Everything is Political Part 1

and sometimes you need your coke like a jacket or cool. No, no, you know, forty degrees it's cold, you know, especially for them.

It's places like Atlanta that really make me laugh though, because they still, in all these years, have not been able to catch up with the weather issues, even though George's weather has changed so much, and so whenever they whenever it gets cold or there's a snow, a little bit of snow, it shuts down the whole town and people are like on the roads for hours and hours.

And in fact, that happened in Virginia just a few weeks ago, where people were on the road stuck for maybe like twenty four hours because of snow that is nothing like what we get in New York. So I guess, you know, other places they don't like this snow. Yeah, I mean, snow is cool. It just it's just it's cool when it first happens. Yes, yes, it just you know, it just stops travel. It makes it hard to move. You're sliding, you're slipping. You know. In theory, snow is cool,

when in reality it hinders a lot of stuff. Man, kids, it's good for kids. So there's a lot happening in the news. UM, and I think one particular situation that most of us have been watching for a while is that of the case of Lauren smith Fields. She was twenty three years old. I believe UM went on a date with someone that she met online from Bumble and UM that evening, I guess she died. Um. There was

lots of drugs in her system. The man who she was with UM at first was I think he called the police, but then after calling the police, he may have disappeared. But once they were able to interview him or talk to him, they found that he was a the police. They found he was a very nice man, and they decided that they would not investigate him and they would let him go and just decide that she had a drug overdose. UM. And you know, uh, this

happened in Connecticut. The man happens to be a white man, and there has been outraged for a while about out this situation. When I first saw it, it was about two months ago. UM I reached out to um miss Fields family members and had just been trying to see, you know, what could we potentially do to support But they have a great attorney who used to be one of the presidents of one of the Connecticut uh in double A CP and so he had been working and

you know, different people involved. And then Cardi b spoke out about the situation. She you know, and first of all, as far as they were concerned the the report that came back the autopsy in in this particular jurisdiction in Connecticut, their position was that it was a close matter, um, that it was you know, accidental or drug overdose and

that's it. So they were not even going to potentially look at, you know, whether she had a history of drug abuse or you know, where did these drugs come from? You know, whether or not this man supplied the drugs. They weren't even look into any of those things. But when Cardi spoke out about it, uh, it made it brought more attention. You started to see more information pick up online. I know. Also some time ago, Shaun King had been talking about the case. So now it seems

that there is going to be an investigation. The criminal investigation has happened. Bumble has sort of come back into the conversation. At first, their statement was very dry. Um. You know, corporations try to invest to stay away from anything as it relates to protecting black women unfortunately and just black people in general. Um and which is a

major critique. But they now have weighed in there will be a criminal investigation, and that's a real, real good thing for this family that has really been mourning the loss of their daughter and feeling so broken about what happened to her. It was, it was very very crazy, tragic. Man.

I've been reading up on it. You know, good to see that actually opening a criminal case on him and shout out the Cardi b for you know, utilizing her voice in her platform and just speaking of Cardi, you know, Cardi just got some good news in the news lately, you know, she was awarded for her defamation suit against I forgot who exactly it was. She's a I don't think she's a YouTuber. She's like, I don't know she's she's maybe and I don't even know what we call.

I don't want to be disrespectful to the work that they do, But I guess she's a blogger. She's she does YouTube videos and I think she has a podcast as well. Her name is so yeah, she was. She had put out some allegations about Cardi B And after years of litigation, you know, Cardi was awarded almost about four million dollars roughly more or less. And you know,

I think it's at precedent. You know, I've definitely been a victim of quote unquote cyber bullying when they just make up things and talk about you and utilize these platforms and YouTube pages just to come up with the most outrageous and outlanders things to try to defame and discredit you. So you know, you know, I might try my hand in it, man, I might look and see if if I give me a couple of dollars, man, Yeah right, yeah right. I actually posted that a few

nights ago, after the whole situation happened. I posted that it's you know, maybe I need to get some clips from YouTube and call some of the lawyers, the many lawyers that I know. In fact, three lawyers went into the comments section like let's do it, like, let me know when you want to file, um, you know, against some of these folks, because to your point, um, you know,

people spend a lot of time. Sometimes I look at the YouTube hits and I have been, um guilty of not using YouTube and all these other platforms for my own reasons, right, Like there are people who are literally making money every day on our names because they need the clicks, they need the subscriptions, they need the likes, and I, you know, but I actually am like, damn, I'm not even using it as much on my own name.

And you know, on one hand, I really, first of all, don't have a lot of time, and I know Cardi doesn't either, so you know, it takes a good legal team that keeps things going. But I don't have a lot of time or energy for it. However, and the other part of it is that clearly these are people that are so desperate they need your content in order to or need you to make content because they don't have anything that they can talk about that would help them to be able to, you know, be successful on

these platforms on their own. So they need to be able to use the name of other people who have following, who have support, who have haters. Uh, And they need that. And I think it's pretty pitiful when your entire platform is being built off of you trying to discredit, destroy,

defame another individual. Um and you know, and and and in in this particular situation, there were things that she said about Cardi that probably would have never progressed in court, right because either it came up in one of Cardi's songs or she said something that gave that alluded to these different issues. But the one thing that you can't do is say that someone has a venereal disease or that someone is having a sleeping with someone and you

don't know what you're talking about. That's a problem. You can't actually do that because that's when it becomes defamation. And I know for sure that people have said things like that and even worse about me. So hey, like you said, you never know, and I'm really going to get I'm gonna have some folks take the time because I don't watch or listen to any of that at all, But I probably need somebody to make some clips and send it to me so we can make a determination

about whether or not it's something we want to pursue. Yeah, listen, I'm very vocal and I have opinions about different people, and sometimes they're not favorable, but their opinions based on something that I know. You know, so I don't never state anything as fact. That's not fact, you know. For me, it's just lies. If you want to make lies about somebody, if you're gonna tell a story, you canna be like you, I don't really like your shirt, or I don't think

somebody could wrap good, or those are your opinions. I'm cool with all that. That's you know, that's critique. That's when you're a public figure, you open yourself up for levels of critique, have opinions of you. But when you start making both faced lies about somebody did this and somebody stole this and somebody did this, now you're you're utilizing your platform to discredit and lie on somebody. And that's that's what the problem is for me, because I

don't care what you think about me. That's that's good. You got an opinion about it. When you lie, it's just stupid, you know, it's just it's just doesn't make sense. So shout up to Cardi for probably sending precedents in this error right now, and and and letting people know that, Look, you can have your own opinion, but you don't you don't get to have your own facts. Yeah. Absolutely, And you're right. It's not about whether not people like me or they think I'm I'm good at what I do

or not good at what I do. That's not relevant whether they think that the Democrats are you know, I'm loyal to the Democrats. But when people start saying you're being paid by the Democrats, that is slander, because the Democrats have never paid me a damn dime. In fact, the Democrats try to run in the opposite direction from me so that they don't have to be associated with whatever other lies that other people have told. And by the way, this is not just about YouTubers and bloggers.

