#RolandMartinUnfiltered - ATL Mass Shooting; Tucker Carlson’s racist texts; Andrew Young talks Harry Belafonte

Episode Date: May 4, 2023

5.3.2023 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: ATL Mass Shooting; Tucker Carlson’s racist texts; Andrew Young talks Harry Belafonte There have been 180 mass shootings this year so far. We are in the middle of one of the deadliest years as Republican lawmakers fight to make access to guns easier. We will speak with the National African American Gun Association President about what policy can be passed to combat mass shootings in America. Tucker Carlson is back in the headlines this time as newly revealed text messages are unredacted, showing Carlson's blatantly racist and appealing text that was even too extreme for Fox News. We will show you the text messages that got Carlson kicked out of Fox News. South Carolina is embroiled in a battle to hold people accountable for hate crimes as one of the only states in the nation that don't have hate crime laws on the books. For the past three years, a hate crimes bill has made it through the South Carolina House and to the Senate floor, only to stop there. We will be speaking about what Democrats are doing to try to get the Clementa C. Pinckney Hate Crimes Act passed. In our continuing coverage of honoring the life and legacy of Harry Belafonte, we have Atlanta Ambassador Andrew Young joining us to discuss how he remembers the late icon. In our tech talk segment, we will speak with the founder of a sustainable tech company, pivot plastics which is looking to improve the environment as environmental challenges are impacting black Americans at a staggering rate by being a conduit between companies that generate recyclable plastic waste and companies that can process that material into new products.  Download the #BlackStarNetwork app on iOS, AppleTV, Android, Android TV, Roku, FireTV, SamsungTV and XBox  http://www.blackstarnetwork.com The #BlackStarNetwork is a news reporting platforms covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. self. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English.

I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war. This year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This kind of starts that a little bit, man. We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them.

It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. 180 mass shootings so far this year alone as Republicans pass new laws to make it easier for anybody to have a gun to anybody to conceal carry around the country. We're gonna have a discussion on what exactly can be done to protect communities, particularly communities of color from gun violence with the president

of the National African American Gun Association, Phil Smith. Also, Tucker Carlson is back in the news. Just released today, we have seen unredacted text messages that were discovered during the dominion voting machine discovery process and guess what tucker sent some really racist text messages i'm sure you are shocked by this information but apparently the text messages were so shocking that is what resulted in fox news deciding to settle the case instead of have tucker on the stand and all this go public

and also what resulted in tucker being fired we're going to talk about that and what can be done to get these people out of media before a deposition is needed in the future. Also, South Carolina is embroiled in another legislative clash over passing the Clementa Pickney hate crimes bill in South Carolina. Now, several times before, this bill has gone through the House, gone through the Senate, and been stopped there. We're going to talk to South Carolina's state senator about what can be done to push this hate crimes law through that will protect African Americans and other minorities within the state of South Carolina. South Carolina is one of the few states that does not have a hate crimes law on the books. Also, in our continuing remembrance

of activist, actor, and singer Harry Belafonte, we will be talking to Atlanta ambassador Andrew Young to discuss how he remembers the late icon. Also, in our Tech Talk segment, we'll be talking to the founder of a sustainable tech company, Pivot Classic, which is looking to improve the environment as environmental challenges

are impacting the black community. We'll be talking about sustainability and the fact that African American communities are far too often located in these areas of environmental racism and what we can do to clean up our communities. It is time to bring the funk. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered

streaming live on the Black Star Network. He's got it, whatever the piss, he's on it. Whatever it is, he's got the scoop, the fact, the fine. And when it breaks, he's right on time. And it's rolling, best belief he's knowing. Putting it down from sports to news to politics, with entertainment just for kicks. He's rolling. Yeah, yeah. It's Uncle Roro, y'all.

Yeah, yeah. it's Uncle Roro, yo. Yeah, yeah, it's Rollin' Marten. Yeah, yeah, rolling with rolling now. Yeah, he's funky, he's fresh, he's real the best, you know he's Rollin' Marten now. Mass shootings again rocked the nation. Just today, 24-year-old Dion Patterson walked into a hospital in Atlanta, shooting five women, killing one. Three remain in critical condition right now. Mr. Patterson is still on the

run in the city of Atlanta. Schools were locked down. Businesses were put on lockdown. Authorities are asking that if you have any information with regards to the whereabout of Mr. Patterson and or any information that can be turned over to police, please contact law enforcement immediately. This man is still considered armed and dangerous and on the loose in Atlanta currently. This comes on the heels of Texas, where a three-time deported Mexican national fatally shot and killed five people, including an eight-year-old boy. Just days earlier, he had been asked to stop firing his rifle outside of his home, outside of his home near a neighbor's yard.

And now he is still remaining on the loose. A Florida man who was previously convicted of domestic violence shot and killed his girlfriend and three children this week as part of a mass shooting spree. And as we said, these are 18 mass shootings in the last seven days in the United States of America, over 180 thus far this year. And we are May 3rd of this year. This does not happen in other industrialized countries. This does not happen in other parts of the world to the extent that it happens here. Politicians, activists, and community members are all calling for immediate action to prevent

further gun violence and mass shootings. President Biden has urged Congress to pass comprehensive gun reform legislation, including universal background checks and a ban on assault weapons. Meanwhile, advocates and gun rights groups argue that stricter gun laws nearly infringe on their constitutional rights and do very little to actually stop mass shootings. This debate continues. The victims and families are affected by these shootings and left to mourn and wonder what could happen. And we're simply continue to be pushed these narratives of thoughts and prayers from our political officials.

Joining us now to discuss this is the president and founder of the National African American Gun Association, Mr. Phil Smith. Phil, how are you doing this evening? Doing good tonight. Glad to be here. Thank you so much for joining us. You know, I've been a NAGA member since the beginning. You started coming on my show on WALK basically as soon as the organization was founded. Why is it so important that we educate the Black community about the importance and necessity in this current environment of gun

ownership and personal protection? First of all, historically, we have not had the opportunity to enjoy firearms as most of our counterparts here in the U.S. So our history is very, very different from any other organization or group of people in the U.S. So our history is very, very different from any other organization or group of people in the U.S. So we've been literally brainwashed the other way. Run away every time you see a gun. Guns are bad. Even though they can protect your family, it's just been an indoctrination that really is toxic in terms of African-Americans relating to firearms. So that's the first point. Secondly, we need to understand that it's our right as Americans, particularly black Americans, where we have fought for this country and are the most patriotic of any other race in this country. We have fought and died for our people to have that right to own a gun.

The Second Amendment is written into the Constitution for a reason, because it allows us to grab a gun and protect our families if someone breaks in the home late at night or during the day or whenever. It's something that should not, I believe, and obviously I'm very biased, but should not be infringed on in any way, shape, or form. You know, particularly for the Black community, and in this case, particularly shooting today in Atlanta for Black women, can you talk about the importance of gun safety and education for African-American women who are increasingly the targets of domestic violence, the targets of shootings and robberies, et cetera? NAGA does a lot of work in this space of both educating and training women in firearms safety and use. Can you talk about the importance

of that? Sure. Black Group are the backbone of our organization, they are 40% of our membership. At one point, they were literally 60% of our membership. So Black women have a very, very important part of our organization, the National African American Gun Association. It's critically important if you are a potential gun owner to know how to handle that gun, to know how to shoot the gun, to know how to have muscle memory built up over practice and practice with a gun. And oh, by the way, you need to have a certified instructor to teach you how to handle that gun. Just don't go out and think you've bought a gun and you're all of a sudden, you know, James Bond. You're not. You need to understand the intimacies, the rules, the regulations, the fundamentals of that firearm. In our community, that is a needed skill set that we try to place to all of our folks that

come through the door. And we do that by constant education, constant training, and more education and more training. And we do it over and over and over. We never have enough of that, that particular process for our people as they come through the door. And we're slowly getting some traction on a national level, where our folks are starting to understand and, more importantly, get the skill set to protect themselves. And I think that's a great thing for our community. JOHN YANG, National Public Radio Network, And talk a little bit about the

every time we see these mass shootings, there's always a call for gun reform. There's a call for assault weapons bans or stricter gun requirements. We have seen cities like Chicago, New York, Baltimore have very strict laws that were struck down by the courts. Is there any legislation that would help bring an end to these mass shootings? I'm going to say this, and I want everybody to really listen to me as best you can. I'm very biased, but I'm going to try to say this without being too over the top. You can throw every gun law you can think in your

head at the wall, and tomorrow there's still going to be a shooting. The key is that we need to step back and look at the root cause. Why are people shooting other people now in such high amounts, or supposedly high amounts? I think mental health is the key, and that's where the conversation, I think, can start and should start. Because you look at a lot of these shootings, they're mental health-related. Uh, somebody used to be in the service, they're coming back home with PTSD,

or they have issues with themselves and those folks around them. You might have other folks that are angry at the world, racist. This goes on and on the list, but I think if we had a connection or a closer connection with mental health agencies at the world, racist. This goes on and on the list. But I think if we had a connection or a closer connection with mental health agencies across the country, when I say we have a connection, law enforcement had a connection to be notified of those individuals that are out there that want to do harm, we'd be in a better place. I'm a big advocate for

conversation. I'm a big advocate for difficult conversations. And I'm also big advocate for conversation. I'm a big advocate for difficult conversations. And I'm also an advocate for understanding someone else's perspective. And as long as they listen to my perspective, I'm wanting to get a solution that helps the country, obviously, but we have to have a start that conversation. And that conversation oftentimes can be very, very tense at a minimum.

And on the same point, and hopefully can stick with us for another segment so the panel can chime in, with the mental health crisis that we've seen exploding since COVID, it seems strange. And this is the time where states like Georgia, Florida, Texas, and about 20 other states have passed constitutional carry laws, basically saying you don't need to have any paperwork. You don't need to do anything in order to conceal carry. Basically, anyone can walk in, buy a gun with just an ID, do a five-minute background check, and walk back out. Should there be red flag laws? Should there be anything put in place to at least put some barrier between individuals and the ability to buy guns? We saw it through Uvalde's, people saying we need to raise the age limit to purchase weapons, have a waiting period.

