1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:04,840 Speaker 1: Hey is Kadija. This episode will tell the story of 2 00:00:04,880 --> 00:00:09,280 Speaker 1: how one incredibly dark moment in our country's history sparked 3 00:00:09,280 --> 00:00:13,200 Speaker 1: a seventy year movement that we're still feeling the benefits 4 00:00:13,200 --> 00:00:16,840 Speaker 1: of today. But in order to tell that story, we're 5 00:00:16,840 --> 00:00:20,360 Speaker 1: going to be discussed in racially motivated violence and murder. 6 00:00:21,239 --> 00:00:24,400 Speaker 1: If you are someone you love has been affected by 7 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:27,200 Speaker 1: any of the themes that come up in this episode, 8 00:00:27,680 --> 00:00:30,720 Speaker 1: we left some links in the description that offer resources 9 00:00:30,720 --> 00:00:39,920 Speaker 1: and support. Take care of yourself. I Matil was a 10 00:00:39,960 --> 00:00:42,159 Speaker 1: fourteen year old boy when he took a trip to 11 00:00:42,240 --> 00:00:46,840 Speaker 1: visit his family in Money, Mississippi. It was nineteen fifty five. 12 00:00:47,479 --> 00:00:49,960 Speaker 1: Much of the US was still in the era of 13 00:00:50,080 --> 00:00:54,080 Speaker 1: Jim Crow's segregation. It was a time when violent racism 14 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:58,240 Speaker 1: was the norm and where one small bad encounter could 15 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:03,400 Speaker 1: ruin your life, which is what happened to Emmitt. After 16 00:01:03,440 --> 00:01:06,440 Speaker 1: being accused of offending a white woman in a grocery store, 17 00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:11,200 Speaker 1: he was abducted and lynched in a horrific case that 18 00:01:11,400 --> 00:01:16,039 Speaker 1: shocked America. You've probably heard his story before in high 19 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:19,839 Speaker 1: school lessons are Hollywood movies. You might have seen black 20 00:01:19,880 --> 00:01:22,760 Speaker 1: and white photos of him and assumed it happened a 21 00:01:22,840 --> 00:01:26,200 Speaker 1: long time ago, but the past is not as distant 22 00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:27,960 Speaker 1: as it seems. 23 00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:31,440 Speaker 2: I am Marvelle McCain Parker, and I am the wife 24 00:01:31,440 --> 00:01:35,360 Speaker 2: of Reverend Wheeler Parker, who is the last surviving eyewitness 25 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:39,640 Speaker 2: of the kidnapping of Emmitt Till. Not only was he 26 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:42,960 Speaker 2: and I witness to the kidnapping, but he and Emmitt 27 00:01:43,000 --> 00:01:45,760 Speaker 2: from the age of seven. They grew up together. 28 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:49,480 Speaker 1: They were cousins and best friends. 29 00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:56,120 Speaker 2: Emmett actually traveled to Mississippi with Wheeler, and Wheeler came 30 00:01:56,160 --> 00:01:56,840 Speaker 2: home alone. 31 00:01:57,600 --> 00:02:01,440 Speaker 1: Doctor Parker's husband lost his childhood friend into a racist lynching, 32 00:02:02,120 --> 00:02:06,440 Speaker 1: but Emmett's murders sparked a movement, a movement that continues 33 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:11,400 Speaker 1: to inspire me and Nikki and our activism and justice work. 34 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 2: The open casket funeral of Mmittil at Robert's Temple, Church 35 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:19,000 Speaker 2: of God in Christ is said to have been the 36 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:23,440 Speaker 2: catalysts that sparked the civil rights movement. Rosa park said 37 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:26,520 Speaker 2: when she refused to give her seat up on the 38 00:02:26,560 --> 00:02:31,239 Speaker 2: bus that September of nineteen fifty five, that hot day, 39 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:34,720 Speaker 2: she refused to give up a seat, she thought about Mmittil, 40 00:02:34,840 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 2: and she stayed in her seat and we know that 41 00:02:37,400 --> 00:02:41,760 Speaker 2: that one act was the birth of the Montgomery bus 42 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:45,200 Speaker 2: boycott that brought doctor King of town, that gave birth 43 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:49,639 Speaker 2: to the civil rights movement. Emmitt's death was the spark. 