#RolandMartinUnfiltered - 10.17 RMU: The Legacy of Rep. Cummings; Wrongly convicted man takes plea deal after 42 yrs in prison

Episode Date: October 24, 2019

10.18.19 #RolandMartinUnfiltered LIVE from #BlueprintMen2019 in Chicago: Black man victimized by DC Metro speaks out; Senate Republicans voted yesterday to advance Justin Walker, Trump's judicial nominee who earned a not qualified rating from the American Bar Association; Jazz Saxophonist Kirk Whalum talks about his new album. Michael Jordan opens a health care clinic for the underinsured; Robert Smith receives the prestigious Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy - #RolandMartinUnfiltered partner: Life Luxe Jazz Life Luxe Jazz is the experience of a lifetime, delivering top-notch music in an upscale destination. The weekend-long event is held at the Omnia Dayclub Los Cabos, which is nestled on the Sea of Cortez in the celebrity playground of Los Cabos, Mexico. For more information visit the website at lifeluxejazz.com. Can't make it to Los Cabos for the Life Luxe Jazz Fest? Get your live stream pass at https://gfntv.com/ #RolandMartinUnfiltered partner: Ebony Foundation | Home by the Holiday Home by the Holiday aims to reunite Black and Latino families separated by bail, while challenging racial injustice and mass incarceration. For more info visit https://www.homebytheholiday.com/ Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Hey folks, Roland Martin here. Today is Thursday, October 17th, 2019. We're broadcasting live from the National Museum of African American History and Culture, where the American Heart Association is holding the finals for their Business Accelerator Program. We'll tell you more about that later in the show. But we'll be dealing with the death of Baltimore Congressman Elijah Cummings. He died early this morning.

We will hear from four members of Congress as they reminisce about their colleague. We'll talk about his life and legacy, including with our panel, individuals who worked alongside Congressman Cummings. Also on today's show, Virginia says couples are no longer required to disclose their race to get a marriage license. Another Jim Crow law bites the dust. And, of course, the United Auto Workers and General Motors appear to have an agreement to end a five-week strike. We'll give you those details. Also, folks, a Louisiana man has to admit to a crime in order to gain his freedom after 42 years for a crime he says he absolutely did not commit.

It's time to bring the funk. A roll of Martin Unfiltered. Let's go. He's got it. Whatever the piss, he's on it. Whatever it is, he's got the scoop, the fact, the fine. And when it breaks, he's right on time. And it's rolling

Best belief he's knowing Putting it down from sports to news to politics With entertainment just for kicks He's rolling It's Uncle Roro, y'all It's rolling, Martin, yeah Rolling with rolling now Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's Roland Martin. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Rolling with Roland now.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's broke, he's fresh, he's real, the best you know. He's Roland Martin now. Martin. folks sad day all across the nation's capital as well as in baltimore and also around the country as remember since poor in for elijah cummings he is a member of congress from baltimore died early this morning his office said around 2 2.45 a.m. Eastern. He died at Johns Hopkins University Hospital as a result of, of course, he has had a long-term illness for the last several years. Of course, this is someone, of course, 68 years old who served in Congress nearly 30 years. He came to Congress in 1986 when he replaced Kwaizun Fume,

who left that position to become the CEO of the NAACP, the son of a sharecropper from South Carolina. So when a counselor once said would not be able to talk, grew up to become one of the greatest orators in Congress, a man of conviction, a man of faith, a man of courage, and someone, of course, who so many people miss. He was leading the impeachment fight against Donald Trump as the chair of the House Oversight Committee.

It is a huge, huge loss. And here is the speech that he gave when he first was elected, his first 60-second speech on the floor of the U.S. House. And there's a poem that Perrin Mitchell said many, many years ago that I say sometimes 20 times a day. And it's a very simple poem, but it's one that I live by. It says, I only have a minute, 60 seconds in it. Forced upon me, I did not choose it, but I know that I must use it, give account if I abuse it, suffer if I lose it. Only a tiny little minute, but eternity is in it. And so I join you as we move forward to uplift not only the nation, but the world.

May God bless you all, and may God bless America. We're starting to hear that a counselor once said that he would not be able to speak fluently and clearly, yet here is someone who had amazing and powerful oratorical skills, often used as he sat on that committee, the House Oversight Committee, when he even was the ranking member when Republicans were in control, providing thunderous, thunderous comments, often against so many folks on the panel. And then even when he became the chair of that committee, he made it perfectly clear he was in charge. Here is Elijah Cummings, a sense of how he spoke and how he ran his committee.

