The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Racism in Housing | Brit Bennett & Michael J. Fox

Episode Date: December 3, 2020

Trevor and Roy Wood Jr. examine racial discrimination in housing, Brit Bennett discusses her novel "The Vanishing Half," and Michael J. Fox talks about his memoir "No Time Like the Future." Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to Comedy Central. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible. I'm Seth Done of CBS News.

Listen to 60 Minutes, a second look on Apple podcasts starting September 17. Well, hello, everybody. Welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show. I'm Trevor Noah. Today is Wednesday the second of December, which means there's only 49 days left until Trump is no longer president and,, listen, listen, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, that's, that's, that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's thiii-s thi-s thi-s thi-s thi-s thi-s thi-s thiaxxxxxxxxxxaxxa's all all all all all all all all all all all all all all thiaxxxxxiaxxia, thi-s, which means there's only 49 days left until Trump is no longer president and starts selling national secrets on his only fans account. Anyway, coming up on tonight's show, the Queen has the vaccine.

Why Black People Can't Buy Homes, and Michael J. Fox will be joining us on the show. So let's do this people. Welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show. From Trevor's couch in New York City to your couch somewhere in the world. This is the Daily Social Distancing Show with Trevor Noah. Ears Edition. Let's kick things off with the coronavirus pandemic. You know, it's the reason why our not drows aren't virgins anymore. Today the world hit a major milestone as Great Britain became the first country to officially approve a fully tested vaccine. So big congratulations, Britain. It's amazing how much you can get done when you don't waste time combing your hair. And you know, this is really, really great news for the world, unless Britain decides to use this opportunity to get revenge. So it turns out we've gotten the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine the vaccine to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the vaccine the vaccine to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to be to be the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. tha. tha. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. the. the. the. the. thea. thea. thea. threat. thi. threat. thi. thi. thi. thi. Great, th news for the world, unless Britain decides to use this opportunity to get revenge.

So it turns out we've gotten the vaccine and we'll be handing it out to all of our colonies. All of, oh, oh, that's right. You didn't want to be colonies anymore. Oh, look at that. I guess more vaccine for me. Ooh, oh, oh, how you like that now, India? So, safety and precaution is fantastic, but there is one country who might be taking their precautions a little too far. Belgium is putting a four-person limit on holiday parties during the coronavirus pandemic. Officials say all gatherings must be held outdoors in a yard or garden, and only one guest will be allowed to enter the house to use the bathroom

during the entire party. If you really have to go to to to to to to to to to go the the the the to go the the the the to go the the the the to go. the to the to the to the to thock. thoffic, thoe and to thoe and thoe and tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, th. th. tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the thii. the thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. the. thean. thooooooanan. tooan. tooan. tean. tean. tean. tean. tean. teananananananannea. tooo. toe the house to use the bathroom during the entire party. If you really have to go to the toilet, there will be nothing else to do but return home, said a government spokesperson. Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on, hold on. Only one person at the party is allowed to use the bathroom. That is a terrible idea. For starters, how do they decide who the the tell you in advance? Do they regulate your nog intake? Or do they just decide based on what you ate? And you know the worst part about not being able to use the bathroom is?

You lose your excuse for bailing on a conversation. That's the only reason you go to a bathroom at a party. Now you're just gonna have to be honest. Okay, well, them right now. I don't even know them. Of course, it's at least possible to practice social distancing at a garden party. You can at least try. But it's much more difficult at a sex party. So when authorities in Belgium discovered that people were throwing an orgy in violation of the lockdown, police were sent to break it up. But that's when the real scandal began. A Hungarian member of the European Parliament has resigned after breaking lockdown rules

by attending what's been described as a gay sex party in Brussels. Yosev Shaya, who has previously backed anti-LGBT legislation in Hungary, admitted attending the party which was broken up by a police. The prosecution in Brussels have simply said that they were there raiding a party which appeared to be breaking coronavirus lockdown restrictions. There are also reports in the Bulgarian media that he tried to run away from the party by climbing down a drain pipe and that he was then caught by the police in the street. Damn! I can't believe a homophobic politician was caught at a gay sex party going down

