#RolandMartinUnfiltered - 2021 Celebration Bowl, Potter Cries as she testifies, Bell Hooks Tribute

Starting point is 00:00:00 This is an iHeart Podcast. phone you just end up living with it? I don't think so. Verizon lets you trade in your broken phone for a shiny new one. You break it, we upgrade it. You dunk it, doggy bone it, slam it, wham it, strawberry jam it, we upgrade it. Get a 5G phone on us with select plans. Every customer, current, new, or business. Because everyone deserves better. And with plans starting at just $35, better costs less than you think. Today is Friday, December 17, 2021. Coming up on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network live in Atlanta. The 2021 Cricket Wireless Celebration Bowl in less than an hour. The Southwest Athletic Conference is going to have their Hall of Fame and banquet.

Starting point is 00:01:06 We will talk with Commissioner Charles McClellan about their honor reads, but also about the expansion the conference has undergone this year. We also will talk with the outgoing and the incoming commissioners, the MEAC conference as well. Also a big announcement today, Krista Wilders announced a six year extension of them sponsoring the celebration bowl. But today, Kristen Wilder has announced a six-year extension of them sponsoring the Celebration Bowl. Also in today's news, Kim Potter testifies on her behalf in her trial for killing Daunte Wright. A lot of stuff we're going to be covering today on the show here in Atlanta, but also news of the day.

Starting point is 00:01:39 Folks, it's time to bring the funk. I'm Roland Martin, unfiltered on the Black Star Network. Let's go. He's got it. Whatever the piss, he's on it. It's time to bring the funk on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. Let's go. to politics with entertainment just for kicks he's rolling he's funky fresh he's real, he's real, the best you know, he's rolling, Martin. Martin. Folks, we're here in Atlanta for the 2021 Cricket Wireless Celebration Bowl. We've been covering all the various events surrounding this bowl game. It is the only FCS bowl game that pits the winners of the MEAC and the SWAT Conference against one another for a seven-figure payday. Lots of activities that have been going on over the last several days.

Starting point is 00:03:00 We've been covering them extensively right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered, as well as the Black Star Network. Joining us right now is a commissioner of the SWAC Conference, Charles McClellan. Glad to have you here. Hey, thanks for having me. So this is a, look, it's a big deal for both of these conferences to be able to have this bowl game, to be able to generate the revenue for the conferences as opposed to going to the FCS playoffs? Yeah, absolutely. You know, the Southwestern Athletic Conference

Starting point is 00:03:30 stopped going to the FCS playoffs back in 1999. We actually decided to have a championship game. The Bayou Classic really was the impetus for doing that because that game is always the week after, so oftentimes Southern and Gremlin were our best teams and they couldn't go. So the decision was made to have our championship game. So we were a little ahead of the MEAC in wanting the Celebration Bowl. And once they made that decision, I think neither conference has looked back.

Starting point is 00:03:59 And one of the things that when I talked with Commissioner Thomas, he said it was real difficult to get his folks to agree to that because so many wanted to be a part of that playoff system. But he said, look, it's not making any money for us. Well, the playoff system is tough. And what a lot of people don't know about the LCS playoffs is that you have to pay your own way to go. And if you host, you have to bid. And part of that money goes to the NCAA. So for most institutions, it's not a money-making opportunity. And then when you look at the overall competitiveness of it,

Starting point is 00:04:32 quite often it was like the basketball tournament. The SWAC team and the MEAC team was always playing the number one team in the nation. It's kind of tough to go to North Dakota State from Lorman, Mississippi, and win a football game. So for us, we just did not feel that it made sense. Our record overall before 1999 was 0 and whatever, 0 and 16, 0 and 17. But when you start talking about the Celebration Bowl, when you start talking about pitting two champions against each other, that's going to go for the National College Black Championship. When you talk about a true bowl experience, and when you talk about the only two FCS conferences that participate in a bowl system that was set up for FBS conferences,

Starting point is 00:05:11 and then when you talk about ABC, there is no way in the world you could go back and look at the FCS playoffs and say that this opportunity is not as good or even better than the FCS opportunity. You also had some expansion this year in your conference. Yeah, we did. We brought in Bethune-Cookman University and Florida A&M University, and part of the goal was not only to have a team here in the Celebration Bowl, but to get an at-large team into the FCS playoffs, and we were successful in doing that this year,

Starting point is 00:05:42 where Florida A&M was selected to participate in the FCS playoffs. So you got the best of both worlds. We got the best of both worlds and that was a part of the plan. But also having those two teams in your conference also expands your footprint instead of Florida. Oh no doubt. Bringing in Fami and Bethune was very instrumental in this overall success and fever that we're starting to feel in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. When you bring in two rapid fan bases, when you bring in two institutions that are the center of Black College, you know, and to team them up with the 10 that we have, it was a win-win for both. And we're just ecstatic to be able to have those two. And SWAC, you know, we got a long ways to go,

Starting point is 00:06:21 but I tell you, it's going to be a fun ride. How are you also positioning this conference for the future? Because what you're dealing with here is we're seeing the movement of the Power Five conferences. Texas and Oklahoma lead the Big 12. They go to the SEC. You're seeing just all of that going on. And so how do you remain competitive in this environment? Well, I think that's a great question. You know, you're talking about a conference that's been around for 100 years.

Starting point is 00:06:50 You're talking about a conference, again, that has every major division one HBCU college or university in its conference now from Texas all the way to Florida. When it comes to black college athletics, we want to take the thing over and we want to insulate ourselves so we can generate enough revenue. You look at what Jackson State did. You know, they had championship game, 50,000. All-Corn State game, 60,000. The game before that, they had 55,000. If we can continue to put those numbers in there,

Starting point is 00:07:21 FAMU sold out homecoming. Alabama A&M sold out homecoming. All-Corn sold out homecoming. FAMU sold out homecoming. Alabama A&M sold out homecoming. Alcorn sold out homecoming. Mississippi Valley State sold out homecoming. And now the sponsors and the corporate partners are coming in. We have increased our corporate sponsorship and partnership program by almost 6,000% from the time that we took over to now. And as you look at additional television opportunities, we think that we can compete with some of the group of five institutions. As a matter of fact, from a revenue generation, we're three years away from out generating them from a revenue standpoint. So we think that we're

Starting point is 00:07:55 very strong and very well positioned to be able to continue to carve out the footprint and change the landscape. And I think that's another point. We're not going to sit back and let the land state dictate what we do. We're actively involved with the NCAA and the legislative process. We're going to change the landscape to benefit the Southwestern Athletic Conference. You also have an opportunity, the big news this week, the number one football player in the country choosing to go to Jackson State. That's a huge coup not only for the school but also for the conference. Right.

Starting point is 00:08:25 Name, image, and likeness. Now, if you go back and you check the books, there were five conferences that voted to change the name, image, and likeness legislation. So the NCAA put all of these committees together. And at the end, we took a look at it. It was the SEC, it was the PAC-12, the ACC, the Sun Belt, the SWAC, and one other conference.

Starting point is 00:08:45 And people ask me, why is the SWAC even involved with SEC? Your interests are not the same. Well, actually, they are. You look at what Coach Prime has done. You take his ability to be able to generate that corporate interest, and if name, image, and likeness, if it's good enough for you to get paid to go to the University of Florida, it should be good enough for you to get paid going to Jackson State University. And we wanted the rules to be as flexible as possible, because when you look at it,

Starting point is 00:09:15 the state law takes precedent over everything. And each state has different laws with different abilities. So we wanted the NCAA rule to be able to allow whatever the state rule is or state law is to be able to govern it. And I think it is going to open up eyes. I think that it's going to show that you can be a five-star, come to a Jackson State, get coached by a great coaching staff, get a name, image, and likeness deal, and be able to go pro.

Starting point is 00:09:44 And that's the only reason why they're going to these Power 5 schools over to SWAC schools. So I think NLI kind of leveled the playing field, and it'll be our job to make sure that we continue to keep that playing field level. I think you're going to start to see more of a trend based upon that one decision. And I think what this boils down to is when we talk about, you know, what's happening with SWAC, with the MEAC, it's the building blocks of these institutions. I'm always talking about how we have to build the capacity of our black institutions. No question.

Starting point is 00:10:21 And Commissioner Dennis Thomas, he's announced his retirement. We've had a lot of retirement talk today and he seems happy. I'm sad. Right. We're losing an icon. We're losing a voice. We're losing someone that is very instrumental. We're losing someone that's, you know, I don't think that can be replaced. Sonja Stills, myself, we're going to work together to try to move this thing forward. And there's a lot of heavy lifting to be done by virtue of Commissioner Dennis Thomas leaving. In a little bit, you're going to have your SWAC Hall of Fame event. Absolutely. We're excited. We have eight individuals that we're going to join a group of outstanding individuals. We're giving. We have eight individuals that we're going to join a group of outstanding individuals. We're giving Dr. Dennis Thomas the Lifetime Achievement Award. And it's just an honor, honestly, to be commissioner role.

Starting point is 00:11:14 And I grew up in Jackson, Mississippi. I used to go to Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium and watch people play that I'm now handing awards to. And for, as Commissioner Thomas says, a little country boy from Mississippi, man, that's an awesome thing. All right, then. Well, look, certainly good luck in what you're building here. Again, I'm a Texas A&M graduate, but I'm with the Jack James High School right across the street at Texas Southern University.

