#RolandMartinUnfiltered - Celebrating The Life of Harry Belafonte

Episode Date: April 26, 2023

4.25.2023 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Celebrating The Life of Harry Belafonte Today, singer, actor, producer, and activist Harry Belafonte died of congestive heart failure at his Manhattan home at age 96.  For the next two hours, we will celebrate his life with several people he influenced and talk about the man who sparked the calypso craze in the U.S. and created new trails for African American performers.  It's time to bring the funk on Roland Martin Unfiltered streaming live on the Black Star Network.  Let's go. Download the #BlackStarNetwork app on iOS, AppleTV, Android, Android TV, Roku, FireTV, SamsungTV and XBox  http://www.blackstarnetwork.com The #BlackStarNetwork is a news reporting platforms covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Today is Tuesday, April 25th, 2023, coming up on Roland Martin Unfiltered, streaming live on the Black Star Network. Harabella Fonte, the actor, singer, activist, humanitarian, passed away today at the age of 96. Over the next two hours, we will pay tribute to a remarkable human being, a world leader, someone who is a through line from Paul Robeson to MLK to Nelson Mandela. All the things that he did, a tremendous life lived, and we will celebrate that life

and hear from many people, of course, who knew him well, share remarkable stories, talk about his impact, as well as walk through all the amazing things that he did in the 96 years that he walked on this earth. It's time to bring the funk on the special edition of Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Blackstar Network. Sports to news to politics With entertainment just for kicks He's rolling Yeah, yeah It's Uncle Roro, y'all Yeah, yeah It's Roland Martin

Yeah, yeah Rolling with Roland now Yeah, yeah He's funky, he's fresh, he's real the best You know he's fresh, he's real the best You know he's rolling, Martel Martel Thank you. Folks, I'm Brock Hasht broadcasting here in Dallas, flying here to surprise my dad. Today is his 76th birthday. And while I was on the plane this morning flying from Washington, D.C., my text messages began to blow up,

alerting me to the passing of Harry Belafonte. It was extremely sad to get that news of the passing of Mr. B. For the past 11, 12 years, we struck up a great friendship there in our Black Star Network studios. You see a portrait that I commissioned of Harry Belafonte. We have, it has been draped in black right there to recognize his passing. That portrait right there speaks to how much I felt about him, that I wanted to honor him and his life and his legacy and what he has stood for in our studios. He was one who was committed to African Americans and the African diaspora. When you look at his life and career, he was simply not just a singer,

and he was a great internationally acclaimed singer. He was not just an actor, a great actor as well, but he was indeed an activist, somebody who cared deeply about the human condition, someone who understood the importance of using his voice to speak to the issues that matter, to address was Cuba, whether it was the continent of Africa, whether it was the Caribbean, whether it was Venezuela, Brazil, France, Europe. He was someone who went anywhere in this world and was known as a leader. And for him to pass away, just an outpouring of love and affection from people all across this country. His organization, Sankofa, they released a statement with regards to his particular passing. Let's pull that statement up. The statement reads, on behalf of his daughter, Gina, granddaughter, Maria, and and their nonprofit Sankofa.org.

We appreciate the outpouring of condolences during this difficult time as they grieve the loss of their beloved father, grandfather, and friend. Harry Belafonte was a true icon in the music industry and a tireless advocate for social justice. His legacy will live on through his music, his activism, and the countless lives he

touched. The family and organization would like to thank Harry Belafonte's fans and supporters for their kind words and condolences. The world is mourning a legend, but a family is grieving the loss of their patriarch. We kindly ask for your understanding and support during this period of mourning. The news broke after about 10 a.m. Eastern. His longtime spokesman, Ken Sunshine, announced his passing this morning at his home in New York City. The cause was congestive heart failure. Several years ago, Mr. B suffered a stroke, but that did not slow him down. He kept moving. He kept being involved. He kept attending various things. But it was about four years ago when he withdrew from the public in terms of not attending events.

You might remember last year we covered the 95th celebration. It took place in New York City. He was not in attendance, but he was watching the live stream of that particular broadcast. But even up until his last days, he was very much involved in the issues that he cared about, constantly pushing the boundaries when it comes to activism, when it comes to his involvement in the arts. He was not someone who shied away from it. Susan Taylor, the longtime Essence leader, would often tell me that her husband, Kefra, they did not live far.

Mr. B would often reach out to him, dispatching him to come to his home to do certain things. He was still an incredibly busy man. As we said, of course, the outpouring of love and support across the country. This is a statement released by President Joe Biden that came out about an hour ago. So this is what it says. Jill and I are saddened by the passing of a groundbreaking American who used his talent, his fame, and his voice to help redeem the soul of our nation. Harry Belafonte was born to Caribbean parents

in Harlem, New York on March 1, 1927, when segregation was the order of American society. To our nation's benefit, Harry never accepted those false narratives and unjust boundaries. He dedicated his entire life to breaking barriers and bridging divides. As a young man motivated to find his purpose, he became mesmerized by theater

when he saw a performance of the American Negro Theater in Manhattan. As one of America's original breakthrough singers and performers, he would go on to garner a storehouse of first. The first black matinee idol, the first recording artist to sell over a million records. Also, the first black male Broadway actor to win a Tony Also, the first black male Broadway actor to win a Tony Award,

the first black producer to win an Emmy Award and one of the highest paid entertainers of his time, among other accolades. But he used his fame and fortune for the public good throughout his extraordinary career. He became a powerful ally of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other giants of the civil rights movement. He raised money and donated resources to post bail for activists, jail for acts of civil disobedience. He provided the critical funds to launch the Freedom Rides.

He lobbied against apartheid in South Africa for the release of Nelson Mandela. It was one of the visionaries behind We Are the World, an innovative record released to raise millions of dollars to support humanitarian aid in Sudan and Ethiopia. For these and other humanitarian and artistic efforts, he was conferred with a Kennedy Senator Honor, the National Medal of the Arts, and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Harry Belafonte's accomplishments are legendary, and his legacy of outspoken advocacy, compassion, and respect for human dignity will endure. He will be remembered as a great American. We send our deepest condolences to his family and legions of admirers across the country and the world. Vice President Kamala Harris also released a statement. We're going to have that later for you in the show. Folks, over the next couple of hours, we will

hear from a number of people who want to share their thoughts and reflections with regards to Mr. B, folks who worked closely with him. You will hear from actors Wendell Pierce, director Spike Lee, Dr. Greg Carr, Department of Backup for American Studies at Howard University, Rashad Robinson. We'll hear from so many other folks as they share their thoughts and reflections about the passing of the legendary, of the icon, Harry Belafonte. We'll also, folks, be sharing with you a number of interviews that we did with folks at his 95th birthday celebration. We broadcast live there in New York. I will also share you a number of other photos as well as excerpts from two one-on-one interviews I did with Mr. Belafonte in his office there in New York City.

Going to go to a break. We'll be right back for the special edition of Roland Martin Unfiltered as we honor the life and legacy of Harry Belafonte, who passed away today at the age of 96. We'll be right back on the Black Star Network. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops call this taser the revolution.

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

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

And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir, we are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves.

Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug man. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Caramouch.

What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content,

subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. ORGAN PLAYS My daughter, I didn't know what she was. So I had to figure out how to survive, how to eat, how to live. I don't want to go into the details because she's here first of all. She may not want me telling that story. But possession of her, the family broke down, fell apart. I was homeless. I had to figure out I didn't have a manager or an agent or anybody anymore, and I'm the talent. So I got to figure out how to be the

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He is a tremendous individual, just an amazing life. Why did you want to be here to make sure that you celebrated his 95th birthday? Because a long time ago, when I was a very young chap, he recruited me. He goes to recruiting people. That's what he does. He comes and say, I mean, I mean, how many people want to walk with him? You know, there's an event, there's an issue, you know, I say, I walk, he says, I walk with Mandela. I walk with King. I walk with Malcolm.

I walk with all of them. And that's, that's what he brings to the table. He brings authenticity. He's always brought authenticity. And that's what, that's what Harry brings to the table. He brings authenticity. He's always brought authenticity. And that's what Harry Belafonte is about. One other thing is he's always got loud sounds in New York City. One of the things that he's always been about as well is understanding the power of celebrity, but using it to be a change agent as well.

And he said it was Paul Robeson who passed it down. That it is what Paul say, that artists are the gatekeepers of truth. That's Kerry. He said that we have a responsibility, not only as citizens, but as artists as well. And that's what Harry is stood by. And that's what this 95 years of commitment from the first time. Imagine him sitting around at 19 years old with W.B. Du Bois,

Robeson, of them sitting around. And you can imagine him sitting- Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes. And sitting around- Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee. I'm in a time of an extraordinary change post-World War II United States. The changes that were need to happen and destined to happen, he was right there as an artist, an activist, and a citizen. Got it. Folks, joining us right now on Roland Martin Unfiltered to Remember, Harry Belafonte is Angelo Pinto.

He is the co-founder of Untold Freedom and an activist in residence at Yale University. Rashad Robinson is the president of Color of Change. We also have Dr. Greg Carr, Department of Afro-American Studies at Howard University. Glad to have all three of you here. Greg, I want to start with you. In the open, I talked about the through line, and that is Paul Robeson, the great activist, entertainer, someone who understood the importance of activism. He was a mentor to Harry Belafonte. So when you think about Harry Belafonte, again, living 96 years, he is the connect from Paul Robeson to Dr. King to Nelson Mandela and to so many others. This is someone who you cannot just say,

oh, this is somebody who was just busy in the 50s and 60s. His activism, being on the front lines, extends to present-day folks in Hollywood, Jesse Williams, Jamie Foxx, Seth the Entertainer, and so many others. Absolutely. He is the through line. First of all, condolences to the entire family, his wife, his children, his grandchildren, to the entire community, to you, Roland.

I know you knew him very close to Mr. B. Happy birthday to your pops, by the way. That's a beautiful thing. Yeah, man. Harold George Belafonte Jr. He made his 96th birthday on March the 1st, 1927. His father from Martinique, his mother from Jamaica. Born in Harlem, but they returned to Jamaica. He was with his mother and brothers when he went back there for a few years before coming back in 1940. Some people call him a high school dropout.