a drain pipe. And then he tried to escape. High five! And by the way, being at an illegal sex party when the police storm in must be so awkward because you don't even realize it's a real police raid until it's too late. Think about it. You probably just assume that somebody ordered stripper cops. Oh yes officer. I have been a really naughty boy. Wow, real handcups.. And, and the the the the the the the the the the the th the th their. And, and their. And, and their. And, and their. And, and their. And, their. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, thi. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, thin, the the. the. the. thin, the. the. the. And, the. And, the. And about it, you probably just assume that somebody ordered stripper cops. Oh yes officer, I have been a really naughty boy. Wow, real handcuffs, you'll take this seriously. Oh, oh. But yes, my friends, once again another anti-gay politician has been caught in a gay sex scandal, which by the way, there's nothing scandalous about gay sex. The scandal is that they said where anti-gay gay is bad and turn and they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they th. And th. And th. And th-and th-and th-and th-and th-and th-s th-s th-s are th-s are thi thi, thi, th-s are th-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-s are are th-o-s are th-s are th-s are th-s are th-s are th-s are are th-s are are are th th th th th th th th th th th th is th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th thi, thi that, thin, thin, thin, that thin. that that that thin. theeeeeeeeat thin. thin. theeee are thin, the are the are the are th way, there's nothing scandalous about gay sex. The scandal is that they said, we're anti-gay, gay is bad, and it turns out they were doing it.

And honestly, part of me feels bad for these politicians, because clearly they've lived in a society that has made them so terrified of who they are and they hate themselves and the people that they go to these extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme extreme their their. family values. They just don't want somebody dating their ex. But let's move on to the latest news from outgoing president, Donald Junk Food Trump. Because his plan to stay in the White House is not going smoothly. His lawsuits are failing. He hasn't been able to hide in the vents. And now, one of his most loyal supporters,

Attorney General Bill Barr has said that there is no evidence of the widespread voter fraud that Trump has been screaming about. And that's got to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their no evidence of the widespread voter fraud that Trump has been screaming about. And that's got to be especially humiliating for Trump. Because you realize up until now, Bill Barr has always had his back. But now it's like gone. This must be like when you roll up at a bar fight like, you're sorry, thi. If you think you can take on me and my boy, Bill, Bill. All right, now, when I said, I, I, I, I, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th th th th th th th thee, thee, th thee, th be thee, thi, that's thee, that's that's th be that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's th, th, th, th, th, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. th. th. And, that's th. thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, that's thee, that's that's thee, thee, th you can take on me and my boy, Bill, your bill, you try, your bill? All right, now when I said sorry ass, I was saying sorry, ass, bitches.

But if Trump knows he's going to be dragged out of the White House soon, at least he's planning to do it in the trumpiest way possible. And let's find out how Trumpy in another edition of Go Big and go home. One of the weirdest quirks of being an American president is having the power to pardon anyone for any federal crimes. Sort of like a cheat code for America's justice system. And it looks like President Trump is going to spend the next two months mashing those buttons. President Trump may soon wield the power of the pardon in unprecedented ways. Multiple sources say the president is weighing whether to preemptively pardon family

members and several of his close associates. Among the names the president has discussed behind the scenes, the oldest three of his five children, Don, Jr., Eric and Ivanka, as well as his son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Sources tell ABC News the president's lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, is also among those who in recent weeks directly asked President Trump for a preemptive pardon, though Giuliani denies it. Let's just break down crystal clear what's being considered here.

We're talking about pardons being issued before the president leaves office for people who've not even been charged with the crime. The preemptive, get at a jail free card before a crime has even been committed, possibly for friends, family, even the president himself. Oh, guys, that is adorable. Trump is pardoning his kids and his house pets. And he's not even pardoning them for anything specific. Trump is just handing out pardons like their gift cards. I figured I'd let you pick your own crime, so enjoy. Do something crazy, you know, live a little.

Of course, the big question now is, can Trump legally pardon himself? Because, you see, no one knows for sure. But I actually want Trump to try it, just because it'll fun to see how he'll do it. You know, he'll probably be in the mirror like, I hereby pardon you. No, I pardon you. Stop pointing at me. I'm trying to pardon you.

Parton, you're so good looking, but you're pardoned. And before you say, Oh, typical Donald Trump, only in it for himself. Well, hey, that's not true. It turns out that anyone may be able to get a pardon from Trump for the right price. The White House is investigating a potential bribery scheme involving presidential pardons. It was revealed in heavily redacted court documents pertaining to a search warrant of several offices. The investigation seems to involve at least two individuals who, quote, acted as lobbyists, quote, to senior White House

officials without registering as lobbyists quote to secure pardon or reprieve of sentence for a person who appears to be known to investigators but whose name has been redacted in these newly unsealed documents. The investigation also involves an alleged offer from someone whose name had also been redacted of a quote substantial political contribution in exchange for a presidential pardon or reprieve of sentence. The documents do not name President Trump or any other White House officials nor do they say whether anyone in the White House knew about the alleged scheme. Whoa! So there was already controversy over Trump's pardons,

and now bribery might be involved as well. Basically, Trump managed to shove one of his scandals in the middle of another scandal. So impressive. Now, to be clear, all we know is that someone apparently offered to bribe Trump with a campaign contribution in exchange for a presidential pardon. We don't know if Trump actually pardon the guy. We don't know if he considered it or if he even heard about it.

