#RolandMartinUnfiltered - BLM rally at WH for voting rights; Sage Steele smacked for Obama talk; Tesla pays $137M in race suit

Episode Date: October 6, 2021

10.05.21 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: #BlackLivesMatter protesters rally at White House demanding voting legislation be passed; ESPN's Sage Steele suspended for Obama talk; New legislation could help a Texas woman vote after she was denied a birth certificate. Exe. Dir. of Downtown Crenshaw Rising talks battle to buy Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza; Tesla to pay $137M in race-discrimination suit; Family of Henrietta Lacks files a lawsuit against a biotechnology company for using her cells for research; A father's fear led him to create The ANJEL Tech appSupport #RolandMartinUnfiltered and #BlackStarNetwork via the Cash App ☛ https://cash.app/$rmunfiltered or via PayPal ☛ https://www.paypal.me/rmartinunfiltered#RolandMartinUnfiltered partners: Nissan, Amazon, BuickDownload the #BlackStarNetwork app on iOS, AppleTV, Android, Android TV, Roku, FireTV, SamsungTV and XBox#RolandMartinUnfiltered and the #BlackStarNetwork are 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. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. you there? No, it can happen. One in four hot car deaths happen when a kid gets into an unlocked car and can't get out. Never happens. Before you leave the car, always stop, look, lock. Brought to you by NHTSA 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 Glott. 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. 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. Martin! Today is Tuesday, October 5th, 2021. Roland Martin, unfiltered, live on the Black Star Network, coming to you from Los Angeles.

On today's show, Black Voters Matter. They take the voting rights protest to the home of President Joe Biden. We'll show you the video and where they are arrested. Some are still in jail waiting to get processed. Also on today's show, we'll be dealing with Sage Steele. She makes some quite interesting comments about President Barack Obama not knowing his black daddy, but also identifying as black. Also, what the hell is she saying about women who wear certain clothes? Guess what?

She's apologized. ESPN has suspended her for a week. We will unpack that on today's show. Also, they raised millions to buy Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza only to lose the bid to a lower offer. We'll talk with the executive director of the downtown Crenshaw Rising to explain why they think they were rejected in favor of a non-black and non-local developer. Also, the family of Henrietta Lacks, they have filed a lawsuit against a biotech company for using her sales for research without her permission. And one of the defendants accused of killing a black man while jogging does not want the judge to allow any evidence to show that he may be a racist. A court story out of Georgia. Plus, a father's fear led him to create something that could bring peace

to all parents. The Angel Tech app can track and record your child when they are in trouble. We'll talk with the founder of that app in our Tech Talk segment. Folks, it is time to bring the funk. I'm Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network from L.A. Let's go. He's got it. Whatever the mess, 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 Roland. 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, yo Yeah, yeah

It's Rolling Martin, yeah Yeah, yeah Rolling with rolling now Yeah, yeah Over the weekend, President Joe Biden went to Capitol Hill to fight for his infrastructure bill, his Build America Better plan, but he has not gone to Capitol Hill to press Democrats to do the exact same thing for voting. Well, Black Voters Matter and other protesters took it to him by showing up today in front of the White House protesting, demanding change, demanding change. Folks, we have a good roll of video, please, saying that he needs to be doing more when it comes to voting. They have been demanding the For the People Act as well as the John Lewis Voting Act. Of course, Democrats have not moved on that.

You have Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema, as well as Senator Joe Manchin. Of course, they are standing in the way of that. We've not seen, again, any action taken so far on these voter bills. What we are seeing, we're seeing the protests continue, come back, making it plain that they actually want to see more things done to get voting rights in this country. And so that's one of the things that you're seeing. They were here in D.C., as I said, fighting to get those voting rights. And so they want something to be done about this very issue. This is critically important. We look at, of course, the voter suppression efforts being put in place by Republicans all over the state. Now, what are

we dealing with now? Voter ID laws, of course, as many of these Republican-led states are pushing more of these voter ID laws all across the country. And so this is going to impact the 2020 midterm elections. And that's why people want to see things change. Thirty three laws have been passed that will negatively impact black voters and other voters as well. Some of these laws are in areas including dealing with election officials, voter ID, mail-in voting and early voting. We've seen bills passed in Texas, in Georgia as well. Here's an example, folks. Elmira Hicks, 82 years old, does not have a birth certificate,

which makes it impossible for her to renew her driver's license. Well, without her license, she can't register to vote. Hicks, like many African Americans born in the early 20th century, was born with the assistance of a midwife and records were not kept. She has been denied a birth certificate due to some technicality. Without a birth certificate, again, she can't get a license and will not be able to vote. These are the type of instances that are being brought up all across the country. Now, remember, the House of Representatives, they passed the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement

Act in August. The Senate has not taken up action on this particular bill. And so what we are seeing is the continuing efforts to force the Senate to move on these various bills. My panel, Teresa Lundy, principal founder of TML Communications, Dr. Mustafa Santago Ali, environmental justice EPA, Michael Imhotep, host of the African History Network show. Glad to have all three of you here. What we are seeing here, Mustafa, what we're seeing is the continuing focus, putting pressure. This is where President Joe Biden has got to step up. Like I said, he went to Capitol Hill when it came to his $3.5 trillion economic plan. He has not done that when it comes to his $3.5 trillion economic plan. He has not done that when it comes to

voting legislation. It's all about priorities. You know, the president, like you said, he cares about what's happening in relationship to the infrastructure bill, so he's leaning in. He has to lean in on this as well. It all begins and ends with the vote. I'm never sure why these folks are not as active on ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to fully participate in the civic process. On the Republican side of the ledger, they are very focused. They understand that by actually getting small percentages of folks not being able to vote, that it will tip it into their favor. They understand how to utilize power. They understand how to get engaged and actually win on the issues that they care about. President Biden

and the Democrats have got to get serious in the Senate and make sure they are passing these critical pieces of legislation that give everyday folks the opportunity to actually be a part of this democracy. And if they're not willing to do it, then how can you continue to ask black and brown folks to show up, to stand, you know, in extreme heat or extreme cold, to stand in these situations where they have individuals who, you know, want to do them harm, to stand when you're dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. We've done our work. We've shown up. So they have the responsibility now to make sure

they're pushing the Senate, whether it is Manchin or Sinema, to do the right thing. You know, Teresa, again, it's about it's about pressure. It's about President Joe Biden using his power, leaning on these senators. Well, black voters, they want to see a Biden that's engaged on this. Look, he said a variety of things when he was running for president, what he was going to make happen. Black folks are saying, fine, make it happen. We can't hear you, Teresa. Teresa, we can't hear you. Can you hear me now?

Now we can hear you. Perfect. Sorry about that. Anytime you have 19 states that pass 33 news laws that make it harder to vote, it always is a very interesting process when it comes to the African-American voice and what it actually means in the voting process. So states, you know, have been putting up stricter laws. But I also think this is also an attention to the Commonwealth. So when we look at Republican-led senators and Republican-led houses and some of the votes that are happening. It's happening because, again, they are trying to ensure that people in black and brown communities are not

really receiving the funds that are necessary, some of the social services that are needed. They're making sure that their voice is being heard. And that's where we have these issues. That's why we always see black and brown communities always taking the fight right straight to the ones who are making the decisions. So that's either in the Senate or Senate or in Congress or at President Biden's feet. But again, what Mustafa said, it's about priorities. And I think the Biden administration really needs to really maintain the promises that were made in the beginning that really secured his vote. Look, it's real simple here, Michael. You hear the activists saying this. LaTosha Brown has said it.

Cliff Albright has said it. And that is you cannot out-organize voter suppression. And so it's like Democrats, what the hell do you think is going to happen? What do you think is going to happen? Right. You know, this is all about self-preservation. It's about self-preservation for African-Americans. It's about self-preservation for Democrats in the House of Representatives in the 2022 midterm election. It's about self-preservation also for Democrats in the Senate that are up for reelection as well. You have 19 states that have passed

33 new voter restriction bills, states that have been, states where it's already harder, states where it's already hard to vote are passing more voter restriction bills. And then you also had 25 states that passed 62 bills to make it easier to vote are passing more voter restriction bills. And then you also had 25 states that passed 20, that passed 62 bills to make it easier to vote. So states where it's easy to vote are making it easier to vote. Biden should do, Biden was here in Michigan today. He was in Howell, Michigan today pushing his infrastructure bill, which is needed, but you also need to go on a tour.

You also need to go to certain states. I think he should go to Arizona, and I think he should go to West Virginia and do a speech there about voting rights. But we have to, I can't stress this enough, if this just remains, if voting rights just remains a black issue, we're going to look at the Senate.

It has to be expanded because this impacts more than just black people. When you have these voter restriction bills, you have 38 million disabled Americans who are registered to vote. Okay? When you talk about restricting mail-in ballots, you're talking about hurting them. We just saw the women's reproductive activists, about 200,000 of them, assembling this past weekend. When you talk about restricting voting rights, OK, you're talking about hurting white women.