He did indeed leave George Washington High School in Upper Manhattan in 1944, joined the Navy. And, in fact, that's where he met his first wife, Marguerite. He was in D.C., in the area, and she was at Hampton University, a psychology student at the time. And they got married, I think it was 1948. But anyway, I went through all that to say his foundation, in fact, was the African diaspora. And Paul Robeson was a huge influence on him, but he was not Paul Robeson, and he was very clear about that. Paul Robeson's career was destroyed by this country. And Harry

Belafonte made a very deliberate choice to try to thread the needle between standing in his beliefs, standing for his people, and somehow using commercial success to leverage resources. He's very clear about that. Belafonte was not completely entrenched in bringing the past forward as the past. He was known as the Calypso King, which caused some controversy because he wasn't from Trinidad. Some of the Trinidad said, we got our own king. We renoit the king at carnival. Belafonte's point was, I am anchored in tradition, but I don't just bring tradition forward. I sing my song.

And he learned that from Paul Robeson. When you see him there with Martin Luther King, it's important to remember, and folks might want to jot this down, the Committee to Defend Martin Luther King, when the state of Alabama tried to put Dr. King in jail for tax evasion, that's when Belafonte and his friend Sidney Poitier began to leverage their contacts and build their abilities to create what we will never see again in terms of a single entertainer, and that is someone who reached into all the world and leveraged resources. Harry Belafonte put the financial floor in in many ways, under the Student Nonviolent Coordinating

Committee, injected it into the SNCC. When King said, yeah, you can raise money to help me pay for lawyers, and by the way, King won that case, he said, but I also want you to put together money for a bail fund. Thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of dollars, sometimes traveling south in suitcases, brother. And as I know you know, Roland, you probably played some of those interviews, Y.T. Walker and Andrew Young and them say, you know, we go to New York to that apartment that Belafonte had, and I want to hear the other brothers, so I'm going to end with this.

And we get suitcases of money and bring it south to fund the movement. But the place that Belafonte lived in there on the west side of Manhattan, that apartment, fascinating. His first wife, Margarita, they were trying to rent and then to get an apartment on the east side of Manhattan. And these white folks would not allow them to rent. So what did Belafonte do? Formed a corporation with some white dudes, created the corporation, bought an apartment

building, and then leased out the fifth floor of it to himself. And that was the place where Belafonte and Cruz created a whole institutional process for putting an economic floor under the civil rights movement, something Paul Robeson was robbed of his ability to do by the very country that persecuted him and in many ways embraced Belafonte, not realizing that Belafonte in some ways

was the inside man to Robeson's outside man. Rashad, if anyone reads the memoir of Harry Belafonte, they will realize that he was very cognizant of how Paul Robeson died, essentially broke. When the federal government took his passport, he could not make money performing. And the last years of his life were extremely difficult. Belafonte said he wasn't going to allow that to happen. So he was very smart with his money. And he also diversified his money. But he never allowed that to stop the activism. And what I really want people to

understand is that folks like you and so many others, he was very much about connecting with young activists today and serving as an elder, not pushing them away, not lecturing them, but saying, let me embrace, let me help build and frankly use what I have to help these upstart organizations and activists all across the country, men and women. Yeah. I mean, he provided so much historical context and was so comfortable doing it, so open to spending time. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glod. And this is season two of the war on drugs. We are back in a big way,

in a very big way, real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star studded a little bit, man. We got a Ricky Williams, NFL player, Hasman trophy winner.

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

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

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content. Subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple podcast. Providing stories from the past, listening to what the current challenges were. You know, I think about all the ways in which he kept wanting and open to adding more chairs to the table. I think of a number of different times that I had the opportunity,

but I do want to just start off by, once again, also sending my condolences to the family, to his wife and to all of his kids. I'm thinking a lot right now about my dear, dear friend Gina, Gina Belafonte, who I just was talking to two weeks ago, about some shared work in the culture and media space and all the work that she's continuing to do. And, you know, Roland, we were just together with her

at his 95th celebration, where Sankofa honored me in Color of Change with a Human Rights Award. But thinking about some of the times where I was able to be in the room and where he used his platform to uplift the work of Color of Change, the work of other organizations that he helped to start. And I know Angelo is going to talk about his work and his contributions to the work here in New York and the work around the country. But he was unapologetic about charting a clear line to justice and freedom and into inviting people to be on that road, and into constantly providing the kind of stories and frameworks and background that both challenged and inspired us but made us feel like we could be part of this

work. I also think about from my own work and the work of doing culture change advocacy of being able to sort of meld arts and culture with political and policy change. And there was just no one who did more to show us what was possible, to create possibility models than Mr. B. And, you know, Roland, I just want to tell one quick story, and it's that, you know, there was this event that Sankofa did at Mr. Quincy Jones's house. And Mr. B and Jesse Williams were going to be in conversation. And I get to the event early. Raul and Gina, who were running Sankofa together at the time, invited me, Raul Roach and Gina Belafonte,

invited me to come a little early to spend time with Mr. B. And so I get there and I see Mr. B and he was like, so what are you going to say when you open up the program? And I was like, I don't think I'm speaking. And they're like, oh, you are definitely speaking at this program. And I had this moment of like, well, you don't want to go before Mr. B and you don't want to follow Mr. B. And so there was just no way to win there. I remember that night because it was a who's who in black Hollywood from Danny Glover and CCH Pounder and Michael Ealy and Rosario Dawson and John Legend and so many other people were in that room listening to the work of Sankofa, listening

to Mr. B's stories of justice, but also uplifting other organizations who were working at the time and working for justice, including mine. The idea that he was constantly thinking about the next generation, thinking about the platforms he uplifted, thinking about the way the work was constantly evolving and being willing to be in those conversations is inspiring. And I think it's a story for all of us doing this work together today. I'm a reminder of our responsibility to continue to think about those who are coming behind us, not only what we do, but what we leave behind. Angelo, the point Rashad made there, I think, really is important in terms of the commitment to activism. The reality is he challenged today's young artists

to do more. He was not someone who accepted folks saying, hey, you know what? I'm busy singing. I'm busy acting. I'm busy with all of this here. No, I mean, I saw him literally challenge folks to say, you can do more. You are more than just a singer or an actor. Yeah, it's interesting because Mr. B challenged everybody. There was nobody that Mr. Belafonte encountered, even us as young activists for the first time, who he would challenge us

in our activism and the work that we were doing and how we thought about the work. But I remember when Trayvon Martin happened and he thought to challenge Jay-Z and other artists because he felt like they weren't doing enough. They weren't using their platform to raise the issues of our time. And not to attack individuals, but I think he was sophisticated enough to understand that his voice would impact those individuals. And if you look at the trajectory of time from those moments, individuals began to use their voice to make a difference for our people. So I think Mr. B was tremendously sophisticated at understanding how he used his voice. Of course, folks talked about how he knew how to use his celebrity to influence the movement. And he was

a social architect in that way. But I think the other piece of what he was always intentional about doing was connecting more people to the movement. He had been so connected to the Robesons, to the Kings, to the Mandelas, that he understood how we were all interconnected and how even movements of 20, 30, 50, 100 years before us was connected to the work that we were doing now, he knew that more people involved in the movement was precisely what we needed. And not only did he nurture us as young activists, and we used his office like it was our apartment

during the Eric Garner uprisings and so many other movements that we were paying attention to in New York and throughout the country. But he connected us to other activists around the nation. When Trayvon Martin happened, he brought Philip Agnew and the Dream Defenders to New York City. And that's where I first met Phil, you know, sitting down in New York City, having dinner, celebrating Mr. B for his birthday. He believed in us and valued our work. And he often would say that he wouldn't trade in his life for anything. He got to be next to the most impactful

people and the people that he felt like were changing the world. And he did that with us, even throughout his life. He brought us close. He realized that he needed to nurture us. And I think there was a part of us and our work and our commitment to social justice that also nurtured him. And for me, we constantly got to be close to a pillar, to a museum who was so intricate at moving Black life forward that I think sometimes we forget, and it's great today that we get to take pause and reflect on the life of Mr. B. I was watching Sing Your Song today

because I said, you know, let me watch this documentary again that chronicles some of Mr. B. And he never let us forget Robeson. And he mentioned that as a young theater atheist, Robeson came to visit him and he said to him, if you get them to sing your song, they will ask and be inquisitive about who you are. And I think Mr. B leaves that mark on all of us

to sing our song, to live in our purpose, and to live in our gift. And that's the place from which we transform and change the world. And he's a true testament and embodiment of that. And he left his hand on all of us to do that as well. Just hold tight one second. Got to go to break. We can't come back more on the life and legacy of the great Harry Belafonte. You're watching this tribute right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 I'm going to go to bed. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes.

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

Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English.

I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. I'm Greg Glod. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner.

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

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

Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. to the US Capitol who said shut up. We're about to see the rise of what I call white minority resistance. We have seen white folks in this country who simply cannot tolerate black folks voting. I think what we're seeing is the inevitable result of violent denial.

This is part of American history. Every time that people of color have made progress, whether real or symbolic, there has been what Carol Anderson at Emory University calls white rage as a backlash. This is the wrath of the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Boys. America, there's going to be more of this. Here's all the Proud Boys, guys.

This country is getting increasingly racist in its behaviors and its attitudes because of the fear of white people. The fear that they're taking our jobs, they're taking our resources, they're taking our women. This is white fear. On the next A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, we talk about a hard, cold fact.

Not all health care is created equal in this country, especially if you're a person of color. So many of us Black families, we rely upon each other heavily. A lot of us aren't necessarily sure how to best communicate with our health care providers. How to take charge and balance the scales. Your life may depend on it. That's next on A Balanced Life on Black Star Network.

Joining me now, you know, she popped in a little bit earlier than she'd have walked the red carpet, is one of his daughters, Gina Belafonte. What's happening? What's up? What's up's up peace y'all so this is uh of course you got a lot of people who are coming out on this cold night uh and just how important was it uh for you sankofa uh to do this to celebrate uh and to see folks uh want to celebrate your dad well i'm overwhelmed by the support it's's been an amazing, amazing feeling to not only witness, but to be a part of this evening in celebration of his life and legacy. And also, not only is it his 95th birthday, but it's the 10th anniversary of Sankofa.org.

