The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Protests Sweep Across America and Beyond | Miski Noor & Anquan Boldin
Episode Date: June 9, 2020Police get violent with peaceful protesters, Black Visions Collective's Miski Noor examines police brutality in Minneapolis, and Anquan Boldin discusses the Players Coalition. Learn more about your a...d-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 everybody, I'm Trevor Noah,
and welcome to another episode of the Daily Social Distancing Show.
We're back, but we're still filming from my apartments
because it's safer for everyone that way,
and I'm still only halfway through my hoodie collection.
Now, today's not gonna be a normal show,
and that's because nothing is normal right now.
For one thing, there's still a global pandemic,
and as of this weekend,
400,000 people tho' the US. So please remember, if you're
out there, wear a mask and keep your distance as much as you can. But believe it or not, there's
an even bigger story going on right now about the greatest pandemic of all, racism, which
unlike the coronavirus doesn't go away if you stay in your house for 14 days. So instead,
people have been taking to the streets. With the country in turmoil, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, hundreds, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, to, to, to, to, to, to, too, thi, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, and, and, to, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and 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 the the the the the. the the the. the. th to the streets. With the country in turmoil, hundreds of thousands of Americans are protesting against systematic
racism and police brutality.
No justice, no peace.
No justice, no peace.
Tens of thousands of Americans protesting peacefully, filling cities and towns across
the country.
In Washington, D.C. for eight minutes, 46 seconds.
Thousands of protesters lying down across the Black. In Washington, D.C. for eight minutes, 46 seconds. Thousands of protesters
lying down across the Black Lives Matter Plaza. In New York City, demonstrators swarmed
Times Square. In Austin, thousands cried no justice, no peace. In Green Bay, Wisconsin,
demonstrators closing down a bridge. In all 50 states, people of all colors, all joined
together. In Los Angeles, they took the notion of a peaceful
protest to a whole new lotus, adding in yoga. In Houston, some marched by horseback, while
on Maui, they gathered on surfboards at sunset. That is really amazing. Never before in
American history has there been an uprising like this, exactly like this,
where you have huge numbers of people coming out every single day in every single state
in the country.
And it's particularly notable because it's almost completely spontaneous.
Usually big demonstrations take months of planning, publicizing, getting permits.
These ones are just, a-yo, meet me outside in five minutes, and people are there.
Since starting in Minnesota after the murder of George Floyd,
these protests for black lives have spread
like nobody could have imagined,
from tens of thousands of people in big,
multi-ethnic cities,
to 200 people in towns that are 90% white.
And now, even more impressive is that this protest has started blowing up
all over the world. In Paris they marched as they did in Rome and Tokyo. In Hungary
a silent crowd took a knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds.
COVID-19 kept tie protesters off the streets but on screen in a massive zoom session.
In London, joining this protest mattered far more than the lockdown rules.
Thousands, many masks against coronavirus gathered outside the American embassy.
Your message is heard over here and we'll keep fighting the same fight that you are.
We'll keep fighting the same fights that you are. Yeah. That right there. That right there is, that right there is, and, and we'll tie, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and we th th th same fight that you are. We'll keep fighting the same fight that you are.
Yeah.
That right there, that right there, is why this movement has become as big as it has.
Because everyone, everyone is not realizing that we're all in the same fight.
Like, these protests may have been sparked by one killing in one American city.
But the truth is, the truth is that if you are a black person or a minority
or a poor person in many places around the world in London, Berlin, Seoul, Cape Town, you
understand what it means to be a target of the police and a target of a system that is designed
to keep you down with violence if necessary. And that's why you now have people in every country standing together.
Standing together to say, this is not acceptable anymore.
Black lives matter.
And whenever there are big protests, there's always going to be people who stand on the
sidelines, right?
There's always going to be people who sit in their newspaper offices or TV news studios
and say, I sympathize with you, but this is not the way that get what you want, this is not the way that you should be doing it.
Protesting is a waste of time.
It turns people off.
It's just performative.
It doesn't accomplish anything.
Well, you know what?
I hope those people are hungry because they're going to be eating their words. Because after two weeks, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just, just the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their the the their the the the the the the their their the their their the their their their their their their their their their their their their their their the. toea. toea. toea. toea. toeauaueaueauxteaueaueaueauea., toa. toa. toea. toea, th and small. For example, for decades, Americans have been arguing about Confederate monuments
and other racist statues littered around this country.
The people have said, take them down.
And government officials have said, oh, we'll think about it, we'll study it,
we'll start a commission, we'll get back to you.
Well, this time, thethe people said take them down and the government officials responded with
yeah you're right. There were cheers Thursday night at the foot of Richmond's
Robert E. Lee statue after the governor announced the monument which
stood for 130 years is coming down. Mobile Alabama removed a confederate
statute this morning and Indianapolis announced
this one is coming down.