You're talking about hurting college students. OK, so this, you know, I love John Lewis. I understand 65. I understand the voting rights act. But this is bigger than just a black issue. And lastly, Roland, notice how silent corporations have gone. Because see, corporations were putting out memos and things like this just a few months ago on voting rights. They've gone completely silent. Okay? So also, pressure has to be put back on corporations as well to speak up and put pressure on politicians also, like Manchin and Sinema, who they help finance. Well, again, I mean, that absolutely has to happen. That's why Black Voters Matter. They're doing what they're doing. And so we certainly support what they're doing. And again, pressure is being brought to bear. And so more folks need to do so. Other organizations. But we also like I keep saying, we need many of these white activists, these white progressives stepping out here as well, saying that this is a particular priority.

Folks got to go to break. We come back. We'll talk about the drama unfolding at ESPN, where anchor say still very used to making comments about black folks. Well, guess what? She's in more hot water. She's now suspended for a week. We'll explain next on Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasting live on the Black Star Network from Los Angeles. Back in a moment. I'm sorry. НАПРЯЖЕННАЯ МУЗЫКА ВЫСТРЕЛ НАПРЯЖЕННАЯ МУЗЫКА Betty is saving big holiday shopping at Amazon.

So now she's free to become Bear Hug Betty. Settle in, kids. You'll be there a while. Ooh, where you going? It's time to be smart. Roland Martin's doing this every day. Oh, no punches! Thank you, Roland Martin, for always giving voice to the issues.

Look for Roland Martin in the whirlwind, to quote Marcus Garvey again. The video looks phenomenal, so I'm really excited to see it on my big screen. We support this man, Black Media. He makes sure that our stories are told. See, there's a difference between Black Star Network and Black-owned media and something like CNN. I gotta defer to the brilliance of Dr. Carr and to the brilliance of the Black Star Network. I am rolling with Roland all the way.

Honored to be on a show that you own. A Black man owns the show. Folks, Black Star Network is here. I'm real revolutionary right now. Roland was amazing on that. Be Black. I love y'all. I can't commend you enough about this platform

that you've created for us to be able to share who we are, what we're doing in the world, and the impact that we're having. Let's be smart. Bring your eyeballs home. You can't be Black on media and be scared. You dig? I'm Chrisette Michelle.

Hi, I'm Chaley Rose, and you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. All right, folks. Welcome back to Roller Mark Unfiltered. We are broadcasting live from Los Angeles here on the Black Star Network. All right. Sage Steele, anchor at ESPN. She is quite known for making other controversial comments that have ticked a whole bunch of black people off. Well, Sage stepped in it again when she did the podcast of former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler and some comments that she made about a variety of topics, including this about President Barack Obama.

When you fill out your census, I'm like, well, I don't know when the last time I filled out my census was, but if they make you choose a race, she's like, what are you going to put? I go, well, both. She's like, well, you can't. She goes, well, Barack Obama chose black and he's biracial? I'm like, well, congratulations to the president. That's his thing. I think that's fascinating, considering his black dad was nowhere to be found.

But his white mom and grandma raised him. But hey, you do you. I'm going to do me. OK, that caused lots of problems there. Then the one that really ticked off a lot of people was this comment about women in media and what they wear. Here's the thing. There is a fine line, and I handled it. I didn't get anybody's, because that wasn't my personality then. I might now a little more. But I do think as women, we need to be responsible as well. It isn't just on players and athletes and coaches to act a certain way. talks with young women who like would come in and they'd intern um with with me with our channel or just other women who reach out to me now and i've said to a couple of them they're like well would you look at my tape would you do this and i and i've said listen i would love to but the way that

you present yourself it's not something i want to be associated with yeah so when you dress like that yeah i'm not saying you deserve the gross comments but you know what you're doing when you're putting that outfit on too like women are smart so don't play coy and put it all on the guys when we and again i'm not saying anybody deserves anything yes but we need to be responsible as women too because we know what we're doing when we put certain things on and then return a certain text or you expect somebody's not going to see if you go to dinner with this guy? Like that's on us. That's so true.

All right, so a lot of this started because Sage Steele was not happy that she was forced to take the COVID vaccine if she wanted to keep her job at ESPN. Disney, like many companies, are requiring their employees to be vaccinated. This is what she had to say about vaccines. I think to mandate, I respect everyone's decision. I really do. But to mandate it is sick

and scary to me in many ways. But I have a job, a job that I love, and frankly, a job that I need. But again, I love it. I just, I'm not surprised it got to this point, especially with Disney. I mean, a global company like this. Well, so what are we now dealing with? Sage has apologized because this thing really blew up.

This is her apology. Please pull it up. All right. She says, I know my recent comments create a controversy for the company and I apologize. We're in the midst of an extremely challenging time that impacts all of us. And it's more critical than ever that we communicate constructively and thoughtfully. Here's ESPN's statement. Please pull it up. All right, then. ESPN, we embrace different points of view. Dialogue and discussion makes this place great. That said, we expect that those points of view be expressed respectfully in a manner consistent with our values and in line with

our internal policies. We're having direct conversations with Sage and those conversations will remain private. Now, his was very interesting when you analyze those particular statements. And it was a journalist, Karan Phillips. tweeted this out and he said, wow, quite the different statements from ESPN regarding, say, Steele compared to when ESPN issued their statements when Jemele Hill called Donald Trump a white supremacist. And I'm going to show you these two and I found it to be, again, real interesting. So this was the ESPN statement that they sent out with Jemele Hill. The comments on Twitter from Jemele Hill regarding the president do not represent the position of ESPN.

We've addressed this with Jemele, and she recognizes her actions were inappropriate. Now, that's totally separate than what they had to say about Sage Steele. Now, also in her particular comments, Sage, she had some positive things to say about, come back to me, please, about Candace Owens, which was quite interesting. And so, look, Sage Steele has a history. She was making some comments that she was quite, she was quite critical of Colin Kaepernick. There was a point when she was on a flight from Los colleagues at ESPN from accused them of actually keeping her out of a conversation dealing with race. And again, she in her comments, she complimented that the clueless fool, Candace Owens. We know how idiot she is. The thing that also is, so check this out.

Let me just go ahead and do this. I'm going to play for you what she had to say about Candace Owens. Here we go. It's what? Wait, where did you read that? I mean, I forget where I read it, but it made me laugh. Wow. I respect the hell out of Candace Owens.

So do I. Yeah. And I'm like. First of all, guys, the audio wasn't right. So I'm going to play that comment again. So I want you to hear it in full, okay? So here we go. And I'm like, I get it. You're the Candace Owens of ESPN, is what...

Wait, where did you read that? I mean, I forget where I read it, but it made me laugh. Wow, I respect the hell read it, but it made me laugh. Wow. I respect the hell out of Candace Owens. So do I. Yeah. And I'm like, I get it. You're the Candace Owens of the year.

Allow me to unpack this, okay? First and foremost, you know, Sage Steele has made comments in the past because she's biracial. And what she's done is, you know, her deal is, you know, why do you have to, you know, leave out one parent and identify with another? Okay, I get it. But here's the thing that trips me off. The thing that she is that's crazy here is that how dare you question, how dare you question how President Obama chooses to identify himself? Okay? How?

What I don't understand is if that man chooses to self-identify, that's his business. Now, what's so idiotic about Sage's comments is that she was upset about having to choose a race. When you go back to the first U.S. Census, you had to identify a race since 1790. Since 1790. Okay? That, to me me is crazy. It's crazy. Okay.

1790. 1790. Identify with race. But see, what's the problem here? It's for her to assert that, well, he grew up with a white mother and he didn't know his black dad, but he's identifying as black. Sage, your daddy's white. Your mama's black.

Sage, let's be real clear. You are not walking out on the street anywhere and somebody goes, hey, there goes a white woman. You know it and I know it. Sage, here's the deal, and this is why I know your comment here is idiotic and makes no sense. When they had the issue on race, the special on race, and Michael Eves and Elle Duncan were involved,

you got upset because you were not included. Well, Sage, if you consider yourself a white woman, why would you be included? Okay, you're biracial. Got it. But that's just stupid. Oh, I think it's fascinating. Halle Berry. Halle is biracial just like you.