And you were there from the beginning of that, too. And it has grown. I'm excited for people really understanding what it is that we do and championing us to continue to do the work. What folks don't realize is that your dad does not know what retirement means. I talked to Susan Taylor a lot, and she said that he's always calling Kefra Burns, her husband, over. He always has notes. He always has things that he's working on. He's got book projects, documentary projects. And so 95 has not slowed him down. Not at all. You know I had to run a show with him,

and I told him who was coming, and I told him what I was saying. I left a few surprises for him because he will be watching this tonight. And I wanted to just have my daughter come over. This is my granddaughter Maria, and she's here celebrating. She also works with us at Sankofa.org.

She runs our social media. She helps me get all the T's and the I's dotted and crossed. And she also is a budding and wonderful director in her own right and actress. And I'm just really excited that we were able to have generations in the hall tonight. So he would not let y'all do this on your own. What do you mean? You did it on our own. Yeah, but you still had to run out of that stuff by him. Well, you know, I'm grateful for that. I mean, what better mentor to have? I mean, he has got so much style.

He's got so much grace. He's an amazing storyteller. And he's the best mentor to have, especially for a night like tonight. Thank you. You're combining music and art dealing with social justice. Why this? Why now? The absence of black presence by celebrity is a serious loss to our potential use of power to make a difference. So I invited all the artists I could think of to come for a two-day festival down in Atlanta to celebrate criminal justice as a festival. It's called Many Rivers to Cross based upon a great song. And in it, all the artists will sing to songs that in content speak about the plight of black people. So artist after artist after artist, I've looked at all the songs that will be sung. I look at what

Jamie Foxx will be saying and what he will sing. I've looked at John Legend and what he will say and what he will sing. I've looked at Carmen, I've looked at Alice Smith, I've talked to Chuck D, whom I love madly, and what he brings to the table. And I think those who come will be more than rewarded with what they see of black presence speaking to these issues. I also add this, and I'll be through on this subject,

it is that what also surprises me is the number of artists that told me no. Really? Oh yeah. As a matter of fact, there are some artists that told me yes in the light of enthusiasm, in the first rush, and where they were pressed to really define what would be asked of them, what kind of

songs to sing and what they should be turning their attention to comment on, stepped away. They don't want the blemish. They don't want the burden of responsibility. And I was really quite surprised. And how did that make you feel? It made me feel sad because the particular people that I'm talking about that stepped away were the ones that I least suspected that would have done that. And because I have no right to hold anybody hostage to what I think and what I want to do, they're exempt from any act of coming on board, so to speak.

I don't want to blackmail them into this. So when these artists said no, I said, okay, I hear you. But you do remember who said no. I'll never forget. And on occasion, I'll make sure they don't forget either. I think Mr. B's vision has always been to bring together activists. And a lot of activists are connected to artists. We certainly work with a lot of artists and working with Mr. Belafonte, he constantly

talks about artists are the gatekeepers to truth, they're civilization's radical voice. And we as activists really need to come together to plan what our next move is going to be collectively. We need a black and brown agenda and we need a strategy in order for implementation, because we are now going gonna be moving into a different cycle where there are some very negative implications in our communities because of it and so I think right this right now this has been

planned I think since mr. Belafonte has always talked about this and for me it's exciting to see that it's now happening and so I think it's an opportunity for us to also share a stage with artists and also build relationship with artists who can use their platform to amplify the work that we're doing on the ground. Carlos, there's also another dimension to this. Why now? Why at this particular moment? Because here and now we've never had issues as clearly and sharply drawn as they are today. We've never had a black president before that had a backlash. We've never had a president that has had the kind of backlash that Barack Obama has had. I mean, race rushed

into the room to declare itself alive and present and angry at the idea that there's a black man daring to speak for America in the halls of justice and in the hall of solution globally. White people woke up. Folks, this is a statement that was released from the office of Vice President Kamala Harris, who also knew Harry Belafonte well. Harry Belafonte was one of our nation's most powerful voices for change. As an activist, Harry Belafonte helped lead the fight for civil rights and human rights and across the world, inspired and inspired a generation of young leaders to fight for change. He uses voice and resources to champion the cause of racial justice, speaking out for freedom alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and

supporting organizations like the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference on stage and on screen. The King of Calypso captivated audiences around the globe. Like all true patriots, Harry Belafonte had the ability to see what could be and had the courage to work to realize that vision.

He fought to help America live up to our highest ideals, dignity, equity and justice for all. For years, it was my honor to call Harry a dear friend and rely on his wisdom and counsel. America has lost a giant. Today, Doug and I are praying for his family and loved ones. One of the things that I think is important here, Greg Carr, for people to understand is that Harry Belafonte was not one who was afraid to challenge America, to challenge political leaders. He was extremely vocal against President George W. Bush when it came to war. And he challenged black leadership to also do more for African Americans, for the African diaspora. He absolutely did.

You mentioned in the opening, as you opened, you mentioned Venezuela, for example. Harry Belafonte, our brother Danny Glover, and others went and met, had a long meeting. It was around five or six hours at one session with Hugo Chavez,

who is a hero to a number of people around the world, and who is, of course, widely excoriated by white nationalists and others who don't know much about international politics here in the United States. And Mr. Belafonte at the time, in kind of pushing back against the Bush administration, said, you know, Bush is a terrorist and he should be locked up. In fact, if you remember, and of course you do, and, you know, back in 2006, Belafonte said after criticizing George Bush, he was disinvited from delivering the eulogy at Coretta Scott

King's funeral. This is the same Coretta Scott King, of course, and of course, her children and Martin Luther King's children talk about the fact that Mr. B and Sidney Poitier and so many others raised money, as they did for the widow of Malcolm X, Betty Shabazz, and her children, to help put a financial floor under them. Of course, Mr. B took out very quietly insurance on Dr. King in the case of any tragic events. And he put their financial floor under them. But he was disinvited from giving the eulogy because he criticized George Bush. He was never afraid to hold his tongue. When John Kennedy was running for president

and eventually won the Democratic nomination in 1960, he basically begged to meet with Mr. Belafonte. And when he finally got a meeting, he said, you know, how could Jackie Robinson endorse Nixon? Belafonte's first question was, well, you know, what is your relationship to black communities? You don't know black folk. And then when Kennedy said, well, you endorse me, Belafonte said, you know, no, celebrities shouldn't be endorsed. He said, do you know anything about Martin Luther King? And when John Kennedy said, well, I really don't. He said, you need to talk to Dr. King.

Then he called Martin King and said, listen, man, you need to talk to John Kennedy. This is the background kind of stuff that puts the floor under the things that ultimately yield results. When we see the Civil Rights Act of 1964, you're gonna see Harry Belafonte's fingerprints on it if you look behind the scenes. And of course, finally, and I'm sure that, you know, you'll explore this a little bit later on as you talk, but having Brother Rashad here,

our friend Brother Rashad and Brother Angelo, you know, they have, I'm sure, been in rooms where this question of the relationship of celebrity and struggle have been chewed out. And probably there have been some moments where there are agreements to disagree. And who can forget in 2012 when Harry Belafonte said this generation is not doing enough and called out Jay-Z and Beyonce. And Jay-Z pushed back. Harry Belafonte said, I'm not backing down. And, you know, I wonder about that when I see Jay-Z sitting with billionaire NFL owners, and I wonder, is that just a contemporary version of what Harry Belafonte would do? Or have you gone off the rails, brother?

And right or wrong, Mr. B was going to tell you what he thought about it, and it wasn't just from the sidelines. He was in the middle of the bloody struggle. As Paul Robeson and others would say, there is no sheltered rear. And he reminded every generation of that, whether they were presidents, congresspeople, or entertainers. I'm going to go to a break. We come back. I'm going to go to Angelo and Rashad. I want to talk about that because Mr. B and I, we did talk about his criticism of Jay-Z and others. And you're absolutely right.

He was very clear as to where he stood. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time. Have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them.

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

Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast.

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

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

It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. on network © BF-WATCH TV 2021 Next on The Black Table with me, Greg Cox. We look at the history of emancipation around the world,

including right here in the United States, the so-called end of slavery. Trust me, it's a history lesson that bears no resemblance to what you learned in school. Professor Chris Mangiapra, author, scholar, amazing teacher, joins us to talk about his latest book, Black Ghost of Empire, The Death of Slavery and the Failure of Emancipation. He explains why the end of slavery was no end at all, but instead a collection of laws and policies designed to preserve the status quo of racial oppression. The real problem is that the problems that slavery invented have continued over time,

and what reparations are really about is saying, how do we really transform society, right, and stop racial violence, which is so endemic? What we need to do about it on the next installment of The Black Table, right here on The Black Star Network. Hi, I'm Dr. Jackie Hood-Martin, and I have a question for you. Ever feel as if your life is teetering and the weight and pressure of the world

is consistently on your shoulders? Well, let me tell you, living a balanced life isn't easy. Join me each Tuesday on Black Star Network for Balanced Life with Dr. Jackie. We'll laugh together, cry together, pull ourselves together, and cheer each other on. So join me for new shows each Tuesday on Black Star Network, A Balanced Life with Dr. Jackie.

Here, Bella Fonte, 95 years of an amazing life. You know, he is, he's such a gift. We thought he was a gift because he looks so fine. And he sang so beautifully. He made us feel light and happy. He made us feel light and happy. He made us feel romantic. He's made us feel deep when, you know, when it touches your heart as an entertainer. But he has changed our lives as a man.

He's always shown up for the people, for all people. He's shown us that we have a voice and that every, not only every voice, every vote, every step, every hand reaching out to touch another hand, uh, that shares, have shared concerns, that that's power. So he is, he's given people around the world agency. And, you know, if that's not something to celebrate, nothing is. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 Rashad, it's interesting. So Greg brought up that contentious little beef squabble that was there between Mr. B and Jay-Z. And so here's what was interesting. So oftentimes Mr. B would, we would talk and he would say, why don't you come and see me?