For days, protesters in Philadelphia have tried to tear down this controversial statue of
former mayor and police commissioner Frank Rizzo, widely accused of being a symbol of racism
for his tactics against the black community in the 1960s and 70s, the city taking it down in
the middle of the night. Yes. In Philadelphia, Philadelphia, they decided 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 to to to to to to to take take take tak tak tak take 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 1960s and 70s, the city taking it down in the middle of the night.
Yes, in Philadelphia, they decided to take down a statue of a racist police commissioner.
And I guess the question we should be asking is, why did a racist police commissioner have a statue in the first place?
And yeah, there are still people out there who are like, yeah, but if you take down the statues, how will people learn their history? These statues are about history. Read a book, mother fucker. That's
how you learn history. No one really thinks that these statues are teaching anybody history. The
bubonic plague was a major event in history. We don't go around putting up statues of
rats. You don't see that shit anywhere. And speaking of learning, that's another thing that these protesters are affecting. That's another area that we're seeing the impact of the protests.
Because people, just average people are hearing these conversations about racism and policing.
And they're saying, you know what?
Since there are no statues, maybe I should read.
Books on systemic racism are making bestseller lists as protests continue across the country.
Six of the top ten best-selling books on Amazon are on the topic of race in a 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 protests continue across the country.
Six of the top 10 best-selling books on Amazon are on the top of the top of Amazon and Barnes-Nobles' best-selling list today.
S-O-On is sold out of the book How to be an Anti-Racist and has hundreds on backorder.
James thinks they've received a total of 3,000 online orders this week alone and eventually
had to stop accepting them.
Yes, thanks to the protests and thanks to the conversations and thanks to people pushing.
Americans are so concerned about what's happening in their country right now
that books about race and racism in America are sold out.
And yes, I know a lot a th a th a th a th th a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot a lot yes, I know a lot of people might say it's too little, too late.
Why are you only reading now?
That is a good question.
But I think at the same time, we've got to be happy that people are reading now.
How many times have we seen a video? How many times have the protests?
No conversations have been had.
So this right direction. And you can see that it's working.
Because people aren't just buying books.
People are saying Black Lives Matter.
And they're not just saying it.
They're saying it in public.
Black Lives Matter has become the phrase that people admit needs to be said.
And maybe it's because of George Floyd's video.
Maybe it's because the whole world was forced to sit at home and watch that video, but it's happening.
Everyone from Mitt Romney to K-pop fans are saying Black Lives Matter.
Corporations are saying Black Lives Matter.
Amazon, Bud Light, Gushes.
Everyone is saying Black Lives Matter.
And don't get me wrong.
I don't know if these companies are actually going to do something that they believe Black Lives Matter other than just saying it, but it is still a major step to have American corporations
who just a few years ago were terrified of that phrase
saying it as part of their corporate ethos.
Because Black Lives Matter shouldn't be controversial as a phrase.
Black people having lives shouldn't be a controversial thing at all.
And you can tell that this protest is working
because even the NFL, even the NFL, has stepped up to say, you know what, we can do better.
Roger Gaddell is apologizing for how the league failed to support players who are protesting police brutality and racial injustice
during the national anthem. For many this is an about phase that was a long time coming.
NFL Commissioner Roger Gaddell is changing the league's message, releasing this video statement late Friday.
We the National Football League condemn racism and the systematic oppression of black people.
We, the National Football League, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players
earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully a protest.
Yeah.
Roger Goudell, Commissioner of the NFL has come out with the statement that you just saw, which
is one hell of a statement from the NFL.
And look, it is a bit weird that he's affirmed their commitment to Black Lives Matter and protest,
and then not mentioned Colin Kappenick, the person who was blackballed by the NFL for
protesting for Black Lives Matter in the first place.
I mean, that's what I mean about people actually doing something.
Like, it's nice to see the NFL say this, don't get me wrong.
But I hope that Gaddell and everyone at the NFL are actually going to look at doing things. Because every other industry, you know, they have to prove their commitment by hiring
thousands of new black people.
The NFL's just got a hire one.
And yes, I know I said, I know I said that even purely symbolic gestures are nothing
to sneeze at, but we all agree the posting statements, taking down statutes and
selling books is not enough. It's part of it, but it, but. Companies have to hire more black people. Companies have to stop not hiring
people because they're black. The culture has to amplify more black voices.
And of course, cities have to end the racist policing of black communities.
That's where we all started. That's where this whole thing started.
And that's the good thing about these protests,
is that it hasn't just gotten people talking,
it hasn't just got people buying books,
it hasn't just gotten, like, leagues and organizations
saying Black Lives Matter.