44 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:56,200 Speaker 1: The civil rights movement started with a few ordinary but 45 00:02:56,280 --> 00:03:00,240 Speaker 1: deeply passionate organizers determined to fight against the status quo 46 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:05,040 Speaker 1: regular people like you and me. In this episode, I'll 47 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:08,440 Speaker 1: be talking to doctor Parker about her remarkable life fighting 48 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:11,520 Speaker 1: for social change, and she'll share some of her top 49 00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:14,800 Speaker 1: tips for how to rally your own community around the 50 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:16,720 Speaker 1: causes that you care about the most. 51 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:31,760 Speaker 2: Oh God, I'm. 52 00:03:28,480 --> 00:03:33,120 Speaker 1: Kadida herdaway from the teens at Novel and iHeart Podcast. 53 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:55,760 Speaker 1: This is the girlfriends Untouchable by Guys Bonus, Episode five, 54 00:03:56,360 --> 00:04:10,960 Speaker 1: sparking a movement, Doctor Parker, it is so lovely to 55 00:04:11,080 --> 00:04:14,560 Speaker 1: see you and talk to you as always. 56 00:04:15,200 --> 00:04:18,680 Speaker 2: Good morning, Kadija. It's so nice to see you this 57 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:22,159 Speaker 2: Monday morning and to have this opportunity to share with you. 58 00:04:22,960 --> 00:04:26,440 Speaker 1: Doctor Parker has a long and story career. She's the 59 00:04:26,560 --> 00:04:31,279 Speaker 1: executive director of the Imma Till and Maybe Till Mobley Institute. 60 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:35,200 Speaker 1: She graduated with a doctorate from Seminary School, wrote a 61 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:39,080 Speaker 1: book about the impact of HIV and AIDS on African 62 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:43,599 Speaker 1: American women and spent her life mentoring activists like me. 63 00:04:44,160 --> 00:04:46,839 Speaker 1: But if you asked her what shaped her commitment to 64 00:04:46,880 --> 00:04:50,400 Speaker 1: social justice work, she'll tell you it was the Till 65 00:04:50,520 --> 00:04:53,240 Speaker 1: story and the pivotal role that played in the civil 66 00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:57,760 Speaker 1: rights movement. In nineteen fifty five, her husband, Wheeler Parker, 67 00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:01,920 Speaker 1: then a teenager, and his friend Emmett Til traveled from 68 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:07,120 Speaker 1: Chicago to Mississippi visiting relatives for a summer vacation. The 69 00:05:07,160 --> 00:05:10,120 Speaker 1: two boys were asleep when a group of men broke 70 00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:12,839 Speaker 1: into the house they were staying in during the middle 71 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:15,400 Speaker 1: of the night. They came in with a gun and 72 00:05:15,480 --> 00:05:19,320 Speaker 1: a flashlight, pulled Emmett out of the bed and dragged 73 00:05:19,400 --> 00:05:23,680 Speaker 1: him away. It was the last time Wheeler saw him alive. 74 00:05:24,800 --> 00:05:27,760 Speaker 1: The aftermath of the luncheon traumatized Wheeler. 75 00:05:28,360 --> 00:05:31,760 Speaker 2: For all of these years, he's had survivor's guilt, but 76 00:05:31,839 --> 00:05:34,479 Speaker 2: he didn't want to talk about the story. It was 77 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:37,640 Speaker 2: such an unpleasant story to him, and living with the 78 00:05:37,680 --> 00:05:41,000 Speaker 2: guilt that he came home and Emmett didn't. It was 79 00:05:41,080 --> 00:05:43,800 Speaker 2: not something that he felt he wanted to visit every 80 00:05:43,880 --> 00:05:47,880 Speaker 2: day or every week. Publicly, he didn't want any fame, 81 00:05:48,080 --> 00:05:50,960 Speaker 2: any claim. He said, I'm not a hero, I'm a survivor. 82 00:05:51,800 --> 00:05:55,479 Speaker 2: He sat back, he let Mami tell the story Maye 83 00:05:55,480 --> 00:06:01,119 Speaker 2: being Emmett Till's mother. But eventually we decided to share 84 00:06:01,440 --> 00:06:05,080 Speaker 2: his perspective. He was convinced that he needed to write 85 00:06:05,080 --> 00:06:09,000 Speaker 2: his book tell the authentic story. We haven't been asked 86 00:06:09,040 --> 00:06:13,040 Speaker 2: by Mami before her death to ensure that the legacy 87 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:15,640 Speaker 2: of Mmititil was told in perpetuity. 