Government Showdown and Target Shutdown

investigation need to do better to protect Jewish students. And I just want to explore a little bit at what costs how this differentiates between how the Civil Rights Act has been used previously in its application to make universities of a welcoming environment. And would just love, love love to dialogue with you all about where we could potentially see this go when we think about DEI and other efforts by the federal government to basically squash it out of any governmental institution.

were in the nineteen sixties. And while it's understandable that we boycott some places, others are pretty wide reaching, have multi cultural workforce, employ a lot of black and brown people specifically, and lost in revenue may first hit them before it hits the pockets of the large corporate owners of these places that we definitely do want to hurt.

But how can we be more strategic about how we go about these boy cass considering that integration of our economy and that we don't want to hurt black and brown people. And other folks who are working class.

eager to hear what you are. I have to say, clearly, I like it. I want to hear what y'all think.

about in the weeks to come on this show. The last that he referenced the protesters who were in front of his church, they were holding up signs talking about free Derek Chauvin, who is, of course the police officer who murdered George Floyd. So he really is putting himself

in harm's way leading this charge. So I just first want to express my gratitude because that's what it takes, fearless, bold leadership that we're not seeing in some of our democratic institutions, that we are seeing in some of the different sectors out here that promote us Black consumers have reached a two trillion dollar buying power, that's according to Nielsen, and we have to start thinking about how we want

to exercise that buying power. And I will say it's really challenging, you know, because the target is not the only place, But we have to start somewhere and build momentum from from that. But my former employer, Paramount, who is of course the parent company for v E, t v H one and a bunch of other media outlets, they are proactively reconsidering their DEI approach because of the

Trump administrations. Corporations are proactively capitulating to this administration. So I do think that we have to start considering how we want to exercise the buying power of two trillion dollars in this country and hit them where it hurts. And if you target white man's money, I just feel like that's when you get attention.

black folks who are vendors to target. The good news is that most, if not all of them are able to still direct sell you their product in addition to having it on store aisles. But I think we have to consider with this question of who we be hurting and could we potentially be hurting one of us who have worked hard gotten their brands on the shelves and

so on and so forth. And I would say one, we do want to do everything we can not to hurt those individuals, which is why going to them directly and bind the products that you want from them is the next best thing we can do if we can't get it off of a shelf. But we have to

demonstrate a discipline to do that. But boycotts are about the dignity and the strength of all of us, and it prioritizes the dignity and strength and respect for our community above what any one individual who may be benefactor benefiting on the back end might get by way of

sales as a provider on a Target platform. So I guess what I'm saying is is, while I love many of the people who I know who are African American black women mostly who are doing their biz with Target, they've come up with their own set of demand and expectations that they want from the company, and the best thing we can do is demonstrate that we have their backs, even within that corporation by saying, look, if you don't pay attention to black money, black green dollars, then you

are missing a huge swath of the economic opportunity that exists for this corporation, this brand, so on and so forth. And to my colleagues and friends, point Tiffany that a lot of folks are getting ahead of the government and basically the corporations are redefining DEI or dismissing it summarily without being asked necessarily by the government, basically trying to

curry favor. There are also organizations, entities, corporations who are on the opposite side saying we're doubling down in our work. We're not getting rid of this, we're not deprioritizing it. And so I guess what I say is Target made a choice here, as have other companies have made a choice, and now is the consumer. It's important for us to make a choice as well. And this is the last thing.

The Montgomery bus boycott, which I talked about on my solo pod on Monday, was initially scheduled to be a one day protest in Montgomery. When that day came November fifth, and the city buses all across Montgomery were empty of black riders, it shocked the system and white folks and the city had no idea what was happening and what was coming. Well, y'all, they felt so good at the end of that day, they said, let's extend this thing further. We got to keep it going until we bend them

toward our will. And three and eighty two days later, the people won. So I'm just saying, these things take time, but we can absolutely bend it toward our will.

but you had on this really cute outfit. I was like, who is that? And I think Kilani? Is that her name?