I even have major newspapers, like major publications that have printed complete lies, and you know, and and and and hey, that's an even different situation. I don't know if I'm looking for money from Joe Joe who has a podcast or a YouTube page. I'm not even think that's not even my goal. But I think, like you said, continuing to set a precedent that this internet stuff, what what people are doing, the bullying, as you said, the harassment,

it needs to end somewhere. And I just want to send out my own condolences to the great between the King who lost her son recently. Um, the whole world was shot by that man. I know that you you you have a level of communication with her so and you actually met her son, so you know, we were together when the news happened, and I've seen how you responded to that. So I just want to send out my condole to her. Yeah, that's the saddest thing ever. Um,

Regina King is a beautiful, beautiful woman. I spent some time um during the summer with Regina and in the summer, and the relationship between them, it's so beautiful that I sat and thought to myself, Wow, okay, I want to make sure that my son, like you know, when I talked to him, that I say it like this or that. Like I was watching them and in my mind mimicking how much better my relationship would be if I handle certain discussions. Because we were talking about everything, you know,

how that goes is summertime. We were kicking and we were eating, drinking, chilling, hanging together and you know, and we were together for hours. Shout out to my my girl, our friend Marvatt Brittle because she is friends with Regina and she brought us all together over dinner. And you know, as we sat there, even his maturity and how he was able to talk about his mother's career and different things, different stories of things that you know, there was those

old war stories. I sat there and listened to them, and I was in awe of the connection, the bond that the two of them have. And so to know that Um, he died by suicide is so painful, It is so painful. And um, there is a state legislator. His name escapes me at this moment, but he's a young black man who also um, has died by suicide in the last few days. Also another friend of ours who we will you know, of course, protect the identity of these individuals, and I actually I think it's not

a secret. But nonetheless, another friend of us of ours who was a minister, his daughter died by suicide just in the last several weeks, all so in her twenties. There's something going on. Um, you know, as you've been saying, and I and you and I have debated and discussed this whole issue of people and during a pandemic, being locked in their homes, being away from people, away from their regular movement, you know, away from folks who might check on. You can see something in your eyes, the

changes in how you operate. There's something to be said about that. And I just you know, I I don't even know how to express to Regina and and his father, Ian Senior. Um, you know how sorry I am about the loss of their son. I'm sure that she will come out of this as a powerhouse and do something great, um, you know, in this area. So God bless her. That's all I can say is God bless her. Definitely, God

bless her. And like I said, we are living in very traumatic times and so much trauma, like you said, the pandemic, just the streets in general violence, It's just so many things I've watched, I've watched you know, people that I know, I've I've seen mental just your mentality is just shifted in this time, you know, and it's it's it's harder to deal with, you know. So I'm praying for our youth. I'm praying for everyone who's dealing with that trauma. I'm praying for everyone who's having those

thoughts right now. You know that that you reach out to somebody you know, get you some therapy, get you someone that you feel comfortable talking to, But don't hold it in right and don't get to a place where it's so dark that you feel like that's your only options. So absolutely, and you can never and you never know why people make these decisions, so you can never think you're above it. And once again RP to Iron and our love goes out to Regina King in that time

of morning. And Supreme Court Justice Brier is retiring in six months, which means that there is an open Supreme Court seat coming up. I think if anybody understands anything about politics and the way that our society works, the Supreme Court nominations and confirmations are extremely important. This is how decisions are made, final decisions at the highest levels of the courts um in our society. This is how decisions are made. Right now, we already have too many

conservative people on the bench on the Supreme Court. That does not allow us to be as progressive as we need to be to fight against all of this craziness that's going on. Vote of suppression laws, uh, abortion issues, a woman's right to choose. There's so many things that's happening in our society and we have always depended on the Supreme Court as an option, as a forum um that we would be able to go to to get

have some kind of fairness. So with a seat coming up, thank god he's retiring while there is a president in office that leans leans towards a more liberal or the more liberal side, so hopefully they will put and and get someone confirmed. Nominate someone who is um, who is who is more likely to side with you know, people like Sonya Soto mayor um the Supreme Court justice from the bronx right. So hopefully we will find that type

of individual and have them uh confirmed. Now, the whole talk of the town is that during the campaign, which there's there was a lot said during the campaign canceling student debt, dealing with criminal justice reform that this administration has not made good on. But one of the things that they said was that one of the things that President Biden said was that he would nominate a black woman to the Supreme Court if a seat became open.

So here we are. Now. He has already put eight black women um at the appellate court level, which is good, but the Supreme Court is the highest court in the land, and it is beyond time. I saw so many people from you know, Nina turn up and you just name it, all these folks. Congress Woman Cory Bush tweeting, it's been time to have a black woman sit on the Supreme Court. So here's our shot. So do the right thing, Joe, come on the right thing. But any black woman won't

do so we have to. We're not doing you know, we're not doing um what do we call it, um, identity politics. Identity politics. We're not doing that. We we failed at that already. You know, we've tried that. You know, moving forward, we need the right black people in land in position. But we don't want just any any black person in positions. So do the right thing and get the right person right. So we'll see, Yes, we will.

So from my thought of the day I was sitting you know, first of all, of course, people are watching New York to police officers were murdered here justin in the last few days. Sick, sad, depressing young men. I don't care if they were ninety years old, doesn't matter, but they still were young men. They didn't deserve it. It's so painful. Just so I don't like to see people will be murdered in general. Forget about cop guy

on the street, neighbor. You know, families like it's just it's the worst thing when it's the worst of us, when people take the lives of other people literally for no reason at all, and it's just it cripples the city. It hurts so many people when you see things like that happen, and so you know, for those families, same with the Regina King's situation. It's a lot of people hurting,

a lot of people hurting. And I certainly send my condolences to the families of these two officers and to the entire police force, because that is a scary feeling that you can show up for work, go to respond to a dispute and be shot by someone in a

in a situation you can never even imagine. I was thinking to myself, these two officers probably were going you know, gonna go try to help out with this dispute that seemed to be happening between a mother and son, you know, probably laughing in the car or wherever they were talking to each other. Okay, now let's get out, let's deal with this and keep it moving. Who would have thought that that moment would be the end of their lives. It's wrong and there's no way to There's no excuse

you can make for it. There's no political explanation, none of it. Yes, of course there's some sickness and some deep mental illness issues that need to be addressed, but even with that, still this these two men should be alive, These two officers should be alive. Then you have the loss of life of the son of a woman who had to call the police because she was in a dispute with her son. So now he also is diseased.