88 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:20,040 Speaker 1: Most things are catapulted by storytelling. In the case of Mtil, 89 00:06:20,600 --> 00:06:24,800 Speaker 1: the story has been told in many different versions. I 90 00:06:24,800 --> 00:06:28,479 Speaker 1: identified very much so with storytelling. When it comes to 91 00:06:29,120 --> 00:06:31,920 Speaker 1: the work I've done in Windot County, it's pretty much 92 00:06:32,080 --> 00:06:36,080 Speaker 1: what moves the needle. But I've also found that people 93 00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:40,680 Speaker 1: have very strong desires, and the desires center around their 94 00:06:40,720 --> 00:06:44,200 Speaker 1: ego and them wanting to tell their version of a 95 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:47,800 Speaker 1: story that may not even be true or even helpful 96 00:06:47,920 --> 00:06:52,880 Speaker 1: toward moving the needle for the entire project. Can you 97 00:06:53,160 --> 00:06:55,599 Speaker 1: talk about that a little bit and how you navigated that. 98 00:06:57,160 --> 00:06:59,680 Speaker 2: Our goal was to make sure that the story was 99 00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:03,400 Speaker 2: told truthfully, because the people that were being featured on 100 00:07:03,680 --> 00:07:06,839 Speaker 2: CNN and other news outlets, some of them weren't even 101 00:07:06,920 --> 00:07:10,679 Speaker 2: born when the story happened, and they told a distorted story. 102 00:07:11,480 --> 00:07:14,720 Speaker 2: So we were just, I guess we were just forced 103 00:07:15,120 --> 00:07:17,360 Speaker 2: to tell the true story because there were so many 104 00:07:17,440 --> 00:07:20,720 Speaker 2: miles out there painting the picture and it was false. 105 00:07:21,280 --> 00:07:25,360 Speaker 1: So, alongside other friends, family and supporters of the Till family, 106 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:28,680 Speaker 1: Doctor Parker made it a part of her mission to 107 00:07:28,880 --> 00:07:32,000 Speaker 1: ensure the true version of that story stayed alive. 108 00:07:32,880 --> 00:07:36,160 Speaker 2: Then twenty twenty one we created what is called the 109 00:07:36,240 --> 00:07:40,360 Speaker 2: m Matil It Made Me Tell Mobiley Institute, and it 110 00:07:40,440 --> 00:07:44,320 Speaker 2: was created to ensure that the story of Immittil is 111 00:07:44,360 --> 00:07:49,400 Speaker 2: told correctly and truthfully, and that the resources that would 112 00:07:49,480 --> 00:07:53,800 Speaker 2: be made available in order to erect or dedicate national 113 00:07:53,960 --> 00:07:56,560 Speaker 2: sites to the memory of he and his mom were 114 00:07:57,240 --> 00:08:00,960 Speaker 2: brought to fuition. So as exactly kative director of the 115 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:05,360 Speaker 2: Immitil and Maymi Till Mobili Institute, we were successful in 116 00:08:05,440 --> 00:08:09,160 Speaker 2: getting the sites dedicated as a national monument. President Joe 117 00:08:09,200 --> 00:08:12,840 Speaker 2: Biden signed a proclamation creating the Immittill and Maymi Till 118 00:08:12,880 --> 00:08:17,400 Speaker 2: Mobili National Monument with three sites. It is the first 119 00:08:18,040 --> 00:08:21,960 Speaker 2: non contiguous national monument in the United States. The three 120 00:08:22,000 --> 00:08:24,559 Speaker 2: sites are one Roberts Temple Church, of God in Christ 121 00:08:24,680 --> 00:08:27,880 Speaker 2: in Chicago, where Immit's funeral was held. It is said 122 00:08:27,880 --> 00:08:30,840 Speaker 2: that over one hundred thousand people passed by and viewed 123 00:08:30,880 --> 00:08:34,280 Speaker 2: the mutilated body of the slain fourteen year old boy. 124 00:08:34,960 --> 00:08:38,360 Speaker 2: And the courthouse in Sumner, Mississippi, where the infamous trial 125 00:08:39,000 --> 00:08:42,520 Speaker 2: was held and his confessed murderers were found not guilty 126 00:08:42,559 --> 00:08:46,000 Speaker 2: by a jury of their peers. And the third site 127 00:08:46,040 --> 00:08:49,880 Speaker 2: is gray Ball Landing where Emmitt's body was retrieved. So 128 00:08:50,000 --> 00:08:53,960 Speaker 2: we are working now to restore the church to its 129 00:08:54,080 --> 00:08:58,000 Speaker 2: nineteen fifty five facade. We've received two point nine one 130 00:08:58,120 --> 00:09:02,400 Speaker 2: eight million dollar grant to begin that and that's ongoing. 