All right, we don't know what Trump did. I will say this, though, after knowing him for this long, I think we can assume that my man is not going to turn down some pardon cash. If anything, I think we should be impressed that he hasn't started targeting Instagram ads to former felons. So, that's where we are right now. President Trump is trying to stay in office, but if it doesn't work out, it looks like his plan is to just pardon everyone in his inner circle on his way out the door. And whether that is constitutional or not, we don't know, but what I do know is, true try and true try th is try try th is try th is try try th is try try th try. th th thi true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. try. true. true. true. true, true, true, true, the the the. the. the. the. the. the. the. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. the. the. the. to to to to to to to to to to to the. to the to the to tr-a. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. tr-i. trying to escape down a drain pipe at the next sex party he gets busted at. Jokes on you, Ophrestys, I pre-pardoned myself. All right, we're going to take a quick break, but when we come back, we'll find out why the housing system is rigged against black Americans.

And Michael J. Fox is still joining us on the show, so stick around. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. You're rolling. But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible.

I'm Seth Done of CBS News. Listen to 60 Minutes, a second look on Apple podcasts starting September 17th. Welcome back to the daily social distancing show. So by now, everyone knows the damage the coronavirus can do to your body. It can destroy your lungs, it can injure your kidneys. Hell, it can even take down your presidency. But it turns out the pandemic isn't just harming our bodies, it's also harming our homes. Are we headed for another mortgage crisis? The slow-motion disaster in America's neighborhoods. With more than 21 million Americans out of work, more and more homeowners are

struggling to pay their mortgage? We've seen a big spike in the number of delinquent homeowners since the pandemic began. Right now, 6.6% of all mortgages are in some stage of delinquency. That's 3.3 million American homes, nearly doubling in just nine months. If we don't put money in people's pockets, if we don't extend a moratorium on evictions and mortgage foreclosures, we're going to be seeing millions of people who are homeless in the middle of winter when disease is rampant. We're going to see people who are being forced to go to work even if they're sick because they need to put food on the table and pay rent. And that is unconscionable. 3.3 million American homes is an insane number.

That's like if everybody in Jamaica was suddenly homeless. I mean, they'd probably be chilled about it because they have so much great weed and great weather, but still, it would be very inconvenient. It's truly amazing that the American government, the most powerful nation in the world, has failed its people so badly. I mean, it almost feels like they tried to one up the damage Corona was doing. I'm going to cause a massive public health crisis. Well then we're going to cause a massive economic and housing crisis.

Damn, you guys are cold. But while the pandemic is causing millions to face a mortgage crisis for the first time, housing instability is nothing new for black people. In fact, it's something African-Americans have been dealing with long before the coronavirus. So let's find out why, in another installment of, if you don't know, now you know. It's no secret that white people have had an easier time getting ahead in America. But one of the most important reasons for this might surprise you. For millions, owning a home remains at the heart of the American dream. But many black Americans have been left out.

A new report says just 44% of black families own a home, compared to 74% for whites. Owning a home is the way that most people develop wealth. It is the way that for years and years and years, people have been able to pass something on to their children or pay for their education. It's part of the reason the average white family has about 10 times the median wealth of a black family. The gap between white and black homeowners is greater now than it was since before the Fair Housing Act of 1968 when segregation was legal.

That's right. The home ownership gap is worse for black people now than it was in segregation. Which is insane! I never thought a black guy could be able to say, Ah, Jim Crow, those were the good old days. But it makes sense when you realize how owning real estate helps you build wealth. And that wealth becomes generational, because home ownership is one of the surest ways for families to pass down wealth. Not beanie babies, grandma.