I've said it before, I'll say it again. 200 to 300 years from now, people will look back on this moment and they won't ask the question, what did you do? What did you do when there was an effort to undercount your neighbors? What did you do when there were folks who literally said that they were going to create a scheme by which whites and non-Hispanic, Republicans and non-Hispanic whites would be benefited and others not. No, no. What we've got to say is that we stood up. And all we're doing is trying to get the information. And we have been stonewalled not just by the belief on the census. We have been stonewalled with regard to information concerning things like hurricane relief,

things like the various hush payment money, security clearances. I mean, Stonewall all the way around. And the White House providing us with not a single document. Ladies and gentlemen, that's not America. We are simply better than that. And I'm hoping that all Americans will take a look at this. I may be dancing with the angels when all of this is corrected, but I got to tell you, we must fight for our democracy.

I don't care whether you're Democrat, Republican, independent, conservative, or whatever. The Founding Fathers made it abundantly clear that they would put guardrails up to make sure that when our country slipped and fell a little bit, that we would be okay. They never anticipated that folk would come through and throw the guardrails to the side. And so we marched forward.

And again, for me, it's a sad moment. Somebody asked me a moment ago, are you happy? No, I'm not happy. I'm not happy because we are in a position where we must defend this democracy. And so, again, I think it was, while it was a sad day, it was a day to say to Americans that we're standing up and we are going to make sure that the Congress of the United States has its rightful power and does what it's supposed to do. That is to be a check on the executive branch, and I thank you. Joining us right now on the phone line is Houston Congressman Al Green.

Congressman Green, it certainly has been a very difficult day for members of the Congressional Black Caucus, as well as all members of Congress. Last time you talked with Congressman Cummings. Last time I talked to him was several weeks ago, to be quite candid with you. As you know, he's been under the weather, and I did have the opportunity to just pat him on the back and let him know that I loved him. He was a good brother. He was a brilliant brother, but he didn't allow his brilliance to outshine his goodness. He exuded goodness. was the kind of guy that you would want to have sitting next to you when you're in a hearing and you're not sure what to ask. He could always provide you some intelligence that would be

worthwhile, something worth saying. Everybody knows that he was known for saying that we are better than this. But you knew that he meant it. It wasn't just words. They were words that were coming from his heart. They may have been manufactured in his head, but they were delivered from his heart. It certainly has been a very difficult time for him over the last several years, of course, dealing with illness.

He had been in and out of the hospital. I know he was we did not see him at the Phoenix Awards at the CBCF dinner, which took place on September 15th. I had sent a text message to his wife, Maya Rockamore Cummings, the next day saying that we certainly had missed them. And she asked that we pray for him. Uh, and, but, but even, even with all of that, even with being in a wheelchair, uh, being with the Walker, uh, he worked until the end. Yes. Um, he was a workaholic. Uh, he always, uh, carried himself such that you knew he was on his way to do something or he was just leaving someplace where something was being done. He was always in the sense that he was trying to do something. Work is forced times distance. He moved things. He made things happen. He was there to fight for Harriet Tubman being on the $20 bill. He fought to help us to ban the box such that people who were leaving prison would have an opportunity to have opportunities. He was a part of the avant-garde when it came to human rights and human dignity.

And just standing up for people, people that he would never meet and greet, he was there for them here in the halls of Congress. I remember him giving me this quote. He was famous for quoting Dr. King. And we were talking about, to be very candid with you, the president and some of his antics. And he said, there comes a time when silence becomes betrayal, meaning that you have to stand up, you have to speak. And he was one who would do this. I admired him greatly.

Congressman Al Green of Houston, it's really appreciated. Thank you so very much for sharing your remembrances of Congressman Elijah Cummings. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Folks, it's interesting that we're here at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The last time I saw Congressman Cummings was actually in this building. It was a few months ago, Stanley Nelson, the acclaimed documentarian, they were hosting a screening of his documentary Boss. And so I got in here right before they had started. And so they started the screening. And so I saw Congressman Cummings and he was in his wheelchair. And so I saw Congressman Cummings, and he was in his wheelchair. And so I walked up right behind him, and I whispered in his ear, his left ear, I said, keep kicking Trump's ass.

And so then he did turn around, and I walked back to my spot. So he sort of turned this way, and he saw it was me, and he just bust out laughing. I mean, he let out this huge laugh. And anybody, of course, who will come into contact with Congressman Cummings knew that when he let out that laugh, you can hear it all the time. And so that was something that that image, of course, I always remember just him just laughing at what I had to say. And the bottom line is that, look, he was tough. He was someone who took no stuff, who ran his committee and made it perfectly clear that he was in charge, was fair about it, but was not going to allow Republicans to run over him.

