Welcome to another episode of Civic Cypher. I'm your host, Rams, It's joh I go by the name Q Ward. Monday's, Wednesdays, Fridays, and.
Then two Saturdays out of the month, but they're not consecutive all the time.
It's visitation. You gotta check.
Yeah, we'll figure it out.
Anyway, I'm gonna ask that you forgive the quality of the audio this week. I am zooming in. Q of course is in the studio and we'll we'll be back to normal next week, but for this week, we had a lot to talk about and I didn't want to miss this week, So for now it's a zoom call again forgive the audio. So a lot to stick around
for this episode, so stay tuned. We're going to be talking about uh Yahoo article that was very upsetting to both Q and myself where they tried to come at the folks who pledge support for the BLM movement and they tried to make some sort of false connection to crime rates and so forth, which really have nothing to do with in our estimation and uh the lack of support from these companies since the protests in twenty twenty.
I know it sounds confusing, but trust me, stick around will make it make sense so that you know it doesn't make sense. Also, we're going to talk about some discriminatory loan practices that have been outlined by Ben Crumb, uh, the famous attorney, the famous civil rights attorney that Wells
Fargo has been engaging in. And I think that this sort of goes along with a lot of what we've been discussing about, you know, uh, the the real estate assessment value things and then housing practices and and so forth. So we're going to talk about lending practices with Wells Fargo and how they've been discriminatory, and we're also going to you know, hear what they have to say about that as well. We're going to talk about for our way black history fact the chocolate factory because as it
turns out, Charlie was originally intended to be black. So yeah, a lot to stick around for. But first, like we always do it this term, let's talk about some ebony excellent.
I love it when we do that.
Why don't you take this on you?
This week's I Mean the Excellence is brought to you by Hip Hop Weekly Magazine one Time for the one time, and we're going to be focusing on Jayden Davis, Cleveland, Ohio native and Ohio State University student. This comes from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the Todd Baal National Resource Center the BNRC for short, there's a program that prioritizes the needs of young black males on Ohio State's campus. They gave him the Dennis J. Alexander Spirit Award.
The award is given to recipients who are dedicated to the black Ohio State student body and community. He was specifically recognized for developing multiple initiatives and programs for black students. These include a new student organization called the Undergraduate Society of Black Leaders. I would have loved to be in an organization called that when I was an undergraduate student.
This looks to equitize leadership and professional development opportunities. Additionally, students are taught how to enact change throughout the world and their communities from an afrocentric perspective, something that is much needed. And you know, massive shouts to Jaden And I wanted to call him a future leader before, but I think he's kind of already in that leadership space.
Yeah, you know, it's really special, is that because it's a show that we get to produce, and our show producer Magnie helps us produce. We get to decide sometimes big stories, sometimes small stories that don't make national headlines, you know, but they deserve to be highlighted because, as we know, sometimes it's it's little stuff that really turns into like you know, it's the ripple effects of the
small things that really end up making an impact. And so yeah, absolutely shout out to Jaden Davis from Ohio State. Now it's time for us to talk about some heavy stuff. There's, as you know, a lot of opposition to anything black, anything afrocentric, anything black based. There's always going to be a part of this country that opposes it. Never, at any point in this country country's history has something been black or about black people to benefit black people, and
one hundred percent of the people be on board. Now we know that it is in most instances, not all, but in most instances racism with very thin vailable patriotism. We talk about this on the show quite a bit, and a lot of people, a not insignificant amount of this country needs that to be the case because they are in effect racist people, but they don't want to
be seen as being racist. And so if they can make any semblance of a logic based argument to attack something black based or that benefits black people and brown people, then they will do it as long as they have that thin veneer of patriotism or that thin and near of you know whatever. And one institution reigns supreme above all else when it comes to providing that racist framework with a thin veneer of patriotism. So people can say, well, I'm just a conservative or I'm just a you know,
I just really believe in these values. And you know, the use words like I love this country, you know, like we don't, you know what I mean. I've never been to Africa. I love it like in a romantic sense. But I'm from Common you know, I've been to all fifties dates. You know, you've been a vast majority of them yourself too.
And so.