the faith community is deepening down into this. I think that it's important for us to understand that we can always support our brands, and we know how to find things like concert tickets. We know how to find things like our movie tickets and things that where we want to go see and participate, we figure out a way

to get there. So, if you want to continue to support these brands, and you want to show American corporations or international corporations for that matter, if they're going down the same troubled road as the Trump administration what you're about, support your own and I think that there's never a better time than now to.

the way of whatever they want to do. So my question is this, what the midterm election is coming up, How can we as a community educate our voters or potential voters out there without using big ginormous concepts like constitutional crisis or threat to democracy or oligarchy and all those different things.

among many others. The backdrop I wanted to talk about this in is HR nineteen sixty eight.

had an obligation to vote against that bill. But instead of doing that, most of the Democratic Caucus held together under Hakem.

called main Care. So there is almost ten percent of the state that is on main Care. Like, were you thinking about these people when you voted for this legislation not to mention a billion dollars and cuts to the district of Columbia where many of them have their second homes, where many of their staff live. Like you're cutting like necessary, certain necessary services for people, all to prove a point and to say to Donald Trump and to Elon Musk, I'm just gonna keep giving you this rubber stamp.

Jared Golden was one of only two Democrats to vote against this bill, expressing reservations about qualified immunity for law enforcement officers, the same law enforcement officers who no longer have to be submitted through a database through the Department of Justice because Donald Trump overturned that too.

cover the cost. But the reason why the American people may not be very clear about them being beneficiaries of Medicaid dollars for healthcare is because the branding. And this kind of gets set the question, which is, you know, Republicans rebrand or they brand and they do it well, but they lie on while they're doing it, and then we don't rebrand, and we may be earnest at heart, but in effectual in the outcome. And I think we have been slow to lean into the credit that the

party deserves for what it does. I know, we hated on Donald Trump for slowing down that first batch of checks, stimulus checks that went out to the American people thanks to the Democrats under the leadership of Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic Caucus delivering that package under Trumps signature. But he said, Noah, hold up, hold them, hold up. I'm gonna put my name on every check. And yes, I realize it's gonna cause delays, but I'm gonna put my

name there anyway. All that to say is I do agree with the question of this question, which is or the point made in the question, which is we're just not that good at it. And I often ask myself Angela and Tiffany, like, is it that the people who we put in front of the cameras aren't savvy enough? Are they not dropping the lines like we need them to in order for them to land? Or is it that the constituency that Democrats have to talk to is

so vast and different. It's easy to be on point with your people when you're pretty much a monolith when everybody pretty much is the same color, practically the same class, and are at least united around the same ideals, which is largely keep black and brown and women folks off of whatever it is that we have. It's not that, but I'm trying to simplify here, whereas for Democrats it's

more complicated. But are we given an excuse when I say something like it's just more complicated because the people are more complicated, tif Or is there a way to say easy or simplify things to people and help them understand and grasp what's that consequence even if they don't understand the hook line and letter of the law.

People DM me, even people who I'm like close with who are like intelligent people. So it's nothing wrong if you don't know it, but like we have to take time to explain these things. Essentially, Congress is supposed to fund four hundred and thirty eight government agencies, but that it happens before October one. October first is when the fiscal year begins for the federal government. At issue are a lot of things that you can imagine given the

Trump administration. That goes to support Angelo's point that the government has been shut down when Congress cannot because Congress controls the budget. When Congress cannot agree on those things, well that's when you have conflict. And so once the government is shut down, people are essential employees will still report to work, but they don't get paid. There was a law that passed that made sure that now employees will get paid retroactively, but basic services go away. I

don't think a lot of people understand. We talked about Social Security and Medicare, but even like health inspections from the EPA, air traffic controllers still work, but they don't get paid. Subtext to that, again, I want to keep Puncry and Angelo's point about the government's been shut down. Air traffic controllers still report to work, they don't get paid. Yet we also know that Elon Musk has been laying off people left and right at all these government agencies,

which are pretty essential to what we do. Pass shutdowns have also delayed tax refunds for people. We are in tax season right now. It's put on hold loans to small businesses, homeowners, prevented patients from enrolling in different programs. At the NIH, which is the National Institute of Health, they have clinical trials happening. So this is a really

