#RolandMartinUnfiltered - Tenn. State Unvi. Takeover, NV Cop Slams Kid To Ground, Barbara Lee for Senate,Ga's Micro-Community

Episode Date: February 22, 2023

2.21.2023 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Tenn. State Unvi. Takeover, NV Cop Slams Kid To Ground, Barbara Lee for Senate,Ga's Micro-Community There's social media buzz about Tennessee State University being taken over by the state.  I'll talk to a state representative who wrote a letter quashing those concerns by addressing five critical points.  Not that we needed it, but a new Intuit survey reveals the disparities black entrepreneurs face when trying to start a business.  We'll break that survey down with a business expert. The Supreme Court heard arguments today over holding Google responsible for videos with harmful messages.  Shireen Mitchell, Social Analyst and Diversity Strategist, will explain what the justices must consider and what it could mean for content recommendations.  A Nevada school police officer was captured on cellphone video slamming a high school student to the ground and pinning him underneath his knee outside a high school in the Las Vegas suburbs.  The executive director of ACLU Nevada will join us and tell us what they are doing to hold the officer accountable.  And in our Marketplace segment, one man's solution to make homeownership a reality for people in Atlanta after building the nation's first Black-owned micro-home community.  It's Time to Bring the funk on Roland Martin Unfiltered streaming live on the Black Star Network.  Let's go. Download the Black Star Network app at http://www.blackstarnetwork.com! We're on iOS, AppleTV, Android, AndroidTV, Roku, FireTV, XBox and SamsungTV. The #BlackStarNetwork is a news reporting platform 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. Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war. This year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This kind of star-studded a little bit, man.

We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Here's the deal. We got to set ourselves up. See, retirement is the long game. We got to make moves and make them early. Set up goals. Don't worry about a setback. Just save up and stack up to reach them. Let's put ourselves in the right position.

Pre-game to greater them. Let's put ourselves in the right position, pregame to greater things. Start building your retirement plan at thisispreetirement.org, brought to you by AARP and the Ad Council. Folks, today's Tuesday, February 21st, 2023, coming up on Roland Martin Unfiltered, streaming live on the Black Star Network. I told y'all, Republicans in Tennessee were going to be going after Tennessee State University. We'll talk to a state official.

State representative wrote a letter quashing these concerns regarding, let's say, take over Tennessee State. But, hmm, what's going on in Tennessee? That HBCU will talk about it. A new Intuit study reveals that disparities that black entrepreneurs face when trying to start a business are real. No shit, really? We knew that.

We'll talk with a business expert about their survey. The Supreme Court heard arguments dealing with Google over their responsibility when it comes to harmful videos. We'll talk to a digital expert with regards to that very issue. Plus, a Nevada police officer was captured on cell phone video slamming a high school student to the ground and pinning him underneath his knee. We'll be joined by the ACLU of Nevada regarding this particular issue.

Plus, in our Marketplace segment, a one-man solution to make home ownership a reality for folks in Atlanta after building the nation's first black-owned micro-home community. We'll explain exactly what that is. And plus, a white woman acts a fool when a black man is shoveling snow on a sidewalk. She literally shovels it back on a sidewalk.

Really? It's time to bring the funk. I'm Roland Martin, unfiltered, on the Black Star Network. Let's go. He's got it. Whatever the piss, he's on it. time to bring the funk on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star kicks. He's rolling. Yeah, yeah. It's Uncle Roro, yo. Yeah, yeah. It's Rolling Martin.

Yeah, yeah. Rolling with Rollin' now. Yeah, yeah. He's broke. He's fresh. He's real. The best you know. He's Rolling, he's fresh, he's real the best, you know he's rolling, Martin! Now!

Martin! Să ne urmăm în următoarea mea rețetă. Thank you. Să ne urmăm. The Folks, Roland Martin here in Los Angeles. I told you months ago about Tennessee State University, what was happening when it came to funding there. One of the issues that the state determined, they were owed some more than $500 million. But Tennessee, the state of Tennessee, has only given them $250 million. But also there are some restrictions as to how they can actually spend the money. Now a number of people on social media talking about how Tennessee wants to take over Tennessee State University, want to remove the independent governance of the university and put them under the Tennessee Board of Regents. Well, is that true or not?

Joining us right now is a state rep in Tennessee who has written a letter dealing with this very issue. Harold Love, junior president of Love, how are you doing? Doing well. Thank you for having me on the show. Okay, so let's walk through this here. Is the state of Tennessee trying to remove the independent governance of Tennessee State and move them under the Tennessee Board of Regents? No, the Board of Regents? No, the Board of Regents was the former governing system for Tennessee State University and other universities in Tennessee.

And at one point, we passed what's called the Focus Act, which allowed every university to then have its own Board of Trustees. That Board of Trustees is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the legislature. So this has been again... I'm sorry, go ahead, go ahead, go ahead. So every university has to come before our government operations committee,

and the board of trustees are asked a series of questions pertaining to the operations of the university. So Tennessee State was supposed to come up last summer because their board is supposed to automatically sunset in 2023 if something's not done, ask every university, as always, given a chance to, again, have their board to come before the Government Operations Committee and list out what they've done to help that particular university operate. All right. I've got to go to a break. We come back. I want to talk about the money that was allocated. I saw an interview where Eddie George, the head football coach of Tennessee State, complained that Tennessee TSU officials were not able to use the money as they saw fit. There were limitations placed on them.

There have also been complaints from white legislators there in Tennessee about how they're recruiting black students. And we played the video where this guy was like, well, this is hurting other institutions. And the president of Tennessee State was like, well, we do a great job. So we'll talk about all of that and break all this thing down. So give me one second, folks.

You're watching Roller Mark Unfiltered. We're broadcasting live from Los Angeles. This is the week of the NAACP Image Awards. Of course, don't forget to support us. Download the Black Star Network app, Apple phone, Android phone, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV. We'll be right back on Roller Mark Unfiltered. network app apple phone android phone apple tv android tv roku amazon fire tv xbox one samsung smart tv we'll be right back on roller mart unfiltered hatred on the streets a horrific scene white nationalists rally that descended into deadly

violence white people are losing their damn minds. There's an angry pro-Trump mob storm to the U.S. Capitol. We're about to see the rise of what I call white minority resistance. We have seen white folks in this country who simply cannot tolerate black folks voting. I think what we're seeing is the inevitable result of violent denial. This is part of American history. Every time that people of color have made progress, whether real or symbolic, there has been what Carol Anderson at Emory University calls white rage as a backlash. This is the rise of the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Boys.

America, there's going to be more of this. 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 a next a balanced life with me dr jackie a relationship that we have to have we're often

afraid of it and don't like to talk about it that's right we're talking about our relationship with money and here's the thing our relationship with money. And here's the thing. Our relationship with money oftentimes determines whether we have it or not. The truth is you cannot change what you will not acknowledge. Balancing your relationship with your pocketbook. That's next on A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, here at Blackstar Network. Hi, I'm Vivian Green. Hey, everybody, this is your man Fred Hammond, and you're watching Roland Martin,

my man, Unfiltered. We're back here in Los Angeles. We're talking with State Representative Harold Love Jr. from Tennessee. Representative Love, you wrote in this letter, you said the $250 million for building repairs and construction that was put in the budget January 2022 was made available to TSU on July 1st, 2022, when the new fiscal year started. An additional $92 million was approved before July 1st, 2022, for two new buildings, $60 million for engineering and $32 million for agriculture. And so we've heard different folks say, oh, TSU is getting the money, but they can't use it the way they see fit. Explain that. So in Tennessee State's case, a lot of people thought that the money should have been able to be used for building dormitories.

And in Tennessee, the legislature does not allocate money for what we call revenue generating buildings. That would be dormitories, that would be also stadiums. And so Tennessee State's money that was allocated was to improve the infrastructure on campus to repair the education and administration buildings. And that's the limitation that's placed on that. I really cannot hear Representative Love, so I need you guys to see what's going on here. I heard it's coming back from break.