Starting point is 00:11:39 So I know a little bit about the SWAC with TSU being there and, of course, Prairie View A&M being right down the road from Houston as well. Well, you know, I am a Prairie View graduate. You know I was athletic director at Texas Southern. What you might not know is I'm a graduate of Texas A&M as well. So know you, know your legacy very well. We've always been proud of you. We've adopted you as our son of Texas Southern University.

Starting point is 00:12:05 A lot of people don't know that you graduated from Texas A&M. A lot of people out there think you graduated from Texas Southern. So keep doing what you're doing, and we appreciate everything. I appreciate it. We'll do. Thanks a lot. All right. Thank you for having me.

Starting point is 00:12:15 Thanks a lot. All right, folks, I'm going to go to a break. When we come back, we're going to hear from the outgoing EMEA commissioner, but also the sister who is taking his place. We'll also show you the announcement of Crooked Wireless announcing a six-year extension of them sponsoring this celebration moment. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered right here on the Black Star Network, broadcasting live from Atlanta, back in a moment. ТРЕВОЖНАЯ МУЗЫКА Betty is saving big holiday shopping at Amazon.

Starting point is 00:13:41 So now, she's free to become Bear Hug Betty. Settle in, kids. You'll be there a while. Ooh, where you going? Субтитры сделал DimaTorzok Yes, yes, no, no, yes, yes, no, yes, yes, yes, no, yes, yes, yes, no, yes, yes, yes, no, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, all right folks welcome back to rolling mark under filter here the black star network we're broadcasting from the media room here in at with the 2021 Cricket Wireless Celebration Bowl pitting Jackson State versus South Carolina State, the SWAC versus the MEAC Conference. One of the things about folks who don't really understand

Starting point is 00:15:15 most of these bowl games is they actually created the service that serves as tourism for cities. When you think about the Rose Bowl, when you think about the Orange Bowl, the major bowls, it's really the system that was created. And so you talk about the Rose Bowl, when you think about the Orange Bowl, the major bowls, it's really the system that was created. And so you talk about the significant amount of dollars in terms of bringing people to a city. And so my next guest is responsible for tourism coming to Jackson, Mississippi. How are you doing?

Starting point is 00:15:38 I'm doing pretty good. Thanks for having me. All right. So let's get right into this because, look, it is one thing to come here, but your job is trying to get people to come to Jackson. How does this bowl game, the attention you receive, how does that help the city? Well, it just raises the marketability of Jackson State University. And the home of Jackson State University is Jackson, Mississippi.

Starting point is 00:16:01 We experienced record numbers this year for an amazing football season, which really translated to about $30 million in economic impact for the city of Jackson. And so the better the team does, the better the city does. So we work really closely with athletics to make sure that the marketability is strong and that people can understand that we have a great school, a great football program, a great athletic program, but also a great arts culture and those other amenities that make people want to come and visit the city.

Starting point is 00:16:30 And so when you talk about that $30 million impact with them selling those games out, we're talking about hotels, we're talking about restaurants, we're talking about car rentals, all of those things. That's correct. You know, people, we sold out, the Metro Jackson area sold out, but we also sold out as far as 60, 70 miles away. We're talking about people going to gas stations and grocery stores and buying ice and, you know, liquor stores and restaurants and hotels and clothing stores. So it all, this really makes our community understand and appreciate the value of tourism in a very significant way. Well, and we talk about that.

Starting point is 00:17:09 We're talking about also helping black-owned businesses. That's correct. It really, again, raises the marketability and value of HBCUs because traditionally, I know in our business, most of the attention has been on the PWIs. But now we have HBCU that is bringing the color that everybody recognizes, and that's green. And so I'm really excited about that and working again with them to make sure that next year we can build up on that momentum. And let's do it again. Are you also seeing Jackson and Mississippi businesses also embracing the university? Definitely, definitely.

Starting point is 00:17:49 So corporate sponsorships are much easier. In fact, they're knocking on Jackson University's door now. I had a conversation with the athletic director, and we've been a very strong corporate sponsor for a long time. He said, I'm not going to kick you out because you've been there when nobody else was there. So that's just an example of things that are happening. All right, then. Well, certainly good luck with that. And as they say, your business, look, it's about increasing the revenue flow. That's right. That's right. All right. Good luck. Thank you for having me. I

Starting point is 00:18:18 appreciate it. I want to bring my panel right now, folks. Michael Imhotep, host of the African History Network. Michael joins me right now. Farhaj Muhammad, a radio and TV host and also Matt Manning, civil rights attorney. Glad to have you here. I'm going to start with you, Michael. What we're talking about here, Michael, is the rebuilding of black institutions. I talked about this yesterday. It's capacity, capacity, capacity.

Starting point is 00:18:38 That's what we're seeing with these two teams, with these conferences, but also how it impacts the broader community of black owned businesses. Absolutely, Roland, you know, and it's good to have you back as well. This is about building these teams, building these institutions, getting people like Travis Hunter to Jackson State University. This this reminds me of when the Negro Leagues were being picked apart by Major League Baseball. And a lot of the best players from the Negro Leagues were taken away from the majors. And now I think people are really primed to really understand that these, you know, many of our best high school athletes need to go to HBCUs. OK, need to go to HBCUs.

Starting point is 00:19:23 And then you deal with, you just had the interview, we deal with the businesses that surround these institutions, especially African-American-owned businesses, being able to profit from people going to the games and things like this. So this is dealing with building up these educational institutions, but also economic empowerment when it comes to businesses around them as well. And, you know, hats off to Deion Sanders also. I think it's brilliant what Deion Sanders is doing also. You know, one of the things, Faraji, that folks may not get, I mean, I'm sure there are people who are watching this show who are saying, okay, all this attention y'all are paying to

Starting point is 00:20:07 this bowl game. It's a lot more important stuff that's happening in the black community. But this is what's happening in the black community. This is the building of our institutions. And I think it's one of the things that frustrates me is when too many of our people have a very small worldview of what is happening in terms of how we are able to build institutions, to grow institutions. And so covering this, bringing awareness to it is important because we've got to stop playing small ball. Oh, you know, that's the big thing right there, Brother Rowland. And I love the conversation you just had before you, not with the commissioner, with the other brother,

Starting point is 00:20:52 but you talking about the fact that a lot of black institutions were born out of the frustration because white institutions and white platforms and white infrastructures did not accept us, whether you're talking about the church, whether you're talking about our political party, or whether you're talking about an athletic conference. It comes out of the fact that white people, if they bring us in, they bring us in at a lower amount, lower rate. If they bring us in, they want to usurp our talent. And so we have gotten to a place, and I think this is fantastic that we do talk about these things, because we have gotten to a place, and I think this is fantastic that we do talk about these things,

Starting point is 00:21:25 because we have gotten to a place to show that, look, when you are frustrated, when dissatisfaction, dissatisfaction can be the fuel to bring about the change that you've been hoping and praying for. And so if folks don't see the power moves that are being made, one of our YouTube watchers said that, big power moves. If folks don't see the power moves that are being made in terms of taking black athletes, especially college athletes, where we know, Brother Roland, it felt like just yesterday where a black college athlete had possession

Starting point is 00:22:00 and power over his or her image, likeness, and how they're going to use their brand, right? But for years, the NCAA has been just basically just, you know, just sucking the life out of black college athletes, right? Putting them on posters, putting them in commercials and all of that. And yet that black college athlete is kind of left in this predicament where they're not able to make money, where they're not able to really gain from all of the work that they've been putting in. And so, yes, this is necessary.

Starting point is 00:22:33 And people say, well, it's just about sports. No, it's not just about sports. It's about empowerment. It's about money. It's about us saying that in this space of sports and entertainment, we need to have some level of ownership. In this space of sports and entertainment, we need to dictate our own future. And that's the place that we're in right now. So it's awesome that we are having a celebration bowl.

Starting point is 00:22:56 It's awesome that corporations are looking to fund this whole endeavor. But my hope is, Brother Roland, as you talked to the commission about, that we can bring, you know, large-scale Black-owned businesses into the fold, right, and not just have Coca-Cola or Cricket or any other person kind of just keeping folks at bay, but you're bringing in those small Black businesses, bringing them into the conversations, bringing them at the table, so that way there can be full, complete community ownership of black people. You know, you have black athletes being supported by black businesses. I mean, this is the start of something fantastic.

Starting point is 00:23:32 And Matt, that point there, when you talk about your HBCUs, the businesses that surround these institutions typically are black-owned. When you talk about your restaurants, when you talk about your other businesses. And so when you have people coming back to those campuses, attending those games, it is driving economic development for our community. It absolutely is. And as a Howard grad, I first have to say go MEAC. But I spent many, many a dollar at football games and otherwise at the businesses that were around Howard and that supported myself and all the other students. And it's beyond just the economic impact. Those business owners are the same people who checked to make sure I was

Starting point is 00:24:09 doing my work in school and make sure I was going to graduate on time. So it's a community that's around these institutions. And the institutions really provide invaluable resources to the community, obviously beyond the educational impact, but also the economic impact. So it's a wonderful thing. But I got to say, go MEAC. All right. I'm going to go to a break. We come back. We're going to talk with the retiring commissioner of the MEAC conference, Dennis Thomas. That's next on Roller Mark. I'm Phil Kudryak here on the Black Star Network live from Atlanta. Are the stars out tonight?