Are there any sorts of legislation that you would stand behind? DERRICK HILLSBOROUGH, Former U.S. Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, Let's start with red flag laws. I think that's, as I said before, that's a starting point. And just for our audience, red flag law is the following. Those that don't understand, I have never heard the term. Red flag law is the following. It simply says that if you have some in society that is a danger to themselves or a danger to the larger society at large, law enforcement has the right to go out proactively to contact that person and to secure their firearms and take them away from them, so they can't hurt themselves or their folks or their neighbors

or the community that in which they live in. In theory, that sounds great. I'm a big advocate of that. in theory. The problem is the following. Oftentimes, for Black folks like myself and in my community, the red flag law is weaponized, and weaponized in a way in which people that are totally innocent get their guns taken away from them. And once their guns are taken away from them, it's very, very difficult to get those firearms back. You have to go through a legal process. It's expensive.

You have to get an attorney. You got to go to court.. And a lot of times in our community, our budgets are limited. We have so much money that has to be allocated for certain things. So once the guns are taken, they're gone. What I... Go ahead. Phil, just put a pin in there right there. We're going to go to a break. I'm going to let you continue on the other side and then bring the panel in also to ask you some questions. I think we want to come to a solution because this is severely affecting our community. We always talk about assault weapons.

Most gun crimes are not committed with AR-15s. They're committed with pistols. So even if you ban every AR and AK in the country, we're still going to have hundreds of people die every day because of gun violence. We have to find a solution. We'll be back after the break. You're watching Rolling Martin Unfiltered,

streaming live on the Black Star Network. We'll be back after the break. You're watching Rolling Martin Unfiltered, streaming live on the Black Star Network. We'll be right back. When you talk about blackness and what happens in black culture, we're about covering these things that matter to us, speaking to our issues and concerns. This is a genuine people-powered movement.

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Zelle is Roland at RolandSMartin.com. Up next on The Frequency with me, Dee Barnes, our special guest, Alicia Garza, one of the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement. We're going to discuss her new book, The Purpose of Power, How We Come Together When We Fall Apart. We live in a world where we have to navigate the world of power. And we have to navigate the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement. We're gonna discuss her new book, The Purpose of Power,

How We Come Together When We Fall Apart. We live in a world where we have to navigate, you know, when we say something, people look at us funny, but when a man says the same thing less skillfully than we did, right? Right. Everybody boxed towards what they said, even though it was your idea.

Right here on The Frequency on the Black Star Network. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them.

From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives.

This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill.

NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Caramouch. What we're doing now isn't working and we need to change things. Stories matter and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does.

It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself.

Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov brought to you by the U S department of health and human services and the ad council. Black TV does matter. Dang it. Hey, what's up y'all? It's your boy, Jacob Lattimore,

and you're now watching Roland Martin right now. Welcome back. We're still talking to Phil Smith, the president and founder of the National African American Gun Association, about this string of mass shootings that we've seen nationally. Update on the case in Atlanta. Police believe that they have the suspect, Dion Patterson, located in an apartment complex off of Cobb Parkway. We'll bring you any updates to that case as they become available. We're going to bring our panel in shortly. But, Phil, before the break, you were talking about red flag laws and kind of this concept of access to firearms. You know, the individual in Texas is a three times deported Mexican national who was undocumented here in the United States of America, who was very easily able to get a hold of a AR-15.

We have seen many mass shootings with illegal guns being used. Even the Mexican cartel right now is using American guns that are shipped across the border, as opposed to the other way around. How can we deal with this issue of access to guns in America? Guns are, without dodging the question, guns are an integral part of America. I mean, the country was founded on the access of having guns to fight for liberty.

There are a lot of people out there, and I want to make sure people understand that, that are intent on causing harm to other folks in society that have no connection to them. What we need to do is start taking our communities, our cities, our synagogues, our mosques, our churches, and turning them into what I call hard targets instead of soft targets.

Because right now, everyone in society, not everyone, but just about every place you go, you can walk in, you can have a gun and have evil intent. And you're not able to have any kind of barriers protecting those folks that are in that in that in that building. We need to make sure that we have that mindset change, because currently right now in America, I believe that the folks that we have for the masses think of everything being a very safe and serene place. And it's just not that way. When you walk out late at night, you need to protect yourself. When you're downtown in any major city,

you need to protect yourself. So why not take that mindset and internalize it and make sure that when you are going around, have situational awareness in your mindset, looking at various buildings and people that you're talking to. To ignore the idea of the problem, it's only going to stay the same way. You need to have buildings protected. You need to have people protected. And I think we're starting to come to that reality, starting with the schools, and I think that's a good thing.

I'm going to bring our panel in. We have Rebecca Carruthers, Vice President of Fair Election Centers, Washington, D.C. A. Scott Bolden, Attorney and Former Chairman of the National Bar Association, D.C. Chamber of Commerce PAC. And also Dr. Larry Walker, Assistant Professor, University of Florida in Florida.

Scott, I'm going to go to you first. Do you have a question for Mr. Smith? Well, I got a lot of statements. I disagree with him on it. I don't know Do you have a question for Mr. Smith? Well, I got a lot of statements. I disagree with him. I don't know if I have a question, but here it goes. You know, I'd love to hear Phil's response to this issue or argument. The Second Amendment says that if you're in America, the militia, you're entitled to a gun. Last time I checked, and I'm a gun owner, I own 10 guns. I'm not a member of the militia.

The Supreme Court has bastardized the Second Amendment that allows us to own guns and to be as least restrictive as possible. And yet the mass killings continue. I understand about the mental health and about bad actors. But at this point, with 190 incidents in 2023 alone, would you agree that limiting access to guns, having a red flag law, anything we can do, it may not be a panacea, but anything that we can do, especially with weapons of mass destruction, gun violence is committed by 9mm and pistols,

but mass shootings are committed by AR-47s or AKC-47s and AR-15s. Wouldn't all of those gun reform legislative initiatives, wouldn't they at least help, as opposed to being a panacea? First of all, thank you for the question. I appreciate the perspective. I understand your passion behind what you're saying. It's an emotional, I think, reaction sometimes when people think that some of the laws that are being proposed are going to stop mass killings, because most of the legislation, if not all, is just a waste of time. You're pandering to the base of their constituency, politicians, when I say that, and you're really not helping out. If you're really serious about stopping gun shootings, and don't get it twisted, I'm a Black man first in this country.

I've got children. I've got a wife. I've got a mother. I've got sisters. I've got brothers. I want all of them safe. But I also understand as a black man the reality of what laws work and what don't work.

And a lot of the laws that are being proposed by politicians, and I'm not going to try to demonize all of them, but for the most part, they just aren't doing anything. They just aren't. Okay, so then, okay, let me, if I may, if that's the case and you disagree with my proposition or suppositions, then tell me what you would do to end this gun violence then.

If it's not through gun reform, then tell me what would work in your opinion, without telling me more guns and protecting our soft targets, because that connotes more violence. So what would you... Top three things would you propose to end gun violence and mass killings in America? First thing I would do is loosen up the HIPAA laws that they have right now, uh, where you cannot access someone's mental health records. So the law enforcement can literally go on

and look at that person's profile after being prompted by a psychiatrist or psychologist, for one. That's the first thing I would do. Secondly, and I know you don't probably want to hear this, but I would definitely re-educate those folks or allow those folks that want to purchase a gun to get a gun to protect themselves.

The worst thing you can do in a scenario where someone's trying to kill you, to me, is to be unable to protect themselves. The worst thing you can do in a scenario where someone's trying to kill you, to me, is to be unable to protect yourselves or your family or your loved ones or your property. And as Americans, we're... Unfortunately, we're stuck on this concept that if I get a gun, a lot of us, something bad's gonna happen by me purchasing that gun,

and that's just not true. To me, just the opposite happens. You have now engaged with the gun. You know how to use the gun. You're taking lessons, and you can protect yourself and your family. And that's just how I see it. And I know it's very different from your perspective, but I think that's the way. All right, let's move on to Rebecca. I want to get everyone in on the panel. Rebecca, do you have a comment or a statement for Mr. Smith? Sure. You know, I find the talk about mental health very interesting. According to Columbia University School of Psychiatry, only 5% of those with severe mental

illness account for mass shootings in this country. So trying to say that mass shootings in this country is largely attributed to mental health is inaccurate based upon psychiatrists. And I think psychiatrists are the ones who could probably determine if someone is severely mentally ill. So my question is, is it your belief that we already have too many guns in the United States for there to actually be restrictions to reduce guns. I'm really trying to understand your argument. If you're saying that there's so many people who are armed, that's why the rest of us should be armed. Is that the crux of your core belief here? No, I'm saying that if you look at countries where, or not countries, but a mindset of protecting yourself, people

look for easy targets or soft targets if you're someone out there trying to harm someone. There's a reason why people don't run into a police station and start robbing and trying to shoot people, because they know they're going to die. There's a reason why people don't run into the Federal Reserve and trying to shoot people, because they know they're going to die. There's a reason why you don't walk into some neighborhoods

and some communities in this country, because they have excellent security, they have people walking around and watching you as you enter and everything that you do. And you know if you go into those communities, and I've been a kid driving with my friends and we've been told, hey, don't go in that area because they're going to stop and they're going to arrest you and they're going

to take you home. That's the mindset that we need to take. Larry, I wanted to give you an opportunity before we run out of time to ask any questions or comments with regards to Mr. Smith. Yeah, I think there are a couple things. You know, I'm a researcher. So, first of all, we know that the assault weapons ban that sunset in 2004, we know it had an impact on violence in America. So that's from a policy perspective.

My colleague also talked about the misconception that a lot of these shootings have to do with mental health. That's not accurate. I think the third point we have to really consider and talk about here is we've seen incidents, and to look at the shooting in Tennessee at the school, in which individuals are armed, teachers were armed, but they didn't engage the shooter. So this is a myth that this idea that more people who are armed are more likely to engage shooters. We saw in Texas that law enforcement don't even want to engage individuals who are armed and killing civilians. So this idea that more guns will lead to some kind of, you know, countering some of the violence in America is not true.

Per capita, the United States leads all nation in terms of guns that are available. And like I said, comparison other countries in the world. So what we have is we have a gun, and we have a violence, and we have a culture problem. So I think those are some of the issues we have to talk about. We talk about sexism, racism, among other issues, and also economic challenges, among others, when it comes to gun violence. Phil, do you have a response? Yeah, I agree with what he said on that last point, in terms of the economic issues.

