WEBVTT - Risking It All For Justice with activist Sterling Brown and Leslie Redmond 0:00:05.280 --> 0:00:08.520 What's going on, y'all one? And I'm Tamika D. Mallory 0:00:08.640 --> 0:00:12.000 and this is Street Politicians, the place where the streets 0:00:12.039 --> 0:00:16.320 and politics meet. It's good to be back, you know. 0:00:16.560 --> 0:00:22.799 Since we have started our new journey, our podcasts on 0:00:23.079 --> 0:00:27.880 the Black Effect Podcast Network, our brother Charlemagne decided that 0:00:27.960 --> 0:00:32.240 he wanted to put together some god king black black, 0:00:32.280 --> 0:00:36.680 black black black back back spot. And you know, having 0:00:36.800 --> 0:00:40.320 this opportunity to talk to so many incredible people over 0:00:40.360 --> 0:00:42.640 these last few weeks has just been really good. It 0:00:42.680 --> 0:00:48.640 feels good to make sure that Street Politicians arrived, arrives. 0:00:48.720 --> 0:00:52.400 We are arriving. We are, We are gradually slowly growing 0:00:53.040 --> 0:00:56.800 into something I just think is needed, you know, because 0:00:57.120 --> 0:01:00.520 that's the reason why I got into activism. That's why 0:01:00.680 --> 0:01:04.360 I got in because I didn't see where it messed 0:01:04.400 --> 0:01:06.679 for me. I didn't see where I fit into it. 0:01:06.720 --> 0:01:09.560 I didn't see, like somebody from my communities, actually from 0:01:09.560 --> 0:01:13.520 the streets, how did politics and activism and civil rights 0:01:13.600 --> 0:01:17.280 even you know. So I think that's what we're trying 0:01:17.319 --> 0:01:20.280 to provide, you know, and as we move on, you know, 0:01:20.360 --> 0:01:22.959 hopefully we'll be in the Hall of Fame, you know, well, 0:01:23.480 --> 0:01:29.760 if it has anything to who has been, you know, 0:01:29.840 --> 0:01:32.720 inducted into the Hall of Fame. Yeah, I don't know, 0:01:34.600 --> 0:01:36.080 because I was thinking about the Hall of Fame. That's 0:01:36.080 --> 0:01:37.640 what made me think. When I thought about what I 0:01:37.680 --> 0:01:40.440 thought about Charlotte Magne, I thought about them being inducted 0:01:40.600 --> 0:01:44.440 in the Hall of Fame, right, and our good friends 0:01:45.160 --> 0:01:54.040 DJ Envy and yes anyway, but in order to get 0:01:54.120 --> 0:01:56.080 us to the Hall of Fame, you know, there's some 0:01:56.080 --> 0:01:59.080 people that worked really hard at making this happen, and 0:01:59.120 --> 0:02:01.920 we have to always give a shout out to our 0:02:02.040 --> 0:02:08.320 producer producer, that's right, the executive producer, executive producers Kathleen Trigg, 0:02:09.280 --> 0:02:12.720 Cat Skate Productions and I Woman TV. And then of 0:02:12.760 --> 0:02:22.360 course always working creative directing is our dear sister Janice Rodrigues. Janice, 0:02:23.040 --> 0:02:27.720 you keep it up. You're doing a good job. You know. 0:02:27.840 --> 0:02:32.680 People are really out here putting it down, like really 0:02:32.720 --> 0:02:35.840 really fighting so hard. I was thinking, just you know, 0:02:35.880 --> 0:02:40.560 not too long ago, the million Maga March happened in Washington, 0:02:40.720 --> 0:02:43.320 d C. Some people say it wasn't a million. I 0:02:43.320 --> 0:02:45.440 don't care if it was two people out there. The point, 0:02:45.800 --> 0:02:50.680 the theory, the concept in general of this whole uh 0:02:51.200 --> 0:02:56.000 million Maga March and what it represents is what's so dangerous. 