Remember, early in this presidency, Elijah Cummings met with Donald Trump at the White House to work on prescription drugs. And he said that if you work with us, you could be a very good president. It is the same president a few months ago who trashed Baltimore, talked about it was rat infested and had nasty things to say about Congressman Elijah Cummings. And so that's what we're dealing with in the nation's capital. We have heard tributes from, of course, lots of Democrats, but also a number of Republicans as well. Joining us right now is Congressman Emanuel Cleaver from Kansas City. Again, another member of Congress, the member of the Congressional Black Caucus. Congressman Cleaver, certainly condolences to the CBC losing one of its members. Just your thoughts and remembrances about your colleague, the late Congressman Elijah Cummings.

Well, we just left a little private spiritual hour together with the Congressional Black Caucus, during which I and Bobby Rush, who is also an ordained minister, carried words to our colleagues about Elijah Cummings and about death and some other things that relate to us as a family, as an African-American family here in the nation's capital. Elijah Cummings was a good friend of mine. When I left the floor last night, the last conversation I had was with Marsha Fudge.

And during that conversation, I agreed that I would reach Elijah this morning, early in the morning, because he had told me to call him early when I needed to reach him. But I was awakened this morning early with a phone call telling me that he had indeed died. And we had no idea that I guess he had slipped into a coma. But he was a good and decent man. He is the reason that I'm supporting impeachment. I was very slow to support impeachment because I didn't want to create two Americas that it seems as if we may inevitably do create. But when the president of the United States attacked Elijah Cummings, attacked his community, attacked his city, just think about it. The president of the United States, an American president attacking an American city verbally. And I thought this is too much. And so I announced my change on Fox. I was on a Fox interview when I said, I'm now supporting impeachment.

I was asked, well, why are you supporting it now? And I said, because of what the president did with Elijah Cummings. And Neil Cabuto said, well, that's no reason for impeachment. I said, you're absolutely right. But if anybody can do this, if anybody can attack somebody like Elijah Cummings thoughtlessly, pointlessly, that person's not a good person. And he's subject to do a lot of other things. So that's the place that he held in my heart. He and I did have problems because he was a jack-legged preacher, and he and I, you know, could never resolve the fact that he went to law school. I went to seminary.

I didn't try to practice law, and he should stop trying to practice ministry, but he preached every chance he got, and you probably know that. And so that was our big argument. His mother and father were clergy members, Pentecostal, and I had him in Kansas City, introduced him to speak at a banquet, and then he preached. And so other than that, he was a fabulous human being. Many people probably don't know he's Phi Beta Kappa. He asked me not to tell people that when I introduced him, but of course we were proud of that fact. And Elijah Cummings lived in the house where he grew up,

in the neighborhood where he grew up. And some of us who went down to Baltimore when they were in the midst of all those problems, and we were all just awestruck by the fact that everybody in that community, and some of them were alcoholics, some of them were hoodlums, many of them had arrest records who gathered around around elijah cummings they all loved him they loved him uh i mean he was who he was he never changed uh and with a five beta kappa and all the other accolades he's received over his lifetime he was in fact loved uh in his community and And theologically, you know, we were told people don't love you in your own hometown. So says Jesus. I think Elijah Cummings may be the one exception.

Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, we certainly appreciate you joining us on Roller Martin Unfiltered to share your thoughts and remembrances about the late Congressman Elijah Cummings. We appreciate it. Thanks a lot. Good to be with you. Folks, in a moment, I'm going to be joined by Congressman Stephen Horsford of Nevada. And when you talk about, again, just the kind of guy Elijah Cummings was. So when we had TV One's News One Now, we had a first anniversary party,

which coincided with my birthday party. And I had it in my house, at my house. So this was, we launched this show in 2013. So this was in 2014. And I invited Maya Rockamore and Congressman Cummings. And even though I lived way out in Northern Virginia, they came from Baltimore. And he had such a good time. And so I tell you, first of all, he loved the gumbo that my dad made as well as the crawfish etouffee.

But that was this cake, this cream cheese filling cake my mom made. And man, I said, look, you got to get a piece. He's about to leave. I said, we're going to cut this cake. Get a piece before you go. And we cut that cake. And he said, oh man, he said, look, I'm glad I stayed. And I had to

have a few extra pieces of cake for him to take home, him and his wife. But he had a great time that night. It was great to have a few extra pieces of cake for him to take home, him and his wife. But he had a great time that night. It was great to have him there to celebrate with us the first anniversary of News 1 Now. And the reality, look, he was a supporter of the show. He would come on the show. We would call him early in the morning. Sometimes he would be like, dang, Roland, it's early.