The best part about these protests
is that they're already producing substantive changes as well.
The killing of George Floyd is fueling calls due to defund America's police departments.
Defund the police chants are spreading at protests and the hashtag is gaining momentum
on Twitter.
The idea may also be catching on at city halls.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Wednesday, he will not be increasing the police budget.
He also announced $250 million will be invested in such areas as jobs and education,
especially in black and non-white communities.
Yes, Los Angeles has announced, but they will be taking money away from the LAPD and putting
it into programs like education. And please don't get it wrong.
This is not a spite thing.
I've seen so many conversations where people seem like they're punishing the police.
No, studies have shown that when you invest in people, when you invest in communities,
you don't need to invest in the police.
It makes sense. Prevention is always better than a cure,
especially when the cure kills black people.
And after the mayor of Los Angeles made this announcements, after Mayor Garcetti came out and did this, which was huge,
other cities quickly said that they're also going to try, at least try to fix their policing problems.
New York has announced that they're planning to cut the police budgets and change some of the laws that have protected killer cops. Houston, Sacramento and other cities are banning chokeholds, they're banning chokeholds
and certain other uses of force, which is not enough but it's a start. And
Democrats in Washington have introduced a bill that would among other things
make it easier to investigate and punish violent police as well as banning no-knock
warrants like the kind used by the cops who killed Brianna Taylor. And if all of this this th th this th th th th th th th th th th this th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th thus thus tho tho tho 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 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 the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the toaughea.a.a tooea.a.a toooea.a-coaughea toea toea toa toa toa warrants like the kind used by the cops
who killed Brianna Taylor. And if all of this actually happens, these will be
meaningful reforms. But one of the themes that has come out of these protests is
that reform is not enough. What a lot of people are saying is you cannot reform
something that was inherently designed to be bad. And so what many people are demanding now is to defund or abolish the police.
Let's stop having police in schools.
Let's stop having police deal with homelessness or people with mental illness.
Let's stop having police patrol neighborhoods where they don't live and give
that job to residents.
And a month ago, if you said any of this, you seemed like you were crazy
and it was a pipe dream that would never happen.
But again, after these protests, it may soon become a reality.
In an unprecedented move, the Minneapolis City Council has vowed to defund and go beyond
that, dismantle the city's police department.
They're promising to replace it with a new system of public safety.
We are seeking to disband the Minneapolis Police Department because it is not keeping Minneapolis
safe. We have looked at ways to reform this department.
We do not believe it is possible.
Yeah.
The city where this all started is actually promising to defund the police.
And look, we're not naive.
We know that promises aren't always kept.
Politicians weasel out of things all the time and even good intentions only go so far.
But to have gotten this far with less than two weeks of protest is truly amazing.
And it's not over yet.
The people are still
fighting. The people are still pushing. And something tells me if they keep at
it, there will be no stopping them. We'll be right back.
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,
starting September 17th, wherever you get your podcasts.
Welcome back to the Daily Social Distancing Show.
You know with all these protests sweeping across America, people have been comparing this
moment to the civil rights movement of the 1960s.
And much like the 1960s, law enforcement officers have met these calls to end police
brutality with even more police brutality.
Across the country, peaceful protests have too often devolved into standoffs with heavily
armed police using military style tactics.
You do not move your death.
Blushes, tear gas, rubber bullets, helicopters, armored vehicles.
Law enforcement in riot gear approach a barrier.
Protesters on the other side, hands up in the air, chanting,
don't shoot. But that's exactly what they did,
shooting tear gas and rubber bullets.
The threat of terrorism after 9-11 convinced many departments to stock up.
Now those departments are facing off against their own citizens. The threat of terrorism after 9-11 convinced many departments to stock up.
Now those departments are facing off against their own citizens.
Just take a moment to think about that.
The police department got this heavy duty equipment to fight terrorists.
That's why they got the equipment, post-911.
And now they're using it against Americans who are exercising their right to protest.
And I'm sorry, what about these people screams terrorists to you? Like maybe I've forgotten my history, but I don't remember the part where Al-Qaeda attacked
America with cardboard signs.
And an argument I've heard some people make is that the only reason the police are doing this
is because the police are threating or being violent.
That's what they say, no, no, no, they're they're they're they're their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, their, thiol-I's's what they say. No, they're doing this because the people are violent.
But as happens so often, the police's story never matches the actual footage.
Because for the past week, the internet has been full of videos of police officers attacking
protesters with no provocation whatsoever.
Caught on camera from coast to coast, alleged excessive force by police officers.
Attacks against protesters who are demonstrating against police brutality.
In New York, police drove a vehicle into a crowd of people protesting there.