0:02:56.040 --> 0:02:59.400 This is the seventy I think it's seventy three million 0:02:59.480 --> 0:03:03.200 people who voted for Donald Trump. This is that, this 0:03:03.280 --> 0:03:05.920 is that crowd. And why and the reason why I 0:03:05.960 --> 0:03:09.000 bring up that folks are putting it all on the 0:03:09.080 --> 0:03:13.240 line is because I think about a young she she 0:03:13.360 --> 0:03:15.280 are not pretty old at this point, but you know, 0:03:15.360 --> 0:03:17.800 we still like to say we're young. Um, but my 0:03:17.919 --> 0:03:21.959 sister from Black Lives Matter d C, Nini Tay, Now 0:03:22.040 --> 0:03:25.040 y'all know if you don't know, and you should do 0:03:25.120 --> 0:03:27.720 some research, Nini te is off the chain, right. This 0:03:27.760 --> 0:03:31.520 is a This is a black woman who does not 0:03:31.680 --> 0:03:35.240 play at all period. She I mean, first of all, 0:03:35.280 --> 0:03:38.600 the way that we came into contact with her was 0:03:38.720 --> 0:03:44.320 because she challenged us as leaders within Women's March, Carmen, 0:03:44.440 --> 0:03:47.320 Linda and myself to sit down at the table and 0:03:47.400 --> 0:03:49.640 make sure that when we go into d C with 0:03:49.720 --> 0:03:53.800 these major events, that we also think about the local organizers. 0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:56.480 You know, people go to d C to do marches 0:03:56.600 --> 0:03:59.960 and protesting other things because it is the state, the capital, 0:04:00.040 --> 0:04:04.800 the nation's capital, but there's still a local community there. 0:04:05.240 --> 0:04:08.240 And when you and I and many helped me to 0:04:08.320 --> 0:04:12.080 see that when you go into Washington and you get 0:04:12.120 --> 0:04:15.920 these permits or not to do these mass demonstrations, they 0:04:15.960 --> 0:04:20.680 move the homeless community. Which are these folks are being supported. 0:04:20.720 --> 0:04:22.880 They're not just like out on the street. There are 0:04:22.920 --> 0:04:27.080 people in grassroots organizations that do work. They have routes, 0:04:27.120 --> 0:04:29.599 they have conversations with these folks. They know where to 0:04:29.640 --> 0:04:32.520 find people who may have mental health challenges and whatnot. 0:04:32.720 --> 0:04:34.800 So it's not like when you move them it's just 0:04:34.839 --> 0:04:39.600 a simple, you know, movement. Now it's actually dislocation for 0:04:39.640 --> 0:04:41.840 the work. So you know, she was like, listen, our 0:04:41.880 --> 0:04:46.200 homeless community gets impacted. Y'all leave the streets dirty, people 0:04:46.240 --> 0:04:49.040 don't clean up, and then our communities, our parks and 0:04:49.080 --> 0:04:52.320 other things are not um you know, sanitized properly for 0:04:52.400 --> 0:04:56.680 our children. Also, resources are being taken thing, businesses are 0:04:56.720 --> 0:05:00.440 being closed. People are not able to work on their jobs. 0:05:00.440 --> 0:05:03.680 So this these are things I never even it never 0:05:03.760 --> 0:05:06.640 came to my mind, but men say made sure that 0:05:06.680 --> 0:05:10.600 I know it. And in this last in this million 0:05:10.640 --> 0:05:15.520 Maga March, one of the most important things for UH 0:05:15.640 --> 0:05:19.520 for for Black Lives Matter d C was to ensure 0:05:19.839 --> 0:05:23.160 that these people did not destroy Black Lives Matter Park, 0:05:23.279 --> 0:05:29.120 the plaza where people there are monuments or memorials there, 0:05:29.160 --> 0:05:33.960 you know, uh, pictures of people who have died, messages. 0:05:34.160 --> 0:05:37.000 It's like it's it's really like a It is a memorial. 0:05:37.200 --> 0:05:42.000 It is a memorial for the movement for black people 0:05:42.000 --> 0:05:45.280 who have lost their lives in many different ways. And 0:05:45.360 --> 0:05:48.000 they wanted to make sure that it was not damaged 0:05:48.040 --> 0:05:52.560 and that you know, it was respected, because why not, right, 0:05:53.040 --> 0:05:57.760 And of course the opposite happened. People from the march 0:05:58.120 --> 0:06:01.280 part of the delegation, if you will, went to the 0:06:01.360 --> 0:06:05.320 park and begin to deface it, destroying the park, and 0:06:05.400 --> 0:06:08.719 of course the police officers who were there, they kind 0:06:08.720 --> 0:06:11.480 of fake intervened, but you can see on the video 0:06:11.520 --> 0:06:15.360 on Nini's videos very clearly they didn't really do anything 0:06:15.600 --> 0:06:20.360 to try to stop and preserve this part. And when 0:06:20.360 --> 0:06:23.600 I see Nini says, people that were with her got stabbed, 0:06:23.640 --> 0:06:26.479 there were fights, and that to me is the idea, 0:06:26.760 --> 0:06:28.880 you know, of risking it all because this is a 0:06:28.920 --> 0:06:32.960 black woman who stands really really strong in her square 0:06:33.040 --> 0:06:36.320 and they've been arrested a bunch of times. We've been arrested. 