And I will say this. If you have economic solutions for those folks that are in a bad way, if you take away the lifetime ban of a felony on someone who committed a crime at the age 20, you allow them to get reengaged in society. You're not putting them off in a corner where the pressures of not being able to generate any money for their family or themselves and their loved ones overcomes them. We have to start thinking intuitively, long-term, what's the best thing for society? And that is, when you have jobs for folks that are allowed to engage in society, violence goes down dramatically.

Let's make sure we allow those folks that are in those places to have jobs. Jobs is the solution to me of a lot of the stuff that's going on right now. Absolutely. And so before we go, for people who are interested and want to work towards protecting themselves, protecting their families, et cetera, particularly women, because in the Atlanta shooting today we saw that this individual specifically targeted women in a waiting room ages 20 to 70. How can they gain contact with NAGA and how can they learn about training in their own local areas? Sure. We have over 130 chapters nationwide, over 50,000 members nationwide. Go to our website at naaga.co, click on chapters and you'll see a local chapter in your area. And easily you can contact that particular chapter president and start getting engaged with that particular group of folks in your area.

Also, I want to mention that we are having our national convention on July 28th, 29th, and 30th. It will be the first time in the history of the U.S. that a Black farms organization is having a national convention. I encourage everyone, including those folks on the panel, you know, you might have a different perspective to come and see 3,000 to 8,000 Black folks who are well-behaved gun owners and talk about guns and get into that room and into that space and see a different perspective. It's very, very easy to lash out when you are emotionally charged, but we need solutions right now. And as I said before, economics, I think, is the first step toward helping ease that pain that this country is going through right now, because a lot of folks are in a very, very bad way emotionally. You know, I think there's a macro discussion and a micro discussion. The macro discussion is what do we do societally to stop gun violence?

How can we bring up the people who are impoverished? How can we help people with mental health challenges? How can we secure these targets that are soft? How can we put restrictions on firearms and ensure that the people who don't need them don't get them? That's the macro conversation. The micro conversation is, if it's down to you and you staying alive, we have to make sure that you are trained, that you are armed, that you can protect yourself and your family, and you can worry about the macro problems later. Phil Smith, the president and founder of the National African American Gun Association, thank you so much for joining us. We'll be back after the break.

You're watching Roller Morton Unfiltered, streaming live on the Black Star Network. Hatred on the streets, a horrific scene, a white nationalist rally that descended into deadly violence. White people are losing their damn minds. There's an angry pro-Trump mob storm to the U.S. Capitol. We're about to see the rise of what I call white minority resistance. We have seen white folks in this country who simply cannot tolerate black folks voting. I think what we're seeing is the inevitable result of violent denial. This is part of American history. Every time that people of color have made progress, whether real or symbolic, there has been what Carol Anderson at Emory University calls white

rage as a backlash. This is the rise of the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Boys. America, there's going to be more of this. There's all the Proud Boys. This country is getting increasingly racist in its behaviors and its attitudes because of the fear of white people. The fear that they're taking our jobs, they're taking our resources, they're taking our women. This is white fear. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes.

But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops call this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1. Taser Incorporated.

I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glod.

And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner.

It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette.

MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two

on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-up way, you've got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth.

Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. We're all impacted by the culture, whether we know it or not. From politics to music and entertainment, it's a huge part of our lives. And we're going to talk about it every day right here on The Culture with me, Faraji Muhammad, only on the Blackstar Network. Hi, I'm Anthony Brown from Anthony Brown and Group Therapy. 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. More news on former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Tucker Carlson, we found out today, made some very disturbing comments through text messages about the January 6th insurrection. According to the text messages released by the New York Times, Carlson texted a producer saying he found himself rooting for a mob of Trump supporters to kill an Antifa protester. I'm going to read the text message here. A couple of weeks ago, I was watching video of people fighting on the streets in Washington. A group of Trump guys surrounded an Antifa kid and started pounding the living ass out of him. It was three against one, at least. Jumping a guy like that is dishonorable, obviously. It's not how white men fight.

I'm going to say that again. It's not how white men fight. Yet suddenly I found myself rooting for the mob against the man, hoping they'd hit him harder, kill him. I really wanted them to hurt the kid. I could taste it. Then somewhere deep in my brain, an alarm went off. This isn't good for me. I'm becoming something I don't want to be. The Antifa creep is a human being. Much as I despise what he says and does, much as I'm sure I'd hate him personally if I knew him, I shouldn't gloat over his suffering. I should be bothered by it. I should remember that somewhere, somebody probably loves this kid and would be crushed if he was killed. If I don't care about those things, if I reduce people to their politics, how am I any better than that kid? This is Tucker Carlson being remorseful

and having a rare point of self-introspection. And I've described the MAGA movement often as the MAGA mind virus. This is the mind virus at work being spelled out in this text messages, how you can go from a normal human being to someone who is part of this cult that wants to overthrow the government that will give your life, your liberty, your future in service to the MAGA mob. We've seen this over and over again. People like Kanye West at one point in time was a normal human being. He was infected with the MAGA mind virus and lost nearly everything. The message was sent hours after the insurrection at the Capitol

and was redacted in court filings. The text message alarmed Fox News' board of directors and played a role in Carlson's abrupt firing last month. The decision to fire Carlson was made by Fox Corporation Chief Executive Lachlan Murdoch and Fox News Chief Executive Susan

Scott just one week after the network agreed to pay $787.5 million to Dominion Voting Systems over the network's dissemination of election lies. If you wonder why they settled for nearly $800 million, imagine Tucker Carlson on the stand having to answer to that text message live on the evening news. That's why they tried to settle. That's why they tried to keep this out of the media. Let's bring the panel in. Rebecca, what does this text message tell you about, one, the nature of our news media, and two, what exactly it takes to get fired as a white man in this country?

I mean, you see my face, right? Like that text is pretty tame in comparison to the things that Tucker Carlson has said live on air. I mean, if anything, it shows that he had a bloodlust for someone getting beat up on the street by a group of people. And then to even say, oh, it's dishonorable. That's not how white men fight. I could like I don't know if you heard me laughing as you were reading that comment. I mean, it just doesn't make sense. I mean, as an aside, we know that white men don't always fight dishonorably. You could just ask the Native Americans

and you can ask them about Christopher Columbus. But that aside, I don't think this is the reason why Tucker Carlson was fired. This is very tame compared to the other things that he has said. I don't think this is the reason why Tucker Carlson was fired. This is very tame compared to the other things that he has said. And Larry, I want you to pick up on that point. What do you think he meant when he said this isn't how white men fight? This is dishonorable.

So this is just how other people who are less honorable fight? What do you think he was continuating there? I think what he said is consistent with what you saw on his show. So everything is centered within whiteness. So when you behave a certain way violently, you know, in savagery he was describing,

that's the way that minoritized groups are supposed to behave. But listen, what I want to say is, in terms of the comments he made, A, I think Fox News was looking to get rid of him because what he said in his text message is really tame to some of the crazy things he said on his show. I want to highlight a couple of things when you talk about white men and violence. The black folks who were the victims who were murdered the red summer of 1919 or Rosewood or the Coy massacre or Tulsaacre, like a word with Tucker Carlson in terms of white supremacy and violence in the United States.

This country has a long history of violence against Black folks and other minoritized groups. So this idea, like you said, that white men in particular don't behave like that, we saw that in January 6th. We see that in terms of how law enforcement interacts with Black folks. And once again, we continue to see it in terms of the way Black people are treated for going to the movies, to the mall. They're just sitting in their car. They're at home. So this violence perpetuated against us is ongoing. And it's about, it's part of our lives 24-7, 365.

And Larry, to that point, this is one of those reasons I think Ron DeSantis is trying to ban CRT because much of that history, I feel like a good portion of America, including white America, doesn't know when Tucker says this isn't how white men fight. That's exactly how white men fight. If you look at the era of lynching in America, it was always a group of white men dragging a 14-year-old boy like Emmett Tilloff to murder him. It was always a group, 10, 20 people, taking people to lynch them. If you look at many of the massacres that took place, they roll in groups to get an individual. Why do you think that so much of this education is missing from the American zeitgeist? And what can we do to restore it?

You mentioned the Cody massacre in Rosewood, which happened in the state of Florida. They don't want to talk about these issues. And like I said, this is historical. I mean, we could talk about contemporary violence, but this is historical issues that happened. And once again, black folks were the victims of these horrific crimes. So they don't want to talk about it because this country has always struggled to self-reflect on its own evils, whether it's internment camps in terms of Japanese internment camps or the Trail of Tears or Jim Crow when it comes to dealing with, you know, in terms of how Black people were treated. So we have a long history of these

issues, but we also have a long history of ignoring it through erasure. And Scott, you know, both of us make our rounds on cable news. And when I saw this, that this somehow was the vitiating factor that resulted in the termination of Tucker Carlson, I chuckled a little bit because we all know that if the producer had this, they probably had hundreds of other text messages like this, and they could have turned it over to Fox executives at any time if they actually had a problem. It was the lawsuit and the money that they were afraid of, not Tucker being a racist. Yeah, you know, you and I have done Tucker Carlson. They have live tapes of him.

They don't need private text messages from him. That's the first thing. But the lawsuit was settled for a lot of reasons, not just Tucker Carlson. They probably had a lot of Texas and they had a lot of reasons, not just Tucker Carlson. They probably had a lot of Texas, and they had a lot of anchors, and their testimony, including the owner's testimony, wasn't going to be good. That was like winning a trial without even having to spend the money trying the case. But here's the thing about his text. Pull his text back up. He didn't apologize for feeling that way. He lamented that he felt that way. He, white people talk black people violence. Let's not forget that.

You want us to do better, you do better. But he did not apologize for it or retract it. He lamented that he felt that way. But that didn't do anything to take away the fact that he felt that way. At the end of his text, he felt that way. At the beginning of his text, he felt that way. At the end of his text, he felt that way. At the beginning of his text, he felt that way. And right now, as we debate and talk about this issue, he feels that way.

Don't get lost in what he lamented at the second half of his text, because the second half had nothing to do with the first half, which was really how he felt, and he felt comfortable manifesting those feelings in writing that text to a producer at Fox. Think about that. And Scott, on that point, how can we as the community help to push changes at Fox? Because regardless of what you feel about them, they have by far the largest news audience

of any cable news outlet. You know, the ratings came out, I think, today showing that Fox's primetime ratings are higher than CNN and MSNBC combined. And now Lawrence Jones, a Black man, is going to be sitting in for Tucker, kind of guest hosting to see if he can get the full-time spot. But we should have some kind of voice in being able to stop this type of racist messaging being pumped into the minds of people around this country. When I talk about that mega mind virus, that is how it is spread. How can we stop the spread of this mind virus? Because we've seen many of these white supremacist mass shootings, as we talked about in the last segment.