And I would be like, alright, just let me know when. I'll hop on the train and come to New York. So I go to New York and we're in his office, we meet, and then we later go out to dinner. And so we were sitting in his office and I remember bringing up the the whole issue jay-z uh and he goes fuck jay-z i don't have time for this shit i got real issues to be focused on and i cracked up laughing and then of course later uh remember

jay-z of course uh he told me what happened and he said he was somewhere and someone asked him a question there's a news conference and so he answered the And he said he was somewhere and someone asked him a question. It was a news conference and so he answered the question. He said, look, you asked me a question, I'm going to answer the question. Jay-Z, of course, later makes reference to that in one of his songs. They later reconcile.

They actually sit down, they talk. They visit numerous occasions because I remember it was a comment Jay-Z made about his presence was charity. And that rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. But it was one of those things where Bates actually sat down and talked and communicated. And that's the thing. Harry Belafonte was someone who had no problem picking the phone up and saying, let's talk about these things, about these issues.

And that was something that I think was critically important. So everybody, of course, people love talking about the beef, but they don't want to talk about really the conversations and the learning and the educating and the dialogue that happened after that issue. You know, Roland, actually, that is such an important point. And I think that that in some ways is so much kind of undergirds how I think about Mr. B, because he had so much standing because he was constantly doing the work. And he was doing the work when there were no cameras, when there were no reporters, when there was no publicity. He was

constantly doing the work. It is actually so kind of appropriate and eerie. Just yesterday, I was in D.C. doing a meeting at the Department of Transportation with the Secretary of Transportation about traffic stops and the role of police and traffic stops and public safety and the history of driving while black. And there's a number of stories. If you read Mr. B's memoir or any of his stories, he talks about going to the South and with Mr. Portier and talks about this sort of driving while black in those places, being a black person in the car with white folks. But actually, it was interesting because I was there with Ambassador Patrick Gaspard, who was the former U.S. ambassador to South Africa. And Mr. B just always comes up in conversation because he was always there. And Patrick had a really great relationship with Mr. B as well. And Patrick and I were just randomly talking about this building

that I used to live in up on 106th Street in New York, this old building that had been organized. And I said, I heard through the grapevine, Patrick, that you organized that building when you were a young tenant organizer before you went into labor unions? And he said, yeah, I did. I said, you know, I rented from this older black woman who had gotten that building when the tenants got to take it over, and she only wanted to rent to black folks. So when I moved up there and she saw me and she was like, I will rent this building to you, and I didn't quite, you know, have the credit at that time to live in that neighborhood. And so I talked about that building. He said, you know how I organized that building?

And I said, no. And he said, all of that work was funded by Mr. Belafonte, was funded by Harry. And I said, I was like, yeah, of course, that makes sense. He's like, he would give us money to do all sorts of organizing up there in, you know, up in Harlem, up in Morningside, up, you know, that whole Upper West Side area where Black immigrant, Haitian immigrants, Black Americans, folks from Jamaica and the Caribbean and other parts of the Caribbean were all living and people were trying to own those buildings or trying to fight back against sort of harsh treatment from tenant organizers. So he just constantly showed up. And so the story about sort of that he had standing to critique the artist of today, but then he was going to do the work behind the scenes to engage them, to be in conversation, because he was constantly doing the work, not seeking the publicity, but understood the platform that he had, understood the role that he, in his presence, could provide. Mr. B was always about building power. And I have learned so much by watching him. I'm

so inspired by him, but also so inspired by what it means to do the work when no one's watching. Well, you talk about that, not being afraid to criticize Angelo. He was on Democracy Now! with Amy Goodman. And this is what he said about President Barack Obama. He said, I think Obama plays the game that he plays because he sees no threat from evidencing concerns for the poor. He sees no threat from evidencing a deeper concern for the needs of black people as such. He feels no great threat from evidencing a greater policy towards the international community for expressing thoughts that criticize the American position on things and turns it around. Until we do that, I think we will forever be disappointed in what that administration

will deliver. In his book, he talked about his mother being poor and talked about just what it did to her. And this was a man who was financially successful, often with vacation in in southern France, the French Riviera. But he was always advocating and fighting on behalf of the poor and was not afraid to call anybody out, including the nation's first Black president? I mean, I think Mr. Belafonte was genius in that, and I think just down to earth in that he understood what most Black folks were thinking or feeling. And I think the sentiments to President Barack Obama were shared by many of us. His presidency, I think for most now, mostly symbolic and lacked some of the substance that we would have liked to see. And to Professor Carr's point, in many ways Obama was kind of a super inside man.

And most of his efforts and his work didn't necessarily translate to the outside realities of black folks. But I think his election, I remember being in New York City the night that he won, and literally hundreds and thousands of people just took to the street because I think his presence and the symbolic victory met so much. And we hoped that the substance would follow, but unfortunately it didn't. And I think oftentimes, even when you look at other critiques that Mr. B has of celebrities, the hope is always that the substance follows. And that's not always the case. But I think sometimes it is. I think, you know, I certainly have my critiques of celebrities and their role in creating social change. And if they do so and what they're willing to do at their own expense.

But one thing that I certainly saw a shift with respect to Jay-Z was him using his voice and art to tell the stories of individuals like Kalief Browder with the Time documentary and his role in freeing Meek Mill and putting the documentary out about the injustice around the criminal justice system. And I think Mr. B did push folks in the direction of change. He pushed folks in the direction of paying attention to their voice and how to use their voice to create change and create power. And I think that's the sentiment that I remember most and I try to lead with, because I think there's moments for me, certainly, where I want to say, you know, F certain celebrities, and they're not going to live up to what we need them to be.

But I think Mr. B also created the space for grace, and he created the space to invite people in with the hope and I think with the urging that they will do better and they're better will also contribute to our collective efforts for, you know, transformation and liberation. Indeed, Angelo, Rashad, we certainly appreciate both of you joining us today, sharing your thoughts and reflections about Harry Belafonte. Thanks a bunch. Folks, got to go to a break. Greg Carr, you stay right there. Folks, got to go to a break. We come back.

We're here from Carmen Perez, one of the young female activists who Harry Belafonte personally embraced, recruited, and mentored. We'll also hear from Mark Morial, CEO of the National Urban League. Spike Lee sent us a video tribute about

Harry Belafonte. Greg Carr referenced that issue with Harry Belafonte being invited to speak at the funeral of Coretta Scott King, and then having it rescinded. We'll show you the moment when he reconciled with M.O.K. III on that very issue. Lots more for us to share as we pay our respects to an amazing man, the great Harry Belafonte, who passed away today at the age of 96. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Blackstar Network. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes.

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

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

Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne.

We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Caramouch. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things.

Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. on the next get wealthy with me deborah owens, America's Wealth Coach, Dexter Jenkins is a faith-based financial mentor with more than 20 years in the financial services industry. He's passionate about helping families build generational wealth. Even though I'm talking about things like prayer, I'm talking about things about reading the word, I'm talking about things like fellowship,

I'm talking to members who are dealing with losing their houses, or I'm talking to members who, because of a lack of handling their finances, they're working two or three jobs, and so what I'm finding is that they're not coming to church because they don't have a handle on their finances. We're talking how to get wealthy through faith and our finances on the next Get Wealthy right here, only on Blackstar Network. We're all impacted by the culture, whether we know it or not. From politics to music and entertainment, it's a huge part of our lives. And we're going to talk about it every day right here on The Culture with me, Faraji Muhammad, only on the Black Star Network. Next guest out here, of course, y'all have heard their voices. They're amazing voices, voices of the movement.

They're still doing their thing. Sweetie Honey and The Rock, glad to see y'all. How's it going? Hi, how are you? How good to see you. Absolutely. Good to be here. Absolutely.

So let's talk about out here celebrating Harry Belafonte. Well, this is exciting. 95 years old. My mother's 98. I think it's just such a blessing and a wonder to have our seniors with us. And they broke so much ground for us. And that they'd still

be strong and in their mind? God bless them. I'm happy to be here. We're going to sing for them tonight. And of course, y'all were out there when he was out there as well during the Black Freedom Movement, putting it on the line. Yes. Well, you know, Tamiya Honey Head in the Rock has had a long legacy of singing for social justice, singing for people's, I would say, experiences in this American way of life. And so we are just

really happy to be able to keep it going. We're approaching 50 years next year. We will have our 50th anniversary. We're still on the battlefield so what uh what is your your favorite hair bella fonte moment memory what you got mercy what you got barbara uh when we did the event in georgia when we did the event in georgia a few years ago and it was a huge crowd of people it was very exciting and uh it was almost an all-night event. Right, right, right. It was at Sankofa Music Festival. Yeah, I was there.

You were there. We were all there. And Mr. B sang. Yes. He said, I have not sung in 10 years. I'm singing for y'all tonight. And yes, he did. I got it on my camera.

I got it on my phone, too. He also sat down with a lot of young people. And they asked him questions about his experiences. I got it. And I have it on my phone, too. He also sat down with a lot of young people. And they can ask him questions about his experiences. It's wonderful. Yeah, absolutely. Oh, let me tell you mine. Backstage at Alvin Ailey. And I walked up to Mr. B.

I said, when Dolly go into a turn, a man jump in there, ice begin to burn. He said, how you know that song? I said, my parents used to play that when we were little. And the company would all be in the living room singing Harry Belafonte songs. I love Mr. B. We call him Harry Belafonte. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 Folks, in our Black Star Network studios, we have placed a black sash over that portrait of Arabella Fonte. It was seven or eight years ago, I believe,

I was asked to emcee a fundraiser at the Apollo Theater for one of Mr. B's organizations. I was happy to do so. The artist who did that piece, that piece was there up for the auction. I should have got it that night. But when we built our studios, I wanted to honor him. And so I commissioned that portrait

that hangs the centerpiece right there between Ida B. Wells Barnett and James Baldwin. And I remember when we unveiled our studio, I actually called him that night, got a chance to speak to him briefly. We were live on the air. And what I did not know was that Sidney Poitier

had actually passed that night. And that was actually the last time I believe I talked to Mr. B. I was in Jamaica for the holidays, and I was on the bus headed to the resort, and there was a song that came across the radio. We were there in Jamaica. And I said, man, I recognize that voice. And so I recorded a short video and sent it to him and to his daughter, Gina, and his wife, Pam, sent me a email thanking me for thinking of him

and them and sending that video. And so he was, again, he was the one who built relationships with so many different people, folks in media, folks in the arts, in politics, in civil rights, you name it. When I talk about that particular gathering, that fundraiser, my next guest was one of the folks who asked me to do it, Carmen Perez. She joins us right now. Now, she is someone who Harry Belafonte took under his wings, met her and said, young lady, you and I are going to become good friends. She's executive director of the Gathering for Justice out of New York. Carmen, glad to see you. Hate to chat under these circumstances.