They try to own these things, and they use them to hide behind so that they are not called racist. Again that thin loosely their argument is loosely based on logic, so that it sounds good only to themselves. And this is why you see most black people, most black people voting, you know, with their democratic values. And then a lot of people who feel like the system works great for them in its current state. That's why the word conservative.
They are conservative folks. They want to maintain the status quo. But in order for them to not feel like they're awful people, they need some way of justifying it. And again Fox News certainly provides that. Now I needed to say that because I'm going to read an article now from Yahoo that cites Fox News. Okay, and the name of the titleist articles companies that loudly supported BLM falls silent when confronted with skyrocketing black murders, as though there's
some sort of connection. And the article really really tries to stretch to make a connection between BLM and black people murdering each other, which is very, very hurtful, wrong on one hundred different levels. But there are people in the world who need this stuff so that they don't feel bad. Oh see, like a confirmation bias. I knew BLM was wrong. How the world anyway? I'll read corporate voices boomed across the nation and support a Black Line,
Lives Matter, and various social justice initiatives. Following the death of George Lloyd in twenty twenty, nearly two years later, what was left in the wake of twenty twenty was a drastic spike in black murders, with experts blaming, blaming, pinning blame on the BLM and defund the police movements. Okay, I'm sorry I missed that up. The drastic spike in black murders. Okay, let's define drastic. We'll identify that a little later. This is not that drastic experts. Who are
the experts? Who are these people?
I like the word skyrocketing.
That's what did it for me. It's like inflammatory language that excites this conservative base to say, yeah, see BLM is bad. Just their very existence causes black people to murder each other. That's effectually what this article is trying to say. I'll make the point a little later, but that is what it is. Again. The headline is companies that loudly supporting BLM fall silently confronted with skyrocketing and blackmurners. You can need that article in its entirety and see
the point I'm making. It's so unfair. We're just trying to live. We're trying to have an easier path to happiness. We don't need what you have. We just need to be free to be that's it, right. This is largely what our campaigns have been about since arriving on the shores in this country in the sixteen hundred. If I'm wrong, somebody tell me that. But that's the story that I know and that I live. But yes, they say that they're pinning the blame on BLM. Experts quote unquote ore
pinning the blame on BLM and defund the police movements. Okay. Companies posted messages reiterating Black Lives Matter and pledged millions of dollars to various social justice organizations that push to reimagine police singly allocate on from police departments. This is true. FBI data reported by Fox News Digital last week shows murders spite disproportionately among Black Americans in twenty twenty, right
by thirty two compared to the year priory. Now, if this is data right, and it's from the FBI and they don't have a dog in this, if I will assume that right, then just reading that sentence alone makes it seem like, oh my gosh, black people are just killing each other. Right, not entirely true? In the article is I'm from the same article I didn't pull from
a bunch of sources is one place. But I'm trying to illustrate what we're up against and how the story gets rewritten on that side to where everything that we're doing to try to convince folks, hey, we're not bad guys here, don't We're not going to harm anyone. We're not looking for rigein revenge. Rather, we're looking for equity. That's it, right, Things like this make it difficult for
us on our plan. Right, I'll continue. Murders across the board spiked by nearly thirty percent that year, marking the largest single year increase in killing since the AG Agency began tracking the crimes. Okay, so it says spike disproportionately among Black Americans in twenty twenty. I'm rereading the part I just read disproportionately among Black Americans with me, and it says by thirty two percent, And it goes on to say across the board by thirty percent that year.
So that means that black people's disproportionate spike was two percent higher than the national average.
Was almost exactly the same as how I would say it if I was going to rewrite the counter article. Thank you, you almost exactly the same, thank you, Q.
But for people that read that the way that it's written, if you don't take the time to really digest it, or if you're again suffering from that cognitive bias, right, and you're looking for what you need to make sure that you feel less racist about feeling angry because an organization called Black Lives Matter exists and you feel that anything black is a threat on your whatever your races,
because Stinch is white folks. That so that way, some black people feel like Black Lives Matter is a terrorist organization on Really, I am seeing you black Lives Matter based in mass murders, mass shooters, bombings and all that sort of stuff. But that's we think it. I guess I'll continue. Here's the hard numbers. At least and eighty four black Americans were murdered in twenty nineteen, according to the data. Fox News Digital reported last week that numbers
shot up to at least forty one murders in twenty twenty. Right, it's an increase. We know what happened in twenty twenty. I'm not going to even say it because the article will try its best to separate these numbers from what was very obviously people at home, have nothing to do, nowhere to go, and in impoverished and sperate circumstances, you know where people get out there and look, I got
babies on the feed them by any means necessary. If you are living, breathing human being and you have a child, you know what I'm talking about. And sometimes those circumstances make you, even in your imaginary scenarios, will make you come out of character. Right, I'm not making excuses, because that is bad.