It's just way too much death. And the thing that I was thinking, because of course, you start to see what happens all the time that the elected officials run to how to, you know, go back to old things. We're never really creating a new cycle, a new system, or really focusing on where guns are coming from. And I'm not talking about Ray Ray getting on the train

or getting in his car driving down to Virginia. I'm talking about how the guns got to Virginia, how the guns get to Connecticut in other places in large numbers, and there are no checks and balances on these weapons. That's the real work for me. So when I hear I see a blueprint from Eric Adams that I think, you know where he is focusing on, Mayor Eric Adams in New York City, you know, focusing on what to

do to reduce gun violence. Which I'm sure there's pressure from the business community, there's pressure from black folks, there's pressure from the clergy, there's pressure from everybody. And for him, as a former cop, to lean in the direct of and also go ahead and say that he's going to reinstitute a modified sort of stopping frisk program and call it something different so that it won't it can get around the decision that was made by the courts that

stopping frisk is unconstitutional. Um it really is. So it's disrespectful, it's painful, it just and for someone who was deeply involved in fighting to get the court decision and to get at that time, Mayor Bloomberg and um, and the police Commissioner Ray Kelly to call off stopping frisk, which they really just changed the names to broken windows. But

now going on into too many things. Um, you know, it's it's it's painful for me because I'm waiting for the mayor that will come along, the president, the whomever that will come along and say, yes, we do have to get guns off the street and got to find a way to be able to do that. And I and also in the blueprint that Eric Adams has released, he talks about dealing with mental health, dealing with education, and understanding that the focus has to be all those things.

So I'm glad to hear that. Let's see how it works out, because usually everybody says health, education, this that in the third and what is the actual focus, what gets the most resources and the most play is the punitive area, which is putting police on the streets that end up stopping young men who are out there, young men and older men and people who are probably not carrying weapons at all. That for me is problematic. That's

actually not my thought of the day though. My thought of the day, really quick and you can respond to this, is that I worry about though our people. Usually all the things I said would have been my thought of the day. Why do we keep doing the same things over and over again expecting different results? But my thought of the day is actually, for us, young men, what do we think is going to happen when we're just shooting in the lobby of the hospital, shooting on the streets,

just doing whatever, stabbing, beating up women? What do you think it's gonna Do we understand our people, and particularly young men, do you understand that there is about to be open season war on you for and on your brothers and sisters who may or may not be involved in any of that type of activity. That's my thought of the day. What is what is going on in your mind when you think that the actions you're taking will lead somehow like you're not leading your own war.

These people have arsenal and resources and they are going to unleash on our communities. Correct, And I was just you know, thinking about that. Just think about in response, because I haven't really responded to any of these things, and usually I'm vocal on my social media about all these things, and I just put together, you know, a whole response to it. But that's exactly what it is.

Just like, if you don't understand what's going on and where we are right now, then you you are not paying attention, you know, Like you said, they're about to have open season on us. They're going to do everything. They have body cameras to where they're gonna be able to sense that you've got guns on you. They got face recognition devices, They're utilizing every every piece of technology

they're gonna utilize. Officers are gonna come up to you very aggressive now because they're aware that any interaction with people can end their lives. It's gonna be a different season, and I just I hope that our young kings are very prepared for this, you know, because this is what it This is what it is, man. So I'm praying that this there's a wake up call. I'm playing that these young kids understand that this is gonna be We took him out the crack era where they had to

war on drugs, to war on violence. It's gonna be a lot different. It's gonna be a war on violence. So I'm super super super duper excited about this next guest. Over many years, I have been receiving counsel talking to mentorship from this woman and trying to understand what in the world is happening in America. UM. And I'm particularly attracted to her because, like me, she's always in trouble for saying for telling the truth and saying it like it is. And so today we have with us a

woman who, by the way, is a lawyer. So black women super super, super accomplished. UM. I've already said she's a freedom fighter because she speaks up all the time. She is the United States representative for the eighteenth Congressional District in Texas. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, thank you so much for joining street politicians. I could not be at a happier place. I am in between going to my

senior high schools. UH to break through after we've had this moment of silence, this moment of UH, a pandemic that has touched their lives. I wanted to let them know that their their voices there, UM, their courage, UH, their leadership, their power for change. Why don't we have a student loan debt reduction? UM? You know, why are we still not having HR forty the Commission to Study

and Developed Reparation proposed Why do we study slavery. Why don't we are still trying to march towards police reform, But why are we trying to march toward justice? It's all about democracy and what they're doing about it. But in any event, I am delighted to be here with you. Uh. And UM, I hope that I am a street politician because I just came out in the street. Thank you very much. You paved the way. You the you the front line, and you forgot to see that she got

the best here in the business. Don't. Definitely, And we're fighting for the Crown Act. We haven't gotten the pass yet, brothers and sisters, but I I will just take this moment to you all. I am the original um as they say, UM, I should have said. I never called myself a victim, but I am the original target of the Crown Act in terms in terms of the United States Congress, because I did this more than two decades ago. Uh. And just a just a quick story. I was in Africa.

I had the regular, regular, regular style UH, and I had to borrow some um, what do you call it? Electronic curlers? Uh? And I plugged it in and I started the fire inside inside the hotel room. I start of the fire. They were knocking on the door, sad because I was not in the room where I plugged it in at But to make a long story short, it didn't burn down. But I learned my lesson, uh, and I've been happy ever since. But it was a shock to people's eyesight on the floor and standing for

the floor and so here they went. But you know what, I never I never moved because I felt comfortable in my skin and in my hair. And I want all of those, whatever your hair is, as a black woman, UH and any other woman UH that chooses and brother, be comfortable in who you are. I'll end on that. We can we can end the whole interview with that. But I just want to know, a congresswoman, just being such a big fan of the work that you've done, how did you get your start? How did you start

doing this? You know, I have a vein of strain. I just like to be a problem solver. I like to get in the mix. I always like to get a yes for people who've been mistreated, and I go and fight for him. I always want to get it yes. I want to get I wanna be able to come back and say it's been resolved. And I also think that if you gain any power, it should be pushed out away from you to others. And so you know, I can go back through I was busybody. Uh sure

this will get written up in a product podcast. But you know, from high school, uh, from middle school, I was an activist. In that time. It was student government and fighting for students and saying what students should have less in high school. Then coming into Yale, let me just say I was a child prodigy. So um, when y'all started looking at the history, I don't want people start looking to the eighteen hundreds and seeing whether she

was point in the eighteen hundreds. But let me just say that I got to college when I was two years old, toddler. But I was there for the body seal trial in behavior, I was there. I was there for the uh, the the literal shutdown of the Yale campus for example, YDS was there. Every group was there, and we had to stand. We were students. I was in a black student, an officer with the Black Students of Yale. Y s a ye, which is their fiftieth commemoration this year. But we literally were we stood in

the gap. Of all these student groups that came in to deal with the war, to deal with Bobby Seal, uh, to deal with how Yale was responding. Um, we cooked the rule that everybody had to eat because it was no food. But the point is is that, I mean, you have to feed all these people. But the real point is I really cut my teeth. People think Ivy League students are you know, just dazing and gazing. Yet

we're doing out our work, but we're doing the cerebral work. Uh. That that thinks about how we're going to empower our people. And at that time it was students, diverse students. And so I started there and I think I never looked back. Uh. In terms of going to to UM, I went to Africa after graduating. I traveled as just a person with uh you know, by myself. I was there on a fellowship dealing with looking at the common law system versus

