From Behind Bars to Passing the Bar

give us all types of feedback. Uh. I got a call from my son Ark a few days ago where he said he spent time over the holiday when he wasn't doing much just listening to Street Politicians podcast old episodes and he was giving me feedback on how the episodes are edited in ways that you know, we need to bring uh some more flavor to the show and all of that. And I was like, that's kind of energy we need. We like that, we like feedback about

what we can do. Well. What he was really talking about is the younger audience, right, and like making sure that we integrate younger voices around issues into our content. And I think that's true. I think right now when we look at the guests that we have had over the last you know, three years now, specifically on the Black Effect Podcast network, but in general, they more so are around our own age group, right. These are people sometimes a little old, and every now and then a

little younger. But really it's people who are probably thirty five to fifty in that group that are out here really doing incredible work. Who really are are folks that are now, uh, they're not at the beginning of their careers, but they're not at the end. They're really in that good part like that's that that's the part where the meat is nice and tender, um, and they're really getting

to become experts that they have cracked um. And so I think, you know, we've done a lot to showcase that, but there are a lot of younger people who are you know, even below thirty that are really advocating for justice on issues. You've got lawyers out there, You've got the first young black mayor um of one of the

cities in this country. I mean, it's just so many different younger people, younger voices and younger perspectives, and so you know, that is something that and and by the way, I think that goes on alongside the elder the community, right and because they're you know, one of the topics we're gonna talk about today in terms of the Doctor King uh Dr King's birthday, UM and we're gonna you know, get into uh something that a lot of people don't

know around that. I learned about it from our elders, right from people who are over the age of seventies seventy five, and they have so much to offer as well. So as this new year begins, what I'm excited about the Street Politicians is the possibility of where we can go knowing all that we know, having a team now that has really over the last year, been able to uh, you know, perfect what it looks like to have a

strong podcast that has great content. And now I think we get to uh spice it up and add into the make some of the things that we want to do, uh that will hopefully be appealing to people like to Reak, who's like, listen, I got all that stuff, and that stuff is good and don't stop. But let's add these elements as well to increase the younger viewership of the podcast. Yeah, I think that's definitely what we need. You know. Once again,

Happy New Year to all of our fans. Is our first episode back, and we love you and I hope that you didn't make New Year's resolutions. I just want you to make change, you know, evolved the minster, you know. For the first beginning of the new year, for the first five days, I went on the fast, you know, to cleanse and just get to resenter myself. And I try to do that, and I've been I want to be intentional about writing down my thoughts and writing down

my plan so I can see them constantly. So I got a little thing on my refrigerator now that I write other things, and I write about to do list, and I check it off as I go along because I see it and it makes it reminds me that I haven't accomplished certain things. So I hope you're doing something like that that is putting you in the mind frame about growing. You know, it's every year, every year, New Year. It's it's just a time to refocus. I don't think you know, the New Year it knew me.

Everybody says that. But this getting this refocus and getting the time too focus on your mind, focus on your health, you know, focus on your goals and and really set to accomplish. For me, they say, this is the Jordan year twenty three, and Jordan was about execution. Jordan's executed. He scored buckets, he put buckets on the board at a high level. So I think this is the year of execution for me. This is no longer just the planning stages and you know, the ideas and the thought process.

It's about really executing, fully executing, you know. So I hope that's what it is for you. I hope that you, you, you really have met, are trying to manifest your ideas and manifest your dreams and manifest your goals and and really carry them out from A to Z, because that's where I am. Yeah. I think that's so so important.

And I hate to be the uh Debbie downer, but when you talk about the Jordan year being uh twenty three, one of the things that I also learned during my vacation and holiday time was what twenty three means, um, you know, to the human trafficking community, right, and that is an actual community. It is very scary, um. I learned through the story of this young woman, Marissa, who

went missing. I was able to like be educated in a few days, a few hours, excuse me, five hours, but really the first few minutes of trying to help get this woman away from individuals who appeared to be trafficking her, uh, and so much happened that has confirmed in so many ways that the situation she um was in was dangerous. Uh in the situation that she continues to be in from the Stockholm syndrome UM, you know,

is very very dangerous. And they also look at the Jordan's year as a time to traffic more individuals to make more money leading into major events like Super Bowl, All Star Weekend and all the major events that we see happening. There are people who have an underground UM, underground economy going on, and the currency is the bodies of women and men, women, men, children, UM of all different races. But there's something special we know about black

bodies UM. And you know, I I really need to emphasize for folks the danger of what we see going

on out here with this human trafficking issue. You talk about sex trafficking, but human trafficking covers a lot of things including oregon um stealing of the stealing of organs um where people are picked up, maybe used in sexual ways and other ways and then killed to remove lens, to take hearts, body parts to be sold off to people who have resources UM that need for their own family member or for whatever black market is out there. Or let's not call it black, let's say the underground

market that's out there. Um. Human trafficking has a lot involved. But when we think about it, the first thing that comes to mind is women. Right, we think women first, and we should think about women because I'm sure women are props are the highest uh victims if you will, of human trafficking. But we also must make sure that we know so that we can keep ourselves, our young boys,

um and and just all of us safe. Is that men are also a part of this um and and the issue of uh uh being men being mules where you see people who are working to capture still um you know uh uh yeah those things um uh women or other people oftentimes they are also a part of uh. They have also are also being traffic and they are a mute where their sin out to go do this work and they have to come back with people or else their family members are threatened with violence or and

or death. Um. They may be in a situation where a husband, wife or a daughter and father have both been captured, and the more harm will come to the child if the parents, if the father or the brother does not go out and do these things and use their male stature to be able to take over a woman in her body and to um you know, bring her into this human trafficking culture. These are things we

need to know and we need to understand. Shout out to our sister Tony rivera UM that has been on this show and people see her national This is a woman who was a victim of trafficking who also helped to traffic other women UM and now is a part of the h of trying to help rescue and free UM people fall from the other you know, the just scary, horrific lifestyle of trafficking UM. And she educated me that

there's so much we don't know about this. And I was having a conversation with someone that's really close to us that I would not expose today. And it took me about twenty to thirty minutes to get this person to stop saying, but how could you want to go back, like after you have already been you know, you see

your family members, you should just run. But actually the mental abuse and the level of skill that these individuals have to be able to get into the minds of these young women, especially also when they tell you that they're going to kill your family and they show you pictures, and they show you addresses of your grandmama's house, right, and they show themselves standing next to your father in the grocery store, and your dad doesn't even know that

that person who that uson is right. Uh, he doesn't even know he's standing next to the person who is threatening to kill him. Right. When they show you that type of stuff, a lot of folks feel like they feel afraid, and they begin to believe that there that that their decisions could disrupt the lives of the people around them and could could really be harming other people.

And so it's a real dangerous place. There's been a lot of incidents where people have been talking Tsha Campbell, folks just trying to destroy Tisha Campbell but coming out and explaining the incident that happened where she felt like some men pulled up to a hotel and we're trying to get her on the van uh the radio host Egypt. She also was talking about an incident that happened at

a gas station. And for some reason, we are quick not to believe people who have never been like I don't know Tisha Campbell to be some liar that just make some stories about an incident. Why people live about she just detrimental to them, Like it's just I just don't know. I mean, what history does. Why does teacher Campbell does not need press? Like she just doesn't you know, but you know it's just a lot, but you know, hey, whatever, anyway, I I believe her. I believe Egypt. I believe that

these things have happened Um. And and more than that, I saw it with my own eyes going down just days ago, and the way in which this whole thing unfolded, it told me that I even have to be a lot more careful about my surrounding to my safety. So I just wanted to drop that on you. You talked about health and people taking care of themselves, and I saw that equalox Um had signs up that said we

don't speak January. So they did not take any new members during January because they said, this is not the time to run to the gym. You you're you are spending money you may not be able to maintain. They gotta start contracts, great, great contracts. Come back. You know, sue you for not go not sue you, but whatever they do to get their money. When you don't, you

cut off the card and stop paying your membership. Then you know you've got gyms packed where people who are really in their process, they in their bag, they're really working out, they can't even get on machines because the gym is full of folks that's walking around, just getting on stuff, playing around that are not really committed. And

so they said January, they don't speak that language. You need to start at the time that's after the euphoria of a new year, when you really, really truly are committed to the process of health and and you know, in your wellness. So I don't know if I agree. You know, some ways, I think some people are like if you don't catch them when they are feeling it,

they may never get back into it. Uh. But then I also understand that, you know, you want to make sure that that I think it's actually it might some what might look at it as being responsible for a business to say, hey, let's take a step back from a new year's resolution and really think about what a

new mind needs. So did that? Well, listen, I agree, man, because people don't want to waste their time, and they probably you know, I know, they probably get a lot of new emissions and they get some money, but just the process of like you said, of them having after you try to break the contract and you change the card, the money they lose probably doesn't even make up for, you know, the inconvenience you overcrowding the gym for weeks.