But for folks who don't know, just share with them how you and Harry Belafonte got connected. Well, thank you for having me on, Roland, to talk about my dear mentor. I met Mr. Belafonte about 22 years ago through my mentor, Nane Alejandres, from Barrios Unidos in Santa Cruz. And I was just a young woman committed to working with young people that were incarcerated and also men that were locked up in Tracy Prison. I was running the prison project and running program in the detention center and creating alternatives to incarceration. And Mr. Belafonte would attend meetings at Barrio Sonidos, and there was a moment in which we had gone to Los Angeles to meet with Father Greg Boyle from Homeboy Industries to talk about a homeboy coffee.

And I was there with Mr. B and Danny Glover and my mentor, Nane. We had driven all night, Nane and myself, to be in L.A. to meet who we call Uncle Danny and Mr. Belafonte. And I was just there as a fly on the wall. And after that, when Mr. Belafonte had founded the Gathering for Justice and had called his peers from the civil rights movement, people like, you know, Marion Wright Edelman and Ruby Dee, Nane, some of our indigenous elders. He called them to look at child incarceration as an immoral imperative. And again, seeing that I had done work in Santa Cruz

when I was brought to Epps, Alabama for the Youth and Elders Convening, he took a liking to me and would consistently ask me to leave Santa Cruz to come to New York and work for him. And at the moment, I didn't realize who Harry Belafonte was. I was, you know, a 26-year-old, 28-year-old young woman. I was actually the same age that he was when he met Dr. King. I believe Mr. B was 28 and Dr. King was 26. And so I, after a while, a lot of my mentors had said, you know,

working for Harry Belafonte is a once in a lifetime opportunity and you should really take that on. And again, 20 years ago, that wasn't my path. I was committed to staying in Santa Cruz. I loved my life. I loved working with girls. I loved working with the people that I was serving inside the prison and the detention centers. And so I didn't really see myself in New York. But I then accepted his clarion call and I started working for him. And in 2010, he invited me to be the executive director of the organization. And so I've been working at his feet, I would say. And by his side, I moved to New York City during that time to work closely with him and started building a young workers program for 1199, building the Gathering for Justice and Justice League NYC in New York. But it's been a journey. I made a commitment to my mentor, Nane, who, like I said, is Mr. B's mentee. They're about 20 years apart. So I'm assuming Mr. Nane is now in his 60s or 70s. And he had said, you know, I want you to serve Mr. Belafonte

for the rest of his life. And here we are at the end of his life. And it's been heartbreaking. And my heart feels shattered, but I'm grateful to have sat with the big giant, to have shared stories. I still remember the time in which you were in our office and we were doing a recording and I couldn't really get a word in with Mr. B. He's such a genius. But there are many, many great moments with him, and I'm always going to cherish those. And I think really my role in the organization was to bring him to young people and to connect him to the young leaders of our time. And I'm just grateful that you were able to talk to Angelo, who was part of Justice League and now Until Freedom, and Rashad Robinson, who was part of the original Gathering for Justice almost 18 years ago.

And so it's been an honor, but today has been a very difficult day for me and many of us that are mourning him and not just us that worked for him or who have been mentored by him, but the world. He really touched the world. He left his print, and we're going to carry that legacy on and forward. Mark Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League. What's interesting is that Harry Belafonte organized a meeting of the elders in Atlanta. And if people watch the documentary, realize that he says in the documentary that while it was happening, he realized ain't nothing happening in this room.

He said, if I am going to have an impact, I need to reach young people like Carmen. And so I thought that was that was so fascinating that he that he said, he's like, here I was, I organized this meeting, and then I realized it was a lot of old folk in the room who had done great things, he said, but they had more, talking to the next generation of leaders. And he actually did that at his age, went out to find out where they were, folks like Carmen. It made, thanks Roland, thanks for having me. It's what made him unique. It's what made him who he was. He supported, he danced to the tune of his own drummer, but his conviction and his sensibilities around civil rights and social justice were cut in the 1950s and 60s when young people, in Lewis, Whitney Young, Malcolm X, they were young people. So many others, college students and others who sat in the Freedom Rides, they were young people. And I think when he sat in that room and said, you know what, I've got to impact people who are like we were when transformation and change took place. I don't think it's hard for us to understand by placing ourselves in the times of the 1950s and the 1960s

how much of a risk he and Sidney Poitier and others took. They were not just entertainers. They were not just... They were top-rated entertainers. It was Harry Belafonte, who in 1956, with Calypso, sold more records for an individual artist at that time than anyone in history. It was Harry Belafonte who won an Emmy, who appeared in movies before he was at the March on Washington. Sidney Poitier, an Academy Award-winning, well-known actor, they were at the top of their game, yet their conviction drove them to support civil rights. We can't even fathom the challenges.

And they never talked about the criticism they received. They never talked about the blowback he faced. And it certainly was considerable. So he, Roland, I had an opportunity to interview him for CBS Sunday Morning about five years ago on the occasion of Dr. King's, the 50th year since Dr. King's assassination in Memphis. And he was as powerful and as alert and as outspoken and as authentic as he always was. Indeed. Marielle, we see you there on the road. We appreciate you stopping by. Thanks, Roland, always. Reflections with regards to Harry Belafonte.

Appreciate it. Thanks a lot. Karn Perez, hold tight one second. I've got to go to break. We come back. We will have more. We'll also talk to Bernard Lafayette, who was one of the folks involved on the ground and is doing the Black Freedom Movement.

He'll join us. We'll also hear from Spike Lee, Wendell Pierce. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them.

From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multibbillion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts.

I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives.

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

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

It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. And many others with regards to Air Belafonte, who passed away today at the age of 96. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Blackstripe Network. © transcript Emily Beynon on the black table with me, Greg.

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

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

On the next A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, we talk about a hard, cold fact. Not all healthcare is created equal in this country, especially if you're a person of color. So many of us Black families, we rely upon each other heavily. A lot of us aren't necessarily sure how to best communicate with our health care providers. How to take charge and balance the scales.

Your life may depend on it. That's next on A Balanced Life on Blackstar Network. Mr. B, 95 years. So he says. He says he's 95. I don't know. He act more like he's 65. Well, he's 22 as far as I'm concerned, you know.

Why was it important for you to come out of here to show your love for him? Because he would have killed me if i didn't uh and of course uh is a great comedian uh as well and so uh glad to see her out here uh celebrating and fetting uh mr belafonte uh and if we can get her real quick uh yeah yeah if we get a real quick, just if we can get just real quick. Let's see India. This if y'all can. Here we go. Hey, Queen. Come on. Come on now. Come on. You look at it. Come on. You look at great as well come on now my summer dress because i can't fit in anything else come on come on my fellow on scorpio how you doing i'm good mr b 95 years so so he says he says he's 95 i don't know because he act more like he's 65 well

he's 22 as far as I'm concerned, you know. Why was it important for you to come out of here to show your love for him? Because he would have killed me if I didn't. You know, I love Harry. He knows I don't like to be out in public a lot. And so, you know, 95 is a big deal. You know, a lot of people don't make it. But Harry's here, and I want to make sure that

I put my little voice in saying, you know, thank God you're still here, and thank God for all the stuff that you did, because you taught us, those of us who could do it, how to do it. You know? Well, I agree. I always love sitting at his feet, listening to him, talking with

him, but the thing that's interesting. He wants to hear from you. I'm like, no, I mean, I want to hear from you. He's like, no, I want you to talk. That's what keeps him going, because it stimulates a conversation that he may not be having with other people. So it's a joy when he wants to talk to you, because when he doesn't want to talk to you, it's very clear. Yeah, that's very clear. Yeah, that's very true. A lot of folks have been sharing their remarks with regards to the passing of Harry Belafonte. We reached out to my man Spike Lee, and he sent us this video.

Hearing my feelings about the late, great Harry Belafonte. Mr. B, as we called him, is a definition of what artists can also be civil rights leaders too, who use their fame, their God-given talents to move people forward, specifically African Americans, but you might say everybody. He was there with Dr. King, him and Sidney, Sidney Poitier,

another great word, you know, keeping that cash going, and Dr. King, him and Sidney, Sidney Poitier, another great word, you know, keeping that cash going, and Dr. King. And they keep fighting the movement, the movement, the movement. And my father is Bill Lee, still alive, a folk bassist, and he worked with, on several occasions, worked with Mr. B. And so once I became a filmmaker, you know, we would see each other now and then, and he'd always say,

"'Spike, can't you let me be in the film one time? You keep giving those roles to Ozzie Davis." And you know, Oz it was tight with sydney and mr b and uh finally black klansman we got to work together was one day It was a pivotal scene in that film. And the day before, I told the crew, you have to come dressed in your Sunday best. They said, why? I said, I don't care. I'm not, I have to tell you why.

Just come in your Sunday best. So when Mr. B showed up on set, Mr. Harry Belafonte, people lost their minds. The legend was there. And that feeling he brought to the set and that scene is one of the most memorable scenes I've done. And more for my fourth and more than my four decades of a filmmaker that's right up there with the stuff I did with Denzel and and the end of Malcolm X with the great Nelson Mandela you could feel the energy and Mr. Belafonte was channeling all those all those trials, tribulations he went through

with the civil rights movement doing that scene. So a great, great loss. And Roland, it seems like every day, left and right, we're losing our giants. I mean like every day, at least it seems to me, we're losing somebody. And I posted this on my Instagram. We gotta give love to our giants who's still here.