a tribal law. UM. I was under a guidance back in the States, but I wasn't under any guidance uh in in Africa. And I traveled. I even have a story of going to bogatang uh in Ghana, you know, traveling by bus and I got off the bus. It was a rest stop in a village and a woman came and say, will you take my baby? Will you take my baby? Catel, I was, you know, American in terms of my accent um, I've had these times of experiences with the richness of the continent. I became uh

infused with the connection. And that was some time ago. I think I've had experiences that others have not. Just traveled so that brought me here. Obviously a lawyer, I did corporate law. I practiced corporate law. Um. But I was a pioneer in it because I was the only person in the firm that I went to. But then the doors opened. I was a staffer on the Hill for the Select Committe on Assassinations, which was reopening the

investigation of King and Kennedy. If anybody could believe that, we actually looked at it again, still trying to find answers and what happened. And then that just generated, as I conclude, to where I am today. I was always digging into something to make it better or to get the facts. And I tell people today that this democracy that is fragile will only last if whoever you are, you dig into something. Either make it better, or get the facts and get the answers. Wow, get the facts

and the answers. Uh, it's so much in that because you know, everyone goes in different directions. So some folks as activists, you know, they go off to do diversity and inclusion work. You know, they made start schools or do that type of work. But it's something to be said about people who brave through the political process because I know how difficult it has been, and I can

remember a time when very similar. I guess one of the reasons why I'm so um attracted to you, congresswoman, is because I've sat on the fringes with knowing I was right, you know, knowing I'm speaking up about something that's right, but people have found ways to try to ostracize me and to try to, you know, say that I'm crazy for whatever my opinions are. And then all of a sudden, the world recognizes that what we've been

talking about, it's actually back. And I've watched that happen to you, where people try to say, no, you know, she's just always mad about something they gave you, the angry black woman. You know, No, she just wants to raise hell. And now here we are at a time when you are have become sort of front and center for some really really important things. And I am I'm really proud to see that that happened. UM, I don't know my son and you next because I'm you know,

I'm like, I'll keep Talkin't gonna stop you. No, no, okay, So Washington last last week, these last two weeks crisis turning people off really bad. Congresswoman. We're hearing from folks all over the country. You and I have talked about it. They're finished with the process because voting rights is something that I think most people felt we definitely are going to pass that, you know, so we don't have to worry.

You know, they weren't really focused on it, whereas some of us, as organizers Latasha Brown, Cliff all Right from Black Voters Matter, UM, Melanie campbell Um, also Horror masters Berry and many other women who are a part of the National Coalition of Black Civic Participation and Black Women's round Table, UH and so many other organizes. We've been out there for months, months, even years. Someone like a

barbera Armline have been talking about dealing with voting rights. UM. I think about Reverend Barbera who said a few nights ago, he said, perhaps we're at a time when this whole thing is going to crash because it cannot hold up as it is. And I think people are feeling that level of frustration. Where are we what happened last week? And where do we go from here? Because as you said,

democracy is fragile, it always has been. But without our right to vote, I don't know what this country looks like and what our society looks like in general, what the world looks like going forward. Failure is not an option. UH. And I want us all to embed that in our soul in and our DNA. And you have called the role and all of you on this podcast, because you've called the role of the sisters who have been out there, each of them, I know them, We've we've been in

different fights together. UM. If I could have gotten arrested more times than I did, UM, I would have done so. But I got arrested with Melanie and others UH, and others got arrested. Thank you for your work last week, and it is work is work of passion, UM. And what I said to the students today is that you must you must take this country it is your country. You must you must take it, must take it in

your hands. And so UM. Obviously last week the persons who have the right to vote, or those of us in the House who did vote and do what we're supposed to do, said that we're not finished. This cannot finish. Um. We will not have a democracy, uh if we do not have the protection of the votes that are planning to be stolen in two I'm a witness right now of votes right now as I speak, being thrown out in Texas because of the voter suppression of requiring numbers

that seniors and disabled persons. They never did it before. Then you know, you wonder haven't we been on TV talking No, these people are not. They just hear the word voting rights. They thank you fighting for voting rights. They haven't heard that they have to put a number where and their ballance of being thrown out. Is that happening across the country. So what I would say to those who um have poor their their heart and soul have have gone to the great lengths um that people

go through. Revend Barber, who's been up here, is I can't have you give up. I've got to have you to stand on the battlefield just a couple of more times, because uh, it has to be said to the leadership, uh that um steers things, that we will have to come back. We've been told that we will come back. When I said come back, it will come back to

the floor. And those who have chosen to take a segregation is tool that has oppressed people of color and women from its very genesis, and just a little constitutional insight, both Madison and Jefferson said, we're through with the filipbuster. That is the tyranny of the minority, and frankly it is unex symptible. So how can people today in stand on the pompousness of the righteousness of I just can't do anything. It's it's the feel abuster. It is absolutely

um sinister. So all I can say is to them, can you can you just find one more gut kick that you can get so angry about that gut kick that you're gonna say it's not bringing me down because I'm not going down with it. So it is more of what has been what have been done, I frankly want more. We're gearing up for HR forty because people have to listen. Uh, and you know, I people laugh

because I don't like talking about myself. But all the folks that are talking, um, I can match their academic credentials. I've been a judge, I've been on the Select Committee on assassination. So I had to dig deep to be able to um do what I was supposed to. I got offered the U S Attorney's position Assistant US Attorney, which I turned down. Um, I've turned uh, I've turned corners on so many things, and so I don't allow

a definition of myself externally. I'm asking those folks who put themselves on the line, listen to no one but yourself and let you be the hero and siro of the final success of this voting rights. It is shameful that we can count Richard Nixon, George H. W George w Uh and um Bush and Ronald Reagan who voted

for voting rights. I mean that's Republicans. So we have people now on Republicans fifty lockdown, absolutely absurd, and then uh, fellow travelers of Democrats talking something that is ludicrous about a filipbuster and go on, build back better other things. Reparations HR forty and so I'm just saying, don't let there be external definitions of who you are in bet in your DNA, what it's gonna make America your America, and fight until it gets done. And that's my that's

my aspect. I will fight, of course, I'll put in the word because we're on a podcast, not violently for me until it until it gets done. But I am not going to let a failure is not an option. And I hope that just gets out in the loudest way. I'm sure somebody is sitting back saying, oh, there we go again. It's always on us. No, I'm just saying to you, you look inside yourself, what you want to leave here, what you want once you want to see done,

Then failure is not an option. Wow. That's a lot, And I know, I know it has to be frustrating to see two Democrats vote against something that is is just human, that's rolling rights like it. Just I know, just just listening to you, understanding the groundwork and which you've you've been that person, you know the start work on the front line fighting for these things, and know that somebody in your party is against something that's just like this, It's just really must be hurtful for you,

just hearing it. You know, it's like it's like you're thirsty and you drink water, right, I mean, that's the basic, basic, uh saving entity. You might want to have some sweet punch or some wonderful orange juice, but you're thirsty to live, you drink water. This is about living. Um. As I said, I have just a number of cross themes. I work

for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. I maybe, beside John Lewis, one of the only members of Congress that actually went to the Auburn worked out of the Auburn office on Auburn Street. I guess the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in George, UM, maybe one of the few that went on plantations UH that with sharecroppers at the eighteen hundred nineteen hundred UH to to register people to vote, and had a white man sitting on a porch chewing whatever he was chewing.

