WEBVTT - Activist Roqy Tyraid on Voting, Holding Office, and Keeping Politicians Accountable 0:00:00.800 --> 0:00:02.840 If you followed this show for some time, you know 0:00:02.920 --> 0:00:09.799 that we've been extra active lately because we are based 0:00:09.840 --> 0:00:14.200 in a swing state, so you know, there's a lot 0:00:14.240 --> 0:00:20.440 of movement on the ground in Phoenix. We've also had 0:00:20.480 --> 0:00:25.120 to move around the country quite a bit, and we've 0:00:25.120 --> 0:00:28.800 tried to get as much content from different parts of 0:00:28.800 --> 0:00:31.280 the map and bring it back to this show just 0:00:31.280 --> 0:00:35.639 to provide perspectives and to grow as individuals and as 0:00:35.760 --> 0:00:42.840 hosts of this show as well. But longtime listeners might 0:00:42.920 --> 0:00:45.600 know this, many newcomers to the show may not know this. 0:00:46.360 --> 0:00:50.400 A longtime friend of the show is someone that has 0:00:52.240 --> 0:00:56.320 kind of supported us from the sidelines in some instances 0:00:56.400 --> 0:00:59.720 and has supported us in the studio a few times 0:00:59.760 --> 0:01:04.000 as well. He's a person that we've known for a 0:01:04.160 --> 0:01:08.800 long time. And you know, again, those of you that 0:01:08.880 --> 0:01:10.320 have listened to the show for a long time, you 0:01:10.440 --> 0:01:17.040 know that myself and Q we have a background in 0:01:17.240 --> 0:01:21.880 hip hop broadcasting. You know, we're DJs, and you know 0:01:21.959 --> 0:01:24.759 we play songs on radio that we think are dope, 0:01:25.360 --> 0:01:29.560 and the individual who is joining us today is one 0:01:29.880 --> 0:01:33.080 such individual whose songs were dope and we played them 0:01:33.120 --> 0:01:35.920 on the radio. In fact, for a long time we 0:01:36.280 --> 0:01:41.240 featured him on every show Let's Go, and we've been 0:01:41.720 --> 0:01:45.000 hoping to have another conversation because he has done a 0:01:45.080 --> 0:01:49.880 lot of growing in his own political career. Both Q 0:01:50.120 --> 0:01:56.000 and myself we hit our our stride as broadcasters and 0:01:56.080 --> 0:01:59.120 really our origin story as Civic Cipher and the Protest 0:01:59.200 --> 0:02:02.560 of twenty twenty. Same can be said of today's guests. Uh, 0:02:02.840 --> 0:02:07.440 today's guest, I mean to say, and you know, today's 0:02:07.480 --> 0:02:09.760 conversation has been a long time coming. So we're checking 0:02:10.240 --> 0:02:13.679 in on a friend where we're going to get a 0:02:13.800 --> 0:02:16.959 sense of, you know, what he's been up to, and 0:02:17.080 --> 0:02:20.519 we're hoping that you will be able to see some 0:02:20.720 --> 0:02:25.079 of yourself in his story, because he's shown us that 0:02:25.440 --> 0:02:29.040 a lot of things that we thought were these impossible 0:02:29.120 --> 0:02:32.880 cliffs to scale are very attainable for people who want 0:02:32.960 --> 0:02:36.400 to get involved and who want to get engaged. And 0:02:36.639 --> 0:02:42.079 so we're hoping that today's conversation translates and that you're 0:02:42.080 --> 0:02:44.600 able to derive some meaning from it. I go by 0:02:44.600 --> 0:02:48.280 the name Rams's Jah and I am Q Ward and 0:02:48.600 --> 0:02:53.200 this is Civic Cipher with our special guest. He goes 0:02:53.240 --> 0:02:56.800 by the name of Rocky Tirade Yo Yo yo Yo. 0:02:56.919 --> 0:03:01.600 It's good, awesome back. Absolutely, man. I also want to 0:03:01.639 --> 0:03:07.680 make sure that we have your your daytime name. Yeah, yeah, 0:03:07.800 --> 0:03:10.280 because you know Rocky tyra that's that's we know you 0:03:10.360 --> 0:03:15.200 as Rocky Tyrade. And again for those who are are 0:03:15.320 --> 0:03:18.440 still becoming familiar, I employ you to check out Rocky Tyrae. 