In Los Angeles, police swing batons at people who witnesses say were simply standing with
their hands up.
A New York police officer caught on camera pushing a woman who was demonstrating.
An officer pulling a man's face mask off and spraying him with pepper spray.
This unsettling image of an officer kicking a woman who was maced.
Caught on camera, a protester run over by an HPDed patrol unit at the height of the protests.
We as black people deal with this every day.
Black and brown people are treated brutally every day.
I don't care who you are.
Those images have to be upsetting to watch.
Because these images are the antithes of what America is supposed to stand for.
This is supposed to be the country where you have the freedom to say whatever you want,
a democracy.
You can say whatever you want, whether it's Black Lives Matter or let's all drink bleach.
The government is not supposed to physically punish you for that.
And that hasn't always been the case in America, but that is the ideal.
When people were protesting in Michigan saying that they want to go out, they want to go back to work, they want to get haircuts, they don't care about the coronavirus, they weren't getting beaten up.
And that's what America is, the freedom to protest. And the freedom to protest isn't the only American ideal that the police have been trying to suppress lately.
It seems like they've been really making a concerted effort to go after the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their theirsesesesesesesesesesesesesese., their thosefereen. toeoes. thiiol. toeathea. toeou. thiol. thiol. thiole. thiole. thiole. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their the th. th. thi. thi. the. the. the. te. te. te. tea's is tea. tea. tea. tea. tea tea tea tea tea. tea. tea. tea after the free press. More than 300 journalists have faced press freedom violations. Across the United States, the camera is rolling when law enforcement seemed to be targeting
journalists.
Whoa, I'm press.
Please, you...
We identified ourselves as press and they fired tear gas canisters on us at point blank
range.
This Australian cameraman and reporter were shoved and hit while live on air.
Police now advancing on protestant.
Oh my gosh, we're moving.
I'm getting shot.
In Louisville, Pepperballs fired a crew on live TV.
Who were they aiming that at?
Us, like directly at us.
Yeah.
Those videos are what's happening in America right now.
Cops are just openly firing, tear gas and pepper bullets and everything on journalists.
I mean, I can't blame them. If I was doing the shit that the police have been doing,
I wouldn't want anyone recording it either.
So, the police are attacking unarmed protesters,
defenseless reporters.
I mean, at this point, you might be wondering,
is there anyone, is there anyone non-threatening enough
that the police would not get violent with them?
And what we're learning is that the answer is no.
A Salt Lake City police officer in full riot gear,
using his shield to push an elderly man with a cane.
The man the man the man the man the man the man the man the man the man. the ground. Two officers in Buffalo, New York pushing a 75-year-old man
who falls to the ground, hits his head, and starts bleeding. None of the officers in
the video appear to help him. I don't care how many times I see that video, I will
never get used to it. Because it's bad enough that these cops push an old man who's walking over to them,
but the fact that they walk over him, they walk past him while he's bleeding out on the sidewalk.
Like, who are you protecting and serving, if not that old man?
And think about it, these were just two that were caught on video.
Now, as usual, when videos like this come out,
the excuse is always the same.
People always want to defend those police by saying,
those are just a couple of bad apples.
That is not a signify, that is not representative of the entire police department.
The only issue is that argument falls apart when you see what happened after they pushed
this old man to the ground.
A police statement released before the footage was posted online said only that a man
tripped and fell.
But after the video surface, the police commissioner ordered an internal affairs investigation
and the immediate suspension of the officers without pay.
As the officers leave the courthouse, cheers from a crowd of fellow officers and law enforcement.
In another show of support, all 57 members of the Buffalo Emergency Response Team
resigned, but they remain on the police force.
Think about this for a second.
Not only did the police department try to cover up what happened,
not only did they try and lie about something that we all saw on camera.
But once the truth got out and those cops were punished,
the entire team resigned to protest those police being held accountable.
In fact, they even showed up at the courthouse to cheer them on as their their their their their their their their their their their their their being held accountable. In fact, they even showed up at the courthouse
to cheer them on as they came out.
What are you cheering?
That Buffalo is finally safe from old men walking around in public.
What are you cheering?
What are you cheering?
The fact that you've come out, the fact that you said,
like it's a scary thing to think about what are they cheering for? And something I think I th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th th think think thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi 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. the, the. theateateateateateat, theat, theat, theat, theat, theat, their their, their, their, their, ths are thinking about, what are they cheering for? And something I think people need to understand about the police is that in a way, they
have the same code that a gang does, in that above all, you are loyal to your crew.
That is a culture that is within every police department.
And that's the heart of this issue.
If good police are willing to look the other way or even join in when the bad police abuse their powers,
you can make new rules and regulations all you want, but it won't matter.