Wrong is wrong.
But we can point to things outside of BLM and tell that story. This article doesn't even attempt to do that, so I'll continue, Okay. In twenty twenty, meaning that there was an increase of twenty four hundred and fifty seven Black Americans murdered over the previous year. For white Americans. At the IDEA shows, there were seven thousand and forty three white people murdered in twenty twenty. So seven thousand, forty three white people murdered in twenty twenty and nine
hundred and forty one murders for black people in twenty twenty. Right, so they're more murders in black communities. These are what they would in a different article. Pain is Black on black crime. They however, would not refer to these seven seven three white people murdered as white on white crime, because that's the way that this media narrative exists, exists to frame all things black in the worst possible light, especially especially Fox News.
I mean, the idea in and of itself black on black, whatever you put after a crime, murder, whatever. As we've discussed before, it's far more based on proximity to each other than color of skin. Right, the people who live in the community commit the crime in the community. It's not because they're black or white, or hispanic or otherwise. So it's it's far more about the people that you commit crime against, especially when you're poor and impoverished looking
like you, not you targeting them specifically. But again, it doesn't paint as well when you're Fox News if you tell the story that way and include that context and that nuance, and you know, a more full, flushed out narrative.
You know what else I don't like about Fox meanings They always talk about their ratings because they get good ratings, they get high ratings, But that's because they're the most flagrant conservative media outlet. And when you look at the more liberal side of things, CNN ANDSNBC. You know, that list goes on why that can't even big up the rest of the names, but the list goes on the liberal side of things. The ratings are split between all these companies. But what happens is Fox News saying we're
number one or the most watched whatever. It makes people feel like, oh, well, they're clearly telling the truth. So people that kind of live in the gray area in this country, they're like, oh, I don't hate black people. Hope they figured it out. I'm not about to get out there and carry a sign, you know what I'm saying. But you know, if somebody, if I'm want to hire somebody,
I don't care for black worker. There's a lot of those people, they'll look at Fox News and get indoctrinated, if you will, watching Fox News, get scared away from what they're there their their natural state would be, you know, and they get sucked in because they think that because this is a number one news organiz they shouldn't get high ratings, that they're obviously telling the true and they have this like weird, perfect formula for poisoning the minds
of this country and and turning those minds against what on its surface, and it's is on its surface, is meant to be a very positive campaign that helps us, all right.
I mean, the real issue with what you just said with Fox News and other media outlets that have that point of view is that far more people lean liberal, far more. However, those in power, those involved in the foundation of this great nation, lean very heavily the other direction, and in efforts to conserve their position, their power, their political and financial leverage over us, they paint these pictures this way intentionally, as you said before, they subscribe heavily
to racist ideology. But don't you dare call them racist, because that word is the problem, not the practices in the way that they think, but being labeled as such, as you know, please don't do that. I never I know Ramsy's he's my friend. I think he's fantastic. You can't call me racist. I know a black guy that one in particular, I love his afro. He let me
touch it. Like really really silly things are said. But you talk about them correlating a spike in black murders to BLM and more specifically because they kind of slid this one in there to defund the police movement. However, right, use these same statistics, are these same sources for statistics, and it will show you that agencies, police agencies in our country, cities, states, federal, or otherwise did not get
less money in that time. And the cities and states and agencies that got the most money there are statistics that show have very very high crime rates. Because what else are these military forces going to do now that they're on the streets with new tanks, new cars, new guns, and new weapons, but find more people to arrest and harass. And you know, as you said before, you know, if a cop follows you around long enough, you're going to break one of the laws, they can just decide to enforce.
Ten thousand laws. If you can name to be ten thousand laws, then you know exactly how to deal with the police. If you cannot name ten thousand laws, the police have an advantage. They will figure out a way to arrest you if they are so.