131 00:09:02,960 --> 00:09:06,319 Speaker 2: We've been able to acquire property, the property where in 132 00:09:06,440 --> 00:09:10,920 Speaker 2: its childhood home stood, and we memoralized that site, and 133 00:09:11,000 --> 00:09:20,240 Speaker 2: we continue to advocate for the poor. So busy, busy, busy, busy. 134 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:24,360 Speaker 1: But they didn't achieve that by just making the right 135 00:09:24,400 --> 00:09:29,760 Speaker 1: calls and waiting for change to happen. Doctor Parker and 136 00:09:29,800 --> 00:09:33,880 Speaker 1: those she worked alongside spent years building up a community 137 00:09:33,920 --> 00:09:37,560 Speaker 1: of people to join their calls, a feat that would 138 00:09:37,559 --> 00:09:40,600 Speaker 1: inspire me and the other women of Kansas City when 139 00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:43,080 Speaker 1: it came to the challenge of trying to take detect 140 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:48,800 Speaker 1: the Roger Gluski down and after the break we'll look 141 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:51,520 Speaker 1: at ways you can spark that kind of change in 142 00:09:51,559 --> 00:10:12,679 Speaker 1: your community. When you see activists who have achieved incredible 143 00:10:12,720 --> 00:10:18,480 Speaker 1: things like changing laws or sparking nationwide campaigns, it can 144 00:10:18,520 --> 00:10:20,480 Speaker 1: be easy to think that you need to have it 145 00:10:20,520 --> 00:10:24,200 Speaker 1: all figured out to make a meaningful difference, but you don't. 146 00:10:24,600 --> 00:10:27,160 Speaker 2: You just got to start with what you've got. We 147 00:10:27,200 --> 00:10:30,240 Speaker 2: don't need money to accomplish the things that we're trying 148 00:10:30,280 --> 00:10:34,960 Speaker 2: to accomplish. I tell people when they come to me 149 00:10:35,080 --> 00:10:37,439 Speaker 2: to ask me about you know, how do we get funding? 150 00:10:37,760 --> 00:10:41,000 Speaker 2: We want to do ABCD. I said, you get funding 151 00:10:41,080 --> 00:10:45,400 Speaker 2: by doing ABCD, and then people will fund what you're doing. 152 00:10:46,200 --> 00:10:49,720 Speaker 2: My husband and I we financed the organization for many 153 00:10:49,760 --> 00:10:54,120 Speaker 2: many years. We provided the office space in our building, 154 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:59,440 Speaker 2: all of the office equipment, did all of the legal work. 155 00:11:00,200 --> 00:11:04,640 Speaker 2: Somebody's got to in kind their skills to help you 156 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:05,840 Speaker 2: accomplish your goal. 157 00:11:06,720 --> 00:11:09,120 Speaker 1: You remind me so much of the Rosa Parks story 158 00:11:09,320 --> 00:11:13,880 Speaker 1: and how the NAACP got is footing, which in a 159 00:11:13,880 --> 00:11:16,959 Speaker 1: lot of ways didn't have any income. But again they 160 00:11:17,040 --> 00:11:19,199 Speaker 1: knew that they needed to make a change, and they 161 00:11:19,360 --> 00:11:23,040 Speaker 1: organized and used their human capital to make that happen. 162 00:11:23,880 --> 00:11:29,360 Speaker 1: How do you pick a good team that supplies the 163 00:11:29,400 --> 00:11:33,480 Speaker 1: in kind donations or the kind service that we're talking about, 164 00:11:33,480 --> 00:11:36,840 Speaker 1: that gives up their elbow grease and the sacrifice of 165 00:11:36,920 --> 00:11:39,360 Speaker 1: what they actually want to see come out of it. 166 00:11:39,880 --> 00:11:44,520 Speaker 2: You look for key stakeholders, and for me, key stakeholders 167 00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:49,959 Speaker 2: were people who lived in the community, worked in the community. 168 00:11:50,880 --> 00:11:54,400 Speaker 2: They were stakeholders because their survival was dependent on the 169 00:11:54,480 --> 00:11:58,360 Speaker 2: community surviving. A lot of times we try to bring 170 00:11:58,400 --> 00:12:01,720 Speaker 2: in people who are not stakeholder, which means that they're 171 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:04,680 Speaker 2: not tied or linked to the issue or to the need, 172 00:12:05,920 --> 00:12:10,280 Speaker 2: and so their human capital or their contribution could be fleeting. 173 00:12:10,679 --> 00:12:14,120 Speaker 2: They've here today and gone tomorrow. But key stakeholders are 174 00:12:14,120 --> 00:12:15,400 Speaker 2: people that are going to benefit. 175 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:19,520 Speaker 1: It's something doctor Parker also saw when she tried to 176 00:12:19,559 --> 00:12:22,720 Speaker 1: create change in her town, Summit, Illinois. 177 00:12:23,080 --> 00:12:26,120 Speaker 2: The target was to make my community aware of the 178 00:12:26,160 --> 00:12:29,960 Speaker 2: resources that they were entitled to that they weren't being 179 00:12:30,000 --> 00:12:35,320 Speaker 2: able to access, and challenging the elected officials to be 180 00:12:35,440 --> 00:12:39,559 Speaker 2: fair in distributing the resources. In the black community, the 181 00:12:39,679 --> 00:12:43,120 Speaker 2: church is the anchor institution in the black community. So 182 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:46,959 Speaker 2: we began our first meeting with the pastors, made them 183 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:49,840 Speaker 2: aware of the problems and the issues we were facing 184 00:12:50,360 --> 00:12:53,880 Speaker 2: and the need for us to come together as a community. 