America's not going to be able to fix this problem until we have police whose first priority is protecting and serving the people,
instead of protecting and serving the people instead of protecting and serving
themselves. When we come back I'll be talking to Miskineur from the Black
Visions Collective in Minneapolis on the ground where the George Floyd protest
started and we'll be talking about how things have gone since that day.
We'll be right back. 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, thsesesesesesesesesesesesesesesesesese se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se se. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi. th, 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. We. We. We. We'll th. We'll th. We'll th. We'll thi. We'll thi. We'll thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. We'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.
Welcome back to the Daily Social Distancing Show. Earlier today, I got the chance to talk to
Miski Noo. Now, Miski is an organizer of Black Visions collective, an organization
in Minneapolis
dedicated to ending systems of violence.
We spoke about George Floyd, the murder,
and how Minneapolis's city council
is pledging to dismantle the city's police department.
So check it out.
Welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show.
That's cute.
That's cute. I appreciate that.
Thank you for having me.
You are somebody who's on the ground, and not just to to to to to th th th th th th tho, to tho, tho, but tho, to tho, tho, to tho, tho, tho, tho, to to tho, 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 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 to be to be to, the that's cute. I appreciate that. Thank you for having me. You are somebody who's on the ground and not just now, but you have been on the ground.
Take me through a little journey, if you don't mind, just for the viewers,
to paint a picture of Minneapolis.
You know, a lot of people were shocked at what happened in Minnipolus.
A lot of people were shocked at what happened in the aftermath to George Floyd. But you are one of
the people who wasn't so much shocked, but rather it's almost like you were like, you were like,
this is what was bound to happen because of Minneapolis's story. Tell me a little bit about that and
and and and why you believe that. I would say not only just the history of the police in general, right, where we know that
the roots of the institution of police come from slave catching and union busting, right?
But in the city of Minneapolis, the police department's only been here for about 150 years, but
we know that before George Floyd, there's Philando Castile, and there's Mark, Terence Franklin, and Thururman Blevens, and Marcus Golden, and Fong Lee, and so many others.
And Minneapolis has actually been the poster child for reform, right?
We had a openly gay indigenous woman as police chief,
Fong Police Chief, Janay Hartel.
We received, or not we, the Minneapolis Police Department received a review
from President Obama's Department of Justice.
They even received a settlement to receive training
to not put people, detainees, and prone positions,
which is the exact tactic that Derek Schoen used to murder George Floyd.
So, and currently we have a black police chief, Chief Rondo, right?
And still the Minneapolis Police Department manages to murder black people in the streets.
And so, this is the, this is the setting for what happened to George Floyd.
And we saw with the murder of Jamar Clark five years ago. You know, our demands back then were actually, that we wanted to see the tapepepepepepepepe 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 to see to see the to see to see to see to to see 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 the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the police. And, and the police. And, and to to the the to the the the the the the the the the toe.. the toe. the tape, tape, tape, the tape, the police. toe, toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. And, toe, the toe, toe, saw with the murder of Jamar Clark five years ago.
Our demands back then were actually that we wanted to see the tape of the murder, right?
We wanted the tape to the public and to the family especially.
We wanted a DOJ investigation into the 12-hour standoff that we had with the police in
which they really brutalized protesters by driving their bikes into people,
by dragging young hijackies by their by their scarves, by punching young black queer women in the face.
So we wanted an investigation into that behavior. We wanted no grand jury because we knew
grand jury would not get us justice.
But all of our demands were really inside of making the system give us justice.
And ever since then we've actually changed our focus
to focus much more on abolition.
And what does it mean to reduce the scope and the scale and the power of the police?
And so that's what defund the police is really about. And that's the work we've been doing as black fissions and reclaim the block over. the the the the the the the the the the the block the the the block the the block the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th th th. We're really the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the. Wea the. We're the. We're really th. We're really the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. the th. th. the the. the the the the the. the. the the the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. thea. thean. thean. thean. thean. thean. thea. thea. thea. thea. the thea. the the the power of police. And so that's what defund the police is really about.
And that's the work we've been doing as Black Fisions and reclaim the block over the
last few years.
Let's go through each thing step by step.
You have lived in Minneapolis for how long now?
Wow.
I've been here since 2003.
So, but almost, coming up on 20 years.
Right, and so you've lived in this place
that is predominantly white,
and yet at the same time experiences
predominantly black people
experiencing brutality at the hands of police.
I'm sorry, 60% of black folks.
Say that again, please.
60% of people murdered by the police or
involved in police shootings over the last 18 years have been black people.
And what is the percentage of black people in Minneapolis?