Starting point is 00:25:00 Alexa, play our favorite song again. Okay. Thank you. Hi, I'm Eric Nolan. I'm Shantae Moore. Hi, my name is Latoya Luckett, and you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. We're joined now by the retired commissioner of the MEAC Conference, Dennis Thomas. So you don't have to do all this stuff next year, all of the duties and events and news conferences. And you can just chill.

Starting point is 00:26:25 Well, Roland, it'll be in good hands. Sonia Steele, the commissioner-elect, is ready and ready, and she's going to do an absolutely fantastic job. You should also feel good after today's announcement of the extension of Cricket Wireless for six years as a sponsor of this bowl. Absolutely. We are very pleased that corporate America has invested in HBCUs and in this bowl game. And it is absolutely critical that we continue to receive the kind of investments from Corporate America.

Starting point is 00:26:58 Are you getting calls and emails from some of your other peers saying, man, how in the heck did y'all pull this thing off? Well, I got calls in 2004 when we first asked ESPN to invest in a bold concept that I brought to ESPN. And ESPN said sign off on it. Then I went back to my membership and was very enthusiastic about it because I thought this was absolutely the right thing. You thought it was a lock.

Starting point is 00:27:31 Absolutely. And our membership said that off the brakes a minute, Dennis. We want to remain in the playoffs. And I said this is an absolutely tremendous opportunity that we need to take advantage of we'll we have new revenue streams we'll get branding we get promotion we get marketing you know and we will also be able to recruit students just not student athletes to students give us another platform for our student athletes and coaches. And so we worked for 10 years to bring this to fruition. And the kicker was when I asked for an audience with John Skipper,

Starting point is 00:28:14 who was the president and CEO of ESPN. He granted an audience, and I asked him to come and talk to our presidents and chancellors. And he agreed to it. And then that's when we got traction. And finally, the presidents and chancellors agreed to send our champion to the postseason bowl game. to get many of our black institutions to be ahead of the curve as opposed to being behind the curve. For you to sit here and for it to be a decade, if you go back to it,

Starting point is 00:28:55 that's a decade of revenue lost, a decade of opportunity. We saw with COVID, a lot of churches, they didn't want to do stuff online. They didn't care about it. Then COVID hit, they had no choice. I can tell you, I've run three black newspapers. Conversations that I've had with black publishers 20 years ago, and they're trying to do the stuff now.

Starting point is 00:29:16 And that's one of the greatest frustrations I've always had, is trying to get our institutions to embrace going to the next level? I think that's accurate. And I know that the biggest challenge for the visionary is to get the people who will be effectuated to see the vision. And that is difficult because they can't see what you see and but you got to go about a strategy to bring them along so they can actually picture what you actually see and say most people can see down the highway but a visionary can can see around the corner where normal people can't see that and that's the difference and you can't give up on your vision through all adversities to all circumstances you got to keep hammering away at it keep hammering away and and

Starting point is 00:30:14 i and i and i gained insights and i gained motivation from my forefathers and mothers because they had it worse than you or me. But they made it. They made it better for us. So my mindset is very simple. Don't give up on the vision because the people before you didn't. And you owe it to them not to give up. Where do you want to see the MEAC and the SPLAC in this bowl

Starting point is 00:30:46 game ten years from now? I want to see a sold-out stadium. I want to see corporate America continue to invest and I want to see students all across the globe seeing our institution as a viable option for an education. See, this is bigger than a game. In my mind, it's bigger than a game. And you've got to look at this from a holistic perspective. How does this advance our messaging for all of our institutions? How does this advance our messaging for all of our institutions how does this advance our mission and we have to

Starting point is 00:31:31 and we must become more diverse if we're going to stay relevant and we just can't be all black anymore we still can maintain our mission our goals and objectives, but we have to serve all of America in order for us to grow, in order for us to sustain our stability,

Starting point is 00:31:57 in order for us to be better to corporate America and improve our value, not only to our community, but to our world. The, um, when you talk about leaving, what's the one thing you're going to miss? Relationships. I got in this business to make a difference with student-athletes. And relationship with student-athletes has always been on the forefront. And developing student-athletes to be better people. And also, you have to understand people talking about getting your degree, that's great. That's the bottom line. But you have to understand people talking about getting your degree. That's great. That's the bottom line.

Starting point is 00:32:45 But you have to be educated. A lot of people with degrees are not educated. Okay? Now, you want to take that holistic approach where you are inculcating and imbuing these students to their fullest potential. God-given ability. Now, that's what we should all be about. And whatever that takes, then we have to have the right strategy to implement that. And that strategy is different from campus to campus, from individual to individual. Now, that's, in Dennis Thomas' humble opinion, what we should be about.

Starting point is 00:33:29 All right. Well, look, we are looking forward to you getting the Lifetime Achievement Award for the SWAC, the Hall of Fame there. You've been honored by a competing conference. So that's always a little different. Well, it's not a competing conference. I'm part of the Miag. I played in the Miag.

Starting point is 00:33:47 I was educated in the Miag. Alcorn State University. I just happened to be the commissioner of the Miag. But you do want the Miag to win the game, say. No question. No question. And by the way, I'm happy you brought that up, Roland. You know, out of the five bowls, celebration bowls, the Miak won four.

Starting point is 00:34:09 Okay? So, you know, we're kind of at 90% right now, you know? So all the people that say that, well, you know, the Miak, you know, they're not as strong this year as they have been. Well, that has yet to be seen and we'll let tomorrow determine that so you say you got all the hype with dion but the championships with the me at one thing about athletics they keep score at the end of the day they keep score and whoever ends up with the most points, you know, wins the game. All right.

Starting point is 00:34:48 So talking the game ain't the game. Well, it was good seeing you. We appreciate it. Good luck in retirement. Thank you, sir. And enjoy yourself. Thank you. All right, folks, we come back.

Starting point is 00:35:00 We're going to show you some of the news conferences earlier, both of the coaches here at the 2021 Cricket Wilder Celebration Bowl. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. We'll be right back. Alexa, play our favorite song again. Okay. I only have eyes for you. Субтитры создавал DimaTorzok ТРЕВОЖНАЯ МУЗЫКА I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff.

Starting point is 00:36:28 I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff.

Starting point is 00:36:44 I'm going to go get my stuff. I'm going to go get my stuff. Maureen is saving big holiday shopping at Amazon, so now she's free to become Maureen the Marrier. Food is her love language, and she really loves her grandson. Like, really loves. What's up, y'all? I'm Will Packer. Hello, I'm Bishop T.D. James. What up?

Starting point is 00:37:05 Lana Well, and you are watching Rolling Martin Unfiltered. So we're here to announce to you that this year we're just announcing a new six-year extension for the Cricket Celebration Bowl to be hosted here at this beautiful venue, Mercedes-Benz Stadium. We're delighted to be partnered again with the Mercedes-Benz Stadium family, and our good friend Tim Zalowski and his team have been wonderful with us over the last six, and so announcing the new six-year deal here will bring the Cricket Celebration Bowl to a world-class venue to showcase world-class talent on this wonderful stage. So just wanted to announce that to you today and turn it over to my friend Tim here for any additional comments.

Starting point is 00:38:21 First and foremost, it is our pleasure to obviously announce the six-year extension. John and the team at the Celebration Bowl and ESPN have been outstanding partners with our organization, and it gives us great pride to host the first game in the college bowl season each year with the Celebration Bowl taking place here, the Cricket Celebration Bowl. So we set out at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to bring the best events from around the world to Atlanta. We function either as the heartbeat of Atlanta, or if you come in here as a fan for any of our events,

Starting point is 00:38:53 we try to welcome you home. And there's not a better way to do so than the partnership we have with John Grant, the folks at ESPN, and the Celebration Bowl. So, John, thank you very much for the commitment you've had to our enterprise for the next six years. We look forward to an exhilarating match tomorrow with a

Starting point is 00:39:11 sold-out capacity and many more years of it to come. Thank you. Thank you so much. First of all, I'm thankful. I mean, ladies, I'm happy. I mean, unbelievably blessed week. Wonderful honor.

Starting point is 00:39:27 This gentleman right here has been outstanding. When I tell you that this is really, truly a bowl game, I was blessed to attend four bowls at my tenure at FSU. And this, if I say this is the best one, they're going to think I'm trying to hate on FSU, especially with the recent actions. But this has been a great, great, great bowl week. It's unbelievable.

Starting point is 00:39:53 I can't wait, and I'm excited about the game. That's my opening statement. Appreciate all you for coming here. I really do. I appreciate it. I really do. I'm pretty sure we haven't had this type of involvement in the past, and I'm thankful and I'm elated to be addition to provoke this type of change

Starting point is 00:40:14 that we have, that we're seeing right now. Let's do this. Coach Will Starr in the back, standing up. Coach Sanders, Tali Carr with HBCU Game Day back on the riser. Here you go. Good. How are you doing, sir? Great, great.