These people are often very loyal Fox News viewers. Well, yeah, but it begins even before Fox. Why do we have generational racism, perpetual racism? It's because people that don't look like us are teaching their children, their new children, every generation, to hate black people based on the color of their skin, to commit violence, right? Now, Fox has a really unique business strategy. They know they're not going to appeal to people that are intelligent or who are balanced or who are non-racist or don't have these far-right views. But there's so many of that audience who tunes into Fox, who appreciate their messaging, don't care about it being fair or balanced, if you will, and that those advertisers who you would normally attack

to shut down a Fox News story or organization, you don't have that same leverage because the advertisers either don't care about what they're promoting, a lot of them do and they don't advertise there, but they don't care because that manga crowd those millions of viewers don't turn into nbc or cnn for any type of balance they tune into fox because they're feeding they're feeding that group that massive group on the rhetoric that they want to hear so it's is it a real news organization in the sense of of of what that they want to hear. So is it a real news organization in the sense of what other organizations want to be fair and balanced?

I'm not convinced that they really do want to be fair and balanced. They serve a population, and they make money on serving that population, not on being fair and balanced. Well, you know, they stopped using that moniker fair and balanced about the time they fired Bill O'Reilly. They no longer present the alternative side of the argument. Now it is simply a propaganda machine to push right-wing conspiracy theories.

The truth and reality do not matter. And that's why so often when we have these conversations, like the conversation we had on Monday with the black conservative, where they could seem unaware of reality as it exists, because they exist strictly within this right-wing media silo. So they don't understand the issues that affect real Americans, because they believe deep down in their minds, hearts, and souls. And this is not an act that they put on. These people are not joking. They believe these conspiracy theories deep down within their souls. They think the Hunter Biden's laptop is the most important story facing the United States of America and the

international community. They actually believe Trump did a really good job as president. They're not lying when they say that. And they're completely surprised when they get information to the contrary. And that's what makes them so dangerous. Because once you're infected with this MAGA mind virus, it's nearly impossible to shake. We've seen people lose everything they have to the Maga movement. There are people sitting in prison right now because they sold out and their brains have been corrupted by that Maga

Mind virus. I don't care how much you loved Obama, you weren't going to prison for Obama. There are people in prison right now because of their love for Dr. Obama. But that's all they're being fed. We gotta go, Scott. We'll hit it on the other side of the break. We gotta go to a break real quick. We'll be back after the break. You're watching

Rolling Martin Unfiltered streaming live on the Blackstar Network. Blackstar Network is here. Oh, no punch! I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops call this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1.

Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st, and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at lava for good. Plus on Apple podcasts.

I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glott. And this is season two of the war on drugs. We are back in a big way, in a very big way, real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star studded a little bit,

man. We got a Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King,

John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette.

MMA fighter Liz Caramouch. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two

on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you've got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth.

Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. We're all revolutionary right now. Thank you for being the voice of black America. All momentum we have now, we have to keep this going.

The video looks phenomenal. See, there's a difference between Black Star Network and black-owned media and something like CNN. You can't be Black-owned media and be scared. It's time to be smart. Bring your eyeballs home. You dig? Next on The Black Table with me, Greg Cox.

We look at the history of emancipation around the world, including right here in the United States, the so-called end of slavery. Trust me, it's a history lesson that bears no resemblance to what you learned in school. Professor Chris Mangiapra, author, scholar, amazing teacher, joins us to talk about his latest book, Black Ghost of Empire, The Death of Slavery

and the Failure of Emancipation. He explains why the end of slavery was no end at all, but instead, a collection of laws and policies designed to preserve the status quo of racial oppression. The real problem is that the problems that slavery invented have continued over time, and what reparations are really about is saying, how do we really transform society, right? And stop racial violence, which is so endemic. What we need to do about it

on the next installment of The Black Table right here on The Black Star Network. What's up, what's up? I'm Dr. Ricky Dillard, the choir master. Hey, yo, peace world. What's going on? It's the love king of R&B, Raheem Devon, and you're watching Roland Martin, Unfiltered.

South Carolina, the Palmetto State. They argue that they should be the peach state as opposed to Georgia. Don't believe that. South Carolina, also wheremetto State, they argue that they should be the Peach State as opposed to Georgia. Don't believe that. South Carolina also where the Civil War started, where Tim Scott, senator, launched his presidential campaign right there at Fort Sumter. But South Carolina is also one of only two states in the nation without a hate crimes law on the books.

Lawmakers have tried to get the clemency, Pitney, hate crimes at past for the last three years. Pickney was one of the nine worshipers murdered at the historic Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston by white supremacists in June 2015. Frustrations are overflowing at this point for obvious reasons. state of Georgia after the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, we were able to push through a bill that got rid of the Civil War era citizens arrest law that was the basis of the detention of Mr. Arbery. We've been able to push through new laws that help to prevent hate crimes against African-Americans. But South Carolina is a tough nut to crack. Joining me now to discuss this is South Carolina State Senator Kevin L. Johnson. Senator Johnson, how are you doing this evening?

I'm doing fine. It's good to see you. Good to be with you. Thank you so much for joining us. So talk a little bit about this legislative process. You know, it seems like you've got him through the House, through the Senate. What's stopping this from going into law? Well, the bill passed the House, which just flabbergasted me, because the House is known to be more conservative than our South Carolina Senate. But the bill did pass the House.

And so I try to tell people that 48 states have passed hate crime legislation and the South Carolina House, but the Senate refused to even take the bill up. And that's very disappointing. JOHN YANG, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political Report, The Cook Political to even take the bill up. And that's very disappointing. So what are the roadblocks preventing this from being even considered in the Senate? It's very similar to H.R. 40, the reparations law in Congress. It will get to Congress, but never even be taken up for a vote by the U.S. Senate. What is happening in South Carolina

that is stopping the Senate from so much as even having a hearing on this, let alone a full vote? It basically comes down to a numbers game. In South Carolina, in the Senate from so much as even having a hearing on this, let alone a full vote? It basically comes down to a numbers game. In South Carolina, in the Senate, we have 46 members, 30 Republicans, and 16 Democrats. And so the Republicans pretty much control the calendar. And so although the bill has been filed, and I'm a co-sponsor of the bill, if they don't agree to take it up or sign it to a subcommittee and let us debate the bill, discuss it and vote on it, we can't get to it. And all we ask them is just do that. Just let us debate the bill and let us vote. And I think the biggest fear from the leadership is that if it ever comes to a vote, the votes are there to pass hate crime legislation in South Carolina.

And with that, you know, it's one of those insane things about the legislative process that we also face in other states, because South Carolina is nearly 40 percent African-American based on the last census data. How exactly is it that we only have 16 senators in a state that's almost two quarters black? That is a good point. And let me say this before I answer that question. In the South Carolina House, there are 124 members, 88 Republican and 36 Democrat. And we have to go back and just reemphasize to South Carolina citizens the importance of voting. And we just have too many people that are not going to the polls to vote, and we have some that actually go to the poll and vote against their own interests.

Hence, we have the numbers that we have, and we're the minority party in a state where the majority party pretty much controls the calendar. And so in the House, they have a supermajority, and in the South Carolina Senate, we're one member shy of them having a supermajority in the calendar. And so in the House, in the House, they have a supermajority. And in the South Carolina Senate, we are one member shy of them having a supermajority in the Senate. But people have to understand the big picture and understand that voting is important, and it does matter, and it makes a difference. Can you talk a little bit about the importance of the state level and state and local races? Because on the Democratic side of the aisle, pretty much since 2008, when Obama was running,

there's been a big focus on the national party, making sure you can win those national elections, making sure you can elect progressive senators and progressive governors and progressive presidents. But because of that, we saw over a thousand seats switch from Democrat to Republican during that decade of Obama. It's kind of that period of time. What can be done to rebuild these state-level parties so we can actually have houses, state houses that reflect the demographics of their citizens? Well, we have to, again, reemphasize to the voters in South Carolina, there's this mentality that presidential elections are important. What they call off-year elections, which in my opinion,

there's no such thing as an off-year election. They don't understand that those are important also. As a matter of fact, we have to make sure people understand once again that every election is important. And so we have too many people that either don't vote or they vote against their own interests, but those are the ones who complain most of the time. And then when they complain, they complain to people like me who are up here fighting and voting for what's in their best interest.

And they're giving the people who win these elections and who vote against what they would like them to vote for a free ride. So we've got to go back and reeducate our voters. They've just lost focus and they just can't see the big picture that all of these elections are important. And what's even more frustrating that in South Carolina, for the first time ever, we now have a bill that we fought for and finally got it passed where you can vote two weeks early for any reason. We had absentee voting, but you had to have a specific reason to vote absentee. But now we have early voting.

You can vote early, two weeks prior to the election. And just like in 2022, in a lot of places across South Carolina, the people didn't take advantage of that convenience that we put in law for them. Now, in Georgia, we have a lot of groups like LaTosha Brown and Black Voters Matter. We have Helen Butler and the People's Agenda. You have so many groups that are out here really mobilizing people. And that's how the state went from red to a light blue.

What has to happen organizationally and structurally within the state went from red to a light blue. What has to happen organizationally and structurally within the state to get these people turning out for the midterm elections? Because when you tell people that South Carolina is only one of two states without a hate crimes law, that seems like it should be enough to motivate people, motivate clergy, motivate nonprofits and civic organizations to get people out there. Because South Carolina could be a purple or even a blue state based on demographics. You just need the people to understand that and get out to the polls. That's exactly right. And you said a mouthful, but number one is that we have to learn from the successes of the hard work that was done in places like Georgia. And we have to realize

that Georgia can do it. We can also, And we can be a purple or blue state. We have areas like where I live that were just recently, just until recently, solidly blue like my county that I live in, Clarendon County, the county where the Briggs v. Elliott school desegregation lawsuit took effect that led to Brown v. Board of Education. But in 2020, in Clarendon County, which was always a solidly blue county, Donald Trump won Clarendon County. And that really woke up a sleeping giant. And so then in 2022, although my congressman, who I have a lot of admiration and respect for, Jim Clyburn, won his election, but he lost Clarendon County.