0:03:18.520 --> 0:03:21.519 Check out his music. He's one of them ones. The 0:03:21.639 --> 0:03:23.079 type of music that we like to play. 0:03:23.200 --> 0:03:23.440 Thank you. 0:03:23.639 --> 0:03:25.839 Rocky is one one of those artists that is really 0:03:25.880 --> 0:03:27.720 talking about the stuff that really matters and is really 0:03:27.760 --> 0:03:29.760 meaningful in the music is dope. So said, you know, 0:03:29.919 --> 0:03:31.679 we've we've known that for a long time and a 0:03:31.720 --> 0:03:33.480 lot of people thank you, but you, thank you, thank you. 0:03:33.880 --> 0:03:36.680 I always appreciate that from you, man like y'all are 0:03:37.160 --> 0:03:39.560 to the coolest to the coolest. I here, man, I'm 0:03:39.720 --> 0:03:43.920 honored to be close with y'all and always admire your 0:03:44.280 --> 0:03:47.200 artistic and creative perspectives and things of that nature. So 0:03:47.480 --> 0:03:51.760 that type of analysis of my art is very much 0:03:51.920 --> 0:03:52.600 well received. 0:03:53.000 --> 0:03:55.839 Yeah, thank you, thank you. It's been a very long 0:03:55.960 --> 0:04:02.040 path that we've walked in terms of being entertainers, in 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:04.880 terms of you know, working in this field and of 0:04:04.960 --> 0:04:09.200 course this pivot. You're one of the people whose music translated, 0:04:10.320 --> 0:04:13.760 and your music wasn't just performance, you were really about it. 0:04:13.920 --> 0:04:17.000 So would you say that it was a pivot, because 0:04:17.000 --> 0:04:23.080 I mean, I guess a knowing rocky tirade first. That's 0:04:23.120 --> 0:04:28.160 how I was introduced to my brother, is that it 0:04:28.279 --> 0:04:30.440 was more of an evolution than a pivot. I think 0:04:30.480 --> 0:04:32.720 this is a path that he was already on, even 0:04:32.760 --> 0:04:35.440 as a creator. So it's not like he made a 0:04:35.520 --> 0:04:39.240 left or right. He just made his path way wider 0:04:39.440 --> 0:04:41.760 and that mug started going out there you go, because 0:04:41.839 --> 0:04:44.719 so it was. It's been a really really cool evolution 0:04:44.920 --> 0:04:45.400 to witness. 0:04:45.560 --> 0:04:48.440 Sure, once upon a time, seeing him with a with 0:04:48.560 --> 0:04:52.120 a microphone on a stage, you're like, yeah, okay, that 0:04:52.240 --> 0:04:55.240 makes sense, he's an artist. And then you know a 0:04:55.279 --> 0:04:58.000 little later, you see him with a bullhorn and a 0:04:58.080 --> 0:04:59.920 bunch of signs in a crowd. The crowd is behind 0:05:00.120 --> 0:05:01.680 them instead of in front of him, and you're like, yeah, 0:05:01.839 --> 0:05:03.440 that totally makes sense. I've never even thought of it 0:05:03.480 --> 0:05:04.000 like that. Yeah. 0:05:04.000 --> 0:05:06.080 I always thought about the the the engagement, you know, 0:05:06.200 --> 0:05:09.320 in terms of like how we channel the way in 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:12.960 which we creatively express ourselves in one manner or another. 0:05:13.720 --> 0:05:17.680 Y'all being purveyors of music. You know, there's you cultivate 0:05:17.839 --> 0:05:21.359 an experience, and you're cultivating an experience a civic cipher 0:05:21.520 --> 0:05:23.440 and and it's the same thing, like we're kind of 0:05:23.680 --> 0:05:28.520 am seeing this event or a group and instead of 0:05:28.560 --> 0:05:32.360 it being stuff that pertains to like artistic expression, it's 0:05:32.440 --> 0:05:36.920 you know, policy and you know, family focused conversations and 0:05:37.000 --> 0:05:39.760 things of that nature. Sure, so it is somewhat of it. 0:05:39.960 --> 0:05:42.320 It's the same thing, you know. Yeah, well I like 0:05:42.480 --> 0:05:44.480 way Q said it, which was, you know, kind of 0:05:44.520 --> 0:05:46.840 an evolution of it. But I want to I want 0:05:46.880 --> 0:05:49.080 to go or I rather, I want you to go 0:05:49.160 --> 0:05:54.080 into that sow your your daytime name. What you're known 0:05:54.160 --> 0:05:59.599 as in political circles is Jacob Rayford. And of course 0:05:59.640 --> 0:06:01.719 we know you as an artist, but you're an activist, 0:06:01.760 --> 0:06:04.919 you're a political strategist. Do do our listeners a favor 0:06:05.400 --> 0:06:09.679 talk a little bit about, you know, your overall brand 0:06:09.760 --> 0:06:14.440 