Starting point is 00:40:37 Powerful week with recruiting and Travis Hunter and just we've all seen that. I'm wondering for you the amount of power that that gave him and that he showed the country and the amount of power that that gave him and that he showed the country and the amount of power that Jackson State and other HBCUs are starting to show, what does it mean for you to be involved with people and a movement that becomes bigger than themselves and they start to see that power? Well, I'm pretty certain that this is why I'm here. I'm pretty certain this is why God led me to Jackson State University, to HBCU, to the SWAC. I'm pretty certain that's why.

Starting point is 00:41:08 I tried to tell you. Nobody wanted to listen. You thought I was just running the mouth. And it was not that. I truly believe. You know, we stand by that word, I believe, and we truly believe that it's going to be a change. Everything I've done in my life, I provoke change.

Starting point is 00:41:25 Why not now? You think I was just going to be a head coach and there's no change and we continue to do the same foolishness that we've done? We're not going to do that anymore. It's a systemic cancer that we've got to get rid of. We've got to stop. We've got to stop. We've got to change every darn thing that we can possibly do.

Starting point is 00:41:44 This is a new kid. This is a new generation. This is a new thing. And we've got to be open to change, and that's all we've done at Jackson State with the help of our beloved AD, Ashley Robinson. We provoke change in every aspect of the word. I was originally committed to FAU, and a couple weeks after that, that's when my dad got the job at Jackson State. So we was just walking around each other at the house, and I just got to the point where his eye pops, talked to me.

Starting point is 00:42:15 Like, what is it? So then we sat down, we talked about it. He never recruited me doing it, though. Like, I was on the calls with other coaches. I was already at the school and then I just felt like it was the best uh situation for me and my whole um recruiting process I wanted to go somewhere and play right away I'm not I'm not going for go there sit a year learn from this guy this guy I feel like experience is the best thing and learning. So I knew regardless of wherever you go,

Starting point is 00:42:45 you'll have the attention and have the spotlight wherever. So I just felt like this was the best place and for our people too. Shador, can you explain in your own words what's special about the HBCU experience? I mean, you see it. You see just the fans, just like, just everything coming to fold now. I just remember picturing walking to the empty stadium and just looking around, just praying, like,

Starting point is 00:43:12 not knowing what the season has to come. And the magnitude of everything we're doing now, it just really shows that God's real. Shador, you talk about the decision you made to come. You know, you were a four-star. You were the highest recruit at that point. Now you guys just got another young man that has committed to you all, who is highly, you know, highly rated.

Starting point is 00:43:33 Just talk about, you know, what it is. You know, you said you guys chose to come to Jackson State, and now he's chosen to come to Jackson State. What do you think it is that makes those young men who their father isn't the coach, what makes them want to come to Jackson State? I mean, just seeing how real it is. I mean, you guys are teammates. It's not a relationship with my pops where, okay, I get special treatment and stuff like that.

Starting point is 00:43:56 Like, I'm human too. Like, I'm a regular player too. So I feel like just the players and just teammates seeing how everything is so genuine and how down to earth our coaching staff and coaches is and they understand what it's like to be one of us in our situation. Thank you all for coming. Appreciate you coming to check on us. We've been going through a neat week here at the Celebration Bowl. I've got to first thank all of the sponsors, all of the operational folks, starting with John Grant.

Starting point is 00:44:33 John is the executive director of the Celebration Bowl. John has done a fantastic job of running this thing. I've been involved with other bowl games, and I can tell you that this is as well-run as any game I've ever been associated with. The sponsors, starting with John Dwyer from Cricket Wireless, the Coca-Cola folk. Delta came in there in Columbia, brought all their top-notch people in and flew us in from Columbia to Atlanta. That was a fun little trip.

Starting point is 00:45:08 It was kind of fun in a way because, I mean, we bused to Delaware. I mean, so you come back and take the plane to Atlanta. You know, it was truly an exciting kind of opportunity that way. So we've got to thank all of the folk that are involved here with the Celebration Bowl and say that it was truly a pleasure to be a part of this particular fair this way. We look forward to seeing if we can come out on Saturday and play against these Jackson State Tigers. Everybody knows Jackson's the favorite. We all know that they've got Deion and all of his highfalutin-ness and all the different kinds of stuff. I was a fan

Starting point is 00:45:46 when he was playing for everybody. For two teams, he played football, basketball, and baseball, and track, and golf, and all that kind of stuff at the same time. The guy is probably the, I guess,

Starting point is 00:46:02 maybe top all-around athlete, maybe of all times as far as I can remember doing our generation here. So the guy has been fantastic as far as his athleticism and his play and all these different things. And then on top of that, then the guy comes in, you know, and makes the coaching game look easy. He's been here for less than a year, and he's won all the top awards.

Starting point is 00:46:25 I've been coaching for 45 years and hadn't had some of these accolades and stuff of that kind that he's had. It's been a fun run to see him rise to the top of the league and he's done a little bit for us all. I've got to be honest and say that I'm sure some of the numbers that we've had as far as the record ticket sales and that kind of stuff are somewhat, I guess, dependent upon the fact that he's got there doing what he does. But South Carolina State folk have done a nice job themselves. We've been extremely excited about this thing to build up from the time that we won our conference to now, you know,

Starting point is 00:47:08 has been tremendous in the way that our fans have, have, has gotten excited about and done, you know, a great job of, of coming together and being a part of this thing too. So I'm looking forward to seeing our fan base out there against their fan base,

Starting point is 00:47:23 along with the fact that our team is to be against their fact that our team is going to be against their team. Our band is going to be against their band. So this is going to be a fun experience for us all. So I'm looking forward to this and many, many more celebration bowls to come because I think we've got something here. I think we've got a model that might be good as ever. Y'all ready for me to shut up? Rick?

Starting point is 00:47:39 No, yeah, I know y'all. All right, folks, when we come back, we'll talk with the winner of the Jerry Weiss Award, the best player in the FCS, Trudeau Sanders, the first HBCU player to actually win that award. You're watching Roller Martin Unfiltered right here on the Black Star Network. Thank you. Are the stars of tonight. Alexa, play our favorite song again. Okay. I only have eyes for you. have i We'll be right back. Y'all know who Roland Martin is.

Starting point is 00:49:09 He got the ass got on. He do the news. It's fancy news. Keep it rolling. Right here. Rolling. Roland Martin. Right now.

Starting point is 00:49:19 You are watching Roland Martin. Unfiltered. I mean, could it be any other way? Really. It's Roland Martin, unfiltered. I mean, could it be any other way? Really? It's Roland Martin. Welcome to the next guest, not just the son of the head football coach, he's also the starting quarterback. And this week found out that he is the winner of the Jerry Rice Award for the best player in the FCS.

Starting point is 00:49:55 The first time an HBCU player has won that award named after an HBCU great from Mississippi Valley State, Shudo Sanders. How are you doing, Doc? I'm doing good how are you? So how's that feel being the first one I mean first is named after Jerry Rice Yeah I mean who else could have won it? Who else could have won it?

Starting point is 00:50:13 You saw what I did out there You saw the numbers I put up And really the team So you see what team I got around Have you heard from Jerry Rice? He was a teammate of your dad's Yeah yeah I spoke with him in the past Talk about this season and how it's gone Have you heard from Jared Rice? He was a teammate of your dad's in San Francisco. I spoke with him in the past.

Starting point is 00:50:29 Talk about this season and how it's gone. 11-1 season, a lot of hype, a lot of attention, and the fan base has really embraced what y'all have been able to do. I feel like it's a pretty darn good season to me offensively. We're putting up numbers. We could be doing more defensively. you see that side of the ball. You see that it's very – teams are having trouble scoring on them. So I feel like overall it's a good time.

Starting point is 00:50:55 It's a good year. And you see just the media around HBCU football now. A lot of times you'll have quarterbacks who might disagree with their coaches. You're in a unique situation because when you look to the sideline, it's not just the head coach, but it's also that. Yes, sir. And so what has that relationship been like as well in terms of when it comes to game day? I mean, he's been my coach for my whole life.

Starting point is 00:51:22 We've been doing the same thing in high school. We won a championship in high school all four years. So it's nothing new. It's just like we're just doing history again. Well, that's still also a little bit different because you also, the whole dynamic of other players as well, having a dad and a coach. It's not the first time you've had players that have been coached by their father. What do you want people to know about your dad as a coach?

Starting point is 00:51:51 They see primetime. They see the player. They saw him when he was in the NFL. But what should they know about him as a coach? I mean, you could tell he's a genuine person. He's going to tell you straight up the real. You hear it at HBCU. He's not going to lie to you about anything. So I feel like he understands what situation we're in and just as students of the school. So he's been through that before

Starting point is 00:52:16 too. He went to college. He did all that. So he's more realistic and he's very reasonable. Well, and also as somebody who's played at the highest level uh considered the greatest quarterback uh to play in the nfl so i take it uh when it comes to your defense listening to him they probably listen a little bit more intently uh based upon that track record now i feel like everybody listens to him it's not just a defensive thing it's just like offense we just gotta get going that's all it is we just gotta put up more yards put up more numbers defense is just they got more experience on the side of the ball i talked to south carolina state coach a couple days ago uh and he said uh the strength of our team is our defense he said so uh they should

Starting point is 00:52:56 expect a strong test come saturday i mean hey uh i feel like in the swag we play we play good defense a week in and a week out. Now, I just talked to Commissioner Dennis Thomas. He did remind me of the five celebration bowls. The New Yorkers won four of those five. I mean, nobody else is doing numbers how we do. You see it's a new thing. You see it's a new year.

