#RolandMartinUnfiltered - Trump lies about Black unemployment; Gayle King has people hot; Venmo founder talks Culture Shift

Episode Date: February 16, 2020

2.7.20 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Trump lies about Black unemployment; Gayle King has people hot; Venmo founder talks Culture Shift Gayle King's recent interview about Kobe Bryant has people up in arms, Roland talks to Venmo founder about culture shifting, and Trump continuously lies about black unemployment. #RolandMartinUnfiltered partner: Are you looking to enhance your leadership or that of your team in 2020? Join Dr. Jacquie Hood Martin as she engages others to think like a leader. Register and start the online course today! www.live2lead.com/Leesburg #RolandMartinUnfiltered 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. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Today is Friday, February 7th, 2020. Coming up on Roland Martin Unfiltered. What in the hell has Gayle King started? She got Kobe Bryant 50 Cent, all kind of other entertainers mad and upset with her because of her questions to Lisa Leslie

about Kobe Bryant and of course the sexual assault trial that he went through. We're going to break it down here. Alright folks, don't listen to Donald Trump. Black unemployment is trending up. We'll talk about it with here. All right, folks, don't listen to Donald Trump. Black unemployment is trending up. We'll talk about it with a black economist. Also, folks, on today's show,

several of the Democratic presidential candidates debate tonight in New Hampshire. The caucus is there, and they still have not figured out who the hell won the Iowa caucus. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, first of all, New Hampshire is the primary, not caucuses.

Thank goodness. Also, my conversation with Venmo founder Ingram Magdon Ismail. You don't want to miss that, folks. It's time to bring the funk on Roland Martin Unfiltered. Let's go. The fact the fine and when it breaks he's right on time and it's rolling best believe he's knowing putting it down from sports to news to politics with entertainment just for kicks he's rolling it's all go go go y'all it's rolling yeah It's Roland Martin. Rolling with Roland now.

He's bunk, he's fresh, he's real the best. You know he's Roland Martin now. Martin. Job numbers came out today, and even though 225,000 new jobs were created in January, the unemployment rate edged up to 3.6% from a 50-year low of 3.5% as more people entered the labor force in search of work. That's the national story. Now for the reality of black unemployment. The black unemployment rate has gone up to 6.0%, and the participation rate has dropped down to 62.6%,

as you see in these charts here. And that's not what Donald Trump said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday. The unemployment rate for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans has reached the lowest levels in history. African American youth unemployment has reached an all-time low. Joining me right now is Benga Agilore, senior economist at the Center for American Progress. Doc, how are you doing?

I'm doing well, thank you. All right, so let's get right to it. Donald Trump loves to keep talking about how he's just been so amazing for black people. First of all, the unemployment rate of black people are double that of whites. But him and his supporters have refused to acknowledge that it's been going up, especially among black men. Please break it down for us. So one of the things we've looked at is since October of last year,

it's been trending upward, almost half a percentage point up. And while some of it's been because of an increase, more people joining the labor force, labor force participation has been going up, we saw this job numbers that it's actually dropped. And so it doesn't make sense that if the labor force participation rate dropped, that the unemployment rate still continues to go up. And so that gives us actually dropped. And so it doesn't make sense that if the labor force participation rate dropped, that the unemployment rate still continues to go up. And so that gives us a concern. So again, you're saying that Black unemployment

has been trending up since October. Right. So half a percentage point up. So when he keeps running around talking about how well Black people are doing and how it's at its lowest, they're in denial about the last five or six months. They are. And but what's actually more concerning is that even if it's, you know, in October, it was at five point five percent, which was the lowest. But if you look at when the white unemployment rate was five point five percent, that was back in December of 2013. And no one was talking about how great it was 5.5 percent that was back in december of 2013 and no one was talking about how great it was

then so it's like they're telling us that people should be black people should be happy with the unemployment rate over five percent when other groups have unemployment rates below four percent and that's consistently below four percent all right so let's talk specifically let's break it down uh when it comes to what is it what are the numbers looking like for black men, for black women, and then for black teenagers? So for black men and black women, black men have a higher unemployment rate and consistently upwards of 5.8%, sometimes up to 6%. Black women have actually participated a lot more, so their unemployment rates are a lot lower. So sometimes last year, it actually got below 5%, but it's actually been going back up. But then for black youth, it's really high. It's upwards of 20%. Sometimes it goes down to 15%, but for black youth, it is really high. So while

if you look at the over a long period of time that it might be low, it's still relative to any other group, really high. It's something that's concerning. It's something that should concern the administration. So you talk about those numbers there. Now, Donald Trump also claimed in his report, in his speech, about wages and how wages are going up as well. Are we seeing that for African-Americans? So we are seeing wage growth for African-Americans. But one of the things we have to think about is how is wage growth compared to other groups? And so we look at wage growth has been going up,

but it's been going up at the low rate of distribution, but that's not because of federal policy. That's what's happening is that over the last number of years, a number of states have been raising their minimum wages, and that's had a positive impact on low end distribution and especially for African Americans. All right, what else should we know about the unemployment numbers that the administration is not telling us? Well, one of the things we have to look at is we look at the ratio of,

basically the gap, and look at the ratio of the black unemployment rate to the white unemployment rate. And since the number's been recorded, since the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it's always been double the rate. So you go back from January 1972, basically almost 50 years later, that has always still been double, and that's never closed. And so when you talk about, you know, somebody to be honoring or saying that's something to celebrate, the fact that that black unemployment rate's always been double the white unemployment rate and has never closed is very concerning. It's not something to celebrate and should be the focus of policy. All right, then. All right then.

All right, sir. Well, I certainly appreciate it. Thank you so very much for joining us. And look, this is why you gotta have real information as opposed to the lies that he tells. So Benjia Agiloray, Senior Economist for the Center for American Progress, thanks a lot. Thank you for having me.

All right, wanna go to my panel right now. Theresa Lund, the principal founder of TML Communications, joins me via Skype. Gustavo Santiago Ali, I want to go to my panel right now. Theresa Lundy, principal founder of TML Communications, joins me via Skype. Gustavo Santiago Ali, former senior advisor for environmental justice at the EPA. And Joseph Williams, senior editor, US News and World Report. Joseph, the problem I have with all of these people, with these analysis of the State of the Union, is they got so caught up in the hype, in the optics, as opposed to what he was actually saying.

We broke it down on Wednesday, all the lies he told. He keeps lying about black unemployment rate. Well, you repeat a lie and people believe that it's true. And that's part of the problem is that you have so many of the president's misstatements, I mean, lots. You know, he's not telling the truth about a lot of things. And one of the things that he's not telling the truth is about the state of black America.