Take out one of them skinny rifles and we had to run like heck because we were trying to get people on the plantation to vote. So it's in it's in my DNA. I don't know if they said at the same time, I was a judge. So what I'm saying, we come with different backgrounds, and you want to know frustration. I was there on the floor of the House. I excuse me, Florida Senate. We were in session in the House. I was determined to It was a sense of hope. I said, this is gonna happen. It has to happen,

because that's because the House passed. Right, It passed in the House, so it wants it advanced. Once the bill advanced to the Senate, the first thing that had to be done is killing the filibuster, changing the rules so that the bill could come to the floor and folks could vote on it. And they and and and two Democrats sided, which would not you know us, we're gonna call names. We will we you didn't say it, we're

saying uh. Senators, Senators mansion in cinema. They sided with all the Republicans, not even one that would vote to protect our voting rights, that will vote to change the rules for the filibuster. Now, would it have only been changed that one time, or would it have been changed forever? The filibuster at one time it was it was an exception. And also it was framed like if it's a constitutional issue, the constitutional issue U surves this so called filibuster, and

all it was was a talking filibuster. Let me just humorously say to people, understand that the filibuster is Senator Jackson Lee. She'll jackually could go to the floor as a senator and say I'm going to filibuster, and I'll see you. I'm going on to the Bahamas. I don't have to be anywhere, and you will need sixty boats to break me coming on the floor saying I'm going to filibuster. Maybe I'll make some opening remarks, and then I'm going I go to my office. I can go

home to my district. Can anyone imagine that that would stifled the very heart and blood of Democrat? See that you did? You do that? And so all that was happening is the fact that, um, we would have you would have the responsibility of of keeping the floor, and when you yielded the floor, we could then go vote on what the original bill was, and at that time it would be voting Ryan's freedom to vote and on John Robert Lewis. Can you imagine that that is the

simple thing that we were asking you to do. I don't think anybody could either fathom what are you talking about and that we could not get one of the professed moderates who know that they and other Republicans, I want to ask them, how many of you are have been somewhere shining on Martin Luther King's commemoration. I bet every single person was somewhere U shining uh through the

through their lifespan uh. And when it was even more popular being somewhere on Martin Luther King professing your commitment to his values and feigning uh your hurt for his death, then why were you not there to show it when he and his family, his legacy and his family were

begging you to pass this legislator. And John Lewis we all know he can point to where he shed blood on the Edmond Pettis Bridge, And so you know, it baffles us to be able to understand how people can comport uh their words over the years that they have been somewhere seeing making and Martin Luther King's speech, for example. I know they have done it because I know they've

been invited. And then to equate that to the inaction, the shameful inaction of what happened on that night, And I can tell you that you want to talk about people who are saying we're through the feeling of despair. But I had to pull that gut check and that hit. I had to. I had to pull myself up. Eliot. It's not an option because we will not have an election in two if we do not have these protections. Whoa you are here dropping gods for today? But um as a as a you know the LEAs sponsor on

the HR forty, which is related to the reparations. I want to know what is it? And where are we right now? And like Dr King said, are we are we gonna get our checking? Okay, Well that's what we wanted. Question is when do we get the checks for tell us? Tell us this is the last question we know. You have to go, Um, what is the HR forty bill because some folks think that means as soon as it passes, check start being written. That's not true. Um, And and

where are we at this point? Well, one thing I'm gonna say to everybody hanging there with me, Okay, you all got to hang in there with me on HR forty. Um, you're gonna be a You're gonna be seeing some some action I is coming. We've been meeting with three D organizations representing era to make it. You know, because you've been on this call that we've had UM and we've got you know, from color Change to everybody we can possibly imagine and others. UH. And you have been there

and we are very grateful. And so we have putting out in our portfolio in our words why we can't wait. And we have been I think the most strategic UH. And I'm gonna use the word respectful because first it was the twenty election and we said, can you stand down? We got to get these people through and we want

to make sure that we're you know. And and this has been filed and and uh coddled and filed by John Knyrors in ninety nine, right after the reparations given to Japanese Americans in nineteen eighty eight, signed by Ronald Reagan. And that's why our bill came. And they of course are supporting UM. I'm gonna say yeah for the Japanese Americans and they are out there they wonder what what what? But in any event, and so we have baby this

thing all along. What it is is uh. And in this Colblum, let me hold up a show in town show and Tell says Black and Hispanic communities board disproportioned share of Texas early COVID nineteen death. You can do a study in all fifty states and we're gonna be

right there. What it is saying is that throughout presence here in this country, through the trajectory of slavery, we have felt severe disparities up to two or we can cite and people will stand back and they'll look at people in these homes, and they'll look at people playing basketball and football, and they'll look at people with uh, the fancy cars, and they will say, what are they

talking about. They're talking about the reality of the massive disparities in the masses of people who happen to be descendants of enslaved Africans. And so this is a commission to study slavery and developed, we modified it and given an action item reparations, which will come as analyzed in a myriad of response because you cannot go to one inditiontion from social services, to health care, to education, to science, the psychological, to the criminal justice system to education that

you cannot find that line that says black people. And we have gotten to a point where our friends who do not look like us have been saying, now we get it. JOHNS. Hopkins has done a study in one saying there is a connection from the slave presence two now in African Americans, and of course there is a diaspora. We must remember there was a trans atlantic slave train. And for those of us who want to see this in that view, We've got brothers in the Caribbean and

sisters dealing with this because they had slavery. We've got the issue in UH, South and Central America. UH, the Africans in Mexico, the Africans in Brazil. I've got the largest population nigel Arians in the United States are now in Houston, not in Atlanta. So it you know, this is going to focus on African Americans, but there are complementary efforts around the world. I'm gonna thank my sister

Congress when Barbaraly. She has been with me just two and two together about the importance and urgency of passing this. We were together in um Durban on that original UH Conference on Racism, way back when when people are afraid to go um and so I just want people to say, my brothers and sisters who are Caucasian, Anglo, my Latin X, Hispanic brothers and sisters, Asian, Asian, Pacific, South each Asian

and all myriads of black people. This should be a unifying factor and my indigenous people, my Native Americans, who um again, I've been on Peblos, I've been on reservation, my heart aches. But as we will know, they were giving those Our land was never given the forty acres in the mule, and reconstruction never succeeded. And so we have a legitimate um uh posture to be able to see this going. And my question is to the world, to America, what do you want the world to see

you as? When we talked to the world about reparations, which is a which is a unilateral or universal human rights terminology, they get excited when they say, oh, you mean the United States would admit to the sin of slavery. To get excited uh. And America doesn't know what this will do for them. It will inspire human rights around the world. So let me just say where we are is we did a historic mark up, never hasn't been marked up. It's out of judiciary, it's ready for the floor.