We brought 12% of the population here, I believe. Wow. So it's safe to say that a tiny portion of the
population has been experiencing a majority of the force that the police exerts on, on the police on the, on, on the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the the the last the the last the the the last the the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the last the a tiny portion of the population has been experiencing a majority of the force that
the police exerts on people.
And I think that's something that has been missing from the conversation.
You know, yes, George Floyd has been the catalyst.
But a lot of people, in my opinion, or what I've seen, haven't been talking about, like, you know,
all of the little flints that have been causing this flame, all of the little tinders that have been creating what we're
seeing right now. So talk us through a little bit of Minneapolis's problems. What do you think
has contributed to what became the explosion that we saw post George Floyd? Mm-hmm. So yeah, I talked to you a little
about some of the reforms that the police department
has tried that did not work.
But some of the numbers inside of our state actually, right?
Minnesota has the fourth largest employment gap between black and white folks.
And we have one of the largest disparities in home ownership at 76% for white folks and
24% for black folks.
And in 2019, we were actually named one of the fourth worst metros in the country for black people based on education and housing and how access to health care and so many other things.
And so those are the those are the disparities and as I mentioned before, those are mirrored in the Minneapolis
Police Department and the way in which they treat black people in the state and in the
city.
Do you have any idea of why this sparked the outrage that it did?
You know, because Minneapolis does have this pain.
You know, the black community has been subject to countless, as we've seen.
Even the officer in question had something like 20 previous complaints against him.
Yes.
What do you think sparked Minneapolis's rage the way that it was sparked after George Floyd?
An organizer here, Jason Sol said in a video that Minneapolis was one bullet away from being Ferguson five years ago? It wasn't a bullet, right, but it was a murder.
It was a murder by the police.
And so that foretelling and that clarity really hit me.
Also, the really underlying currents of all of that being organizing, right?
We didn't stop organizing after the media stopped paying attention in Minneapolis or many
other cities as police continue to brutalize and kill black folks.
We continued organizing and talking to our neighbors and having conversations about defunding
the police and what could be possible and what community-led safety could look like.
Right, and that's something, sorry to interrupt you, but that's something I really wanted to chat to you about. I really found this interesting in and around the work
you've been doing in Minneapolis, because before, I would argue, before it became, you know,
in vogue to talk about this, you've been one of the organizers on the ground in Minneapolis,
working to defund abolish and foster community policing or
community accountability.
And I wanted to talk to you about that.
What has that been like on the ground and what does that actually mean in terms of the
communities working within themselves to hold people accountable?
Because I think a lot of people have heard snippets of this but don't truly understand
what it means.
It's honestly a lot of organizing and storytelling, right? It's organizing folks, it's organizing
our community members to really take their own power back and telling the story of how it actually
is their power way. So many folks are disillusioned with politics or elections or even their own like city governments
because they don't actually see themselves reflected there and they don't actually see themselves heard.
And so we really wanted to engage our communities' imaginations about what could be possible
and how we could protect one another. And we really seem to become possible during this uprising,
right? The police really left us to ourselves when white supremacists descended on our cities.
And so it's been community patrols.
It's been medic trainings.
It's been food drives and transportation services and handing out PPE and
NARCane and training folks how to take care of each other that's really actually protected us in this time.
And that's some of the work we were work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work work. the work. the work. the work. the work us in this time. And that's some of the work we were doing before. In 2018, Black Visions and Reclaim the Block
actually forced the City Council
by getting hundreds of community members
out repeatedly to budget hearings
to remove $1.1 million from the police department
and reallocated to things like the Office.
Before this uprising, our city government planned to cut that office,
right? Their plan was to remove it. We only got it two years ago. We haven't had a chance
to see what the great impact of that could be. And so one of our demands has been, you got to fund
that, you got to fully fund that for years to come. And so those are the kinds of things thin that we want and tho. T the kinds the kinds th th th. th. th. th. th. thi thi thi thi thi thi. thi. thi. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho tho tho tho thoo. Wow tho. Wow tho tho tho tho tho thoo tho tho tho tho tho tho tho the kind tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho. thooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. to to to to to to to go to go to go to go to go to go to go for so that there can actually be real protection for black folks and other marginalized communities
because our you know the announcement yesterday was amazing and what got it
to happen is the on-the-ground organizing that folks have been doing for years
not only in Minneapolis but all around the country. It really was huge
because you had the City Council come out and say that they're committing
to working to dismantle the police department as we know it.
And this, this, I mean, has blown people away because I don't think this is a conversation
anybody thought any city council would ever be having, you know, now.
It didn't seem like it would happen.
And clearly the protests and the movement have created something. Activists and organizers like like like to to to to to to to to to to to to to the the the the to the and the movement have created something. Activists and organizers like yourself have created something. Is this what you
want to see? Were you happy when this was announced?