and what it is that you offer the public, because 0:06:14.480 --> 0:06:17.080 I know that you're a multifaceted creator and you could 0:06:17.080 --> 0:06:18.840 of course articulate it better than than I can. 0:06:19.200 --> 0:06:19.839 I mean, you know. 0:06:21.600 --> 0:06:23.600 Again, I just look at it as a form of expression, 0:06:23.800 --> 0:06:27.240 you know, whether it's like you know, writing music and 0:06:27.360 --> 0:06:30.360 creating songs and you know, performing on stage. Instead of 0:06:30.400 --> 0:06:33.360 it speaking to a specific subject that you would find 0:06:33.400 --> 0:06:35.799 in music and stuff like that, it's centered around policy. 0:06:36.120 --> 0:06:39.560 I didn't necessarily put two and two together until maybe 0:06:39.839 --> 0:06:43.680 midway into this evolution, I would say, as Q put it. 0:06:44.279 --> 0:06:47.520 You know, I started in the twenty twenty demonstrations and 0:06:47.800 --> 0:06:50.600 we just kind of showed up because there really wasn't 0:06:51.200 --> 0:06:53.840 any other support system out there that time. And you know, 0:06:53.880 --> 0:06:55.719 you're talking about twenty twenty. The last time we had 0:06:55.800 --> 0:06:58.359 something out there was twenty seventeen, and you know, because 0:06:58.400 --> 0:07:01.240 of the murder of your Org Floyd, because of the 0:07:01.320 --> 0:07:04.880 murder of Dean Johnson, you know, people were upset and 0:07:04.880 --> 0:07:08.520 they're frustrated, and then coupled with the shared collective trauma 0:07:08.720 --> 0:07:11.120 of like COVID and things of that nature, it was 0:07:11.240 --> 0:07:15.520 just the you know, these weird things kind of simultaneously occurring, 0:07:15.680 --> 0:07:18.360 and you know, we were just kind of worried about 0:07:18.920 --> 0:07:21.520 there not being the resources to take care of these 0:07:21.600 --> 0:07:23.560 twenty year olds and these seventeen year olds and these 0:07:23.560 --> 0:07:26.239 twenty two year olds who were out there and didn't 0:07:26.280 --> 0:07:28.600 know how to say, protect themselves from tear gas, and 0:07:29.040 --> 0:07:33.280 you know how to you know, tend to a wound 0:07:33.600 --> 0:07:35.680 or you know, the proper procedures of making sure that 0:07:35.760 --> 0:07:38.320 your personal information doesn't get snatched up so you don't 0:07:38.360 --> 0:07:40.240 get docked or harmed or things of that nature. And 0:07:40.360 --> 0:07:42.440 so we just kind of showed up at somewhat like 0:07:42.560 --> 0:07:45.960 unofficial medics, and then that just kind of translated into 0:07:46.120 --> 0:07:52.560 unofficially you know, or being a organizer and bridging that 0:07:53.400 --> 0:07:55.200 being the mortar in the brick wall when it comes 0:07:55.240 --> 0:07:58.000 to moments where we needed to like unify, we needed 0:07:58.040 --> 0:08:00.880 to have a collective message, or we needed to you know, 0:08:01.360 --> 0:08:05.080 have that collective sense of like courage in very dangerous 0:08:05.080 --> 0:08:08.520 and fearful moments. And you know, I hate to use 0:08:08.600 --> 0:08:12.040 that kind of that parallel between music and like, you know, 0:08:12.280 --> 0:08:15.840 policy and advocacy because it sounds a little almost performative. 0:08:15.880 --> 0:08:18.000 When I felt like that, I don't want it to 0:08:18.080 --> 0:08:19.720 be interpreted in that way. What I mean is like 0:08:20.720 --> 0:08:23.200 the same elements that you learned as a performer, you 0:08:23.360 --> 0:08:26.600 are able to, you know, put into practice in these 0:08:26.880 --> 0:08:31.280 very random experiences where knowing how to read a crowd 0:08:31.360 --> 0:08:35.720 and knowing how to engage any certain scenarios is literally 0:08:35.880 --> 0:08:37.880 a matter of life and death. In so many critical 0:08:37.960 --> 0:08:40.720 moments and you know, just kind of finding our feet 0:08:40.920 --> 0:08:43.319 or finding our footing. We ended up creating what was 0:08:43.360 --> 0:08:46.280 called the Wee Rising Project, and you know, we held 0:08:46.320 --> 0:08:48.079 it down for about five