And in him touting the unemployment numbers, it's persistently been double the white unemployment rate for years. And for him to say that it's at record low, that doesn't tell you the whole truth. It doesn't even tell you part of the truth. And not only is unemployment double the white community, wage growth is half of the white community. And for the economic gap we still haven't recovered from from the Great Recession housing for african-americans is still down wealth for african-americans is still down and the people that would benefit the most from a minimum wage increase from seven

dollars in the federal level to fifteen dollars guess who black people because african-americans tend to work in lower wage jobs, tend to work in hourly jobs, and tend to work in jobs that don't have that much of an impact on the movement of unemployment. Teresa, the fact that it's been trending up since October says that they deliberately lied in his speech on Tuesday. And the even better perception was the entire State of the Union audience standing up and clapping like no one did the research. statements, knowing that, you know, there are a lot of missing particular criterias that are happening where, you know, African-Americans aren't being asked about salary wages. They're literally on the hourly rate, which means, you know, it might not be $7.25, but it could be $9 an hour. And even with those

numbers, it still doesn't amount to the nationwide low record numbers that he produced during the summit. So I was kind of actually with Nancy Pelosi when she tore up those papers of his speech because, you know, if we're just not going to talk about truth in numbers, then what are you really saying to the American people? I mean, it's real simple. We should be looking at what are the additional policies that are in place at the Department of Labor and the Department of Commerce. If you say that you are this genius when it comes to creating jobs, to making the economy work, and you know that this disparity has existed in the past and is now growing again, what are you doing to address that? We also know that when it comes to wealth in our country,

that we actually have the lowest home ownership for African-Americans in the past 50 years. So if you can't have a job that you can actually make enough money to be able to have an apartment or to even own a home, then what does that really say about how you are moving forward with your economy? Well, having a job and having a good job. Right, right, right. But see, to me, though, that's where, if you're the Democratic presidential candidate, this is where you need to be hitting him on. You need to be saying, jobs numbers came out.

Oh, yeah, but he's saying this. No, this is the actual truth here. And again, I think they've just been just too timid on being very specific when it comes to the lies that he keeps telling. And to me, that's what they actually have to do. Now, of course, tonight in New Hampshire is going to have a debate taking place before the New Hampshire primaries take place next week. Now, we still don't even know who the hell won

the Iowa caucus. They've still got all kinds of drama. They're reporting 100 percent of the results in. But other folks say it is still the riddle with significant errors. Now, of course, so it's really between Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg as to who won. Elizabeth Warren came in third and fourth place, of course, was Vice President Joe Biden. Also in the debate tonight is going to be, of course, like I say, Biden, Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer, Elizabeth Warren, Andrew Yang. The other candidates did not qualify for this debate. And, Teresa, I want to start with you.

I dare say the one person who has to come out smoking hot in this debate is Joe Biden. He cannot. I mean, the polls already show Sanders has widened his lead in New Hampshire. It's a neighboring state to Vermont. Elizabeth Warren, neighboring mean, the polls already show Sanders has widened his lead in New Hampshire. It's a neighboring state to Vermont. Elizabeth Warren, neighboring state, Massachusetts. She's a Massachusetts senator. Of course, the Buttigieg is doing very well there as well. If you're Joe Biden and you come in fourth or fifth in New Hampshire,

you're going to have to take first or second in Nevada before South Carolina because guess what? His donors are going to get real nervous and money's going to dry up. He's going to be dealing with bad headlines. I mean, he can't get to South Carolina fast enough. No, you're absolutely right. And listen, one of the swing states here is Pennsylvania. And so knowing some of the members on that campaign team, it's been very interesting

on the conversations of, you know, President Joe Biden, because, again, we have statewide races that's happening here. But as he's campaigning, you know, to these other states, the message is starting to get a little wicky. You know, I believe his communications director was on CNN the other day, and she was pretty much saying that, you know, the numbers weren't working. It almost was like a talking point from Trump's playbook as it relates to, you know, something about the system is rigged. And it really became, you know, disconcerting because, you know, yes, you are the VP, but if you're not saying anything new, inspiring, or different, then your other candidates will be next in line to give those fresh ideas a new plan.

So, yes, if you don't hit South Carolina, if you're not hitting Nevada, head strong, then you're going to be in some sort of controversy as it relates to your donor base and your community outreach strategies. Because, yes, here here in pa we're starting to see a shift um and it's just not looking good for bp biden um but here's the other thing joseph i think there's important people to understand he he keeps looking at south carolina as being his firewall totally get it i'm telling you right now i firmly believe that the black folks all you keep seeing these stories biden comes in fourth in Iowa, then all of a sudden

if he comes in fourth in New Hampshire and then he can't place in the top two in Nevada. Remember, the whole thing about Biden's deal was that he could pull those white voters. Black people are going to be saying, damn, Blair, you can't pull them white folks in Iowa, New Hampshire

and Nevada. We ain't on that side. No, but you're the guy. No, I mean, everybody likes a winner, right? And I always have posited this from day one. The African-American vote is a BS detector. I mean, sure enough, they will figure out who is telling the truth, who is not. Hence the suspicion on Bernie Sanders, hence the suspicion on Mayor Pete. And Biden, if he comes in weak, he is not going to be he is not going to do well in South Carolina.

I think one of the important things to remember, however, is that he still does have that halo. I don't know how much longer it's going to last. We'll see. But that's one important thing to remember. The other thing is he's really not been a great candidate. I mean, he's come out as the front runner basically because people know his name and he's the brand that they trust. But remember, in his last two bits for president in 88 and in 08, he never even made it past Iowa. I mean, in 08, he ended up dropping out before the Iowa caucuses. And in 08, he ended up getting trounced. I think he ended up like in the bottom tier coming out of Iowa. Therefore, he's never really been a very particularly strong presidential candidate, and his record is now coming to pass. You know me, I like to ground truth stuff,

so I got on the phone today. And folks are feeling like there's a big hole in the ship, and a lot of people are abandoning the ship. Money is moving over to Bloomberg. That was money that was going to Biden. So, you know, not a huge shift in the money yet. But as you said, if he doesn't do well soon, there's going to be some significant problems. And I think it's going to be different in South

Carolina than a lot of other folks, because I think there are a couple of other candidates who are starting to move up the polls in a significant way because they actually been on the ground, right? Holding hands. They've been building real relationships. They've been getting endorsements from black women and black men and other organizations there. So I wouldn't be surprised if you find that he's not the number one person in South Carolina. First of all, Tom Starr has moved up to second place. Not only that, Teresa, when you begin to break down all of these different factors here, I mean, first of all, there's no one person that's a clear path to 1,900 delegates.

So there's no one person. Obviously, this time around, you don't have the superdelegates having the kind of influence they had in 2016 and before that. And how I'm sort of looking at this whole deal, again, Biden was supposed to be, you know, the person who would look at all the polls.

He can beat Trump in a head to head. But here's the piece. You can't fight Trump in the general until you win the nomination and you got to win the nomination. And so now you begin to unpack this thing. And so now that you look at Bloomberg, OK, a lot of folks said, hey, he gets into the race because Biden was shaky. Now we're seeing Biden is shaky. We're seeing Bloomberg go up in the polls. Now, granted, here's the deal.

Bloomberg is in a flight at 30,000 feet, has not been doing lots of stuff on the ground, doesn't have a strong ground game. Now, he has the money to invest in the ground game, but he still is going to have to answer to stop and frisk. He's going to have to answer to why he did not do a settlement with the Central Park Five. He's going to have to answer to gentrifying neighborhoods in New York. And so avoid, you know, thinking you can do

all this sort of stuff and not answer any of those questions. That also is crazy. And then, of course, they've now changed the debate rules. He's now going to be in debates. If you're one of the other candidates, your deal has to be go hard at him to force him to answer those questions, your assessment. Absolutely.