The people that normally come there are not comfortable, like you know, they want they want to create. When you go to a gym, it's like it's a sanctuary, right, It's it's a it's your mine, so you want you want your gym to be it's like a home. It's like a second home. Actually, it's a place that you go.

You you you there's a level of comfortability, normalcy. You see the same people, or you see a couple of new people here and there, and they integrate them into the process, into you know, the gym world and the gym family. But when it's overloaded and people just come in for a couple of weeks, it takes away that passion that those who really really want to do have. So I'm I'm all for being a gym rack being

someone who goes to the gym. I understand, you know, how a gym needs to create this level of people who are passionate about it, because that's that's that's what the world is. So shout out to equal knots and that we don't speak January. I appreciate it. Yeah, that's funny. That so funny. Oh she what was the next thing? Okay, Well, obviously the House of Representatives and UM the government, the

federal government, they don't speak January either. They speak late January because they were supposed to elect a speaker at the very very top of the month and it didn't happen for several days. I mean, I kind of feel like I think it was January six. I think it was January six late nights, either the fifth late night or late night on the sixth that they were they were able to elect Um McCarthy as the Speaker of

the House. And I tell you it's it's interesting because January six is like we just I don't know, Like I'm still trying to figure out at what point something is gonna happen other than some random people who are there. It's like it's like the random people, Yes, they need to be arrested or or or held accountable. Let's use the words held accountable. So t T and boobo them who's selling drugs on the street corners. Yes, they have to be held accountable. They are the ones that are

terrorizing communities. They shooting at night, they are uh, you know, making grandmothers feel unsafe and all of that. But the goal should always be to find out who got T T Boo boo and them on the street like that should be the goal, the the the guests. They should be worked into that. And what we always say is we want to find ways to make sure that the resources T T and Google needs so they don't even ever have to go in the direction of being on

the treets. Right that that we we figured that out,

And that's a whole separate side of the conversation. But where there is a comparison, right, is that because unfortunately, the people who committed an insurrection on January six, And the reason why I say this is that that comparison is it doesn't exist um in in this sense that they want things for our society that would pretty much oppress others and would take us back further than we're already sliding to a time where the power was literally only in the hands of the rich, the successful, and

the white right. That is what they want. That's what they're calling for, that's what they're fighting for. That's what the insurrection is all was all about. Right, So, you can't give them anything that's gonna make them happy or that is going to solve this problem. You can give Poop Pooky and and t T and boob nowm gow to get them off the streets and hopefully help them with the life of prosperity. Right, But you can't give these people anything to help them or to calm their

concerns because a part of them. You can give them something you can't give them because you can just get give them the country, just tell them, right, because it doesn't hurt anybody to ensure that our brothers and sisters have resources, but it will harm other individuals to provide full rain for these crazy people to become to to

lead our free work. Right that that that's problematic. So when I think about the context of all of that, what we know is that the comparison does come together when you start thinking about who is the end that the who is inciting the behavior that of the people running up the walls. It's like the Rico charge, Why why why do they gotta You know, there's Yeah, there's a k fin who's the king fan? You know what? Yeah, go ahead, that's what it is. We're trying to find.

Nobody is really trying to find the king because we know who the kingpin is, and nobody really wants to dive into that. And I don't understand why when we we've seen who said, you know, go take back your country. We've seen who incited this, right, we've seen the major players who who who cause you know this real insurrection, and and and the low hanging fruit is it's simple

to just get the dealers. But just like in America, most of the time, they'll get to the is, but they don't want to get the kingpins because they're benefit of the kingpins. Those kingpins are selling billions of dollars worth the drugs that are funding certain things, and that's

a part of their system. So they they've allowed those kingpins, those key pens actually worked for the government, so they don't they don't stop the government people who are making money, and and they're utilizing these millions and billions of dollars to do certain things. So they'll grab pukie off the corner. Who was the last stop, you know, who got the last little the remnants of the drugs that they couldn't sell no else. You know, that there wasn't as pure

enough for them to sell all around this world. So that's that's where we are when we look at this insurrection situation. Everybody knows where it comes from. We know who the kingpin is, we know who the major distributor is, we know the person who called for it, and we know that the major players are and and and until we really get to that, you know, we're wasting our time.

You know, that's it's nothing else to be said. That's my point is that we should be looking for the big fish and that you know, the Commission did that, and they you know, came forward to say that, Okay, you know, we we pretty much have pinpointed Donald Trump's roll who the Giuliani's broke, but there's still been arrests,

so you know, that is what it is. But I just thought that, you know, it's important to note that as we were in this delay of fifteen votes, uh in order to get a speaker confirmed, which by the way, you know, it's it's it. And also you know, of course we have to make sure that we uh uh and knowledge that for the first time in history, a black men and I Keem Jeffreys from Brooklyn that we know well and could roll up on in the streets

is um the leader of the Democratic Party. And that is good because you know, I mean from a symbolic perspective, that is extremely important because it shows some of our progress. However, we do have issues, fundamental issues with Hakim about his voting record and his position, especially on the issue of um of of you know, us being able to fight incumbents with your people who are sitting in positions across the country and they've been there forever and their way

of thinking and approaching government is um. It's it is, it is, it is. I want to say worked, but just but but it's just old, you know, it's just it's just our chade. It's just you know, old mindset that needs to change and we do and you know, and he has issues with progressives and I got some issues with some progressive but I do, you know, but I am. I think we can push Hachem on a lot of issues because we know him and we know

how to have conversations with him. And so having him sit at the head of the Democratic Party is important, but he will not budge, move or do anything if we're not organized as a people. We have to constantly remind him where he comes from, his background, his history of fighting against police brutality, of being in the street and organized and with black and brown folks for marginalized community ease um, and we gotta keep on him about that.

At the same time, the speaker in a different role is the head of you know, Nancy Philosophers the speaker, and she was, of course, um uh, you know, she was the leader of the Democratic Party. But now you have a majority of Republicans in Congress, and therefore you would now have McCarthy as the head, as the speaker, which is a lot of power. The problem with that is he had to make a lot of concessions. That's

what those fifteen votes were about. They vote with we with fifteen rounds to get a speaker because they wanted concessions. They wanted him to agree to a number of things. That actually is the same thing as what we talked about, trying to give those people who were running up and down the sides of the wall of the Capital things that they want um in order for them to feel like they're in the America that they dream of, the America they want to go back to. And so it's

gonna be a fight. It's a battle, and God forb God blessed those people who don't know how serious and significant these moments are and what's taking place right before our eyes. Yeah, it's definitely gonna be a battle, you know. And I just think, you know, I'm you know, I was a little disappointed, and then I got and then when I started learning, because a lot of times you just when you don't know, you get a little frustrated.

And when I looked at overall with the Democratic Party, they you know, they're starting to have a little more of the back, you know. And I think that, you know what, what I've been saying a lot, that the GOP is intentional about what it is that they want and they don't care about what they have to do to get it, you know, and and and and it's not always nice. It's not always kombay. They're very rarely coom by, y'alls. And I think the Democratic Party has

to take that same approach. You know, it's not about kumbay. It's about making sure that the constituents and our voters and the people vote for us, are satisfied that we're doing everything possible to do what we promised them. You know. That's that's what I want to see, you know, and hopefully what's our king Jefferies. You know his speech though

it was symbolic, it was mainly symbolism. I'm hoping that symbolism starts to transfer into actual process in progress and you know, and and things that we need as a people and as a culture. Yeah, you know, only one thing I wanted to drop in here. It was an incident in New York where there was a young girl who um the police officer. There was a fight and the police officer was trying to break it up, and and he ended up attacking and brutalizing this young girl,

punching out her head, punching on her face. Kids were there, They fought, They fought to try to get her free from the grips of the officer, and it was recorded. Uh. The officer was suspended without pay, and the mayor came out quickly. Mayor Adamson said that the officer was wrong. Yes, you gotta deal with the fight, you gotta deal with the kids, you gotta deal with all of that, but at the end of the day, the office and had no right to be on the young girl the way

that he did. Um and you know, I got I had people actually had you know, f you, but they were there was someone I saw And I don't know why. Instagram has this new thing where anybody that that tags you or shares the story, you can see it in your stories, like that's the most annoying thing in the world. But I happen to see a lot of people tagging me to this incident. First of all, yes, I was on vacation, and unfortunately I know that for a lot of us, even for myself, we believe that you know

you you. It's like the type of work we do, there's no vacation from it. You just gotta be ready to go all the time. But what I have learned from being in I've been I've been in this role for our thirty years of my life, and I also have served other individuals, and I know it is unhealthy to work the way that we do. At times, you

can't even process your thought for growth. You can't even figure out what is next and what you need to be fighting for in this work when you're just constantly responding to trauma all the time, and constantly engage in

the massive movements, um you know, fighting for change. Those things are good, but you've got to build a bench of other individuals that are gonna be out there carrying the torch and continuing the work and even coming up with new projects and things that they're doing, where you could just support them if it's nothing more than a phone call, so that you can mentor them through their own process. You cannot kill yourself being on go all the time, and so being on vacation, it was difficult.