and a half months, speaking 0:08:48.120 --> 0:08:52.480 of policy advocacy, speaking to addressing police brutality, and most 0:08:52.520 --> 0:08:55.680 importantly registering voters so we can you know, stop maga 0:08:55.760 --> 0:08:58.120 at the front door. You know, that was one of 0:08:58.200 --> 0:09:02.559 the most incredible moments, like taking this collective body and 0:09:03.080 --> 0:09:07.120 help and us transforming ourselves into a political body, and 0:09:07.679 --> 0:09:10.640 you know, using that to you know, address down ballot 0:09:10.720 --> 0:09:14.679 races that like definitively and immediately impact us. And then 0:09:14.760 --> 0:09:16.959 of course we had all the police brutality stuff that 0:09:17.000 --> 0:09:19.680 would emerge that was no different than the cointeil pro 0:09:20.400 --> 0:09:24.560 issues during the nineteen sixties and seventies civil rights movements. 0:09:24.600 --> 0:09:27.520 And and but you know, we emerged from the other side, 0:09:27.920 --> 0:09:30.520 you know, maybe bruised and battered a little bit, but 0:09:30.800 --> 0:09:36.040 you know, encouraged to continue this moment and and and 0:09:36.520 --> 0:09:40.319 you know, perpetuate this this advocacy work. And that's when 0:09:40.320 --> 0:09:43.240 we started pushing for the Neighborhood Organized Crisis Assistance Program, 0:09:43.720 --> 0:09:49.120 addressing victimists non violent dispatches through a holistic unit that's 0:09:49.200 --> 0:09:52.319 trained to look at these type of dispatches through care 0:09:52.480 --> 0:09:56.120 and not criminality. That is what really started the building 0:09:56.160 --> 0:09:59.520 blocks of the transformation of the Community Assistance Program in 0:09:59.559 --> 0:10:02.520 the City of Phoenix UH into which is still an 0:10:02.559 --> 0:10:05.040 ongoing project down in the City of Phoenix, but something 0:10:05.120 --> 0:10:08.280 that can serve as an alternative UH to the traditional 0:10:08.760 --> 0:10:11.719 police engagement with communities that because of a lack of 0:10:11.840 --> 0:10:15.880 understanding of specific behavioral health sciences and things of that nature, 0:10:16.480 --> 0:10:18.840 you know, it has led to police brutality and has 0:10:18.960 --> 0:10:23.480 led to a misusage of you know, force. And that 0:10:23.679 --> 0:10:26.679 is when I personally continued my my individual journey. I 0:10:26.760 --> 0:10:30.480 joined the ACOU and then continued my advocacy work there 0:10:30.600 --> 0:10:33.480 as a working board member, and then ended up joining 0:10:34.160 --> 0:10:37.520 you know, volunteering for the UH the Democratic Party as 0:10:37.640 --> 0:10:41.080 what was called a precinct committee person as someone who 0:10:41.480 --> 0:10:44.400 is a volunteer but politically empowered to vote on behalf 0:10:44.480 --> 0:10:47.360 of my legislative district, to vote on behalf of my county. 0:10:47.840 --> 0:10:50.640 And once I found out what that definition was, I was, 0:10:50.920 --> 0:10:53.679 I was I was upset, and you know, because I 0:10:53.960 --> 0:10:58.240 felt that I was politically educated enough but discovering that 0:10:58.320 --> 0:11:01.240 I didn't know about something so critical and important to 0:11:01.600 --> 0:11:06.760 moving a party forward and injecting your perspective as a 0:11:07.080 --> 0:11:11.880 disproportionally affected person. That's something that inspired me to continue 0:11:11.920 --> 0:11:13.959 my work forward. And that's when I ended up, you know, 0:11:14.120 --> 0:11:18.880 really kind of evolving into this space as someone who 0:11:20.000 --> 0:11:22.880 works on policy on a daily basis and works in 0:11:22.960 --> 0:11:24.640 the political structure on a daily basis. 0:11:25.440 --> 0:11:26.800 It is It is such a. 0:11:29.160 --> 0:11:33.080 Out of body experience, almost listening to what I described 0:11:33.080 --> 0:11:37.439 as an evolution, but you telling that story kind of 0:11:37.559 --> 0:11:40.360 visually and mentally painted a picture of what that looked like. 0:11:41.080 --> 0:11:44.720 Twenty twenty was kind of the perfect storm you had. 0:11:45.960 --> 0:11:57.200 MAGA mixed with the protest, mixed with the pandemic, mixed 0:11:57.320 --> 0:12:01.439 with the kinetic real life devaluing of the life of 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:05.160 black and brown people, all happening at the same time. 