And nobody would have ever guessed that. So we have to look at places like Georgia and see the hard work and the good work that they put into and see the fruits of their labor. And we have to emulate that. We have to copy that. We have to roll up our sleeves and go out and get people to come out to the polls and vote. It's just as simple as that. And the other thing you hit on I want to address also, because you talked about clergy and the like, and that's one thing that I think is not as strong as it used to be, is our clergy.

They have to get more involved in not just elections, but a lot of things that go on in our community. They can't have that captive audience every Sunday and let those folks go home without encouraging them to go to the polls and vote and without lecturing them about how important it is to vote. And I'm going to tell you, in my area

and in my region, that's not being done as much as it needs to be. And that's another thing we have to work on. We have to get our clergy. We have to get our civil rights organization. Because I believe if we can get people to the poll, they'll vote the right way. But it's just hard to get them out to vote for some reason.

All right, let's bring the panel in. Larry, I want to see if you have any questions. Try to keep it short so we can get as many questions as possible for Senator Johnson. Yeah, I think the first question is, I would like to ask the Senator, is what issue of any gerrymandering plays in some of the challenges you have, you know, one supermajority in one chamber and nearly in the other. And the second one is I wanted to also, if you could talk about candidate quality, because I know we talk about Black folks coming out to vote, but also the importance of the kind of candidates you're identifying that align with the needs or particularly, you know, younger generations.

So if you could talk about that also. Okay. I know gerrymandering is a problem, but what we're having in South Carolina is we're having a lot of growth. And the growth that we're having, like along the Grand Sand, with the Myrtle Beach area, the Rock Hill area, which is close to Charlotte, the Greenville and Spartanburg area, which is always a solidly red area, that's where all our growth is coming. The areas that we have that are predominantly

African-American or Democrat, we're losing population. So it's not so much as gerrymandering as it is the people who are moving in and those that are moving out. And so we have more, I would say, diehard Republicans. We're moving into South Carolina, moving into South Carolina, and just the opposite with Democrats, they're moving away, especially in the rural parts of our state. And so that's one of the problems. And then the other problem is, like you said, quality candidates.

We have great candidates, but as good a candidate as you may be, if the people don't go out and vote, and I'll give you a prime example. My daughter ran for the South Carolina House in 2020, and she won. And she came up to Columbia, and she was an immediate star. I mean, everybody adored her, her abilities, her experiences, everything about her. She had more experience probably than the person with the most time up here. And, you know, master's degree. She's been on the school board.

She's been just everything in our community, Habitat for Humanity, Relay for Life, been involved in everything, health care, business. And she had a candidate that ran against her that was new to Clarendon County, didn't have very much education, never did anything in Clarendon County to help anybody. And she won because, to me, most because the people who should have come out to vote didn't

vote. And we had some that, I use a term that President Obama used, they fell for the okie-dokie and they just, you know, supported the other side. So in our issue, to me, it's more than the quality of the candidate. It's the mentality of the voter. And we've got to work on that. And we will work on that. And I expect that in the election of 2024, the results will be better, not just because it's a presidential election, but because we're going to make sure that the voters, as much as we can, are much more educated. Now, they should already be, but apparently they're not. So we have our work cut out for us, and we've already begun to try to make those points and make those changes. All right. And before we run out of time, can you talk a little bit about what is in this bill and why it's so important to get it passed? Great. Yeah. Well, like it was mentioned already, 48 states have

hate crime legislation. South Carolina and Wyoming are the only two that don't. The bill is very similar to, I think, what you have in Georgia, where if a person commits a crime and he's found guilty and then it's proven or a jury finds that that particular crime was committed as a result of hate, then the punishment is more severe. They get additional time added to their sentence because the crime they committed was hate based on race, gender, people's sex or whatever, and just basically hate crimes. And so all the bill does is, okay, you committed this crime and we find that you did it

because of hate. We're going to give you a... Similar to the Ahmaud Arbery case in Georgia. Same thing our bill does. You know, you found guilty. Then if the accusation is that it was motivated by hate and the jury agrees with that,

then the sentence is enhanced. There's absolutely nothing in the world wrong with that. The punishment ought to fit the crime. Well, Senator Johnson, thank you so much for keeping us updated on this. And I think with the primary being there in 2024, hopefully we'll be able to flip that legislature there also. It's just going to take some groundwork.

Thank you so much for having me. Thank you so much for having me. South Carolina. Thank you. We'll be back after the break. You're watching Rolling Martin Unfiltered, streaming live on the Black Star Network. On the next Get Wealthy, with me, Deborah Owens, America's

Wealth Coach, nurses are the backbone of the healthcare industry. And yet, only 7% of them are Black. What's the reason for that low number? Well, a lack of opportunities and growth in their profession. Joining us on the next Get Wealthy

is Needy Bartanilli. She's gonna be sharing exactly what nurses need to do and what approach they need to take to take ownership of their success. So the Black Nurse Collaborative really spawned from a place and a desire to create opportunities to uplift each other, those of us in the profession,

to also look and reach back and create pipelines and opportunities for other nurses like us. That's right here on Get Wealthy, only on Blackstar Headline. On a next A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, what does it mean to actually have balance in your life? Why is it important and how do you get there? A masterclass on the art of balance. It could change your life. Find the harmony of your life. And so what beat can you maintain at a good pace? What cadence can keep you running that marathon? Because we know we're going to have, you know, high levels, we're going to have low levels, but where can you find that flow, that harmonious pace? That's all next on A Balanced

Life on Blackstar Network. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened

when a multibillion-dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there, and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st,

and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glod. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This

kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne.

We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush.

What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers.

But we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you've got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else. But never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. This is Judge Matthews. What's going on, everybody? It's your boy, Mack Wilde. Hey, what's up, y'all? It's your boy, Jacob Lattimore, and you're now watching Roland Martin right now.

We're going to take it down to Florida, where the trial of former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum and Sharon Letman Hicks awaits a jury verdict on their public corruption charges. Now, Gillum, who was a 2018 Democratic nominee for Florida governor, and Letman Hicks, his longtime mentor and owner of PNP Communications, are charged with illegally soliciting campaign donations and pocketing them in their accounts. This morning, jurors asked for paper copies of all the trial exhibits. The 12-person jury signaled Tuesday that it had agreed on one count in the indictment accusing Gillum of making false statements to the FBI in 2017, but jurors said they did not expect to reach a consensus on the other count. So let's go back to the panel. Rebecca, looking at these charges

against Andrew Gillum, it seems that often Black candidates throughout the country have been charged more harshly for campaign finance violations on down the line than white candidates. Why does it seem that the hammer always comes down on Black candidates? Well, it's really interesting about the Gillum case is that for years, there were multiple rounds of undercover sting operations targeting Gillum when he was mayor of Tallahassee. And so, you know, there's been a lot of investigation around Gillum. And quite frankly, you know, my personal opinion is, is that they wanted to make sure that he couldn't rerun for Florida to rerun for governor there. Had he been governor of Florida, it probably would have looked different in 2020 as far as who actually won in the presidential in Florida. Just like in 2024, it's going to be very important who the governor is in Florida,

because that's going to definitely impact the presidential nominations during the primary and then ultimately in the general election. But to the question you specifically asked me, yes. If you actually read through the different counts and the allegations against Gillum, you know, there are white politicians who have done very similar things and they never got in trouble. So, you know, it does seem clear to me that there has been a target for, you know, at least a decade on Gillum's back. And it is interesting that the jury has been deliberating for four days. That lets us know that it is not as easy as the government is trying to make it seem

these allegations against Gillum. And Scott, on the same point, we seem to see every year or so that some Black politician around the country is caught up in one of these campaign finance violation schemes, false or incorrect documentation schemes, the former mayor of Baltimore and the Happy Holly school book thing. But we see black politicians do way worse than this. Donald Trump does this in his sleep on a Tuesday afternoon and never faces indictment. Why are the punishments so much harsher for black politicians? Well, discretion of any federal or state prosecutor is king. It is the difference between a criminal charge and not being charged at all or even being sued civilly. It's up to their discretion.

And black elected officials in most jurisdictions just do not seem to get, do not get the same fair consideration, if you will, that they are overcharged, whether it's Gillum. And, by the way, Gillum did not put on a defense, which means that the government's case, at least in the defense counsel's view, was not that strong, if you will. And they're struggling to get to a decision because Gillum turned down a bribe, not once, but I think a couple of times, and two, this very complicated paper trail between nonprofits and individuals and loans and then how the money got into Gillum's control along with his chief of staff or his right-hand person, those facts get real complicated, because you can, if you've got false statements or you're engaged in fraud, if there are other possibilities of the basis for why you did

it that are non-criminal, then that's a defense, especially if you can bring it out on cross on the prosecution's direct case. Gillum doesn't have to take the stand, nor does he have to put on a defense. And so they just don't get the benefit of the doubt of black elected officials, whether it's Marilyn Mosby, who's charged right now with lying to get her own money out of her 457B or lying, allegedly lying about buying property in Florida without knowing that she owed the government taxes. I mean, and her defense, I'm a former defense counsel for her, her defense was readily available to the government. We offered to share it with them. They would not even meet with us. And so as a result, the harshness of the discretion and the review by federal and state prosecutors can be much harder than those who don't look like Marilyn Mosby or Gillum.

And with this, Scott, I want to stay with you real quick. What kind of factors will the jury be weighing when it comes to this documents issue? You know, in the Gillum case, it seemed to be a very much document-intensive process. As you said, Gillum did not offer a defense to the case. What exactly are they looking for that could result in a conviction? That the government has proven their case beyond a reasonable doubt.

That's what they're struggling with. Is there a doubt that I can give a reason? I'm a juror. I can give a reason as to why I don't believe they proved their case or that element of a case, right? The elements, all four elements of those charges within the charge that have they proved each element beyond reasonable doubt. And juries struggle with that. They've got to be convinced. It is a very high burden on the government's part. And the defendant, in this case Gillum, and his co-defendant, they do not have to say a word. As they sit in the courtroom, they trail was in the Gillum matter, I could see the jury trying to understand hard the government's case.