Starting point is 00:53:18 You see everything's different. So you're saying y'all looking to change that trajectory in the past as opposed to Swag coming to this game and not taking the title home. I mean, it's a thing. We're not just living in the past. It's a new day. You see the fans. You see we're on SportsCenter every week. You see the difference.

Starting point is 00:53:35 We don't have to talk about it. You see it. So, obviously, you feel like the outcome is going to be the same how it is the year before. That's just something you're just going to have to think. How has it been looking up on those stands? We showed the video from earlier today. You talked about going to some games and seeing a lot of empty seats. But this year, seeing a lot of those seats filled for the first time.

Starting point is 00:53:59 It's amazing. When you got the vet packed with all of our people, it's a different feeling. It's something that I've been to a lot of college football games, really, just on visits and everything, but this is different. You come out there at halftime, you see 1,000 people on the field. It's the band, everybody, J-Sits, everybody. So it's just a real different experience that I feel like a lot of kids in our culture need to understand and need and see how it is.

Starting point is 00:54:27 Do you also believe that folks at Jackson State not only are waiting for halftime, but they're also waiting for y'all to come out in the second half? Because one thing you hear a lot of HBCU fans, they're like, yeah, OK, one second half comes. It's always about the halftime performance as opposed to what happens on the field. I don't really think you say that about our team. Yeah, I feel like we're entertaining throughout the whole game. Okay. Well, look, it's going to be a great game tomorrow. Of course, on ABC, national audience.

Starting point is 00:54:58 It's not going to be on ESPN or one of the digital channels. Only one of four bowl games. It's going to be on broadcast. And so the whole country actually gets to see what you can do and what South Carolina State can do. Yes, sir. All right. We're looking forward to it. Good luck at tomorrow's game.

Starting point is 00:55:14 And give them hell. Yes, sir. All right, then. Folks, again, we're going to come back. We're going to talk some news today. Kim Potter testifies to her trial in Minneapolis. Also, noted author, feminist Bill Hooks passed away. We'll also talk about that as well. You're watching Roller Mountain Unfiltered right here on the Black Star Network.

Starting point is 00:55:30 Live in Atlanta, the 2021 Cricket Wireless Celebration Ball. Stars out in the night. Alexa, play our favorite song again. OK. I only have eyes for you. НАПРЯИЧНАЯ МУЗЫКА Maureen is saving big holiday shopping at Amazon. So now she's free to become Maureen the Marrier. Food is her love language. And she really loves her grandson. Like, really loves. Hello, everyone.

Starting point is 00:57:26 It's Piera Sheard. Hey, I'm Taj. I'm Coco. And I'm Lele. And we're SWB. What's up, y'all? It's Ryan Destiny. And you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered.

Starting point is 00:57:50 A couple days ago, acclaimed author and feminist Bell Hooks passed away at the age of 69. Of course, her real name was Gloria Jean Watkins. She took her name as a testament nod to her grandmother. She, of course, focused on topics about feminism and race. She won a number of awards, including the Writers Award from the Lila Wallace Reader's Digest Fund, was named one of the nation's leading public intellectuals for the Atlantic Monthly, also was inducted into the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame. Joining me now is Dr. Imani Perry. She's professor of African American Studies at Princeton University. Dr. Perry, glad to have you on the show. For folks who don't know about Bell Hooks, who don't know about her writing, why was she so impactful, especially to a whole generation, two generations of black women?

Starting point is 00:58:35 Many of them were commenting, just shocked and stunned at the passing of Bell Hooks. Yeah. Well, first of all, let me say thank you for having me and thank you for spending the time to talk about her. She was an incredibly brilliant woman, an author of literally dozens of books. She resonated with people because she began she she wrote from the position that she began. She was a country woman. She was from Kentucky and she became an extraordinary intellectual. And through those experiences, decided to share with people how she thought about gender, how she thought about sexuality, how she thought about class, how she thought about injustice broadly. Her writing was inviting. It wasn't, you know, distant academic language. She reached for people where they are, where they were. And she also, and this is really important, I think, for our communities in particular, she wrote about love and she wrote about spirituality. And so she really thought that the work of the reaction from so many people they just talked about uh the

Starting point is 00:59:49 power of her writing and how she centered uh black feminism uh that's something that it wasn't afterthought it was the center of everything she wrote about yes i mean black women were at the center of her calling and she took the name of her great grandmother and put the name in lowercase to emphasize. She was interested in we, us collectively, our people, our community, black women's legacies in particular. But she didn't, for her, that was an entry point to thinking about the entire world. So for her, being a black woman wasn't limiting. It was actually a perspective from which one could understand the world in extraordinary ways. But you always, when you opened her book, you knew that you were being seen, that you were

Starting point is 01:00:35 being recognized, and that you were important as a Black woman reader. But I also think it's really important to say she loved Black men dear dearly and she talked about wanting to tend and care for black men as well. We're bringing my panel, Michael Imhotep. I want to start with you, your thoughts on bell hooks and also give a question for Dr. Imani Perry. All right. Thanks, Roland. Thanks, Dr. Imani Perry, for coming on today and teaching us more about bell hooks. Yeah, this is a big loss as well. She wrote 40 books, books translated into 15 different languages. I posted about her death on the African History Network fan page. I know you're the person that asked this, too. When we deal with and hear about feminism or black feminism, oftentimes African-American men are automatically off-put by it. And this has caused factions in the movement for issues pertaining to African Americans. How do we continue to push for issues that are beneficial to African Americans while

Starting point is 01:01:50 at the same time not denouncing African American women when they talk about issues that specifically impact them? Oftentimes when they bring up issues that impact them, they're told that they're being divisive and you should just focus on black issues, not black women issues. How do we move forward together? Well, it's a hard, right. That's a hard question to answer.

Starting point is 01:02:12 I mean, I think Gloria, and I called her Gloria instead of bell hooks, I mean, when she wrote the book Feminism for Everybody, she was trying to respond to that. I think, you know, my perspective is I think black liberation is for all black people. And so one of the ways so we shouldn't think of our interests as competing, but we should think every sector of our community deserves to be tended to and that there is no hierarchy in our communities, that we all deserve care. I mean, if any if there is one, it is our babies come first, right? And so, you know, so that's the ethos. I understand there are a lot of sort of tensions that we are a complex people. We have differing politics. We have differing perspectives. We're not going to all agree. We're not going to have the same idea about liberation. But I do think if we start from the perspective that we

Starting point is 01:03:01 care about all members of our community, that that helps. Okay, thank you. Faraji? Oh, I can't hear you. Faraji, we can't hear you. Gotcha. Dr. Perry, thank you so much for joining us on the show today.

Starting point is 01:03:24 I'm wondering in terms of Bell Hook's legacy, you know, what would she say to black men today about getting involved in the feminist movement? Or what role should black men, younger black men, that have very different views about the role of women, the role of men, whether it's in the household, whether it's in the workplace, whether it's in the community. So how would Bell Hooks advise us to move forward on making sure that the next generation of black men, you know, is a part of the change to bring about a greater level of respect for black women. Well, I mean, I think and I feel I feel pretty confident saying this because, you know, I spoke to her over the last several years and everybody, you know, changes and grows.

Starting point is 01:04:20 But I think consistently what what she tried to talk about was being aware of the very particular kinds of oppressions that all folks in our community experience. So it's hard to ask people to join a movement without also recognizing what they're experiencing, right? How they might. So I think for young black men in the ways that young black men are targeted and demonized, right? That has to, that's also part of the struggle for liberation. And she was very attentive to that. So it's not a sort of, you know, bring you into one side. It's actually bring us all into recognizing each other. Now that said, she didn't shy away from challenging sexist attitudes and ideas in ways that not everybody liked all the time, that ways that people found difficult. But this is why I mentioned the point about love. Right. So if love is the is the underlying ethic to everything that you do and people know that you love them, that makes it a lot easier to accept pushback, criticism, when you know that it's not coming from a place of competition or hostility, but love.

Starting point is 01:05:31 And so, you know, this is, it's, but it's an, it's a long struggle. You know, we've had a hard, hard history, so it's not ever going to be easy, but it's worth fighting for. And that's the lesson she taught us. It's, It's worth fighting for. Thank you. Matt Manning. Good evening, Dr. Perry. Thank you so much for joining us and for teaching us. My question is just, it's pretty simple. How do we connect Ms. Hook's teachings to this social moment that we find ourselves in,

Starting point is 01:05:59 kind of this inflection point as we're fighting for justice? Please, if you would, edify us on how we can use her teachings to kind of move forward at this point. Well, I would say, I think, you know, I do think that reading is, you know, I love Ida B. Wells' quote, that people must know before they can act. I think reading should be a ritual practice for all of us because we learn, we become more insightful. But I also think, you know, I think of the words of Bella Baker, you know, the tribe increases, we carry on. So part of the lesson is to read and learn from her and from many others and then develop

Starting point is 01:06:36 our own analyses, right? And try to work together in the now, right? We have this incredible array of ancestors who provide models and who provide insight, but we are also now, we're here. We're here and now we are the ones to continue the work and understand that it's lifelong work. We're not going to solve these things, but we can make a significant difference. Thank you. Dr. Perry, if that was one book of bell hooks that everyone should read, what would that be? Oh, gosh, that's a really hard question when you're talking about dozens of books.