big deal when something like this happens. And I think, because I see this happening across the newspapers, across cable news, and I think, if we just took a minute to playing to people what this is, how it's going to

impact you. I think the more informed people will be, the angrier they will get, and the more they will have their hands the deep in what's happening here, and they will start blowing up the offices of their members and getting just a lot more outraged at their tax dollars being allocated to things that they don't support, and

then the government completely just not functioning. Now. I think also people can get very it's immune to it because you hear, oh a government shutdown, the government shutdown, and it rarely happens, but I remember, you know, the times in our lifetime when it has happened in our adult life, and how it does, cause it has a real Exactly when Knnie B came out there, I love Carti B's response to this, and she was like, what's going on?

In two weeks but her clip went viral because she put it in such basic terms for people that was very digestible for people to get. So it is a big deal should the government shut down. Even I get a little confused about out what's the process? You know, Okay, what passed in the House, and now I was in the Senate, like you know, what when are we going to know? But I even myself like I can't keep up with every process and every part of the process. So it's

just frustrating to me. So I know for the people listening and you're like, it's kind of over my head, It's over my head too. I have to like literally google sometimes what is a continuing resolution or what is the role of a continuing resolution in a government shutdown? Or once you know the budget passes in the House, what is the role of the Senate? So I just think we have to take a second and fill in the gaps where the actual journalists fail repeatedly retely.

continuing resolution. Now it's made its way to the Senate. If the Senate passes the exact same bill, then it just goes to Donald Trump to be signed into law. If they pass a different bill, then they have to go through a process called conference where they have to negotiate on the terms and get on the same page. Or the Senate could just send their bill back to the House to be considered.

against it. Call them and pressure them, HAKEM. Jeffrey should not be getting more pressure than Chuck Schumer when he mostly kept the party in line. There was one defector tell Chuck Schumer that he better not lose eight. That's what this is about, and it shouldn't just be on these things it's about all the things that are impacting us. At some point, budgets became partisan despite the fact that they fund taxpayers no matter who they voted for. These

are fundamental government services. These are not things that are partisan. Like I know what they're trying to tell you that all the cuts that they're making, all these various government agencies with Elon mush chainsaw are because there are waste.

The most powerful, wealthiest, strongest nation in all the world, and all I want to say about it is is that it would be one thing if these folks were doing this in advance of having run up our debt. The problem is is that they run up the debt first, and the debt ceiling comes around, and the federal budget, which we haven't adopted in a number of years under a Republican they because of continuing resolutions. They then decide, you know what, in the spirit of Donald Trump, We're

just not going to pay our bills. How about this, The most powerful nation in the world will walk away from its obligation many money it's already spent to create a stunt in Washington, DC and make people think like they care about national debt, the budget and all that other stuff. They don't. They simply hate government and want to see it shut down.

gas tycoons across the planets, absolutely, right. So the government goes out spends this money and then they make absolutely no effort to pay down this bill, y'all. They only crow about it because it's a nice talking point, but the bill continues to accumulate with no plan for how

to lower this Why is this number important? This number is important because you can imagine what the interest rate is on thirty six point two two trillion dollars, an interest rate that has to be paid every month we spent. I think that the interest rate of this government might be what the second or third largest expense of the government is the money it has to pay for what

it's borrowed for what it has already spent. And I just want to say, inside of democratic and Republican administrations, we've had national debt issues, but the only time they've ever been balanced in the history of the country have been under democratic presidents. Don't get it twisted. They talk a good game. On the other side, however, they drive us to the brink of a shutdown simply for theatrics because they've already spent the money.

right for hiring debate. It's so ridiculous. And I mean, I am not a tax expert or I'm not an expert on how the government is funded, but I know basic common sense that know, your taxes are paying to fund the government. Government agency agencies are not paying taxes, so obviously they're not getting tax breaks to hire people. But the fact that people saw that and that there are people out there who think that shows how ignorant.