A hundred percent and on Prince's birthday, all name. So you know Prince knew
something about the revolution. But yeah this was one of the things we wanted to see.
This is a win. We've seen a lot of wins over the last two weeks. So I want community and people to really claim that and really understand what's
possible with people power because we can do this and we can really craft a world in which
all of us are safe and all of our dignity and humanity is honored. And the public commitment
is great. The work continues, right? We actually have to see some things past. We have to actually have conversations.
Minneapolis is making history
by beginning a community-driven process.
The dismantle MPD and decades of organizing
by communities have led to this.
But we have a lot of hard work ahead of us,
and it's going to take every single one of us,
learning new skills and building new relationships, and really trying things that we haven't done before.
But we believe that the reward is going to be a city that really invest in life-affirming
policies and programs and services that care for our people instead of police that terrorize us.
Before I let you go, I know that being an organizer is often thankless.
Being an organizer is extremely difficult and now more than ever people are willing and
excited to help organizers and activists or on the ground.
So if there are people who want to help out in Minneapolis, if there are people who want
to send resources, where do they find your organization?
Where do you think that they should drive their resources towards? So you can find us at Black Visions, Amen, at Black Visions MN on Twitter,
on Instagram and Facebook,
and we are, you know, come see us,
see about us where a black-led,
queer and trans centering organization
with healing and transformative justice at the center.
That's really trying to build powerful campaigns to get black folks free
in Minnesota. Reclaim the block and MPD-150 are also really great resources to learn more about defunding
the police and abolition work.
If you have questions and if you want to talk to your neighbors and your family about this,
and if you're curious and you want to learn more about community-led safety, definitely
go there.
The movement for black lives is a great resource.
Check out all of the different organizations doing work, black liberation work
all across the country.
And then we actually, if you want to help support with your dollars organizations that are
on the ground, if you go to BITLE, backslash fund the community, you'll find a bunch
of organizations on the ground and funds on the ground in Minneapolis that are part of
this ecosystem that are supporting folks on the ground and an uprising work in
this moment. Miskie thank you so much for taking your time today and as you say
congratulations to you and the community on your win and hopefully there'll be
more to come. Thanks so much Trevor appreciate you. Thank you so much
Missy when we come back Super Bowl champion An Quan Baldwin joins us to to t t t t t t t t t t t t tell tell tell tell tell tell tc tell the the tell the the tell the the tell the the th tha tho tho tho tho tho tho 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 the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their their their their their. their their the. the. I the. the. tru. tru. tru. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. true. I. I. I'm. Baldwin joins us to talk about the Players'
Coalition and what Drew Breeze said.
So stick around.
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 got the chance to talk to NFL star Anquan Bolden.
He's the co-founder of the player's coalition, which is a group of professional athletes
who have come together to improve social justice and racial equality in our country.
We talked about his work and what he's doing to help the movement against police brutality. Anquan Baldwin, welcome to the d the d the d the d the daily the daily the daily the daily the daily the daily the daily the daily the daily the da the dae the daeeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoeoe. to to to to th. 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 toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. to to toe. toe. to to to toe. to toe. to toe. toe. toe. toe. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. te. te.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e.e. te.e. te. t. the movement against police brutality. Angkwan Baldwin, welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show.
Thanks, man, thanks for having me.
First things first, how are you as a human being?
I feel like people don't ask them like that question anymore right now.
How are you doing?
That's true, man.
People don't.
But I got to say, man, I'm considering, I'm doing doing pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty, I'm doing, I'm doing, I'm doing pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty I have no choice. I have, you know, a wife and two kids that I have to look after.
So, you know, I have to be okay for them.
Right, right.
You are someone who has had to be okay for people for a lot of his life, though.
You know, one thing that has set you apart as a human being is that you left
the NFL. to found like an organization that really is tossed with justice.
You set out to create the Players Coalition, which is an organization that has said,
hey, man, we're going to try and make a difference using the NFL as a platform to get racial justice out there.
Take me through a little bit of the why.
You know, like everyone has a different story as to why they get into the work that they get into. Why was this the the th th this th th th th this th th th th th th th th th th thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thoes. thoes. thoes. thoes. thoe. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. to to, to, too. too. tooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. different story as to why they get into the work that they get into. Why was this the move for you?
Yeah, for me, it was really important.
Unfortunately, I lost my cousin at the hands of law enforcement.
My cousin was a drummer in a band, and one night after a show he had just played with his band,
he was on his way home.
Ended up breaking down on the side of the road, long story short, law enforcement officer killed them
while he was on the phone with roadside assistance.