0:06:36.560 --> 0:06:38.920 People think it's cool, like they think it's like a 0:06:38.960 --> 0:06:41.960 party when you go inside of I know, when we 0:06:41.960 --> 0:06:44.919 were in Kentucky, I was like, oh, this is different, 0:06:45.400 --> 0:06:47.760 you know, I think I think for me, you know, 0:06:48.520 --> 0:06:51.520 actually be being on the front lines and really doing 0:06:51.520 --> 0:06:55.440 this work. I had to appreciate the danger in the 0:06:55.520 --> 0:06:58.520 risk that we actually put ourselves in every time, you know, 0:06:58.560 --> 0:07:00.320 when we face to face with these police. When we 0:07:00.320 --> 0:07:02.760 were in Kentucky, you know, I remember the last pretty 0:07:02.839 --> 0:07:05.840 much the last march that we had when the police 0:07:05.920 --> 0:07:09.120 came and started to surround us, you know, and they 0:07:09.240 --> 0:07:14.560 let all five I mean flash flash bombs. And it 0:07:14.680 --> 0:07:17.760 was a peaceful march. It was a nonviolent mark because 0:07:17.760 --> 0:07:19.520 we don't use the word peaceful because we don't get 0:07:19.520 --> 0:07:21.720 no justice and there's no peace. So it wasn't peaceful, 0:07:21.840 --> 0:07:24.360 but it was a non violent march. We were people 0:07:24.400 --> 0:07:28.440 were you know, expressing their frustrations, the anger that Brianna 0:07:28.480 --> 0:07:31.040 Taylor hadn't got justice and we were just marching and 0:07:31.040 --> 0:07:33.760 they cut us off in the way that they met us, 0:07:34.360 --> 0:07:37.000 you know, they met us with a level of energy 0:07:37.160 --> 0:07:42.960 and anger and aggression that any moment something could we 0:07:43.000 --> 0:07:45.160 couldn't have made it home. Yeah, something could have gone 0:07:45.360 --> 0:07:46.960 It could have gone wrong. So when they met us, 0:07:47.360 --> 0:07:50.200 because there was kids out there, there were kids who 0:07:50.320 --> 0:07:54.680 was crying, who was screaming, her ears were damaged by 0:07:54.720 --> 0:07:57.280 the flash bombs sound. And it was for no there 0:07:57.360 --> 0:08:00.840 was no reason at all. We hadn't done anything aggressive. 0:08:00.920 --> 0:08:03.480 We just marched. We were actually heading back. We're on 0:08:03.480 --> 0:08:06.720 our way back to Brianna Square, you know where they 0:08:06.760 --> 0:08:09.200 called freeway. We're on our way back there, and matching 0:08:09.200 --> 0:08:11.520 that the block and they just cut us off from 0:08:11.640 --> 0:08:14.600 every block and sealed us in. And you know, and 0:08:14.720 --> 0:08:17.840 understanding those moments and other times that we've actually been 0:08:17.880 --> 0:08:21.360 face to face were officers on the bridges when they 0:08:21.480 --> 0:08:24.760 met us there, you know, and we understood that there 0:08:24.920 --> 0:08:28.040 could have been a level of danger and aggression and 0:08:28.080 --> 0:08:32.559 you know, physical interaction with officers that couldn't could have 0:08:32.679 --> 0:08:37.760 ended us either hurt, deeply hurt or actually dying, you know. 0:08:38.000 --> 0:08:40.960 And then we go to prisons to where it's freezing, 0:08:41.080 --> 0:08:44.920 you're in there for hours, you're hungry. Well, I mean 0:08:45.120 --> 0:08:47.600 not prison jail, you know, in the county, in the 0:08:47.640 --> 0:08:52.160 county facilities. Yeah, I've been in prison prisoners definitely, you know, 0:08:52.240 --> 0:08:57.320 but we've actually been in facilities that that you know, 0:08:57.360 --> 0:08:59.800 our lives were could have been in danger. You know 0:09:00.160 --> 0:09:03.040 a lot of people we're traumatized. There were a lot 0:09:03.080 --> 0:09:05.160 of people who actually went to prison that were traumatized 0:09:05.200 --> 0:09:07.280 but his experiences and didn't want to go back. So 0:09:07.520 --> 0:09:10.840 when you talk about that, more people that came out crying. 