The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Policing in America - Daunte Wright & Capitol Riot Update | Elizabeth Nyamayaro & Issa Rae
Episode Date: April 15, 2021Trevor highlights developments in problems with policing in the U.S., Elizabeth Nyamayaro discusses her memoir "I Am a Girl from Africa," and Issa Rae talks about her Life Unseen platform.To help supp...ort UNICEF's efforts to ensure equitable vaccine distribution, testing and treatments, donate at dailyshow.com/UNICEF. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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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, starting
September 17th, wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's going on everybody?
I'm Trevor Noah, and this is the daily social distancing show. Today is
Wednesday, April 14th, which means it's the exact time of year when no matter
what coat you decide to put on when you go outside, it's going to be the wrong coat.
It's either too cold for a light coat or it's going to be too hot for a heavy coat.
That's why when I go outside, always weigh the same coat.
A super long trench coat with nothing on underneath.
Wait, what? Anyway, coming up on tonight's to t's about the latest developments in the police killing of Dante Wright, how stay-at-home moms are
finally getting their due, and America is definitely pulling out of Afghanistan
this time. 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 somewhere in the world.
This is the daily social distancing show with Trevor Noah.
Ears edition.
Let's kick things off with the biggest announcement today that didn't involve the bachelor.
I'm talking about Afghanistan.
The country that much like the bathroom at a chilly cookoff is almost always occupied.
The United States has now been in Afghanistan
for nearly 20 years.
And today, President Joseph Retreat Biden said enough is enough.
President Biden announcing he will withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan by September 11th.
We cannot continue the cycle of extending or expanding our military presence in Afghanistan,
hoping to create ideal conditions for the withdrawal and expecting a different result.
I'm now the fourth United States president to preside over American true presidents in Afghanistan.
I will not pass this responsibility onto a fifth.
I will not pass this responsibility onto a fifth.
I will not pass this responsibility to the next president.
Wow! What a nice gift Joe Biden is giving to Dwayne the Rock Johnson when he becomes president.
Although, to be honest, I was secretly hoping that the rock would get to end the war in Afghanistan.
Yeah, because he would have done it in style.
But yes, the war in Afghanistan may finally be over.
And people, it's about time.
It's been what, 19 years?
No war should ever be old enough to serve in itself.
I will say, though, I find a little weird that Biden is withdrawing on 9-11.
I mean, first of all, breaking up on your anniversary, that's just mean. And second, should he be basing huge decisions like this on the date that just sounds the
best? We can't let this forever war continue one more moment. But let's wait a few more
months for some nice symmetry. You know, it's numbers, I believe in numbers.
Now, of course, all of this is assuming that America actually does leave. Because don't forget, America has been trying to get out of Afghanistan for, what, 10 years
now.
Obama said it, Trump said it.
Hell, this guy said it.
this guy said it.
We are leaving in 2014, period.
To be fair, Biden didn't know what year it was when he said that.
thiiiioomb-o'earned. celebrating this decision. Biden is getting a lot of criticism from people who say that if America leaves Afghanistan,
then it will become a failed state.
And that is a real danger.
But on the other hand, America has been there for 20 years.
Is it supposed to stay there forever?
Because if that's going to be the case,
then I mean, America should at least make Afghanistan a US state. And the good news with that is it it would eliminate Afghanistan's terrorism problem completely.
Because we all know that once terrorists are American, they're not terrorists anymore.
They're just frustrated citizens who are having a bad day.
Moving on to sports news.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are the best team in the NBA, named after puppy dogs.
And now, they're getting to know their new owner.
Former MLB star Alex Rodriguez is reportedly part of a new ownership group
for the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves. Here's what the team's 19-year-old
rookie of the year candidate Anthony Edwards said about A-Rod's
ownership bid when he was asked about it by reporters yesterday.
Watch. Do you have any thoughts about him? Are you an a Rod fan at all growing up or anything like that? What you think about what
he might bring to the team? A fan? Which is he like? Who is he? The baseball
player? Alex Rodriguez? Yeah, no. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know about baseball. Rodriguez took the opportunity to introduce himself to Ed Ritz and a post on Instagram
writing, hi Anthony, I'm Alex.
Oh, okay, okay, this is embarrassing, but let's give the guy a break.
I mean, he's 19.