Halle Berry calls herself a black woman. There are other biracial people who call themselves the exact same thing. So for you to sit here and make this comment makes no sense whatsoever. And it's idiotic. And then when you're talking about how women are dressing, well, no, I'm not saying that these things have happened, but you got, what the hell? ESPN has removed her from a women's summit that they're doing as well that's supposed to be happening

in a couple of weeks. But it's very telling who you are as an individual. And here's the whole deal. I don't care if you are a black, I'm sorry, sage, a biracial conservative. But if I respect the hell out of Candace Owens, you're admitting you're an idiot. Because anybody who respects Candace Owens, who is absolutely stuck on stupid, who knows what the hell she's talking about, who knows what the hell she's saying, you actually respect that and call yourself a journalist? That's why you get in question. That's why you're getting dragged and you've earned every single bit of it. Period. And so, Sage, how about actually

using some damn common sense with these nutcase takes that you have. And ESPN should have suspended you for a week. Should have. And maybe you're now going to learn. And here's the whole deal, Sage. Go to Fox Sports. Go to Fox News and join your former ESPN colleague, Will Kane.

If that's the point of view that you want to offer, go right ahead. But really, stop with the gaslighting of black people because you're uncomfortable that an Obama will call himself black. And also, what the hell does his dad not being there have to do with it? In fact, Kerry Champion, let me pull this tweet up. Former ESPN anchor, Kerry Champion weighed in on this and I'm going to pull, I'm going to pull it up to show you. And so, because I just thought that this tweet was really important. So let me see here. Let me see if I can find it here because I just thought that this tweet was really important. So let me see here.

Let me see if I can find it here. I just thought it was really, really interesting, you know, what she tweeted because it's just dumb. It's just really dumb when you see these comments coming from a black woman, oh, sorry, a biracial woman in the case of Sage Steele, you know, and in this whole, you know, you are like somehow, oh, because you are so conservative or whatever you want to call yourself, that's fine. But it's just ridiculous. It's just utterly ridiculous. This is the tweet from Carrie Champion. Sigh.

My dad wasn't around when I was younger. I'm still black. That's what Carrie Champion tweeted. And she's right. So this notion that, oh, if your dad wasn't around, that's about dictates what you should call yourself on the census. Yeah, that's weak. And you know what? I'm bringing the panel here, Teresa. I'm just it's it's it's it's really utterly ridiculous that Sage still continues to embarrass herself.

I met Sage. I know Sage. We're not friends. I know, you know, seeing her at National Association of Black Journalists Convention and things along those lines. But I just don't feel the life of me. This the comment that she made about Obama. And I just find it fascinating. He identifies as black and his dad wasn't even around. What the hell? Yeah, that's the right question to ask, but especially for somebody who's in the journalism industry. I've watched Sage myself and I've read her tweets. I've listened to her commentary. I've seen her at black conventions and I've seen her at those black conventions identify as black and not biracial. So I feel like she is personally suffering something that I think every, and I have a lot of friends who are biracial, biracial person goes through, but I think she's just channeling it in a different way.

There are certain individuals who I guess, you know, who may be of the right persuasion who accepts her a little bit more. Now, it's OK to be Republican and conservative. But when it comes to when it I think probably what took me back was how she embraced new individuals that come to her on the way that they dress. And again, as a black woman myself, 100 percent, if I didn't have a suit on or if I didn't have the right dress on, it was at the right length. And I was bringing all this talent or maybe my suitcase was locked in a storage room and I didn't have the key and I had to get to that meeting, is she saying that she will not even take the time to even talk to me? And again, that could be a missed opportunity. So, you know, as I listen to her, I almost feel just saddened because, again, this is another, you know, black, white woman that is suffering something so deep that I feel like there has to be more to it. I mean, you know, I've been one to say I'm not a fan of Candace

Owens, but I also understand why people take to her. And part of that is she's spewing off some nonsense and she's getting paid handsomely. And so those who are willing to sell their soul for two minutes of spotlight and they give you a show and they give you branding, those are the people that, you know, unfortunately we have those who want to be in the mix and just don't know how to get in. And so they model it and they feel like this is where they need to go. So fortunately, we just could pray for our sister. And look, apparently her dad is black, mom, white. Okay, fine. Either way, it doesn't matter. But it's still nonsensical. And again, if you want, if you're biracial, Mustafa, that's fine.

If you want to identify as white and black, I got no problem with that. I'm perfectly fine with that. But what's stupid to me, what's absolutely idiotic to me is this somehow notion that a person doesn't get to the side that they do. And his dad not being anywhere there has nothing to do with any of this. Well, you know, when you have folks like Sage saying the stuff that she does, you know, it's almost like a headline in the National Enquirer. People say these types of things because they want attention. And not only do they want attention, but they also, you know, as Teresa said,

are trying to set themselves up for the next gig. My problem is more on the substance of the things that she's talking about. So when you say that you never filled out the census, then that tells me that you're not also concerned about, you know, the resources that are tied to that that can help our communities to be able to move forward. So that's about substance. When you say that, you know, you're against mandates for vaccines, then you don't unpack that because we understand that our communities disproportionately are dying from that. So if you don't see yourself connected to the African-American community, it plays out in the decisions that you are making in your personal

life. And then, of course, also when she made that comment about the young sister coming to her that Teresa just talked about, that also says something. When you're not willing to invest the time with a younger person to help them to get together the things that may be necessary for them to navigate, you know, the corporate world or the sports world, then that also says something about you and your commitment to those individuals or to folks who come from a similar set of backgrounds that you may be, that you came from. So you got to look at the substance of what the sister is saying and then begin to unpack whatever trauma or hurt that she might be dealing with based upon, you know, how she came up

and the decisions that she might be dealing with based upon, you know, how she came up and the decisions that she's currently made. You know, I'm concerned with the message that she's sending about the substance of things that actually impact our communities. You know, she want to be on Fox News. That's all good. But don't put our people continually in the crosshairs by the decisions that you're making when you know what the facts are. She's a bright, you know, she's a bright young lady. So she knows all these things that are happening inside of our communities. And she should be much more careful with the things that, you know, that she's spouting. Michael, look, I don't care what her personal issues are. I don't care what drama she's going

through. Bottom line is this here. When you make these type of comments where you're questioning someone else, hey, it's foul, it's wrong. And when you are in a responsible position, you need to do better. Yeah, Roland. Yeah, that's true. They need to do better. But, you know, first of all, I pay very little attention to Sage Steele. I read the article that the Griot has about these comments and the blow up. But, you know, to quote a great South African freedom fighter, Bantu Stephen Biko, the most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressed is the mind of the oppressed. The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed. And she's a perfect example of that. So we just go through and just look at some of these idiotic comments she made. She talked about President Barack Obama

identifying as black on the census. And then she said she doesn't remember the last time she filled out a census form. Hopefully it was 2020 because that's when the last census was. Hopefully it was 2020 last time she filled it out. I mean, she literally said, oh, I can't remember the last time I filled out the census. Last year. It was last year. Exactly, last year. It was every 10 years.

It was last year. Right. But Colin Kaepernick was raised by two white adoptive parents. Okay? He identifies as black. Okay? Basically. Okay?

So, you know. No, no, no. Hold on. Hold on. He was, okay. He was raised by two adoptive white parents. White parents, yes. Colin said, I'm black.

Yes. Yes. Yes. Exactly. And then, you know, she talked about Candace Owens. Well, Cutler brought up Candace Owens. And she took it as a compliment that Candace Owens of ESPN, what have you. Well, Candace Owens is an idiot who is ignorant of history. So, you know, say he Steel may take that as a compliment.

The other thing is when we go to Disney and a vaccine mandate, Sage Steel is tested positive for COVID-19, according to the rep in the griot.com. She's tested positive for COVID-19 previously. So for her to have a problem with the vaccine mandate at Disney, and they're trying to, usually these companies have vaccine mandates because they want to keep people safe and they're trying to save lives. Okay. But usually a lot of these corporations, I don't know if this applies to Disney, but a lot of corporations is either get vaccinated by a certain date or get tested once a week. How is it at Disney, Roland? Do you know? Do they have the option to get tested once a week? How is it at Disney, Roland? Do you know? Do they have the option to get tested once a week or twice a week?

Hell no. You got to be vaccinated. And I'm with Disney 100%. And guess what? Sage wanted to keep that high-paying-ass job, and that's why she got that damn shot. And let's just be real honest here. The reason we have been able to see the increase in vaccinations is because companies have mandated it. And that's the whole point. And this is real simple. If you want to have your freedom and you want to do whatever you want to, there's no problem. But it doesn't mean you're going to be able to get to keep the jobs that you have. That's what this thing is all about. OK. And the reason why I ask that is because the mandate from Joe Biden using the Labor Department for companies of companies that have employees of 100 or more. That is a either vaccine mandate or get tested once a week.

That's why I asked. No, no, no. But again, a company can make their own rules. They don't have to follow that particular plan there. And so just like all the major airlines have now announced that the United Airlines, 97 percent of all of their employees have now had the vaccine because it was mandated. Now JetBlue, Southwest Airlines and the others are following suit as well. And so that's what we're seeing.

But look, I'm glad to see ESPN suspended her because it was idiotic and it should teach her a lesson, but it just made no sense whatsoever. The Obama comment and the comments about women and what they dress. Got to go to a break.