And I know what, y'all don't like it what I say this, but I just say that some dumb people out there. I would have to say that is a dumb person because even when he was confronted with facts, he very arrogantly just said, I don't think that's true.

and cutting these jobs. It's very easy I understand for every day Americans to say I don't like government because it hasn't done such and such for me.

us to do something. But there are days in and days out, moments in, moments out, hours in, hours out, minutes moments seconds in where the grid that gets electric utility to every one of us, including all three of us that are on this pod right now, until it goes out. It happens without our effort because other people in the government are putting in the effort to make it work. So you don't have to question whether or not it's coming on when you flip the switch. And

I'm just that's how it's supposed to work. We shouldn't know always, so what the question that's doing?

people don't necessarily pay federal income tax. They get a refund, but about half the country doesn't pay the federal income tax. That doesn't mean they're not paying taxes. They're paying taxes every day on nearly everything. They're just not getting a credit for having done it.

to us. They'll say, we're going to lower the tax exemption on your home, We're going to lower state income taxes, but we're going to increase sales taxes and that's how they get us on the back end.

I think what Angela just said definitely informs why people are outraged about tax cuts and who gets tax cuts versus who is still overwhelmingly paying to fund the government. So while the government is shutting down. Someone wrote in one of the comments, I read all the comments, y'all, so thank you all for commenting. Even if it's a bad comment, I still read them. I like to know how you guys are receiving the show. But somebody said,

you know, Tiffany's always talking about the media. I think she's still bitter, rightfully so, but I think she's still better. Yes I am. I'm here to confirm. Yes, I am very very bitter, not only for my show, but just for the landscape of journalism. So I was listening to The Daily New York Times, and it's a popular podcast. But this is why I think Native laandpod is so important. On the Daily, the reporter who covers education, Dana Goldstein.

So they're talking about shutting down the Department of Education, which our tax dollars fund, and they said, one of the roles of the Department of Education is when people are complaining that not enough black or brown students are being taught properly, or they're not enrolled in gifted programs. The Department of Education is part of the federal government who will on the ground locally and investigate this. And

then she says, which is inconvenient. Now I'm listening to this, and my head wants to explode, because who gives a shit if it's inconvenient for the local school district. Now, she is an impartial reporter, and this is not meant to attack her. I don't know anything about her except

that she covers education for The Times. But my point is they center white people at everything they do and everything they're talking about her perspective, which she is shaping for millions of people who continue to read the garbage coverage of the political coverage of The Times, which I do every day, but they have great coverage elsewhere. She's

centering white folks, and she's saying, so, yes, this is inconvenient. Well, I'd imagine it's pretty goddamn inconvenient for the parents of black and brown children who have been sidelined, who have their gifted children placed in remedial classes because someone says they're not smart enough, or they're not paying attention in class, and not given the grace benefit understanding cultural competency to

meet them where they are to help educate them. When you get rid of the Department of Education, you are sentencing a whole class of children to be sidelined and creating an entire different society when they go enter the workforce ten, fifteen, twenty years from now. So it's very frustrating to see our government fall while also seeing the people who are supposed to be on the front lines covering this capitulate and make every excuse and continue to

center white folks. So I'm concerned about all of these things happening, and I think it feeds your point, Andrew, about how the government is funded, and your point Angela, that this government is shut down is not that new to us, because the government has been shut down since January twentieth of this year.

shut down the federal Department of Education. It is because they blame it inherently for the enforcement of Brown v. Board of Education, and the fact that it was largely the federal government who passed laws and instituted protections that carried out the integration of the Little Rock nine and in Arkansas, any of the southern states that wanted to defect from federal law and create a two tiered system, one of white people first class and anybody else, but

very specifically black people to be treated as less than citizens and even less than human. They blamed the US Department of Education for encroaching on states rights, which was basically a state's right to keep black folks in subpar education centers where their books come from third, fourth, fifth generation hand me downs from white schools. That's what they are after. They want to return to the pre Brown V. Board of Education era of plusy B V. Ferguson, and we ain't going back.