And so, Representative Love, I'll ask you this question here. Again, we're talking about, again, this whole issue with, again, this is all over social media. Folks have been sending to us left and right. So we're trying to get a better understanding of what's really happening with the university. And again, this talk about a takeover. Now, in the letter, you talked about the Senate ad hoc committee having questions about the current leadership's ability to effectively lead the university. The comptroller's office interviewed students, faculty and staff to gain a better understanding of complaints they received from parents and students. The committee will review the report at a hearing on February 23rd. So before we get to the complaints, so apparently there were people who were suggesting that there was going to be a vote on February 23rd to take Tennessee state and put them under the Tennessee Board of Regents. You say that is not correct, right? Correct. The Senate ad hoc committee that's meeting on the 23rd does not have the ability

to make that particular vote. That's vested in the power of the Government Operations Committee, which is meeting the 27th of February. Representative Love, I'll ask you this here as well. So let's talk about these complaints, all right, and the questioning of the leadership Look, there are always complaints One of the issues that Tennessee State is dealt with is that the rapid increase in enrollment had a housing issue So we're talking about these complaints

What are you hearing are people suggesting that that the Glen the Glover should not be president And and so so talk about this, these complaints, and what this committee is going to then provide in this report, or the comptroller's going to provide. So the comptroller's office has a department called the HERO office, Higher Education Resource Officer. And that particular office is designed to have persons who have issues or concerns about our universities to be able to call them and to be able to list out those things they have concerns about.

That will allow the comptroller's office to go and investigate if the complaints are warranted. calling and emailing about the lack of housing and also about some scholarships not being fulfilled, the comptroller's office then went and interviewed students and faculty and administration, and they are putting their report together, which will come out, I believe, tomorrow, and this will detail the responses to those questions they had. The Senate ad hoc committee also wanted the comptroller's office to give them information about what they discovered in those same interviews. All right, last question for you, Representative Love. Again, when it comes to what is next, the state report said the Tennessee state was owed $500 million.

They did $250 million. When is Tennessee state going to get the other $250 million? So the initial $250 million that eventually became $350 million was designed to repair the infrastructure of the university. That includes, again, all the education buildings and possibly build, again, new library, new engineering building, new agriculture building. The design is to have those buildings repaired so that when you increase programs with additional funds, you then have a proper place to house those programs. What you don't want to do is start increasing access to your chemistry program, and you don't have the adequate

labs to have the chemistry students do their work in there. You don't want to expand other programs and not have the facilities for that. Let me commend Dr. Glover on this. She is trying to take Tennessee State from a Research 2 to a Research 1 institution, and the extra dollars, the additional money, could primarily be used to do that, to hire more professors, again, to expand the programs at the university. But first, you must have the facilities to be repaired. Tennessee State is in need of approximately $344 million worth of infrastructure repairs, and this $250 million goes a long way. And there's no plan for Tennessee State to be taken over to be under the Tennessee Board of Regents, correct? That's correct.

There are options listed, I believe, in the report that will include improving communication between the board and the president. But the Board of Regents is not designed to run a four-year institution. They did in previous years. They are designed to help institutions like Tennessee State as they currently do with our capital maintenance. But there's an opportunity there for the Board of Regents to provide assistance to Tennessee State should they need assistance. And if the board is vacated and replaced with new members, there's also an opportunity for the Board of Regents to provide guidance.

Representative Love, I appreciate you joining us on the show to give us the breakdown of what's happening in Tennessee State. Thank you so very much. Keep us abreast of what happens next with the university. Folks, one of the reasons why this is important is because of what we've seen with Prairie View A&M University. We also are seeing what's happening with Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis and the whole issue of critical race theory. His kids complaining about woke and the impact on HBCUs. And so whether we're talking about Tennessee State or Florida A&M or Prairie View A&M, there should be great concern among African-Americans about our state HBCUs,

our public HBCUs having to be in these red states. You've got, and look, North Carolina, you've got a Democratic governor, but you've got a Republican legislature. In Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Florida. And so when we talk about our largest HBCUs, they are in these red states.

And so it is incumbent upon us, and we talk about voting all the time. Folks, when you have these right-wing Republicans who are over these universities, the problem that we're going to have is they are going to be controlling the policy, the policy of these institutions. And that is of grave concern to all of us. And so if we as African Americans are not fully involved, this is what Ruth Simmons was talking about when she talked about what Prairie View folks need to be focused on when it comes to the institutions, when it

comes to standing up, fighting for them. That's where we need to be in our institutions and understand what we're up against. We are dealing with people who do not have the same mission that we do. They control the purse strings. They control the dollars. They control all of those different things. And so all of us need to understand

what we are up against and what we are facing. What I want to do right now is, folks, let me know how much time we'll go to the next break. I want to pull up my panel today and introduce them. Because, again, folks, we're going to see more of these things happen as we move forward in the future. Mustafa Santiago Ali, former senior advisor for environmental justice at the EPA. Dr. Candace Matthews, statewide vice chair, Texas Coalition of Black Democrats. And at 630 tomorrow, Solomon Simmons is going to be joining us, civil rights attorney and founder of Justice for Greenwood. Mustafa, I laid out there again when Republicans are in control of the state, when they have the power,

they can make decisions or impacting HBCUs. And so if HBCU graduates and the students are not fully focused, they need to understand you're going to be at the behest of these Republicans that could be devastating to these HBCUs. Most definitely. And you know, it was interesting that Representative Love had shared about revenue generating buildings. I'd never heard before someone not wanting to support dorms, because we understand that if students don't have a place to live and to study, then it's going to be difficult for them to choose, you know, an institution like that. So for that to be a part of how Tennessee is deciding about resources, it's very concerning because it stops the growth, if you will, of many of our institutions that many students are

now paying more attention to and saying, I want to go to an HBCU. But it goes back again to the power, the power of the decision maker, those individuals who are there in the statehouse and others who are choosing about which institutions are going to grow, which institutions are going to receive the resources, and which ones won't. When we talk about, again, who controls, I talk all the time about leverage, influence, power. Those who control the purse strings, they have the power. We've got to, though, use our leverage and influence to put pressure on them, let them know, you screw our HBCUs, you're screwing with black people. 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.

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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. Here's the deal. We got to set ourselves up. See, retirement is the long game we gotta make moves

and make them early set up goals don't worry about a setback just save up and stack up to reach them let's put ourselves in the right position pre-game to greater things start building your retirement plan at this isreetirement.org, brought to you by AARP and the Ad Council. Oh, I'm sorry. You know what, Roland? Can you hear me, sir? Okay. I am in complete agreeance to that statement, because you got to keep in mind, we are here in Texas, the battleground state, the state where you have a lot of racism, a lot of systemic racism. And then let's just look at it because I am HBCU, Texas Southern University. And I'm very familiar with Prairie View A&M because that's right down the street from my house.

And so basically Prairie View is pretty much like the sister school for the Texas A&M University, right? So with Dr. Simmons, they were more or less like, okay, you know what? You can just hold this position just as a position, but you don't have any control. See, we have to let them know that you're not gonna do that to none of our HBCUs, because if not, then this is what happens when you have the master puppet master that's going to control everything.

And then nine times out of 10, we're trying to make HBCUs obsolete. Quickly, before I go to break, we look, you've got, of course, elections coming up. You've got the presidential election. But I keep telling folks, like in Virginia, every seat is up. We have got to be focused and locked on state races. There are opportunities to control the different houses. And one of the reasons why you see with gerrymandering, of course, but you also see what is happening in these other places, is that we are not in full control of our voting power.

As long as we're voting 30%, 35%, 40%, we're not maximizing our power. If we're voting at 70%, 75%, we could be changing what's happening in a lot of these states. They are banking on us not showing up. Yeah, without a doubt, we know that there's power that's associated with our vote. Resources are tied to our vote. And in the conversation we're having here now about the supporting of our academic institutions. So you've got to get engaged.

You've got to hold people accountable. When people are on the campaign trail, you should be raising the questions to them about where do you stand on support for HBCUs and actually hear what they have to say and then hold them accountable, both Democrats and Republicans and independents, if that's what's going on in your respective states. Because if we don't utilize our vote in this moment, then we will lose our institutions. And Roland, this is how I know it's true. Because in West Virginia, at one time, you had five HBCUs. And now what you have is West Virginia State, which is still labeled as an HBCU. But the dynamics have changed. They're not saying that it's not still a good educational institution, but it is so easy to end up losing our schools.

We'll come back with more on Roller Mark Unfiltered right here on The Blast. So one second. We'll be right back. You gotta pay some bills. We'll be right back on the Black Star Network, live from Los Angeles. This is NAACP Image Awards Week. And don't forget, folks, support us in what we do. Download our app, Apple phone, Android phone, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, We'll be right back. Coming up, some new platforms will be out. You'll see our 24-7 streaming channel on as well.