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:09.280 So very easy to understand. What made all of us 0:12:09.559 --> 0:12:10.640 show up initially? 0:12:11.000 --> 0:12:12.319 Right? Right? 0:12:12.640 --> 0:12:15.200 What is it that kept you engaged in that process? 0:12:15.240 --> 0:12:17.439 And the reason why I ask that question is that 0:12:17.679 --> 0:12:20.600 role that you described that you were kind of frustrated 0:12:20.640 --> 0:12:23.800 that you didn't know about before. There are so many 0:12:23.880 --> 0:12:30.679 ways that us normal folks can be more involved can 0:12:30.800 --> 0:12:35.679 be active participants in our civic duties, in the political process, 0:12:36.480 --> 0:12:39.240 but most of us don't think that's realistic. Like people 0:12:39.320 --> 0:12:42.200 have said to Ramses and I before, sometimes very serious, 0:12:42.320 --> 0:12:46.320 sometimes joking, y'all should run for office, and we're almost 0:12:46.600 --> 0:12:51.280 always like yeah, right, like we couldn't do that. And 0:12:51.360 --> 0:12:55.040 I think most people feel like we couldn't. We couldn't 0:12:55.080 --> 0:12:58.280 run for city council, or we couldn't run for mayor, 0:12:58.360 --> 0:13:03.319 or we couldn't play an active role and legislating the 0:13:03.400 --> 0:13:07.200 community that we live in. But it sounds like when 0:13:07.320 --> 0:13:09.960 you went outside you discovered that you could, and once 0:13:10.040 --> 0:13:13.160 you knew that you could, it's like you couldn't help it. Like, Okay, 0:13:13.240 --> 0:13:15.880 now that I know I can have some impact, there's 0:13:15.960 --> 0:13:18.079 no way I'm not going to stay engaged and stay 0:13:18.559 --> 0:13:21.360 an active participant in the change that I want to see. 0:13:21.840 --> 0:13:23.960 That's just my read from over here in my seat. 0:13:24.720 --> 0:13:26.040 You can touch on that a little bit. 0:13:26.120 --> 0:13:28.240 I mean, we won't be I feel like if somebody 0:13:28.280 --> 0:13:31.120 wants who they can, I mean, look at raf rafail Warnock, 0:13:31.240 --> 0:13:34.960 Like that's somebody who worked within the within this congregation. 0:13:35.160 --> 0:13:37.559 Look at Tim Wallas, this is someone who was was 0:13:37.600 --> 0:13:40.120 a was a coach and you know, served in the 0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:43.559 National Guard. I mean, there's there's we have the ability 0:13:43.640 --> 0:13:45.000 to show up and be a part of this space. 0:13:45.080 --> 0:13:47.400 And I think that you know, in a representative democracy, 0:13:48.320 --> 0:13:51.040 who better in some of these cases to be a 0:13:51.080 --> 0:13:53.800 part of that, uh than someone who comes directly from 0:13:53.880 --> 0:13:57.400 that that that space. And I feel that what we've 0:13:57.440 --> 0:14:00.719 seen over the past couple of years is recognize that 0:14:01.080 --> 0:14:04.199 the around the way person can have a space in politics. 0:14:04.280 --> 0:14:07.079 And that's why it's no coincidence that we have a 0:14:07.120 --> 0:14:11.160 lot of policy focused on middle class, working class, working 0:14:11.280 --> 0:14:14.560 families and things of that nature, because all it takes 0:14:14.640 --> 0:14:18.240 is a little bit of drive, momentum, collectivized energy. But 0:14:18.360 --> 0:14:20.840 I guess what inspired me to do it or continue 0:14:20.880 --> 0:14:25.840 to show up maybe a no issue and then maybe 0:14:26.320 --> 0:14:30.880 seriously there's always something to be done, Like while working 0:14:30.920 --> 0:14:34.240 on the No Cap Advocacy Coalition, you know, I was 0:14:34.280 --> 0:14:37.400 also again falling it into my work as a precat 0:14:37.400 --> 0:14:40.720 committee person and then joining the Black Engagement Committee and 