But they're still very cute, save them for me. But also, like, think about a portfolio. So, so th, so black, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, tho, tho, tho, tho, thi. thi, thi, th. th. th. th, th, th. th. th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. too, too. too too too too too too too too toe too too too toe too too too too too too. the. but also like think about a portfolio. So black Americans have had less wealth than white Americans for decades and large part of that was because they couldn't build wealth by owning a home. But why? Why couldn't they own homes at the same rates as white Americans? Well like most things dealing with racial inequality, it starts with the government. During the New Deal, the Homeowners Loan Corporation refinanced more than a million loans, nearly one out of every five mortgages in urban America. Now the main problem with the Homeowners Loan Corporation was redlining. All of that wonderful government finance was only available to white people.

The Homeowners Loan Corporation essentially deemed black people too risky to loan. The H-O-L-C created residential security maps, where the term redlining comes from. Green meant best area, best people, aka businessmen. Blue meant good people like white collar families, yellow meant a declining area with working class families, and red meant detrimental influences, most significantly, Negroes. Saying that neighborhoods were hazardous to lend in because they were quote unquote

infiltrated by negroes or threatened with negro encroachment. Man, what a terrible era. When the phrase infiltrated by negroes could be a term used by the federal government, when it should only be used for a dope-ass Migos album. I mean seriously, do you know how fucked up it is to describe those neighborhoods as infiltrated by Negroes? That's where black people lived. But they made it sound like black people were breaking and entering into their own houses. Oh shit I'm in. Oh it's my house! What am I doing? I live? Although I won't lie. A part of me actually misses how up front racism was back in the days. You didn't have to read between the lines, you know?

Because if you're black now and you're trying to get a loan, they'll be like, well, we take a variety of factors into account in the loan approval process. Back then, if a black person walked into white women in the boat. Come on, y'all. Now, by the late 1960s, courts ruled that redlining was illegal. But there are more subtle ways that black people are still kept from purchasing houses. For example, real estate agents who are just really trying to keep neighborhoods just white. Newsday with an undercover project to see whether real estate agents who are black any differently than prospective tenants who were white and they did a lot. The risks to African-Americans in particular of suffering potential

discrimination was about 50-50. I've had agents invoke burning crosses to dissuade me from buying a home in certain areas. This news day footage shows an agent handling one tester who is black and wants to see a house without a pre-qualification letter. I want to eat, you can try another person, but I don't have the time at that. But for the white buyer, also with no letter? She shows that buyer too. In other cases, Newsday records agents who appear to be steering minorities towards mixed communities.

Every time I get a new list in Brentwood or new client, I get so excited because they're nice people. But with a white buyer, the same agent texting him about recent gang killings there. Phew. Those real estate agents got caught. I'd love to hear their feeble excuses afterwards. No, no, no. When I told one buyer the neighbors were nice people and the other one were gang killers, I meant they were nice gang killers, just jobs.

And by the way, invoking burning crosses to a neighborhood is not only racist. It's overkill. If you want to stop a black person from moving into a home, all you gotta do is tell them that their next-door neighbor adds raisins to their potato salad. They're out. And the truth is that even though redlining was outlawed as a matter of official policy, it sure looks like the banks are still doing it anyway. Lenders deny mortgages their thes to to thages to mortgage mortgagess to mortgages to mortgages to mortgages to mortgages toes to toages toages thageages toages thageages thageageageages to toeages thage, thage to to thage to to to to toexxxxxxxxx, toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. to to to th. th. their, their, their, their, their, their, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thii. thi. to thi. thi. to thi. thi. thi. the. toe. toe. toea. toea. toean. toean. toean. toean. toean. % higher than that of white applicants. When we do get loans or at much higher interest rates or much worse conditions. If you're African American making more than $100,000, you were more likely to be put into a subprime loan than if you were a white person making less than $35,000.

Consequently, black and brown families were disproportionately impacted by the 2007-2010 housing crisis, being nearly twice as likely as white families to lose their homes. After controlling for education, crime, walkability, homes in black neighborhoods are devalued by 23 percent, and accumulatively that's about 156 billion in lost equity. One couple in Florida actually saw their appraisal increase by 40% after they removed any evidence that a black woman lived there. I took down the family pictures that we had in the home and you know basically any markers that there were African-Americans living in the house. Replacing them only with photos of her husband and his white family.

When the second appraisal comes back, the value of their house shot up more than $100,000. Think about that. Her home appraisal went up a hundred thousand dollars. A hundred thousand dollars. Getting rid of her family photos did more for her home value than putting in a swimming pool. And again, can we all agree that this is racist? Yeah? Because just having pictures of black family members shouldn't drive down the value of a house, just because you have pictures of black people? I mean, unless that black person is Rkelly. And then it's like, I don't care that the basement is spacious.