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Lana Well, and you are watching Rolling Martin Unfiltered. Să ne urmăm în următoarea mea rețetă. Welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. Let's talk California Senate race. We're here in Los Angeles. Barbara Lee of the Bay Area has announced that she is going to run for the U.S. Senate being vacated by Senator Dianne Feinstein. No one is rolling out the welcome mat, especially for someone like me. I was the girl they didn't allow in, who couldn't drink from the water fountain, who had an abortion in a back alley

when they all were illegal. I escaped a violent marriage, became a single mom, a homeless mom, a mom who couldn't afford child care and brought her kids to class with her. They didn't want to hear my voice or anyone who wasn't like them. But by the grace of God, I didn't let that stop me. To do nothing has never been an option for me. When my high school said cheerleaders couldn't be black, I took them on.

I worked with the NAACP and earned my spot as guess what? The school's first black cheerleader. When there weren't protections for survivors of domestic violence, I wrote California's first Violence Against Women Act. When it was legal to discriminate against the LGBTQ plus community, I wrote the Hate Crimes Reduction Act and got a Republican governor to sign it into law. When no one wanted to talk about global AIDS funding, I got President George W. Bush to make it a priority. And for those who say my time has passed, well, when does making change go out of style?

I don't quit. I don't give up. Come on. That's not in my DNA. I didn't quit when I refused to give the president completely unlimited war powers after September 11th and in the face of countless death threats. I was the only no vote. I didn't quit then, and I won't quit now. We have to ease the burden on the middle class.

We have to find a solution to poverty and homelessness. We have to take on the climate crisis. And we have to stop these mega extremists who think they can control people's bodies and dismantle our democracy. And even though there are no African American women in the United States Senate, we won't let that stop us either. Because when you stand on the side of justice, you don't quit if they don't give you a seat at the table. You bring a folding chair for everyone, and they're here to stay.

All right, folks, now understand Representative Katie Porter has already announced that she is running. Also, Representative Adam Schiff has announced that he is running. Representative Barbara Lee, she's served in the House since 1998. Let's talk about this again with our panel. Candace, you first. Look, it's going to be a very expensive race. We're talking about California, statewide. Representative Lee has to raise a lot of money. Your thoughts, again, on what is shaping up to be a contentious race.

These U.S. Senate seats don't come open a lot. And a lot of people have thought that she should have been appointed as the vice president. Kamala Harris went to the White House. But your take on this race, represents the Barbary officially in it. You know what? I think that this is excellent because I'm a true fan of Miss Barbary. And then what I like about her is that she's a change agent. This is someone who actually been in the trenches. This is someone who could actually identify the trenches. This is someone who could actually

identify with people that look like us. So if she was to go in the Senate, this would be amazing. It would be amazing. And then what I love about this woman, what I love about her is that she gives me that hope. She gives me that drive as a black woman that I can do this. And you know what? I think that she's going to do it. That's how I feel. Mustafa, again, there are no black women in the United States Senate. And then that has been a point of contention for a lot of sisters since the vice president was elected. Well, that says something about our country when, you know, black women are not in the Senate, not helping to frame out a new and positive direction. We know that when they are in the Senate is a better place. It is a more effective place. Barbara Lee, you know, she's a, I really love Barbara Lee because she's always fought for vulnerable communities. She doesn't

play around. She makes sure that she gets the job done. Housing, healthcare are a couple of the issues that I know that she's cared about. She was there when we were working on environmental justice. When I worked on Capitol Hill, she always showed up. So she would be an excellent, an excellent new member on the Senate. So I'm looking forward to it. But like you said, it's going to take a lot of money. And that means that folks are going to have to get out and support her if you believe in the work that she's always done and can do. Candace, one of the things that we've heard from African-Americans who run statewide is they don't get enough financial support from the Democratic Party apparatus from these various PACs. Again, that is going to be an issue because, again, it's going to be an expensive primary.

And that's what it boils down to. And to run statewide in California, you've got to have a lot of money to run on a lot of expensive TV markets. Well, you know what? That's exactly how it is in Texas as well. So basically, you have to get behind the person who you want your democracy to represent. So in so many words, she's got to have to have a war chance. And she's going to have to have donors. She's going to have to have a war chance and she's going to have to have donors. She's

going to have to have those packs. So if California wants her to represent them in the Senate, they got to get together and they got to make this money because that's what's going to win elections. And this is a very expensive race because we see it all the time here in Texas. That right there, Mustafa, again, money, money, money. And so Democrats will be duking it out. But it's interesting, though, how do you see this race in terms of, okay, who you're appealing to? And so who can out-progressive progressives? Well, nobody's going to out-progress Barbara Lee.

She's always been out there on the front lines on some of the most important issues. I remember when she stood up, you know, against us going to war. So when the other folks kind of got some pressure and shrunk to the background, if you will. But, you know, when we're talking about money, Barber League will make sure that both the barbershops and the beauty salons and those folks are actually activated and are out supporting her. But we also got a whole lot of folks there

in that big industry that we call Hollywood who are also going to have to make some decisions. So if you say that you want to support the changes that are necessary in our country, then those actors and actresses and producers and editors, you know, then you're going to have to make sure that you're also putting your dollars where your words are. So that's another pot of money that folks will be vying for. And, you know, she should be. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

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

I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 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 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 Corps vet. MMA fighter Liz Karamush.

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

And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Here's the deal. We got to set ourselves up. See, retirement is the long game. We got to make moves and make them early. Set up goals. Don't worry about a setback. Just save up and stack up to reach them.

Let's put ourselves in the right position. Pre-game to greater things. Start building your retirement plan at thisispretirement.org. Brought to you by AARP and the Ad Council. One of the top candidates that folks are wanting to support in a financial way. Candace, I also expect a lot of black women nationally to really be invested in this race because not having an African-American woman in the United States Senate is a problem. Folks were hoping that Sherri Beasley was going to be elected in North Carolina. She wasn't. And so a lot of hopes are going to be placed on Barbara Lee securing the nomination for the Democratic nomination to go to the general election. Right, and you're absolutely right about that

because you got to keep in mind, this here is a very serious, serious position that we need another African-American woman in that Senate. So they have to strategize, they have to be able to galvanize, and then at the end of the day, it boils down to, you have to have the war chance. You have to have it.

Because if not, then it's going to be an issue. And then by her being in California, just like Brother said, you have all of these actors, celebrities and things like that. So you need to get behind her. You need to put your money as to what you want your democracy to look like. And that's my take on it. Absolutely. And so I think, folks, what we are seeing is going to be a very, very, very difficult race. Of course, Senator Barbara Lee, she tweeted today, I'm proud to announce my candidacy for U.S. Senate. I've never backed down from doing what's right and I never will. Californians deserve a strong, progressive leader who has delivered real change. And so, like I said, she currently serves on the U.S. House Budget and Appropriations Committee. That's always important when you talk about states.

It's always about who has the money and who can access the money. And so that's what's happening there. All right, folks, a lot more news to talk about. We're going to discuss this Intuit study dealing with black businesses. Also talk about a Supreme Court hearing case dealing with Google as well. So a lot to unpack. Don't forget to support us in what we do. Join our Bring the Funk fan club.

Every dollar you give goes to support what we do. Check your money order. Go to PO Box 57196, Washington, D.C., 20037-0196. Cash App, Dollar Sign, RM Unfiltered. PayPal, RM Martin Unfiltered. Venmo is RM Unfiltered. Zelle, Roland at RolandSMartin.com. Roland at RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Don't forget to get a copy of my book, White Fear,

How the Browning of America is Making White Folks Lose Their Minds. Available at all bookstores. Download a copy on Audible as well. We'll be right back. Next on Get Wealthy with me, Deborah Owens, America's Wealth Coach. Listen to this. Women of color are starting 90% of the businesses in this country. That's the good news.

The bad news, as a rule, we're not making nearly as much as everyone else. But joining us on the next Get Wealthy episode is Betty Hines. She's a business strategist and she's showing women how to elevate other women. I don't like to say this openly, but we're getting better at it.

Women struggle with collaborating with each other. And for that reason, one of the things that I demonstrate in the sessions that I have is that you can go further together if you collaborate. That's right here on Get Wealthy, only on Black Star Network. Next on The Black Table with me, Greg Carr.

An hour of living history with Dr. Richard Mariba Kelsey, thinker, builder, author, and one of the most important and impactful elders in the African-American community. He reflects on his full and rich life and shares his incomparable wisdom about our past, present and future. I'm a genius. It's saying that my uncle was a genius. My brother was a genius. My neighbor was a genius. I think we ought to drill that in ourselves and move ahead rather than believing that I got it.

That's next on The Black Table, here on The Black Star Network. We're all impacted by the culture, whether we know it or not. From politics to music and entertainment, it's a huge part of our lives. And we're going to talk about it every day, right here on The Culture, with me, Faraji Muhammad, only on The Blackstar Network. Hi, I'm Eldie Barge. Hey, yo, peace world. What's going on?