185 00:12:54,360 --> 00:12:58,839 Speaker 2: Our first community meeting, the meeting room could not hold 186 00:12:58,880 --> 00:13:02,800 Speaker 2: all of the people that we listened to the residents, 187 00:13:02,840 --> 00:13:05,760 Speaker 2: and we had created an agenda of issues that the 188 00:13:05,840 --> 00:13:10,200 Speaker 2: community wanted to be heard about and that wanted to 189 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:14,720 Speaker 2: be answered. Then after we created the form of agenda items, 190 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:18,280 Speaker 2: then we ask them to prioritize, you know, everything. We 191 00:13:18,360 --> 00:13:20,920 Speaker 2: can't do everything at once, so now tell us, you know, 192 00:13:21,240 --> 00:13:25,320 Speaker 2: let's prioritize our needs and then let's begin to systematically 193 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:29,280 Speaker 2: address them with the powers that be. So you might 194 00:13:29,320 --> 00:13:33,079 Speaker 2: start off with a very small nucleus of people as 195 00:13:33,160 --> 00:13:36,520 Speaker 2: key stakeholders, but as you begin to move forward and 196 00:13:36,600 --> 00:13:40,880 Speaker 2: people become proactive in wanting to be involved, you will 197 00:13:40,920 --> 00:13:44,480 Speaker 2: bring on people, and a small group of people deeply 198 00:13:44,480 --> 00:13:50,680 Speaker 2: invested in their community can be pretty powerful community mobilization. 199 00:13:51,360 --> 00:13:54,760 Speaker 2: Usually it begins with an issue that there's something that 200 00:13:54,880 --> 00:13:58,560 Speaker 2: needs to be addressed. In order to mobilize a community, 201 00:13:59,080 --> 00:14:01,679 Speaker 2: we found that as long as everything was going smooth, 202 00:14:01,800 --> 00:14:04,920 Speaker 2: you know, people don't have time to attend meetings, but 203 00:14:05,320 --> 00:14:09,920 Speaker 2: you let something happen and everybody's ready to fight. Really, 204 00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:14,319 Speaker 2: mobilization helps you to be able to address the issue 205 00:14:14,360 --> 00:14:19,040 Speaker 2: as a community, which will bring your elected officials to 206 00:14:19,160 --> 00:14:22,760 Speaker 2: the table because we know that every four years, every 207 00:14:22,800 --> 00:14:27,640 Speaker 2: two years, there's an election, so mobilizing is important as 208 00:14:27,640 --> 00:14:32,320 Speaker 2: it relates to politics. That's how community mobilization paid off 209 00:14:32,560 --> 00:14:36,720 Speaker 2: for my neighborhood. We now have senior housing, we got 210 00:14:36,920 --> 00:14:40,040 Speaker 2: all of our new streets, new alleys. All of these 211 00:14:40,080 --> 00:14:43,240 Speaker 2: resources were there, but they weren't being channeled to my neighborhood, 212 00:14:43,400 --> 00:14:46,120 Speaker 2: which was the poorest neighborhood in the community and of 213 00:14:46,160 --> 00:14:49,160 Speaker 2: course entitled to the resources, but they were going to 214 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:54,680 Speaker 2: other places. So community mobilization, where there's unity, their strength. 215 00:14:55,760 --> 00:15:00,240 Speaker 2: And if you're organized without anger and without animosity, you 216 00:15:00,360 --> 00:15:02,720 Speaker 2: become a mover and shaker. And that's what happened in 217 00:15:02,760 --> 00:15:03,200 Speaker 2: my time. 218 00:15:06,480 --> 00:15:09,160 Speaker 1: But what do you do when you're trying to organize 219 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:12,320 Speaker 1: in the midst of a tense political climate like the 220 00:15:12,320 --> 00:15:16,520 Speaker 1: one we're living through right now. How do you form 221 00:15:16,560 --> 00:15:19,320 Speaker 1: alliances with the people you don't see eye to eye 222 00:15:19,360 --> 00:15:22,720 Speaker 1: with and a time when it feels more important than 223 00:15:22,760 --> 00:15:25,120 Speaker 1: ever to fight for our civil liberties. 224 00:15:26,640 --> 00:15:37,320 Speaker 2: That's after the break I got you I got you. 225 00:15:37,480 --> 00:15:38,120 Speaker 2: I got you. 226 00:15:46,160 --> 00:15:49,920 Speaker 1: I have always been told when it comes to making change, fundamentally, 227 00:15:50,200 --> 00:15:53,240 Speaker 1: it literally only takes two to three people, But when 228 00:15:53,240 --> 00:15:56,640 Speaker 1: it comes to actually moving that forward, it. 229 00:15:56,520 --> 00:15:59,200 Speaker 2: Takes the vote. It takes we the people. 