I know what was happening in there. So, when it way to go. But until the government gets serious about racial discrimination and mortgage lending and home selling, well, Leo Deblen has got you covered. Are you trying to sell your home but can't get a good price? Because you black, you're trying to get a new house. But these real estate agents are keeping you in the pool house. Well, pack these real estate agents are keeping you in the pool house. We'll pack that moving van because Leo's got a plan.

Introducing Leo Deblin's home whitification. I'll make your house look so white. They'll think West Anderson living this bitch. I'll throw out all your family photos and replace them with watercolors of boats. I'll even throw in a diploma from Dartmouth. Art history. You know that's white. Your library is going to get white on fire too with David Tadaris, the Life of Pie, and of course how to be anti-racist by Ebraum Exkending. Oh, that's white hot. And nothing says white like adding exposed brick.

Man, that's rustic as hell. I'll even white-ify your garage. Swap out that 2005-Hunda Civic for a kayak, a pair of skis, and a volleyball net that only got used once. Looking like a LLB bean catalog in this bitch. And if you order now, I'll whitify your music collection. Goodbye, Megan, Nostalian. Hello, Barbara the Stryssend.

Leo Devlin, home whitification. It ain't but $85, you Institute of Barberfrim. the Coallidification, an Institute of Barberfrimins. Exit 120 by the Fairgrounds, next to Footlocker. All right, when we come back, I'll be talking with author Britt Bennett about writing one of the top books of 2020. And then Michael J. Fox joins us on the show. Stick around. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it.

This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. You're rolling. But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible. I'm Seth Done of CBS News. Listen to 60 Minutes, a second look on Apple podcasts starting September 17th. Welcome back to the Daily Social Distancing Show. So earlier today, I spoke with best-selling author, Britt Bennett. We had a fascinating conversation about her critically acclaimed novel that explores the

American history of black people who pass as white. Britt Bennett, welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show. Hi, thanks for having me. You are truly one of the most prolific writers of our time, and once again you have written a book that has ascended to the top of the New York Times, and not only that, got into a bidding, war war war war war war war war war war, that, that, that, that, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the top of the New York Times and not only that, got into a bidding war where HBO topped out 17 other people, 17 other companies that wanted the rights to this book and HBO wanted out. How does it feel for yourself to have 2020 be a great year when it really is like a dismal

year? Because it is like that for many people. There's some great moments, and it's in the midst of this year. Are you just gonna lie and say all the good things to you happen in 2021? I know, it feels so wild. It feels so obvious to say that, because I think it's true of everybody that this has been such a surreal year. But I think for me, I felt so just lucky to have experienced these highs and to have experienced the high to have experienced such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such such a to be a to have experienced such a warm reception for this book. Your book, The Vanishing Hough, is truly one of the most amazing stories. You've set the story in the Jim Crow South world that has come into D.C., let's say. So it's 50 years ago, and it's the story of twin-s who run away from home and then go into a world where, although there are twins, they're identical twins, one of the, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, andthey are identical twins, one of them is lighter than the other, and so she chooses a path where she passes as white.

And that is literally the jumping off point of the story, where I won't like, when I first read it, I was like, oh, this is going to be a book about racism in the South or slavery, or this. And I was like, okay, no, no, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi, th. thi, th. th. thi, thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the th. the the the the the the the the their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. the. to. too. to. too. to. to. to. to. the. the. the. the it's about Jim Crow, but it's still, oh, there's going to be a white man who's, and it's like, no, I haven't read many stories like this. It was a beautiful book about black people tackling the issues of race and colorism and the ideas. Why did you choose to frame it like that it was a really interesting idea? I mean, well, thank you first of all. story about those nuances within a black community. I think sometimes there's a tendency to think that the more interesting story is conflict between black and white people. But for me, really, I've always said the most interesting thing to happen to black people

is not necessarily white people. Often, the more interesting stories and the more complicated stories are within our own community. So I wanted to think about the effect of colorism, which is a result of thuu, thuuuuu, thu, thuuu, thi, the thi, the thi, thi, the thi, the thi, the thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, the more, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, is, is, is a, is a, is a thi, is a, is, is, is a more, is, is, is a more, is, is a more, is, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a more, is a the more, is a the more, is a the more, the more, the more, the more, the more, the more, the more to.e.e. the more, te. te. te. te. te. te. the. the effect of colorism, which is a result of white supremacy, and it's a result of that type of ideology. But what does this colorism do to people and how does it affect the choices that these characters are able to make in their lives? Yeah, I mean, I grew up in a country where literally