It's the love king of R&B, Raheem Devon, and you're watching Roland Martin, Unfiltered. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food.

I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. I'm going to go get some food. Martin! Să ne urmăm în următoarea mea rețetă. Welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcast live here in Los Angeles. According to new data from Intuit, black entrepreneurs are facing more difficulty starting a viable business. The Financial Management Survey, 1,000 black business owners to share their small business struggles and successes. The survey revealed on average it cost approximately $21,000 to start a business compared to $16,000. 57% said that they were denied bank loans at least once. 34%. Well, first of all, I don't understand. I'm assuming when it comes to starting a business, that's black to white. The graphic should say that.

I don't know what. It costs approximately $21,000 to start their business compared to $16,000 of what? So, guys, get the graphic right. 34% report being denied a bank loan more than once, twice the amount. 36% did not understand that there various loan and grant options available. 79% had to pay expenses or employees with personal funds at least once in the last two years. Dr. Jacqueline King is the founder of Black Women Empowered from Fort Wayne, Indiana. Dr. King, glad to have you here.

Look, here's the deal. First of all, the Intuit study is not new. It's not like it's giving us any new data here. But the reality is, I dare say, when we talk about our businesses, we talk about growing our businesses. It's not always a question of access to capital. It's also access to contracts. Being able to grow that way, that also is critically important. Absolutely, you're correct. And, you know, first of all, I want to say congratulations to Barbara Lee. That's amazing news. But, yeah, so even down to the ARPA funds, which I'm sure you're familiar with that. I mean, when you go there and it's supposed to be for

unprivileged communities or low income communities, but the cities, the local cities are doing what they want to with the money. A lot. I'm hearing it. I have a Linda Gray who works with me and my nonprofit. She's hearing it over and over. And the funds are just not coming to the people who it's supposed to be for. So it's not just the bank loans. This is the way the local communities are governing as well. So if we're talking about and I think you see efforts in Congress trying to make some changes to that. And look, what has to happen is the pressure has to be put on these banks, because, again, when we're locked out of contracts and we're locked out of resources, you can't grow. You can't build. You have no capacity.

That is absolutely so. We can we can unify. That's the biggest thing. And I love what I heard someone say just a few minutes ago. I think it was you collaboration. If we don't come together and and make decisions as a group, we're not going to patronize your bank because you don't give money to the black communities. We're never going to we're never going to overcome this obstacle. March 1st, I'm going to be doing a two hour show dealing with the lack of contracts and how we're getting frozen out by these companies and these ad agencies and breaking it down in a very specific way. And that's what it boils down to. I was talking to somebody and I said, look, I said, our business, I said, we've been, we said we're profitable. We're in the black. I'm not trying to run out and raise investor money or trying to, I don't want a bank loan because we can pay our bills. What we need are contracts. And so what's happening is

we're in a perfect position, but we get screwed by these folks. And that's also what's happening when we're frozen out of the deal flow. Then we don't we're not able to truly grow. So even when you create a successful black owned business, if you're not getting the contracts, you can't go anywhere. Do you know, I found out when I was a commissioner in North Carolina that the way these contracts happen in many cases is that it's a, if I can just be real, we're unfiltered. A white man will get his wife, who is now a minority, a woman and a minority owned business. He will put the business in her name so she can get the contract and compete with the black woman, the black man. But that's how they do it. They go back door. And so, yeah,

we got to come up with other solutions to get the money and the contracts. Questions. Mustafa, you first. Yeah, well, my question is, how do you think the best way for us to educate our communities on these sets of hurdles and then also bringing forward how folks have been able to navigate them and to be able to move in a positive direction. And that's what Black Women Empowered does. So we've been together for 11 years, and that's what we do. We educate on finances, how to get contracts, how to get the money through grants and loans. But really, it takes us working together. I can't emphasize enough collaboration.

And that's where we struggle. We struggle coming together and saying, okay, if we can get this contract together, we have a better chance. Five, 10 of us apply for the contract together, not one individual. So it's really education and believing that we can come together and working on coming together to get the contracts. Candace. Okay, so I'm a business owner here in Houston, Texas, and I also have a business in Beaumont. I own a foster adoption agency. And so what we get contracts that's directly from the state and also the federal

government. And so what I have uncovered when it comes to dealing with the disparities is that systemic racism raises ugly head in this process. And so what they do, I didn't cut them to where they have forged compliance history, to where're trying to make minority providers, to make us obsolete by finding us all of these fines to where now your business is going to go in the rain. So it's a lot of factors with this, and I am very steadfast on it. So what is your take on how can we deal with this in this type of capacity? Because in my opinion, I believe in legislation, agitation, and litigation. You come over here and mess with my business, I'm going to sue your body.

What is your take? And that's why we need women and men in the government that look like us. It was very disappointing that Cheryl Beasley didn't get in the Senate. But we don't even come together to support our own, let alone worrying about what the Democratic PAC is doing. We can't even come together to say, yeah, we're all going to pull and support this person. You don't have to live in the same state to support them monetarily. We can do that. Like Roland said, it's going to take a lot of money. Doesn't matter where the money is coming from.

But if we want to get them elected, everybody's going to have to chip in. Well, absolutely. And I think we also have got to have a segment called Where's Our Money? We also got to put pressure on policymakers to understand how do they also free the contracts up? Because on the federal level, we're only getting one point six, seven percent of all federal contracts. I'm sorry, that's unacceptable. And the deal is, if you're not getting federal contracts, you're not getting corporate contracts. So then we're always frozen and stuck making small money. I agree. But as you know, in this era, they don't really care.

I mean, what kind of pressure are you talking about? They don't care what we do. This has been improved after Donald Trump. They basically said do whatever you want to do. We're going to do what we want to do. I don't have the answer on how to put pressure on the government. I don't.

I do. Please tell me. Tell me. Well, here's first and foremost. Black caucuses on the state level have got to be far more aggressive when it comes to forcing these folks to change the rules when it comes to contracts. First of all, you're not breaking down an analysis of who's not getting what. Then you don't know what to do.

Then you can't then you can't actually impact it. So I've been doing that and challenging the Biden administration, challenging the Congressional Black Caucus, saying, look, it's ridiculous on the advertising side. Black owned media is getting one percent of federal advertising contracts. And so you could create changes by being able to put pressure on the system and tell them policymakers, you want our votes, but we ain't getting contracts. You better make sure we get some more damn contracts or somebody else is going to get our vote. That's how we have to do it. But you cannot do that if you are not organized and mobilized. And that's why, and really, you probably don't remember, I reached out to you on Clubhouse and said,

I need you to come on my network because that's what we need. We need your voice out here telling the people what they need to do to get these contracts. I mean, who else is doing it besides you? That's why we do it.

Well, here's the deal. I can't control what other people do. That's why I built this show, built this network, and why we do it. And so that's how I talk about it and keep pushing it. But, again, it's real easy to say, oh, my God, let's start a business. But that's part of the problem. We have a bunch of small businesses with one employee. We need to build bigger capacity.

That's what we need. Dr. King, we appreciate it. Thanks a lot. Thank you for having me. All right, folks, got to go to break. We'll be right back. Roland Martin on the Black Star Network. Don't forget on YouTube, hit the like button you're watching.

Hit the share button on Facebook. Same thing on the Black Star Network app. And again, folks, support us in what we do. Download the app, Apple phone, Android phone, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, and then of course you can also support us

by joining our Bring the Funk fan club. Check your money orders, PO Box 57196, Washington, D.C. 20037-0196, Cash App, Dollar Sign, RM Unfiltered, PayPal, Martin Unfiltered, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future

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

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

And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves.

Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz 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. Here's the deal. We gotta set ourselves up. See, retirement is the long game. We gotta make moves and make them early. Set up goals. Don't worry about a setback. Just save up and stack up to reach them.

Let's put ourselves in the right position. Pre-game to greater things. Start building your retirement plan at thisispretirement.org. Brought to you by AARP and the Ad Council. On that, my one, my filter.com. We'll be right back. Hatred on the streets a horrific scene a white nationalist rally that descended into deadly violence white people are losing their damn minds there's an angry pro-trump mob storm to the u.s

capital we're about to see the rise of what I call white minority resistance. We have seen white folks in this country who simply cannot tolerate black folks voting. I think what we're seeing is the inevitable result of violent denial. This is part of American history. Every time that people of color have made progress, whether real or symbolic, there has been what Carol Anderson at Emory University calls white rage as a backlash. This is the rise of the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Boys. America, there's going to be more of this. There's all the Proud Boys, 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 relationship that we have to have. We're often afraid of it and don't like to talk about it. That's right. We're talking about our relationship with money. And here's the thing. Our relationship with money oftentimes determines whether we have it or not. The truth is you cannot change what you will not acknowledge. Balancing your relationship with your pocketbook. That's next on A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, here at Blackstar Network.