Starting point is 01:07:11 I particularly love Yearning, and I also love Teaching to Transgress because I think about children all the time. And that book really is really about how do we see ourselves as people who offer knowledge to young people who think that they are the future. So, yeah, that would be the one, I guess. All right, then, Dr. Imani Perry, we certainly appreciate you joining us to share your thoughts regarding the passing of author Bill Hooks. Thank you so very much. Thank you. Folks, going to a break. We come back kim potter testifies on her behalf and her trial in minneapolis for killing dante right lots of tears on the stand we'll show you what took place right here on roller martin unfiltered on the black star network betty is saving big holiday shopping at amazon so now she's free to become Bear Hug Betty.

Starting point is 01:08:08 Settle in, kids. You'll be there a while. Ooh, where you going? We'll be right back. Hi, I'm B.B. Winans. Hey, I'm Donnie Simpson. What's up? I'm Lance Gross, and you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. 35-year-old DeAndra Chalmers was last seen walking near the Parkland Hospital on November 29th in Dallas, Texas. DeAndra is 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighs 180 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a black sweater and black pants. If anyone knows of DeAndra's whereabouts,

Starting point is 01:09:29 please contact the Dallas Police Department Missing Persons Unit at 214-671-4268, 214-671-4268. Today in Minneapolis, the former Brooklyn Center police officer, on trial for failing shooting Dante Wright took the stand on her behalf. During direct examination, Kimberly Potter told the jury she did not realize she had fired the gun instead of her taser during the April traffic stop until Wright cried out that he had been shot. With Officer Lucky and the driver at the door, the driver was trying to get back into the car. Well, he was trying to get back in the car. What did you do?

Starting point is 01:10:15 I went around Officer Lucky as they're trying to get back in the door. I'm between the door and Officer Lucky and the driver, and the driver's getting into the car. And what happened next? They're still struggling, and I can see Sergeant Johnson and the driver struggling over the gear shifts, because I can see Johnson's's hand and then I can see his face. And you knew Johnson from many years before this, is that right? Yes.

Starting point is 01:10:51 And by looking at his face at that point in time, what did you interpret it to mean? He had a look of fear on his face. It's nothing I've seen before. Did you say anything when you saw this? What did you do? We were struggling. We were trying to keep him from driving away. It just went chaotic. It's and then I remember

Starting point is 01:11:33 yelling taser, taser, taser and nothing happened and then he told me I shot him. Can you proceed? Yes. On uh on mr right did you no never saw a gun no he never threw a punch right no never kicked anyone no never said i'm gonna kill you no never said i'm gonna shoot you

Starting point is 01:12:21 no never said there's a gun in the car and I'm coming after you. No. Okay. Okay. It's not uncommon in your experience to find someone who has a warrant during a traffic stop, right? It's not uncommon. And you've done hundreds of traffic stops in your career, correct? I don't know if hundreds, but yes, I've done plenty of traffic stops.

Starting point is 01:12:48 And gross misdemeanor offenses are not the same as felony offenses, fair? Correct, they're a different order by the judge. Less serious crimes, correct? All crimes are serious, but yes. Well, in terms of the laws of the state of Minnesota that you're duty-bound to enforce, a gross misdemeanor is a lesser offense than a felony, correct? Yes. In court in this case, a conversation about the Wright brothers.

Starting point is 01:13:18 You made a comment about the Wright brothers joking about not the ones that fly, right? Yes. And then any concerns about whether there was some other Wright family in the area? Sergeant Johnson told you, not that family, not this situation, right? I wasn't sure who they were. Okay. Your aid and communicate information to other officers, right? Yes. And it's part of your job to assist those who are hurt other officers, right? Yes.

Starting point is 01:13:45 And it's part of your job to assist those who are hurt or injured, true? Yes. And to communicate to other officers what you know about a particular scene, right? Yes. Give them whatever information you can to help them do their jobs, to help render assistance, things like that, right? Yes. But you didn't do any of those things on April 11th, did you? No.

Starting point is 01:14:11 You stopped doing your job completely. You didn't communicate what happened over the radio, right? No. You didn't make sure any officers knew what you had just done, right? No. You didn't run down the street and try to save Dante Wright's life, did you? No. You didn't check on the other car that had been hit, did you?

Starting point is 01:14:38 No. That all happened just down the road from you. Yes. You were focused on what you had done because you had just killed somebody. I'm sorry it happened. I'm so sorry. Ms. Potter, from your reaction today and from reaction on your video,

Starting point is 01:15:09 you didn't plan to use deadly force that day, did you? No. You didn't want to use deadly force, did you? I thought she ruled me. She planned it or wanted it. The objection is overruled. No. No. No.

Starting point is 01:15:28 Because you knew that deadly force was unreasonable and unwarranted in this circumstance. I didn't want to hurt anybody. You didn't want to hurt anybody. No. That's why you said, I'm going to go to prison. Don't. All right. The objection is sustained.

Starting point is 01:15:53 Ms. Potter, you know the difference between left and right, don't you? All right, Matt Manning, I want to start with you. I mean, is there a plausible defense? My bad. A little bit to an extent, but I'll tell you this. Let me first say everything in a courtroom is intentional for all your viewers out there. They have her dressed this way purposely. I'm sure her attorneys told her if you get emotional, do not stop crying. All of those things are unfortunately what lawyers try to leverage in front of a jury. And here, if you look at the picture, they've made her look as homely, and I mean no disrespect, but as homely, as maternal, as accessible.

Starting point is 01:16:37 We're talking Minnesota, right? So this is all intentional. And I say that in support of saying, if you notice, she didn't even use Daunte Wright's name. She continued to say the driver. I guarantee you her attorneys want to depersonalize Mr. Wright and make it seem as though she's just a good officer doing her job. But I would say here the tears are for fears. They're to try to impart to the jury the idea that she was so afraid that a couple things are happening. One, she was afraid for her own safety. But the ancillary thing is that she was afraid for the a couple things are happening. One, she was afraid for her own safety,

Starting point is 01:17:05 but the ancillary thing is that she was afraid for the safety of this other officer. They're trying to establish a defensive third-person defense that'll essentially say, even if she wrongfully shot him, she's within the bounds of the law because she had a reasonable apprehension that her other officer was going to be hurt. Now, we know that's cockamamie because, in fact, she breached for the wrong weapon, which is absurd if you've had 26 years of training.

Starting point is 01:17:30 But in terms of making people think, there is, I think, a chance that at least one juror will potentially bite that argument. And that's what viewers need to know. In the criminal justice system, a conviction has to be unanimous. So they can get a hung jury off one person buying what we're seeing here, which I think is a pretty good acting job, but it's all intentional. And that's very important for people to know that I think that's the defense they're going for. They're trying to attack the intentionality, which is why you hear her saying so frequently, I didn't mean to do it, you know, it wasn't purposeful, trying to say it's an accident. And even if it isn't an

Starting point is 01:18:05 accident, it's okay because I feared for my other officer's safety. That's what you're saying at play here. The issue, the issue here for Roger is, oh, I didn't mean to do it, but somebody is dead as a result of her actions. Yeah. I mean, absolutely. That's, that's the big issue, but I'm wondering how much does the part of her screaming out, Taser, Taser, Taser, will play into this? I mean, Matt, I think you're making some excellent points saying that from everything, the way she's dressing and to the emotion. But, I mean, the part that she says, Taser, Taser, Taser,

Starting point is 01:18:40 I can't personally get past that. I'm wondering if that is going to be a, you know, like the Achilles heel of this case where she's not going to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law because she announced Taser even though she reached for her service revolver, her service weapon. So I'm wondering, you spoke about intentionality, the intention behind this whole situation. The intention seems to be a huge part of this whole case because she said taser. You can clearly hear it on video. But then at the same time, as the prosecutor said, you know, you didn't reach out for the other folks.

Starting point is 01:19:23 You didn't see what happened to Daunte Wright. You didn't see what happened to Daunte Wright. You didn't see what happened to the other cars. I mean, the intention is certainly a big part of this, but that one little piece where she says, taser, taser, taser, I'm thinking that just might be a situation to give her just a little lead way in the minds of those jurors.

Starting point is 01:19:44 I don't know. You know what I mean? We have dealt with, and we've talked about it endlessly on this show, many cases where there have been those small lines, small details that have often been kind of, like, you know, disregarded. But in this case, it's still hard for me to see that there's going to be justice served for the family of Dante Wright just because she yelled out, Taser, Taser, Taser. Matt, Brother Roland, am I wrong on this?

Starting point is 01:20:13 May I have permission to respond? Well, also, it's just so sick. Yeah, Matt, go ahead. Go ahead. I was just going to say really quickly, I think that's a great question, but I think the intentionality here is precisely the issue insofar as that's what she's saying. I was trying to reach for my taser. I didn't have the intent to do this act that actually caused his death is what I'm getting at. So that's, I think, what her defense attorneys are trying to attack, because generally homicide statutes, manslaughter statutes are going to have an intentional element. And that's exactly what they're lobbying them try to establish right now. Mm.

Starting point is 01:20:45 And I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point.