And listen, Bloomberg was heavily here in Philadelphia yesterday holding a, at the convention center, it was almost like going into a game at an arena and the lights were flashing, the wine and cheese were flowing. And, you know, people who are on the ground, they're like, wait, we don't get this type of treatment. Well, it's a Bloomberg type of event. But outside of the, you know, the fray, we got to really talk about, you know, what Bloomsburg's record is, right? Yes, he's a great business guy, but as it relates to policy, I know he's released, you know, a criminal justice report that's probably one of the best that I've seen thus far. But I do believe there is some opportunity

here for him to break up some of those goals. But he is tapping into some of Biden's support because supporters of VP Biden are starting to see that there is a gap in terms of how VP is handling himself at town halls, what he's doing on the road, and really what his presence is as we look to the future of 2020. We can't even have the debate with Donald Trump because Donald Trump is now, you know, has been acquitted. Right? And he's going around holding up Washington Post papers in that effect. And now he's coming at everybody who,

you know, pretty much went against him. But there, again, there's opportunity here, you know, for the rest of the candidates to really just put their message out, to really get into the grassroots organizations, local municipalities, and some of those community members who's really, you know, undecided. But VP Biden has not put as much emphasis as he should have, in my opinion, in some of those clear areas where he feels like support is, and those organizations are,

and thus we're having to see, you know, the matchup. But here's the other piece. All polls showed how Will Biden was doing. He was tied for first in Iowa comes in fourth. Bloomberg still has to prove he can win a state. So with all, spend $100 million or whatever, of first and Iowa comes in fourth. Bloomberg still has to prove he can win a state. So with all, spend $100 million or whatever,

so he is going to have to win on Super Tuesday. So he's not going to compete in New Hampshire. He's not going to compete in Nevada or South Carolina. His whole deal, if Bloomberg does not, he can't win one state on March 3rd. No, he's got to run the table. He's got to win several states to be able to show you're viable.

Yeah, and there has to be fairness in the process also. You know, when you had, you know, former Secretary Castro, when you had Corey to a degree, when you had some of these other candidates who were not being able to get on the stage because the DNC set the rules that they set. And they said, you know, there was a reason for this because they were trying to, you know,

whittle it down to whoever was going to be the most, you know, the candidate who had the best chance of winning. And then you changed the rules in the middle of the game. I mean, there's something about that that just does not sit right. But here's the piece, though. The reality is, rules being changed. So, man, at the end of the day, I mean, we can something about that that just does not sit right. But here's the piece, though. The reality is rules have been changed. So, man, at the end of the day, we can sit here and talk about, hey, it's not right.

Rules have been changed, but they have been changed. But, again, if you look at, again, what's going to be happening this year with the states voting on that day. Here are the states voting this year on one day. Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Democrats abroad, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, all on that day. Michael Bloomberg, if he is going to be a real candidate, he is going to have to Utah, Vermont, Virginia, all on that day. Michael Bloomberg, if he is going to be a real candidate, he is going to have to take several of these states.

He can't come in second or third because then it's going to be, hey, who are you? I mean, this is where out of all the people, Sanders is sitting in the perfect position because with the number of people, saw in Iowa, you don't need 40 percent of the vote. You win 30, max 35, you win. You might literally see Sanders mirror what Trump did in 16 by winning 30, 35% and being able to go to victory. Joseph. Well, the process is insane.

I mean, we start with a state that's not representative, right? We go to another state that's not representative. We have an oligarch who's parachuting in at the last minute trying to buy everything. And to the point of him having to answer for some of his racial problems in New York, his campaign ads feature him with Barack Obama in several shots, the patron saint of the black vote, right? Judge him fairly or not, but he's trying to tout this. He comes out with a plan talking about how reparations isn't just such a crazy idea. I mean, he's trying to get it done, but it is very high stakes, and he is going to have to at some point do some retail politicking, especially with the black community. It's not

going to cut it. And the other question that I kind of want to know is if not, if not Biden, then who, right? Who is the champion for African-Americans left on the stage right now? Well, guess what? The only way you're going to know that is who's actually able to pull the black vote. And that's why what happens in South Carolina matters. When you look at these states here, it's going to be a lot of black folks in voting in Alabama, voting in Arkansas, a lot of black folks in North Carolina, a lot of black folks there in Tennessee, Texas as well. But the key is also look at Virginia, 20% of the population, African-American. And so we'll certainly see what happens on those states.

Got to go to break. When we come back, we're going to talk about what the hell. Gayle King has unpissed everybody off. Oprah now says she's getting death threats, says that Gayle hasn't slept in two days. What is going on? We'll break it down next. Roland Martin Unfiltered. You want to check out Roland Martin Unfiltered. That's youtube.com forward slash Roland S. Martin. And don't forget to turn on your notifications so when we go live, you'll know it.

There is no shortcut to utopia. Writer Claude McKay. All right, folks, are you looking to enhance your leadership or that of your team in 2020? Well, you might want to join Dr. Jackie Hood-Martin's newest online course and mastermind group, Successful People Think. She'll be your guide as you learn timeless leadership principles to apply to daily living. Of course, she's a certified John Maxwell instructor, and so you want to take advantage of this. The office expires February 28th. To register or to start the online course today, go to www.livetolead.com forward slash Leesburg, right here. Live, the number two, lead, L-E-A-D.com forward slash Leesburg. All right, folks, let's talk about Gayle King. Now, Gayle King says she's now receiving death threats since her interview

with Lisa Leslie, where she asked about a number of things, but including the sexual assault accusations against Kobe Bryant. Now, here's the conversation that started it all. It's been said that his legacy is complicated because of the sexual assault charge, which was dismissed in 2003, 2004. Is it complicated for you as a woman, as a WNBA player? It's not complicated for me at all. Even if there's a few times that we've been at a club at the same time, Kobe's not the kind of guy, never been like, you know, Lisa, go get that girl or tell her

or send her this. I have other NBA friends that are like that. Kobe's, he was never like that. I just never see, have ever seen him being the kind of person that would be, do something to violate a woman or be aggressive in that way. That's just not the person that I know. But Lisa, you wouldn't see it though. As his friend, you wouldn't see it. And that's possible. I just, it's just, I just don't, I just don't believe that. And I'm not saying things didn't happen. I just don't believe that things didn't happen with force. Is it even a fair question to talk about it considering he's no longer with us and that it was resolved? Or is it really part of his history?

I think that the media should be more respectful at this time. It's like, if you had questions about it, you've had many years to ask him that. I don't think it's something that we should keep hanging over his legacy. I mean, he went to... It went to trial. Yeah, with the cases, it was dismissed because the victim in the case refused to testify. So it was dismissed.

And I think that that's how we should leave it. Well, the backlash was immediate after that clip was posted on the CBS This Morning Twitter feed. A number of folks weighing in, including, whoo, man, Snoop Dogg. He went off on Gayle King. Gayle King. Out of pocket for that shit. Way out of pocket.

What do you gain from that? I swear to God, we the worst. We the fucking worst. We expect more from you, Gail. Don't you hang out with Oprah? Why y'all attacking us? We your people. You ain't coming after fucking Harvey Weinstein asking them dumbass questions.