230 00:15:59,640 --> 00:16:02,560 Speaker 1: If I can't get the people to come out and 231 00:16:02,680 --> 00:16:06,600 Speaker 1: vote and stand and measure for that, then we have nothing. 232 00:16:07,280 --> 00:16:09,400 Speaker 2: I know, in my community, I. 233 00:16:09,360 --> 00:16:12,920 Speaker 1: Think only thirty percent of the population votes, and a 234 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:16,280 Speaker 1: very small percentage of that is black. How do we 235 00:16:17,080 --> 00:16:20,800 Speaker 1: move the needle of voter registration and raise those percentages 236 00:16:20,880 --> 00:16:22,000 Speaker 1: up across the country. 237 00:16:23,200 --> 00:16:28,960 Speaker 2: That's what I asked, doctor Parker. Our whole system of 238 00:16:29,080 --> 00:16:34,160 Speaker 2: government is being challenged. I see no respect for the Constitution. 239 00:16:35,480 --> 00:16:38,880 Speaker 2: I see no respect for the Supreme Court. I see 240 00:16:39,120 --> 00:16:43,720 Speaker 2: absolutely no respect for the separation of powers. And it's 241 00:16:43,760 --> 00:16:47,200 Speaker 2: frightening to me when you talk about voter registration and 242 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:51,400 Speaker 2: people getting out the vote. That is the biggest challenge 243 00:16:51,440 --> 00:16:55,360 Speaker 2: to anybody that has ever run for office, because people 244 00:16:55,400 --> 00:16:58,520 Speaker 2: will not go out and vote. They say that vote 245 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:02,200 Speaker 2: doesn't matter or understand it why it's not important, especially 246 00:17:02,240 --> 00:17:05,760 Speaker 2: for black people who, of course, one hundred years ago, 247 00:17:05,920 --> 00:17:07,760 Speaker 2: I think women couldn't vote. And you know how long 248 00:17:07,800 --> 00:17:09,400 Speaker 2: it took for our people to be able to vote 249 00:17:09,400 --> 00:17:11,959 Speaker 2: in Mississippi in the South, and the things that they 250 00:17:11,960 --> 00:17:14,760 Speaker 2: had to go through in order to be able to vote, 251 00:17:14,760 --> 00:17:17,520 Speaker 2: and how many people lost their lives. I mean, my 252 00:17:17,560 --> 00:17:21,439 Speaker 2: grandmother's church was burned down in the sixties because the 253 00:17:21,520 --> 00:17:25,160 Speaker 2: civil rights workers were having meetings there trying to teach 254 00:17:25,200 --> 00:17:27,800 Speaker 2: people how to register the votes. We got this right 255 00:17:27,840 --> 00:17:32,399 Speaker 2: to vote through blood, sweat and tears. Me Nicki and 256 00:17:32,600 --> 00:17:36,320 Speaker 2: other activists I know often talk about what it takes 257 00:17:36,359 --> 00:17:40,080 Speaker 2: to pull people out of apathy and inspire them to action. 258 00:17:41,200 --> 00:17:44,920 Speaker 2: For some people, it takes a personal connection or crisis. 259 00:17:45,480 --> 00:17:49,239 Speaker 2: It's a multitude of things. For doctor Parker like her 260 00:17:49,320 --> 00:17:53,800 Speaker 2: past experience and personal connections, but one of the constants 261 00:17:53,920 --> 00:17:57,560 Speaker 2: that keeps her fighting is her faith. My husband and 262 00:17:57,600 --> 00:18:01,600 Speaker 2: I are both third generation members of the Church of 263 00:18:01,640 --> 00:18:05,800 Speaker 2: God in Christ, so we were raised in a Pentecostal family. 264 00:18:06,320 --> 00:18:09,440 Speaker 2: We were taught to live by the Gospels. But for him, 265 00:18:09,480 --> 00:18:12,080 Speaker 2: he says that you know, it was his faith in 266 00:18:12,160 --> 00:18:15,960 Speaker 2: God that allowed him to survive the ordeal that he 267 00:18:16,040 --> 00:18:19,480 Speaker 2: went through because on that night when emmittt was kidnapped, 268 00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:23,199 Speaker 2: he prayed to God to spare his life and to 269 00:18:23,280 --> 00:18:25,640 Speaker 2: allow him to live and that he would serve him. 270 00:18:26,040 --> 00:18:29,560 Speaker 2: And he has kept that vow. He has kept that 271 00:18:29,680 --> 00:18:34,520 Speaker 2: vow and that commitment to God. I embrace his role 272 00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:39,080 Speaker 2: in preserving the legacy of emmitt. Our faith in God 273 00:18:39,520 --> 00:18:43,080 Speaker 2: helps us to endure the things that we've had to endure. 