protests created a hostile learning environment for Jewish students and so being a protest that wasn't pro Palestine, that wasn't

pro Israeli were therefore antisemitic. What really stresses me out about this position, y'all, is the government's ability here to very quietly, but to me very loudly step on our First Amendment rights as free speech by essentially deciding that dissent, meaning to have a different opinion about an issue, automatically means that you are against a whole group of people

because of their faith and also of their birth. Meaning if you're Jewish and you don't necessarily side on the same side as the Israeli state the government that your opposition must be antisemitic, And y'all, I just I'm afraid of where this line can be drawn, because if you're a Black Lives Matter protester, could they then say that you're anti white and therefore those protests and protesters should be, I don't know, penalized differently because they are at a

different political position than you are. And I think that I think it's gross, but I think we are coming very very close to something here as it relates to our First Amendment rights that are I believe going to be trampled on already. They have been, but increasingly by states and by the federal government. And if we lose that protection, y'all, where they can round us up and arrest us free will because we have a different political belief we're further gone there.

follow court orders. But agents basically told him that he was detained because his visa had been revoked. Specifically, what you're talking about, Andrew, because they're trying to say that his demonstrations, his protests are pro HAMAS and they're leading to activities that are aligned with HAMAS, which of course

the United States considers a designated terrorist organization. This terrifies me the most, the fact that any one of us could come in on this podcast and say something, and that somebody can come in and take us into custody, snatch our liberty and take us away. We're not waiting to get there. We are there right now. Then I don't even know what to do about it.

our voices. We cannot go quietly into the good night. It doesn't work for us. It just doesn't.

to endure in this moment is really sobering. It was so powerful to be with so many people. Our sister and friend Joy Reid was awarded at the dinner that

they hold on the eve of Bloody Sunday. We have panel discussions, really robust meeting, strategy sessions, but it just still feels so disappointing that in the blink of an eye and the matter of a couple of months, so much has been rolled back because people ignored the signs and they ignored the ways in which our rights were snatched from us over the last several years, including what the Supreme Court did in Shelby County Shelby County versus

Holder in twenty thirteen, right on the other side of President Obama winning two terms is the first the nation's first black president.

laws that suppressed the vote. I think last I check, which has been years, probably over a year, there may have been maybe over seventy local ballot initiatives to roll back voting rights, but.

Republican male candidates that have taken these seats. And it's happened all across the country thanks to what they handed down to us and shall.

that was it. I mean, he had his skull fractured. It was not just men, not that it reduces it that it was just our men. Even our men being violently assaulted is horrific. But they also violently assaulted women, children, pregnant women across that bridge. It was a violent, bloody melee of non violent protesters. Why this was so significant

is because this was the first time. Now imagine this is before social so a lot of people don't even know what's happening along the Bible Belt in the country, but really all over the country when it came to voting rights, and the violence was so so yes, it was so horrific that ABC at the time, the network, actually interrupted its telecast. They were showing a judgment at Nuremberg at the time, and they interrupted it to show what was happening in Salma, Alabama. Once the rest of

the country saw what was happening. Then there were people, including allies, including folks who didn't look like us, who said, well, wait a set, we can't tolerate that, we can't stand for that, and that's when chain started to happen. Now that we have these devices and you know, we're looking at monkeys on a unicycle and you know, for me looking at you know, puppies getting their vaccination shots, we're not necessarily paying attention to those things. So I don't

know how to corral they attention of folks. But that was a turning point in history. That revolution was televised and that's what led to change. So I don't know that we have come that far. And i'll tell you, Angela, Andrew, I feel really defeated. I feel bad because last week on the podcast, I was saying I don't know if I'm hopeful yet, and people are like, what are you expectivity? So I don't want to spread my blanketed bereavement around

what's at my despair, around what's happening. I think, you know, if you don't feel hopeful, please tune into this podcast, because Andrew, I'm like, you're fighting your hopeful Angela. You are eighteen hours every day around the clock doing something to help organize a movement. I'm doing other things, which I'll talk about later, but it is depressing to see because it feels like in this time of being a

flat circle, it is a cyclical problem. And I don't know why progress is so fragile, but I just know that not only is progress fragile, this very young democracy is and it takes participation and awareness to preserve it. And I don't know how we get to that point because we're asking people to care about every thing and they end up caring about nothing.