You know, there are some things that 19-year-olds today just don't know.
Like, either of these things could be A-Rod. They don't know. You can't assume that teenagers are going to know
every middle-aged famous person, except Matt Gates, because his photo is posted at the
security desk in everyone's dorm. And to be honest, it could have been worse for this kid. I mean,
at least A-Rod wasn't actually there. God knows, I've been in situations where I was
talking to a famous person and I didn't know who they were.
Thank you so much for joining me, Mr. Buddy.
I am very happy to be here with you, Trevor.
I have to say I am a big fan of your music.
Yeah, I found out afterwards.
That guy is on a podcast.
And finally, some good news for all full-time parents looking to get back
into the non-childcare job market. You can now update your resume. LinkedIn is making
changes to catch up with popular demand. Mothers and fathers who have stopped working to become
caregivers will now have a way to reflect that on their LinkedIn accounts. The company added titles like stay-at-home-b mom or stay-at-home dad and remove the need
to link that title to a company or employer.
Thank you.
If you ask me, this is long overdue.
Stay-at-home moms and dads should also have the opportunity to have LinkedIn do absolutely
nothing for them.
Seriously, though, stay-at-home parents deserve this recognition because before, if you were home raising your kids, your resume just looked like you were unemployed for like a chunk
of years.
But parenting is a job.
I mean, it's one of the hardest jobs, actually.
It's also the only job where if your boss pees on you, you can't sue them.
I will say, as good as this is, employers still have to be careful and make sure that they get all the details. Because a candidate who's a stay-at-home mom to two young kids, that could be a great employee.
But a candidate who's a stay-at-home mom to 17 cats?
That's a red flag.
Not to mention, this could be bad news for some kids.
Because now, their moms could get hired away to be another kid's mom. Mommy, don't go. I love you.
Oh, I love you too, honey.
But Susie's giving me dental, so I'm out.
But let's move on to our main story,
which is once again, the police,
the group that NWA didn't want to marry or kill.
For three days, the people of Minnesota and the entire country have been mourning and protesting over the death of Dante Wright. And today the police officer who pulled the
trigger was put on notice. Another night of unrest in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.
Some demonstrators used a line of umbrellas to shield themselves as
police fired off flashbangs.
Porschie! The protests coming hours before an expected announcement today on possible charges for
Wright's death.
The officer who shot him has been arrested.
Agents with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension say they've taken former
Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter into custody.
Potter was booked on second-degree manslaughter charges in the death of Dante Wright.
Yes, the officer who killed Dante Wright was charged with second-degree manslaughter charges in the death of Dante Wright. Yes, the officer who killed Dante Wright was charged with second-degree manslaughter just today.
And look, I think it's good that she's being charged, but let's be honest.
That doesn't mean much on its own.
I mean, charging a police officer is like announcing that you're withdrawing from Afghanistan.
I'm not going to hold my breath for results.
Now, I don't think there's any one change that we could make to police procedure or equipment
or funding that would fix the entire problem of how cops treat black people.
But the mayor of Brooklyn Center, where the killing of Dante Wright took place,
did make one interesting point that I found very revealing.
As of this moment, I don't believe any one of our officers
live in Brooklyn Center.
That is something that we are aware of.
We do feel very strongly that we need officers to be from the community.
Obviously, not every officer can live in the city where they work.
I don't think that that would be feasible or practical, but there is a huge importance to having a significant number of your officers living in the community where they serve.
Yeah. The mayor is completely right. to having a significant number of your officers living in the community where they serve.
Yeah, the mayor is completely right and that is a startling thing to hear.
Not a single one of his city's police officers actually live in the city that they police.
Which is a huge problem. When a cop is taking you downtown,
he shouldn't have to ask you
how to get downtown. And it matters when you're not policing your own community, when you're
an outsider, because then you've been sent into enforce. You're an occupying force. Because
it's human nature to treat people differently when you're not from there. You know, when you go
to your neighbor's house, you're respectful. When you go to a hotel room in a different city, I mean,
that's when things get covered in semen for no good reason.
Plus, it's harder to brutalize people when you live in the same community.
You're less likely to body slam someone to the ground when your moms might be in the same
book club. how different groups are policed in America. You don't have to look any further than the capital riots. We're still finding out just how much leeway
a violent mob of white conservatives was given.