But we're looking at several options. What we're doing now is we're now raising the interests for people to be pushing back to the Congress and saying we want HR forty now, and that's what we need. So the three organizations are gonna be coming. We asked for our viewers

and listeners UH to push to all the Congress. And let me be very clear, we are as anxious and incited as what is about to happen, and I'm gonna I'm gonna take it as a given um with trepidation and prayers, but that we will have in the months to come. A person sitting on the Supreme Court at the appropriate time of Justice Briars Uh leaving the bench that was an African American, a woman. That that is

that should be without further thought. And I hope that the podcast would note that we can to gum and walk at the same time. This justice qualified. By the way, no doubt nobody has to look for qualified black women. They are there that done. That should not negate, that should not be and we got this. It should not get negate. Voting rights, police reform and h R forty never negated. If you if the bill I'm sit the Florida you are you confident about the votes at this time?

Are you at least close. We are very very close. We are very very close. You know. I can just say we're about three out and we just had a meeting today. We're going for the big push um so and that is good, but we need this outside thunder yuh to let people know it's okay. You'll be welcomed home, you will be appreciated. Uh. It is only fairness. It is not uh. It is not taking from someone. It

is the government actions and sanctioning of slavery. I would be as much if the government was against Quakers and and and characterize them and such that took things from them, took what they had. I mean I focus on Quakers in Pennsylvania. Uh, and and went and and and took from them all that they had there, that was there, that they had developed. I would be with them. Uh. And so be with us, be with us, be with us that don't look like you and old that it

is not anger, is not anguish, It is reality. It is right, noess, and it is righteousness. And you know John Lewis on the reparations bill, beloved by everybody, on the reparations bill, Dr King had that insufficient check um. The concept that when we come to try and get relieved. It always looks like we're out of luck. Uh so in his own words and interpretation, and he was speaking to the whole issues of social justice. If we it here's a here's a comical or either the thing that

you've always heard. If you lift our boats, you're gonna lift all boats. Uh. It is not going to be selfishly that it does not impact the greatness of America. And that's what I say. Uh. You lift us as scientists. You recognize that we uh you know, discovered blood plasma. Were the sisters and NASA doing all the numbers on the black boards. That we are astronauts, we are scientists, that we are we are we are uh chemists, we are mathemat titians. You make us plentiful. You're lifting a

boats about. That's a great word. Thank you so much, congresswoman. We have to have you back. There's so much to talk about, and you do such a good poetic job of helping us to understand where we are. And as you said, failure is not an option, so we will make sure to continue to carry that message. Thank you, and please go back to your schools and your work. Um. And you know be great people doing it. This has been exciting. I thank you for giving me the opportunity.

I'll let them know. Um when I go in and said, I've been called a street politician? Which which is? Which is where you do your business? Is it not right if where you do your business? And it is so ironic that I'm doing this When there was some folks out in the street talking about the e p A and they were out in the street. We got an announcement that the e PA was gonna look at all this pollution in our community. And they weren't in their house, they weren't in the meeting room. They were out in

the street. And I was doing a zoom with them out in the street. So let me just say, you get your best things done in the street. Thank you for the work that you all have done. Can I call on you to push forward now in RTY a little and not to give up on voting rights, to to keep pushing us the calls are coming in uh, and to be able to tell people it's right to have a black woman's Supreme Court justice. Now, keep on pushing, keep on pushing the sweets that's right. Say thank you,

but keep on pushing. Thank you guys, appreciate you. Bye bye, God bless bye bye you listen, that was gospel. That was dope. You know. The Congresswoman is amazing her the way I mean she breaks it down so simple, but it's so powerful. You know, she just gave me a little more energy because I ain't goa lie begining jaded.

You know, I'm like, man, when you see somebody that's been in this game that long, continuing to fight, continue to have faith and not being broken, it has to give you some level of energy, some level of spirits. So I think you mixed the conversations between the congresswoman and now our next uh guest that's coming up. Um, that's when you start to see where our power is real. So I'm excited about this next conversation that we're having. Yep,

definitely excited to talk to our brother. Brother. He's got he got, he got what the people say they need, what the people need, So let's bring them on. So one of our friends is joining us today as our change maker. Um, you know, our friends are dope. So I know there are some people who probably feel like, well they always have their friends on. Well, we've got a lot of friends around the country doing a lot of great things. And this young brother, it's someone that

we've been on the battlefield with. UM. We have been uh, we've done civil disobedience together, We've been arrested together. So y'all probably been in the same patty wagon we had. Uh been out here fighting for the cause and standing together. And I particularly appreciate the level of commitment UM that doctor West Bellamy has shown to this movement. He is an author of two books, UH, the former vice mayor

of short Charlottesville, Virginia. We know so much about Charlottesville, so that's what that's a different interview for another day, just to talk more about the history of Charlottesville. Uh. He is currently the political science department chair at Virginia State University and the co chairman of our Black Party, which is what brings him today to our show. So thank you Dr Bellamy West our brother, for being with

us today. Thank you so much. I appreciate you all for having me always, Peace and love to both of y'all. Thanks for all the work y'all do for the community and for the culture as a whole. I don't think we can give you all your flowers enough but it's definitely appreciated, well, listen, definitely appreciated to be acknowledged by someone who fights just as hard, if not harder, than we fight. So we definitely appreciate that. So I want to I want to say, what is our Black Party?

What is it? What is it? Yeah? So, our Black Party is a political organization in which we have a five seven designation which allows us to raise money. We're in the form of a pack or superpack, if you will, and essentially we're a platform designated for black folk. We firmly believe that there's nothing wrong with black people owning our politics, and we have a tagline that we believe

to be very true. Before you are a Republican, before you are a Democrat, before you were independent, before you had any political affiliation, you were black. And there's nothing wrong with black people centering the needs of black folks when we're developing political agendas, and there's nothing wrong with us saying that we have to put our needs in

our interests first. So across the country, we're mobilizing, the organizing with different folks in terms of being on the ground as well as on the state level to ensure that we're developing agendas and educating our people about how politics works, and furthermore, how we must stand still and be steadfast in regards to putting our knees and interest before anyone else is because we have to look out for ourselves. When did you start our Black Party and

where would you say you are in the process today? Yeah, so our Black Party started essentially about a year and a half ago. Myself and our co founder, the Honorable Candice Hollingsworth, who was the former mayor of Hyestville, Maryland, the first black woman to serve as mayor in that regard. And our other starring committee members include the Honorable Stephanie Morales, who's the first black woman to serve as Commonwealth Attorney

Enfortsman Virginia. We also have our brother Rashard Lambert who's out of Philadelphia who's the leader of Forbes the Culture and in former council woman Leo Webb, who is the first black woman to serve as city council woman and in running for New York Senate in Bingham to New York.