Let's let them know they're loved. Not just funerals at their homecoming, when they make the transition. Let's let our giants, our kings, our queens, let's put the queens first, our queens and kings, let them know how much we love them and appreciate them while they are still with us

in their physical form. Peace and love. This is Spike, rolling yes from Brooklyn, New York. We appreciate that, Spike. Carmen Perez, what Spike there would say was absolutely right. And I can tell you, anytime I was somewhere and Mr. B was in a room, I would always make my way. He always would have, we would always joke and laugh. Nobody had a laugh like his. You and Tamika were with him, and he was doing, he wanted to do media for the festival that took place in the Atlanta area. And so he called, so y'all called me.

And first he calls, and he has no caller ID. And I answer, I'm like, hello, Roland Martin here. How you doing? I said, Roland Martin here. How you doing? I said, Mr. B, how you doing? How do you know it's me? I said, ain't nobody talk like you. I said, you're the only one got that voice. And then he lets out this huge, huge laugh.

And so he was always doing that. So it was a serious person who also was very funny as well. But the thing again that's important, when our elders like him are in the room, make your way over and pay respects. What was it like for you to be there, to sit at his feet, to learn, to listen, and to follow? I have to say that there were moments

in which Mr. B would crack jokes and say things that, you know, would raise an eyebrow, but there was a lesson in it. There was always a lesson in everything that he shared. I think about even with the gathering of the elders, right, and him bringing his peers together. I mean, there was a lesson. There was always something to be told, to be shared.

There was a moment in which Mr. Belafonte, I had convened Justice League to meet with Mr. Belafonte, and he had shared with us. And I know our young people consistently reference this. He said, in the final analysis, each generation must be responsible for itself. So all I can do is leave behind the crumbs of my experience. I have a trail that you can follow.

If you find value in it, pick it up. And if you don't, bring something better. There sits your power. What's going to happen is how you pick it up. And if you don't, bring something better. There sits your power. What's going to happen is how you make it happen. And I will say that there were moments when I would ask Mr. Belafonte a question, and he would give me a whole historical analysis, starting or dating back to his time with Dr. King, his time with Eleanor Roosevelt, with Russell Means. When we were organizing the Women's March on Washington, he met with us, and I brought all the women that were organizing to him. He said, keep the message simple. When the movement,

when the music is strong, the movement is strong. And so we knew that we needed to incorporate music in everything that we did. His mentor, Paul Robeson, always talked about artists are the gatekeepers of truth. They're civilization's radical voice. And so we embodied that in the work that we do at the Gathering for Justice and everything that we did to support other movements. And to sit at his feet is something that I'm going to miss. I've been mourning him ever since the pandemic. And I will take all the lessons that he shared with me and share them with the next generation.

It is my responsibility. It is the responsibility of so many of us. I know that at 96 years old, Mr. Belafonte, and everybody affectionately calls him Mr. B, at almost 100 years, he looked up and felt that he had 10 minutes left of his life. And as he looked back at his life, the question for him that he was asking himself, was that time wasted? And we all know that it wasn't.

And it's now our responsibility, those of us who he mentored, who he passed the baton to, to continue his legacy and the work that he started. And we have to really reach down within ourselves and ask ourselves, where is our moral compass? You know, there was still a lot of work to do. and it's the reason why he lived so long. It's the reason why he kept on working, even though he would say to me, Carmen, I'm stepping away. We're going to have to find someone else. But he kept counseling me. He kept counseling my generation and people that came before me. I connected today with many of the people that were part of the original Gathering for Justice 20 years ago.

Kerry Jenkins, I know Dawana Thompson from Woke Vote. You see the fruits of his labor within many of us who he actually invested in. We're out here doing the work that he paved the way for him and his peers. A lot of the programming that we do, he would talk to me about moments when he sat with his peers and they read books, they had critical conversations, they drank a little. And so we've created some of those same programs,

but to sit at his feet is an honor. I will say when I was younger, there was nothing that I could reference to some of the information that he was sharing with me when 20 years ago, there was nothing that I could reference to some of the information that he was sharing with me when 20 years ago, he sat me in his office and he talked about COINTELPRO. I didn't realize that, you know, 15 years later, I would still be, I would experience the same thing. And so there was moments when he shared all these gems with me, this knowledge. I'm grateful for the stories he talked about with, you know, you were

talking about Barack Obama earlier and his criticism of Barack Obama. But I also know that Eleanor Roosevelt and him and Mr. Belafonte commissioned a plane that had a Barack senior on it, a young Barack who came from Kenya to study here in the United States. And so just knowing how all of this history is interconnected, and he had a part in all of it, not just with the civil rights movement, but the American Indian movement, the Chicano movement. He was a bridge builder. And that's what I know I'm going to continue to do. I'm going to bring people together. It is my responsibility, and I don't take for granted the time that he's invested in me. Carmen Perez, glad to have you with us,

sharing your thoughts and reflections about the great Harry Belafonte. Thanks a lot. Thank you. Going to break, we come back. We'll talk with SNCC and SCLC leader Bernard Lafayette. Chuck D, great car is still with us. And I promised to show you the video of Harry Belafonte being honored the National Action Network where he reconciled with MLK the third after being invited, then disinvited to speak at the funeral of Coretta Scott King. I will explain. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Blackstar Network. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no.

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

Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back.

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

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

What we're doing now isn't working and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. on the streets, a horrific scene, a white nationalist rally that descended into deadly violence. On that soil, you will not replace us. White people are losing their damn lives. There's an angry pro-Trump mob storm to the U.S. Capitol. We're about to see the rise of what I call white minority resistance. We have seen white folks in this country who simply cannot tolerate black folks voting. I think what we're seeing is the inevitable result of violent denial.

This is part of American history. Every time that people of color have made progress, whether real or symbolic, there has been what Carol Anderson at Emory University calls white rage as a backlash. This is the wrath of the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Boys. America, there's going to be more of this. Here's all the Proud Boys, guys. This country is getting increasingly racist in its behaviors and its attitudes

because of the fear of white people. The fear that they're taking our jobs, they're taking our resources, they're taking our women. This is white people. Hi, I'm Dr. Jackie Hood-Martin, and I have a question for you. Ever feel as if your life is teetering and the weight and pressure of the world is consistently on your shoulders? Well, let me tell you, living a balanced life isn't easy. Join me each Tuesday on Black Star Network for a balanced life with Dr. Jackie. We'll laugh together, cry together, pull ourselves together, and cheer each other on. So

join me for new shows each Tuesday on Black Star Network, A Balanced Life with Dr. Jackie. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 Bernard Lafayette is one of those elders who, when I ease in there, I'm definitely going to go up to him and pay my respects. He joins us right now. He was very much involved in SNCC, the SCLC, numerous groups during the Black Freedom Movement. Bernard, glad to have you here. And I'm sure you crossed paths with Harry Belafonte on many an occasion. Yes, that's true. And it made a big difference to be with him at any time. And I want to say that I'm very sad. I have to admit that I am not ready for him to leave, but I know that we all have to go at some point. But what he left is remarkable in terms of his contribution he made. he is basically responsible for getting the talented celebrities and entertainers together and support of our movement had it not been for him i don't think we would have had

the kind of support from our african-american entertainers that we had. And he made a difference. And it wasn't the African-Americans. I mean, it wasn't the African-Americans. I'm sorry, go ahead, Bernard. Go ahead. Yeah, like, for example, when we had the Selma March and we were

at St. Jude, it was basically Harry Belafonte who decided that he would have an event called Freedom Stars and to help them at St. Jude. That's where we had that meeting before we marched into Montgomery, Alabama. And he was there and made it possible. And there's some things that people don't know that has to be shared. For example, the stage at St. Jude,

it was made out of, you know, boxes that usually you put caskets in. The funeral homes, in other words, contributed to helping to build that stage. And we were able to put it up right there at St. Jude, and it made a big difference. And I want to specifically say that Sammy Davis Jr. came and many other stars, in fact, he called the Freedom

Stars at the event that he wanted to bring all those stars in to support the freedom movement. And that's what he did. And they were there. And I remember Sammy Davis Jr. had another engagement. And so that meant that he was going to lose that day, which he was already scheduled to do. But Harry Belafonte actually paid the amount of money that Sammy Davis Jr. would have gotten had he did his performance in New York. And then the people who sponsored Sammy Davis Jr. decided, no, they would go ahead and pay the money because they were very proud that Harry Belafonte took the lead. And that's how he always made us feel. And actually, the Freedom Singers,

I mean, I can't tell you how he supported them. And we don't have too many of them left now. But I remember when Dion Diamond got arrested in Louisiana, and we were trying to get him out of jail. And the bond was $10,000 cash, okay? And we as snake workers were students and stuff. It was very hard for us to raise $10,000. So James Foreman was very frustrated.

And when I went to Atlanta to try to get an assignment to go and do a voter registration project, he said, what we need right now is to help get Dion out of jail. So there was a minister out there in Detroit who wanted to have a mass meeting. And so James Foreman, who was over at SNCC, told me that he wanted me to go out there.

So I did. And I later went to Selma. But I went out there, and guess what? I found that one of the people in Detroit at that time was Diane Nash's father. And Diane was already in jail in Jackson, Mississippi, because she sat on the wrong side of his courtroom. And they put her in jail and she was nine months pregnant. She came out with a statement. When we were trying to get her out of jail, we had the money for her. And she said, any Black child born in Mississippi

is born in jail. She wouldn't come out. So I found out her father was there. He was a dentist, actually. And I sent for her. And I said, Diane, we need you to come to help get Dion Diamond out of jail. And she did. She came and she spoke. And that was great. In the meantime, Chuck McDo and Bob Zellner had gone to visit Dion. And they had gotten arrestedner had gone to visit Dion and they'd gotten arrested they went to visit

and they said we know it's a conspiracy to overthrow the government in Louisiana because we got all the people there so anyway we had to go and raise another $20,000 and Harry Belafonte stepped in and that's when he invited

the Freedom Singers to perform in Chicago, Area Crown Theater. And it was just fantastic. And he helped to make that happen. So that presented the musicians as well as raising money to get Dion and Chuck McDo and Bob Zellner out of jail. And so Harry Belafonte has always been there for us. So he brought the people who were in the music field there, and he made it possible for them to perform and make

things really better for us. So we felt really supported as young SNCC students because we knew we had Harry Belafonte and he would always have our back and he would make the difference. We didn't have to worry about anything because he was able to bring all of those people together. And they were not just singers and entertainers, but they were movement supporters, and they were backers. And so we were blessed. And that's one of the things that made it possible

for us to keep going. Because we had those kinds of people like Harry Belafonte. And I relate to him because I have some West Indian background as well. They're from the Bahamas. Okay. And so when he started those Caribbean songs and that sort of thing, that really felt right close to my heart and what I was all about as well. I have about 120 relatives right there in Nassau, Bahamas. Okay. Bernard Lafayette, I appreciate you sharing the stories with us. We're going to be paying tribute to Mr. B over the next week.