It was difficult not to sit on the phone with Quila, which is Chamquilla robinson sister, every day. The way we have been talking right before the holidays, trying to figure out what's our rategy. Even she and I had to take a break right so that we could come back with fresh ideas. It's difficult not to be engaged in everything that we see, but it's a discipline that I

know I've had to learn. I've had to learn that a comment on everything I can't do, and that sometimes I have to actually disappear in order to be renewed and restored. And so when I saw the video of the young girl getting punched. I saw it from places with individuals that I know we're gonna do work, like they were gonna get it going. I know that I already know these people who sent it to me, the people who tagged me and shared it with me. I

knew what they were gonna do. But to your point, after it kept coming and coming and coming, and you know, I'm not like, I'm trying to not ignore it, but trying to be like, let's just you can't. There's gonna be a police violence incident before, after, during, There's going to be reasons, family problems, everything's gonna still be there when you return from these two weeks of time that you're taken off right, and there's so many people out there to do great work that you can jump in

and support them as soon as you get back. And but I kept seeing it. I kept seeing it, so I decided, let me just inquire about what's going on, so I could make sure if until Freedom could be engaged, that there are other people on our team like you and Linda, who are ready to go at all times. And then as soon as I've checked into it, the

officer had already been suspended without paying. What I want to say is to your point about how keen speech was very his ABC speech where he talked about what the Democratic Party can be, which I don't agree with all of it, because there's racism that exists right there within the party, and there is sexism and a lot of other issues right within the party. That has to be if you really are going to with a speech like that, it needs to match the reality of what

it's taken place. And I sat with that right and I and I was I was thinking about this incident with the officer. Our goal should be, to your point, to see realization of what we've been fighting for. Our goal should not be that we have to have the same exact response every time to these issues. We have to fight so much, so hard, so like to the to the detriment of our bodies and minds and our spirits. We should be able to see that come to realization.

And when an officer attacks a young girl and then it's suspended without pay, yes there's more work to do because you've got to ensure that the process continues all the way to the end to where he loses his job and potentially even is charged with assault for the abuse of a young child. So there's more work to be done, but the first step it took hell. And

it's not just until freedom to meet a mate. We're talking about years years lineage, if you will, in this movement of passing of the bat, time you got the you have the movement that has existed in New York to change police and policing culture for so long. I think about Hazel Dukes. This is a woman who's nineties something years, ninety years old who's been out there fighting to get an officer suspended without pay. Is it a lot, No, but it is different and that is what we need

to be working to us is how we work. We work hard, but then we see results. And so I just wanted to say that because when people are like I saw what I was saying about f you is Somebody was like, oh, well, you know you ain't saying nothing. You know, you you want to Internet post and cute pictures to yourself, but you're not saying anything about this

girl being abused. And I'm like, yo, yeah, we were so traumatized that we live in a space of attacking other people even when they've done the work to make a change. Let me just get to this other topic because I want to make sure that we do not miss uh, this moment of education. I brought it up earlier talking about Dr King's birthday, and it is obviously coming up now. Um. You know, in just a few days, we will be remembering Dr King during his birthday, remembering

his contributions to society. Um. And I didn't know. I don't know where my head was under a rock. I must not have been listening. But I did not know that Stevie Wonders Happy Birthday song, which the black version of Happy Birthday that we sing at every birthday function. You do the first Happy Birthday and then you come with Happy Birthday too, like that's our thing, right. I did not know that that song was dedicated to Dr King for his birthday. But it wasn't just about his birthday.

This is the part that is powerful, the birthday piece, Yes, but it was actually after Dr King was dead. Right. So Dr King was killed in nineteen sixty eight, and there was uh, John Congressman John Conyears, God rest his soul. He introduced a bill to make Dr King's birthday a

national holiday. We all know that it took fifteen years to get it done, and throughout the process you had different elected officials that were fighting and activists and black folks are advocating to make sure that this became a holiday. But of course you had resistance from the other side. Actually, a Republican Senator, Ed Brooke was the one to introduce it the last time. We're actually passed in the Senate,

so you know it was. It was definitely a bipartisan effort, but there certainly were more people Republicans and conservatives and racists and otherwise who were pushed him back and resisting having Dr King's birthday become a holiday. This is a testament, this part that I'm about to say to how important our movements are and how important it is to have

everyone play a role. One of these days in life, people will look back at my son and say, wow, you created this song or this spoken word at this time that helped us to articulate our needs and or to bring attenion to Sandra Bland, who's in uh. I don't have the right to do nothing. And you have so many different pieces that that represent different parts of our experience since we have been actively leading in this movement.

The reason why BB Wonder created this song was because he was basically using it as a clarion call to get the date pass, to get the legislation pass to make Dr King's birthday a holiday. So he created this song as part of a movement, as part of a protest, if you will, um to to galvanize people to respect Dr King, to honor Dr Kings, and to support what Congressman Kanyer's was trying to do. And so everyone played

a role. He may not have been speedy wonder out there pumping his fists and go into Congress, but that song gave us another rally and cry, gave us something else to join in and and and to help to exactly.

And so you know, when we celebrate Dr King's birthday, we need to know this didn't just happen and what like some people just got together nice It's fifteen years, a fight, a song, and a community of determining individuals and some bipartisan support is what it took to get Dr King's birthday solidified so that we will always remember a giant like him. So, you know, happy birthday, Dr King.

All the love and respect, and we know that there is a model that exists that we right now have the ability to continue, which is that every single one of us, no matter your talent, no matter where you want to be in this movement, you have a pro to play. And as a result of that, look at where we stand today. That's my thought of the day is look at where we are today because some people sacrifice and took all of our resources and put it in a pile of suit. Imagine where we could go

if we continue to do that work. Look at that work, man, put that work in. Man. Shout out to Dr King as we celebrate as you approach his birthday and we celebrate what it is that he's meant to our people and the evolution and the growth and just you know, the fight for justice and equality in this country. We salute you King absolutely. You know, I know I'm I'm going back, circling back. But one of the things that they did to try to stop I want to read

this from uh Dr Julianne Malvo. Dr Julianne Malvo is a historian. She's a great leader, she is a professor. She is um one of the mentors of black women scholars in this nation. If you don't know Julienne Malvo, you should learn more. About her. But this is a piece that she wrote, The King Holiday reflects our resilience.

And this is just one piece that I want folks to know because you know, as people look at us and certainly we're not trying to be or or liking ourselves to Dr King, but we would like to live up to his work. But listen to what one of the individuals who opposed the legislation, this is what he did. His name was Senator Jesse Helms. He is a Republican north from North Carolina. He passed out binders full of lies about Dr King, described men him as a communist

and worse things. He sat around basically what the buinder of stuff, just the same way like social media is the new binder. Dr King is a liar, called him a communist, called him, called him a danger to UH to America. He said, he said Dr King, he said that Dr King was everything terrible. This is even in Dr King's death. Dr King was dead and he was still saying these horrible things and telling these horrible lies about him. And that was what he was using to

try to block the holiday. So when you see people out here who are accusing folks of misappropriation, of funds. They are accusing people when some people do do that, but nonetheless, misappropriation of funds, uh lying, cloud Chase and all of that on social media is the new binder that Dr King had to deal with when he was being well. He was already dead, but even before that he had been uh titled if you will, or had

been labeled the most dangerous man in America. That binder now exists in the form of comments on social media. And we know all too well with that credit to discredit man. You know, there there's the's a playbook, you know, and we watched it, We've seen it, we've experienced it, we felt it, we've seen it happen to all our leaders. And the main way to discredit us is through media.

You know, now that we have social media, you have people who who have no knowledge, people don't even have a face, that are able to discredit you and make claims, baseless claims that they can't prove, you know, and and and and then we have a people who are so consumed by negativity that they just grabbed onto that because you know, like my brother Charlotmagne always says, who kids

about the truth when a lot is more entertaining. You know, when a lie is entertaining and it says that somebody who who does positive things is negative and somebody people like, wow, really this person and they can go dirt on your name and they can somehow to fame you and discredit you. Is it leads for a more story at least for a better story on you know, social media. People want to hear that. They don't want to hear all the positivity.