We are learning more about the advance warnings
capital police received leading up to the January 6th insurrection.
According to a new inspector general's report reviewed by the New York Times,
police were warned three days before the violent attack, including a potential for violence, which, quote, Congress itself is the target. The report
found that officers were instructed by their leaders not to use their most
aggressive tactics to hold off the mob. That would include things like
stun grenades. Think about that. They knew that a violent group was coming
after Congress itself. Congress. The place where America's most important laws
are filibusted, but they still told the police not to get too aggressive. Now, this report
didn't exactly explain why this order was given. But if you ask me, this is what happens
when police see you as people. They give you the benefit of the doubt.
And that's really what the truth is.
America is a country where white people who are coming to storm the capital
are given the benefit of the doubt.
But black people just going about their lives are treated like they're about to storm the capital.
And look, I'm not saying that the cops should be maximally aggressive with citizens, but I mean, there's got to be a happy medium between he's driving while black shoot him and
they're storming the government.
Well, let's see where this goes.
Let's see, I just want to see how it turns out, yeah, I want to see what they're doing.
And if there ever was a time in a place to be aggressive, I feel like their January, thua. They were actually doing something. Do you know how rare that is? It's like pandas mating.
There can't be any disturbances,
or they'll get spooked,
and it won't happen again for years.
And look, I know it's exhausting
to keep having to deal with this shit over and over and over again.
And I'm sure there are people out there who are like,
well, you know what, why even bother protesting protesting the system? You know, Derek Shelvin's trial is on right now, and they're still shooting black people.
But marching in the streets and challenging the system actually does make a difference.
Just look at this story about a police incident from 15 years ago, that's finally getting
a rewrite.
Former Buffalo Police Officer Carrile Horn is celebrating a major legal victory this morning.
Judge Dennis Ward ruled, she's owed a full pension.
Horn was fired after she intervened to stop another officer
from using excessive force during an arrest in 2006.
Judge Ward also ruled Horn is owed two years of back pay.
In his decision, he wrote, quote, while the Eric Garner's and George Floyds of the
world never had a chance for a do-over, at least here, the correction can be done.
Yeah, that's right.
This former Buffalo police officer literally fought a fellow cop to stop him from putting
a handcuffed suspect into a chokehold, which must have been really confusing for the guy
being arrested. He must have thought this was the most elaborate good cop, bad cop routine ever. But then, Officer Horn was fireded the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned the correctioned, the correctioned, the correctioned, the correctioned, the correctioned, the correctioned, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th. th. th. the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correction, the correct, the correct, the correct, the correct, thi. thi. thi. the, the, the correct, the, the. the correct, the. the correct, the correct, thr-c, the correct, thi. the guy being arrested. He must have thought this was the most elaborate good cop, bad cop routine ever.
But then, Officer Horn was fired for doing that, which actually tells you a lot.
Because people always say, police aren't a problem, it's just a few bad apples.
But in one of the rare incidents where there was a good apple who tried to step up, what happened? The system turned against her and protected the bad apple.
The only good news is that now, thanks to a law passed in Buffalo last year, she's getting
her pension back, she's getting her salary back, and she's finally getting the recognition
that she deserves.
And remember, that law was only passed because of the pressure of the Black Lives Matter movement. And yes, it may be a small step, but every step that
holds the police more accountable to the community that they're supposed to protect, well, I
think that's a step worth marching for. All right, when we come back, I'll be talking
to Elizabeth Namiaro, the former United Nations senior advisor about gender equality.
And Issa Ray is still joining us on the show.
So don't go away.
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.
Welcome back to the Daily Social Distancing Show.
My first guest tonight is Elizabeth Namaiaro.
She's a former United Nations senior advisor and founder of the He for She movement.
She's here to talk about her upcoming memoir about her journey as a girl from Africa,
whose near-death experience inspired her to become a humanitarian.
So Elizabeth Niamayaro, welcome to the Daily
Social Distancing Show. I'm so happy to be here, Trevor, thank you so much for
having me. Thank you for being here. You have lived quite the life and now you
have written a memoir about it. You know, many kids dream of becoming
astronauts or firefighters or doctors. You have an interesting dream. Your
the dream, their dream was to work at the United Nations.