I literally have actors and others saying, man, I wish I could. Can I still send a video in? So we're still doing that. So we appreciate you joining us. And you and I still got to sit down for our one-on-one interview. So I'm going to try to make that happen real soon. I look forward to it and I appreciate it. And I feel a kinship with Harry Belafonte, not just somebody who, you know, supported the movement. It was a natural friendship. And my wife, she was crazy about Harry

Belafonte. We went to visit him in New York. We've been to his house. Yeah. And we've... Well, Bernard, I'll say, Bernard, there's probably a whole lot of wives who were crazy about Harry Belafonte. I agree.

I appreciate it, sir. Thank you, and we appreciate you. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes, but there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple.

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

Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man.

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

Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. The other thing I want to say, and that's why I was looking for this opportunity, the contribution that you are making will be with us forever. I appreciate it. Bernard, thank you so very much.

Thank you. Going to a break. We'll close it out with Greg Carr and Chuck D. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Blackstar Network. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 We look at the history of emancipation around the world, including right here in the United States, the so-called end of slavery. Trust me, it's a history lesson that bears no resemblance to what you learned in school.

Professor Chris Mangiapra, author, scholar, amazing teacher, joins us to talk about his latest book, Black Ghost of Empire, The Death of Slavery and the Failure of Emancipation. He explains why the end of slavery was no end at all, but instead a collection of laws and policies designed to preserve the status quo of racial oppression. The real problem is that the problems that slavery invented have continued over time.

And what reparations are really about is saying, how do we really transform society, right, and stop racial violence, which is so endemic. What we need to do about it on the next installment of The Black Table, right here on The Black Star Network. Hi, I'm Dr. Jackie Hood-Martin, and I have a question for you. Ever feel as if your life is teetering and the weight and pressure of the world

is consistently on your shoulders? Well, let me tell you, living a balanced life isn't easy. Join me each Tuesday on Black Star Network for a balanced life with Dr. Jackie. We'll laugh together, cry together, pull ourselves together, and cheer each other on. So join me for new shows each Tuesday on Black Star Network, a balanced Life with Dr. Jackie. © BF-WATCH TV 2021 Folks, artists really understand the impact of Harry Belafonte, what he meant not only to the arts, but also to activism. My next guest is someone who understands that. Welcome back to the show, Chuck D.

Chuck? Hey, Brother Roe. I'd like to echo what Brother Bernard also said about you, man. We'd like to thank you. Because just the images and the beautiful pictures, Mr. B, that your show is showing right now, if that's not a reminder, a couple years ago, put together by his daughter, Gina Belafonte, put together a documentary of his life, Sing Your Song. And that so eloquently speaks about, uh,

sing your song, but sing it for the people, to move the people, because it comes from the people, for the people. And Mr. B and many conversations with him, and a lot of them funny. Um, he... Clearly, he would state that, like, he was an activist. He was always active before he became an artist. That was befallen upon him before he even realized

that he would be good at the arts or whatever. And then when he said the curiosity led him from being a person that was trying to really seek and find himself as a young black male from the Caribbean coming into New York, of all places, and trying to figure out how to make it, you know, in the 50s and late 40s. And then he said he stumbled upon this place after he got a, you know, an invite from a lady, and that's where he found his lifelong friends in the theater, Sidney Poitier, Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis. And then that was it. And from that point on into music. And that point on into music. And that point on into films.

But he said, listen, don't get it twisted. I was always active on trying to make some kind of change. And then these things befell upon me, and I used it as my platform. And I tried to show others to not be afraid to have that platform be shared with giving back to the people. And so, in no other terms, better than the fact that he is in us anyway. I mean, the full total package superstar that did it all and still found time for us. I mean, how could you say better than that,

Brother Romo? I mean, he is you, he is me. I mean, the fact that we're able to cut through all the mishmash and the riff-raff of the radiation of a world that doesn't want to include

us with everybody else, that we can use a platform. And that's why we called it a platform. And, you know, years ago when Public Enemy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, we knew that individual achievements were like, come on, if we could break a trophy into 1,000 pieces and give it out to 10,000 people,

that would be more about us than accepting a prize or a trophy. But we saw that maybe it would be important that we can honor somebody that we felt made it possible for us instead of us getting an honor. And HBO and The Rock Hall at that particular time in 2013, they had their TV show show the Hall of Fame inductions, but they said all the way up to that point, they were about having a new young hip artist introduce the Hall of Fame inductee. And we said, well, we're a little different. If we're going to have a platform like that

to speak to the world, we want to honor our hero. And he's not honoring us. We want to honor him and give him that time to say anything he wants to the world. And Mr. B accepted. Came 3,000 miles. HBO was like, well, we don't know if people know who he is and all that. I said, that's the point.

They will. They said, can we add Spike Lee into it? We said, well, you can add a Spike Lee. We're not going to compromise on it. But Spike is our bro-bro. And the fact that Spike comes out of that like we come out of Mr. B. So it makes the utmost sense.

So that was done in a Mr. B type of way that he wouldn't expect it less. And how could you get better than that when you're a hero? Yes, sir. When I got, so I was flying to Dallas, my dad's birthday is today. He's 76. He's watching the show with my mom.

My mom's birthday was yesterday. I got the text messages that he had. Okay. All right. Happy birthday to your mom. My mom's birthday was yesterday. I got the text messages that he had. Okay. All right. Happy birthday to your mom. I got the text messages that he had passed. It was before that. Yeah, I'm sorry. Okay. All right then. It's all good.

I got the text message that he had passed away. I mean, normally what happens is, you know, we go right into, you know, reporter mode. We start planning the tribute show. And I literally tell my staff, I need a moment. Because it's interesting, as you told that story. So in 2013, when I got the National Association of Black Journalists, Journalists of the Year, they asked me, hey, we want to interview several people and get their thoughts and reflections on you and this award. And one of the folks I asked to say a few words was Harry Belafonte.

And he did. And he always the thing that I appreciated, it was crazy, Chuck, because whenever we would go to lunch or dinner, I would just want to listen to him. I wanted to ask questions. I wanted to listen to him. I wanted to talk about as much as possible. And I'll never forget, we were having lunch at Ruth Chris Steakhouse in Manhattan. This was in 2017. And he didn't want to talk all he wanted to do was listen and to hear what I had to say and I was like man I don't care about that he said no I want to know what you think so he was asking me about all sorts of stuff a book he was working on and and he was asking literally do you think? So he was asking me about all sorts of stuff, a book he was working on.

And he was asking, do you think I'm going down the right path with my thesis? And, man, that's the thing that always that also just blew me away. He wanted to know what you were thinking because he was always trying to keep his finger on the pulse. Yeah, it was a teaching moment that he taught us, knowing that he was passing a baton, but how do you catch the baton? How do you grab it? You know what I'm saying?

And he always would drop, you know, those wisdoms, those jewels, that knowledge. But in a way that he exemplified everything that we could ever be, right? I mean, really, seriously. You know, they overuse goats. They overuse, you know, greatest

of all time, the acronym for that. They overuse legends. They overuse all those accolades. Superstars. I mean, seriously. Icons, icons. I mean, really.

Really, seriously. Seriously. It's him. Starts from that. From him. Really. Total package. To go anywhere he want to go with it, but still was selfless and came back to always figure out how does he continue

the activity of what we call celebrities, artists, entertainers, and just understand that we got no wings on our feet. You know, we best to be glued to everyday folk as a we as opposed to me. I mean, seriously. Often at times, I think, bro, Romo, we take a lot for granted. We take a lot of our privilege here. We forsake a lot of that when our superheroes are still here. And 96 years wasn't long enough, you know? 96.

And most recently, I dropped a piece of art by his house. And I'm looking at the text message from a couple of weeks ago. So, I mean, yeah. I mean, he was just like, he exemplified how you're supposed to act, man, when you got all eyes on you. You know what I'm saying? And not to say you're, you know, whatever, hooty-tooty or whatever, elite.

No, you're just supposed to be like, engage people to come in, engage with their time, you know, and treat, you know, the time that you share with people just as important as they look at your time. You treat it like it's their time to share it. And I mean, like, they broke the mold, you know? Sidney Poitier last year, Harry Belafonte this year. You know, people like Bill Russell last year.

I mean, really. We have them to... Yeah. ...to take examples from it, add to what we can do. Like, I always tell people, I say, like, my father, who transitioned seven years ago,

I'm always climbing to try to be, like, half the man he was. You know what I'm saying? So these heroes, you know, they remind us to keep striving and climbing, man. And because it's so much. If you look at news across the board, Ro, you know that there's not going to be a tribute

that comes even close to how he should be remembered. They've just done a whole, you know, exodus of anybody in those circles of media that would even give a little bit more than a little time i don't even know if there's anybody that could come up number one ain't coming up half as close as like just the images and the heart and the soul that that you give out on your broadcast, and especially today, I mean, it's bringing a good emotion. Well, this is why when TV One ended News 1-9,

we did these shows when I was there, and everything would just stay stuck in my head as a nation's first black newspaper, Freedom's Journal, when they say we wish to plead our own cause to long have others spoken for us. Greg Carr, I'm going to bring you in. And this is why, you know, this is why we do this. You know, I sent a text out. I mean, literally, I haven't even seen anybody else's broadcast. I said, hey, folks, what else is out there? I remember when Sidney Poitier died. You did not have, when Cicely Tyson died.