They want to they want to be able to tell you that there's a lot of people, not all people. There's a lot of people. So I just want to shout out, shout out to brothers you know who are doing things. You know, we weren't gonna talk about it, but shout out to meet mill Man. This because the negativity is always overshadowed by the positivity. Brothers, that the positivity is always overshadow about the negativity. It's not there there you go. The positivity is you know, the negativity

is always over the positivity is always overshadowed by the negativity. Yes, you are right, and I stand correctly. You know, Brothers started reform. He's bringing people home from jail Christmas, he build out mothers who are incarcerated. He's constantly doing positive things in the community with children, you know. Shout out to NBA young boy who started this non violence you know campaign that he's been doing, and he's actually teamed up with former people that he would be from what

to give out toys and communities. Shout out to Bobby's murder who came home. And it's intentional about being in detention centers, dealing with at risk you people who are incarcerated, young youth who incarcerated, who don't have, you know, role models, and who don't have positive influences. And these people are doing this work. And I know they're doing this work,

and it's not publicized as it should be. You know, it's not it's always the negativity that gets highlighted when they get into argument, discredit, you know, and all these sites, you exactly, but and I know we're human, but I just would I want to give the credibility and I want to give the positivity somebody because they're definitely doing positive things. You know, in the situation that just happened

with me, you know, I speak. I spoke to him and he talked about how could have been ugly, you know, everybody's drinking. He's he's arguing about the fight. He's talking about how Tank is gonna win. And the guy him got into some words and he was there with a bunch of his friends and and and cooler, and he said to himself, I'm not gonna I'm not gonna allow this to turn into more than that. Yeah, there was

back and forth. He knew a bunch of his friends, some of them who who have higher temperance, they don't have as much to lose. And what he did was immediately lead. He said, let's go. He said, I was in there a bunch of my friends and we left it without incident. You know. And rather than being praised for that, this we're always gonna be the part that there's the argument, there was this, and that no praise

the man because he was able to de escalate. He he separated itself from a situation that could have been drafted. You know. So I want to I want to applaud that. I want to start highlight because we always call out coward culture and I call out the negativity of our black brothers because I want us to hold ourselves accountable. But I also want to highlight we do positive things. So I want to make sure so those brothers understand that we see you and we love that you are

taking that role. We love that you invol We love that you are recognizing that you have the power to escalate, you have the power to do something better. You you know, you you're walking into that power. That's what gangster is to me. So those those brothers right there that I just described, those what I call gangsters, I want to salute them. Yeah, absolutely, I love that. I have nothing

more to add. I appreciate what you just said. And I think we you know, and I've even had to learn that in our human moments that you know, you gotta make good decisions. You gotta make decisions that especially when you're drinking and you out. But I'm gonna be honest with you, my son, as I was watching the incident, Yes, I know, those things could turn into violence, It could turn into a bigger thing. It could turn into something that goes on next week or your camp to get

into a fight. But I've been my whole life since I was a little girl, especially coming up in the South, you know, being with my family in the house whenever there's a sports event or something that is, it's tense. I've seen the men get into big arguments and maybe even start stuckling with people. Gotta be like getting relaxed, like y'all are doing too much. So for us, we used to see in these types of things and the

energy and everybody starts getting into it. I've always say that, but you know, but when the media gets involved, to your point, they're going to stretch it for their content that clicks in their LIFs. When the truth is generally those incidents in exactly as it did, people calm down, other people got involved, say listen, relax turned down, and then you know, people get to go home safe. So you know, I'm just saying it don't really get us as rattled as it does some people because we used

to seeing folks get super aggressive around sports events especially. Yeah, now it doesn't give me. Rather, it's just that I know that the media has a way to perpetuate things.

And I know in those situations when there's a lot of people, you're in the front row of the fight and you're somebody and he's somebody, and then you have entourages, nobody wants to really lose, right, So when those things is publicized and publicly, somebody gets beat or hit, you know that that turns into the next level of gun play. It's not it's not like it used to be. You know, people used to have a fight and you go on and his energy. But right now everything is super hype,

you know, super super hyped up. So you know, I'm glad that cooler has prevailed. And I wanted salute me for for being just being having that foresight because there was times that he didn't, you know what I'm saying, in his growth and you see the growth. You see the growth from the Safari situation to now you see and let's let's promote that, man, Let's celebrate that. Let's say, your brother, we appreciate you. You are you're doing You're doing what's supposed to be done in this culture. Man.

So that's that, all right. Well, you've got a guest coming up today. Are someone that you broke to be on the show who has an impactful story himself, and then on top of his story being so impactful, he also um is now doing something for some other individuals that really need help. So let's welcome them the street politicians. So today we have a special guest this brother was convicted of a crime, wrongfully convicted of a crime, then exonerated,

and then went on to become a lawyer. Um. I heard of his story from my brother shot brother to make us shock and sing, and he said, you've got to meet this brother. And we had a good conversation. And his brother is very, very passionate. No reminds me a lot of myself. You know, after being wrongfully convicted, you come home and you have this will and this drive to just want to do better. Um, and this brother is just that. His name is Jared Adams. How

are you doing today, King, I'm doing well. Thank you both for having me on the big fans of you all for quite some time. And I'm just appreciative to have this platform to talk about my my clients in this story. Before we get to clients, you know, give a little bit. So you were wrongfully convicted of a crime. What was this crime? You know, what was the process of you going about getting exonerated and didn't coming to actually become an attorney? Yeah? Well, I was falsely accused

of a rate at the age of seventeen years old. Um. A lot of it had to do with brace, you know, simply put. You know, my accuser was a white girl. Um my mom didn't have any money to afford an attorney. And I sat and I watched what I thought I knew about the justice system, you know, totally, you know, crumble down of the reality of what the criminal justice system really is. I got to to prison term in eighteen years old, and all I had was in high

school education. So I knew I needed to find a way to be able to communicate my innocence because at the time I didn't know how. I started to do the same thing that a lot of brothers do when they're getting this situation. When I started to fight for myself.

I educated myself through having aunties you know who mailed me case law, to reading in the paper about attorneys and reaching out to them, acting questions, and eventually the Wisconsin Innocence Project took my case, litigating my case all the way up to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals where my conviction was unanimously reversed. My record was ultimately expunged, and I came home and started the healing process with therapy.

Then I was able to go ahead and get my associate's degree bachelor's degree, law degree, and I clerked in the same circuit that overturned my conviction before I started to work for the Innocence. That's incredible, the just the storyline. It sounds like a movie. You know. It's like, if we didn't know and see you here as a living breath in person, it would be, you know, a great uh story and and story of triumph for TV. And

we know that aren't often imitates life. So much of what we see as the depictions on the screen are things that are actually happening to so many people, and particularly black people. And then even more specifically black men um and the issue of rape um and the issue of the black male put in the position of being called the rapenist by white women is a very very significant issue. Can you tell us a little bit about that?

What was the story? What happened? And then and then again, I know you're kind of going over the same thing, but then, what was the process of exoneration from something that series? It's like, what did the the entity Wisconsant Innocence project here and see in your story that made him want to take your case? So I told the complete beginning from the end in my book that I

have autter eve Injustice. But the best way to get to it was this, if you could think about what happened with m. TiO, That's exactly what happened to me and my two the friends you. We were invited to uh to a party where a consensual encounter took place, and there was a false accusation that bore out of it.

We didn't find out until like months later, and when we got to face these charges, the narrative had totally changed into what we normally see the historical depiction of black men's are where ravagers savagers, and it was basically like we were guilty and had to prove our innocence. The truth is, we went to this party, we were invited up, this young lady invited us into a room. My roommate walked in on this encounter, and from that

started these false accusations that grew into a narrative. Still, I'd have no idea where they came up and created this stuff from. So we're we're now faced with seventeen years old. None of us have ever been in any trouble with the law at all, and so our attorneys are telling their strategy that we can only have the hope was true, but it wasn't. This case was tried on race and it had absolutely no evidence besides the accusation.