shades determined your life, you know, I'm seen as being, oh, during apartheidid it was like, I'm technically superior to my mom and I'm inferior to my dad, and yet we're all in the same family. And what I loved about this book is, you write in a way where the characters themselves start to understand how people perceiving them can determine their way in life. When you think about race and when you're writing about it in the book, is it interesting to rewrite the story of like a ridiculous thing that was created and then like try to

figure out the rules through the eyes of these characters? Yeah, I think that that was one of the things I was so interesting to me was the absurdity of all of it. The absurdity of these rules, the idea of what does it even even even even even even even it's not looking, quote unquote, looking black? What does it actually mean for these characters to be black or to be white? To what degree are they performing race? And how are they sort of creating or deconstructing themselves in a different way? So I think writing this book, which takes this idea of colorism and really pushes it to a very extreme. But looking at it from that really extreme lens gave me a way to kind of see the absurdity of race and all of its nuances even now and when I'm growing up and when I'm alive, which is a very different time period than the book is set.

Oftentimes when we read stories, especially in the black community of a black person try to pass as white, that story is written from a place, thia, thia, thia, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, and thi, and thi, and thi, thi, thi, thi, and thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, and all, and thi, and the the the the the the the the the the their, and their, and their, and their, and their, and their, and their, and their, and thi, and thi, and thi, thi, thi, thi, ta, ta, ta, ta, ta, ta, ta, ta, ta'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a, ta, ta, thaui, thaui, ta, trying to pass as white, that story is written from a place of judgment. Oh, of course you want to act like you white, you want to act like you better, you want to escape, you want to be better than us. And in this story, it was more like just a person going, like, hey man, I've made these decisions, I grapple with them, and as a reader, to write it in such a way where it's like there's no you judging, it's just you portraying what they're going through. Yeah, I mean, I think you're right. I think a lot of passing stories are very moralizing.

The idea that the character who passes is deserving of punishment, often death, and a lot of these stories. And I think for me, first, I just didn't find that interesting to condemn somebody or to ask, is it a to to to to to ask, to to to to the to to the to to the to to to the to the the, to to to to to to to the the, to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the their, to to be, to be, toe, toe, toe, their, their, their, their, their, their, their. And, their. And, their. And, their. And, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, the.. Ande. And, the. Ande. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, toe. And, to condemn somebody or to ask is it good or is it bad to pass? That was just an uninteresting question. But I think also there's a weird way in which those stories kind of reaffirm the racial hierarchy by punishing a character who has transgressed in some way. So I objected to it from a level of interest kind of standpoint, but also from a kind of political and moral standpoint. I wasn't interested in judging these characters. I just wanted to think about what are the, what do you gain and what do you lose and deciding to become somebody new

and to leave your community behind and create a whole new identity. Well, I honestly, I understand why 17, you know, media companies were bidding for the rights to your book. I should have jumped in and made it 18. I'll just add in my sense. Because really, you've written a masterpiece. Congratulations. There's a reason it was a best teller. There's a reason it's going to be turned into an amazing movie or TV series, whatever it is. You've done a phenomenal job once again. And I can't wait to read your writing over and over and over again. Thank you so much for joining me on the show. Thank you so much. Thank you, Britt. to, Br Br Br Br Br Br Br Br Br Br. to, Br. to, Br. to, Br. to, Br. to, Br. to, Br. to. to. to. th. th. th. th. th. to to to to to to to to to to to to to to th. th. thi. to to tho. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the the th. the the th. the th. th. the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. to to to to to toea. toea. toea. toea. toea. the the the the the the the the the the the. Thank you so much, thanks. Thank you, Britt. Look off to yourself. Don't forget, the Vanishing Hoff is available now. Stick around, because when

we come back, the legendary Michael J. Fox is joining me on the show. You don't want to miss it. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible. I'm Seth Done of CBS News. Listen to 60 Minutes a second look on Apple podcasts starting September 17. Welcome back to the Daily Social Distancing Show. Earlier today, I had the honor of speaking with award-winning actor and Parkinson's advocate,

Michael J. Fox. We talked about his enduring legacy, writing his fourth memoir, and the most difficult year that almost caused him to abandon hope. Michael J. Fox, welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show. Yeah, nice to not be there. If I'm not mistaken, this is your third time technically on the Daily Show in all its iterations, correct? My 20th time in the Daily Show, it was my first time, you're my third host. Wow. I had, I had, uh, was Greg, Kenner?