He would also come on the time, join the morning show. And I always appreciated that he would take my phone calls and come on to the show. Do we have Congressman Horsford on the line? Good evening. How are you? Congressman Horsford, glad to have you on. Glad to have you back on Roland Martin Unfiltered. Just your initial thoughts on the passing of Congressman Elijah Cummings? Well, our entire country, the institution of Congress,

lost a fierce soldier and fighter for so many important causes. As one of the newer members of Congress, first and foremost, my heart and condolences go out to Dr. Maya Rocky Moore and the entire Cummings family for their loss. Know that we are lifting you up and praying for you. They've been great friends and mentors to me and my wife and just very heartbroken that he's no longer with us. But one thing, we all got together tonight, the Congressional Black Caucus members. We prayed. Congressman Cleaver and Congressman Bobby Rush gave a word, and we are going to carry on Congressman Cummings' spirit, his legacy, everything that he has fought for, because that's what he would want and expect of us at this time. Obviously, this is a huge loss, not only because he was a city member of Congress,

but also he was one of the most important voices when it came to the impeachment inquiry of Donald Trump. He has been one of the leading forces. And so it also is a loss for House Democrats because of his leadership at this time, along with Congressman Jerry Nadler, as well as Congressman Adam Schiff? Well, no doubt about it. He has played a very important and integral role as the chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee. You know, he's literally been advising the speaker, the leadership, Chairman Schiff. They talked about the fact that just on Friday we had a conference call with the entire House Democratic Caucus,

and Chairman Cummings was, you know, telling us where things were with the investigation and the current proceedings. And so it will be a tremendous loss to the process because of his longstanding experience and knowledge of how government works, the inspector general process, and so many aspects of the oversight Committee that he ran. But we have a job. We have to carry it on. I am honored. In my first term in Congress, I actually served on the Oversight Committee

under his leadership. And like I said, he was a mentor to me. He's been mentor to many, many members of Congress, not just Democrats, but Republicans as well, because he really took the time to care about other human beings, no matter how busy he was, no matter what issues were facing him in his health issues. He was always there to listen and to give a word of advice. All right, Congressman Stephen Horsford

of Nevada, we really appreciate it, sir. Thank you so very much. Thank you. Thanks, Roland. Folks, we're going to go to a break. When we come back, I'll talk with my panel, including one of them who actually serves as an intern in the office of Congressman Elijah Cummings. We'll be back. Roland Martin, Unfiltered.

You want to check out Roland Martin, Unfiltered? YouTube.com'll be back. Roland forward slash Roland S. Martin. And don't forget to turn on your notifications so when we go live, you'll know it. All right, fam, it's almost that time. The holiday season, of course, is for many of us the favorite time of the year. Now, whether you celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving, Ramadan, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Year's, all of these, of course, from October to the end of the year. This is when you think about spending time with the people you love the most. This is also the time to count your blessings and support those less fortunate and look at how you can have an impact on their lives. Well, I have the perfect opportunity for you to be a holiday hero, have a major impact on other families. Here's the deal. Right now, hundreds of thousands of Americans are sitting

in jail without being convicted of a crime. Why? Because they lack the financial resources to pay their bail. Now, think about it. If you are arrested for any minor offense, you will be taken directly to jail. If you don't have bail money, whether it's a few hundred or a few thousand dollars, you will stay there until a court date is scheduled. Now, that could be days, weeks, or even months. America's bail system is broken and has created a two-tier system of justice, one for the rich and one for the poor. Folks, freedom should be free. That's why the Ebony Foundation is partnering with the Bail Project

and is sponsoring the Home by the Holiday campaign. With your help our goal is to bail out 1 000 people by new year's day how's that for holiday gift a donation from you can change someone's life tomorrow and here's why it is critical people of color represent upwards of 90 of the jail population across the country ranges from 50 to 90 depending upon where you are of course then when they stayed in jail 90 of people with misdemeanors ended up pleading guilty. However, when bail was paid, 50 percent of the cases were dismissed and less than two percent received the jail sentence. Sometimes justice needs just us to join the fight. Folks, you can

be a holiday hero by donating 25, 50 bucks or more to help the Ebony Foundation bring our brothers and sisters home for the holidays. To donate, go to homebytheholiday.com. That's H-O-M-E-B-Y-T-H-E-H-O-L-I-D-A-Y.com. And, of course, the Ebony Foundation is tied to Ebony Magazine. And so we certainly appreciate the work that they're doing to assist those who are most in need. All right, folks, I'm broadcasting from the National Museum of African American History and Culture here for the American Heart Association Business Accelerator Program. Right now I want to talk to our panel.

In studio is Kelly Bethea, communication strategist. Amisha Cross, political commentator and democratic strategist. Deontay Johnson, president, Black Conservative Federation. Kelly, I want to start with you. You actually interned in the office of Congressman Cummings. What was that like and your thoughts on his passing? I've been crying off and on all day. I didn't think that his death would hit me so hard.