Starting point is 01:21:01 I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. I think that's a very good point. that you should get an instruction and a jury charge, which is why they asked her all those questions about the other officer on the other side of the car. That's what you're seeing them try to establish right now. The thing here, Michael, that when you watch this, her attorneys have already laid the groundwork by saying, oh, if she's found guilty, they want the judge to sentence her and not the jury. But we also know in many of these cases, saying, oh, if she's found guilty, they want the judge to sentence her and not the jury.

Starting point is 01:21:31 But we also know in many of these cases, juries give the police officers extreme, I mean, extreme benefit of the doubt. And so it's not clear cut that she's going to be convicted in this case. No, it's not clear cut. Now, the prosecution did a really good job today. And as I said before on the show last Friday, I knew she was going to break down crying on the witness stand. They had her dressed like a soccer mom today to get some sympathy also. But, you know, what's really, it's a number of things that are really damaging.

Starting point is 01:21:56 The body cam footage of what happened right after she shot Dante Wright. She said, I'm going to prison. She said, I killed a boy. She didn't say anything about fearing for her life. She didn't say anything about trying to protect other officers, anything like that. She said, holy sugar, honey, sugar, honey, iced tea. I just shot him. She said, I grabbed the wrong effing gun.

Starting point is 01:22:19 I shot him. OK, but then the prosecution today went on to talk about how. So, you know, after Dante Wright was shot, the car drove off. He hits another car when other officers arrive on the scene. Officer Kim Potter didn't tell the other officers exactly what happened and did not try to render aid to Dante Wright, either, who was down the street and crashed into another car. So, yeah, you know, a lot came out today, and we know the defense rested today as well. So it's not clear cut that she's going to be convicted, but the prosecution did a good job. I really don't think a lot of her testimony today really helped her. The tears did help, but the testimony is different than the tears.

Starting point is 01:23:06 Well, guess what? Juries can be very emotional in terms of what they abide. As Matt said, all you need is one to say not guilty. So we'll be following this to its conclusion. All right, folks, got to go to a break. We come back more on Roland Martin Unfiltered

Starting point is 01:23:22 right here from the Black Star Network. President Joe Biden speaks to South Carolina State for commencement today. We'll show you some of what he had to say. Back to a break. We come back more on Roland Martin Unfiltered right here from the Black Star Network. President Joe Biden speaks to South Carolina State for commencement today. We'll show you some of what he had to say. Back in a moment. ДИНАМИЖНАЯ МУЗЫКА Yes, no, yes, yes, no. Yes, no, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yes, yes, no, no. Yes, yes, no, yes, yes, yes, no. I need to try it first. I'm Chrisette Michelle. Hi, I'm Chaley Rose, and you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. Well, while we are here in Atlanta for the 2021 Cricket Wireless Celebration Bowl between South Carolina State and Jackson State, President Joe Biden was actually speaking at the South Carolina State commencement today.

Starting point is 01:25:53 Congressman Jim Clyburn, who is a graduate of South Carolina State, did not walk across the stage when he finished it a number of years ago, but got a chance to do so today. And, of course, you know, was paid back by having Biden come back and speak, considering it was Clyburn who made it possible for him to win the nomination. Here's some of what Biden had to say. Anything like the unrelenting assault on the right to vote? Never. I don't think any of you have on the stage ever seen. Not a joke. And folks, as John Lewis said, it is the only, without the right to vote, there is no

Starting point is 01:26:34 democracy. It's not just about who gets to vote or make it easier as we used to try to do to make people eligible to be able to vote. It's about who gets to count the vote. Whether your vote counts at all. Folks, I was chairman of the Judiciary Committee for a long time.

Starting point is 01:26:57 At the end of my stint, before I became vice president, I was able to pass the extension of the Voting Rights Act for 25 years, and guess what? And convince Strom Thurmond of South Carolina to vote for it. No, no, not a joke. I thought we're finally, finally, finally beginning to move. But this new sinister combination of voter suppression, election subversion, it's un-American. it's un-democratic, and sadly, it is unprecedented since Reconstruction. Vice President Harris is leading the efforts for us, but on the anniversary of Bloody Sunday,

Starting point is 01:27:36 I directed every single federal agency in the United States government to promote access to voting, and each agency is heading and heeding the call. HBCUs have helped produce 40% of all the black engineers in America. 50%. 50% of all the black lawyers in America. 70% of all the black doctors and dentists in America. And 80% of all the black judges in America.

Starting point is 01:28:13 Folks, I see HBCU excellence every single day in my administration, and that's not exaggerated. Vice President Harris, my Cabinet, Michael Reagan, Administrative EPA, senior White House staff, staff across my entire administration, graduates, I'm here to congratulate you, but also to let you know that your country, and this is not hyperbole, is counting on you.

Starting point is 01:28:41 They're counting on you to change, to turn the dial at a moment we have a chance to do it. And that I'm committed to doing everything I can to make real the promise of America for all Americans, for all of you. That's why my administration has delivered $5 billion so far to HBCUs just this year, Just this year. The more it comes. Because there's nothing you're unable to do if you have the product. If you have the laboratories. If you have a lot of these HBCUs aren't endowed like these other universities. Okay, that all sounds great, Faraji, talking about the importance of democracy and the right to vote, but the reality is this year, they have not passed the For the People Act. They have not passed the John Lewis Act. Senator Chuck Schumer insists this is going to get done by 2022.

Starting point is 01:29:42 The reality is Republicans are moving forward quickly with these voter suppression bills. And they are going to they are desperately trying to lock in their advantage with this also political gerrymandering for the next decade. President Biden has got to do more than just give speeches. Oh, absolutely. And one of the things that just stuck out for me and just in that clip, Brother Roland, is the fact that he said that we're counting on you. Look, the president, you know, to the president, you know, respectfully, no, sir, you can't put the onus and that burden on us because guess what? Black people come out to vote. We've been voting. We voted for the Democratic Party. We've just been voting in the system for many years. And the next generation of college students have been voting as well. We saw that in President Obama's election. No, we're counting on you to get on

Starting point is 01:30:31 track with where we are trying to go. And it's all good. Yes, you can say you can boast $5 billion to HBCUs, but HBCUs are the infrastructure is crumbling and the resources are drying up. So $5 billion is good. It's a good start. But these HBCUs, if you want to just, there's a difference between managing and then actually putting money to take this thing to the next level. And so HBCUs need more support. I mean, they need a, it's like a mandate every year that they're going to get billions of dollars. Just as much as we do other colleges, just as much as we do countries like Israel and other places, there needs to be that level of mandate and that level of commitment.

Starting point is 01:31:15 The final point is, is that, look, what are you asking us to do in this moment? If there's a stall in the Congress, if there's a stall between Republicans and Democrats, then what do you expect the people to do? We came out in full force in the streets last year to push for the George Floyd Policing Act. Guess what happened? Nothing. We got a lot of talk, but nothing even happened. I mean, we can all bear witness to the simple fact that that bill needed to be passed. So what I'm hearing from the president is just a lot of rhetoric, and it's not leading to any real change. And then at this point, we got to ask ourselves, there was a fantastic opinion piece that was in The New York Times called How to Tell When Your Country is Past the Point of No Return by Mr. Thomas Edsel.

Starting point is 01:32:04 And Mr. Edsel said, look at what the Republicans are doing. Look at where democracy is in this state of the country, the polarization, the partisanship. That's stuff that's happening right there on the executive level. Mr. President, what are you doing about that? Are you using your bully pulpit to push things forward that you know that it's going to be best for young black people coming out of these HBCUs? No, no, no. We don't need you don't need to count on us. We need to count on you. We need to see that you won't come through on the promises that you said you want to do.

Starting point is 01:32:37 If you say you serious about about making sure that we're doing what we need to do, then guess what? We need to see it, not just talk about it. We need to see it that way. we can feel it in our actual lives. Michael, the reality is when it comes to HBCU funding, the reality is they have received over the last 18 months a significant amount of money, loan forgiveness as well, for infrastructure. So those things will happen. In fact, Tennessee State is a perfect example

Starting point is 01:33:05 tennessee state is a state institution they tennessee state has received more money from a federal government than they have received from the state of tennessee whose job is to fund them so so the reality is the federal government's job is not to fund hbc use completely many of these are state institutions the states are supposed to be doing it. Jackson State, state institutions. South Carolina State, state. Prairie View A&M, state. Texas Southern, state. I can go on and on and on. And so, you know, when we talk about HBCUs, there are public HBCUs and private HBCUs. And so there's been a lot of money that has been flowing to HBCUs over the past 18 months. On the issue of voting, though, look, Biden has to be as aggressive in going after Manchin and Sinema and others in demanding a carve out of the filibuster for voting rights as they did when it came to the debt ceiling. Yeah, you know, Roland, HBCUs have gotten more, basically, from this administration than,

Starting point is 01:34:07 I think, in one year than previously any other administration. With voting rights, as well as the George Floyd Justice and Policing Act, but especially voting rights, I think this week has been a turning point. I talked about it on my show because, one, the information coming out of the January 6th committee showed how detailed and well-planned the attempted insurrection was. Two, there were two important meetings that took place this week with Democratic senators. One was on Thursday, a virtual meeting Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris had with six Democratic senators. And then earlier in the week, I think it was Wednesday, civil rights leaders, Derrick Johnson from the NAACP, met with some key Democratic senators, and Senator

Starting point is 01:35:00 Kyrsten Sinema was one of them, even though she didn't say anything on the call. That meeting was organized by a Michigan U.S. Senator, Gary Peters. And Senator Hassan from New Hampshire has changed her position and realizes, look, she was on the Rachel Maddow show yesterday, that they have to pass this bill and they're going to have to make a change to the filibuster. So we have to keep pushing, hold Joe Biden accountable, but also somebody whose name doesn't come up oftentimes in these conversations, Rowland and the panel, is Senator Chuck Schumer, who controls the Senate. He's Senate Majority Leader. Pressure has to be put on Senator Chuck Schumer.