That means you either had a really enlightened childhood
or you were one of the most boring children around.
Which one was it?
Maybe a combination of both.
I don't know.
But I think a lot has to do with where I come from, where we come from.
We come from a continent that
is very much about the community. So I grew up in a small African village in Zimbabwe,
where I was raised by my gogo and my grandmother, and I had a beautiful childhood. And in Africa,
we grew up as part of a community and we took care of each other, we shared our food
together. We wanted for nothing in my village. But then when I was eight years old, a, a their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their throut, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a severe, a took care of each other, we shared our food together, we wanted for nothing in my village.
But then when I was eight years old,
a severe drought hit our village and literally devastated us.
Our rivers dried up, our crops wilted, our livestock perished,
and we're left with nothing to eat and nothing to drink.
Wow.
And one day, I was just so weak from hunger, Trevor.
I collapsed on the ground and in my young mind I thought I was going to die.
I'd not eaten for three days.
But then a miracle happened.
This aid worker with the United Nations found me, the girl in the blue uniform, that's
what she was wearing, and she gave me a bottle of porridge and literally served my life. And I remember I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I the the th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I to to to the collapsed thea thea thea thea thea thea to to collapsed to to collapsed to collapsed thea to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the collapsed the collapsed the collapsed the collapsed the ground the ground the ground the ground the ground the ground the ground the ground the ground the ground the ground thea thea th. I collapsed th. I collapsed th. I collapsed th. I collapsed thea thea thea thea thea thea thea thea threatened threatened threatened threatened threatened thea to to to threatened to to thea to threatened thea threatened thea thea to to blue uniform that's why she was wearing and she gave me a bottle of porridge and literally
served my life. And I remember after I was able to speak I asked it why she was there because
she was African like me but I'd never seen it before. She was not from my village and she said to me,
I'm here because as Africans we must uplift each other. Again, I was 80 years old.
Didn't make a loss of sense to me at the time, but two years later I found. I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I'm thi, I'm th. I'm th. I th. I th. I th. I was th. I was th, I was th, I was th, I was, I was th, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I th. th. th, I, th, th, th, th, th. th, th, th, th, thi, thi, and I'm, thi, and I'm, and I'm, and I've, thrown, thrown, thrown, thrown, thrown, thrown, thrown, thrown, thr-a, thrown, thrown, thr-a, thrown, and I was 80 years old, didn't make a loss of sense to me at the time, but two years
late I found out that this girl in the blue uniform worked for the United Nations and it just
became my dream.
I just thought, I want to be just like her.
So that maybe one day I can save just the lives of others in a similar way that my
life had been saved. And so that was the impetus, and of course, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, decades, the the thi later, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, I was, thi, thi, thi, I was thi, I thi, thi, I was, thi, I was, I was, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, I was, I was, I was, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, thi,. And of course, decades later, I joined the UN and I became the girl in the blue uniform.
Your memoir talks through this journey,
and it takes us on a journey that you have lived.
You know, the title, the title of your book is,
I am a girl from Africa.
You know, and what's great about it is it touches on so many girls and women's lives from Africa, in Africa, and really across the world.
When we look at your story, there's one theme that I noticed consistently throughout the
book and that is the theme of Ubuntu.
And so for some people in the US, they might think of Ubuntu as like an operating system,
but Ubuntu where we're from has a very different meaning.
Tell us a little bit about why Ubuntu was so important to you as a theme that you carry through your book and your life.
Yeah, so Ubuntu is this ancient African philosophy that is very powerful. It literally means I am because
we are and it recognizes that we are all connected by our shared humanity. My first understanding of
the word actually was through my goggle. So like you, I mean, I loved your book, by the way,
and your goggle is literally my goggle.
And so she taught me about Ubuntu when I was six years old.
We just come from a very, very long liberation struggle,
trying to liberate our country Zimbabwe from British colonial rule. And we had a difficult choice because the country was a lot more divided
because colonialism, as you said in your book, Trevor,
it pitted us against each other as Africans.
And so we were so much more divided.
And we had to find a way to heal as a country.
And we've worked this Ubuntu spirit as a way to heal.