0:09:12.120 --> 0:09:16.160 People inside really frustrated. You know, when you're in near 0:09:16.240 --> 0:09:19.960 twelve thirteen four, people call it bullpen therapy. You always 0:09:20.000 --> 0:09:23.480 talk about this bullpen therapy. What is that? Bullpen therapy 0:09:23.679 --> 0:09:28.040 is exactly what you experience. You know, when you're sitting 0:09:28.080 --> 0:09:30.760 in that cell and you started to get hungry, you 0:09:30.760 --> 0:09:33.400 started to get cold, you started to see the hours 0:09:33.440 --> 0:09:36.400 go and you're like, okay, when am I going home? 0:09:36.480 --> 0:09:40.080 And nobody has no real answers, you started to get frustrated. 0:09:40.440 --> 0:09:44.880 You know, everybody in there is frustrated that the tension 0:09:45.000 --> 0:09:46.559 is mountain. You're like, damn, I don't want to be 0:09:46.640 --> 0:09:50.480 in here. You experienced in Clausrophobia is dirty. It's all 0:09:50.600 --> 0:09:53.280 type of things going through your mind, and it makes 0:09:53.320 --> 0:09:55.040 you say to yourself, I don't never want to be 0:09:55.080 --> 0:09:58.040 in this situation again. So what it does is it 0:09:58.080 --> 0:10:00.640 prohibits you from wanting to be on the front line 0:10:00.679 --> 0:10:02.559 of the movement again because you don't want to go 0:10:02.640 --> 0:10:05.960 through that, you know, experience again. So it's bullpen thirds like, Okay, 0:10:06.040 --> 0:10:07.800 you want to do this, We're gonna make sure that 0:10:07.840 --> 0:10:10.600 you're sitting there for sixteen and twenty four in twenty 0:10:10.640 --> 0:10:14.319 eight hours and being the coal and have a you know, 0:10:14.480 --> 0:10:17.679 bologney sandwich or a ham sandwich that tastes like garbage 0:10:17.920 --> 0:10:20.439 and in water that don't even taste like juice that 0:10:20.520 --> 0:10:23.600 tastes like you put two paces. Yeah, we had. So 0:10:23.679 --> 0:10:26.000 in New York City, I've never been fed, and I've 0:10:26.040 --> 0:10:29.320 been in four between four to six. I think the 0:10:29.320 --> 0:10:31.959 most was probably about seven hours for a day without 0:10:31.960 --> 0:10:35.360 a woman where we were arrested outside the Trump Towers 0:10:35.880 --> 0:10:38.240 um with the women's march, and so I think that 0:10:38.280 --> 0:10:41.160 was about seven hours. I didn't have any food period 0:10:41.679 --> 0:10:43.760 um and so New York. I don't know how it 0:10:43.800 --> 0:10:47.079 works in different places, but I will say that in Kentucky, 0:10:47.480 --> 0:10:50.080 there was a black man who was in the kitchen 0:10:50.080 --> 0:10:52.400 working in the kitchen, but he's also an officer, clearly, 0:10:52.720 --> 0:10:55.120 and he came and was like, you know, I need 0:10:55.120 --> 0:10:57.520 to make sure y'all get something. So he slapped some 0:10:57.640 --> 0:11:02.080 kind of turkey cheese something together that was just disgusting. 0:11:02.480 --> 0:11:04.720 And let me just tell it. I have to tell 0:11:06.280 --> 0:11:10.160 and Yandy, I think both of them ate the hole, y'all. 0:11:10.480 --> 0:11:14.199 I didn't even Linda Sarso definitely ate the sandwich and 0:11:14.320 --> 0:11:17.400 said she actually enjoyed it. I did drink his little 0:11:17.400 --> 0:11:23.080 crystal like water thing, but I listened. I was thirsty. 