Tell me how what is being in Selma sixty years on that hollow ground mean for an organizing leader like yourself and and and folks that you were you were with to gird them up in this moment because there is a lot of despair. I don't think any of us should refuse that that exists. The question is is once we confront the despair, then what do we do with it? And I'm just wondering what kind of fuel, if any, do the leaders get right so that they can keep leading?

progress can be rolled back. I think beyond the politics of who's gonna be in the picture in the front, even seeing the Reverend Jackson's commitment to be there, you know, with Parkinson's in a wheelchair, and among others, you know, Reverend Sharpton, Congressome and waters how came Jeffries, Derrick Johnson like and Latasha Brown who was rallying folks singing in a bullhorn because something happened in the sound system. You know, it was like it was reminding us of you know,

when there's not a way, we make one. So I think it's necessary. I hope that black folks in this time will continue to convene, to gather strategy.

that despair because I'm actively fighting something every day? Or yeah, I feel that despair too, but I know if I keep moving then that's the only way to progress.

Like how is going to Selma stopping something? How is standing on the floor of Congress saying and we shall overcome stopping something. I don't want to dismiss those things, because black folks our hope, Like we need that hope to go on. I just don't know what the tangible thing is that we're stopping, you know, I think.

comback that hopelessness? If you're feeling despair, how do you combat that despair? Or do you just say I'm gonna sit in until it passes. I mean that is a way. But and then if you're saying, well, I'm not apathetic, so then there's some action that you're taking to not sit in apathy.

my way to participate in which I don't. I want to protect and preserve some of the work that's happening. But you know, there are some of us who are involved in conversations happening, and I'm looking for that thing within those groups of well, what is the thing that I can attach to where I'm doing something to stop this? And I haven't quite found that thing.

to be still and purposeful. You know, if I'm going to lend my time and resources in my very limited time and time deficit of actual you know, work that pays me. Then what what is it? And sometimes I do feel like, in the chaos of it all, I wonder, well, what did this actually stop? What did it move? But I don't I don't. I hate saying that because I feel like, if that's what you're doing, and you know, maybe something's gonna stop. Well somebody was like, what was

it gonna mean that we crossed the bridge? All we doing is walk across the bridge, you know, and that was a big moment to change things. So I don't want to. I don't want this to I don't want my despair to be infectious. I just yeah, I don't know. Whatever I'm doing is not enough, you know, bearing witness of things isn't enough. But that's just what i've you know. And by the way, I'm not an organizer, I know that much. It doesn't mean that I can't be supportive to the organizers.

every big it's right, it's to be enraged. So that's already a feat. But we don't have to make the bar. You too, have to organize a twenty four our meeting for the urgency of the moment, and by the way, do it in forty eight hours from this point the production needs to take place. You don't necessarily have to be the person who's out there getting the most new

voter registration cars signed. Maybe you're the one who's actually building the teams, training people so that they don't run a foul of the law while they're in the process of collecting voter registration cars. I only say this y'all. I use an example, and by the way, I want to invite people onto listening to my solo pods as they released, because we're trying to demystify this question, the big question of what do I do and how do

I start? If we make the start so big, there are a lot of people who will check out before they ever take a step forward. And I just think we are all here. We're designed with our own respective gifts and things that we can contribute. I've saved the saying, and I think r J hates it when I said you can't need an elephant in a hole or in one bite that you can't say all because it's for me. That's how I understand that I.

do something. We gathered friends and neighbors and other parents, and we have met like half a dozen times. You know, we brain stormed issues that feel important to us, which are all over the map, like super local, like safety on our streets or like our schools, to climate and repro writs, and you know, it gets really big. I'm just sort of wondering. I've never done this before, and as the leader of this, I just every time I meet with our group, I love it and I feel

really good. But I'm also like it feels like I'm weeding through a thicket. I'm like, is this the work?

but you take on your part. It is imperative that we do something. You sitting by and watching what is happening, saying, oh, no, where to start, it's gonna mean that we end up with our asses handed to us.

this disease. These disastrous cuts to the Department of Education, most of which now that we know that half the employees have been told to go home and they can come get their personal effects later, most of which has not even been congressionally sanctioned. So the fight is in

the other two coequal branches of government. If you have a lawsuit and you got standing suit, if you know that you have some inrows with Congress, call them, make a visit when you're at a fundraiser, let them know what it really is.

and not you know, be involved. But I like the question that you posed with the audience, and it's something that I would actually like to hear from the audience. What did you say, Andrew? Like, basically, what are y'all doing? If you feel despair? What are you doing about it? Was that your question?