I get sick of y'all. I want to call you one. people. You ain't coming after fucking Harvey Weinstein asking them dumb ass questions. I get sick of y'all. I want to call you one. Is it okay if I call him one? Funky dog head, bitch. How dare you try to tarnish my motherfucking homeboy's reputation, punk motherfucker. Respect the family and back off, bitch, before we come get you. Bill Cosby even got in on it by tweeting to Snoop, when they brought me to my gated community and placed me inside of my penthouse, they didn't win nor did they silence me. It's so sad and disappointing that successful black women are being used to tarnish the image and legacy of successful black men, even in death. Are these people that in need of fame, ratings, and or money?

On behalf of myself, Camille, and my family, thank you, thank you, and thank you. My heartfelt prayers are with Kobe and his family, as well as with Michael Jackson and his family. May their legacies live on forever. Backlash was intense yesterday, and Gayle responded on Instagram. I've been up reading the comments about the interview I did with Lisa Leslie about Kobe Bryant. And I know that if I had only seen the clip that you saw, I'd be extremely angry with me, too. I am mortified. I'm embarrassed. And I am very angry. Unbeknownst to me, my network put up a clip from a very wide ranging interview,

totally taken out of context. And when you see it that way, it's very jarring. It's jarring to me. I didn't even know anything about it. I started getting calls. What the hell are you doing? Why did you say this? What is happening? I did not know what people are talking about. So I've been told, I've been advised to say nothing. Just let it go. People will drag you. People will troll you. It'll be over in a couple of days, but that's not good enough for me because I really want people to understand what happened here and how I'm feeling about it. I reached out to Lisa because I know that she's a longtime friend of Kobe's to talk about his legacy and their friendship. We had a really wide ranging interview, talked about many things his career his passion his sense of humor the way he was mentoring other people how he was starting his next chapter it was wide-ranging and

yes we talked about that court case because that court case has also come up and I wanted to get Lisa's take on it as a friend who knew him well what what she thought, where that should stand. And I thought she... It was very powerful when she looked me in the eye as a member of the media to say, it's time for the media to leave it alone and to back off. During the course of the interview, I asked follow-up questions because I wanted to make sure

that her position and perspective were very clear. And at the end when she said, it's time to leave it alone, as I said, I thought that was powerful. And I insisted, I insisted that that part be in the interview because I thought that it put a nice button on that part of the conversation. When the interview aired, we had a great reaction to it. I talked to Lisa last night. I believe that Lisa was okay with the interview. And I felt really good about the interview, really good about the interview.

So for the network to take the most salacious part when taken out of context and put it up online for people who didn't see the whole interview is very upsetting to me and that's something I'm going to have to deal with with them. And we will, there will be a very intense discussion about that. I also want to say this. I have been with Kobe Bryant on many social occasions. He was very kind and very warm to me. And I felt that we had a friendly relationship. I too am mourning his loss, just like everybody else. I still am shocked by it. It's tragic and untimely. And the last thing I would want to do is disparage him

at this particular time. And I hope people understand that. And that's why I'm taking this time to speak to you directly. I've never done one of these before. I didn't even, I've never done one of these before, but this was so important to me that I felt I had to say something. I don't want to sit up on a set and read a prepared remark. I wanted you to hear exactly where I'm coming from and how I'm feeling and to let everybody know that no disrespect intended. And now I've got to go to work. I thank you for listening. Today, Oprah was on the Today Show and this is what she had to say about all this drama. Speaking of holding hearts, and we did a show yesterday, Oprah, on best friends

and how meaningful they are to us. And I think the last 24 hours for your best friend have been pretty difficult after that interview with Lisa Leslie about Kobe. And I just wondered just how she's doing. She is not doing well. May I say she is not? She is not doing well

because she has now death threats and has to now travel with security. And she's feeling very much attacked. You know, Bill Cosby is texting from, is tweeting from jail. And she's not doing well and feels that she was put in a really terrible position because that interview had already ran. It was over. And in the context of the interview,

everyone seemed fine, including Lisa Leslie. And it was only because somebody at the network put up that clip. And I can see how people would obviously be very upset if you thought that Gail was just trying to press to get an answer from Lisa Leslie. But obviously, all things pass. She will be okay. But she hasn't slept in two days. What do you think about all that criticism? I think the vitriol is I think anybody can criticize anything but the misogynist vitriol

and the attacking to the point where it is dangerous to be in the streets alone because it's not just the people who are attacking it's the other people who take that message and feel like they can do whatever they want to because of it, you know? You have built this community. That's what you're doing with this tour. That's what you do with your friends. All right, so I'm going to start with you, Teresa. CBS has announced that they are changing their procedures when it comes to things that are posted.

They are certainly taking to heart what Gayle had to say. People say she's throwing her network under the bus. They're going through all of that. Just your thoughts on this whole reaction to different African-American celebrities, especially black men, responding to Gayle King, her question to Lisa Leslie regarding Kobe Bryant? Well, first off, I think Gayle King actually did her job because that interview, the clip that was posted was widespread, right? But was it appropriate? I think the question is, was it appropriate for that interview during that time? And for someone who has watched the full clip, I do feel, you know, I sympathize with Gayle King because, again, you don't know what your network is doing.

But again, if they're looking for a hit, click, you know, and repost, then they will use the most controversial part of that and actually put it in. Personally, I don't think she should have really asked that question. But again, I love Lisa Leslie's response. Like they went to court and that's it. But I do believe, you know, Snoop Dogg's comments and, you know, other male comments, I hear what they're saying. but at the end of the day, we expect our journalists to actually provide facts

and reproduce the story. So we can then start putting into play what our feelings and thoughts are and then able to repost. So I will probably say to all of those who are attacking another woman, a sister, an African-American, that we should probably watch our tones because, again, we all

have a sister, mother, cousin. And so for her to not feel safe, for her to get death threats on a subject matter that's already out, that has already been out in the public, It's not like she was throwing shade, like, hey, you know, this is what I heard. This is actually what was in the news prior before. But again, I think, you know, Gayle said the right thing. She did the right

thing on Instagram. And yes, she threw her network under the bus because she did not know that they were going to do this. But as a journalist in this new age of technology, she has to be aware moving forward that whatever question that you're going to ask in the future is going to have some sort of repercussion consequences. So she just has to be prepared for that. Joseph. You know, I think that the network probably did the wrong thing putting it up if it was clickbait and if it was a legit an outtake, you know, something that she didn't plan to use or that wasn't broadcast on air. It was. You know, I, as a journalist, it was a tough question.

I mean, I might have stopped maybe one or two questions after bringing it up when you're talking to his best friend. But it is part of Kobe Bryant's legacy. I mean, it was hurtful, it was painful, I'm sure, for her to ask those questions, but she did, that's part of her job. I don't think that she deserved that kind of a backlash. You know, yes, Kobe Bryant was a beloved figure, but he also had evolved ever since that incident

from everything that I've read about him, is that, yes, the incident in Colorado, it happened, but since then, he had become a better person, had become a better man, had become a better human being. So I think that any time Bill Cosby throws shade on you, that's not a good day. And I think that he probably, of anyone, should not even try to go there with her.