And again, what was remarkable for me is 10 years
later, you did a similar thing in South Africa when Nelson Mandela became the first president
that once again, at the end of anti-apartheid, you evoked Ubuntu. So, Ubuntu is this really
powerful too that enables us to really see the humanity in each other, to practice compassion towards one another. And it's also how I was raised. It's th, it's th, th, th, th, th, th, thiiiiiiiiiiii, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, you thi, you thi, you thi, you thi, you thi, you thi, you thi, you thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi, you thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thiiiiiiiiiiiii, thiiiiiiii, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, to practice compassion towards one another.
And it's also how I was raised.
It's this belief that you're part of a community,
and if you're part of a community,
you also have to be part of uplifting that community.
So that's what inspired the book that it's really, I'm literally the embodiment of what Ubunty is that I am because we are.
You seem to have taken that that that thi thi thi thi thi thi thi the iment of what Ubunty is, that I am because we are. You seem to have taken that theme to heart
when you were part of founding the He for She campaign,
which was lauded for what it stood for
and what it continues to stand for,
but really came to prominence when people started hearing,
it started going viral online.
You know, people said, wow, what is this? And I think it was actually Emma Watson,
who gave it a shout out on her platforms online.
And people are like, what is this he for she campaign?
A really interesting idea, because oftentimes when people talk about women's safety,
you know, oftentimes the burden is put on women.
People go, why did you dress like that ladies? thi that, tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho, tho, tho, thu thu, thu, thu, thu, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, tho, tho, tho, tho, that, and that, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, and tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, they, they, they, they, they, they, they, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, and, that, that, that, that, that, and And, you know, these rape stories, I feel bad for you, but what responsibility do you
bear?
You came out with a completely different idea.
He for Shee, for Shee.
Could you explain a little bit about that and why you thought this approach could help?
So before I get into that, the MoMA on the second day anniversary.
Then it became really, really cool.
You know, it was like cool and then became like really, really cool when Trevor Noah supported.
So thank you for doing that, Trevor.
No, my pleasure.
She was really inspired by this African philosopher of Ubuntu because I realized that there was
such a division in terms of how we look at gender inequality, right. It was seen as a woman, an the the the the the the th, an thi, an thi, an issue, an issue, an issue, an issue, an issue, a thi, a thi, a thi, a thi, a thi, a thi, really really really really really really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really really, really really, really really, really really, really, really, really, really really, really, really, really, thi, really, thi, really, really, really, thi, thi, thi, thi, really, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi. thii. thi. thi. thii. thii. thi. thi. thi. thi, reallyms of how we look at gender inequality, right?
It was seen as a woman, an issue for women led by women, and men were almost kind of not engaged as much as they should.
But then they should, right? Because at the end of the day, as you rightly said, the men should be the ones not abusing women.
We can't put the responsibility on women to say, don't abuse me. And so I saw an opportunity to bring the the the the the the to bring to bring to bring the to bring the to bring to bring the to bring their to bring their their to bring their their to bring their to bring their to their to to to to their to to to to their their to to be to be to be their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their put the responsibility on women to say, don't abuse me.
And so I saw an opportunity to bring men as part of the conversation and as part of the solution
so that we as a collective, again because of our shared humanity, we can actually work together
to end this really, really devastating issue. You're always looking to give back,
you're always looking to contribute. You're trying to find ways to get governments involved because, I mean, I've talked to this,
and I know you have as well.
I always tell people, governments are the only ones who can fix it.
Philanthropies are a drop in the bucket that can help in the right direction, but really
you need the scale of governments to fix a wonderful initiative that you are a part of with this book. Tell me a
little bit about it. When people are buying your books, they're also going to be contributing
to books going to children in Africa. Yes, so my book, I'm a Girl from Africa is out
next week on Tuesday, April 20th. And it's part of the pre-order campaign, we are donating for each pre-order a book to girls in Africa. And this was so important to me, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, too, too, the th. And, th. thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, tho, tho, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, th, thi, thi, th, thi, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, th. th. thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, and thi, and thi, and thi, and toooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. thi, in Africa. And this was so important to me, Trevor.
You know, the book is called I am a girl from Africa, not the girl,
because I know that my story is one of millions.
And I wanted to make sure that girls will come from a humble background, such as mine,
I able to read this story.
And again, representation matters, right, for them to see what's possible for the
thousand.
So this is what the campaign is about.
So I hope that, you know, people can support it.