0:14:40.760 --> 0:14:43.160 then kind of finding out about the Maricopa County Democratic 0:14:43.240 --> 0:14:45.600 Party and what all this means, and you know, just 0:14:45.720 --> 0:14:50.600 the the institutional aspect of like politics and the need 0:14:50.840 --> 0:14:53.400 for us to continue to show up in these spaces 0:14:53.480 --> 0:14:57.000 because you know, if we're able to positively affect change 0:14:57.040 --> 0:14:59.400 in twenty twenty, we can do it in twenty twenty two, 0:14:59.440 --> 0:15:02.400 and then we all that we did that, and when 0:15:02.440 --> 0:15:05.560 it comes to younger progressives and younger Democrats and whatnot, 0:15:06.120 --> 0:15:10.280 I think that that real that that nucleus, that moment, 0:15:10.440 --> 0:15:14.000 that that big bang moment or whatnot, was going back 0:15:14.040 --> 0:15:16.560 to twenty twenty and you can like see that reverberate 0:15:16.640 --> 0:15:19.520 throughout what happened in twenty twenty two and just this 0:15:19.800 --> 0:15:24.000 kind of outward advocacy and expression of things that are 0:15:24.080 --> 0:15:26.720 more in line with our working class families, in middle 0:15:27.000 --> 0:15:30.920 middle class families. You know, as we continue to fall 0:15:31.000 --> 0:15:34.760 into what is now this election cycle, it's it's no coincidence. 0:15:34.880 --> 0:15:39.480 And knowing that that rock can create waves is what 0:15:39.640 --> 0:15:43.960 continues to inspire push me to show up, because I mean, 0:15:44.280 --> 0:15:46.360 who knows where this thing can go if we can 0:15:46.520 --> 0:15:49.480 continue to to to just show up and be involved 0:15:49.520 --> 0:15:51.640 and engage ourselves in a way in which we're able to. 0:15:53.480 --> 0:15:57.440 I want to ask you something because you're probably in 0:15:57.520 --> 0:16:01.480 a position to answer it, that is, unlike most people, 0:16:02.920 --> 0:16:06.400 what would you offer to people insofar as voting is 0:16:06.520 --> 0:16:11.560 concerned in terms of like advice or motivation or you 0:16:11.640 --> 0:16:14.680 know whatever. People who might be conflicted, might not like 0:16:14.760 --> 0:16:17.480 their choices. People who you know, wherever they are, stress 0:16:17.560 --> 0:16:21.320 the importance of voting and how you might bring yourself 0:16:21.360 --> 0:16:22.800 to do it if you were in a position like that. 0:16:24.040 --> 0:16:27.080 When it comes to voting, we need to understand that 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:30.720 politics is a structure, it's a system. It's a network 0:16:31.320 --> 0:16:37.040 of different policies, different tenets, and different ideas and things 0:16:37.120 --> 0:16:39.640 that candidates bring to the table that can either help 0:16:39.720 --> 0:16:43.520 or hinder, you know, progression forward for our families being 0:16:43.560 --> 0:16:48.000 in Arizona, being being in America, you know, and we 0:16:48.160 --> 0:16:53.160 need to recognize that track records speaks best and looking 0:16:53.480 --> 0:16:57.480 for instance at the Biden Harris administration and quite frankly, 0:16:57.600 --> 0:17:00.400 this is the most family focused administration since l b J. 0:17:01.200 --> 0:17:03.720 When you talk about the way in which we've positively 0:17:03.800 --> 0:17:09.800 affected access to to to medication, how we have expanded 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:12.080 jobs in the tech industry with the chips at how 0:17:12.160 --> 0:17:20.960 we expanded opportunities by providing financial aid to HBCUs, you know, 0:17:21.440 --> 0:17:23.880 that is a track record that speaks to the importance 0:17:23.920 --> 0:17:28.240 of showing up to vote for the work that Harris 0:17:28.280 --> 0:17:31.160 Walls would bring to the table. And when you look 0:17:31.200 --> 0:17:34.440 at the track record of say, you know, Donald Trump 0:17:34.920 --> 0:17:38.520 and JD. E. Vance, and not only just their rhetoric, 0:17:38.640 --> 0:17:42.320 but the things that transpired over the during the Trump 0:17:42.640 --> 0:17:47.720 Pence administration, when