Starting point is 01:35:41 Notice how Senator Chuck Schumer's name just oftentimes, I know you talk about him, Roland, but oftentimes in these conversations, his name is not even brought up that much. Senator Chuck Schumer controls the Senate. He's Senate Majority Leader. So it's pressure on Biden, continued pressure, pressure on Senator Chuck Schumer. But lastly, Roland, July 14th, 2021, NBC News had an article, more than 150 companies back update to Voting Rights Act. PepsiCo, Macy's, Ikea, Nestle, Amazon, Target. Now, either these companies have gone out of business since July 2021 or they have amnesia because I haven't heard a peep out of them when we have this intensification of voting rights.

Starting point is 01:36:23 So we have to put pressure on these corporations as well. We have to continue this. We have to see this through. This is not the time to give up. And Matt, on that particular point, these major law firms supposedly were going to be dedicating resources to fighting for voting rights, as Michael said, these companies as well. And they've all been MIA. And this is what I've said to civil rights complaints at NAACP. This is not just about having meetings. This is why you've got to have public pressure.

Starting point is 01:36:51 This is why the NAACP, with its 2,000 branches, should be throwing up pickets and protests in front of these corporations and these major law firms saying, where are you? Look, Black Voters Matter, they've been out there. Poor People's Campaign,

Starting point is 01:37:06 Reverend William Barber, Reverend Lee and Theo Harris, they've been out there. For these civil rights groups, look, stop having the inside meeting. You've got to have the external pressure on this administration

Starting point is 01:37:17 and the United States Senate. Stop accepting the rhetoric about a chicken in the pot, but when it comes time to it, taking a couple wings. Look, at the end of the day, if you say you're going to do these things, then you need to be held accountable. And I think Michael spoke right to it. Corporations especially need to have this pressure put on them because we know that they respond to the corporations far faster than

Starting point is 01:37:37 they respond to us. So if the corporations say that they're going to do it, if we find a way to continue leveraging those corporations and these big law firms, then I think consequentially it'll mean that there will be actual progress going forward. And we have to stay on that. You know, I think a lot of times, unfortunately, we buy some of that rhetoric and we forget about it down the road. I mean, not three of you and many others who are very well informed, but the larger people see soundbites, they buy that and say, okay, they're fighting for me when they really aren't. So we need to stay on them and make sure that the promises that are being made are actually being fulfilled. All right, folks, let's talk about some good news here. That is New York City

Starting point is 01:38:18 is getting its first female police commissioner. The city's mayor-elect Eric Adams has chose Kishan Sewell to lead the nation's largest police department. Adams praised Sewell's career with over 25 years of experience in undercover assignments, overseeing gun suppression cases, hostage negotiations, and commanding detective squads. Sewell is currently Nassau County's chief of detectives, whose promotion position in September 2020, becoming the first Black woman to hold that role. She's not the first African-American to lead the department in September 2020, becoming the first black woman to hold that role. She's not the first African-American to leave the department, but she indeed is the first woman to leave the department. So congratulations to her on that pick. Also, President Biden has nominated Sandra Thompson to be the permanent director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Starting point is 01:39:01 If confirmed, she'll be the first woman in that particular role as well. Thompson is currently the acting director of the agency, which oversees Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae mortgage companies. She has extensive finance and government regulation background and also worked at the FDIC. Vice President Kamala Harris is pushing a new initiative to eliminate lead from homes and other buildings. The Biden administration pledged to remove all lead pipes in America in the next decade. Lead is built into our cities. It is laid under our roads and it is installed in our homes. And that is why we decided to launch this action plan here in this House of Labor. Because unions know how to do great things. And it is right there in the original motto of the AFL-CIO, labor conquers all. So we need your help to

Starting point is 01:40:02 conquer these challenges. We need your help to make millions of homes, schools, and workplaces safe for everyone. And we need your help to make sure this is the beginning of the end for lead in America. So let us get to work. Burke. And in 61 years after she was arrested at the age of 15 or refusing to give up her seat to a white woman, Claudette Coven, she has had her record expunged. That's right. A judge in Alabama expunged her record. She was arrested, of course, for again, for refusing to give her seat to a white woman. Her running with the law happened nine months before Rosa Parks case and was part of a supreme court case that ended buzzing segregation Colvin was sentenced to indefinite probation after her arrest and conviction and so it's a better late than never I say Michael yeah you know I talked about this

Starting point is 01:41:02 on my show last night rolling Roland. Claudette Colvin, she's a legend as well. She's more like an unsung hero. She was 15 years old. She refused to give up her seat. She was charged. One of the charges was assaulting a police officer. Now, what's really important to understand is that the Supreme Court case that you mentioned, Browder versus Gayle, she was one of the plaintiffs, Aurelia S. Browder, Mary Louise Smith, Susan McDonald, and Claudette Colvin. The attorney was Fred Gray, who you've interviewed, Roland. They filed that lawsuit.

Starting point is 01:41:36 It went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, and that's what ended segregation on the buses. So she is really an unsung hero. She deserves more credit as well. No disrespect to Sister Rosa. Rosa deserves all the buses. So she is really an unsung hero. She deserves more credit as well. No disrespect to Sister Rosa. Rosa deserves all the credit. She had to leave Montgomery, Alabama because she was getting death threats. And Representative John Conyers gave her a job here in Detroit in his congressional office. But Claudette Colvin, I'm glad this is for her. I'm glad this expungement happened. And hats off to the sister as well. She's unsung hero Matt Manning your thoughts I

Starting point is 01:42:14 Just think it's it's wonderful. It's far too late, of course and some of it is optics But I'll say I had the great pleasure of meeting Fred gray when he came here a couple years ago And he's I mean the Titan He's literally one of them that inspired me to become a lawyer and a civil rights lawyer at that. I mean, he was 24 years old defending Dr. King and those who were fighting for our rights, you know, with violence in their face. So I think it's a brilliant thing, and I'm glad for it. She joked that she's no longer a juvenile delinquent at 82, so I appreciate her humor about the situation. But it's unfortunate insofar as, you know, it's another sign of the optics. A lot of times, you know, it has to be 66 years,

Starting point is 01:42:51 an entire lifetime before they expunge her for her crime for this injustice. I think that's problematic. But outside of that, I do think it's a good thing and I'm happy for her. And I'm happy for the fact that, you know, Alabamians and the state decided that this is something that needed to finally happen, because I think it's emblematic of showing, look, we're going to hold you to account to fix even past injustices. So I think there is a value in that. Final comment for Raji. Just real quick. I mean, I agree with both brother Michael and Matt. Just it's just really sad that at this point, you know, it's hard to celebrate. 66 years, it's like, damn, man, like, it's just hard to celebrate. You can't even really, all you can do is just say, okay.

Starting point is 01:43:37 I mean, that's it. There's no celebration. Our dear sister, in her 80s, at this point, she's not a threat to anyone. You know? I mean, if it... And you mean to tell me that the state of Alabama couldn't have done this 25 years ago, 30 years ago, 40 years ago? I mean, it's...

Starting point is 01:43:57 And I'm with Matt on this. It's a lot about the optics. We are talking about Alabama. Yeah. Well... That's true. We are Talmud Alabama. Yeah. That's true. I'm just saying. And we're from Texas. That's a great point, brother Roland.

Starting point is 01:44:15 But I'm just saying, it's like a Pyrrhic victory at this point. You just like, okay, I'm happy it's happening. I'm glad it got done. But that woman had to carry that weight for pretty much damn near her whole life. So at this point, you know, in her golden years, may God bless her with many, many years to go, but pretty much in her golden years, it's not going to really make a difference.

Starting point is 01:44:41 This is not a win for Alabama. This is not a win. This is a slap in the face because it took you 66 damn years to do the right thing. So, you know, it's and I'm glad. Gentlemen, I appreciate

Starting point is 01:44:57 it. That is it for us. We're going to be broadcasting live tomorrow from the Coca-Cola Fan Zone outside of Mercedes-Benz Stadium here in Atlanta for the 2021 Cricket Wilder Celebration Bowl. Game time is at noon, so we'll be live at 9 a.m. Eastern tomorrow right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered and the Black Star Network. Michael, Faraji, Matt, thanks a bunch for joining us today.

Starting point is 01:45:20 I want to thank all the folks also here in Atlanta for making it possible for us to do what we did this week with all of the coverage. And so look forward to bringing you more sights and sounds of the Celebration Bowl tomorrow live right here on the Black Star Network. Thanks a bunch. Y'all take care. Holla! This is an iHeart Podcast.

Your Ad Here

#RolandMartinUnfiltered - 2021 Celebration Bowl, Potter Cries as she testifies, Bell Hooks Tribute

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.