0:11:23.880 --> 0:11:26.480 They said drink water if nothing else. And then you 0:11:26.559 --> 0:11:30.960 got to use the bathroom. So the bathroom, yeah, we 0:11:31.000 --> 0:11:34.439 had to put up like a her. But the crazy 0:11:34.520 --> 0:11:37.839 thing is that the glass the window is right next 0:11:37.880 --> 0:11:41.720 to the toilet, so you could put up the sheet 0:11:41.880 --> 0:11:45.720 or whatever. The blankets which are like wool literal wool 0:11:46.000 --> 0:11:48.439 like not like nice wool that you wear, but I'm 0:11:48.440 --> 0:11:52.320 talking about woolf from like the actual animal. Um. They 0:11:52.360 --> 0:11:54.600 put that up to try to block you, but the 0:11:54.760 --> 0:11:58.240 officers walking by can see right through the window the 0:11:58.320 --> 0:12:00.720 glass as you use the at them. I mean, the 0:12:00.720 --> 0:12:04.680 whole thing is not at all. And the crazy thing 0:12:04.840 --> 0:12:07.680 that happened to us is that while you're in the cell, 0:12:08.240 --> 0:12:11.680 you call you know whomever we're calling outside here and there, 0:12:12.200 --> 0:12:15.360 and they're actually talking about you got a felony, like 0:12:15.480 --> 0:12:19.439 what like now people as you said, everybody's getting frustrated 0:12:19.480 --> 0:12:24.920 the tensions arising. It's something my job. They were teachers 0:12:24.960 --> 0:12:29.079 principles and they're like, felony, that's not what they thought 0:12:29.120 --> 0:12:32.200 this was about. But Kentucky is very different, you know. 0:12:32.320 --> 0:12:34.760 And I think all of these places, unfortunately that I've 0:12:34.800 --> 0:12:38.840 been arrested have been have been different and difficult in 0:12:38.880 --> 0:12:40.960 their own ways. Because the tuns in New York is 0:12:40.960 --> 0:12:43.959 no joke, and I've been in there is dangerous. It's 0:12:44.080 --> 0:12:47.640 very dangerous. That's the one thing. It's very dangerous at least. 0:12:47.679 --> 0:12:50.400 And I've had fights in the tuns. Yeah, you know. 0:12:50.800 --> 0:12:54.520 I've gotten into numerous fights in the tumbs. In Kentucky 0:12:54.600 --> 0:12:58.520 they separate you where it's just you and whatever group. 0:12:59.000 --> 0:13:01.000 But in New York, I've been in the tumbes with 0:13:01.160 --> 0:13:05.640 other women that I have in there because of the situation. 0:13:05.720 --> 0:13:09.000 But in most facilities they don't really separate you. They 0:13:09.000 --> 0:13:11.520 didn't have to separate us. I guess they put us 0:13:11.559 --> 0:13:14.240 in certain selves because they know we all came together, 0:13:14.600 --> 0:13:17.120 and they separated a certain people. For the most part, 0:13:17.640 --> 0:13:19.520 as you come into the system, they're supposed to just 0:13:19.520 --> 0:13:21.640 feel up these selves and it could be very dangerous. 0:13:21.640 --> 0:13:24.600 And the last thing that I'll say on it is like, 0:13:25.480 --> 0:13:29.640 you know, I think people they see us smiling and 0:13:29.400 --> 0:13:31.800 and and and they don't know that sometimes in those 0:13:31.800 --> 0:13:35.600 cells you build camaraderie, right, Like you've become closer, you 0:13:35.640 --> 0:13:38.960 sort of become family with the people who are in 0:13:39.040 --> 0:13:42.559 there with you, and you come out feeling victorious, like, listen, 0:13:42.720 --> 0:13:45.200 you know we did this. We we believe in our struggle, 0:13:45.200 --> 0:13:48.120 We believe in our fight. But every single person who 0:13:48.160 --> 0:13:50.920 goes in there, there's a moment when you know you 0:13:50.920 --> 0:13:54.480 your freedom has been taken from you as somebody else 0:13:54.600 --> 0:13:57.559 is in charge. They're in control of what may or 0:13:57.600 --> 0:13:59.680 may not happen to you on that day. That's right, 0:13:59.760 --> 0:14:04.120 And I think the more that those of us who 0:14:04.200 --> 0:14:06.559 do it daily, you know, we put ourselves in more 0:14:06.640 --> 0:14:09.360 risk because there's no guarantee that they're gonna let you 0:14:09.440 --> 0:14:11.960 go home today, and there's no guarantee that you're not 0:14:12.000 --> 0:14:13.600 going to have a fell in each other. There's no 0:14:13.679 --> 0:14:16.360 guarantee that you're gonna make it out of yourselves. You know, 0:14:16.640 --> 0:14:20.520 we've seen san Jibland pulled over for a traffic and 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:23.880 never made you understand I'm saying, So we understand that 0:14:23.920 --> 0:14:26.800 what we're doing risking at all, but we understand hownnecessary 0:14:26.800 --> 0:14:29.000 it is in this time. You know, we understand that 0:14:29.040 --> 0:14:32.880 our voices, our platforms, you know, are very important to 0:14:33.600 --> 0:14:37.120 uplifting this moment. So I'm letting people understand what we 0:14:37.240 --> 0:14:39.120 got to do it this moment. We have no choice. 