I mean, first of all, as we all know, you should never call a woman outside of her name. You know, that, you know, that that's the baseline right there. But it's also unfortunate. It's unfortunate because Gail shared with us that she had a relationship with Colby. So she had years to actually sit down, interview him and ask him the question, which is the most important person to actually ask that question. And it's also unfortunate that evidently this network doesn't value her enough to make sure that she's a part of that decision making about what's going out. So that says something also. And as you said, that they're putting some new processes in place

to address those types of things. But if I was Gail, you know, she's been in the business for a while now. I would be, you know, sort of analyzing my relationship with them as well. So let me, so also this happened. Henry, go to my iPad, please. Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax sent a variety of tweets. He said, this is why we sued CBS for $400 million for airing and not correcting false and politically motivated allegations. We provided evidence to Gayle King and CBS that exonerates me, and they refused to report it. Next tweet, here is more on the lawsuit. The next tweet he sent out, CBS this morning,

CBS, Gayle King have known since last year that there was an eyewitness who has told multiple people, including a defamation lawyer at CBS, that Meredith Watson's allegation is false. She and her lawyer, Nancy Erica Smith, don't deny that it's false. He then tweeted, many other media outlets have reported on the exonerating information that would show that Watson's claim is false and fabricated. CBS This Morning has refused to report the truth, blindly saying they do not want to brand Ms. Watson as a liar. He then tweeted,

as for the other false, suspiciously timed and politically motivated allegation made at the precise moment of speculation that I might assume Virginia's governorship, he posted a link. Then he tweets to show how desperately CBS This Morning, Meredith Watson and her attorney, Nancy Erica Smith, have been hiding the truth that Watson's allegation is false. They have refused to answer simple questions. In whose dorm room did this allegedly occur? Was anyone else there? Then he tweeted when Meredith Watson's lie was exposed and she and her attorney Nancy Erica Smith were asked whether in fact there was a third person present. They tellingly after months of repeating this false and salacious allegation refused refused to comment, and he tagged Gayle King and CBS. He then said if there was no one else present,

the denial from Watson and her attorney would have been immediate. Watson fabricated the allegation. Her attorney, Nancy Erica Smith, knows it. CBS This Morning knows it. And he tagged me, Snoop Dogg, CNN, and Sarah Cross in this email. Now, so let me first deal with this here.

And I'm looking at some of your comments on YouTube as Teresa was talking. And let me be real clear. If any of you are calling Teresa a bitch... What? ...because she offered an opinion, you're wrong as hell. Let me be real clear.

There is no need for black men to be calling out black women out of their name and using such derogatory language because you disagree. Snoop has a right to have an opinion, but the language that he used about Gayle King was wrong. And other black men and other men I've seen do the exact same thing.

Now, when you are a journalist, you're going to ask questions that are going to piss somebody off. So, for instance, this is the same Gayle King who people praised for her R. Kelly interview. And now they're mad because of this. Now, Mustafa's right. Joseph's right. You had an opportunity to interview Kobe Bryant all these years.

I believe this case goes back to 2007. 13 years. 13 years. The reality is, folks, whether or not we like it, if you are accused of something like this, and yes, the case was dismissed because the woman refused to testify,

what we have to understand is that it is going to be a part of your legacy whether you like it or not. And yes, there are any number of things that you can do in your life that will go beyond that moment, but the reality is it's going to happen. And it's also going to happen when you die at 41.

Because, again, that was 13 years ago. Now, if Kobe Bryant had passed away at 60 or 65 or 70 or 75 or 80, I think Bill Russell's like 85 years old, that means that you would have had 40-plus years or 75 or 80. I think Bill Russell's like 85 years old. That means that you would have had 40 plus years between the allegation and when the person passed away.

I think it's different. But this is going to come up. There are other individuals who have done things and it's going to come up. If you have a career where you have been involved in drug use or whatever and things along those lines and your old bid is going to come up. But I think we do have to also begin to have a real conversation within the black community about discussions of sexual assault

that also involve black men, but not just when it comes to when a white woman's making the accusations. Now we know that there's history. Scottsboro Boys. We know there's history. Emmett Till. We know there's history.

Numerous other stories we can tell. The case, the movie Marshall was made out of. Well, black man was involved in an affair with a white woman, but then she yelled rape when her husband found out. So, and that brother was actually acquitted. Great, of course, job by Sterling K. Brown in the movie Marshall. But we as African-Americans, but especially black men, are going to have to check other black men

when we are involved in this conversation because we've got to deal with that. What I mean, we've got to deal with that. And again, y'all might be on Facebook mad, you might be on YouTube mad, you might be on Periscope mad, but we've got to also honor something that's happening here. And that is, for us as black people, what happens is if you cross a line,

then all of a sudden it's kind of like, oh yeah, we through with you. What I mean by that, I've heard people bring up trying to take down Michael Jackson, trying to take down Bill Collins, trying to take down Bill Cosby, trying to take down successful black men. But let's unpack that. A lot of people are Kelly. See, he crossed that black line. We ain't defending him. Bill Cosby, he crossed that black line.

We ain't defending him, even though the two of them still have supporters. Michael Jackson went up close to the black line, but he didn't cross it. So you still have black protection of Michael Jackson and his legacy. Kobe Bryant didn't cross the line. Protection of black folks. OJ crossed the black line. Y'all see what I'm getting at?

So we must begin to also deal with what is happening because I need black men watching and black men listening to understand that we have black women who have been the victims of sexual assault and we have black men dismissing that. Now, let me bring that up.

I read for you the tweets of Justin Fairfax. Two of the women who are accusing him are black women. But then you have Justin Fairfax who who is saying i didn't do it now there are people who say in the me too movement always believe the women but what about his due process isn't he innocent till proven guilty and so there are people who have been strongly saying, no, no, no, this is unfair what's happened to Justin Fairfax. I have asked legitimate questions, and let me be real clear, Justin Fairfax is an alpha.

He's also a member of the beta new chapter of the boule. So am I. So he ain't got no problem revealing that. But I've asked some basic questions. And that is, of the two women who have accused Justin Fairfax, how can you and your lawyers say that you will publicly testify at an impeachment hearing, yet the black women DA in Boston and in North Carolina

have both said if either one of those women file a complaint, they will investigate? So you got to ask the question. Wait a minute. You will publicly testify in an impeachment hearing, but you've yet to file a complaint? And the two DAs in both places where this literally took place are black women?

Hmm. So in the black community, we have to deal with this thing where we are so protective of black successful people that we don't want to have

honest conversations and dialogues about what necessarily happened. Right. In the case of Bill Cosby. I've heard people say, all these white women. There were some black women who also accused Bill Cosby. Now, there was a settlement in the Bill Cosby case. But then that stuff also then became leaked out.