But when I looked back and really just took the time to reflect on not only my time there, but what has happened since that time, I realized that he made an incredible impact on me. Basically, what Cummings did that I realize today is that he made space for me in a space that wasn't meant for me to be in any way. And the reason why that space even existed is because he is the one who created the space. He took pride in mentorship. He took pride in allowing youth to shine, and I feel like that's what I did there. It's going to be interesting and also difficult to see who's going to fill his shoes if anybody possibly could. And I think that saddens me even more

because while we have advocates in our society today, they're not necessarily in a position to advocate. And the people who are in a position to advocate aren't advocating. And the thing about Elijah Cummings was he was an advocate through and through. Before he was in Congress, he was an attorney. Before he was an attorney, he was an activist. He's been fighting for us literally his entire life. He's been fighting for Baltimore his entire life and to not see somebody currently remotely prepared to be in a position to even

look at his place, let alone stand in it. It's frustrating to me, but I could go on all day about my memories of him, just how much he impacted me, exactly how I met him, all of his quotes. The mentorship through osmosis, just being in this space was a blessing in itself. It was an honor and a privilege to work with him, to work for him, and to be by his side in many events, however short my time was there. And he will be deeply missed. Amisha Cross, you worked with him at the CBC Institute. Absolutely. And I think that at the Congressional Black Caucus Institute, Elijah Cummings was someone who was not only a lion

of Congress, but also one of an understanding of the next generation of leadership. There were times where he had at least 10 different meetings that were happening at the same time that something was going on at the Congressional Black Caucus Institute. And he took his time to come and meet with each of the fellows personally, have those conversations, learn about your history, learn about where you come from, and provide that level of encouragement to what we could make this nation become. And I went through the Congressional Black Caucus Institute during the Trump administration. So this was a time where a lot of black students just like me felt that America had taken the wrong turn.

And he was someone who, though feeling that we, you know, had missed, were misguided in some ways, felt that we could get back on track and that we could reach an understanding where all Americans were created equal, where we could still fight for those civil rights and that engagement that he had fought for his entire life, and that all of us and our futures mattered. And I think that in those conversations with him, in the time that he took with us, people who were looking towards what the future might look like, it meant a lot. It meant a lot to not only have his encouragement, but also hear those stories of him fighting and being in the trenches, not only in Baltimore and reminding us that it matters to

be in your hometown fighting the good fight, but also that we have to take this to the national level. Because even when there's progress that happens in your area, there are still so many places where black people are left behind. And I think that for young people specifically, looking for somebody who had that voice, who had that leadership, Elijah Cummings meant something greater. He showed us every day what it meant to devote your entire life to the betterment of something stronger and greater than you. And I think that once you sacrifice that much and you continue to push, to push regardless of who's in office, to push regardless of the political party, because he also pushed Democrats. Because at the end of the day, Democrats aren't necessarily known

for doing excessive amounts of greatness for a lot of our black communities as well. He laid the groundwork for so many people to come. And I think that having that level of a model in front of us made a huge difference. And to his family, to his friends, to those who have been staffers, my condolences to you. But know that Elijah Cummings was bigger than America. At the end of the day, he is what laid the groundwork for a future of progress for us. And I think that his shoes will be extremely hard to fill, but he has given us our marching orders. uh deontay uh republicans also uh weighed in with their thoughts uh trey gowdy who uh who often uh butted heads with congressman cummings on the house oversight committee uh he said elijah cummings was

one of the most powerful beautiful and compelling voices in american politics the power and the beauty came from his authenticity his conviction the sincerity with which he held his beliefs. We rarely agree on political matters. You know, this, when I... And then he went on, actually he issued about six or eight tweets in a row, but that was just the first of those tweets. Go ahead. You know, all day I've been thinking of one thing, and the thing that I've been thinking of is 2 Timothy 4-7. It says, I have fought a good fight, I have finished my race, and I kept the faith.

While I've never got a chance to get close with the congressman, and I've never agreed with him on a political strategy or public solutions or policy solutions it is very important to know that Congress the congressman was a staple for not just Democrats but black Republicans as well as that as a black Republican that is starting out young and it has started out young and has aspirations to go to grow in the movement the congressman definitely provides a beacon of light there for all of us. Of course, Donald Trump also ordered the flags to be lowered to half-mast, and he did issue

a tweet marking the passing of Congressman Cummings. Of course, those two went back and forth when it was Trump who trashed Baltimore, and specifically Congressman Cummings. But Cummings made it perfectly clear he was not going to engage in a back and forth. He said he was going to continue to do his job. And so it has certainly been a very difficult day for those of us who knew and loved and appreciated Congressman Elijah Cummings. And certainly our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, Dr. Maia Rockamore Cummings, as well as his children as well. And again, so many people in Baltimore who had great appreciation for his life legacy and work will continue to celebrate his life over the next several days until his home