Hi, I'm Gavin Houston. Hey, what's up, y'all? It's your boy, Jacob Lattimore, and you're now watching Roland Martin right now. Eee! Thank you. Să ne urmăm în următoarea mea rețetă. All right, folks, welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. The U.S. Supreme Court, folks, they are looking at a case dealing with Google relates to content. They heard arguments today about allowing websites to be sued for the automatic recommendations of user content. They heard arguments today about allowing websites to be sued for the automatic recommendations of user content. For nearly three hours, Supreme Court Justice Patern has presented their case to hold Google accountable for suggesting YouTube videos created by terrorist groups. The case stems from the death of Nohemi Gonzalez, an American college student

killed in a terrorist attack in Paris. The family wants to sue Google, whose YouTube algorithms they blame for helping extremists spread their message and attract new recruits. Social analyst and diversity strategist Shereen Mitchell is here to break this thing down. So, Shereen, OK, for the average black person out there, why does this why does this matter? It matters because we're having this conversation about algorithms once again. Right. Like what are the algorithms doing? How does it impact our lives and the spaces in between what is happening with these cases? And by the way, there are two cases. Google was today. Twitter is tomorrow. In reference to the way in which the algorithms present content to you. I think most people think that when they're given that suggestion to go on to other content, particularly on YouTube, that that suggestion is about the fact that, like, Google is suggesting it to you,

Google's algorithms is presenting this additional content and allowing people to do horrific things based on what the content is that that that is being presented. In the case today, what's also being argued is actually Section 230. Section 230 is very complicated. But what Section 230 originally is about is that it gives immunity to the technology platforms if it's a third-party content being produced. So me, as a user, sharing content gives the platform immunity from what I share and that if anyone needs to be responsible, it's me sharing it. What this case is arguing is that immunities should be changed based on the fact that if the algorithms are suggesting content, that they are liable for OK. And so and so with that. Again, suing suing them, they're obviously in control of the algorithm, but it's also based upon a lot of times what users are talking about. And so, yes, could be applied to anything. It could be applied to sex or whatever. Exactly. And that's why it's important because the ways in which anyone who goes onto Google and looks at one video, right?

If I go to The Daily Show, oh, wait, the Roland Martin show. And then I get suggestions for other shows that Roland Martin has had. That is part of the algorithm because that is part of the suggestions yet at the end of the day i am probably interested in more shows that roland martin may be doing however what they're saying is that if you're then being suggested um like uh to go to a a website or a video or an ad that is about anything that would disparage you, the show, or allow anyone else to think about doxing or terrorizing you or your team, then the company is then liable. And that's the part that I think that they're trying to argue. So the one today was in Paris. The one tomorrow was in Istanbul.

And the challenge that they're arguing is I am a third-party person if I share content. And those companies are completely absolved from anything. That includes whether or not they are using their news feeds or their algorithms or anything like that in a different way that keeps these suggestions coming up that can be harmful or can lead people to do harm against themselves, by the way, as well as commit harms against other people. And when we look at this, the question is, like what happened with Facebook,

is Facebook responsible for the massacre that happened in Rohingya if they were the ones that did not take down that content and people actually used it and something bad happened? Or are we asking the question that that content that that that i'm sharing should be moderated enough that there is no harm that gets inflicted and i think it's the moderation part it's the section 230 part that i think we're actually talking about different liability suits. We're talking about different lawsuits. trying to take the Section 230 conversation a little bit further down the distance and says, but were we igniting or promoting or participating in this harm? And the company is saying, if we're not doing it and it's you, it's you, it's the content provider, that's where it should sit and that's where it should be the responsibility. But if we take the blame, if the tech companies now take the blame, they're worried about any possible lawsuits and other aspects.

So today, I would say both sides of the justices kind of agree on how this line is being pushed a little bit too far? Look, it is, look, we're living in a world now where we are going to, we're increasingly controlled by the algorithm. And look, I know for a fact that on Facebook, black content is getting blocked. It's ridiculous how our numbers are being suppressed. I've emailed them numerous times. They're not responding because what Facebook wants to do is to force you to spend money, boosting your own followers as opposed to you having access to them.

And so we see what the game is. And so whenever they change the algorithm, it can have a direct impact on money that is generated by content providers as well. I mean, they are in control of it. And when you have companies like Facebook and Google that control so much of the advertising business, that's one of the reasons why the Biden administration is considering suing them over their monopoly practices. And that's exactly right. The challenge that we're having is that on one end, they are using and manipulating their algorithms because we've had that testimony from Hogan

who showed that they knew that the algorithm was doing something different when it came to protecting white users versus protecting black users on the platform. And this argument is sort of about that. It's like if you're going to institute an algorithm and it has a biased outcome, what at that point is the responsibility? three hours, that came up. If someone is intentionally creating the algorithm to change what your feed is and to protect certain users versus not protecting others, then that in itself is something that we should be talking about. That manipulation is intentional. And honestly, we just had that, right, on Sunday, right? You, I don't call him by his real name. So forgive me, y'all. Apartheid guy got upset that Biden had more traction during Super Bowl and Super Bowl

halftime. So he pulled in his staff and someone created created an algorithm so that his content was now dominant. That action, that action is what these lawsuits should be about, is that if that is actually being done, then yes, then the platforms are liable for whatever happens. And the question now is, are we seeing that? Is that actually happening? Or are we dealing with the fact that they're not doing enough of their own curation and their own monitoring of their terms of service to prevent from harmful things happening? Or are they creating algorithms that are biased and causing, one, causing harm, but two, giving people more access or more platform than others and then forcing people, like everyday people, to have to pay to have the same kind of boosting. Are they also removing groups? Because, for example, my organization, we can't boost at all.

Like, anything that we put out on Facebook has to go out through our general audience because we can't even pay for boosting. And when you make decisions like that, that just says that there's some other issues that we need to be paying attention to because that decision is being made by the organization, by the platform, not because of the content, but because they're making a decision about whether or not they even want that content out. All right, Shereen, we certainly appreciate it. Thanks so much for joining us.

Thank you for having me. All right, folks, I've got to pay some bills. I'll be back on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. Don't forget, support us by downloading our app, Apple Phone, Android Phone, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV. You can also support us by sending a check and money order PO Box 57196

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Next on The Black Table with me, Greg Carr. An hour of living history with Dr. Richard Mariba Kelsey, thinker, builder, author, and one of the most important and impactful elders in the African-American community. He reflects on his full and rich life and shares his incomparable wisdom about our past, present, and future. I'm a genius saying that my uncle was a genius, my brother was a genius, my neighbor was a genius. I think we ought to drill that in ourselves and move ahead rather than believing that I got it. That's next on The Black Table, here on the Black Star Network. We talk about blackness and what happens in black culture.

We're about covering these things that matter to us, speaking to our issues and concerns. This is a genuine people-powered movement. A lot of stuff that we're not getting, you get it. And you spread the word. We wish to plead our own cause to long have others spoken for us. We cannot tell our own story if we can't pay for it. This is about covering us.

Invest in black-owned media. Your dollars matter. We don't have to keep asking them to cover our stuff. So please support us in what we do, folks. We want to hit 2,000 people. $50 this month. Rates $100,000. We're behind $100,000. So we want to hit 2,000. 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 Lott.

And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-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 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. I always had to be so good, no one could ignore me. Carve my path with data and drive. But some people only see who I am on paper.

The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes, rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at taylorpapersceiling.org. Brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council. Hit that. Y'all money makes this possible.

Checks and money orders go to P.O. Box 57196, Washington, D.C., 20037-0196. The Cash App is Dollar Sign RM Unfiltered. PayPal is R. Martin Unfiltered. Venmo is RM Unfiltered. Zelle is Roland at RolandSMartin.com. Hey, I'm Donnie Simpson. What's up? I'm Lance Gross, and you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. Rhea Jeffers has been missing from Phoenix, Arizona, since January 15th. The 17-year-old is 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighs 130 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information about Rhea Jeffers is urged to call the Phoenix Police Department at 602-262-6151, 602-262-6151.