We come back. We're going to talk about an issue here in Crenshaw. The purchase of a mall, black company. Why were they shut out of the process? That's next. Roland Martin unfiltered on the Black Star Network, live from L.A. Oh, that spin class was brutal. Well, you can try using the Buick's massaging seat.

Oh, yeah, that's nice. Can I use Apple CarPlay to put some music on? Sure. It's wireless. Pick something we all like. Okay, hold on. What's your Buick's Wi-Fi password? Buick Envision 2021.

You should pick something stronger that's really predictable. That's a really tight spot. Don't worry. I used to hate parallel parking. Me too. Hey. Really outdid yourself. Yes, we did.

The all-new Buick Envision, an SUV built around you. All of our age have lost the ability to focus the discipline on the art of organizing. The challenges, there's so many of them and they're complex and we need to be moving to address them but I'm able to say watch out Tiffany, I know this road. That is so freakin dope! Hey, I'm Cupid, the maker of the Cupid Shuffle and the Wham Dance. What's going on? This is Tobias Trevelyan. And if you're ready, you are listening to and you are watching Roland Martin, Unfiltered. What the?

Well, all right, folks. A Southwest Amherst community group, they're fighting back after their bid for the historic Crenshaw Mall was rejected. Downtown Crenshaw Rising says their $115 million offer was the highest one for the property, but it wasn't accepted. Let's talk about it. Joining me now from L.A. is the executive director for Downtown Crenshaw Rising, Damian Goodman.

Damian, glad to have you on Roland Martin Unfiltered. So you say you had the highest bid. How do you know that? Has it been confirmed that y'all had the highest bid. How do you know that? Well, has it been confirmed that y'all had the highest bid and it was turned down? Yes, Roland. I mean, and let's back up a little bit because I think people say we're a developing group. We're much more than that. We're the community, uh, over 300 community, uh, organizations and a membership of over 2,400 people came together when we found out that our Crenshaw Mall, the most significant asset in

black Los Angeles, which sits at the heart of Crenshaw and King Boulevard in the Murpah community, that it was to be sold to outside developers that were closely connected to Donald Trump. And so using our history of organizing, along with bringing together some of the best experts in community-centered development and people-centered planning, we put together a bid to bring them all under community control. We don't want to see it falling into the hands of outside exploiters who are going to exacerbate the gentrification crisis that is rampaging our community like so many other Black urban communities across America. And so part of that process involved bringing together the many philanthropists and the many social impact investors throughout the country who, too, recognize this challenge of gentrification, where, which was higher than the bid that Deutsche Bank, that famous bank of criminals throughout the globe, accepted from a heritage development group that was backed by a person who's on Putin's list, a man by the name of Len Bovaknik. So that's where we sit right now.

First of all, how much was their bid? How much was their bid? It's been reported that they paid $112 million. Okay, so $112 million. Was a reason given as to why their bid was chosen and not yours? Well, I mean, at its core, Roland, and I want to emphasize this point because there was a tweet that went viral that talked about our struggle. And the comments were filled with fellow black people who've been engaged in real estate activities or business loans who have similarly been told that their money was ingrained, that even though they submitted the highest offer, even though their qualifications

were superior, that they weren't qualified. And so Deutsche Bank, again, that infamous bank that is known as the lender to Donald Trump and has all kind of nefarious activities that they've been caught red-handed with across the world, they said, well, you're not qualified. He was more qualified. This man's been bankrupt personally and has had his companies go bankrupt before. Comparatively, we brought in, to assist the community in its engagement,

the two architecture firms that are responsible for the most iconic black structures built in the 21st century, the Smithsonian Museum, National Museum of African American History and Culture, and Equal Justice Initiatives Museum or Memorial for Peace and Justice down there in Montgomery. Collectively, along with some of the biggest developers on the planet, those that did the World Trade Center after 9-11, we submitted them a fully financed offer, a plan that was developed for the community that sought to bring in affordable housing, not housing we couldn't afford, sought to bring space for the incubation of entrepreneurship businesses that were owned locally, space for worker-owned cooperatives, green space. We presented the whole plan,

and we had the money, we had the community, and we had the plan, and they said that we were not qualified to do the project. And were they saying that because you did not have mall development experience, management experience, what was their rationale? We brought in the second largest real estate operation on the planet to be our consultants. I want to be clear about that because there's a difference between where black people tie themselves to projects where they're just the black front and the decisions are being made by other people who

are outside the community. You know, the development company that we brought in, literally, who redid the World Trade Center after 9-11, along with multiple other projects throughout the world in so many respects, was partnered with the second largest real estate operation on the planet that is operating malls today successfully all throughout Los Angeles, the country and globe. This was not a question of qualifications. We got to hit that over and over again. This was a racist process by a corrupt bank that was acting, and this is the kicker, man, they were acting at the bequest of public pension funds. The investors who invested and purchased the mall, who were to sell it, contracted, they were, excuse me, they were public pension funds,

right? These entities that are filled with worker money, money from black and brown people in this community and throughout other communities across the country. They contracted with DWS, which engaged in this corrupt and racist process. Right now, civil rights organizations, along with ourselves, we're looking at engaging in litigation that lifts up that 1866 Civil Rights Act, the same act that was invoked by Byron Allen when he was denied his opportunity to engage in the acquisition of radio and other multinational or excuse me, multimedia companies. We're looking into that right now, and I think we'll have an announcement quickly. This was old-fashioned racism. This is old-fashioned denial of the opportunity for Black people to own, live, build, and thrive in the community that we occupy. Questions for our panel. I'll start with Mustafa.

Well, brother, thank you for the work that you're doing. I've spent almost 30 years on play space work. So I've seen time and time again how difficult it is for black and brown led projects to actually, you know, make it to fruition. So my question is, because this is was a community driven project that you had strong community support, what has been the outcry from the community and who all have you all been engaging with to hold folks accountable? Well, as my good friend from the South says, people are mad as a wet hen. I think in so many respects, we've been told that we did not have the money, we did not have the qualifications. And sometimes that's been true. But here, that wasn't the case. And this was ours.

And we did the building. We brought together the civil rights organization. We brought together the renters and the homeowners and multiple unions that were invested, many units that were invested in this project. So people are here, and they're ready to fight, not just because the person who they sold it to literally is a sexual assaulting racist by the name of David Swartzman of Harris Development Group. You can just Google him and find out his history. It has a long history of being anti-tenant, anti-merchant, and violating

the Fair Housing Act and other civil rights engagement, civil rights acts. Not only that, but because, you know, we did what everyone says we're supposed to do, right? We're supposed to come together. And if black people just came together, things would get better. While ignoring that we must operate in a society that is predicated on systemic racism, where the decisions are being made by white people far away who want to continue the exploitation of our community. We seek to change that entirely by having a project that uplifts, not uproots this community. And that's a threat. That's not just a threat here in Crenshaw. That's a threat to the way these people do business throughout the country and world.

Michael. Hey, brother. Look, I applaud you for what you're doing, man. And I know it's a I know it's a tough, tough job. I used to be a general contractor on a construction project here in Detroit. So I understand for a black owned company. Quick question for you. You mentioned public pension funds. OK. And a lot of times money managers will loan pension fund money to developers and the developers that take that pension fund money and come into our communities and gentrify us out of our own communities. Can you talk about, again, the role that pension funds played? What was that statement you made about public pension funds? Brother, you hit the nail on the head. And two of the pension funds, one was the state of Michigan and the other was the Detroit Police and Fire pension fund system.

So this was not just pension funds in Los Angeles and California, including the Los Angeles County employees and the UC Board of Regents. These were pension funds throughout the country and some of the biggest pension funds throughout the nation. New York City employees and New York City teachers, right? And so this is public money, right? Because this is the money that comes directly from the public agency along with the member match, so public employees. And they are a $5.2 trillion investment operation throughout the globe. Collectively, that's how much money these pension funds invest throughout the globe. And much of their investments are into real estate. Well, we found out, and this was news to me, and we're pretty aware.

We've listened to people talk about getting pension funds to divest from fossil fuels. Obviously, there's an amazing history of us engaging in the anti-apartheid movement, where we focused on pension funds like the UC Board of Regents to divest from companies that were doing business there. Well, these public pension funds are literally funding some of the biggest and most parasitic and harmful developments in urban communities like Los Angeles. And so they control the decision, along with Deutsche Bank, Deutsche Bank, DWS, to decide where the mall that sits in the black community went to. And I want to be clear, you know, we did all the work. We were open. We've had literally over 100 community meetings and a community vision. This was the product and the plan that we were talking about before, which most more people can read about it. Downtown Crenshaw dot com is a community vision. But we weren't the only

black-led team. We were the only black community-led team. But we weren't the only black-led team that was passed over. You had some of the biggest black developers in America that were passed over as well. So that's where you get to, again, you know, these public pension funds, led by the same people who don't look like me and you. 98%. 98% of the people who control investments, major investments in the country are not black and not women. 98%. So who were they talking to? They didn't even, I don't think they even had seen, nor could they imagine that a community group could come together, raise this much money, bring together a professional team with expertise both in community development and large scale projects.