going uh gotta go to break right now we come back i want to talk about this case of louisiana where a black man served 42 years in prison for crime he says he didn't commit but in order for him to get out he had to agree to a lure crime i want to talk about that with our panel that's coming up next to roller martin unfiltered You want to support Roland Martin Unfiltered? Be sure to join our Bring the Funk fan club. Every dollar that you give to us supports our daily digital show. There's only one daily digital show out here that keeps it black and keep it real. As Roland Martin Unfiltered, support the Roland Martin Unfiltered daily digital show by going to RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Our goal is to get 20,000 of our fans contributing 50 bucks each for the whole year. You can make this possible. RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Our goal is to get 20,000 of our fans contributing 50 bucks each for the

whole year. You can make this possible. Roland Martin, unfiltered.com. All right, folks, Life, Luck, Jazz Experience taking place in Cabo, November 7th through the 11th. Of course, if you want to attend, go to lifeluxjazz.com, L-I-F-E-L-U-X-E-J-A-Z-Z.com. But if you cannot be in Cabo for those four days, 14 different amazing artists,

then, of course, you could live stream it. Get your live stream pass at GFNTV.com. That's GFNTV.com. As I said, amazing artists, Gerald Albright, Alice Bunyan, Kirk Whalum, Donna McClurkin, Shalia, Roy Ayers. Man, it's going to be an unbelievable three-day extravaganza. And so I look forward to you participating. And, again, get your live streaming pass to cover those three days, all 14 concerts. You'll be able to watch right here on your phone, on your iPad computer.

It does not matter. Go to GFNTV.com. That's GFNTV.com to get your live stream pass. All right, folks, an amazing story out of Louisiana. Elvis Brooks, he walked out of the infamous Louisiana State Penitentiary known as Angola today after serving time for 42 years, his entire adult life. He says for a crime he did not commit. Now, the Innocence Project, they found evidence that prosecutors withheld information showing that Brooks' fingerprints did not match those found at the scene, as well as other irregularities.

But he agreed to a lesser charge of armed robbery. Prosecutors said he had already served 42 years in prison, so therefore he should be released. They contend he did commit the crime. He said he did not want to have to admit to this, but he wanted to be able to get out and live a life. I want to start with you, Amisha. I mean, this is unbelievable. This man has maintained that he did not commit this crime for 42 years. He went in at the age of 20.

The age of 20 gets out now. He's 62 years old. And he said he was left with no choice. He had to actually plead guilty in order to get out. He said at that point, I just wanted to be free. I'm disgusted by this. I'm disgusted by this story in general. One, because we know that in Louisiana,

we've had over 20 cases that have been overturned under the exact same circumstances of someone who said that they saw somebody. This is supposedly eyewitness testimony that has been proven faulty across the United States years ago when even when they looked for actual DNA evidence, nothing actually confirmed this man was at the place that he had any any evidence of his actually committing the crime whatsoever. So I feel like in this case, you have someone who's literally spent their entire adult life. I can't imagine all the changes that happened in 40 plus years that he's been left out of. And to just get a taste of freedom in one of America's most

tough prisons in the entire country, in the entire globe in many cases, him being able to and actually saying that, OK, well, I'm going to admit to this crime because all of his attorneys and everyone who he's dealt with thus far was not able to get him off, even though there was no physical evidence pointing to him actually being guilty of this crime. He wanted to have a breath of fresh air. He wanted to be like everyone else. And I think that after serving that long, it does not not make sense that he would. It's dismantling and it's disturbing to me as someone who's worked in criminal justice reform for a very long time that we still see cases like this where you have people who have spent decades behind bars for crimes that could be completely exonerated by simple DNA evidence. There is nothing placing this man at the scene of the crime except some Caucasian individuals who say that they saw him. The same people who in many cases we've seen get completely dismantled. Deontay, what's troubling here is that the Innocence Project uncovered where prosecutors withheld the evidence showing that it was not this man's fingerprints that were found at the

scene. And the problem here, the state was going to continue to fight this. He could have spent another three, four, or five years in prison trying to prove his innocence. And he said, I'm 62. I don't know how much time I got left. And so he was forced to admit to a crime, even though the prosecutors had wrongdoing on their side. You know, Roland, this reminds me, and every time we see stories like this, it just reminds us how important criminal justice reform is. Our criminal justice system needs to be repaired. It's broken. It needs to be repaired.