Is the work the convening part. Well, guess what if your group decides that the work you all are doing is that every day we are all weighed down by the facts of life as they hit us, either from the federal, the world, the global, or what's happening locally, and so the best thing you can do to not get stuck on stunned is to convene together and talk through it. That way, as you all fan back out, everybody is interacting in their space now with a different

recharged mindset. Maybe that recharge mindset puts them in contact with people who are feeling despair and haven't had an opportunity for hope, who now feel hope because they see somebody who's just like them, who shares their beliefs and opinion, who are as sad about what they see happening nationally or in their state or in their local but they have some joy in it, and they have some joy in the work. If that is what the group decides,

and then yes, that is the work, Lauren. It doesn't have to be too high minded or too low brow. It has to, however, reflect what the community. The folks you have pulled together believe is the reach, the objective,

the goal that you all want to see realized. Maybe it is that y'all set a goal around voter registration and your precinct or as a cohort, we're gonna you know, we're gonna have five hundred new registered voters by the time the Mitchron comes around, and not only that, we will have invited every single one of them to one

of our sit downs. Every person we register, we use as an extension to invite them into this setting for every time we meet that they can become more conscious minded about what they can do as individuals to help your local area, your community, and obviously the nation. We on the left, i think too often organize people exclusively around electioneering, and we've left a lot of people on

the sidelines. I would love to see more work like you're doing Laur, where people are organizing each other toward getting to the beloved community, because then they gonna know before you even tell them that if Trump takes away education, these are going to be the residual impacts, and that's why we have to wake up to it.

ever ever give up. In the spirit of John Robert Lewis, who did cross the Edmund Pettis Bridge, was bluddened and buddy bloody for us to ensure that our voting rights would always be protected and more broadly are civil rights.

know how to stop the onslaught. But I look at the work of Fred Hampton, I look at the work of the Black Panthers, and they had, like you know, the free food program, They had a whole education system. You know, that is something that feels right to me. That is something I feel like I could latch onto. I don't have the time, capacity or ability to lead it, but I could certainly work in something like that. That's just an idea, and I think ideas matter. So I

want to hear from you guys. Tell me what you think I should be doing, what y'all are doing. If you are feeling despair at Angela's point, answer her question about how you move past that despair and any ideas because ideas matter. So yeah, that's my my CTA. And just thank you to Andrew for teaching us organizing every other week, and to Angela for your tireless ever. I don't know how you how you do it, but thank you to you both for at least being in it.

And shout out to the people who do feel like me, like, what what is any of.

something I just I want to do something tangible. I think the target thing also feels like it will. There's a tangible result in that, and you give people hope in that, and then you build on that hope and go to the next thing. So I don't know that I'm just suspended in it. I don't want to spread by despair, but I want to hear from you Algy.

people past it. You know, it shouldn't be a roadblock for us, right and my CTA is issued to us, which is in these moments of dispair, I would like to know who gives permission for the joy, who brings the joy, who helps us experience There's not one of us who could wake up every single day, day in day out, just pushing the rock up the heel, because at some point you get tired and you need somebody else to tap in. Or we got to sleep in shifts and somebody's on this time and somebody else is

on this time. But even that requires a space for renewal and joy. And if I would say something as an observation of what it's felt like since Trump is there's been a lot of no joy for me because unlike them, we don't bask in the destruction of our neighbors, friends, church members, classmates, coworkers, and colleagues. That's not how we get our thing off. It works for them, but not for us. So I love for us to be intentional about creating the permission structure for joy while we fight.