It floored them. So they had to come up with some ridiculous reasons as to why they denied it. But at the core of it remains stone cold racism and they will be held to account for it. All right. Thank you. Teresa. Yeah, Damian. One when I applaud your efforts, look, I live in the city of Brotherly Love where these conversations are happening daily as some are led to build areas of real estate that and gentrify areas. And then some really do have a communityfocused approach. So I think for me, my question to you, and one, I just learned a lot, and I'm sitting here looking at your website, about literally the plan. This is probably the

best bill out of downtowncrenshaw.com, the message, the plan, the vision, and sign the petition. So my question to you is, how do you and what do you need from your other partners outside of signing the petition? Like I said before, I'm in Philadelphia, but I'm sure there's some advocates here that would love to help you or share their stories. Are you guys contacting elected officials? So what needs to be done so nationwide this can also, again, I think it's happening in every city. We just don't know. Right. So, again, I think it's happening in every city. We just don't know, right? But I think this is a foolproof plan that is like, look, this is what one guy is doing, and the rest of 300 organizations is doing, and we need to take note and we need to support.

So what can people do? I appreciate that question, Sister. And, you know, we have always said that this was more than about a mole. This was about a movement. This was about both saying to this Crenshaw community undergoing the threat of gentrification, like so many others, that community ownership is an imperative, and that we have several impediments that need to be knocked down along the way. And so we got to come together. We've got to come together locally. We've got to

come together nationally. We even have to come together internationally in saying that we have a right to be in our spaces, saying that there is a role for elected officials to use their voices, and some did and some didn't, and that there is a role for elected officials to bring these entities, like these public pension funds and these foreign banks like Deutsche Bank, who are doing business in our community in a racially discriminatory manner to be called to account. So we're absolutely going to sue them. We're going to absolutely continue to organize. We're absolutely going to continue to build off and build that greater movement of over 300 community groups that are working with us that are members, like literally members. I mean, that's the other key piece of it. As members of the organization, when we bought the mall, we were going to provide shares to everyone so that we could collectively

own in this space and see the development that is building on the best of us with something that didn't go. This is not something that went toward even the enrichment of the board members. As a nonprofit board member, we are prohibited from having any profits go to us personally. This was about community empowerment. So what we've seen along the way is that those, be they in Detroit, be they in Philadelphia, New York, D.C., have wanted to be engaged in this process both to learn and to support and to bring back to their own communities this model so that they can do the same. And that's what we are firmly focused on doing, continuing to build that out, continuing to tell this story. While we elongate this campaign, we know that while the mall's ownership

has changed and it's now in the hands of Heritage, along with Len Bovaknik, that we will continue to fight, looking at other successful successful efforts both in the history of this country the history of our ancestors and even more recently just in San Francisco where developers were forced to come to their were forced on their knees and forced to sell developments to the community's desired owner and so that's going to be our goal that's going to be our focus and we we have the the winds of our ancestors and the wings. We ride on the wings of our ancestors and the winds of change behind us. Thank you, Damian Goodman, executive director of Cringe Downtown Cringe are rising.

We really appreciate you joining us on the show. Appreciate you, Roland. All right. Thanks a lot. All right, folks, let's talk about black owned media. Yesterday on the Today Show, Carlos Watson, who is the founder of Aussie Media, announced that despite what was announced on Friday, they're not going to be shutting the media company down. Craig Melvin on today's show and talked about what took place last week with the company, said that he should have done more media interviews and did not like what was being reported about the company and that he said that they're going to be like Lazarus and come back from the dead. Well, yesterday he taped an interview with The Breakfast Club, which aired today. And in that particular interview, a 50-minute interview, he talked about a variety of things, answered their questions. And during the interview,

Charlemagne also revealed that he was an investor in Ozzy as well, apparently invested about $10,000. Well, during the interview, Carlos a couple of times called out me and Soledad O'Brien because we were critical of Ozzy and posts we made. But then at the end of the interview, he brought me up again. Listen to this. Like, look through it. I'd be happy for people to do it. I'd be happy for people to compare it apples to apples. Are you going to talk to some of these people that's really criticizing you like the Roland Martins? Would you sit down with Roland? Would love to. Roland, we're going to make that happen.

I was disappointed in Roland, if I'm honest. I was disappointed in him, but you know what? Maybe I was wrong, and so I'm happy to learn and grow. What disappointed you the most? I thought that I thought it was a little bit of a crabs in the bucket sort of thing. I thought that immediately he saw us in trouble, and he just, more than anyone,

he was the one retweeting and posting, and it was almost assassination-like. And given his experience at CNN and what happened to him, I thought he'd be the last person being involved in that kind of thing. And so, you know, it is what it is, and I've got to learn from that and I've got to get better. But if you ever see me doing that, let me know if you see me doing that. I hope you will never see me doing that. I hope even if we have differences, you and I will have the conversation. I won't be out there trying to assassinate people in public along with the mob.

Absolutely. All right. Well, it's Carlos Watson. It's The Breakfast Club. Good morning. Good Absolutely. All right. Well, it's Carlos Watson. It's The Breakfast Club. Good morning. All right. So let me speak to that. Carlos, it's very clear that you don't follow me.

It's abundantly clear that you don't follow me on social media because if you did, you would realize that I often talk about media stories. I've been in media for 14, since I was 14 years old. This was not something that I fell into. I didn't go to school majoring in something else and then fell into media later like you did. I chose this when I was 14 years old. I'll be 53 years old on November 14th. So this has been my life for 39 years.

And if anybody who follows me, they know I often post stories, retweet stories, comment on stories that deal with the media. When Joe Concha, who is a media and political columnist for The Hill, who's also with Fox News. Oh, check the timeline. You'll see the comments that I've made directly to him. The other thing is this here, Carlos. You saw what I had to say because I tagged you. See, I ain't no punk.

I'm not going to comment about Ozzy and comment about you and not tag you. Uncle Roro, don't subtweet. I'm real clear about being open and honest. Folks criticized me when I cracked on Sha'Carri Richardson for coming in ninth. Why did you hit the tagger? Because that's what I do. I don't subtweet. So anybody who follows me knows

I'm often talking about media, talking about advertising, talking about all of those different things because this is what I do. This is what I talk about. And I've discussed other media companies owned by black people. So this whole idea that somehow, oh, it's crabs in a bucket. First of all, it's called crabs in a barrel. It's not crabs in a barrel. And then to say, well, I saw an opportunity. I see an opportunity. The fact of the matter is I am a black owned media company that's serving black people. That's targeting African-Americans. There are others who watch my show who are not black,

who do appreciate the show, and I've gotten emails from them, contributions from them. The reality, Carlos, I don't think I've ever heard you say you're a black-owned company. You probably have positioned yourself as saying I'm a media company owned by somebody who's African-American. The second thing, when you said you called it assassination, so you don't like the fact that I've retweeted others who have had negative things to say about you? Your former writer, Eugene Robinson, who wrote a very critical substack about you, comments that you made about him. What? That can't be retweeted? Are you suggesting, Carlos, that I, as an African-American who owns a media company, that you expected me to be quiet because it involved you? You and I don't have a relationship. We don't. Our paths have crossed.

The reason I think I have your phone number because Constance White, who used to write for Ozzy, I think she still writes, I don't know if she still writes for them, said, hey, you and Carl's ought to hook up. She had the signature number, or I sent you a message on LinkedIn, so I got your number. So after the interview yesterday, Charlamagne said, you should call me.

You called me. I was busy yesterday with the George Lopez Golf Tournament. So my booker has already reached out to you, called you, and texted you about having you come on the show. You sat with the Breakfast Club for 50 minutes. Fine, Carlos. You come on Roland Martin Unfiltered and the Black Star Network. Let's have a conversation about what has transpired. And there's a series of questions that I do have for you.

And I've watched the Craig Melvin interview and the interview with the Breakfast Club. And I've got a lot of follow-ups to some stuff that you had to say. But the thing for me, Carl, that I need you to understand, and anybody who follows me knows this, the model that I have had my entire career has been this. If you do good, I'll talk about you. If you do bad, I'll talk about you. At the end of the day, I'll talk about you. So talking about Ozy and reading the New York Times story by Ben Smith that I was quoted in, a subsequent story, reading the story from Forbes, reading Eugene Robinson's account,

reading the other accounts as well, yes, I've seen those stories. And see, Carlos, you can't have it both ways where everybody is wrong and you're right. I'll give you a perfect example. I could hold it for the interview. I'm gonna give you a perfect example. I could hold it for the interview. I'm going to give you a perfect example. During your interview with the Breakfast Club, you castigated Ben Smith for writing about the mental health issues of your COO, the one who impersonated the YouTube executive.