You did not have, as far as I was concerned, the proper respect that was paid to them in terms of tributes and remembrances. And I knew this was going to be the case with Harry Belafonte. I actually sent a text to several anchors and said, hey, I hope you all do something. But this right here and the thing here, Greg, this two-hour tribute we did, and we have so much stuff that we're literally going to be doing tributes over the next several days to hair Belafonte. I'm literally, I'm getting text messages from other entertainers who say, man, I wish I could have said something. I'm like, don't worry about it. We're creating the space.

And that's why we are here. Chuck. That's why you created rap station. That's why I'm just not interested in, in hoping and praying somebody else pays tribute to our heroes. Damn it. We know how to celebrate them. No question.

You know, it's so funny. It's good to see you, Brother Chuck. You were ahead of a lot of this, Brother. We know that commercial news entertainment media has eroded. When you went digital and looked toward the future and started saying, you know, we need to just start giving this away.

That was pressing it, man. That was a generation ago. I know the time is filled with swift transitions, how quickly, you know, we know. But every generation has to take its role. And when we hear you, when we hear Chuck D say something like, how are you supposed to act when all eyes are on you? You know, where does that nexus of celebrity? It's very powerful. And, Roland, I think there's a reason why you say the Black Star Network is curated by Roland Martin. You're putting things out.

You're leaving breadcrumbs, as our brother Bernard Lafayette said. This tribute is really just a few breadcrumbs. And every conversation led to something else. Chuck, as you were talking, I was thinking about you down at the National Museum of African American History and Culture last June when you unveiled Songs That Shook the Planet. And of course, that is this generation's iteration of what Mr. B did back in 2001 when he curated that Long Road to Freedom. It looks different. Five CDs and some stuff 20 years ago, now it's straight to digital. But it's the same process. Somebody got to stand at that crossroad. And so every one of these breadcrumbs,

Bernard Lafayette talking, you know, this is just a breadcrumb. And you realize that Mr. B is the one who paid for Fannie Lou Hamer and them to go to Guinea in 1964 after Freedom Summer. And Bernard Lafayette mentioned the Stars for Freedom. Mr. B is sitting in the room when James Baldwin and Lorraine Hansberry and Dick Gregory and them set fire to Kennedy's natural ass in Central Park South because he's bringing people in the room.

So when he passes that baton to you, brother, he's passing to somebody who came of age during the period of another warrior we lost a couple of days ago, the great automatics. A brother who understands and stood in the gap. And only you can tell the story for our generation. So when you say, finally, how you behave when all eyes are on you, that is a call to say that when we see you, when we see Harry Belafonte, when we see Eartha Kitt,

when we see Sidney Poitier, when we see Paul Robeson, we don't just see that individual, we see the people they represent. And that puts an incredible burden on people, and it takes a special kind of person to take that kind of time, brother. So, Roland, you know, you're curating this, and you're giving breadcrumbs, and you're one of those people, too, brother.

And we're just grateful that you, you know, convened this space. I appreciate you, Brother Greg. And also, I'd like to add to the fact that you know, Mr. B told me himself in the last days of Paul Robeson, his hero, told him about the responsibility and accountability for each generation to grasp as much as it can from the prior generations. Because at any given time, it may be truncated at the pass. And there's three or four generations under me that years ago I said it's imperative that I do my best to pass up a time because we have a lot of young leaders out there. But the sense of organization and where we're at right now and the perspective of past, present, and future is always lost. That's why I said, you know, like the entertainers and artists, celebrities, you know, we have to bring truth to light in a stage to people that, real people that do real things every day. And real people that do things that make sure that no scholarship gets disrespected.

Because the scholarship that people put in the time to learn something, to move people to do something, even if for self and knowledge itself, you know, we can't make, there ain't no joke. We know that with this transitioning that they won't even get the headline correct. That's right. They won't even get justice just in the headline. I've seen so many disrespectful headlines in a few hours,

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As you said, famously, brother. Well, that's why, again, with my... Refuse to lose. No, no, I'm just saying, as Chuck said back in the day, man, I got so much trouble on my mind, refuse to lose. So, you know, you stand in the crossroad, you ain't going down and rolling, you not going down. So those headlines, you just gonna roll over them, brother.

And we learned from Mr. B that we have a great, listen, we have a privilege. We have a great time in the arts as entertainers, as painters, sculptors, actors, musicians, singers. You know, Mr. B's documentary is Sing Your Song. We're

privileged to do that. But with the opportunity of all eyes and ears upon us, make some room for real people that do real things and see if you can be an asset instead of detriment. Chuck D., always a pleasure, my brother. Thanks a lot. Salute to both of y'all.

Peace and love. Folks, earlier you heard Greg Carr reference when Coretta Scott King died and Harry Belafonte was asked to speak at the funeral. Then when all of the living presidents were invited, including George W. Bush, he was disinvited. That was a huge, huge uproar. Later, talking with MLK III, he said that, well, that was never really officially an invite. And mind you, Harry Belafonte paid for the babysitters. He paid for the education. I mean, when Dr. King dies, I mean, he financially supports that family in a huge way. In fact, Bernice King actually said that in a tweet today when she posted about his passing. And I can tell you, because we talked about it, Mr. B was very hurt by not being allowed to speak at the funeral of Greta Scott King, and he didn't attend.

2017, the National Action Network, Reverend Al Sharpton, with MLK III, honored Harry Belafonte on the stage. I was present. I was there. And that came up. And Harry Belafonte, being the man that he was, put it behind him. Here is his speech that night in New York City. I was counseled not to speak because I have a propensity for staying longer than audiences deserve. But I must deny that counsel and just say what a remarkable moment for me that this event is taking place. First and foremost, Reverend Sharpton.

I saw him when he first came on the scene, and I have marveled at his tenacity, at the development of his intellect and his devotion to our movement, and much that he has contributed to the world we are experiencing. I am honored, and I must say that when I had my debate with Dr. King on the issue of the church and religion, he didn't warn me that after his departure, his space would be filled by another preacher, and that that preacher would be Al Sharpton. I am blessed and honored to have marched with him. that that preacher would be Al Sharpton. I am blessed and honored to have marched with him, stood on platforms with him,

and been in his space and listened to the richness of his counsel. And I thank you for creating this evening, Dr. Sharpton. My only regret is that my closest friend Sidney Poitier is not here because if you were to see him, you would recognize how well I'm doing. I suspect that what I've just said will get back to him before I get off this platform. But it's been a wonderful journey. And I say that with the wisdom that comes with being 90 years of age. Often, with my friend Sidney,

we would sit and talk about what will happen to our movement and our people once we were no longer on the scene our movement and our people, how once we were no longer on the scene and no place was that question more emphasized than when Dr. King was taken from us. But it has been our reward to look at the number of artists who have not only excelled in their craft and in their choices, but that they too have filled the space most fully in their commitment to the betterment of the human race and our people.

And nowhere does that illustration stand more firmly rooted than in the presence of Latanya and Samuel Jackson. The President of the United States of America, the President of the United States of Samuel Jackson. I often wondered when Sidney left the space, who would fill it? Because he carried some heavy weight and had some big shoes. That's the king had the big feet, but Sidney had the big shoes.

And to see Sam Jackson and a number of other artists step into the space and begin to bring a kind of consciousness to art while instructing people not just about how life is, but to discuss and to shape visions of how life should be. This honor that I'm given here tonight, I am honored to share this evening with the idea that the torch that we will leave behind will be in the hands of remarkable men and women who will make sure that our mission fulfills its destiny. I thank you all, and I thank Dr. King for the love and for the wisdom he gave us. This honor that you've given me here tonight will hang in a place of distinction in my home and will afford me in the days that are left to know that I've walked in a place where there was so much love and kindness and generosity. My only question would be, did I really deserve it? Thank you. Thank you.

I have reflected on what I'm about to say. And I had... And I think that it deserves saying. The forces of evil are not just the utterances made by the likes of Donald Trump. He is not new to us. After all, in my lifetime, we've experienced Hitler. We've experienced Mussolini. We've experienced Tojo.

We've experienced Mobutu. And we have experienced others, McCarthy. And the nation has always showed a resilience in being able to withstand the onslaught of such mischief. But at times, the detractors seep into our midst and do mischief. I am particularly pleased tonight to see Martin King III on this platform. There have been our detractors who have stepped in and tried to poison the waters in which we swim. But I am delighted that he stands here and I see it as a moment of healing, that that which was misunderstood and caused some moments of pain and anguish has been put behind us. And I think that tonight, Rev. Schaub, you're putting this together and having him as a part of this evening's ceremony is a healing that is deeply welcomed.

And I thank you. That was 11 years after Coretta Scott King died. And it was a very painful episode for hair Bella Fonte for the King children. And I was there to witness it that night. Folks, we will be honoring hair Bella Fonte over the next several days. There's so much stuff we did not even touch on. There are other speeches that we want to share with you. Other people want to pay tributes. So many, this man's

life was so expansive and we'll be doing so right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered, right here on the Black Star Network. That is it for us today. I will be back with you tomorrow. We appreciate all of you, everybody who shared their contributions. And again, there's so many people who reached out to us who wanted to share their thoughts and reflections. Many are traveling, people are on sets doing movies and shows, and so we're going to be sharing these things again over the next few days, and as we get information regarding funeral arrangements for Harry Belafonte. We'll be able to share those with you as well. Folks, we do this every single day, five days a week, my show,

plus what we do on Black Star Network, because we want to always cover the issues that matter to us, cover the people that matter to us, and cover them in a way that matters to us. I'm not concerned with what other networks do or don't do when it comes to Harry Belafonte. We know what we're going to do when it comes to honoring his life and legacy,

and that's what our plan is. For those of you who are watching, please support us in what we do. Download our app, the Black Star Network app, Apple phone, Android phone, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV. Support us in what we do by joining our Bring the Funk fan club. Senior check and money orders, PO Box 57196, Washington, D.C., 20037-0196.

Cash app, dollar sign, RM Unfiltered. PayPal, RM Martin Unfiltered. Venmo is RM Unfiltered. Zale, Roland at RolandSMartin.com. Roland at RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Folks, I will see you Unfiltered. Venmo is rmunfiltered. Zayl Roland at RolandSMartin.com. Roland at RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Folks, I will see you tomorrow right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. ¶¶ This is an iHeart Podcast.