And then where we come to find out is the police withheld the statement from a college student that undermined the entire accusations and he corraborated our version of events. That statement was never turned over to us during trial. So that's what the Innocence Project was ever to obtain, which resulting in us being being exonerating. I asked about that the Innocence Project piece because so many people contact us, um,

you know, claiming their innocence. Uh, they're advocating for themselves, and they're looking for organizations, groups and otherwise to pick up their stories. Especially the project. I think I get the most calls asking can I connect somebody within any project to uh, you know, so many, especially brothers I don't often, which I think is also, um, pretty scary. We don't really hear from women as much who are

in prison. Understanding that black women are the fastest growing population in prison, we don't really hear much from women saying can you help me get my sentence overturned? Right here? From our brothers will all the time. What did you say to the Innocence Project? What did that look like? Um? And because I would imagine that because they took your case, it's one of the things that encouraged you to work

on the two individuals that you're gonna talk about today. Yeah, and and to your point to me, to listen, women are the fastest growing because of the numbers of black men that they've been going through at a at a rate of like pac Man, right. And and the thing about it is I actually represent, you know, some women, and I'm investigating their cases and claims of actual innocence

as well. The horrible thing about women and wrongfully going for convictions is that oftentimes women who are rongfully convicted, they are roomfully convicted of not like painous murders, but of actual depths of their own kids, which is even more traumatic to think about. The science hadn't called up to shaking baby syndrome, right, And so you know, if the science is off and you're accusing mothers of wrong doing, well, who do you think, Barrett the brunt of those accusations.

Before the science caught up, it was black women, it was women of color, and so it most certainly is an issue, and I wanted to just touch that before I go on too answer. And what I did was this, First, let me say this, I had some praying folks on my side, like my mother and my aunts would not allow my spirit to to to dissipate. Because of them, I was able to just live each and every day like I was preparing to come home the next day.

So I started to write as many people as I could, and I started to go through case law and articulate my case with the case that was, you know, in the news or the hottest topic, and eventually I was able to get the help that way. It's one of these things where you should ask for help, you should seek seek help, but you should also be helping yourself

by educating yourself as much as possible. The Innistance Project is an organization no different than the one that I've built called Life of the Justice, where we can only take so many cases right with two points something million people incarcerated, if only we had two per cent of those wrongfully convicted, that leaves thousands of people who are

wrongfully convicted, and the money ain't in this work. To me, you might saying, you know what I'm saying when I say that the money ain't in this type of work where you're advocating and where you're taking on cases for free. These cases can go on for five to seven years at a hundred plus thousand dollars you know, each case,

and so it's not easy. So when people are looking for help and they're just not getting their responses for organizations like the Innocence Project, it doesn't mean it's your case is bad. It doesn't mean that they want to help. It's just the reality that the resources are not here. The laws do not support people post conviction because most of the people claiming flaws in their post conviction look like us on this zoom right. Now. That's that's powerful.

So now let's get to um the case that you are. Now. When you when you explained to me, it was mind body, but I didn't even understand being form in cars rated to understanding, you know, just understanding the law and and just understand what I know the law to be. What you're saying to me just really didn't even make sense. So I just want you to give us a little

understanding about the case we're here talking about today. So I'll do my best because when you try to make some sense out of something that's senseless, it just don't make sense. But here's the story of Terrence and Ron not guilty, certain life. These are two young men born,

raised in the Waverley, Virginia area. There's an officer who's shot and killed around ten forty eleven a m. As they always do, there's a rush to judgment and around up of nothing more than than what I can call a roundup of young black men between the areas of Waverley all the way up to Richmond. Of a description that does not fit and never fit Terence and Farran's description. This officer is shot. The police immediately get there. He

gives a description. They started to go out looking for people when all alone they knew who the eyewitness, the only eyewitness had identified, was not Terence and Farran. That part of their case was buried. It was buried. No investigative journalists asks questions, and down in this town, in Waverley, which is one of the last known towns to ever do an open lynching, it was as quiet as an injustice could ever be. These guys are get this. They're

accused of killing the cop. Two black guys accused of killing the white cop, and they ultimately, trying to avoid the death penalty, plead guilty to accessory after the fact time server and the other pleaded guilty to man slide, thinking that if they did this they will be appointing the death penalty. I'll pause and say this, there was a time where we never believe that anyone would plead

guilty to anything that they didn't do. But with the sister able to Duverney in the central part five case, we've now become educated that people are put in situations where if they're trying to save their life and the lives of their families, they will make decisions that we're sitting there on our couch cannot understand. That is exactly

what happened with Terrence and for Ron. So now the family of the officer is they're mad and they're going to the Department of Justice and their accident Department of Justice to right or wrong because they believed that the people they were told that we're responsible for the death of their son, the officers Alan giveson. They believe that they got off to light. But the true reality is that it wasn't them, and that's why the prosecutor gave them the deals that they gave They ended up being

investigated by the FADS during eight months. By eight months, you know, eight months after the interer of a guilty plea, the Feds sit down a team of of undercover agents to do control bys of people in around this town. With those people that they were able to get controlled bys on, they used them to bring the federal case and the safe that the depth of Officer Gibson was the result of Terence at Iran being drug kingp in for teen years and that's how the death happened as

the furtherance of the drug conspiracy. They ended up being tried in federal court for the same murder that they played guilty to trying to boy the death penalty. They're now facing the death penalty and federal court for this same murder, and it's wrapped in a drug conspiracy that has no drugs, no proceeds from drugs, no photos, no recorded conversations, no baby mamas with with with with houses, no chains, no gold teeth. If I told somebody that I had a baby, you would expect to see rattles

and strollers and stuff like that. So if you say someone has been dealing drugs for teen years. You would expect to see proceeds, you drug parapherniliar something, Absolutely no evidence at all, they bring forth this case. And again this is as quiet as an injustice as you're ever here, because something like a cop being killed is normally national news.

But the reason why it wasn't was because they knew that these guys had nothing to do with it, and so did the jury, who ultimately they found these guys not guilty of the murder, but found them guilty of one drug count. Now I could go on and tell you my opinion of why I think the jury found them guilty of that one drug count. But to bring it to to where everybody can understand, think about the

neighborhoods we grew up in. Think about how you see a federal suite come through and they picked up guys that you know good and well, are living on air mama's couch, don't have any money nowhere near big time drug dealer, but they've charged them with the keenpn statute amongst the group of other people. That's exactly what they did to Terence and Iran with absolutely no evidence. So now these guys are now found guilty of this one

single drug count. This one drug count would have resulted in a hundred and twenty months to two hundred at most, depending on the calculation of the drugs and amount they were left to have. So using what is nothing more than a legal lynching is a case called US versus Watch where the court, despite the jury finding them not guilty, use the accusation of them being involved with the cops murdered and the state court guilty please to enhance their

sentence to life in prison. So essentially they robbed due process and saying we don't care what the jury says, we think they did it. Here goes your life sentence. And they've now been in federal prison for the last twenty five plus years. That's just unbelievable just listening to that, Like when you told me that before, you know, it didn't make sense, and the more you say it makes less and less and less sense. So so what what is the process now? What? What? What have you been doing?

You know, to try to write because you know when I when I spoke to you, you told me how you've been You really started investing your own money in this. This was something you looked at the injustice and you were so passionate about getting these brothers home that you started doing things that made it personal for you. I'll tell you this, um so, how I got involved with

this case. I'm doing a speaking event at the Virginia Sheriff's Association where where where brothers and sisters are getting their rights restored back to vote after completing and discharging a sentence. And at the end, you know, it was a lady who was standing in the line. She was at least about eight people back. But what stood out to for me was if you could see the wrinkles increases of anguish on the forehead as she's making her

way up to me. It reminded me of my mother, and I could rememb here being in the courtroom and I'm raised by all women, so to be accused of something of a rape and my mother and my aunts are hearing this, I would often turn around and look at them just to reassure them they know who they raised. This ain't true, and the regals increases of forehead on their forehead. I will never forget it. And when I saw this woman approaching me, it made me stop and

I said, I gotta find out what she wants. So she gave me a Manila envelope and it was it was Fran's Mary Clayboom, and I started to read the contents and I said, I give you my word, It's all I can give you. I said, I'll look and I'll work in this case until the evidence tells me to stop, because oftentimes, you know, you get cases and it just ain't the true. Man. People have plans and innocence,

and sometimes it just ain't the truth. I told her this, and two thousand and seventeen, I've not stopped working on this case. Since every piece of money that my firm is able bring in, I've donated a third of that to furthering the investigation of this case. I've hired former federal investigators, retired judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys to put together a panel and say here's what I found. You tell me if I'm wrong. Not one of them told me I was wrong. That's how sure I am about

this case. And that's why I'm here today to put the messaging out. Because if you could be accused of a crime, found not guilty, and still sentenced to life, what do we stand a chance in the system at all. What was the sentence for the guilty clean state for it? It was one year time served for for wrong right and it was a five year suspended like three years

suspended sentence for terrence. And this is a murder of a cop Tomka like, and no one, no one ever, no one ever said, well why did they get that? Well we know why because through this investigation I contacted the prosecutor who did the case. He says very clearly and adamantly, he never had the information that someone else was identified running away from the scene of the crime. We were able to put this stuff in front of him,

we were able to file us in the court. And still the court has said to us, yeah, we hear what you're saying, and we you might have a legitimate argument, but they should have brought this years ago, so therefore we don't want to hear it. That's just crazy. So isn't it. Usually what you look you will be looking for is a judgice and interests of justice. Indeed, indeed, I mean because because what we're talking about, like I said, is this, you're talking about a situation that's set up

for you not to win post inviction. When a person is convicted. It is designed for finality, not for justice. They are reviewing the case to see if any way they can say good trial. It's not gonna work in a case like this that screens actual innocence, right. Ruth get Ginsburgh said it best in one of her written opinions. Innocence should be the gateway over all procedural barriers, and

in this case it's ridiculously flawed. And that they aren't arguing with me about the innocence of these guys because the jury found them not guilty. They're not arguing with me that evidence in this case was with hail from them because they got the same record. So instead they've decided to say, well, they should have brought it twenty years ago. So therefore we're not gonna hear you said they shouldn't have brought it twenty years ago. They should have.