You said that shouldn't have been written about. Here's the problem with that. Later in the interview, see, I want you to understand, Carlos, how I listen to what somebody says. Later in the interview, Charlemagne came back and asked you about it and then said, well, you upset that Ben Smith wrote about it, but you're the one who told Ben about the mental issue. And so had you not told Ben about the mental issue, how would Ben have written about the mental issue? Because you told him.

See what happens when you listen. And so it's silly. It's nonsensical, Carlos, to act as if, oh, I was disappointed. And then you want to bring up what I went through at CNN. Well, what about it? See, I'll address things head on as well. And so are you suggesting, Carlos, that because I went through some drama at CNN nine years ago, that somehow I can't speak about or talk about something else? Nah, bro, that's not how that happens. And so it wasn't character assassination. It wasn't, oh, I saw an opportunity because what you do at OZ is totally different than what I do.

I own my blackness. I'm upfront about my blackness. I'm very clear about who I serve. I'm very clear about the audience that I am trying to speak to. And so there is no, again, oh my goodness, I am trying to gain some advantage. But I will say this, Carlos, and you and I will talk about this when we have the conversation. I will say to you, though, that it is important when we talk about what happened when it came to getting these advertising dollars. And you admitted in your interview with The Breakfast Club how you benefited from the battle. myself and Butch Graves and Don Jackson and Junior Bridgman and Diddy and others have been engaged in because you have been able to sit back quietly and reap the benefits of the work that we put in. And so we'll see what happens right now. We'll see what happens with the future of Ozzy. I've seen the story,

the New York Times, where one of your investors is suing you right now for $2 million for failing to disclose what happened with Goldman Sachs and YouTube. We see that another story said the advertisers are staying clear of you. You know what? That's all your business. But what I am going to say, Carlos, I am more than willing to talk with you. I am in L.A. through Sunday. I know you're there in Silicon Valley. You were in New York today show and doing the Breakfast Club. So I'm interview. I'm doing various one on one interviews for a new show on the Black Star Network called Rolling with Roland. And so I have open slots, Carlos, tomorrow on Wednesday. I've got slots

open on Thursday. All day Friday is open. Saturday is open. If you find yourself in L.A., come on by. I'll text you the address and we can have a conversation right here. If you can't come, we'll have a conversation on the show. See, you said to Charlemagne, well, Charlemagne, if you see me doing something like this here, you will call me first. That means that you want to have an offline conversation. Well, he's one of the investors in your company. You have a relationship. I don't have a relationship with you. So you and I are having a conversation offline. Why? You had one with Craig Melvin on the Today Show. You had one with Craig Melvin on the Today Show. You have one with Charlamagne, DJ Envy, and Angela Yee on The Breakfast Club.

So we have a conversation. It's going to be a public conversation. And it should be. Because, again, I am a journalist. And what I was raised on, it was about truth, integrity, character, honesty. It was about being upfront and clear, owning mistakes, not accepting BS. But do not mistake, Carlos, that any criticism that I have is personal, that's a vendetta,. It's assassination or anything along those lines. It's called truth. And truth is what reigns supreme.

Truth is what matters. Not fudging, not being astray, not getting too out there, which you admitted in the interview that y'all did with some of your marketing things, how you, and I'll pull the comment up, how you sort of, how you strayed or, you know, you were too aggressive, whatever, with some claims made. Where I come from, we call that lying. But we'll go over all of that in the conversation that we have. But don't ever, Carlos, get it twisted. Don't ever assume that anything I do is trying to assassinate somebody. It's called speaking truth all day, every day, 24-7, 365, 366 in a leap year.

I'll be back on the Black Star Network in a moment. ТРЕВОЖНАЯ МУЗЫКА I'm going to go get some water. Maureen is saving big holiday shopping at Amazon. So now she's free to become Maureen the Marrier. Food is her love language. And she really loves her grandson. Like, really loves. It's time to be smart. When we control our institutions, we win. This is the most important news show on television of any racial background.

Y'all put two, three, four, five, 10, 15, 20, $30 on this and keep this going. What you've done, Roland, since this crisis came out in full bloom. Anybody watching this, tell your friends, go back and look at the last two weeks, especially if Roland Martin unfiltered. I mean, hell, go back and look at the last two days. You've had sitting United States senators today, Klobuchar and Harris. Whatever you have that you have, you can bring to Roland Martin unfiltered to support it. Please do, because this information may literally save your life. Watch Roland Martin unfiltered daily at 6 p.m. Eastern on YouTube, Facebook, or Periscope,

or go to RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Support the Roland Martin unfiltered daily digital show by going to RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Our goal is to get 20,000 of our fans contributing 50 bucks each for the whole year. You can make this possible. RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Hey, everybody, it's your man, Fran Hammond. Hi, my name is Bresha Webb, and you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. And, well, I like a nice filter usually,

but we can be unfiltered. All right, folks. This, of course, every Tuesday we focus on black-owned businesses. Every Wednesday we have Tech Talk. And so when we focus on African Americans in technology, this should have been our Tech Talk right here, folks. I want to talk about a new app that allows for you to help track down your family members and keep you safe during encounters with law enforcement. Folks, when activated, the Angel Tech, A-N-G-J-E-L,

tech app begins sending a live stream video and GPS alerts with directions to the person's location. The founder of Angel Tech is James A. Samuel Jr. He joins me now from Washington, D.C. James, glad to have you on the show. So what precipitated you creating this particular app? Hey, Roland, thank you. It's an honor to be here. And before I get started, I do want to level set and give all praise, honor, and glory to my Heavenly Father, Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,

and to His Holy Spirit, without whom I would not be here or have the insights or innovation to produce this application, AngelTech. And thank you for the opportunity to be here, have the insights or innovation to produce this application, AngelTech. And thank you for the opportunity to be here, of course. You're a marvelous platform. What precipitated this app was a need for personal safety. I think it was Michael, Eric Dyson, Eric Michael Dyson, I always get his names mixed up, but he said something that stuck with me years ago. He said, the security of the United States is built upon the insecurity of the African-American. And I never forgot that. And so when you look at the events over the last 400 years. Right. And you look at the insecurity the habitual historic insecurity the African-American parents in the United States which is only recently really brought back to light you know gm crow 2.0 we'll say uh angel

tech was needed the whole time right we needed to know where our loved ones were we needed to know uh what was happening to them we need to know where we were in relation to them and we needed to be able to store that securely and have a record of it for accountability and that we can be there to help each other out and know how to get there have a route to get there and it was really the events of last summer when george floydphyxiated, was strangled, lynched on that pavement there in Minnesota by a convicted felon, murderer, Derek Chauvin. That's what spurred me to ask my team of basketball players to really make this happen now. It's been needed for far too long. So we launched the store in October. We got it in a Google Play Store this February. And so when did you launch it? How many downloads

have you had? And walking through the technology, when you say it sends a live video feed, how does that actually work? Walk us through the app. Oh, absolutely. I can walk you through it. I can show you here in a second. But we've seen an incredible increase in our user base. You know, we had over 40,000 people, you know, come on, like the platform. We went from about 200 users to about 5,000 users just a few days back in April and have been increasing since then. So we're just now in this phase that

we're really marketing and we appreciate the opportunity to let your audience know about this. And it does, it sends a live stream. And so I have the app here on my phone and you simply click on it and it opens up, right? And then there I am, I am live on here. And when I hit start stream, it then sends this stream of me to my loved ones and I'll get a text notification, which is right there. I just did. And the app notifies me, and I get an email. And now my loved ones are all watching this live stream of me on your show. They know where I am, where they are in relation to me.

It's really stored in the cloud, and they know how to get to me and or send help. And they all have this record on their phones now and so there's no other way that you can stream on a platform to where when the stream is done you can download that onto your phone you don't have to try to get this phone or get a police you know um subpoena to get the body cam from the police they have this record in me and then there was my my wife saying hey daddy we see you and so she's texting there, and they're starting to interact with me in the platform because they're watching this both on your show and online. Thanks, bro.

I got you, too. My brother's talking. All right, then. Questions from my panelists? First of all, I'll start with Michael Imhotep. Hey, James. Hey, thanks for coming on the show today. Thanks for this great invention as well, the Angel app. So just curious, have you gotten any testimonies from

people who used it in real life situations, stopped by police, et cetera? And if so, what were their responses? What were their, how did they say, what did they say the outcome was? What were their responses to using the app? Yes, absolutely. One of our earlier users back in April, her name is Lori, she said that she and her son had just heard about this when we got picked up in that news cycle in the April timeframe. They had read about us in other publications. I think Black Enterprise was one. And they downloaded the app, and they hadn't even tested it yet when her son went on a road trip driving through the South.

And it was during that road trip that they got pulled over, him and his friends, and they were young black youth in the South, in a car, got pulled over. And he used angel tech. He just put it on his phone. He started a live stream. His mother knew exactly where he was. She was able to see the live stream.