he mismanaged a once in a century pandemic, 0:17:48.160 --> 0:17:52.200 when he mismanaged a a critical point in social history 0:17:52.280 --> 0:17:59.040 in America, and just the the chaos that he enabled 0:17:59.160 --> 0:18:03.080 and perpetuating through the way in which he governed. That 0:18:03.320 --> 0:18:07.159 should inspire anybody to want to show up and ensure 0:18:07.359 --> 0:18:09.639 that we don't end up in a space where that 0:18:09.920 --> 0:18:13.440 type of rhetoric, that type of policy can now only continue, 0:18:13.680 --> 0:18:18.600 but continue knowing that they are empowered or emboldened by 0:18:18.840 --> 0:18:24.200 the Supreme Court and by the outward effect and chaos 0:18:24.359 --> 0:18:27.800 that came with January sixth. They are telling us, and 0:18:27.920 --> 0:18:31.200 they've been telling us for nine years. They've been showing 0:18:31.320 --> 0:18:35.320 us for three years, this is a sliding scale. And 0:18:35.440 --> 0:18:42.280 whether you're black or Indigenous, or trans or Latino or 0:18:43.040 --> 0:18:49.240 a white American, everybody will be affected detrimentally by the 0:18:49.440 --> 0:18:52.440 Trump Advanced ticket if they were to get to the 0:18:52.520 --> 0:18:54.920 other side. We don't need to look at it from 0:18:55.040 --> 0:18:58.760 how you identify if you are a lifelong Democrat, if 0:18:58.800 --> 0:19:02.359 you're a lifelong Republican. In this is folks who believe 0:19:02.480 --> 0:19:06.000 in continuing the importance of having a representative democracy and 0:19:06.119 --> 0:19:08.439 those who are willingly willing to put their hands up 0:19:08.680 --> 0:19:11.640 and let us slide into what is academically defined as 0:19:11.680 --> 0:19:12.639 a fascist regime. 0:19:13.680 --> 0:19:15.919 That in itself should inspire you to. 0:19:15.920 --> 0:19:18.760 Get up and vote. You can go to I will 0:19:18.840 --> 0:19:22.480 vote dot com and figure out your registration status. You 0:19:22.600 --> 0:19:26.199 can go to the Maricopa County Democratic Party or your 0:19:26.280 --> 0:19:29.200 legislative district and look at the ballot propositions and and 0:19:29.680 --> 0:19:36.320 understand why a collect a community is voting against specific 0:19:36.440 --> 0:19:39.600 propositions such as three one four, voting four things such 0:19:39.640 --> 0:19:43.600 as one three nine, the first one being the second 0:19:43.680 --> 0:19:46.440 coming of SB ten seventy, that's proposition three one four, 0:19:46.840 --> 0:19:51.640 and abortion access, protecting abortion access being through voting yes 0:19:51.760 --> 0:19:55.119 on proposition one three nine. These are things that immediately 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:57.600 impact you, and that is why we need to make 0:19:57.640 --> 0:19:59.119 sure that we have the ability to vote. You can 0:19:59.160 --> 0:20:00.959 go to I will vote dot and figure out how 0:20:00.960 --> 0:20:03.200 to vote. You can go to rides to Vote and 0:20:03.359 --> 0:20:07.600 figure out how and get transportation two poles, and there's 0:20:08.680 --> 0:20:11.359 the tools are right there in front of us. The 0:20:11.520 --> 0:20:14.480 information and the obviousness are in front of us, and 0:20:15.000 --> 0:20:17.560 we should be inspired to show up and defend our 0:20:17.640 --> 0:20:20.879 family and defend our ability to have a fair and 0:20:21.040 --> 0:20:25.080 equitable future by simply voting and continuing to show up 0:20:25.160 --> 0:20:28.240 and hold our elected officials accountable and make sure that 0:20:28.280 --> 0:20:30.399 we're informed so we don't repeat these steps in the 0:20:30.440 --> 0:20:30.960 near future. 0:20:31.280 --> 0:20:34.680 Yeah, I heard you say that the former president mismanaged 0:20:34.800 --> 0:20:39.680 a once in a lifetime pandemic. If that was due 0:20:39.680 --> 0:20:46.359 to incompetency, yeah, it'd be different. But that was a smug, arrogant, callous, 0:20:47.080 --> 0:20:50.440 apathetic handling of that pandemic. It's not just the category 0:20:51.040 --> 0:20:54.840 categorically defined, you know, it's the way that he handled 0:20:54.840 --> 0:20:56.399 it that makes it so bad. All none of us 0:20:56.400 --> 0:20:58.880 are perfect, and everybody can make a mistake, like you said, 0:20:58.960 --> 0:21:01.360 once in a lifetime that have been difficult for anyone. 