So basically, yeah, so and and and I have if if folks out here looking at this, I have some YouTube videos that pretty much educate us, like around post condition and the way it works is this. I would like to tell everyone that if you're innocent and you have the evidence, that's all you need, that's not the case. So post conviction works like this. After you're convicted, you have a certain amount of time to bring arguments. I can't tell you why that is, but that's just the

way that the system is set up. Some will argue that is set up that way to give true victims the right to put closure on their case. But there's a way to do it while still preserving people's right to fight for their innocence, because they are innocent people who are there. But it's designed to keep you in a short time limit to bring these arguments. And what that does is this, it puts It puts people who in the criminal justice system that any percent, if not higher,

rely on public defense. It put people who at post conviction couldn't afford the attorney to represent them at the initial stage even further behind because now you need an attorney to do these challenges to the actual conviction, and they have to do it within time frames that are like a year two years, and if you missed them, they literally will not hear arguments and will block you

as a result, And it simply makes no sense. And then what happened has to happen is this, you now have to go from the court of law to the court of public opinion in order to hope that someone looks at the case becomes disturbed enough, compelled enough, or politically indicted enough to do what is right. And that's what Terence I a Ron's case is. And I'll expand upon that. We made the file into the Virginia and

Pellic Court acting that they be granted actual innocence. During the time, there was a Democratic Attorney General by the name of Mark Herron who was in office in Virginia. His office took a whole entire year to investigate everything that I alleged. They came back and in the seventy eight page following they agreed with us and said that Terence and Ran should be granted their actual innocence and

their convictions should be reversed. The problem is Harry lost his seat before the actual court hearing, and a Republican, Jason Mairis took office. And when he took office, he reacted back and I don't even know how he can do this, and we're arguing about this in the Virginia Supreme Court. Now. He retracted the support of his his his you know, redecessor and literally said, well, these guys came too late with this argument. He never said anything

about their guilty. He never said anything about this Attorney general view the evidence. And in the r own life he simply said, these guys playing guilty. They should have brought this long ago, don't do And how how so you have the Supreme Court in Virginia. Is there a higher court that this can be taken to after it is? And so right now there's two things going on. We have a part. We have a pardon clemency request on the desk of the President right now. I mean it's

it's there. All of the details and facts are there, um and the President can sign this and either pardon them or commute their sentence at any time. The argument that we're making to the Virginia Supreme Court is that you cannot reverse course in the middle of litigation just because of a political change in climate. And that's exactly

what happened in their case. So our argument to the Virginia Supreme Court is happening on the week of February fourteen, and we're hoping that they order it that down to the state court to allow us the opportunity that we've never had, and that's the power to have an evidentiary hearing where we can subpoena witnesses and support and get them sworn under oath to testify as to how the evidence of an identification of another suspect that happened less

than one hour after the officer was shot, how did it not make its hands and the prosecutors or the defense attorneys back when this case happened. And we're just praying right now. And so this is the part of the reason why I'm here, because still this case is not when national and we're talking about the depth of a police officer. Do you understand that if I had it wrong, there would be no shortage of a thousand articles talking about this crazy black lawyer who making this

crazy argument. That's not happening because I'm right, And so I'm hoping that someone can help me push this thing over. And it's gonna take it's gonna take the attention of us the culture, because these are two black men who've been in there for a quarter century, but something that they not only didn't do, but they were found not guilty.

You h you know, I just want to I want to ask two more questions, and I know you've got a lot of you got word to do, and we we thank you for taking time out your busy schedule

to come here. First, I want to ask, just listening to this, how many people do you think, because we see people exonerated every day, you know, all of these things clearing people every day, how many people you think have been flawed by this process that you're talking about, that are actually innocent, who presented evidence and a judge has told them that they presented it too late. That's probably still sitting in prison right now. That's the first

question I want to ask. And then lastly, what what is it that we we can do to actually help this case? Because you know I'm you know, I was formally I'm formerly constate and wrongfully convicted of a crime, and I know that pain. When you described the mother of the wrinkles in the forehead, and you described being in that courtroom and looking and assuring your mother and your grandmother that they raised a certain person, I remember that.

I remember my grandmother being in court and I'm looking at her and then talking about me. It was one thing that one of the victims supposedly who I supposedly robbed, said to her that that that gave me some you know, gave her understanding that it was a lie. She was the victim, said that I got inside of his cab and I was smoking a cigarette. And my grandmother knows

how much I hate cigarettes. My grandmother knew that she would put me on punishment for two or three weeks because I wouldn't even go to the store about her cigarettes because I didn't want her to smoke. She knows her aunt I was, so the minute she heard that, she jumped up the screen. It had to be removed from the courtroom because she said, you were lying. My grandson would never smoke. No site where y'all lying on

my grandson. So that right there gave me some silence to knowing that she knew that what they were saying was alleged was wrong above me. But I just want you to answer those two things so that we can you know, let you go. You know, I can tell you this. The numbers are scary. They're scary. If we have of the two point three million people incarcerated, we have roughly somewhere around nine hundred thousand black men, right

just talking about black men. But if women numbers are increasing, So if you just take that and you say to yourself, if any of those folks are reliance on public defense, and this ain't a negative to talk about a public defender. This is to highlight how their job. They can't do it. They don't have the resources, they're overwhelmed. So I would say this the numbers from the Innocence Project, and John Grisson suggests that there's like two to three percent of

people who are wrongfully convicted. So if they're saying it's two, you know that it's probably about ten percent, right, because you know that people oftentimes plead guilty for things that they didn't do. They oftentimes are advised, you know, ill advised you know, to do to to go through and or proceeding that they shouldn't go through or way or whatever it is taken plea. We know that because before their bond reform, people would plead guilty because of the

how horrible the conditions were and county jails. So so if we really wanted to do and find out the numbers, we would have to go through and and each individual case.

And I'm gonna tell you I would say this, of the two point three million, I would say somewhere around of people who encountered the criminal justice system, are either rungfully convicted, um played because they just wanted it over with, you know, and and and or didn't have the resources to put up their defense and so again they just waved the white flag to get it resolved. This is

a culture thing. This is this is where where you have nineties some to percent of of prosecutors being white men, and they go on, oftentimes to become judges and then there they're they're handling cases and the city's like Chicago, Baltimore, where it's a revolving door of young black men that are coming before them. They start to become decessitized, and they just get rid of cases, get rid of cases,

get rid of cases. And that's what I'm saying. The numbers, if we peeled back the onion, it would terrify us. How many people are wrongfully convicted or planned guilty to something that they did not do. So tell us, tell us what you want us to do to help? How can we help? How com people sitting watching this interview help like? What? What? What is the process here? Here's how I think folks can help. I think we all

need to become educated about about these issues. And what I what I mean by that is the issues that directly affect us in our community. Um, they're more than just the legal conundrums, you know, they are intertwined with the with the problem that we still face and deal with in society and at its race that is prejudiced. We have a system that you cannot just keep changing the faucet. You have to rip up the floor and

change the pipes in order for it to work. So what we have to do is taste by case the most egregious to start with. We have to unify as a culture behind these cases and not just do it at the conclusion of the case. We have to do it all the way until that becomes legis slave ship that prevents this type of stuff from happening. As a result of the central Part five case, you can now

no longer interrogate kids without an adult. When it comes to Terence and for Ron's case, we need to demand that the court stops robbing due process of its power, specifically at a high rate to black men, when they're sentencing people and they are using what's called relevant conduct, which is nothing more than accusations by the government, and they're using it to enhance brother's sentence to life. So what we have to do is, in my opinion, visit

the website not Guilty Serving Life. Look at the YouTube. It tells you how to obtain a progow on Alterney. It tells you, um, you know the things that you need to look for when you evaluate needs cases. And more importantly, we need to sign this petition for Terence and for Iron, and we need to eradicate the use of relevant conduct. I'm telling you, if you look at the numbers, they ain't doing it to nobody with us.