She was able to hear the police officer's interaction. And so she was one of our biggest, earliest advocates. And so you can see those testimonials. We have those and others on angel.live. That's A-N-J-L.live because we want you to live, right, to be free and then to be fulfilled. All right. Thank you. Thank you thank you great job Teresa yeah one I thank you so much for the app I'm actually in the midst of trying to download it myself so I mean

how I mean just tell me about the idea like how did this start like what did you think about what was the need that you saw it was time to um build this app and keep it going oh thank you i saw the need um again it's a historic 400 year need right for us in in the country but um we were in another technology inside of that technology which we're still building it's a safer way for us to all navigate and find services that are around us that we didn't know about. I'll come back on your show hopefully in the future and tell you about that other invention of ours that we have a provisional patent for as well as this one. The feature inside of that is you're navigating more smartly,

and if you get pulled over or if you have a hostile public interaction, then you press the button, you press the AngelTech button, and it launches the live stream. And so this was a feature inside of another app, which we are still building. And, you know, it's amazing how fiction inspires truth, right? But I was actually watching the movie Queen and Slim, and it was inspired, like, hey, you know what, if they had a camera on their phone, this is in January of 2020, which is before George Floyd happened, right? But if they'd had a camera on their phone in that in january of 2020 which is before george floyd happened right but if they'd had a camera on their phone in that movie if they were able to stream and you know with other intelligence that they knew the neighborhood they were in and started thinking

about it back in january 2020 then like i said when they happened with george floyd i knew we had to make this a reality right now Mustafa. Well, this is amazing technology. I can see so many other types of applications for it along with the direct area that you've currently been focusing on, whether it is ladies leaving the club and something pops off or folks out hiking in, and sometimes they're not safe spaces for folks of color out there. So I think there are lots of possibilities. My main question for you is how are you going to help to educate and market to make sure that folks really know the value added that this brings, you know, in churches and in mosques and in schools?

What's the plan moving forward to help this to grow? Thank you for that question. That was a great segue. I didn't pay you to ask me that question, but that speaks directly to the point I was hoping I would have a chance to make here, and that is there's another version of AngelTech. So you can go to angel.tech, A-N-G-E-L.tech, or angel.live, A-N-G-E-L, angel with a J,.live, and read of our testimonials and see our 30-day free trial on different plans and whatnot. But there's another version of ANGEL that we've created.

It's called Angels in Campus. And we've created and we're marketing it currently to HBCUs, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, because it does everything that you've seen me do in the AngelTech app that we've talked about, but it also allows that Department of Public Safety at that college or university to get the same live stream when the person pushes the TPS button in the Angels in Campus app. HBCUs now and getting that into their security fabric for their campus. And we see HBCUs, we see the power and we see the prestige and we see the promise of historically Black colleges and universities to our community and to the world, right? You know, at VP Harris, right? And, you know, just protecting those Black lives and all of our Black lives, you know, and the world's lives ultimately, but really focusing there, we hope to build a community through those historically black

colleges, universities, and the parents and the parents association, because the other thing about Angels on Campus is not only can you as a streamer press the button and have your college campus dispatch office notified, your viewers can also press the same button on their viewing side of the app and bring your college campus security to you and your point of need from wherever they are in another state or wherever. And that is revolutionary. So we're working with several HBCUs and those that are listening now, if you're a chancellor, an administrator, hit us up, info at angel.tech. And let's talk about your school having this as well, because that's the future of our great thinkers in our community.

All right, then, folks. It's called Angel Tech, A-N-J-E-L Tech. James A. Samuel Jr. is the founder. Download the app. And obviously, I'm sure it's Android and Apple. Is it only for the phones? Does it also work with iPads as well? It only works on phones, but it works on all Android and all iOS platforms.

It works anywhere in the world. And we're the only app like this that works anywhere in the world that you have a cell phone signal. And I do also want to give credit, Roland, to some other partners and other people, right? anywhere in the world and we're the only app like this that works anywhere in the world that you have a cell phone signal. And I do also want to give credit, Roland, to some other partners and other people, right? Natalie Wilson and and Derica Wilson at Black and Missing Foundation, you know, are missing persons. We're, you know, inspired by them and hope to partner with them soon. Black Facts dot com is another great organization out there doing great work in our community. Ken Eggerson and Dale Bode. And then we're also being approached by Hollywood, right?

So there's a short film that's being put together right now by Jerika Armstrong and Jermaine Williams of the great debaters thing. It's called Welcome, and it's a short film that talks about this dynamic around not just our technology, but this whole dynamic of personal safety in public spaces. And so we're really encouraged and inspired by our partners and others like-minded in this fight and in this struggle. All right, then. Certainly appreciate it, James. Thanks a lot. Thank you, Roland, for having me.

All right. Thank you very much. Folks, got to go to break. We come back. More Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network live from L.A. Oh, that spin class was brutal. Well, you can try using the Buick's massaging seat. Oh, yeah, that's nice.

Can I use Apple CarPlay to put some music on? Sure. It's wireless. Pick something we all like. Okay, hold on. What's your Buick's Wi-Fi password? Buick Envision 2021. Oh, you should pick something stronger.

That's really predictable. That's a really tight spot. Don't worry. I used to hate parallel parking. Me too. Hey. Really outdid yourself. Yes, we did.

The all-new Buick Envision. An SUV built around you. All of you. It's time to be smart. Roland Martin's doing this every day. Oh, no punches! Thank you, Roland Martin, for always giving voice to the issues. Look for Roland Martin in the whirlwind, to quote Marcus Garvey again.

The video looks phenomenal, so I'm really excited to see it on my big screen. Support this man, Black Media. He makes sure that our stories are told. See, there's a difference between Black Star Network and Black-owned media and something like CNN. I gotta defer to the brilliance of Dr. Carr and to the brilliance of the Black Star Network. I am rolling with rolling all the way. I'm gonna be on a show that you own,

a Black man owns the show. Folks, Black Star Network is here. I'm real revolutionary right now. Rolling was amazing on that. Stay Black, Black Star Network is here. I'm real revolutionary right now. Rolling was amazing on that. Stay black. I love y'all. I can't commend you enough about this platform that you've created for us to be able to share

who we are, what we're doing in the world, and the impact that we're having. Let's be smart. Bring your eyeballs home. You can't be black on media and be scared. You dig? ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED

ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED

ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED ROLAND MARTIN, UNFILTERED Hello, everyone. I'm Godfrey, and you're watching... ...Roland Martin, Unfiltered. And while he's doing Unfiltered, I'm practicing the wobble. All right, folks.

Two Kansas City police officers are on trial for rolling and arresting a black teenager in 2016. Tyree Bell was 15 at the time. He was jailed after officers Jonathan Munyon and Peter Newkirch said he matched the description of one of the three black teenagers showing off a firearm. Bell's family says he was detained despite evidence of his innocence. Now in 2019, U.S. District Judge Greg Case dismissed the civil rights lawsuit ruling the officers were entitled to qualified immunity. But last year, an appeals court overturned Case's decision.

Police Chief Rick Smith and the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners are also listed as defendants in this particular case. Let's go to Texas. The Texas Board of Partners of Paroles recommends a posthumous pardon to George Floyd for a 2004 drug arrest. He was arrested by a now-indicted ex-Houston police officer whose case history is under scrutiny following a deadly drug raid. It was a unanimous recommendation from the seven-member board. It now goes to Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who is going to make the final decision. Of course, George Floyd killed last year in Minneapolis. That sparked protests all around the country and the globe as well. All right, folks, going to a break.

We come back. Our black and missing case. We'll give you the latest on that and discuss some more news on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network live from Los Angeles. ТРЕВОЖНАЯ МУЗЫКА Betty is saving big holiday shopping at Amazon. So now, she's free to become Bear Hug Betty. Betty is saving big holiday shopping at Amazon. So now she's free to become Bear Hug Betty. Settle in, kids. You'll be there a while. Ooh, where you going?

Hi, I'm Kim Burrell. Hi, I'm Carl Painting. Hey, everybody. This is Sherri Shepherd. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. 10-year-old Skye Saunders has not been seen since August 31st, 2021, in Tacoma Park, Maryland. She is 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 120 pounds. She has brown hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information about her whereabouts should call the Tacoma Police Department at 301-270-1100. 301-270-1100.

All right, folks, the estate of Henrietta Lacks is suing a biotech company claiming it's been selling her cervical cells without her knowledge or the state's knowledge or consent. A federal lawsuit says Thermo Fisher scientific knowingly mass produced and sold the tissue obtained through what it calls a racially unjust medical system. The cells in question were taken in 1951 by doctors at Johns Hopkins. Lacks was terminally ill at the time and her cells have been used for use in countless scientific research studies since her family says now it's time for justice for Henrietta Lacks. About time. Here, 70 years later, we mourn Henrietta Lacks and we will celebrate taking back control of Henrietta Lacks' legacy. This will not be passed on to another generation of Lacks'. We stop here and we move forward to get control of Henrietta's legacy and I would like to restore my family's honor.