And John Seward, and then you. So, you're doing well so far. I like how you say it, like, it's a conquest. That's how you said. You're like, you're my third daily show host. You know what, it makes sense that it's, I'm their, their, their, their, their, thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi, thi. thi. thi, thi, thi. thi. thi. th. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. t. ti. t. t. ti. ti. ti. ti. t. t. t. t. t. what the fourth is going to bring. You know what, it makes sense that I'm your third daily show host, and it makes sense that you've been on every single show because you've been show business. You had, you know, the years when you were the young guy who was just doing everything and it was amazing, but now you're the guy who's still doing amazing things, but you've got this amazing journey with Parkinson's as well, where you've the the they......... You've they. they. thin, thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi's, thi's, thi's, thin, thin, thin, thin, you've to be to be thin, thi's thin. thin. the. the. thi's thi's thi's thi's thi's thi. You've thi. You've thi. You've thi. You've thi. You've thi. You've thi. You've th. You've th. You've th. You've th. You've th. You've th. You've thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thr. thr. thrown. to to toe. toe. toe. toean. toean. toean. th toeean. th thrown. th thrown. theee. the. the. the. the disease. When you look at your life, where do you see your achievements, or is it just one story? I don't know, I don't really think that in those terms, I'm just glad to be here.

I'm just happy to be around, but I don't know, I've had a wonderful life. I moved to California, it was 18, and then this is the time myself on a child in Parkinson's disease and another series and then another. It's just like life just goes like that. And it's cool if you take notes along the way. But it's been a world once, I don't know. I mean, I love being 23 and driving my Ferrari 80 miles and I would drop down the light, lighten a cigarette. And you just like, crazy.

It's a little later life when I see myself like sitting in the back porch with my dog watching rabbits run across the yard, neither one of us wanted to chase. And I can't think about that, that kid standing in the bar in Hollywood leaning his troops. I mean, it's just, it's a different life. I feel like, yeah, I feel like you've lived many lives, you know, and I think it's only fitting that you've written another memoir. I think this is your fourth one now, but in the book what I really found endearing and it makes you want to laugh and in the times where it makes

you want to cry is you share how hard it is to stay optimistic, you know, you share moments where you go like, actually I don't know if I'm optimistic. theyme. Actually, I'm thr. I'm depressed. I'm depressed. I'm depressed. I'm depressed. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th th th thi. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. th th the. the th th the the. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thin. th. thr. th. thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. te. to. the toda. the the the thr. the thr. the the the. thr. the.'t always easy. Talk me through why you decided to write a book that had like a different tone to what we've heard from you so much in the past. Well, it's not like a cranky book in me. But by the time I remember the cranky man, I had a result in a tunnel. But what happened was I, I've reached a kind of detainment with it. I just, like it is what it is, it takes up the room, it takes up, I had room left over to do other stuff.

And then I just deal with it that way. And that is an optimistic point of view. It's just gonna say glass half full. I mean, I'd saw it as pool. And then I'd to paralyze you in short order. We got to take it out, but a lot of guys didn't want to take it out. I found this doctor in Baltimore in Johns Hopkins, by Dr. Federer, who was great, who said, I'll take it out. But I could tell you why those other guys didn't want to take it out. Because who wants to be the guy who paralyzed, I the thuuuuuu must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must must. the guy. the guy. the guy. I the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. I was the guy. He. He. He. He. He. He. He. He was the the the the the the the the the th. Hea. He was th. He was th. He was th. Hea. He was th. He was thee. Hea. He was th. He was the the the. He was the guy, he's a knife. And he did that, and that was fine.

I had to be learned to walk again. I mean, literally learned the mechanics of walking again and all that stuff. And finally got to wear, long story, short to get, finally got to where I was alone after the first time in months. I had no aids, no moody hanging on me. And I was walking in my hallway in my apartment, feeling like a big shot. Walk into the kitchen, slipped on a tile, I felt that and shattered my humorist, and just mutilate it. And I was standing on the floor with the mail arm.

And he just went, okay, put a, put a shiny face on this. Make this happy. This just sucks. And that sucks more than after that, th. It, th, it, it, it, it, it, it, it, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I's, I'd thi, I'd thi, I'd is th happy. This is this is just sucks. This only sucks and then it sucks and after that it sucks because it's not good. And I and I began a whole conversation and started having myself about about had I been, had I like put up optimism in panacea, had I said that I had a way to encourage me had I had a commodified hope. And I made this a thing when it's not a thing it's it's the thing you feel the thing you th thing you thing you thing you th thing you thing you th thing you th th th thing you th th th th th th th th th th thin thin thin thin thin thin thi a way to encourage me to had a commodified hope. Right. And I made this a thing. When it's not a thing, it's the thing you feel the thing you arrive at. It's an action.