And so we can all empower young girls in Africa, but also around the world to see what's possible
when we dare to dream big and we dare to make a difference in our world.
Well, I think you have done that. And I'm sure think that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi their thiolomea thiolomea their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their thi. thi. thi. thooooomooooooooooooooooooomooomoomorrow. tomorrow. together. together. today. today. tho.'m sure that once people start reading the book they'll become even more inspired. Thank you so much
for joining me on the Daily Social Distancing Show and good luck.
Thank you so much Trevor for having me. Bye. Don't forget Elizabeth's book I
am a girl from Africa comes out April 20th and is available for pre-order right now.
All right when we come back the brilliant Issa Ray will be joining me on the show,
so you don't want to miss it.
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.
Welcome back to the Daily Social Distancing Show.
My guest tonight is an actor, a writer, and a producer of all your favorite
things, Issa Ray. She's here to chat about her amazing career thus far and an exciting
new partnership that she's kicking off.
Israe, welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show.
Hey, Tramador, thank you for having me. Distanced. Yes, having you very distanced.
Although I feel like you have been somebody who I feel like you're always in my life.
You know, like, there are some people who make the kinds of shows that make you feel like
you know them as a person.
Like, I would probably be one of your creepy fans who comes up to you in the streets
and thinks I know you more than I do. I'm sure you have people like that because you make those kinds of shows where whenever I watch Israe I go like, I know her, Issa my best friend, but we're not best friends
and I'm actually very creepy when I do that too. Do you have that a lot with people? Do they all feel
like they know you? What and my character, my literal character.
But, you know, I've been writing about to me on the student
that you mean.
I welcome it.
What do you think that is?
I've always wondered how you do that because,
like, everyone can make a show.
But when Issa Ray makes her show,
that there's a connectivity to it that connects me,
even if you give like a speech at an award show, there's a familiarity that you have that connects people to you.
Have you ever wondered what that is?
I haven't.
I don't try to look at a gift horse in the mouth.
I, and it's not something that I realize until people may bring it up.
But I think for me it just comes down to relatability. I do strive to like just find the common the common the common the common the common the common the common the common the common the common common common common common common common common common common common common common common common the common the common common the common common the common the common the common the common the commonality. the commonality. the commonality. I, the common the commonality. I the commonality, the commonality, the commonality, the commonality, the commonality, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common, the common the common the commonality, the commonality, the commonality, to the only one that goes through thing.
I think what makes insecure such a fantastic show and hopefully a show that will change
shows forever is you created a show in which black women specifically can occupy all spaces
and places within society.
You know, there's no archetype of what the black woman is supposed to be. You can be the lawyer, you can be the broke ass friend, you can be the person who's focused, not focused, the the the the the the the the th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, tho, tho, tho, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thu, thuu-s, thuuuuuuuic, thuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-s, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, the, the, thi, the, thi, the, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, You know, there's no archetype of what the black woman is supposed to be.
You can be the lawyer, you can be the broke-ass friend,
you can be the person who's focused, not focused,
the person who's, you know,
there's something powerful in that.
And I've always wanted to know whether you set out to create that
or whether you were just replicating your world as you sort. It's definitely the latter. It was, and I think that's what was the frustration about not seeing that on television for
so long because I was surrounded by these women who occupied so many different spaces and
I wasn't seeing that reflected on television and it was just like, but this is my life, this
is my life, this is my mom's friend's life, so what is the problem? Where is the disconnect now? And of the disconnect is the disconnect is the disconnect the disconnect, the disconnect, the disconnect, the disconnect, the dis the disconnect, and th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th is th is th is thi, thi, thi, the problem, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, their, their, their, thi, thi, their, thi, th.. I I I I I I th. I I I th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, their, their, their, their, theean, thean, thean, thean, thean, thean, thean, thean, thean, thean, thee. Ithat during the earlier decades but there was you know that dearth in the early 2000, 2000 to 2010 the odds and it was
just like where where are we and where are these women that I know so well
and so I wanted to intentionally reflect that world just because it was missing.
The show has been extremely successful and then you drop the bombshell on us and you
tell us that insecure is now coming to an end.
The question is why?
Because it's a story and good stories end.
And you know, even in pitching it that first season, I knew that I wanted to end it
the fifth season.