See, you start unpacking this, and so what we've got to deal with is whether or not, I mean, are we so damaged? Are we so protective of successful black people that what we don't realize that what we're also doing is potentially harming individuals who may accuse them of wrongdoing? Chance the Rapper got in a whole bunch of hot water when they had the documentary on R. Kelly. And he said, we probably kept working with R. Kelly because, and I'm paraphrasing, he said, because we didn't believe the sisters. Folks were mad at him about that, but he was also being honest. What I need everybody watching right now to understand is that, y'all, this is real. It is real when there are black women right now who are sexual assault survivors who are watching this whole dialogue and are shivering in their boots because what they're saying is,

hell, if you and a woman and you get sexually assaulted by a high-profile black man, hell, don't you ever open your mouth because you're going to get tar and feathered. Because, see, let me go back to that line. Because what we're actually saying as a community is that the only way we arrive with you is if that man has crossed the line and no longer gets the benefit of black community protection. So in R. Kelly's case, once the allegations kept going and going, and there were more, and then we heard more details,

then the people who kept defending R. Kelly and who kept playing his music, this happened. See, again, more stories, more allegations. We heard more. And all of a sudden, his support began to drop. So in essence, R. Kelly was on this side of the black community protection line. But when he crossed that line, then it became,

all right, to hell with R. Kelly, even though he still supports. Same thing with Bill Cosby. I'm telling y'all right now that if Bill Cosby, I don't care what, if Bill Cosby did not give that speech and go on that tour

talking about morals and values in the black community, pull your pants up, and all those comments, I'm telling y'all right now, black folks would not have turned on Bill Cosby like they did. I don't care. Y'all can sit here and tell me I'm wrong,

but if Bill Cosby had not done that respectability tour, if Michael Dyson had not written that book criticizing cosby if bill cosby had not done any of that i'm telling y'all without a doubt black people bill cosby would not have crossed that line and he would have he would have been he would have been a part of the black community protection caucus if you will folks i get people being

shocked and stunned and saddened and upset and painful by the death of kobe bryant by the death of Kobe Bryant, by the death of him dying in a helicopter crash with his 13-year-old daughter and dying with seven other people. I get that. And if you want to be upset with Gayle, that's fine. If you want to criticize Gayle, that's fine. We are journalists. Because let me just, let me remind y'all,

whole bunch of y'all were mad as hell with me because y'all felt I would not tar and feather that sister who was the judge who hugged Amber Geiger. I remember y'all comments. Whole bunch of y'all were really upset with me. And guess what? Y'all were really happy when I put Wendy Williams in her place. That comes with the territory.

But death threats? No. Calling her out of her name? No. We can disagree. We don't have to be disrespectful to one another. My thoughts. Go right ahead, Teresa and Mustafa, final comments. Yeah. Well, thank you, Roland. And, you know, I do want to put a personal affinity out there to those who call me on my name.

Listen, guys, I think, again, we are supposed to be having these dialogues, and we're supposed to find solutions. That's what I'm all about. Those who know me here back at home and elsewhere, they know that's what I'm about. So I think when we, you know, a lot of what Roland said, we have to start taking it home with us. We can't be acting like we're crabs in a barrel all the time. We got to, you know, support one another and do it outside of the notion of when it's in our best century. So, you know, as I look forward, you know, kind of doing more of these, I think we got to be in a place where we're not disrespecting each other.

We are showing more love with each other because in order for us to actually move forward as a people together, unification and love is really going to take us to the next step. But if we keep harnessing all the hate and all the divide, they win. So in order not to suffer, we got to, you know, be stronger together. And again, Mustafa, look, I don't care if you disagree. You can sit here and say, man, that was some BS, Gail.

What I'm saying is we don't have to sit here and disrespect each other to the point like some people have. Disagree all day, that's fine. But when people are calling in death threats, stuff along those lines, that to me is stupid. We have to stop dehumanizing ourselves and the folks who are inside of our community. I understand the trauma that exists inside of our communities

from all of the atrocities and other things that have happened. But as Teresa said, you know, at the end of the day, we have to figure out a way to come together. We've got to heal our own communities and our own selves. And you see when you don't do the work, you see how it plays out. You see how people just sort of respond in this very, you know, very, very, very, very tough way. And we just,

we've got to make sure that we are no longer dehumanizing each other. You know, and I, people, and look, I see people talking about stop beating up black men, black men being denigrated. But y'all, see, y'all really, see, y'all don't really want to go there. Y'all don't really want to go there. Y'all don't really want to go there.

Because if we want to talk, if we want to be real, I mean, we can be real. We can talk about the significant misogyny that was in the black freedom movement. We can talk about how black women were completely denigrated and kicked to the curb and mistreated by black preachers, by the Black Panther Party. I mean, if y'all really want to go there, we could go there.

I mean, we can deal with the fact that at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, they made it clear, wasn't no woman going to speak that day. Now, they had a pre-program where the women got to speak. Y'all, that's fact. And see, we got to deal with the fact that our girls, when we are so focused on the fragility of black men's ego,

the signal that we're sending to our black girls and black women is that if anything happens to you at the hands of a black man, you can't say nothing. I'm sorry. I got six nieces. I ain't down with that. Not down with it. And so I'm not going to sit here and say silence black women. No matter how successful that black man is, I believe if somebody accuses you of something, in the case of Kobe Bryant, it went to trial. Yes, she didn't testify. The case was dismissed.

On his record, here's a fact, Kobe Bryant was not found guilty of being a rapist. He never had to register as a sex offender. Never had to. In the case of Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax,

I said Justin Fairfax has an absolute right to fight for his name. Absolute. If he says I did not do these things, he has an absolute right to do so. But I need us to understand that when we do this, we are sending a different signal to black women who have been the victims of sexual assault. I know black women who have said point blank, there is no way in the world I will ever publicly name my accuser

because if I do, they will take up for him over me. That, folks, is a sad indictment. And I'm not just saying this is a black thing. I'm not. You got people in Hollywood still supporting Harvey Weinstein, who's on trial right now in New York. But what I am saying is that

among black people, we got to be real and understand that when we have a visceral reaction to a Gayle King asking questions of Lisa Leslie about Kobe Bryant, it's some other people who are watching and who are watching that response

and who are saying, man, I ain't gonna never open my mouth. So therefore, they suffer in silence their entire lives after being violated. We need to understand as black men, whether you're Snoop Dogg or 50 Cent or any other black man

who was hurt by the death of Kobe Bryant, also got to understand there's some black women who've been hurt, who've been raped, who've been sexually assaulted. And they're watching and they're paying attention. And some of them are our daughters, and our nieces, and our cousins, and our aunts. So how would you react if that thing visited your door

and visited your family when you want to tell other people, shut up, don't bring that thing up, because that person was well known. Something we better think about. Go to a break, we'll be back in a moment. The Negro Mother by Langston Hughes. Children, I come back today to tell you a story of the long, dark way that I had to climb, that I had to know in order that the race might live and grow. Look at my face.

Look at my face, dark as the night, yet shining like the sun with love's true light. I am the dark girl who crossed the Red Sea, carrying in my body the seed of the free. I am the woman who worked in the field, bringing the cotton and the corn to yield. I am the one who labored as a slave, beaten and mistreated for the work that I gave. Children sold away from me, husbands sold too.

No safety, no love, no respect was I due. 300 years in the deepest south, but God put a song and a prayer in my mouth. God put a dream like steel in my soul. Now through my children, I'm reaching the goal. Now through my children, young and free free I realized the blessing denied to me I couldn't read then I couldn't write either I had nothing back there in the night sometimes the valley was filled with tears but I kept trudging on

through those lonely years sometimes the road was hot with sun, but I had to keep on till my work was done. I had to keep on. No stopping for me. I was the seed of the coming free. I nourished a dream that nothing could smother deep in my breast, the Negro mother. I had only hope then, but now through you, dark ones of today, my dreams must come true.

