker 1: wasn't no vote. I had to bring up some history,
Speaker 1: but we keep thinking that we don't have to always
Speaker 1: go backwards. We can always go forward too. You know,
Speaker 1: when they say democracy rule, all right, how is it
Speaker 1: that a a white. The white race is the smallest
Speaker 1: group a populated race on the planet, yet control the
Speaker 1: whole planet. How's that party? That democratic? Is that democracy?
Speaker 1: They're more Asians than white people, They're more Blacks than
Speaker 1: white people on the planet. They're more Latinos in spanished
Speaker 1: than white people on the planet. But yet they run
Speaker 1: the whole planet in the sense economic and busin economy,
Speaker 1: they come up with the number one inventions and revolutionize
Speaker 1: the whole world. All right, we know this as a fact.
Speaker 1: They got the mightiest military in the world, but yet
Speaker 1: they have the lowest population of a race on the planet.
Speaker 1: There was democratic about it? You know, why? How are
Speaker 1: they able to do what they do? Because of economics?
Speaker 1: They do it. That's where they right get their power from.
Speaker 1: And they united and they make no exchuses for their mistakes.
Speaker 1: They do it in a collective manner. So when we yes,
Speaker 1: you know, listen, all I'm saying is we've been voting
Speaker 1: for sixty years. If you want to vote, go vote.
Speaker 1: I'm not disturning to you, but I'm saying that a
Speaker 1: lot of people staying from voting because that's a political strategy,
Speaker 1: and there's nothing wrong with that. We don't have to
Speaker 1: just vote to be voting. So that's my take on that.
Speaker 1: We need to stop voting for the lesson of the the
Speaker 1: two evils and we need to vote for champions that's
Speaker 1: gonna do something. Otherwise, don't vote, stop voting into somebody
Speaker 1: just ain't doing nothing but putting liquor stores on your corner,
Speaker 1: putting weed houses on every block, allowing all these fast
Speaker 1: food joints to pop up all in the in the
Speaker 1: in the cities where you know diabetes, hypertension and the
Speaker 1: colester raws a major issue. These are the same politicians
Speaker 1: did allowed this did we voted in So we need
Speaker 1: to stop voting for death and we need to find
Speaker 1: a way to vote for some life. So that's my
Speaker 1: take on that question. Okay, you have one more. It's
Speaker 1: from Layla and at Water Village. Malik, you seem somewhat
Speaker 1: apathetic about voting in this year's mid terms. But a
Speaker 1: black woman and a white man are running against each
Speaker 1: other for mayor of Los Angeles. If Karen bas wins,
Speaker 1: what effects do you think that will be? For what?
Speaker 1: For black people in l A. It has to be
Speaker 1: better than the opposites right now, This is a classic
Speaker 1: text book answer. We're gonna vote for the lesser of
Speaker 1: the two evils, And of course I think Karen Bass
Speaker 1: is the lasser of the two evils. Listen, we had
Speaker 1: Obama in office and we didn't get much out of that.
Speaker 1: But I definitely love the fact that a black man
Speaker 1: said in the White House and it was president and
Speaker 1: the whole family grew up in there. I loved it.
Speaker 1: I voted for him twice. Put that on your record. Now,
Speaker 1: Karen Bass, all right, I'm gonna pray, I'm gonna get
Speaker 1: on my knees. I'm gonna call on God, and I'm
Speaker 1: gonna ask God to help guide her because she is
Speaker 1: going to be surrounded by so much bureaucracy and so
Speaker 1: much evil. The thing is, the person who sits in
Speaker 1: the marriage seat don't necessarily run the city. It's a
Speaker 1: lot of power and wealthy people in Los Angeles, and
Speaker 1: they pulled strings and they expect certain results when they
Speaker 1: put their money up to go vote for her, and
Speaker 1: so it's going to be you know, she can have
Speaker 1: all the good and tensions and did she want, But
Speaker 1: the reality is that the people who run they got powered.
Speaker 1: You mean in these wealthy people. Now, these people. It's
Speaker 1: a lot of them. They're white supremacists. They're all about themselves,
Speaker 1: and they'll do whatever it takes the maintain power, whether
Speaker 1: they're Republican or Democrats. So we're gonna pray, We're gonna pray,
Speaker 1: we're gonna move some stage saves around, and we're gonna
Speaker 1: hope that if she wins, then she's able to do
Speaker 1: some great good. You know that something good can come
Speaker 1: out of this. So you know, the question is would
Speaker 1: it be better? You know, she's up against a lot
Speaker 1: of forces of wickedness because let's just be real, people
Speaker 1: with wealth sometimes they're not the most nicest and kindest
Speaker 1: people on the planet, okay, and they want to maintain
Speaker 1: wealth and continue to get well. There are a a lot
Speaker 1: of issues politically that we suffer from. So I see,
Speaker 1: we ain't got a name names because it's irrelevant. The
Speaker 1: point is a lot of it's it's not a whole
Speaker 1: lot of wealthy people, but the reality is that they
Speaker 1: pulled strange and they make things happen that only benefit
Speaker 1: them and at the expense of the people of Los Angeles.
Speaker 1: So good luck, Karen Badge, if you win, if you're
Speaker 1: voting for and go vote. I'm not telling you not
Speaker 1: to vote, and I'm not telling you who I'm voting for.
Speaker 1: All I'm telling you is that I do think she's
Speaker 1: the lesser of the two evils. Thank you for all
Speaker 1: your feedback. Remember it's real Malik Mohammed at gmail dot com.
Speaker 1: Let's continue the conversation and I'll talk to you next week.
Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to Malik's Bookshelf, where topics on the shelf,
Speaker 1: our books, culture and community. Be sure to subscribe and
Speaker 1: leave me a review. Check out my instagram at meliek Books.
Speaker 1: See you next time.