Folks, one of the Arkansas officers caught violently arresting a man on video will not face charges. State Appointed Special Prosecutor Emily White says the state is now pursuing charges against Mulberry Police Officer Thale Riddle. One of the three officers involved in the August 22 arrest of Randall Worchester. Riddle was back at work on the force as of February 17th. The investigations of the incident remains ongoing. Former Crawford County Sheriff's Deputies Levi White and Zach King are still on investigation for slamming Worchester's head on the ground while restrained. The two deputies have been fired and charged with civil rights violations.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on a political tour, folks, which stops in Pennsylvania, New York, and Illinois, basically his anti-crime tour. He headlined the event called Law and Order Florida Leading the Way. Candace from Mayer denounces the visit, including Paul Vallis, who accepted the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police endorsement. Now, after leaving Illinois, DeSantis went to New York. New York City Mayor Eric Adams took shots at DeSantis, a special guest for a conservative law enforcement event. Adams offered to teach DeSantis some of the city's progressive values on Twitter.

Let's go to my panel here. Look, the reality is here, DeMario. Ron DeSantis is going to try to make crime a major issue. This is about pushing the button of white fear. Always. Good to see everybody. Always. That's what white supremacists have always done.

They've always tried to say crime and that something's wrong with us, and they have to bring out the police and the Army and vicious vingances to keep us in line. So there's no question about it. But Ron DeSantis is a smarter guy than Trump. He has a little, but he has less charisma than Trump. So it's going to be interesting to see how he gets out outside of Florida and how his message plays, even though we know white supremacy and white domination always plays well to, unfortunately, the majority of white population. Mustafa, the thing here is, again, we see what's going on, and they believe, oh, we can ride this into the White House based upon what happened in the 2022 midterm elections. Yeah, this is Ron DeSantis' White House tour.

That's what he should call it, a pre-White House tour. You know, it's really interesting. Ron DeSantis didn't say anything about the folks who were breaking the law on January the 6th. He didn't say anything when President Trump was breaking the law with consistency around the clock. And there are a number of other examples of where his voice has been silent.

But whenever he can highlight what, you know what he thinks is black or brown folks, then he jumps all over that. So we know who he is. He's shown us who he is. And folks in Florida and across the country should pay attention. As Mario said, he is someone who may end up being the Republican candidate for president. So pay attention, get engaged and speak out and push back against this foolishness that he continues to try and propagate. And Candace, look, Democrats are going to have to learn how to properly respond and not run out of fear. But, you know, Roland, let me tell you what this jack-legged white supremacist over here is doing. He is doing nothing but going straight

out of the Ronald Reagan playbook. That's exactly what he's doing. Because just like how you brought about the white fear, right? That's exactly what Ronald Reagan did and that is exactly what Donald Trump did by bestowing fear in these white supremacists. You understand what I'm saying?

And so when you do that, then this is what you get. This guy is one of the ones that's waging war on our cultural education. This is somebody that is waging war on our wokeness. This is somebody that is very dangerous, that don't need to be in the White House. He need to be in the doggone psychiatric hospital. Let's talk about Georgia, where a panel has recommended there are a number of people be indicted in the election fraud case. They have been looking at Donald Trump and so many others. A report was released

detailing what should be done. And again, this special grand jury, Mustafa, has recommended a number of folks be prosecuted. The forewoman, Emily Cole, has told the New York Times that it is not a short list of people who should be charged with crimes. Your thoughts? Well, we've known, you know, you just have to put the facts together to sort of highlight these individuals who have been doing all kinds of nefarious things around democracy. And now, you know, folks are pulling it forward. People are going to be held accountable and we'll see how it all plays out.

But they love to try and, you know, put a spotlight on somebody who voted, who may not have known if they were allowed to. These are individuals who have made conscious efforts in this space to really hurt or destroy democracy. But they're not as concerned about democracy as they are their power. And what they're really trying to do is hold on to power, hold on to resources, and they understand that that is tied to the vote. So they get exactly what's coming to them for the things that they've done in the past. The thing here, Candace, when we look at this here, I mean, look, it's going to come down to DA Fannie Willis. She's going to make the decision. And at some point, one of these DAs is going to have to have some guts and go after Donald Trump. Mayor Garland hasn't done it so far.

The DA in Manhattan hasn't done it. The man continues to get away scot-free, never held accountable. But you know what? And that's done by design. See, this is what is important when we say the statement election has consequences. Because when you turn around and you put people in office, you need people that's going to be in office that's not going to be afraid to make the tough decisions. That's going to put people over politics. You understand what I'm saying? And that's not going to be afraid to make the tough decisions, that's going to put people over politics. You understand what I'm saying? And that's not what we get here.

And so my position is this. If you tamper with my democracy, you do the crime, you do the time. And if you have all the facts, you have everything to show exactly this is what this person doing. Well, DA, what's your problem? Put them charges and let's get on with this. What you think, Roland? Demario, somebody has to have some courage to lead. Otherwise, listen, the man knows no bottom.

So he's going to keep doing whatever the hell he wants. If I keep getting away with it, that's like saying, hey, we're never going to hold you accountable for robbing a bank. A bank robber is going to keep robbing. I wish my sister Candace was there in one of these DA offices. I like her. I like you, Candace.

Listen, it's very dangerous because the more that this goes on, month after month, that people are not held accountable, it makes them more powerful, more emboldened, and it makes us all less safe. We all know that there are Black people doing 10, 20, 30 life sentences for one-tenth of 1%

of what people like Donald Trump and even other individuals like Lindsey Graham and other elected officials like Marjorie Taylor Greene, who actually participated not just in trying to steal votes, but the January 6th insurrection. And so each time this is punted down the line, it actually makes those individuals more powerful, more emboldened and more dangerous. So I'm hoping that the DA down there in Atlanta, a black woman, and many times black women have come and done way more for this country than they ever should have based upon how black women have been treated. So hopefully this black woman was

falling on and that tremendous line of black women who have saved and done the right thing when others would not do it. And again, Mustafa, here we're talking about multiple. This grand jury is saying that multiple indictments are being recommended. That means a lot of people were involved in this fraud. Listen to that fool Donald Trump. Oh, without a doubt. You know, it's almost like a crime family when you actually look at all the different types of individuals who are part of this. And it's not just in Georgia. We know that

it's been going on in a number of other states also. So Georgia has the opportunity to set the pace, if you will, for what needs to actually happen. And then hopefully it will, you know, ensure that others won't follow down this path again and try and destroy democracy and actually try and take away black and brown folks when they show up at the polls in high numbers, our opportunity to make sure that democracy is working for everyone. Again, so we're looking at all of this, you know, that is going on. And I tell you, Candace, all across the country, you got elections next year. And at some point, these D is going to have some courage.

So I'm sick of hearing, oh, what, how is his his supporters going to respond? I thought the sound above the Supreme Court says equal justice under law. You know what, Ronald? Let me tell you something. See, this is when your black caucuses, this is where your black collectives and all of these people need to come into play and hold them accountable. And I mean, like, grab that chain, be like, hey, let's not forget who put you in this office. You sit up here and let these people play with our democracy,

I guarantee we're going to turn around and we're going to fire you at the polls. See, we have to be aggressive when it comes to dealing with this stuff. We have to let these people know, baby, you got the wrong one. The wrong one. So I guess, Demario, you don't believe equal justice under law actually exists. Oh, I know it doesn't exist.

I know it doesn't exist. I mean, I work in this space here for a single day and I know it doesn't exist. And we all know it doesn't exist. And it's shown that's kind of the tragedy of Donald Trump that he brought out so much of the underlying discrimination and racism and hatred that has been there, but he bought it to the forefront. That's the real negative of Donald Trump. But the positive side of Donald Trump, as far as trying to move our society truly to a more

equal place is that he's really exposing how unequal things are. You were talking about Governor DeSantis. This guy, while he's up running around talking about crime, he himself committed multiple federal crimes by taking immigrants, kidnapping them, and putting them on a plane and sending them to people's homes in Massachusetts and other places. But it shows that these individuals, we don't have an equal system. We have a two-tiered system, mentor, Brian Stevenson, would say it's much better to be white and rich than to be poor or black in America. Now, we all know that, but we see it so clearly with how Trump and his cronies are being protected. Look what's going on in Fox News. These guys have been exposed to essentially giving out disinformation, falsities, lies.

And yet the FEC has not come in and shut them down. They should have been shut down, period. They are a news organization that has proven and have admitted to lying to their audience to make money. But they're not shut down. So it shows that our society is unequal and we have to continue to push in everything we can to get that equality under law that it's always said we were supposed to have. Alright folks,

hold tight one second, we'll be back on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. YouTube, hit that like button. We should be easily at more than a thousand likes on the YouTube channel. Also folks, share on Facebook and the other platforms as well. Don't forget, download our app. We want to get to 100,000 downloads.