So the father of us got together with our big brother Puff and you know, uh much love to Diddy and work together chounded out working with several folks from across the country, and that regard to to try to develop different ways in which we can form pathways for our people to control our own political apparatus. So that was about a year and a half ago. We caused some traction, cost some steam, and then we were just

slowly building. I mean, when you're trying to build a platform like this, we have to understand that this is a marathon. Right now, we're at about ten thousand members from across the country. We have several state directors, were in Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Michigan, Indiana, as well as Virginia. And what we're doing right now is looking to build out. We're working with our dear sister Tesla Figara about It's all about You in two and our underground political training,

so we'll be supporting her as well as others. And then we have some stuff in which we're rolling out throughout the course of the year, specifically dealing with and pretending to the thirty Attorney General races across the country. We want everybody to make sure they're tapped into that. And then on the local level, how do we get our folks engaged and not only run for office, but ensure that we're writing a policy that's advantageous to our folks.

Let me just say, pask one thing because I think and I think this is important. Clearly you have decided that it is. It is, it is necessary. At this point, it's critical for us to work on um, you know, organizing our own folks, getting our people and our voting block, if you will, together, how we vote our political power.

We all understand that, but there are some people who come from the mindset that, well, we need our own party and we don't need to vote for the Republicans and Democrats anymore, we should just do away with that. Is that what our Black Party is saying or do or is there a process that you understand has to take place in order to get to where it is we're going. I think it's a combination of votes. So we have to understand that all of this stuff is multifaceted.

At one point, excuse me, at some point, we would love to for us to be able to say that we have our own voting block, similar to what you see with a POC or within the Irish community APOC as of Jewish entity if you will, um similar to what you see with the Latino community or Latino community, in which they have very formulated voting blocks and organizations that are specifically advantageous for their communities. That's what we're

trying to develop. But as you alluded to, there is a process of which we have to go through, and for us, we're being very candid in terms of our votes are not free, so we need to go with the individuals who are going to represent us in the best and most formidable way, regardless of their political affiliation. But nonetheless, we're going to make sure that we hold everyone accountable and if no one comes forth to do so,

then we do it ourselves. Just to break down the process, if you will, in order to get on the ballot, there's only a couple of organizations who've been able to do so. Um to knowledge right, or in a grander scale, you look at the Working Families Party, which is a multicultural and ethnic group that's across the country, but they're not specifically black, and no love, no disrespect to to the Working Families Party, like you know, shouts to me

and my Reese and whatnot. But what we're saying is that we want to create something that is specifically focused on our people and developing and gaining ballot status is a process. But we're in this of the marathon. I mean, everybody likes to quote Nipsey Rescue, Peace to the King and the marathon continues. Well, let's truly run this marathon and do what we have to do to get to

where we need to be. That's dope. So what I want to know is, because this is something that I've been thinking about for years, Like we've always been thinking about we need something different, we need to start our own what is the time process that you think it's gonna take? Okay, so in this amount of time we should have this amount of people, Like what what? What would you be able to say that you think the amount of time is gonna take for this to be

like a powerhouse voting block. Yeah, I think it's a it's no doubt, like a five to tenure plan. And you know, we were starting this and shout out to my man Jay Morrison. Uh, there's a lot of folks who were having conversations and he and I were having conversations in regards to how we work together and whatnot. And I think we we have to be very candid in my personal estimation, like everybody doesn't have to do

the exact same thing. And it's okay for us to work in multiple avenues and multiple lanes, but we need to be stead fast in regards said that we're gonna do what we have to do for us. So while we're all working in our different respective lanes, that means that it's gonna take some time again the corral folks and for some folks to say, hey, we're gonna work for this work in this regard, and other folks are gonna say, hey, we're gonna work at it and look

at it from this way. But when you look at a specific voting block per se, we have to willing to change our focus. So do we want to be something like the quote unquote Democrats or something like the Republican Party. I don't think that we have to be either of which because they have literally like billions of

dollars put behind them. But what we can do and where we can start, and again this is within our five And see your plan is on the local level in places like south Folklon Georgia, or places like Brooklyn right where we well, even though you know Brooklyn is is no longer Brooken and as it used to be. It's not the home of Biggie and Ja. It doesn't

look quite the same. But when we look at places like that where we have higher concentrations of our folks, can we get our folks together and say, listen, Democrats don't know what they're supposed to do for us. Republicans aren't there what they're supposed to do for us. Let's get the signal satures needed to get on the ballot and then to run our own candidates. Like those things, they don't take long that that's like a year long process.

You literally just have to get the certain amount of signatures to qualify to be on the ballot, and usually bib the ten percent of the amount of persons who voted in the previous election. So you get those signatures, you get your candidate on the ballot, you register as your party, and then you run. It's it's actually quite that simple. We have to raise our money, we have to be able to support each other. But there's so many folks, like you alluded to my song, you've been

thinking about this. I mean, there's so many people who've been thinking about this, like let's pull our resources. And again, we don't all have to do it the exact same way, but we want to have an umbrella for folks to say you can come under this mantra and we can move forward in some capacity together. I said the time, unity is not uniformity, and I think that's what pop us from our progress because everyone wants it to look one way. It doesn't have to look one way. We

just gotta be going to the same place. Like can look different than my car. We just same place, you know. So I definitely appreciate what you doing. You have a question you want to ask, So do you think that UM as a part of because and I want people to hear this because I get folks, you know, running me down. You know you, you you know you just with the Democrats, you just you know you you you paid for about the Democrats? Why are you fighting for our

voting rights? It doesn't matter, you know all of that. We hear it all the time, and I have and I constantly say to people there are folks like you who are working on building an apparatus. I tell them

all the time. I've been in conversations with puff about this for years, trying to build an apparatus that gives us the money and also the political education and the political will to challenge some of these folks in different parties with our own candidate, as you said, and or come together and decide in whatever party, whether it an independent, a Republican or Democrat, we're going to vote together so we can make a difference, or we're coming together as

the party demanding certain things be on these individuals agenda, because you have to be careful that if you know you're looking at so for us in a situation like Trump and Biden, right, there are folks you know, well neither one of them, Okay, fine, absolutely to seventy something. Ye know, white men. We've never ever thought that any either one of them would be great and the great savior for our community. But we know what we were

looking at the difference between the two candidates. The question is how do we have something where we're able to, in an organized fashion when we're coming down to the last minute in an election like that, demand from both of them certain things. Now, some people will say, well, uh, that's what ice Cube was doing, right. Ice Cub was trying to force both candidates to speak to our issues and We've said over and over again, and I want to get your opinion on this. You're you know, on

what you always an honest opinion. What we've said is it's very difficult to negotiate when you have missed the moment when there were multiple people in the field. So at the time, when there were nine million people running for the Democratic nomination, was the time to have our Black Party, you know, our issues on the table, to say, of these two candidates, we want these things and to

get them to commit. But to wait until there's two candidates and we're looking at some one person who killed six hundred thousand people by the time he was running for office um by ignoring a real, a true issue in terms of how people should have been taking care of themselves for a virus um. And then we're looking at another person that's not great at all either, but

they were very different. So it's you do you agree with what I'm saying or do you feel like we still should have abstained or or just use it as an opportunity to say, hey, we may lose this one, but now let's just build our own party and leave the other two parties completely. Well, well, I think you're

you're right and all of it. And I think again, like we have to be willing to understand that this game is so complex, and it is indeed a game that we have to be willing to play if we want to be able to change the outcomes of our people. This game is so complex and nuance that there's multiple

approaches that we have to be willing to take. So in my personal estimation, it's always the right time to mobilize by folks, It's never too late in order for us to be able to mobilize each other and and out we would have this discussion, and I mean, you know you've had it. We we've all had it. Shout out to man Stephen Green and every Reverend Green and

everybody else, like we've all had this talk. Like maybe we were a little too late, maybe we started you know, we missed our market because we kicked off in July of essentially that the two candidates were already picked. And now, like you alluded to, we don't have a great deal of leverage quote unquote to the to the layman's eye.