0:14:39.240 --> 0:14:41.000 We got to do it. But I'll tell you this. 0:14:41.120 --> 0:14:43.040 So in d C. When I got arrested with the 0:14:43.040 --> 0:14:45.680 White ladies, I was able to sit on the grass 0:14:46.000 --> 0:14:48.440 and be on my cell phone and all types of stuff. 0:14:48.480 --> 0:14:51.760 But that's a conversation for another day. And it brings 0:14:51.800 --> 0:14:54.880 me to the thought of the day, My thought of 0:14:55.000 --> 0:14:59.640 the day. You know, I'm always thinking, which might be 0:14:59.680 --> 0:15:03.160 about thematic, right, but for my thought of the day, 0:15:03.520 --> 0:15:07.560 I just want to ask the question, should we be 0:15:07.720 --> 0:15:13.440 relying on the activism of entertainers and athletes and other 0:15:13.560 --> 0:15:17.840 influencers as part of our movement, Because then you have 0:15:18.120 --> 0:15:23.000 people like little Wayne and little I don't know these 0:15:23.000 --> 0:15:27.440 people's names, but these pumps, and you know, and and 0:15:27.520 --> 0:15:31.880 Donald Trump called him pimp, little pimp on purpose. As 0:15:31.880 --> 0:15:38.560 far as i'm he didn't even vote. So anyway, these 0:15:38.600 --> 0:15:43.680 because any sword that you pull has two sides, right, 0:15:44.000 --> 0:15:46.560 So you're gonna have the side that we want, which 0:15:46.600 --> 0:15:49.600 is for people to stand with us, But then you're 0:15:49.600 --> 0:15:51.640 gonna have the side of folks who are gonna go 0:15:51.840 --> 0:15:55.440 against us and actually stand with the oppressor. So is 0:15:55.480 --> 0:15:58.160 it better to just say just let's you know, just 0:15:58.240 --> 0:16:02.040 don't talk at all to entertain this, or are we 0:16:02.160 --> 0:16:05.520 saying we'll just take both and fight the battles as 0:16:05.560 --> 0:16:07.880 they go along as they come along. I think I 0:16:07.920 --> 0:16:10.320 think for me, it's you know, just being on the 0:16:10.400 --> 0:16:14.040 right side of truth, you know, because the facts are 0:16:14.080 --> 0:16:17.000 the facts, you know, So whatever position that you take, 0:16:17.440 --> 0:16:19.920 if it's contradictory to the facts, then people are gonna 0:16:20.000 --> 0:16:21.720 let you know it. You know, when we talk about 0:16:21.760 --> 0:16:24.160 Little Wayne and we talk about the situation with Little 0:16:24.200 --> 0:16:27.800 Pump and these people who advocated against what it is 0:16:27.840 --> 0:16:30.320 that we knew was right, you know, right is right 0:16:30.360 --> 0:16:32.480 all the time. When you when Little Wayne talks about, 0:16:32.920 --> 0:16:36.960 you know, a platform and a platinum plan and really 0:16:36.960 --> 0:16:40.440 not having any knowledge of the legal system, understanding what 0:16:40.480 --> 0:16:45.000 the government does, understanding really what that Platinum plan really states, 0:16:45.280 --> 0:16:48.880 in opposition to what other documents people have put together 0:16:48.920 --> 0:16:53.600 that really give you know, some type of transformative justice 0:16:56.480 --> 0:16:59.040 and and so many other you know, when you don't, 0:16:59.080 --> 0:17:01.520 when you are not away of those you know, those 0:17:01.560 --> 0:17:04.760 documents who have that have been created to give real 0:17:05.080 --> 0:17:07.840 equity to black people, and you don't and you don't 0:17:07.840 --> 0:17:09.399 have anything to compare it to, and you just make 0:17:09.440 --> 0:17:11.520 a statement. Then you gotta figure out what you gotta 0:17:11.560 --> 0:17:14.040 ask what is that based on? You know, we we 0:17:14.040 --> 0:17:16.480 we heard I hear certain things. I don't know that 0:17:16.520 --> 0:17:18.959 little Wayne had a gun charge and he had, you know, 0:17:19.560 --> 0:17:21.800 certain charges that he wanted to get dismissed. So he 0:17:21.840 --> 0:17:23.320 does it for that. You know, when you look at 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:25.360 a little pump. We're in a we're in an era 0:17:25.760 --> 0:17:28.680 of what they call cloud chasing, you know, and trolling. 