And if they can't understand it, they can't vote to convict, or they'll say that they've got a hung jury, that is, that they can't come to a decision. Remember, it's got to be unanimous of all 12 in most jurisdictions, and that's what they're struggling with, in my opinion. And Larry, on that point, you know, we see these things all the time with black politicians. And it's not that black politicians are committing crimes at a higher rate than their white counterparts. It's, as Scott said, this question of discretion when it comes to black politicians. And when there's a witch hunt out against you, when they're trying

to get you any sort of way, they will usually find a way to at least get an indictment, even if not a conviction. What can we do to better protect Black politicians from political prosecution? Well, I think that's a good question. I think, remember, this is not new. This has been going on for years in terms of Black politicians being the focus and often trying to get a conviction for sometimes what are frivolous issues. But I think it's really important. Some of the things that we should be able to do is, first of all, Black politicians should and always, and I work for a former politician, they have to be constantly making

sure they're crossing all their T's and dotting on their I's. And then I think the other thing is they had to be vigilant and hyper aware that for, like I said, frivolous things that they certainly could be accused of doing something that's unscrupulous. I think the other thing to keep in mind is when we talk about politicians and blackness is that we know from research that black folks, regardless if they are a high level politician or a CEO, et cetera, or an entertainer, are statistically more likely to be charged when it comes to certain

crimes for more penalties compared to whites. That's just the reality in living in America. So they need to be hyper-vigilant, and like I said, always aware of that, and also obviously keep a turning on retainer consistently. I tell people all the time, do not try to play the white boy's game the way the white boy plays it.

At the end of the day, they can always call their dad and they'll be okay. You don't have that luxury. So you have to be above and beyond on those things in general. Rebecca, going back, you did from a political consideration that if Gillum is indeed acquitted on these counts, do you think he has a political future in Florida? You know, the way he was intentionally taken down, even with the so-called sex scandal that occurred, it's really interesting when that was leaked to the press in 2020. That was the Friday of, I think it was March 12th or March 13th, when the entire East Coast shut down due to COVID, right, which started the pandemic nationally. And so we noticed that

it really, the story about Gillum, the pictures that were released, never really picked up in media until I think it was a conservative news blog with Candace Owens, then teased the story out and kept teasing the story out. And it was meant to humiliate him. It was meant for him to just go hide and run and to never be heard from again. I will say there are people in Florida who are scared of the power that Gillum has. He's a very charismatic leader. He's been a very effective leader when he was on the city council in Tallahassee. He was a very effective mayor. So yes, there are people who are scared that Gillum could still be viable as a political

candidate and ultimately win office again in Florida. He has a lot of value. He has a lot of sincerity. And he really connects to people in Florida, which is why he and DeSantis were neck and neck in 2018. I believe Gillum only lost by 33,000 votes. And some people will question, you know, some of the perhaps outstanding ballots in 2018 and if Gillum actually indeed did lose based upon the number of ballots that were turned in. But I say all that to say is that Gillum is still a political threat to folks who are, who deem themselves as his political enemies in Florida. Well, I'll just remind people that 33,000 votes, Gillum would have been governor instead of Rhonda

Sanchez. We would not be talking about lawsuits against Disneyland and Mickey Mouse. We would not be talking about banning CRT. We would not be talking about banning drag hour reading time for students. We wouldn't be banning books. All those things happened because of the 30,000 votes in 2018. So when people ask you, do elections have consequences, just think about it this way. In 2018, before Ron DeSantis came into office, Jetson County, Florida, was one of the top-rated school districts for reading and math scores as a result of that. Elections have consequences, just as we talked about in South Carolina, and we have to start focusing on state and local races. Don't just vote for Senate. Don't just vote for president. We have to focus on state and local races in this country because it is crucial.

And we've seen the way these political parties work to bring down black men when they run for office, whether that be Justin Fairfax in Virginia, Andrew Gillum in Florida, Kwame Kilpatrick in Michigan, all around the country. There's a target on your back and you have to ensure that you are working not just even to, but above board on all issues because there are forces that want you out of power for a reason. We're going to keep this conversation going after the break. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered streaming live on the Black Star Network. We'll be right back. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes, but there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution.

But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated

on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes one, two, and three on May 21st and episodes four, five, and six on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way.

In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-stud on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown.

We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. It really does.

It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget

yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. I lost my daughter. I didn't know where she was. So I had to figure out how to survive, how to eat, how to live. I don't want to go into the details because she's here, first of all. She may not want me telling that story.

But possession of her. The family broke down, fell apart. I was homeless. I had to figure out I didn't have a manager or an agent or anybody anymore. And I'm the talent. So I got to figure out how to bein, and I have a question for you. Do you ever feel as if your life is teetering and the weight and pressure of the world is consistently on your shoulders? Well, let me tell you, living a balanced life isn't easy. Join me each Tuesday on Black Star Network for a balanced life with Dr. Jackie. We'll laugh together, cry together, pull ourselves together, and cheer each other on.

So join me for new shows each Tuesday on Blackstar Network, a balanced life with Dr. Jackie. It's Kim Whitley. Yo, what's up? This your boy Ice Cube. Hey, yo, peace, bro. What's going on? It's the love king of R&B, Raheem Devon, and you're watching Roland Florida, where Joey Case Jr. was last seen in Melbourne, Florida, on April 18, 2023.

The 17-year-old, who also goes by the name JoJo, is 5'10", weighs about 150 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information about Joey Case Jr. should call the Melbourne, Florida, Police Department at 321-608-6731. We, of course, were hoping for the safe return of Mr. Case Jr. back to his family and hopefully we keep their family in our thoughts and prayers. We're going to hit some headlines. In Jackson, Florida, police officers connected

to the death of a Black man have been fired. 41-year-old Keith Muriel was killed on New Year's Eve following an incident with officers called to an extended stay motel for a non-emergency call. Avery Willis, James Land, and Casanova Reed were terminated for a policy violation. It's unclear if the violation directly related to Mr. Muriel's death, but this comes as the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is

wrapping up its investigation into the case. Kenya McCarthy was also fired in February connected to this case. The body cam footage has yet to be released despite claims in February that the video would be released once the investigation was completed. Muriel's family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the now former officers.

The lawsuit claims the officers were used excessive force, deadly force, and failed to render medical aid to Muriel. I remind people, the George Floyd Justice and Policing Act is still sitting in Congress. And also the now Tyree Nichols duty to intervene amendment to that law is sitting in Congress. They could pass a budget. They could pass an infrastructure bill. They could pass an inflation reduction act. We have to hold their feet to the fire when it comes to passing police reform. Also, we want to talk about the tragic incident involving a black door-desk driver who was shot and killed in Kansas City, Kansas police officer attempted to pull over 25-year-old door desk driver

Marion Henderson's vehicle for a traffic violation when a confrontation occurred, resulting in shots being fired. Henderson was shot and the officer was taken to the hospital where the victim died. The officer is reported to be in stable condition with minor injuries not caused by a gunshot. It is unclear if the man who was shot was armed at the time of the incident. The investigation into the incident is being handled in the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department, and the community calls for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting. I want to bring the panel in on these two stories together. And Rebecca, I'm going to go to you first. It seems that we could

literally just do a show every single night of the week, just doing a wrap-up of all the Black people being shot by cops in this country on a daily basis. I think we're all tired of talking about it, but yet still it continues to occur. What has to happen in order for us to get legislative movement on this on the national level? As I mentioned, we talk about the intransigence in Congress, but you can pass a $1.7 trillion infrastructure bill. You can pass a $1.5 trillion Build Back Better bill, the Inflation Reduction Act. You can pass the Respect for Marriage Act for gay and interracial marriage. You can pass a $3.5 trillion infrastructure

bill. You can pass a stop Asian hate crime bill. Things are getting done. So Congress is not so intransigent that nothing's getting done. How can we ensure that our agenda works its way to the front? You know, I kind of have a unique take on this tonight, because you're right. Every single week when we're on here, and almost every single night when Roland Martin does this broadcast, we're always talking about Black folks who are being extrajudiciously killed by law enforcement in America. What would be really interesting if we started to see the NRA and other pro-gun rights organizations, similar to the Gun Rights Organization, at the top of the program tonight, as well as gun manufacturers, actually speaking out against unarmed Black people being shot and

killed by police. Because bottom line, these Black folks who are unarmed, who are getting killed, they're being killed by these guns. So it's not going to, this issue isn't going to be just solved by Black people speaking up. Because folks get it. Black folks don't like this happening, but it's going to take other folks from outside of our community. It's going to take gun manufacturers to speak up. It's going to take insurance companies who have to insure, we're going to drop these entities as clients because we can no longer afford to pay out when they're doing these killings that are outside of the law. So it's going to take more than just us. And, Lara, just kind of piggybacking on that same point, you know, President Obama put out his roadmap on 21st century policing nearly a decade ago. We've talked about body cameras for a decade now. We've talked about more training, et cetera. What has to happen for us to finally put some peace behind these things and say, look, we can sue these officers in their individual capacity for the crimes they commit.

We can hold them responsible for their torts as with anybody else. And why is that seeming to be the most controversial thing in American politics today? First of all, I think we need to understand that this is all rooted in anti-Blackness. That's first and foremost, why we don't have comprehensive police reform. We can also thank Tim Scott, who's now running for president, as you alluded to earlier, why we didn't get a bill at the federal level. There is zero chance that any kind of police reform comes out of the House the way it is constituted now. That's not happening. But I think that in terms of advocacy, we need to continue to put the pressure on policymakers at the federal and state level. You mentioned we have an election

coming up here next year. So obviously, the House, the Senate, and the White House are in play. And then you talked about federal, you know, local elections and the importance of that. So we have to continue to advocate and focus on registering people to vote, highlighting the impact that violence, when it comes to law enforcement and the Black community in particular, how not only in terms of those lives are lost, but in terms of the mental health impact. So we talk about the racial fatigue in terms of members of the Black community. Obviously, when you talk about these shows today or in other parts, we feel that emotionally. So there's not only in terms of the families or the communities impacted, but in terms of members of the Black community who may live in other states and hear about these stories. So there's a cumulative effect. So once again, in terms of advocacy

standpoint, we need to continue to register people to vote, talk about why these issues continue to happen in our Black community as it relates to anti-Blackness and white supremacy in the United States, and continue to put the pedal to the metal. And Scott, to that point, as we talked about with Senator Johnson, the Democratic primary starts in South Carolina in 2024. We always hear these stories, well, Joe Manchin said y'all Black folks have to keep getting shot. Kristen Sinema said we can't do anything about y'all Black folks getting shot. We really wanted to stop

y'all Black folks from getting shot, but you know, what had happened was, oh, my bad, I done ran out of time. I'll be back next time. We'll just vote one more time in next election, I promise, we'll stop y'all Black folks from getting shot. Given that we have more time in the next election, I promise we'll stop y'all black folks from getting shot. Given that we have more power in that 2024 primary than we've ever had before in a Democratic primary, what do we need to be demanding when it comes to police reform so that we won't have to

put it behind all the other things in the Democratic portfolio going forward? Voting is important, but I don't have any confidence in the Democratic Party valuing the Black vote, because if they valued the Black vote, they would have passed the George Floyd legislation. They would have passed the Voting Rights Act when they controlled all three houses. And they didn't do it. You know, when it comes to police violence against black people, let's accept this proposition. I'm not saying don't fight against it, but that white America does not care about how many times the police shoot black women and black men. They don't care because if they cared, they'd stop doing it.