That's who relevant conduct is being used against. Yeah, sounds sounds I mean you say, if so are articulate and it's like wrapped up in a bow and it's clear even though it's senseless. Um. But there are so many, as I said earlier, brothers, family members that we meet

that are explaining the exact same thing you're saying. They just may not be as articulate and able to describe it in depth, right, but they know what's happening not just to themselves, but to other brothers who are locked up right next to them in jails all across this nation, in prisons nation, federally and locally. Um. And we know that we know that the crime of unjustly convicting men of color, and particularly again black men, is big business.

People are making money off this, and so therefore, you know, why would a system you I had a family member telling me one day when we were talking about the campaign the closed Rikers Island in New York City, um, and that this particular family member is a correctional officer has now retired what was there in the system for many years. And when I was saying, you know, and this was just a conversation two years ago, I was saying, you know, they gotta close the jail because too many

people are dying. Which, by the way, since that conversation two years ago, we've had tremendous death people. Wows. It's since, you know, since for the last few years. And so um. She says to me, well, how where am I gonna work? You know where? What? Where will we get jobs? And it took a while for her to sit with in process and come back to me and say damn, because she is an advocate, right, she does believe in this

justice in the system. She is one of those or was an officer who tried to help in Carson rated individuals. So she was not she was she didn't realize how institutionalized she was. That this is business. This is about money. So if you close the prison, or if you allow those people who have not committed crimes, those people who are innocent, to go home, then where are you going to get the resources to keep this business operating? That keeps phone operators on the d m V system in

some states. Uh, That makes police uniforms, card parts uh. And moreover, that provides jobs and also contracts for so many including what is the our mark um making the uniforms and the food. I mean, there's so much business coming out of prisons, and we are the collateral. And the interesting thing about it as I sit and I listened to you, and then also just coming off of a time of quanza, and you know, we're just coming off of a time where we should be reflecting. Right.

We've always been a part of the chattel slavery right mentality, and this is what continues to happen today. In fact, even the invasion of our land in Africa was all about currency. It was all about using black bodies to build and to be the currency and the foundation of white wealth. UH. And of the power structure of now the American government, but there were other governments prior to this who have taken advantage of us. And so, you know, I agree with you that we've got to educate ourselves.

We've got to be educated outside of Hookie shouldn't be locked up. We've got to know why Hookie is locked up and what this system looks like and where that comes from. So, you know, that's my my soapbox for the day. Thank you for listening to my ted talk um, but I appreciate you coming and you know and and sharing with us this story of these two brothers, Terrence and Pharran, who need to be free. You know, it's

very clear. And I think that even though I don't know you well, I believe just from Shaka being our brother, listening to you today, uh, that you wouldn't even be involved in this situation if you did not know one that these brothers should be free. And that's enough for me to feel like we should do all that we can to help advocate for you. And the last thing

I will say is that the clemency piece is important. Right, Um, there was so much drama my son and I have been involved in Instagram and and well my son does Twitter. I wouldn't open Twitter. Every time I open it, I'm traumatized. Um, but just just the smell of Twitter or someone saying it makes me sick. But we've been involved in these

online wars about Brittany grind and coming home. And one of the things that uh, you know, we have had to say to those even our own brothers and sisters that question Britney's return and how she was the trade that was done in order to get her free is um, you know people. Basically, what I've had to say is that we as black women have done business with the Biden administration. Right. We voted for this administration ninety four plus percent and have continuously bailed out the Democrats from

from Warno twice. Um, maybe even more than that, because somewhere they told me warn this is his fifth election. I don't know when that happened. But nonetheless, there's been at least two big runoff situations that we have had to go into Georgia from the activist level to black women and then voting for the that candidate. And there's been so many races around the country. So we deserved

Brittany grinder to get free because we said so. So the the pardon or sentence come mutation that you're talking about, we also should be demanding that in the same way. It is not to say Brittany shouldn't be free. What it does mean, though, is because we did business with the administration and we see that it works, we know there's a presidential election coming up, then we ought to be exploiting that relationship the same way that they're trying to exploit us. We should be doing the same thing

because this is about American business. And I think that's the mindset. The mind frame is how do we use the grinder model that they knew they could not leave a black woman in jail and or in Russia and then still with the elections and come to us demanding stuff they knew they couldn't do that, and we need to be demanding the same on the other side and

with other issues. And so, you know, I think that that's got to be the message that we're sharing with our brothers and sisters who are in community that need to, you know, be activated to help with what you're going on. And I hold a little you said that, so well, I'm just piggyback and at this point, we gotta get something for our support. And this to go to your point, I just talked with with for RAN's dad and he was like, look, why hasn't the Black Caucus in Virginia

and supported you? He like every time I go there, you know, he reminded me of like my grandfather. You know, he tried to roll up a couple of dollars and stick it in my hand. I'm like, look, thank you, Dad, Like, man, let me look, we got it. Man. He like, but I don't understand why they ain't help you. And I'll just say this. This is a family historically years all of their life, they've been told going that booth, punch blue, don't matter who behind it, told their grandkids, told all

of their friends. And they've done that and now here they are right. They have the support of a Democratic Attorney general who said they're innocent, they should be out a republic. Look, he comes in and said, I don't care if they're innocent. I'm gonna leave with me. And just because I don't like the Democrat who wanted to mount Melta Harris Joe Biden, this one on, y'all, we need you Terence. If Ron needs you, you don't have to exchange nothing at all. Just signed the pardon and

commute their sentence today. They deserve it. You want to say that, I just want to ask one more simple question. How long were you incarcerated before you were exonorate? So I did ten years in prison. I did almost ten years in prison. I was a baby man, I was a baby. Then I I sat there and I expected the same results in my case, because I know we didn't do nothing that I would see on law and

ordering up now I don't. I don't. I come from a very rough neighborhood in Chicago, but my grandmother was even rougher. She didn't play that right, and so we stayed out the waiting. So when this this allegation against me came, my family knew it. They knew what time it was. But they also knew this. They also knew that I didn't know what I was up against because they kept me on the porch talking my life right. So when this happened, they knew what was about to happen.

I didn't know. I thought all I had to be was innocent, and that was another So when I went through this, for those ten years and I'm writing all these people, and I come home and I'm being here. You ever came home and been introduced to your niece or your nephew, You know how difficult that is. You know how many brothers come home and they got to look through picture albums. I'm looking through a picture album one day and I'm flipping through the pictures, my baby, pictures,

eighth grade, high school. I don't see another picture for teen years later in that album. That's what I'm doing. What I'm doing, I know exactly what it's like. M that's that's that's heartfelt and passionate, and you know, I

definitely understand that. I understand that I felt that. So I just want to say thank you for the work that you're doing and whatever you can, whatever we can do, you know, as individuals, as you know this podcast, as our organization, whatever we can do, we definitely are here for you. Now. You're one of our friends. That's going going going, you know joke, we said, everybody here is our friend, and you know you're definitely are now one

of our friends. So please make sure that you utilize us whatever situation that you have man and continue to do the work because it's God's work that you're doing. You know, sometime we turn our pain into our purpose and our passion, and that's what is I see that you've done. So we salute you. I appreciate you in the same applies here as well. Look, they are a lot of people who jump on um and give you their version of what the law is and and and

stuff like that. I probmise if you, guys ever send you an email with a question from the fan base who wants to know what true legally supported answer to what's going on in court and out. I got y'all. Attorney Attorney Jared Adams, thank you so much for joining street politicians. We appreciate you such an insightful interview today and you know you certainly, as my son said, can utilize us and counting us for our support. Thank you, guys, continue to do what you're doing. We need you all voice.