But again, I don't ever believe that it's the wrong time for us to mobilize our people and now that we have some footing under us, now that we're the word is getting out, now that we're continuing to mobilize. That gives us that much more leverage in the mid term elections and furthermore in the presidential elections. But that's only on the federal level. We talk about the local

and state level. We always have leverage because there's elections, their election cycles that are taking place all of the time. And I'll let me be clear, Like I'm a former elected official. I ran as a Democrat. I was seen as a quote unquote rising part of the Democratic Party. You know, I was real cool with our former governor. Like, I get it, I understand the game. But that still doesn't mean that we don't have to do what we

have to do for our folk. And just because we have friends in certain spaces doesn't mean that we negate the needs of our people on the local and state level, and obviously on the federal level, but at home in the streets, like when you two are are going in the rest of until Freedom, God the Angelo and Sister London and everyone else, when y'all are going out in the streets and mobilizing and organizing, there's never a wrong

time to do that. And you know, for me, Hu Change said something that I that always sticks with me.

He said it on his last album, like, there's certain situations that make you care less about voting, and we have to be able to pierce through those things when a mother loses her child and and a kid is shot in the middle of the street, sometimes about you know, one of our own because of many of the systemic issues that we have, or like like my son also often talks about kill coward culture and how we have

to make sure we hold individuals accountable. Those individuals when they're going through these things at certain moments in times they're not necessarily thinking about the political asparatus. Where we come in is that we have to continue to remind them that these things are bout products of systems, and these systems change by us being engaged, and these systems change by us being engaged with people who look like us, who care about us. And that's why again it's always

the right time for us at work. That was a long answer. I definitely, I definitely take that into consideration. You know, I just think for me, like what you said is is definitely But for me, is this the system is gonna be there, right, we said, we we can act like And I tell people all the time, you don't gotta vote, but just the person, the person who gets into office, the laws that they pass, whatever

they do, you still gonna follow the law. So if you decide that you're not gonna vote in this election, cool, but you still gonna stop at the green light. You still gonna pay taxes. Whatever laws they've put into you still have that. You just understand. As long as you acknowledge that, then then we all came for me. I want to be I want to have a little bit of a say so about the laws they're going I want to be have a little bit of say so about things that are gonna govern my life. So you know,

and it's to each his own. Some of us just feel like, forget the system. I'm just gonna go about it whatever me personally I want to have. I want to be engaged in every inch of the process that's gonna have something to affect my life. But we, like you said, we don't all got to do it the same. I could vote, he cannot vote, but we all know that ultimately we gotta get free. So long as you're

doing something over there to get us free. I might be voting for these one and two laws that I know it's gonna give us a little more freedom, and you might be not voting and building an apparatus over there that's gonna do something to help us sustained. But we all got to be doing something right. And I think to your point though, that's why we also need different kinds of candidates, because individuals who relate to like

where we're from and where we come from. I mean, honestly, they're like unicorns, and we need to be able to develop more of these unicorns while also getting our people to understand that there's no such thing as a perfect politician or a perfect elected official. Like we can't put folks on these these certain pedestals. You've gotta be, you know, the flyers, dude who can articulate in a certain way but still not do anything, but still kick it with the homies and so on and so forth. Like those

individuals are rare. But when we get persons who do run, whether they you know, may come from certain environments, not let's make sure that we train them and hold them accountable, but also we love on them so that they can pass policies that are gonna be helpful for our people. And that's where and we have to miss I'm sorry, we have to wrap up, but because we have uh well and we have to wrap us but but um uh but also we have to put our money where

our mouth is. And so the last question real quick is how much is it going to cost for our Black Party to get to stage too? And then you know, the ultimate stage. How much money do we need? So we need about ten million dollars for us to go to the next level. And with that ten million will be able not only to bring on more state directors, but get field directors on the local level. And that's really what we're trying to place a great deal of

our emphasis. In addition to that the training models and again shout out to Tesla, but we want to make sure that these trainings are free and affordable to every available rather to all of our folks. Though you know, donate at our Black Party dot com. Excuse me, www dot Black Party dot org. You can look us up on all of our socials. Wcuse me at our Black Party and you know we're here. We're here for RUSS. But this is a marathons. Let's keep running our Black

Party dot com dot org. Okay, okay www dot our Black Party dot org. Ten million dollars. That means one dollars, five dollars, ten dollars, a hundred dollars, hundred thousand dollars. We need it all, we needed Black Party. Let's love y'all. Appreciate you all, We appreciate you. Can keep doing the work. Man, we read no doubt, no doubt. Well, yes, sir, all right, shout out to our brother doctor doctor West Bellamy, you know, and just breaking down our Black Party and just you know,

just showing what is needed right now. And a lot of people don't understand. Like I said during the interview, it's not about uniformity, is about unity. We don't kind of do the same things at the same Zack, Tom. We just gotta be going to the same place and believe that we're gonna get there and and sometimes we gotta take different routes and there's nothing wrong with that.

So I just want to commend him and all the brothers and sisters who are on the committee for our Black Party, who started it, who's seen the need for and and I'm filling in those gaps. Yeah, I mean our Black party, all of these things, just listening to the need we can't fail our black party, all of that together. I think it's all of that, like you said, together, and it's not one thing, but it's all things, and

certainly a focus on black people. And I think, and that's what hearing West say that, and knowing that Congresswoman Lee also feels that way, it's super important. It definitely is. And you know, and and in light of how dope this interview was and how powerful it was, and just listening to the congresswoman, you know, my, my, I don't get it. It's gonna be real simple and it's not gonna be followed by a lot of talk or anything. It's just that I don't get So I don't get

it to a no problem. I don't want to anyway, So you know what, you don't get less going we want to after I say this, but I don't want It's how the police who killed Brianna Taylor is still not in jail arrest the cops that killed Brianna Tail. And with that said, I'm not gonna always be right, Jamicka Mallory is not gonna always be wrong, when we're both always and I mean always be a thing all right. Peace. Now, that's how we owned