274 00:18:44,160 --> 00:18:50,040 Speaker 2: The theme of our work with immit Tell's story is love, forgiveness, 275 00:18:50,119 --> 00:18:55,119 Speaker 2: and reconciliation. So you know, the Bible tells us, and 276 00:18:55,160 --> 00:18:59,199 Speaker 2: I'm on my soapbox right now, the Bible tells us 277 00:18:59,240 --> 00:19:02,320 Speaker 2: that we have to love our enemy. And I say 278 00:19:02,359 --> 00:19:05,600 Speaker 2: to my students, if we have to love our enemy, 279 00:19:06,119 --> 00:19:11,040 Speaker 2: who's left to hate nobody? Because we definitely love our 280 00:19:11,040 --> 00:19:13,119 Speaker 2: brother and our sister, and our mother, and our father 281 00:19:13,160 --> 00:19:15,959 Speaker 2: and our friends. He told us to love our neighbor 282 00:19:16,040 --> 00:19:19,240 Speaker 2: as ourself. Then he tells us to love our enemy. 283 00:19:19,280 --> 00:19:21,879 Speaker 2: I'm like my God, who can I hate? He says, nobody. 284 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:25,840 Speaker 2: So hate is not even on the table. Now. It's 285 00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:28,119 Speaker 2: a challenge to love your enemy. But doesn't mean I 286 00:19:28,119 --> 00:19:31,159 Speaker 2: want to go to dinner with him or take a 287 00:19:31,240 --> 00:19:34,080 Speaker 2: vacation with him. But I can't hate him. So hate 288 00:19:34,119 --> 00:19:36,240 Speaker 2: is not an option. And because hate is not an 289 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:40,359 Speaker 2: option and love is commanded, of us. We have to 290 00:19:40,440 --> 00:19:43,000 Speaker 2: dig deep within our soul and ask God to give 291 00:19:43,080 --> 00:19:45,840 Speaker 2: us what he has told us we can do. He 292 00:19:45,880 --> 00:19:47,920 Speaker 2: said we can love our enemy. So if he said 293 00:19:47,960 --> 00:19:50,120 Speaker 2: we can do it, by golly we can do it. 294 00:19:50,960 --> 00:19:54,920 Speaker 2: We can do it. And the closing of my interrogation 295 00:19:55,119 --> 00:19:58,760 Speaker 2: or my speech is to visitors to the monument, I 296 00:19:58,880 --> 00:20:02,399 Speaker 2: say that my husband and I are in the twilight 297 00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:05,440 Speaker 2: of our life, and you know, we've got to work 298 00:20:05,480 --> 00:20:07,720 Speaker 2: the work of him that sent us whiles day, because 299 00:20:07,720 --> 00:20:10,199 Speaker 2: the night coming when no man can work. And what 300 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:12,840 Speaker 2: I'm trying to do now is train younger women to 301 00:20:12,920 --> 00:20:17,000 Speaker 2: carry on what I do and what I've done. 302 00:20:17,160 --> 00:20:20,040 Speaker 1: I often wonder what the future of Kansas City, Kansas 303 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:23,480 Speaker 1: will look like. Most of the victims and survivors never 304 00:20:23,560 --> 00:20:27,159 Speaker 1: got justice will happen to them, and even the ideal 305 00:20:27,200 --> 00:20:29,240 Speaker 1: of justice itself feels flawed. 306 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:31,760 Speaker 2: What does justice. 307 00:20:31,520 --> 00:20:34,879 Speaker 1: Even look like when a woman has been killed or 308 00:20:34,920 --> 00:20:37,760 Speaker 1: a family has been destroyed by the actions of one 309 00:20:37,840 --> 00:20:42,320 Speaker 1: man who's not allied to face the consequences. Doctor Parker 310 00:20:42,400 --> 00:20:46,280 Speaker 1: doesn't know, but in the case of Immittil, it's his 311 00:20:46,440 --> 00:20:50,520 Speaker 1: legacy that remains. 312 00:20:52,160 --> 00:20:56,720 Speaker 2: This year, we celebrating seventy years since his death. His 313 00:20:56,920 --> 00:21:01,439 Speaker 2: murder in money in Mississippi is kidnapping in money and 314 00:21:01,480 --> 00:21:06,280 Speaker 2: his subsequent murder. We don't celebrate it because it's pleasant. 315 00:21:06,680 --> 00:21:10,640 Speaker 2: It's an unpleasant event. But we celebrate his life because 316 00:21:10,760 --> 00:21:16,800 Speaker 2: of what his life has contributed to all of America. 317 00:21:16,960 --> 00:21:18,520 Speaker 2: I have a picture of we the hold in the 318 00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:22,160 Speaker 2: hand of Emmitt, the statue of Emmitt in Greenwood, Mississippi, 319 00:21:22,280 --> 00:21:25,080 Speaker 2: which is about eighteen feet and he's holding his hand 320 00:21:25,160 --> 00:21:28,200 Speaker 2: and he said, you're bigger in death than you would 321 00:21:28,240 --> 00:21:29,159 Speaker 2: have been in life. 322 00:21:30,880 --> 00:21:33,320 Speaker 1: I just hope that the women of Kansas City whose 323 00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:36,359 Speaker 1: lives were cut short are looked back on in the 324 00:21:36,440 --> 00:21:39,720 Speaker 1: same way that the stories of their murders are used 325 00:21:39,720 --> 00:21:43,040 Speaker 1: to shine a light on glucpi's crimes, and that their 326 00:21:43,119 --> 