Thank you, Thank you. I don't know if you say good interview, because even though he's great in terms of how he explains it, and you said it right that he has a lot of passion, you know clearly his own circumstances. It was a great question that you asked how long he had been, uh in prison because for some reason in my mind, I thought maybe two years or three years. For ten years, that's a long time, uh,

you know, to have served. It's so many people, it's just so so such a sad thing that it's not just sad, it's maddening. Um. You know, it's it's it's a crime, it's an in humane it's in humanity, it's it's so many things. The amount of people who had his story who ten years would have been a cake walk for them in terms of what they are doing now thirty forty years, you know, and you know all

the people that we do see getting coming home. I just, you know, something in my spirit wants to say that or wants to use this as a moment to remember the make great Kenneth Thompson, our dear system Sean Thompson's husband. Uh. He was the district Attorney in Brooklyn, and even though we didn't always agree on different issues, one thing we always always always appreciated about Ken Thompson was his thirst for freedom and for exoneration. From the day he took

office until he he died. He was getting people free and the good people like him. Just I don't know what happens. It's like they don't live long, you know. He was that was his big first and passion was to get people free. He is known for exonerating so many, especially brothers of course of different black backgrounds, also in Brooklyn, after his predecessor had a whole lot of people locked

up for primes they didn't commit. So, you know, I just I want to see the work of Jarrett Attorney Adams and the Innocence Project and Brian Stephenson and you know so many who do that work every day, that that that work would just be multiplied, definitely. Man, just hearing him, he reminded me so much of myself, health and passion that I have for just you know, saving

our people and and and just paying your part. You know, after you've been incarcerated, especially willfully accused and incarcerated, you have this passion to want to make sure it doesn't happen again. You know. So he utilized his time. You know, he didn't a lot of time to do him. He did the time, and he educated itself and now he's able to serve to make sure that what happened to

him doesn't happen to anybody. Else. So I once again I want to say thank you to him, and thank you to my brother Shakra for saying, you gotta you need to meet this guy, and you guys need to talk to him. So shout out to both of them that reached me to my I don't get it, you know, it was It's been a little time, but I didn't really hear anybody talk much about this whole Skip Bayless and Demorrow Hamling situation. I don't get how it was

pretty much just glossed over, you know. And I you know a lot of people say, oh, you always want to race Bason. I just it's not so much race baiting for me, it's just understanding the dynamics that black people have to do. I watched Kyrie get hammered about the situation that something that he didn't even say, you know, something reposed. I watched black athletes, I watched black you know, entertainers.

I watched black people period who have platforms be hammered about things that they say or things that they're even attached to. And to watch Skip Baylor's make that tweet which was so insensitive while a man was on the field being resuscitated, being brought back to life, who's heart damn and stopped on the field and him talk about just play the game, you know, and knowing that if a black man had said that same thing, there would have been consequences, every percussions. I just don't get how

we continue to allow things like that. I don't understand how the world wasn't way way more critical. You know. I didn't hear any direct apology come from just you know, the network people that he worked with. I didn't see any consequences. There wasn't no suspension, There wasn't no maybe a couple of days off, you know, based on what he said. We understand how it affected the family, the community that the fans of football, you know, and and

and it did. It hurt a lot of people, a lot of people, like you know what I said, The people were harmed, you know. And I didn't see any

any consequences for And I just don't get that. I don't I don't get why it's so clear that there is bias in America and everything that has to do with you know, black and white and and people of color and white people who are in the same positions, But yet we act like it's not, you know, and we we even as black people, we normalize, right we we we've normalize the fact that white people can say things and get away with things that we can't, and

we just call it, you know, business as usual, you know.

And I think just just looking at that situation and then his response, you know, as sharing the shop, you know, with the hope that he would take the tweet down and the insensitivity of him saying he's not gonna take it to run down because he met what he said, you know, just standing firm, wrong and strong, and to know that you can still go see that tweet and you can see that a man was way more interested and the game continuing than the actual person who was

fighting for his life, you know, and and him to stand by that and people that he worked for, you know, in a in a in the organization speaking about the organization, why the NFL didn't see that the call on him to do something, you know, it's just so many different aspects you know that I really just don't get. But you know, I do get it, but I don't get it, you know, and I just it was it bothers me. It bothers me that our lives, you know, are not

taking serious. It's not value as much as everybody else's. So I'm always gonna say something about it, and people going, oh, you wanna right, No, I want to tell the truth. I don't have a problem telling the truth, and I don't care what comes with the truth. But you know that that tweet was insensitive, you know, and his response to Shannon for hoping that he would take the tweet down was even more insensitive, you know. And I think

there should have been some level consequence. I'm not saying he firing man, but there should have been some level of suspension and some you know, some level of making him be held accountable for seeing something with the platform as big as his that was detrimental and it was

harmful to people. I mean, one thing I will say is that I don't know much about this topic because obviously the only reason why I, um, you don't even knew what was happening was because because of all the social media, and it wasn't even um and which I think is part of your point. It wasn't even the incident.

I learned of the incident second to the Skip Bayless tweet, like it was more out there in terms of Dio hugely, and Matt Barnes and you know, the list goes on of individual saying Skip was disgusting for what he tweeted. And then after that I actually saw what it was about, right because I'm obviously sort of not in the sports roof and um and you know, I wasn't as consuming as much social media during this time, but I did see a lot of people, especially black men, saying that

his tweet was insensitive, wrong time. In all of that, um And I think you're right. I think a lot more people who jump to call for black folks to uh, you know, apologize, correct atone, repent, bow down. There's so many things that you know, we are are are called to do whenever I would keep whenever someone is accused

of harming any other community. Um And I think that it's a testament which we talk about all the time, to the unity of that community, right and black folks have to have the same that we will all or not all of us in terms of every single person, but that there will be a majority of the major are who will say no, and we'll push back together because once we do that, we force people to have to respect us the same way that other communities, um

have have really been able to accomplish, which is something it's not something for us to uh be upset about. We should actually use it as inspiration for what we

should be doing as a community as well. UM. And so you know, hopefully that's that is the message that sort of comes out of all of this is how do we get to the point as a people where he can't even be on TV without not just a full apology, but certainly removing the tweet, right, because if you're there, then we as a people will hurt your numbers by not watching your network, and that particular show will lose ratings and also any responses they have will

be will receive uh letters of demand, calls and everything. Because there is a way to force people, unfortunately into doing what is right. I don't want to say submission, because we certainly don't like when it feels like that for us, but certainly force them into doing what's right or force them to have to exist stage left. And so hopefully that's what we learned from this whole ordeal.

And thank god, uh the young man is doing better. Uh, you know, smiling has his faculties, he's alive, he's talking. That's really really like whoa, because I just I mean, after what I saw, I just didn't know that he was gonna make it. Yeah it was. It was rough

Man and it was. And I think that's even more the reason why I just think, you know, we as a community, we as people just good moral fiber and and people of integrity, should just you know, say hey, Skip that that tweet needs to come down, so you know that that's something that I would like to see. I would like to see us being together as a community. And that's just people just a good, good, good heart

saying that the treets should come down. And with that said, we come to the end of another episode of the number one podcast in the world. Street Politicians Probably make sure that you tune in. We appreciate you guys. You know, um send us your requests, send us your input, let us know what you want us to talk about. Let us know how much you love us, let us know how much you hate us. As Free Politicians pod on Instagram d M must you know, we just want to

say thank you for always supporting us. We couldn't be number one without you, guys, Oh my god, we could be number We are working being I understand manifestation, but I also know how people's minds work, and how black people's minds work, specifically, and they think something is already done, they don't feel like they have to work to help you. I know that black people want to be a tough part of the winning team, so when they jump. But we still need to make sure that people know that

we're doing really, really well. It's the first year show of three. That's a new year. Thankfully we have survived with our Black Effect UM Podcast Network contract and we're back again for another season another year UM. But we do need people to continue to download our podcasts and to support us, to help us uh to really really be number one on the charts. Now. We're certainly number one in the hearts of so many UM, but there's work to be done to move us to the top

of the podcast charts. You know. I was reading some research recently that's talked about UM. You know, black folks and how they consume information and podcasts is certainly one of the growing areas. It's not the first yet, but it is becoming that and so so many more of us need to turn podcasts on and listen to great content of all sorts on Black Effect Network. Podcast network

has so many different types of podcasts. They've got the gossip girls, they've got the people talk about sex, hip hop, sports, um, the culture, politics, um, you know, all kinds of issues. And you could just literally pop on a podcast and listen while you're cleaning up, while you're you know, in your car. And so please look at podcasts as a form of information because there's so much and there's so

many good ones. You know, so many podcasts that are out there, not just on this network, but lots of podcasts and lots of YouTube content where you can actually see visuals yea. And and we were voted in the top seven most important. We were number eight of twelve I think number eight of twelve or something like that, like eight of twenty five or twenty I don't I don't remember, but it was Essence Podcast and we were in the number of top black podcasts that are on

the air right now. That's us Street Politicians. Man, I'm not gonna always be right, Jamika Mary is not gonna always be wrong, but we will both always and I mean always be authentic. We're coming for the number one spot. Listen to Street Politicians on the Black Effect Network on I Heart Radio and catch us every single Wednesday for the video version of Street Politicians or I Women Dot TV