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right now. I'm proud. Support this man, Black Media. He makes sure that our stories are told. Thank you for being the voice of Black America, Roller. Be Black. I love y'all. All momentum we have now, we have to keep this going. The video looks phenomenal.

See, there's a difference between Black Star Network and Black-owned media and something like CNN. You can't be Black-owned media and be scared. It's time to be smart. Bring your eyeballs home. You dig? Next on Get Wealthy with me, Deborah Owens, America's Wealth Coach. Listen to this. Women of color are starting 90% of the businesses in this country. That's the good news. The bad news, as a rule, we're not making nearly as much as everyone else. But joining us on the next Get Wealthy episode is Betty Hines. She's a business strategist and she's showing women

how to elevate other women. I don't like to say this openly, but we're getting better at it. Women struggle with collaborating with each other. And for that reason, one of the things that I demonstrate in the sessions that I have is that you can go further together if you collaborate. That's right here on Get Wealthy, only on Black Star Network. Hi, I'm B.B. Winans. Hi, I'm Kim Burrell. Hi, I'm Carl Painting.

Hey, everybody, this is Sherri Shepherd. You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered, and while he's doing Unfiltered, I'm Să ne vedem la următoarea mea rețetă! Thank you. The I'm Martin. Martin! Să ne urmăm în următoarea mea rețetă. Welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network live from Los Angeles. Rising home prices has caused a lot of people to look at alternatives when it comes to housing. A Georgia developer has created quite the unique pathway. And so we're going to be talking to him in a second about the issue of micro-home communities. I really want to know what the hell that means. But first, let's talk about what's happening. That's going to be in our Marketplace segment.

Let's talk about what's happening in Nevada, where a video of a Nevada police officer slamming a student for recording police has gone viral. A Clark County School District police officer was captured on cell phone video slamming a Durango high school student to the ground and pinning him underneath his knee. This took place on February 9th when officers arrived to investigate a firearm report near the school. I know a lot of cops and they get asked

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The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at taylorpapersceiling.org brought to you by opportunity at work and the ad council. Uh, Roll it.. you know i heard it a little bit right there. Of course, following the incident, the school district launched an investigation. Clark County Superintendent called for a complete review of the police department's use of forced policy.

Joining us now is Athar Hasebullah, I hope I'm pronouncing that correctly, the executive director of the ACLU in Nevada. They've been quite vocal about this incident and holding the officers accountable. So, just so, Athar So I'm trying to understand here, were these officers that were in the school, officers that arrived at the school, did it happen at a school, or was it near a school, this so-called firearm report near the school? Hey, thanks for having us on, Fred. I'll have to fight off all day.

But this incident specifically happened outside of a school. And in Nevada, we have school police. So we have separate police departments here. One of the police departments that exists in Clark County is the Clark County School District's Police Department. So CCSD police, they have jurisdiction over certain elements related to incidents in school. This whole entire notion of a firearm is what the district put out afterwards. I think it was done to clean up. We still have no idea what they're talking about in terms of a firearm. None of our, we're actually representing two of the students that were shown being assaulted by Clark County School District Police there.

And the firearm story, you know, who knows? I know our clients did not have any firearms. There was no basis to even stop them, let alone attack them. We're disgusted by the fact that the district, first, these officers, and the officer most prevalently that slammed one of our clients to the ground is still employed and the district attorney's office hasn't even bothered to investigate this yet so we have called for that officer's termination and we've called for the d.a's office to investigate this as they would any incident of assault i mean what what is strange here again i mean, you're seeing how these police are responding.

And it's just it always just keeps happening where, look, how they respond in these school situations in very much a very violent manner. I mean, again, dragging this person, slamming their head, and their head is nearly under the base of the car. Yeah, and it's a child. You know, that's the thing, is that any time it's a white kid who's 19 or a young adult, they'll refer to him as a child. And these are students who are at the very beginning of their high school careers, and they're being assaulted by police. And what happens when we see students like this assaulted? I mean, this is an assault on video.

Where is our district attorney? ACLU is not the district attorney. We're here to seek justice, and we'll do that through civil means, but where is our district attorney? They have the ability to investigate this. They gave a statement on Friday after pressure from our office and from the NAACP here where we called for the DA to investigate this. They gave a statement on Friday after pressure from our office and from the NAACP here, where we called for the DA to investigate this. And their response was, if the Clark County School District police refer this for prosecution, they'll look into it. So basically, refer yourself for prosecution, and we'll look into it, which has never been the

legal standard. It's never been the legal standard. There's no courage out of that office. They need to speak up and do something. Certainly they have the time to prosecute kids for holding a dime bag of cannabis or for missing school or parents involved in a domestic squabble. But when it comes to a vicious assault that's recorded on video where school police are attacking a child, there's no courage to stand up and do anything about it. That's what we continue to see all the time, Demario. We're trying to hold cops accountable and you're dealing with DAs who frankly are in bed with them. Each and every day they make cases based upon the testimony of officers. So it's an inherent conflict of interest, something that we have fought for for decades, trying to take the prosecution of police officers or even the investigation of police officers away from themselves, the police, and away from the DA's officers that work with them each and every day. You don't have to even be a corrupt person to have a difficult time investigating or prosecuting individuals that you work with.

So it just makes our system, again, not an equal justice under the law because these are friends of each other. I couldn't tell specifically on that video what the officer alleged the young man had done, but based upon what I saw, it appeared the young man just had a video, and it actually appeared he was walking away from the scene, and the officer ran up on the young man and grabbed

him and put him on the ground. So, I don't know what the issue is there for why that happened. I'm glad to see the ACLU is on board to try to get their family, as the executive director said, some civil justice. But civil justice is not criminal justice, and criminal justice can only come either from the DA's office or, I don't know how they do in Nevada, maybe the state attorney general's office can pick up and press charges. And of course,

the DOJ could come in. If we had a more robust DOJ, if we had the type of funding for the DOJ civil rights division that we give for likes, for instance, Ukraine, where we say we'll Division can come out and prosecute these type of malicious, vicious attacks on young people and black people and innocent unarmed people. Maybe we can move towards that equal justice under law that we've been talking about all day on this show. So, so, so, Demar, are you saying that the current DOJ is not doing that? I'm saying the current DOJ is not doing enough, right? Because the current DOJ is under-resourced. It's understaffed. It's underfunded. The DOJ Civil Rights Division is very underfunded. We need double, triple the amount of resources and lawyers and investigators for the civil rights violations that happen all over this country. See, the fact of the matter is we see these type of videos. We see what happened to Brother Tyree Nichols in Memphis or

what happened to George Floyd. But the reality is that that's happening each and every day all over this country. And many times people don't have the luxury of having someone videotaping it. And they don't have the luxury, even there are many police departments in this country that don't have body cam or DAS cams. And these things are happening each and every day to people in our communities. And because these local police departments, they're not going to investigate themselves. The local prosecutors, they're not going to prosecute unless there's tremendous public outcry. But look how much energy it takes to have the type of outcry that we have in Tyree Nichols or Ahmaud Arbery or Botham

John or any of those cases. That's just a fraction of what actually happens. But if we had a robust DOJ, a civil rights division that was properly staffed, properly funded, that could go out and bring the charges that are necessary across this nation, we could possibly have equal justice under law. Until that happens, it will not be a reality. It's what you say, Roland, all the time. You've got to have funding for black media.

You've got to have funding to fight these white supremacists. Yeah, no, no, no. No, no, I understand that. What I'm saying is, again, there's a difference between saying increased funding and they're not doing it, meaning more needs to be done. What we actually have here, Thar, is a DOJ that's been far more aggressive than, frankly, the Obama DOJ was. No question about that. There's no question they're far more aggressive, but it's still scratching the surface.