They tell that story as if we defunded the police and then all these people got murdered. No, that didn't happen, right, Another false correlation, because it's very easy to say these things and inflame an audience that wants to hear and believe those things anyway.
So let me let me finish pain please her. Your point is is is taken. So again, FBI data shows there were seven thousand and forty three whites people murdered in twenty twenty, meaning twy eighth and ninety eight more Black people were killed compared to whites. An average of six nine and twenty seven black American murdered each year between twenty ten and twenty nineteen. Minue Black murders shot up by forty three percent in twenty twenty compared to
the previous ten year average. And they don't include the statistics for white murders right.
Now. And even worse, they don't include who murdered these black people right because heightened racial tension, you know, an inflammatory.
It was a Donald Trump presidency in there. Yeah, a lot of stuff going on, but they this article, the whole thing is meant to frame BLN as the bad guy and that's kind.
Of and defund the police because they mentioned it multiple times intentionally.
All right, So watch this. Two experts such as the Manhattan Institutes, Heather McDonald BLM and the defund the police movements. That s what the nation directly contributed to the spike. The spike quote began months after lockdown, beginning only after riots in quote, McDonald told Fox News Digital noting the quote spike was not at all related to COVID end quote.
Now this Heather McDonald person, Okay, I love this. If you are listening to the show this far into the show, you know that twenty twenty will be remembered for the protests, not the riots.
Okay.
You know that in the same way that we remember doctor Martin Luther King for his protests, not the riots that took place. Because there were people that rioted. Get that many people on the streets that angry and let the police get out there and start agitating people is going to turn into whatever it turns into. But history doesn't remember it that way. History remembers the peaceful protests do people in marching. We shall overcome. That's how twenty
twenty will be remembered. Right these folks here having McDonald's specifically called them riots of twenty twenty. Okay, the spike began months after Lockdown's beginning, only after the riots. Okay, So she said, I had nothing to do with code. I want to make this point so somebody says, thank you, you got to stay at home the last side, Okay, stay at home, right, and you know you got some resources probably in your house at money to bank. It'll
be fine for about how long? A couple months at most. Somewhere it starts getting a little thin, start getting one hundred that I was about to stand there and turn some skeletons. Very obvious connection here, right, And I know there's a number of things, but the most obvious one is that, yeah, it doesn't happen the day that the lockdowns said. It happens after months after correct, And so
it's just silly. But you know, if it's written from a trustworthy quote unquote source and there's some sort of the Manhattan's in.
There quoting experts. By the way, we have no idea what HEATHERN McDonald does.
And even if she was the most qualified expert in the world saying right here, it doesn't tell enough of the story to convinced me that she's not being biased at least in this article.
Highly intelligent people don't frame arguments this way. If she was the foremost expert in this field, she wouldn't be the quotest source for this story.
Thank you, so I'll continue. Box New's Digital reached out to a handful of corporations and companies that pledged support for Black Lives Matter in various organizations supporting tenants of the defund movement, such as the Equal Justice Justice Initiative. Shout out to Brian Stevenson and the National Urban League, who I interviewed on my other show, The Black Information
Network Daily Podcast. Be sure to check it out. In the days and months following the death deployed, The Equal Justice Initiative advocates for the reallocation of quote funds from traditional policing to services that promote public safety and quote, while the National Urban League outlines on its website that it has quote twenty one pillars on comprehensive and realistic reform and accountability, including collaborate with communities to re envision
public safety and quote change the divisive policing policies. Representators from Nike, Apple, Face for Amazon, Vin and Jerry's norson Target and also did not return Fox News Digital's requests for comments and for obvious reasons, because Fox News is trying to get a little bit of incendiary remarks so that they can kind of continue to read that story. I do want to say that, at least for me, I won't speak for Q, I won't speak for anybody else.
I do believe in the defunding of police departments. I do believe in reallocating and reinvesting in communities to prevent crime crimes from happening. I do recognize that a lot of crimes are based off of economic conditions. And if I'm able to say it, I have a microphone and an audience, I will say that that idea has merit, and before we walk away from what we should, at least try any final thoughts. Q.
No, I think we've said enough for this topic for today.
Will revisit it. I'm sure? Okay, Well, absolutely