I mean, it's 2023. We've had 400 years of racial violence against Black people. In the last 25, certainly, we've seen it. And yet, every day, police, Black or white, thin blue line, not Black versus white, it's just the police culture of killing Black people. And so America doesn't care. America doesn't care about the mass shootings

of poor black children or rich white children. They've shown you that. They value the Second Amendment far more than they want to stop the mass killings. Just had one in Atlanta. And so I think the first step is accepting the proposition of this imperfect country of ours called America, that we love the Second Amendment and we don't care how many people get killed due to access to guns in part, that we will accept that as a fair exchange, which was certainly larceny. And so now when you accept those propositions

as harsh as it is, then you can go vote and try to get black people to vote and all of the democratic groups to get out and vote. But they won't vote nationally or locally because for whatever reason, we don't value the vote. And so I'm very frustrated. I've been doing rolling for five years. And every time I'm on, I'm talking about police shootings and voting and getting Black people to just vote. And it just... We've got to figure out another way to do it so that we are effective and efficient in solving these issues.

Because the results are tragic for Black people, but the-the fixing it just seems like it's so simple. Makes all the sense in the world. And yet, we as a community just can't do it. And our allies that you think we would have, they're there, but they're not really there. And you don't have anywhere else to go vote if you don't vote Democratic.

You certainly aren't going to vote GOP. And you're not going to have a winning vote if you vote for an interdependent. And so Black people are between a rough spot and a rock. They really are. And the solutions are there. Implementation seems to be our biggest problem. Put our energy into implementing and getting folks to the polls, not just voter education, but voter participation. I guess that's the best first step. But I don't have any confidence in Black people or this country resolving the, uh, the African American problem.

It's been a problem for America as race has for 400 years, and I don't think we're any closer. Maybe we're better, but we're not closer to resolving it at all. Uh, well, look, uh, and for me, I think we need to have a black Marjorie Taylor Greene. We need a black Lauren Boebert. We need a black Matt Gaetz.

What do you mean by that now? Tell me. This is what I mean by that. We saw that Speaker of the House vote earlier this year that it only took about 10 of those MAGA Republican House members to twist the arm of Kevin McCarthy and get out every single concession that they thought. Kevin McCarthy gave them concessions they didn't even ask for in order to become the Speaker of the House of Representatives. We need someone to stand in the breach for Black people and say, look, this is the point. We will not do any other business in the Congress of the United States of America until we put these issues of Black men and women being killed by their own government front and center at number one. Because right now,

we're dealing with a debt ceiling crisis. The reason Kevin McCarthy put out this MAGA budget is because of those 10 people in the House of Representatives. So there's no way you can tell me that 10 MAGA Republicans like Marjorie Taylor Greene have more power than the entire Congressional Black Caucus, the largest caucus in the Congress right now. And because Democrats know, just as you said, that we're between a rock and a hard place, that we're between this question of do we allow fascism to take over the country or do Black people turn out and vote? Well, we have to harness that power. The Democrats have to make the decision. Look, if you can pass a $1.7 trillion infrastructure bill, you can pass a $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill, if you can pass a $1.5 trillion

Build Back Better skinny bill, Inflation Reduction Act, whatever you want to call it, if you can pass a gay marriage and interracial marriage bill, if you can pass a stop Asian hate crime bill, if you can push through an executive order on the Dobbs Amendment, if you can pass a $3.5 trillion omnibus spending bill, clearly

you can get something done. It's a question of priorities. Do you want to and do you care about Black voters? And it's how we made them here. Until we hold them to the fire. We're going to do the same thing. But Biden doesn't because he hadn't made the priority. But Robert,

we did have someone who was trying to push the line. We had Cynthia McKinney from your home state of Georgia, and voters decided not to send her back. So we did have some Black people in our Congressional Black Caucus delegation that was willing to go there to ask questions and to be an agitator. So when we have had that, those people didn't last. So I don't know if it's just as simple as Black folks or even Democrats for that matter having a Marjorie Taylor dream.

Look, I understand the difficulty. Some people might just have to be one-third Congress people. But at the end of the day, we have to make some kind of difference. Just as Scott said, we all come here every week to talk about Black folks getting shot. At some point, enough has to be enough. We'll be back after the break. You're watching Roland Marder Unfiltered streaming live on the black storm network i think

mo rolling might be with you on the other side of this break we'll be right back that was a pivotal pivotal time i remember kevin kevin hart telling me that um he's like man what you doing i know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time. Have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes, but there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that Taser told them. From Lava

for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1. Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad.

It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players

all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown.

We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corps vet. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real.

It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers.

But we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you've got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else. But never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's Dadication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council.

You've got to stay on stage. And I was like, yeah, well, I'm good. You know, y'all think I'm good. And he was absolutely right. What show was the other time? This was one-on-one. Got it. During that time.

So you're doing one-on-one. Going great. You're making money. You're like. I'm like, I don't need to leave. I don't need to leave from Wednesday, Thursday to Sunday. I just didn't want to do that. I was just like, I'm going to stay here.

Oh, I didn't want to finish work Friday, fly out, go do a gig Saturday, Sunday. I was like, I don't have to do that. And I lost a little bit of that hunger that I had in New York. I would hit all the clubs and run around. You know, sometimes me and Chappelle, or me and this one or that one, we'd go to the Comedy Cellar at 1 in the morning.

I mean, that was our life. We loved it. You know, you do two shows in Manhattan, go to Brooklyn, leave Brooklyn, go to Queens, go to Jersey. And I kinda just, I got complacent. I was like, I got this money, I'm good. I don't need to go, I don't need to go chase that because that money wasn't at the same level

that I was making, but what I was missing was that training. Was that, was that. And it wasn't the money. It was the money. You know, it was that, that Yes. Was that, was that. And it wasn't the money. It was the money. You know, it was that, that's what I needed. We're all impacted by the culture, whether we know it or not. From politics to music and entertainment, it's a huge part of our lives. And we're going to talk about it every day right here on The Culture with me, Faraji Muhammad, only on the Black Star Network. Sous-titrage ST' 501 © transcript Emily Beynon Hey, folks, Roland Martin here.

I am at the Dallas Airport, literally just landing from Los Angeles. Flight was delayed a couple of times. That's why Robert Portillo is sitting in the host chair today. For the last week, we've been trying to get our next guest. Of course, last Tuesday, Harry Belafonte passed away at the age of 96. And one of the folks who certainly has considerable insight into his work, their friendship, his friendship with Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is my good alpha brother, Ambassador Andrew Young. He joins us now on Roland Martin Unfiltered.

Ambassador, always great to be able to see you and chat with you. Very good. Always good to talk to you, especially about somebody that has meant so much to this nation and to people, people of color all over the world. I mean he was not only known in Jamaica but South Africa. He and Stokely Carmichael went to Guinea, I mean Guinea-Conakry and he was, he was, he was a student of Paul Robeson. And he came up in active studio along with Sidney Poitier and Marlon Brando and Paul Newman. And all of the

all of the folks that you saw at the March on Washington getting off that plane from California were Harry's friends almost from from childhood and he literally committed his life not only to being

a performer but to being a performer, but to being a liberator. And in fact, I dare say that his liberation activities were every bit as important to him as his performances. When did the two of you first meet, first connect? Well, I think I was out in California in 1953 or something like that and went to a concert. And I didn't see him then, but it was a few years later, I don't know where we first met, but he would just show up anywhere the movement was going on.

And I started working with Martin Luther King in 61. And that's when he showed up in our offices. And he was actually running a fundraising office for the movement for for SCLC and SNCC. There in New York, Clarence Jones was a part of it. He's now out in California. Maya Angelou was a young girl coming in from Africa, and she worked in that office for a while, and he just rounded up people who were good people and who wanted to see Martin Luther King and this movement continue.

And we never raised more than a million dollars a year, I don't think. But we wouldn't have raised that if it hadn't been for Harris running the office in New York, but also having concerts all over the place with anybody who would perform with him. When he and I talked, he talked about getting the phone call and the first meeting that he had with Dr. King. He said it was supposed to be a 20 minute meeting and turned to a four hour meeting. And he said that he said, I made the decision to follow this young man wherever he was going to go. And that's exactly what he did. And so many people really don't understand how critically important it was to have folks

like Harry Belafonte, have Dick Gregory, to have a Sidney Poitier, to have African Americans who were entertainers utilize their celebrity, their influence to do what was necessary, whether it was bringing in entertainers, whether it was raising necessary, whether it was bringing in entertainers, whether it was raising money, whether it was serving as advisors. Just talk about how crucial that was as y'all were trying to build up momentum, all the different campaigns you were involved in. Well, let me say that for me, we were in New York just before Dr. King went to Memphis.

And we were talking about how to get the energy of the movement to sustain itself in politics. And that was the last time they met until Harris showed up at Martin's funeral. But then I went to see him about helping SCLC carry on. And he said, but Martin said, we should move toward politics. And I said, yeah, I've been looking for somebody to run. And Julian didn't want to run. Jose Williams didn't want to run. I was thinking that we could have someone in Savannah, someone in Atlanta, and someone in Birmingham, someone in New Orleans. And we could, would really have an impact. And when I said nobody really wants to run, he didn't say any more to me. He Tony Bennett and any of his friends were in town. And she said, what for?

And he said, we're going to have a benefit. Andy's running for Congress. And I said, no, not me. I said, I'm an organizer. I'm not the one to run. And he said, no, not me. I said, I'm organized. I'm not the one to run. And he said, nobody else wants to run. It looks like you got to run. And that was the beginning of my political career. Then he started calling his friends all over the country and telling them that they had to help me.