0:21:02.160 --> 0:21:04.639 But his lack of ability to ever even look around 0:21:04.720 --> 0:21:05.919 to experts and ask for. 0:21:06.040 --> 0:21:11.800 Help, genuine apathy, genuine narcissism, like codified through the work 0:21:11.840 --> 0:21:14.399 of an administration. That is what we had seen before. 0:21:14.800 --> 0:21:20.119 And we are at the all but literal fork in 0:21:20.200 --> 0:21:23.960 the road. We can repeat that on steroids because they're 0:21:24.000 --> 0:21:26.360 telling us we be able to do what they would 0:21:26.359 --> 0:21:28.879 do in terms of being a dictator on day one. 0:21:29.560 --> 0:21:32.280 Or we can continue to push policies that have been 0:21:32.400 --> 0:21:36.760 positively affecting our families, that has been lowering inflation, that 0:21:36.880 --> 0:21:40.159 has been giving elected officials across the country in local 0:21:40.280 --> 0:21:45.320 and statewide positions the ability to fight back against corporations 0:21:45.400 --> 0:21:46.560 that are exploiting families. 0:21:47.760 --> 0:21:50.080 The choice is obvious, Yes, choice is obvious. 0:21:50.119 --> 0:21:52.159 I wanted to make sure we didn't push past that 0:21:52.240 --> 0:21:54.240 and we won't even talk about January sixth if that 0:21:54.280 --> 0:21:57.240 could be a whole the whole show by itself, right, 0:21:57.480 --> 0:22:00.320 this election is of the utmost importance. The state are 0:22:00.320 --> 0:22:02.000 the highest they've ever been. I know we've heard that 0:22:02.160 --> 0:22:04.879 said it before. This is not hyperbole, folks. This is 0:22:04.960 --> 0:22:07.960 the real deal. However, this election is not the finish line, 0:22:08.280 --> 0:22:11.680 but there is still work to do. From your vantage point, 0:22:12.080 --> 0:22:14.720 what is next for us and how can people be 0:22:15.480 --> 0:22:17.720 how can people remain engaged and what are some action 0:22:17.840 --> 0:22:20.560 steps that we can take with us moving forward from now? 0:22:21.200 --> 0:22:23.560 I would ask people to be involved in their local 0:22:23.600 --> 0:22:26.800 political party. It's you have what is called because you 0:22:26.840 --> 0:22:29.360 know you have you have a school districts and things 0:22:29.400 --> 0:22:31.640 of that nature. You have what's called in the state 0:22:31.680 --> 0:22:33.720 of Arizona at least, and I know this is something 0:22:33.760 --> 0:22:39.639 that's across the country, but speaking genuine, genuine or generally, 0:22:40.240 --> 0:22:43.040 you have what's called a legislative district. And using Arizona 0:22:43.080 --> 0:22:47.920 as an example, you within our legislative district districts, you 0:22:48.080 --> 0:22:51.160 have where you're a state committee, I mean your state committee, 0:22:51.200 --> 0:22:54.440 your state senators, and your state representatives are housed. We 0:22:54.520 --> 0:22:58.439 have two in state of Arizona. Our state representatives are 0:22:58.600 --> 0:23:03.960 too and and one state senator per legislative district. And 0:23:04.160 --> 0:23:06.840 within this space is how you get involved in the 0:23:06.920 --> 0:23:11.320 most immediate and impactful way by becoming a volunteer in 0:23:11.359 --> 0:23:14.240 this space as a precinct committee person. And that is 0:23:14.280 --> 0:23:16.800 someone who is politically empowered to vote on policy, to 0:23:16.960 --> 0:23:19.560 run for office when you're within your legislative district, to 0:23:20.040 --> 0:23:22.680 impact policy in your county party, and to run for 0:23:22.760 --> 0:23:26.000 office within your your your county county party as well. 0:23:26.480 --> 0:23:29.720 And then you know, this is how, through engagement and 0:23:29.920 --> 0:23:33.800 in mass representation, that we can continue to push policy 0:23:33.920 --> 0:23:37.680