0:17:28.800 --> 0:17:32.320 So they want they just want any level of notoriety 0:17:32.400 --> 0:17:34.320 at any costs, and they don't even care if they're 0:17:34.320 --> 0:17:37.680 compromising or jeopardizing people. So we have to be able 0:17:37.680 --> 0:17:39.800 to call that out. We we we understand they have 0:17:39.840 --> 0:17:42.719 a platform in the voice, but we also need those 0:17:42.800 --> 0:17:45.800 who are on the right side to combat that. You 0:17:45.800 --> 0:17:49.600 know what I'm saying. Karen Sivil said that trolling it's 0:17:49.680 --> 0:17:53.320 all about personal ego, right, It's all about you doing 0:17:53.760 --> 0:17:57.520 things for yourself. UM and not for the greater community. 0:17:57.640 --> 0:18:01.359 And I think that that's what we saw with this election. 0:18:01.440 --> 0:18:03.880 This this past election, there was a lot of trolling. 0:18:04.000 --> 0:18:08.560 There was a lot of people trying to position themselves 0:18:08.600 --> 0:18:12.919 as being the savior for our communities without engaging some 0:18:13.040 --> 0:18:17.640 of the community. You know, even though I believe wholeheartedly 0:18:18.280 --> 0:18:21.520 that ice Cube was trying to do and it's going 0:18:21.600 --> 0:18:25.320 to continue to do the right thing for our communities, 0:18:25.359 --> 0:18:29.679 really trying to find a way to UM to force 0:18:29.800 --> 0:18:32.479 these politicians to do something for us, to give us 0:18:32.520 --> 0:18:35.280 something for our votes. I believe in that. But I 0:18:35.400 --> 0:18:38.440 also I read a tweet that he put out where 0:18:38.440 --> 0:18:41.080 he said, don't tell me like I didn't talk to 0:18:41.280 --> 0:18:44.560 people from the community or good solid people to put 0:18:44.600 --> 0:18:48.240 this plan together. And he names a bunch of individuals, 0:18:48.600 --> 0:18:51.639 all of which I respect very much. These are people 0:18:51.640 --> 0:18:54.960 who are in the economic development space for the most part, 0:18:55.280 --> 0:19:00.960 and they are incredible, incredible strategies. Not one black woman 0:19:01.160 --> 0:19:03.080 was on the list, at least it wasn't in the 0:19:03.160 --> 0:19:05.480 tweet that he put out. And if he did talk 0:19:05.520 --> 0:19:08.439 to a black woman, he didn't feel that she was 0:19:08.480 --> 0:19:11.119 important enough for him to include the names of those 0:19:11.119 --> 0:19:14.760 who he mentioned, So That tells me there's a big 0:19:14.840 --> 0:19:18.439 gap there because if you didn't see if, first of all, 0:19:18.560 --> 0:19:21.159 in this moment, if you don't have a black woman 0:19:21.160 --> 0:19:25.080 sitting at the center of the dialogue about communities, I'm 0:19:25.080 --> 0:19:27.480 not I understand now unless he says, well, I was 0:19:27.520 --> 0:19:31.120 going to try to work on black men. Okay, that's 0:19:31.119 --> 0:19:33.400 a different conversation, and it should be room for that. 0:19:33.720 --> 0:19:37.440 Just like President Obama has the black Mail initiative. There 0:19:37.440 --> 0:19:40.960 should be room for and space for dialogue that is 0:19:41.040 --> 0:19:44.320 just about saving black men, just like we have spaces 0:19:44.359 --> 0:19:47.040 that are for black women. But if you say that 0:19:47.119 --> 0:19:51.800 you're representing the community and you don't have a black 0:19:51.880 --> 0:19:55.159 woman like Alicia Garza, like you know, I mean, I 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:57.800 could go on with and on, I won't even get 0:19:57.800 --> 0:20:01.359 myself in trouble. You know, name these individuals. If you 0:20:01.400 --> 0:20:04.920 don't have them in the conversation, then what are you doing? 