Throughout the years of watching my family go through what they went through, my dad being ignored in courthouses, my grandmother defamed by she had to sign her name with the X. My grandmother had beautiful penmanship. It's in my book, Henrietta Lacks, The Untold Story, where I share my stories of my family's plight to get here where we are today. And God brought us here together over these 70 years. It wasn't time back then. It's time now. The time is now. All right, folks, the lawsuit wants the court to block their use without permission and enforce the $35 billion company in the hand over profits from the Hella sales. What do you make of this, Mustafa? Well, the company should have already settled. It would just make sense that they've made billions

of dollars off of this. There's a history of the extraction of black body parts. You can go back to Dr. J. Marion Sims in the 1800s when they were actually experimenting on enslaved people at that time. He's known as the father of gynecology because of all that he did to black women. So this is just, it keeps playing out decade after decade. So I hope that this family actually gets the restitution that they deserve. Teresa. Yeah, it's a disgrace. But again, I am just in awe. Again, history is now catching up to them. I hope everybody gets their book. I mean, because again, we can't allow

these things to happen. And I think, you know, when we actually sign up and say we are organ donors or we are not, we need to ensure that whatever medical professional are following the law. Michael. You know, Roland, this is great news. I talked about this last night on my show. You know, yesterday was the 70th anniversary of the passing of Henrietta Lacks. Also, not only was her cells used in polio vaccine and gene mapping, intro in vitro fertilization, but also attorney Benjamin Crump said yesterday in an interview that it was all her cells were also used in the COVID-19 vaccine. And he said her cells have been used since basically 1951. But the statute of limitations has ran out on a lot of other uses. But because of COVID-19, that's something new.

And this is something that they're really pushing in the lawsuit. So it's a brilliant strategy. Thermo Fisher Scientific on their website, they said their annual revenue is $35 billion a year. So hopefully they get everything that they deserve in this lawsuit. It's long overdue. All right, then, folks, take a real short, quick break. We'll come back. We'll talk about a brother who won a $137 million settlement against Tesla, Elon Musk. Time to pay up. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasted live from Los Angeles on the Blackstar Network. Oh, that spin class was brutal.

Well, you can try using the Buick's massaging seat. Oh, yeah, that's nice. Can I use Apple CarPlay to put some music on? Sure. It's wireless. Pick something we all like. Okay, hold on. What's your Buick's Wi-Fi password?

Buick Envision 2021. But you should pick something stronger that's really predictable. That's a really tight spot. Don't worry. I used to hate parallel parking. Me too. Hey. Really outdid yourself.

Yes, we did. The all-new Buick Envision, an SUV built around you, all of you. Hi, everybody. This is Jonathan Nelson. Hi, this is Cheryl Lee Ralph, and you are watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. All right, folks, Tesla, they got to pay one hundred and thirty seven million dollars to a former black worker who said he suffered racial abuse at the electric car maker San Francisco Bay Area factory. A San Francisco jury concluded the elevator operator Owen Diaz was subjected to racial harassment and a hostile work environment. He worked at the Fremont factory in 2015 and 2016. He said he faced daily harassment from co-workers, including the use of the N-word, and that swastikas and racist graffiti and drawings were displayed around the plant. That's a whole lot there.

Man, $137 million, Michael. Bottom line is racism. Y'all want to keep playing games with it? Now you got to pay up. Yeah, Roland, you know, now they have to pay up. But also, when you study this case, he made numerous complaints to, it appears, human resources. He made numerous complaints,, it appears, human resources. He made numerous complaints and they were ignored also. So, yeah, this is huge.

And an HR executive from Tesla is trying to downplay the severity of it. But it's like, no, the jury disagreed with that. So $137 million judgment. So, yeah, they have to pay up on this one. As they say, Teresa, you're going to learn today. Absolutely. You know what? This black elevator operator is another black man.

He's an individual. He is not a piece of trash. He is an individual who works for a billion-dollar company, and he needs to be treated with respect, because without him, some of those people wouldn't be in their office making some of those big decisions. So we need to respect our service. We need to service workers, and we need to respect those who respect us daily. So good for him. All right, Mustafa. Well, let's put it into perspective. Elon Musk is worth $200 billion as of yesterday, and it continues to go up.

So this brother deserves every penny that he gets, and hopefully Tesla will get its act together to make sure that this type of behavior never happens again. So if you want to be a part of the new clean economy and tell the world that, you know, you want to see change happen, change has to start within your organization. And leaders should also lead. Michael, Mustafa, Teresa, I really appreciate you all joining us today. Folks, a little bit early, so let me explain to you. We are here in Los Angeles. I was here for the George Lopez golf tournament on yesterday. And so what we're doing is we're doing a series of one-on-one interviews for a new show. It's going to be the Black Star Network. We call it Rolling with Roland. So last time we were here in Los Angeles, we talked to

actor Richard Lawson, Jeffrey Osborne, Mario Van Peebles, actor Glenn Turman, Jack A, Bill Duke, as well as comedian Michael Collier. I think I'm missing somebody we talked to. And so this week, of course, go to my iPad. Today, I've already talked to my man, actor Dondre Whitfield. Y'all saw him on The Cosby Show. You saw him on Queen Sugar. He's been in a whole lot of different movies and TV shows. And so in a moment, I'm going to be interviewing Janice Howard, who runs a billion dollar company here.

So the first black woman to run a billion dollar company. And so the only time she could do was in our seven o'clock hour of the show. And so I moved the show up 45 minutes early to accommodate her schedule. But we've got some great interviews lined up this week as well. And so some of the folks will be talking to Johnny Gill. We'll be talking to comedian Guy Torrey, Sherri Shepherd, actor, dancer Damaris Lewis, director Maddie Rich, Laz Alonzo as well. so we're looking forward to talking to them and some other folks Eric Dickerson comedian Chris Spencer

and so we're trying to lock down Kenya Barris Jimmy Jam, Reggie Hutland, Michael Ealy Sheila E and DeRay Davis and so it's going to be a fascinating show one hour conversations you're going to really enjoy that and so that's what we're doing here and so when we come out here

we still do the show. But, again, what we try to do is we try to do as many of these as possible, putting these shows together, editing these shows. Again, for one of the new shows, it's going to be on the Black Star Network. So we cannot wait. If you have not downloaded the Black Star app, please do so. We have exceeded 15,000 downloads. We're trying to get to 20,000.

Our goal by December 31st, folks, we want to have 50,000 downloads on the app. If we get there sooner, it will be absolutely great to do so. Go to all platforms, Apple, Android, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Samsung, Xbox, Amazon Fire, all of those platforms. And we also want you to support Roland Martin Unfiltered Black Star Network. Your dollars goes to make it possible for us to be able to come out here, rent an Airbnb, set all of our cameras up, hire these African-American audio technicians and photographers to assist us with this. And so please, Cash Shappers, dollar sign RM Unfiltered, PayPal.me forward slash RMartinUnfiltered, Venmo App is dollar sign RM Unfiltered, PayPal.me forward slash RM Unfiltered, Venmo.com forward slash RM Unfiltered. And then of course, Zelle is Roland at Roland

S. Martin.com, Roland at RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. All right, folks, that is it for us. I certainly appreciate y'all joining us today early. My apologies, but sometimes we got to do what we got to do. Tomorrow we're gonna be at our regularly scheduled time at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern. Thank you so very much, folks. We will see you tomorrow right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered

on the Black Star Network. Holla! Let's go. Kjell Krona Субтитры добавил DimaTorzok It's time to be smart. Roland Martin's doing this every day. Oh, no punching! Thank you, Roland Martin, for always giving voice to the issues. Look for Roland Martin in the whirlwind, to quote Marcus Garvey again. The video looks phenomenal, so I'm really excited to see it on my big screen.

Support this man, Black Media. He makes sure that our stories are told. See, there's a difference between Black Star Network and Black-owned media and something like CNN. I gotta defer to the brilliance of Dr. Carr and to the brilliance of the Black Star Network. I am rolling with rolling all the way. Honestly, on a show that you own,

a black man owns the show. Folks, Black Star Network is here. I'm real revolutionary right now. Rolling was amazing on that. Stay black, I love y'all. I can't commend you enough about this platform that you've created for us to be able to share who we are, what we're doing in the world,

and the impact that we're having. Let's be smart. Bring your eyeballs home. You can't be Black on media and be scared. You dig? You say you'd never give in to a meltdown and never fill your feed with kid photos. You say you'd never put a pacifier in your mouth to clean it and never let them run wild through the grocery store. So when you say you'd never let them get into a car without you there,

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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,

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