All you dark children in the world out there, remember my sweat, my pain, my despair. Remember my years heavy with sorrow. Make of those years a torch for tomorrow. Make of my past a road to the light. Out of the darkness, the ignorance, the night. Lift high my banner out of the dust. Stand like free men supporting my trust. Believe in the right. Let none push you back. Remember the whip and the slaver's track. Remember how the

song, the strong and struggle and strife still bar you the way and deny you life. But march ever forward, breaking down bars. Look ever upward at the sun and the stars. Oh, my dark children, may my dreams and my prayers impale you forever up the great white stairs. For I will be with you till no white brother dares keep down the children of the Negro mother. Change the mind is very difficult on how white people act and how they grow up.

But if you get somebody that makes it inspiring and you can motivate them and you can educate them that's where you change the dynamics for the future of our children. I'm George Morales I'm the constable of Precinct 4 here in Travis County. I'm raised in southeast Austin on the community called Dove Springs. In the late 80s, early 90s, it was really hard in our community in Dove Springs. We had a lot of gangs and drugs that were being sold in our communities. I came up in law enforcement, seeing a lot of constables put themselves in the forefront. It's a community-based office. You want to be out there amongst the community and show them the better side of law enforcement. Show them that, you know,

hard work does pay off. And that's comfortable work to me. As the president of the Dulce Springs Advisory Board, our goal is helping the rec center grow, implement programs. We do events from Easter, which we have about 2,000 kids. The back-to-school bash, we did about 3,500 backpacks. I think a lot of kids may see him as a hero because he gives back to the kids. It's like he's always talking to kids. He's always around youth.

He knows that it's the next generation that's gonna take over. I don't do this by myself. I was taught by my union that if we work together, things happen. If we speak up, things happen. Union is strength in numbers, and I bring those numbers from the Dustbin community,

from the Precinct 4 community, and that's the union pride that I have. All right, I certainly want to thank the folks that asked me for being one of the partners here at Roland Martin Unfiltered, so we thank them for all their support. I got to ask y'all the last one here. Uncle Ben Carson is now talking. This is a story here, Politico, Mustafa.

And he comes out and says that Trump is not racist. Look at how he fought for Jews and blacks at Mar-a-Lago. And then he also said, y'all are going to love this one. You know, talking to the people who drive the cars and park the cars at Mar-a-Lago. And then he also said, I'm going to love this one. You know, talking to the people who drive the cars and park the cars at Mar-a-Lago, they love him. The people who wash the dishes because he's kind and compassionate. When he bought Mar-a-Lago, he was the one who fought for Jews and blacks to be included in the clubs that were trying to exclude them. You know, people say he's a racist. He is not a racist and then he says looking back at his notes again

Carson went on it is certainly an act of compassion to help our fellow Americans who are struggling in neighborhoods Lord I mean Steven loved loved his Was his name in a Django? I mean he he loved him, too I don't even know what to say about secretary Carson I mean sometimes when I hear him speak, I hear fiddles in the background and I hear some shuffling going on,

and that's disappointing to me because he was a hero to me when I was little and, you know, thinking about medical school and all those types of things. But, you know, here's what I need Secretary Carson to do. I need Secretary Carson to focus on helping... On some damn housing. Right, make sure the black home ownership

actually goes up significantly in the little bit of time that he has left. And he can do that. Then I think he finally has done something that the secretary of housing and urban development is supposed to do. And not trying to convince us that Trump cares about black people. Teresa, I would say the audience is always different when Brother Ben starts speaking, because it's like that message wasn't geared towards African-Americans or minorities. It was geared to the white base. Like, of course, you know, Trump isn't racist.

Look how he treats the people that serve him and serve his properties. That's what I got out of it. But I always think, you know, Brother Ben, like Brother Mustafa has said, could do a better job in HUD and making sure that, you know, as we talk about Trump policies and what he's doing for African-American and minorities across the country, is that he's actually signing the dotted line and making sure some of those resources get back to the communities at bay. Look, see, let me explain this to people. And I do, I want to explain this to people. Some of y'all may be wondering, y'all might say,

you know, Rola, I rarely heard you call Donald Trump a racist. And you're absolutely right. In fact, you've rarely heard me call many people a racist. Here's why. Because of this very thing right here. See, I've said before, see, what happens is here, somebody says, racist.

Then they say, not racist. So then the whole debate discussion is not on whatever the issue is that actually is in between here it's these two things here and see racist or not racist like i've met few people who've actually said oh i'm absolutely a racist i never heard I've heard few men who say, I am undoubtedly a sexist. People don't walk around saying those things. So the issue for me is not

is Donald Trump a racist? The issue for me is what are Donald Trump's policies and how do they negatively impact black people and people of color? So when you look at him trying to keep Africans out, folks in Nigeria,

but he would love to welcome folks from Denmark, I can make a judgment. When you look at how people were treated on the border, I can make a judgment. I can say we ain't building no wall among the border with Canada. I can make a judgment. I can say we ain't building no wall among the border with Canada. I can make a judgment.

I can make a judgment about any of his policies. I can make a judgment about you touting criminal justice reform, but then, of course, you allowing your Department of Justice to sit here and actually increase mass incarceration. See, I can go back and forth on that. See, that's why I don't use the phrase racist.

Because see, then this happens. Then they bring up all this other stuff. Oh no, no, look at the black people and Latinos who are washing cars and washing dishes and cutting the lawn and taking care and changing the bed sheets at Mar-a-Lago. As if black people did not change bed sheets and cut the lawn and wash dishes and cook during Jim Crow or during slavery.

Mm-hmm. Hell, plantation owners loved their black people. They loved them so much that when they were sick, they would put their feet on the bellies of black kids and saying, I'm gonna get well. So using the argument that if Donald Trump was racist, why would he have people working for him? We have one of his former money people who said

he ain't want black people counting his money. Y'all. So don't fall for the little okey-doke from folks like Ben Carson. But also understand, Mustafa's absolutely right. Ben Carson was not talking to black people. He was talking to white, conservative, suburban women.

Because see, y'all, I'm just unpacking some stuff for y'all. That's the real problem. See, y'all want to go back to 1998, Newt Gingrich, when he got bounced out as Speaker of the House because white conservative women felt that he was too antagonistic towards black people. What happened two years

later? George W. Bush ran for president. Compassionate conservatism. White suburban women said, you know what? I like that. See, he's not antagonistic towards them. He treats them with respect. They just disagree on some things. See, white women are uncomfortable when that white man is such mean-spirited with his policies. See, that's who Ben Carson is talking to. And so all that show you saw on Tuesday, scholarship to the little black girl,

honoring the Tuskegee Airmen, talking about black unemployment. Y'all, that had nothing to do with black people. That was saying to the white people, oh, no, no, no, no. I know what they say about me, but I'm good. See what I'm doing for them? See the woman I put in a Super Bowl commercial ad that cost us $5 million? I'm good for the blacks. We're going to look at all of your policies, Donald, John, Trump, and we're going to keep telling black people all about them. So I'm not going to call you a racist.

I'm not going to say you are non-racist. I'm just gonna talk about your policies and what they look like. That's the real deal, Teresa. You don't have anything more to say to me. I totally agree. That's just the real deal. All right, Teresa, Mustafa, I appreciate it.

Joseph had to go earlier. Before we go, folks, I really recently sat down with the founder of Venmo. deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal deal real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real real what he had to say. First and foremost, how valuable are events such as this, especially for people of color, folks who have been left out of this whole B.C. world?