And I got a call from Clarence Avon, whom I had never heard of. And he cut me out and said, asked me, was I crazy? Stirring up things down there. And I said, I may be. He said, well, if you're crazy enough to run, I'm crazy enough to help you. And he said, what would you do if Isaac Hayes and Bill Cosby came to town? I said, I'd rent a baseball stadium. But I said, I don't have money enough to even call them on the phone.

He said, I didn't ask you for any money. And the next thing I know, three weeks later, there were signs going up saying Bill Cosby and Isaac Hayes were going to be at the Atlanta Braves baseball stadium. I mean, it was really a magic, the way he functioned in politics, in show business, but also with world leaders. He could go almost anywhere in the world and not only be known, but they would know him as a progressive vision and voice that was there to help. The thing that I think is remarkable to that particular point that you just made there is that Dr. King gets murdered, assassinated April 4th, 1968. And folks begin to do different things. You talked about being in politics as well. But when I look at both of you post the Black Freedom Movement,

meaning officially, the emphasis on economics, on the poor was always there. And when you talk about him traveling, the same for you. The movement and the message travel all across the globe. And so folks welcomed both of you in so many different quarters. And I look at Nelson Mandela, the effort to get him released. And then, of course, him becoming president. Both that story. You and Mr. B were right there. Yeah, but even before I got to Nelson Mandela, Arthur Ashe came to Atlanta to a tennis tournament and won it. And it turned out that the promoter of the tennis tournament happened to be from South Africa and asked Arthur if he would come to South Africa and play.

Arthur wrote ten people, eight black, I mean eight white and two black. The two blacks, Bob Green of Michigan State and myself, both told him to go. And he said, well, why don't you go with us? And in 1974, we spent a whole week sitting in the government box with all of the people that had my folk locked up. Now, I wasn't uncomfortable with that because I, that was sort of my job in the movement, was to kind of communicate with the white community. When we went to Birmingham, we were talking about going to Birmingham in December, toward the end of December. And Martin said, Andy, do you know any white folks in Birmingham?

I said, no. He said, you got a month to find some. And that was the difference between us and, say, Black Lives Matter. We were not rushing. And we had actually then two months to prepare. Before there was a demonstration, we had had about four meetings with business leaders and clergymen. And we had negotiated basically what we wanted before we had a single demonstration. And it was that kind of patience and preparedness

that allowed us to, well, just to stay alive. Got to go to a break. Hold tight one second, Ambassador. We're going to pay a couple of bills. We're going to come back and chat with you a little bit more about the late, great Harry Belafonte. My panel, they also will get to ask you a question as well. Folks, you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered as we continue paying tribute to Harry Belafonte. He passed away last Tuesday at the age of 96. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered right here on the Black Star Network. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 On a next A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, what does it mean to actually have balance in your life?

Why is it important and how do you get there? A masterclass on the art of balance. It could change your life. Find the harmony of your life. And so what beat can you maintain at a good pace? What cadence can keep you running that marathon? Because we know we're going to have, you know, high levels. We're going to have low levels.

But where can you find that flow, that harmonious pace? That's all next on A Balanced Life on Black Star Network. Up next on The Frequency with me, Dee Barnes, our special guest, Alicia Garza, one of the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement. We're going to discuss her new book, The Purpose of Power, How We Come Together When We Fall Apart. We live in a world where we have to navigate, you know, when we say something, people look at us funny, but when a man says the same thing less skillfully than we did, right? Right. Everybody boxed towards what they said, even though it was your idea.

Right here on The Frequency on the Black Star Network. We're all impacted by the culture, whether we know it or not. From politics to music and entertainment, it's a huge part of our lives, and we're going to talk about it every day right here on The Culture with me, Farhaji Muhammad, only on the Blackstar Network. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes, but there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer

will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multibillion-dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st,

and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glod. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way.

In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher.

Brent Smith from Shinedown. Got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corps vet, MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working and we need to change things. Stories matter and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does.

It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers. But we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself.

Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's that occasion. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 Welcome back to Roller Martin Unfiltered. We continue our conversation with Ambassador Andrew Young with regards to Harry Belafonte. Ambassador, one of the things that I think was a lot of people really don't understand if they read Harry Belafonte's memoirs, his apartment served as a refuge for Dr. King when he was in New York, but also sort of as the mediation grounds for all of the different factions in the civil rights movement. And there was so many different stories he talked about in his book with these discussions

and these sort of these mediation events happening in his apartment. Can you share with us what what what those moments were like in the role that he played? Well, it was Harry's show. And you didn't get to say no. He called me one night and when I was ambassador to the United Nations and he said, I need you to come by and have a sandwich with me tonight. And when I got there, Shimon Peres, the prime minister of Israel, was there, and he wanted to talk with me about helping to get involved with the Palestinians

and getting the Palestinians and Israelis together. Now, when I said that to the State Department, nobody believed it. But we spent, with Stoney Cooks, we spent about four hours. And he knew everybody. I had another occasion when he did a benefit for us in paris and when i got over there he said oh you uh you're one of these little righteous country boys but i'm gonna turn you on to paris and uh i said well i'm i'm not i'm not a high life sort of fella. And he said, well, you never met Bridget Bardot. I said, no, but I said, I don't. She's a young kid. I said, I prefer older women. And the next thing I know, I gave him a couple of names. And the next thing I know, he grabbed me and Dr. King and said, come on, I want you to go somewhere with me.

And we were in the hotel in Paris where all of the stars stayed. And he took me down to this lady's room whose name I had called. And I didn't have any idea who she was. I mean, I knew who she was when I saw her, but she threw her arms around me and pulled me in and pulled me down on the couch sitting next to her husband, between she and her husband. And I was, well, I was so, I mean, you had to be always ready.

I mean, he knew everybody, and everybody loved him and respected him. The same thing with before Mandela got out of jail, it was always Bishop Desmond Tutu or he'd show up and there would be Miriam McKeever and of course Sidney Poitier was was with him in the very beginning. And he just got along with everybody, and he put everybody almost all over the country on a liberal agenda. Questions from panelists. Rebecca, I'll start with you.

Your question for Ambassador Andrew Young. Ambassador Young, first of all, I want to say thank you. It's very nice. It's a pleasure to meet you. When I think about greats like you who were architects and generals and soldiers within the civil rights movement, I often think about the strategy that you all had, and then I compare it to my generation. We have the technology. We have the money. We have a lot of access. But we seem to lack strategy with how we choose to carry on with the movement. So what advice would you have for folks of my generation with how can we be more strategic in the push for civil rights. Well, I'll tell you what. That's what I say. I said that.

That Black Lives Matter happened in 60 seconds. I mean, in nine minutes and 41 seconds, everybody in the world was watching George Floyd die. And it was an immediately organized protest. All the way down in New Zealand, they were watching. Now, there were 60 bombings of black people's homes in Birmingham in 1961, 62, and early 63. And this is before the church was bombed. Fred Shuttlesworth's church had been bombed three times in 61 and 62. And we were right here in Atlanta, 150 miles away, and we didn't know it.

They didn't cover anybody. I mean, I heard of Emmett Till. I'm from New Orleans. That's not far from Mississippi, and I drive through that part of Mississippi all the time because my wife was from Alabama. But we never knew about Emmett Till until his body went back to Chicago and his mother insisted that Jet Magazine and Ebony Magazine put his body on the picture on the cover of Ebony magazine. And so what we, we didn't have,

I mean, we really didn't even have telephones. I mean, we had to find somebody, and not everybody in Selma had a telephone. And we had to know the two or three people in the neighborhood that we might be able to run to and call somebody somewhere. We were in the dark ages, really. And so we had a lot more planning time. And it was also, we knew how dangerous it was.

Now, when you got 10,000 people out in the street, it's not nearly as dangerous as when Martin Luther King went to jail in Birmingham in 63. There were only 51 people with him, persons with him. And it wasn't any big march, and we were always small and vulnerable. I got beat up in St. Augustine, Florida, and there wasn't even any press there. And I didn't know how bad I'd been beaten until almost 10 years later when we got access to the police files. And so it was a different time. And I think if we had known

the dangers we were facing at that time and faced up to it, we might not have been so courageous. A lot of it was, you know, the Lord will lead you and he'll tell you what you need to know. But we didn't know. And Martin Luther King, Martin Luther King's, I mean, he used to do a Richard Pryor kind of act where he would talk about somebody trying to shoot him and one of us jumping in front trying to get our picture in the paper or on television and taking the bullet for him. And then he'd start preaching your funeral. And he'd say everything you'd never want said in church about you. But what he was doing, he was making us laugh at the possibility of our own death. And of course, he was laughing

at his death. And it's a different time. And I think that you all are collecting the fruit from the trees that we planted. And I think things are going very well. I mean, I really do. At least we got all of the crooks out in the open. And everybody knows it. And Scott. The crook's out in the open, and everybody knows it. That's the funny one right there, Ambassador. Scott Bolton, what's your question? Ambassador Young, great to see you.

We miss you on the board of trustees at Morehouse College. I know you're busy with your foundation. My question to you is, it's so hard for athletes and entertainers to have a consciousness about our black community and the struggle our community faces. In 2023, who do you see on the entertainment stage that's the next Harry Belafonte that just passed away? You know, you don't know. And I mean, I see in a different way. I see the hip hop community here in Atlanta. And they were one of the kids, he was a 15-year-old and was the chairman of the Mayor's Youth Committee when I was mayor in 1982. And he's, you know, he's 50 years old now. And he's building low and moderate income apartments. And he's opening restaurants. And he's still performing. He and T.I., Killer Mike and T.I. and others, and Ludacris. I mean, I am very impressed with the fact that they're in business because the movement was about redeeming the soul of America from the triple evils of racism, war, and poverty.

And this is the time that we've got to get out of poverty. And we get out of poverty by making money and there were 200 people in the basement sitting in chairs. Now, that means that's a big house with a big basement. And they were all millionaires. I mean, 95% of them were black. And they were there because the African American Museum in Washington and we we set out to see that black folk made money and I was I was very proud just the other night I I ran into the um the treasure of the sometimes as dads I think we're too hard on ourselves we get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers. But we also have to learn to take care of ourselves.

A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else. But never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time,

have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1. Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated

on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir.

Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war. This year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This kind of starts that a little bit, man. We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does.

It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast Season 2 on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an iHeart Podcast.