And we must come together, both Republicans and Democrats, come together to fix it. We need to figure out, you know, there are so many stories just like this, and this is just one that has been highlighted, but there are so many stories like this around the country. Stories where I had own family members who have been in jail all of their life. They are close to getting out and then somehow they magically die or they magically something happens to them. And so we have to talk about not

just the release, but the treatment that is had inside of these penitentiaries, but also what is that we can do to make sure that they are getting the proper treatment with health, but also that their families are able to still communicate with them and still have time with them as well. Because being 62 years old and having to make the decision it's a tough decision and i'm sure um you know he's like i gotta do what i gotta do to get out uh kelly um what happened was that was an armed robbery a customer was killed uh in that armed robbery that's what he was convicted of. But again, to put the thing in perspective, this is a sentence.

That man served 42 years. And we talked about Amber Geiger. She's going to serve 10 years for killing Botham Jean. So he served four times longer. And the sentence she got, she may get out actually after four or five years. But for 42 years maintaining your innocence and then paying him to have to admit to guilt, after four or five years, but for 42 years maintaining your innocence and it pained him

to have to admit to guilt, he said, but I wanted to walk free. I wanted to get out of this prison. If there was ever a time where a court, meaning the judge and prosecutors, should be hugging a defendant, it would be this case. They should be the ones asking for forgiveness from this man here because he's completely innocent. The Innocence Project does their best to find people in the system who really can be proven that they are innocent. and he's one of those people. So the fact that, you know, he it's likely that he could have been the charges could have been clear in five years. But again, he's 62. I completely understand why he would take a deal that would basically say time served. You know, you can live the rest of your life outside of a jail cell. But like my colleagues

were saying earlier, this is absolutely disgusting. And the fact that, you know, Amber Geiger is only getting 10 years and we really know that's going to be no more than five, considering that she has parole. It is disgusting. And, you know, I know everybody keeps going back to the hugging and stuff that happened in the courtroom. I definitely disagreed with it. I have my own thoughts on that. But if there was ever a time for a court to, you know, combine church and state this one time, it would be in this case. And, you know, that's not going to happen because he's not blonde hair, blue eyed and a woman crying crocodile tears. All right, then.

Kelly, Amisha, and Deontay, we certainly appreciate it. Thank you so very much. Going to a break. When we come back, we'll talk with the new chairman of the American Heart Association here for the National Museum of African American History and Culture, where the American Heart Association is having their business accelerator finals. We'll be back.

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forward slash Roland S. Martin. And don't forget to turn on your notifications so when we go live, you'll know it. Alright folks, welcome back. We're at the National Museum of African American History and Culture where in about 15 minutes the American Heart Association will be having the finals of their Business Accelerator program. I'll be emceeing that program.

Joining us right now is Bert Scott, the new chairman of the board of the American Heart Association. How are you doing? I'm doing terrific. How are you doing? All good, first and foremost. What's your goals? What's your focus as the new chair? Well, my goal is to really help people better understand how health disparities impact people's lives in a real way. The American Heart Association cannot achieve its goals if we don't serve all communities. And African-American and Hispanic communities are disproportionately affected by social determinants of health,

things that lots of communities don't have to deal with day to day, housing, food shortages, food deserts, not being able to pay for their medicines. Those are things that we are focused on to make sure that we improve the lives of people in that community every day. And I think that's one of the things that people don't, I believe, don't quite understand. We talk about health issues. The reality is, and not just that, but also the stress that people also undergo, all of those things have an impact on someone's health. And so people think it's all about, well, if you have health care or not. But no, if you if you having issues with poverty, if you're dealing with in areas of crime, if you don't have, of course, quality foods, all of that

impacts the type of diseases you get later in life. I agree. 90% of people's health is determined by their environmental factors, where they live, what they eat, how they eat, the stresses in the community. Ten percent is about clinical care. And I think you'd be surprised, most people think that the United States health care system is one of the best in the world. It has lots of access for people but not enough. And we typically fall behind other developed countries in the world in health outcomes as well as life expectancy.

Those are all things that have been created because the environment in which people live in don't support them having great access, great food, eliminating stress, all the things you just talked about. And I think that's one of the things that when we have these discussions and we have these battles, I mean, the Democrats had a debate the other night, and there was this huge back and forth in terms of Medicare for all and what taxes go up. And I'm sitting here and I'm listening to it, and I think part of the problem, as far as I'm concerned, I always say this here, that the issue in America, everything comes down to money.

So every conversation is always money, money, money. And so to have this health care conversation where it's all about, well, will taxes go up or not, I think misses the point to have what I call a more holistic discussion about health, health care and wellness in this nation. I completely agree with you. The American Heart Association has been in the forefront of making sure everybody has access to quality health care in every community. If we think about the cost that is incurred from the disease burden that we pay for indirectly, it pales in comparison to the cost of funding health care. Everybody in this country, we believe, should have access to and deserves health care. How we pay for it, we'll all figure that out.