And he was just like, yeah, that feels right. And so we've been building towards his to to to towards towards towards towards towards towards towards towards towards towards towards towards towards to towards to to to to to to finish to finish this to finish this their their insecure this toe insecure their insecure to finish this the I wanted to end it the fifth season. Prensis and Prensis and I talked about that and he was just like, yeah, that feels right.
And so we've been building towards his journey to finish telling the story.
I love watching television that kind of has a, that takes me a story.
Like there's nothing like a meandering story. And so for me, I hope that people that people that I that I that I that I that I'm 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 going that's going that's that's that's not 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 th right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right right. thanananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananananed. that's that's that's that's that's not. I. that people leave feeling satisfied. Like, oh, I'm glad I watched that.
I'm glad I watched that story and told.
I think everyone's going to have that feeling.
And what's cool is if you're an Isaray fan,
I mean, from what I read in the magazines,
there's not going to be a shortage of Israe in the world.
Like, you're doing the thii You know when Twitter goes like, oh, making money moves, then you know, like things are happening.
Get the bag.
Yeah, you're getting the bag,
you're making the money moves.
Congratulations, first of all,
because you are just making things.
You've signed a giant deal.
You're gonna be creating everything across the board.
Firstly, where do you find the time? Secondly, what are you now looking to do that you haven't already done?
So much. I mean, I'm, thank you. I am, I have the time because I work with incredible people.
And so like, you know, there's different arm company and people are, you have incredible taste and work very hard.
And then for me next, I just want to go behind the scenes.
Like I love exploring the business parts of the industry.
I love producing the work of people who I'm a fan of.
And I have not made a film yet.
That is my personal next goal.
And yeah, there's just so much, so many things that I want to do. And I don't want to just do anything to do it it it it to do it to do it to do it th. I th. I to do anything th. I to do anything th. I to do anything thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi to do to do thi to thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi tho. I thoes I thoes I thoes I thoes I thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I thi. I thi. I to thi. I to to to the. I to to to to to the an the an to to to to thea to thea to thoooooooooooooooo so many things that I want to go.
And I don't want to just do anything to do it.
I want to do things well.
Talk me through your partnership with LifeWater.
This is really interesting.
I saw, I saw money, I saw opportunity, and I saw E.Saray and I want to know what this is
all about.
What's happening? So I've always, in the spirit of collaboration, wanted to find other people to work with.
And you know, this industry right now talks so much about diversity and representation and
where do you find these people?
And it's like we're trying to create the pipeline.
Basically, LifeW1 and I have partnered to call a contest to find people
and artists and creatives who need that opportunity to have their work be seen. They've created a
20 bottles with the work of these various artists that we've hand selected and then we're doing a contest
to find five more and they'll get $10,000 to have their
work commissioned.
I wonder if part of the reason you did this is because in many ways your career was also
started by the people.
I mean, you know, your original show was this awkward black girl and here you had people
on a kickstarter saying, oh, we're going to make this thing happen. Without that you might not be here today or
maybe the journey would have taken much longer. Without a doubt I know what it's
like to be in those early stages and be like I just if someone just sees my
work if just that one person believes it has a platform then that
could change the game for me or it could not but I just need to to either either either either either either see to either see to either see to see to see to see to see to see to see to see to see to see to see to see to see this this to see this this this this this this this th th thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thi thi thi thi thi thi. If thi. If thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. 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. thi. to thi. to to thi. to the. you. to the. you. you to you you the. you you thi. you you thi. you thi. thi. th could change the game for me or it could not, but I guess me to either see this and be like,
this is great, or see this and be like,
this sucks, don't ever try again.
And so we are hopefully providing this platform
for these artists and looking out for them
in a way that the industry isn't necessarily doing. Specifically, by having LifeWater Commission a study to see like where there's a lack of representation in these areas.
It's visual art, fashion, music, and filmmaking. Oh, okay. Issa Ray, thank you so much for joining me.
I appreciate you. Thank you, Trevor. 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, that's our show for tonight.
But before we go, COVID-vaccination efforts are underway across the globe.
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Until tomorrow, stay safe out there. Wear a
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Google him first just in case it's A-Rod.
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Ears Edition. Watch the Daily Show
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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.
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 17. This has been a Comedy Central Podcast.