0:20:05.880 --> 0:20:09.080 I think what it is is, you know, it's it's 0:20:09.119 --> 0:20:13.080 a level of entitlement. It's a level of ego that 0:20:13.119 --> 0:20:18.600 we as black men have a lot of time, but 0:20:16.680 --> 0:20:25.439 we have a level of fans. But that's that's you 0:20:25.480 --> 0:20:28.320 know what it is. Our ego is our biggest asset 0:20:28.400 --> 0:20:31.160 in our biggest you know, liability. At the same time, 0:20:31.200 --> 0:20:34.240 because our ego pushes us to our greatness, it makes 0:20:34.320 --> 0:20:36.480 us feel like we can't fail. It makes us tell 0:20:36.520 --> 0:20:39.600 ourselves that despite what America has then to us, and 0:20:39.680 --> 0:20:43.440 how we are marginalized and criminalized and demoralized every day, 0:20:43.440 --> 0:20:46.240 that we continue to drive on. But it also tells 0:20:46.359 --> 0:20:49.200 us that we don't need to deal with other people. 0:20:49.280 --> 0:20:51.960 Sometimes we don't need to confer, we don't need to 0:20:51.960 --> 0:20:55.280 sit down in community and get opinions of other people. 0:20:55.359 --> 0:20:57.240 And that's that's the floor that we have. And it 0:20:57.359 --> 0:21:01.159 also means that sometimes, um, you don't see the value 0:21:01.200 --> 0:21:04.159 of women and black women at the table. Well, I 0:21:04.200 --> 0:21:06.119 don't know if we say we don't see the value. 0:21:06.119 --> 0:21:10.760 I just sometimes I just think that patriarchy in himself 0:21:11.119 --> 0:21:14.439 and what we've dealt in this country has has taught 0:21:14.520 --> 0:21:16.919 us that we have to make the decisions. We have 0:21:17.000 --> 0:21:19.440 to be the leader, we have to be the strong one. 0:21:19.520 --> 0:21:22.360 We have to provide and protect. So sometimes we do 0:21:22.400 --> 0:21:25.360 that and we we we just say we're gonna make 0:21:25.359 --> 0:21:28.040 sure that we got you. We we go in there 0:21:28.080 --> 0:21:30.440 with your intentions and all we say, we know what 0:21:30.480 --> 0:21:33.639 you need. And sometimes we don't but nothing about us 0:21:34.080 --> 0:21:36.919 without us. We know that. And I just want the 0:21:36.960 --> 0:21:40.280 cameras to zoom in on you using language, using words 0:21:40.320 --> 0:21:44.920 like patriarch. You have come a mighty long way. And 0:21:47.119 --> 0:21:50.880 the life is about evolution, is about growing. It's about listenings, 0:21:50.880 --> 0:21:53.560 about paying attention. And as you grow and you learn 0:21:53.600 --> 0:21:56.520 and you hear things and you start to do self assessment, 0:21:56.960 --> 0:21:59.560 you know, you have to do self reflection and say, well, 0:21:59.600 --> 0:22:01.840 maybe maybe that right there I could have done better, 0:22:01.920 --> 0:22:04.040 Maybe that I can still do better, you know. And 0:22:04.040 --> 0:22:06.879 I think in this time we talk about activism and 0:22:06.920 --> 0:22:10.080 people having voices, you know, I think as men, as 0:22:10.080 --> 0:22:13.920 black men, definitely, we just have to be more conscious 0:22:13.960 --> 0:22:16.760 of how we show up, especially in spaces that we 0:22:16.840 --> 0:22:19.200 don't normally show up in. You know what I'm saying. 0:22:19.200 --> 0:22:23.520 Even though we have notoriety, we have you know, position, 0:22:23.640 --> 0:22:26.399 we have finances, we have all those things. But it 0:22:26.760 --> 0:22:30.320 takes time, It takes respect to confer what people are 0:22:30.320 --> 0:22:33.040 actually doing the work. Like you should have sat down, 0:22:33.080 --> 0:22:35.679 Like we've had a bunch of calls when when the 0:22:35.680 --> 0:22:38.919 thing when situation, you know, the situation happened with George 0:22:38.960 --> 0:22:42.360 Floyd and what Brianna Taylor. They were calls from the NBA, 0:22:42.560 --> 0:22:44.840 from the NFL where they want to sit down and 0:22:44.920 --> 0:22:47.399 have conversations with you and say, hey, what should we 0:22:47.440 --> 0:22:49.600 be doing right now? We you know, we want to help. 0:22:49.920 --> 0:22:53.160 We we have platforms, we have voices, we have finances. 0:22:53.480 --> 0:22:55.239