No, no, no. DeMario, DeMario, DeMario,ario, Demario, Demario. I'm asking Athar. Do Athar go ahead? Yeah. Yeah. No, I would say that, look, they have taken on more cases. I don't know that that's been enough, right? We've had DAs on occasion across the country who have taken on cases. It hasn't been enough. We have certain law enforcement officers that have stepped up and said certain officers, when they're engaged in excessive force and serious misconduct,

they like to see those officers prosecuted, but it hasn't been enough. And so to the point that was made, I do agree that whether it's a resource issue or it's the frequency of what's occurring, some of these issues are problematic, and a lot of it's local. The DOJ is not going to step into every community to deal with every issue. Quite frankly, they'll never have enough resources to be able to do that. But really, in this case here in Nevada right now, as we're using this as an example, we're going to push the issue as far as we can. We know our partners at the NAACP on the ground here who also have new leadership

are going to be pushing the issue as far as we can. We know our partners at the NAACP on the ground here, who also have new leadership, are going to be pushing the issue as far as we can. We're not going to keep settling for a no response from the district attorney's office. This is an individual who was elected to seek justice for everyone. And again, the fact that they're not even willing to investigate it, their feet need to be held to the fire on these types of issues too. Because when you see 14-year-old kids being assaulted by grown men for simply recording a video or standing there and doing nothing, there is no justice. And until that happens, we're not going to keep continuing to just say, let's talk about processes. Too often, that's been the request.

We're demanding solutions right now. We have specific demands. This officer needs to be terminated. And the longer they're waiting to terminate it, we're going to keep seeking potentially additional clients to pursue this and open up this further. They have the ability to handle this matter in-house. But again, they're afraid of their unions. And I'll call out the police unions for this because they do this time and time again. They continue to cape for bad officers engaged in misconduct, and it denigrates and destroys the rest of the field.

And then they come and say, you can't paint us all with a bad picture. But when you're not even willing to stand up to the worst of the worst, what you just saw on a video like this, it makes it hard to take them credibly when they're making or taking a position surrounding accountability or surrounding justice and treatment of really anybody. So, again, we're asking for specific demands and specific solutions here. I don't want to be included in their process. I can tell you what the process should be here for excessive force. Stop assaulting our black kids. It's pretty simple. But they're not doing it.

So fire the officer and prosecute. All right. We still appreciate it. Thanks a lot for coming on. Thank you. All right, folks, I'll be right back.

Rolling Mark on the filter on the black side network. We talk about blackness and what happens in black culture. We're about covering these things that matter to us, speaking to our issues and concerns. This is a genuine people-powered movement. A lot of stuff that we're not getting, you get it. And you spread the word. We wish to plead our own cause

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On a next A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, a relationship that we have to have. We're often afraid of it and don't like to talk about it. That's right. We're talking about our relationship with money. And here's the thing. Our relationship with money oftentimes determines whether we have it or not. The truth is you cannot change what you will not acknowledge. Balancing your relationship with your pocketbook. That's next on A Balanced Life with me, Dr. Jackie, here at Black Star Network. Pull up a chair.

Take your seat at the Black Table with me, Dr. Greg Carr, here on the Black Star Network. Every week, we'll take a deeper dive into the world we're living in. Join the conversation only on the Black Star Network. Hey, I'm Donnie Simpson. What's up, I'm Lance Gross, and you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. As I said, come on. I said, folks, we're talking about this issue of housing and micro home ownership. Pretty interesting concept here.

There's a community in Atlanta area called the Booker T. Washington. It's called the Southern South Park Cottages. Atlanta's first black ownedowned micro-home community. Joining us right now is the founder and CEO of Techie Homes, Inc., of course, Booker T. Washington. So I'm trying to explain this to me. What is a micro-home? A micro-home, Roland, first, thanks for having me on the show. But a micro home is just, in its terms, just a smaller home.

We've all lived in a home of different sizes. I would say many years ago or decades ago, we lived in much smaller homes that were 800 and 900 square feet, more than we live in homes that are larger sizes now. And so what my organization, Techie Homes, has done is inside of urban metropolitan areas, and Atlanta is just one city of many that's affected by rising rental prices, rising home prices, and rising cost of living that we've outpaced, especially for minorities who are already trailing behind in homeownership, an opportunity at homeownership. It's almost now that you don't even have a choice at homeownership in certain metro areas. It's either to be gentrified out of that area and being forced to rent because there's no home of good quality or new construction that would fit your budgets. And so, you know, my organization, Techie Homes, created this community, South Park Cottages,

here in College Park, Georgia, outside of Atlanta, for the distinct purpose of providing some form of accessible and affordable home ownership. So you're talking about homes that, first of all, what were the sizes of these homes? The sizes of our homes range from 400 square feet to 630 square feet. And the reason that we define them as micro homes and not tiny homes is because the average tiny home goes up to 300 square feet and predominantly is on wheels or some form of transported foundation. But these micro homes are all foundation, no different than maybe the home you're sitting in right now and built in the same construction type from standard construction build. The difference is it's because of the cost of construction to the developer and to the price of the homeowner, which ranges from one hundred and eighty thousand to two hundred and twenty thousand in an average mortgage being 14 or fifteen hundred dollars.

That is a much better option than renting at the average rent of Atlanta, which now exceeds twenty two hundred dollars for a one-bedroom apartment. Interesting here. Mustafa, you're a big-time environmentalist. What do you make of this? First of all, Booker T. Washington, man, thank you so much for being here with us. Could you talk a little bit about the materials that you all use? Because, you know, that plays a role also if a home is smaller in the resale value, because we know we're always trying to address the black wealth, white gap that exists in our country. So could you talk a little bit about the tech and what's

in the space? Yeah, absolutely. I'm actually sitting in one of our micro homes right now. The home I'm sitting in is 630 square feet. They're built in modern design and they're built in, I would say, an above builder type of grade build than most homes. Our homes are outside cladded with cement board siding. They're built in a stick built frame. They have 10 foot ceilings. They have farmhouse sinks and granite countertops. They feature one loft and one-bedroom loft homes and feature ceramic tile and all of the modern fixtures and recessed lights

that you have in any standard or luxury-built home. The big difference is that we reduce the square footage and expand the living space and experience space for the homeowner, allowing them the opportunity to own a piece of real estate at the same price or lower than they would renting. And we can do it in a small area in these infield lots and abandoned and vacant houses, we can tear them down and put 20 homes in a two-acre area, which is better than putting up an apartment where the minorities are being forced to live and not have home ownership, decreasing their opportunity to grow in wealth and growth and prosperity. Candace.

Yes, sir. Okay, so I did some research on your organization, and one thing that I liked about it is that it's all black, and it's everybody working together in partnership, because you know they always try to say that black people can't work together. So the vibe that I'm getting here is the black Wall Street vibe for some reason. But

me living in Texas and our cost of living is totally different compared to up north because I currently live in a 6,400 square foot home and I'm only paying $1,200. So how would that work coming into Texas? Because I'm going to tell you now, nobody in Texas is not going to pay that amount.

So how would you maneuver that? But our product, and thank you for that, And by being all black developed, this community and this development, which is a multimillion dollar development, we develop by crowdfunding. We develop by going to social media and talking and asking people that look like us and that connect with us that we wanted to build this type of community. Now, there are more rural spaces and there are urban and metropolitan spaces. This type of community much more fits in a metropolitan and urban space because in a rural space, there will be larger homes at a much lower price. So, for example, the average 1,200 square foot to 2,000 square foot home in Atlanta inside of the major metro Atlanta area. New construction will cost you close to half a million. Now, to afford that house, you have to be making, or a household has to be making, close to $125,000 to live. Now, for minorities who predominantly work in urban areas and more labor jobs or jobs that incomes

are under $60,000, if you're not building a home that fits their cost of living, how would they ever be able to afford a home unless they move outside of the area they work in? And if they move outside the area they work in, then you predominantly are putting more stresses on that household and more stresses on their income, rents went up, investor home buying of single family and density housing went up. And they moved out black people more and more out of urban areas. You can say that about Chicago, Atlanta, L.A., Miami and in the course of New York, of course. But that's just where we are. I got literally 45 seconds. Demario, quick question, quick answer.

Go. Man, Boogie T. Washington, I love the name. Went to Boogie T. Washington High School. Appreciate the work that you're doing. It's really amazing to hear. Tell us more about the crowdfunding. How that works. How does that work?

So the way we crowdfunded is, is in this institution of development and real estate, there's always heavy capital needs. And so we wanted to prove a point that our community, which has over a trillion dollars of disposable income as black folks, where we spend more of our consumer dollars on material things and other ethnic groups. We wanted to showcase that our ethnic group and others can combine and from their own pockets and small amounts of money do big things. And that's how we created the first ever micro-built community that is a $6 million community that sold out in under 30 days. All right, then. Booker T. Washington, I appreciate it, man. Thank you so very much.

Good luck with it. Yes, sir. Thanks, Roland. Demario, Candace, Mustafa, I certainly appreciate it. Thank you so very much for y'all joining us on the panel today. Folks, that is it for me. Don't forget, download our app, Apple Phone, Android Phone, Apple TV,

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