00:21:48,679 Speaker 1: ongoing investigation exposes corruption. I hope that by continuing to 327 00:21:48,720 --> 00:21:52,159 Speaker 1: tell these stories will inspire the people of Kansas City 328 00:21:52,160 --> 00:21:55,639 Speaker 1: and beyond to fight back against the forces that seek 329 00:21:55,720 --> 00:22:03,639 Speaker 1: to suppress and prey upon us. Thank you, doctor Parker 330 00:22:03,760 --> 00:22:07,119 Speaker 1: for all your work that you've done. It's truly amazing 331 00:22:07,280 --> 00:22:09,280 Speaker 1: to see a lot of it come to fruition. I 332 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:12,600 Speaker 1: greatly appreciate not just hearing the words, but being able 333 00:22:12,640 --> 00:22:19,720 Speaker 1: to watch you grow and expand knowledge and education around 334 00:22:19,840 --> 00:22:26,120 Speaker 1: EMMIT TIL. To learn more about doctor Parker's work and activism, 335 00:22:26,640 --> 00:22:32,520 Speaker 1: visit www dot doctor Marvell Parker dot net. 336 00:22:38,200 --> 00:22:40,080 Speaker 2: What an inspiring conversation. 337 00:22:40,600 --> 00:22:44,400 Speaker 1: I really admire doctor Parker's lifelong commitment to fighting against 338 00:22:44,440 --> 00:22:48,520 Speaker 1: social injustice and preserving the part of our country's history 339 00:22:48,560 --> 00:22:51,840 Speaker 1: that can be difficult to hear. It's more important than 340 00:22:51,880 --> 00:22:56,000 Speaker 1: ever to fight back, So rally your community, mobilize them 341 00:22:56,000 --> 00:22:59,040 Speaker 1: around the issues you care about, and get to work. 342 00:22:59,520 --> 00:23:04,200 Speaker 1: Because no person, system, or form of oppression is ever 343 00:23:04,359 --> 00:23:08,720 Speaker 1: truly untouchable when regular people like you and me come 344 00:23:08,760 --> 00:23:21,840 Speaker 1: together to make a change. In the next and final 345 00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:26,000 Speaker 1: episode of The girlfriends Untouchable, I'll be having a conversation 346 00:23:26,119 --> 00:23:31,000 Speaker 1: with the journalists to Mary Cherry about how survivors, families, 347 00:23:31,160 --> 00:23:34,320 Speaker 1: and activists can use the media to put a spotlight 348 00:23:34,359 --> 00:23:36,320 Speaker 1: on the injustice in their communities. 349 00:23:37,000 --> 00:23:38,080 Speaker 2: Here's a sneak peek. 350 00:23:39,520 --> 00:23:42,480 Speaker 3: You cannot adequately take care of yourself unless you take 351 00:23:42,520 --> 00:23:45,399 Speaker 3: care of that person who's sharing their traumatic story, because 352 00:23:45,440 --> 00:23:49,359 Speaker 3: you can be traumatized by the traumatic stories of others, 353 00:23:49,440 --> 00:23:51,679 Speaker 3: and the best way to protect yourself from that is 354 00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:58,879 Speaker 3: to support them in an ethical trauma informed way. 355 00:24:08,040 --> 00:24:12,080 Speaker 1: The Girlfriend's Untouchable is produced by Novel for iHeart podcast. 356 00:24:12,800 --> 00:24:16,679 Speaker 1: For more from Novel, visit novel dot Audio. This episode 357 00:24:16,760 --> 00:24:20,280 Speaker 1: was hosted by me Kadija Hardaway. It was produced by 358 00:24:20,359 --> 00:24:25,320 Speaker 1: Mohammad Ahmed and Referro Masurua. The editor is Joe Wheeler, 359 00:24:25,640 --> 00:24:30,040 Speaker 1: the researcher is Aiyana Yusuf. Production management from Sharie Houston 360 00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:34,600 Speaker 1: and Joe Savage. The fact checker is Vindo Fulton. Sound design, 361 00:24:34,800 --> 00:24:39,680 Speaker 1: mixing and scoring by Daniel Kempsen with additional engineering by 362 00:24:39,800 --> 00:24:46,199 Speaker 1: Nicholas Alexander. Music supervision by Refriro Mazurua, Nicholas Alexander and 363 00:24:46,320 --> 00:24:51,080 Speaker 1: Joe Wheeler. Original music by Amanda Jones. The series artwork 364 00:24:51,200 --> 00:24:55,320 Speaker 1: was designed by Christina Limku, Novels Director of Development in 365 00:24:55,400 --> 00:25:00,000 Speaker 1: Selena Metta. Willard Foxton is Novel's creative director of Development. 366 00:25:00,080 --> 00:25:04,000 Speaker 1: Max O'Brien and Craig Strachan are executive producers for Novel. 367 00:25:04,280 --> 00:25:08,159 Speaker 1: Katrina Novo and Nikki Etour are the executive producers for 368 00:25:08,240 --> 00:25:12,879 Speaker 1: iHeart Podcasts, and the marketing lead is Alison Kenttour And 369 00:25:13,040 --> 00:25:16,359 Speaker 1: a special thanks to Carley Frankel and the whole team 370 00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:17,680 Speaker 1: at w m E. 371 00:25:20,480 --> 00:25:24,639 Speaker 2: I got you, I got you. I got you, I 372 00:25:24,840 --> 00:25:25,159 Speaker 2: got you.