It's not a, it's not a, it's not a worry. It's not an idea. I started to look at what brought me in optimism in the first place. What was about optimism that was where was my default mark? It is always been the standard for me. And I did all kinds of things. I found myself thinking about more challenging, fear, and just opportunity. And when I came to was acceptance, gratitude. If you have gratitude, if you have gratitude in everything, some piece of gratitude, but some element or something, then optimism survives.

Wow. Because it feeds on that, feeds on gratitude. Before I let you go, I wanted to talk to you about the work that you have done that I think few human beings would even dream of being able to do in any field, and that is, I think you've put over a billion dollars into Parkinson's research. You've help th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th the the the the the the thi the the the the the thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi to to to toe toe toeateateate toeateate toea thiiiiiiia thia thia thia th. And that is, I think you've put over a billion dollars into Parkinson's research. You've helped raise this money. Do you, do you know how close we are to seeing a cure?

And do you think that we'll see a cure within your lifetime? What are some of the leaps that you've seen in the work that you've done that have given you hope? I don't, I the the work, I th th th, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't that it'll make a big difference in my life because I've been so much, basically it's too many miles in the car already. I mean, I've run this baby out. There's no one thing that we get put in the new engine hat. Science is hard and we didn't realize this.

If you told me we're not 20 years,'t know how many rethink this. But the work that we've done in these 20 intervening years has been really important work. Accessing data, whether it's, we have to think of the biomarker initiative, we'll also find a new ways to get in the brain and to get visuals, to get, to be able to see where how the opposite nucleon, for example, a protein that folds and manipulates damages the burning tissue. We're solving that, we're going to image that. So we're working on all these big problems and one day it's going to crack. It's going to be like, this is the right combination of glue and pine cones. It's gonna make it all happen. I like that. That's the best description for science.

One day the glue and the pine cones will meet and we'll have the cure for what we need. Thank you for taking the time. Thank you for making me your third Michael J Foxx. I th, thank th, th, I, I, I, th, th, I, th, I, th, th, th, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, the, tho, tho, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the right, the right, the right, the right, the right, the right, the right, the right, the the the the the the their, their, their, their, th. And, th. And, th. And, th. And, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi. thi. thean, thi, thee host and thank you for being my first Michael J. Fox. I appreciate you, send my love to the family and we'll have you back for the fifth memoir. Don't break any more arms. Look after yourself.

Yeah. I'll be taking it easy. All right, thank you so much. No time like the future is available now. And you can go to Michael J Foxx.org to learn to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to their their their their their their their their tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. thu. their tho. tho. th. th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I'm th. I th. I th. I th. I th. their their their their their their their their their their their their their their th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. thank. that thank... thank..................................... now, and you can go to Michael J.Fox.org to learn about his work to eliminate Parkinson's disease. Well, that's our show for tonight. But before we go, as you may have heard, there is an important runoff election coming up in Georgia. And if you're watching this from the Peach State, the deadline to register to vote for that

election is next Monday, December 7th. Now, if you're not in Georgia, you can still help out by supporting groups like 18 by vote that are trying to work to engage young people to vote, especially the estimated 23,000 young people in Georgia who were not eligible to vote in the general election, but are eligible to vote now in January 5th. So, if you are able to help out, and you want to support the cause, thro, thin, thin, thin, the the the to to to to to to to to to to to, to, to, to, to, their, the to, their, to vote, the to vote, the the to vote, the to vote, tho, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, to vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote, vote..e.a.a, vote. And, to vote. Ande. Ande. Ande. And, toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe out and you want to support the cause, then please check out the link below. Until tomorrow, stay safe out there, wear a mask, and remember if you're going to an illegal sex party, first make sure that your drain pipe can support your weight. The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Ears Edition. Watch the Daily Show weeknights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central and the Comedy Central app.

Watch full episodes and videos at the Daily Show.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and subscribe to the Daily Show on YouTube for exclusive content and more. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. Really? But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at.

That's what's incredible. I'm Seth Done of CBS News. Listen to 60 Minutes, a second look. Starting September 17th, wherever you get your podcasts. This has been a Comedy Central Podcast.