But we're paying for it indirectly every day anyway. Well, I remember, look, I cover county government when I was at the Austin American-Statesman. And I remind people all the time, I said, no, there is a national health care plan. I said, county hospitals, they are required to serve you no matter who goes in. I said, that's the law. I said, who do you think is paying for that? I said, when I was in Tarrant County, then, of course, when I was in Tarrant County in Fort Worth and Dallas County in Dallas, and then when I was in Cook County in Chicago, Cook County, remember there, they had

anywhere from $400 to $600 million in overruns because of folks coming in to the county hospital. I said, folks, you're going to pay for that. So you're complaining at a debate, will taxes go up? They had to raise taxes in order to pay off that deficit. They have a hidden expense. And think about the deferred maintenance. If people can't access their medications, if people can't access primary care or specialty care, they defer all of that. So that means that their health status gets worse. And by the time they finally show up at some place, it is either too late or incredibly expensive to turn things around for that particular individual.

If we had a rational system where everybody had access, appropriate access, as well as dealing with those social determinants. We can't just give people access to clinical care. We have to make sure that the environments they live in allow them to thrive and as communities thrive people tend to live longer or healthier. Give an example. We both spent time in Chicago, right? So within a nine-mile radius in Chicago, there's a 30-year mortality difference. And that all has to do with what's available in those communities, the stresses you talked about, the lack of food, the lack of access to care, not enough money to pay for their medication and challenges with jobs. All of that affects

people's health care. We believe that we have to focus on that too if we're going to solve this problem. So how do you then deal with the not my backyard attitude? Because the reality is we lay all those things out and then folks go, look, that ain't got nothing to do with me, okay? Those folks should work harder and to improve their lives. I mean, that's always seemed to be the default. Then, of course, until something happens in their neighborhood and all of a sudden it's like, oh, can we please get some governmental assistance?

Well, I certainly understand that. I can't answer all of that because I don't know everybody's issue. Everything eventually hits your backyard. I'll give you a classic example, the opiate crisis we're dealing with right now. Vaping, which we have a very strong position about vaping. That hits everybody's community. My neighbors' challenges are my challenges. We have to have that dialogue and point that out and how heart disease and stroke

is a number one killer of everybody in America, everyone. So to the extent that we can share that experience and let people know that everybody is affected by this and if you help this community, their community will be improved too. That's how we, hopefully we have a collective and constructive dialogue around that issue. Last question. Are you also looking at, in terms of, look, people operate in silos. Are you also looking at these other organizations, American Cancer Society and other organizations

saying, okay, we all have to also operate sort of as a collective to speak to that issue? Because I think what happens is, I think the general public, if they hear American Heart Association, okay, y'all just worried about people who have strokes and heart attacks. And the American Heart Association, you're just worried about cancer. But what you're talking about, actually, whether you're talking about lupus, whether you're talking about cancer, whether you're talking about any of the diseases, all of those sort of are operating in the same space.

I completely agree with you. And one of the wonderful things about the American Heart Association is we have an amazing CEO, Nancy Brown. One of the things she does best is work with those coalitions. So we just announced not too long ago a collaboration with the American Diabetes Association. Typically, people who have diabetes have comorbidities of heart disease and stroke. Typically, they die from one of those two things, not diabetes, right? So working with them is a natural extension of what we do. We have to be holistic in the community.

We can't be a single disease organization. All right. Well, certainly congratulations on becoming the new chair, and I look forward to working with you. I'm excited and look forward to working with you as well, and thanks for today. I appreciate it. Folks, we have, of course, the Business Accelerator Program. So I've got to go. I've got to go forward to working with you as well. And thanks for today. I appreciate it, folks. We have, of course, the Business Accelerator program. So I've got to go.

We've got to go downstairs to start that program. Of course, we'll be later streaming that for all of you. You might remember we were in North Carolina in April where we had the program then. And so you can go to the YouTube channel and actually check that out. So we're looking forward to that program. And then I've got to go. Here's the deal. Tomorrow we'll be broadcasting from Chicago

side of Lewis Carr's men's conference and we'll have more coverage on the death of Congressman Elijah Cummings who passed away earlier this morning at the age of 68. As I said, I reached out to his wife, Dr. Ma Rocky Moore Cummings this morning once I

got the 5 a.m. phone call notifying me about his passing. And so we will have funeral details and all of that for you as they become available. Don't forget, if you want to support Roller Martin Unfiltered, please go to RollerMartinUnfiltered.com. You can join our Bring the Funk fan club. Of course, just go to the site, all the details on there as well. And so we shall see you tomorrow from Chicago. And again,

we certainly extend our thoughts and prayers to the family of Congressman Elijah Cummings as well as the Correctional Black Caucus and his constituents, the folks, of course, who knew him well there in Baltimore. I'll see you guys tomorrow. this is an iHeart Podcast.