Incredibly valuable, including for me, to help me come and participate with people that I want to interact with more. I necessarily can't find them. How do I meet these people? Come here. And being in this space, the reality is this is probably the fourth time I've been at a Culture Shift event,

and it's crazy because you're dealing with folks who are essentially unicorns in some places. Like, ooh, all of a sudden I'm seeing people who look like me that I don't see on an everyday basis. Right. Yeah. And, you know, I make angel investments. And already I've met two or three founders that came up to me with their idea. I'm wearing this I Am Bold shirt. I learned about the Salesforce diversity program here. And maybe I'll be participating in that way. And I'm leaving this thinking I want more of this. And the more that happens like this, the better it is for the world.

What do you look for when you're looking to invest? Is it one particular area or are you just looking at great ideas across the board? Great ideas, actually, I mean, for me, it starts with great people. People that I can get along with. I can vibe with you know people that can crash on my couch or I can crash on theirs that kind that's those are the types of people I like to work with. That'd be interesting all of a sudden saying so what kind of couch do you have? And they're probably looking at you going I'm sorry

what the hell kind of couch do I have? Is it a comfortable couch? Is it a large couch? Is it leather? Exactly. You never know when you're going to need a favor from someone or you're going to need someone to help you. Your life can go from right there to rock bottom to the middle of rock bottom. And you need people that you can work with that are willing to go through all of those waves with you. We are 24 years away from this nation becoming a nation with a majority of people of color. And I keep making the argument that if you look at the current economic trends,

you look at the current investing trends, we're going to be in many ways like South Africa, where you have whites who own 9% of the land, but whites make up 9% of the population, own 70% of the land. Where you're going to% of the population, own 70% of the land. Where you gonna have when you have black women who start business at a faster rate than anybody else in America,

but get.2% of venture capital dollars. Which is crazy. And so, and people keep looking at me like I'm crazy when I say this in my speeches, I'm like, God, you don't understand. I said, 24 years is not a long time. Right. And I'm trying to sound right and no and it's accelerating

right right I agree with alarm because this that's going to be a problem to have 53 percent of America being Latino black Asian and other and having 80 and 90 percent of dollars going to non-minorities. That's going to be an issue. That will be an issue. But I'm on the same boat with you, where I think there's definitely a culture shift happening. And not only that, the leaders are changing and the decision makers are changing. And it's only a matter of time until you walk in you walk into an office or you walk into a place like Salesforce and you can you can kind of let me give you I would never expect it to walk into Salesforce and see this I just didn't you Salesforce seems like a very dry boring place to be dry and white you didn't really want to say that but I'm thinking dry but I'm kind of. Look at the shirt I'm wearing. And so there's definitely going to be a shift in the next, I mean, next few decades where it's going to be all colors running the world. But also I think it requires leaders today, white men, to be honest.

I use this example all the time. John Landgraf, the president of FX networks. A study was done that showed 12% of all the directors on his networks were white men, excuse me, were people of color and women. He said, I'm sorry, white men cannot be 88% of the directors on our shows. He sends an email out saying this has to change. I've even heard Ford's TV is changing. Two years later, it was more than 50%. And he said, as a white man, he said, I love my fellow white men. He said, but that's not America.

So as a leader, he said, this has to change, and it did. Right, great. Good for him. I support that decision wholeheartedly. Yeah. Well said. In terms of leadership, let's speak to that. In your space being the leader, and obviously looking at the phrase, I am bold, but also stating this is where we're going. I really think the only way this changes is when leaders collectively begin to say there has to be a shift.

We cannot continue to do business as usual, keep calling our friends, keep calling the people who we know. Otherwise it is not going to change. Are you also seeing that same thing happen internationally? You know, I have to give credit, specifically I have to give credit to New York City for being a cultural hub where everyone is intermingling and people, very little judgment. I'm not seeing it as much internationally from the places I've been. And, you know, you've got places like the Middle East that are not, they don't support these decisions. You've got China, for example, which is very closed.

Like, they want their own blockchain world. And then the rest of the world has to do their own thing. There's a lot of suppression of women taking place all over the world. For me, because I come from Zimbabwe, I lived in Uganda, I lived in Zambia, I've spent time in Sri Lanka, Morocco, I've been all over the place. I purposely put myself in New York City because if I had to pick a place to live where I could participate in fixing some of the problems, I feel like I can make the most progress here. And hopefully that would trickle into the rest of the world.

Because there's a lot of great thinking that takes place everywhere. And every place has their challenges. But here, where we are today is an example of how something can proliferate across the globe in a way that's inclusive uh accepting and better for humanity as a whole uh several countries you mentioned were obviously located in africa and i think one of the things that uh i ought to remind people here is a colonial rule don't get me i'm from zimbabwe, Mugabe, who passed away. That's my point.

My point is that when we talk about in this country, I use example. This is 400 years since the transatlantic slave trade began. If you use 1970 as the marker, African Americans have only been free for 49 years. Most people don't realize most African nations didn't achieve their freedom until in the 1960s so you're dealing with countries oh yeah relatively new being democratic now sure and so you think about the growing pains you think about Colin Powell talks about all the time but how you have to go through you're not talking about countries that are two and three hundred years old right they're old but in terms of not be under that sort

of colonial rule right you know yeah I mean I when I was born 1983 36 thank you when I was born that's the I was in the year where Zim Rhodesia was transitioning into Zimbabwe and the founder of Zimbabwe is Robert Mugabe. And he unified a group of people to convert the whole of Zimbabwe. He's regarded as a revolutionary because he made that shift. And now you hear a lot of, you know, he passed away and someone took over. And a lot of people view Zimbabwe as chaotic and a mess and da-da-da-da-da.

Like, you look at the West, they're all coming in, like, let's make some deals, da-da-da-da-da. And I'm like, you have to respect what he did, not only for Zimbabwe, but for all of Africa and for someone like me who came here. When I came here when I was 14, that's why I wear this shirt proudly. I'm bold because to get into the room with a bunch of Silicon Valley investors, you have

to be bold. To get into the room as a bunch of Silicon Valley investors from Zimbabwe, Uganda, you got to be crazy. And that was Robert Mugabe. And that's what he taught a lot of the people there, the confidence where you are the leader day one, and all this colonial stuff is going to fade away. And that's also going to accelerate.

And a lot of the people that participated in that, they kind of feel bad. They're like, and you could see it, and they're like, what the fuck did we do? Sorry, pardon my language. You're editing. No, my show's called Roland Martin Unfiltered. Oh, OK, great.

I own it, so. Even better. Plus it's allowed. Great. I love that. Verbal freedom. Yes. Yeah.

I own it. All I can do is ask myself. That's great. Oh, yeah. But yeah, we have to fight off this whole, and wherever I see it, in places where, you know, there's that old, ancient, colonial vibe, I fight it immediately. It triggers me because those are the people that are suppressing all of the progress that's taking place. Absolutely.

Especially nowadays. All right. That sounds good. Good chatting with you. Good chatting with you, too. Thank you. I appreciate it. Thanks a lot.

Thank you. All right, folks. Thank you so much for joining us today on Roland Martin Unfiltered. Don't forget, we want you to support what we do. Every dollar you give goes to support this show and what we're able to accomplish by bringing you the kind of information you're not going to get anywhere else. We've got more of those interviews coming from Culture Shift. More of our panelists will be doing those Black History moments as well. You know, for us, we do Black History every day.

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