So for me, seeing the pain that my family
went through, seeing how long the process was before we felt like justice was served,
I didn't want any other family to have to deal with that. And for me and my family, you know, although we feel the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off off, their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their theauuauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauauau........................... other family to have to deal with that.
And for me and my family, you know, although we feel like,
there's a lot of families in this country, man,
that not only get justice, but don't get their day in court.
So I feel like with the platform that I had,
felt like it was more than right for me to speak out about these issues, but also try to come up with solutions.
Let's talk a little bit about that, because, you know, I think there's two things that
are oftentimes a misconception that people have.
You know, I've seen a lot of people in America say, oh, but if you're rich, if you're
famous, then you're out, then you're out.
thi tho' thii. then you're out. Like, it doesn't affect you. I don't know why you're complaining about this. I don't even know why this is an issue for you.
But you're just one of the examples of people who do get affected, because we're human
beings, we're connected to other people, even if it isn't you.
It can be a family member, etc.
But talk me through what you've been trying to do in terms of creating, their their to create, their, to create, their, their, their, their, their, and create, and create, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, you, you, you, you, you're, you're, you're, you, you, you, you're, you're, you're, you're, you're, you're, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, just walked away and said, hey, man, this is horrible, this was painful, and I'm out, but you've chosen to sort of live
in that pain and try and, you know, prevent other people from experiencing it.
Tell me a little bit about the wise.
Yeah, I think, you know, like you know, I found myself in those situations where
I'm pulled over just because of the car that I'm driving or the color of my skin.
So, you know, having money doesn't exempt you from being black in America.
If you're black in America, no matter how much money you have, you're just black
in America and you still have to deal with the issues that come with that.
For me, you know, me joining this work is because obviously I'm a black man. I'm raising
two black boys. I have cousins, I have a sister, I have two brothers that are obviously black.
So I mean, it doesn't just affect me. You know what I'm saying? It affects my family as well.
And for me, it's trying to hold these people accountable.
And I think that's the thing that people don't get.
And you know, you have a lot of people asking, why are people protesting?
Why is they're riding?
And the simple answer is because justice wasn't served right away.
I guarantee you had those guys been arrested,
not just the one officer, but all four,
had they been arrested right then or a day later,
you wouldn't have everything that's going on now.
And it's because we failed over and over again to hold people accountable.
Mm-hmm. You, you played in a league that has become synonymous with, you know, law enforcement, military, etc.
You know, the NFL, a lot of the imagery that you see on the field, it would be like police
members and the military and they're very proud of that association.
What that has created though is a conflict oftentimes between like the fans, some of the fans and many of the players, when the players speak out about, you know, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you the issues, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, the issues, the issues, the issues, thi, thi, thi, the issues, thi, thi, thi, thi, th the fans and many of the players when the players speak out about you know issues of police injustice or
violence in in the communities. How do you relate to your fans or have you found a
way to connect with them in a way where you know you can use their passion for
the sport that you played so well to try and help them understand what's going on in America? I think the thing that you th th th th th th th th thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thin thin the the the. the. I the. the their the. I 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 tho. the. I'll will will will will will. I'll to to to thean. I'll toeateateate. I'll toea. toea. I'll. I'll toea. I'm thooooooooooe. I'll their their their to try and help them understand what's going on in America? I think the thing that you have to do is just reach people at the level that they're at.
You know, everybody doesn't always see things the same way.
But I think if you humanize the situations that we're going through as a culture, I think
people begin to understand.
You know, you can liken it to like a lot of different things, but to, but to, to, to, to it to a lot of different things, but it isn't until it hits home with
the person that you're talking to that it really registers.
You've been working hard to push the NFL in this space.
And Roger Gaddell came out now and said that he doesn't feel like the NFL has done enough,
and he wants the NFL as an organization to do more.
Now, granted, the NFL doesn't make laws. The NFL isn't responsible for the police,
so I mean, you know, the scope of what they can do is limited.
But some people felt like it was lip service
because of Colin Kappanik.
Some people felt like it's a step in the right direction.
You know, you're somebody who's constantly been pushing the NFL.
What would you hope to see the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the NFL the the NFL the NFL the the the the the the the the the the the the to to the to to to to the NFL the NFL that can do and what would it be? Yeah, I think that's a good question because I think a lot of people are looking from the outside in and expecting the NFL to kind of solve this problem, right?
And that's not going to happen. But I think one thing that the NFL can do is look internally.
Look at the policies that it supports. Look at the hiring practices that it has internally.
When you're talking about a league that's predominantly made up of African-Americans,
how many African-American coaches do you have?
How many African-American GMs do you have?
How many African-American owners do you have.
So I think that's one of the things that they can look at.
And as far as using the platform that the NFL have, you are playing currently, guys like Malcolm Jenkins, other guys that are on the players coalition.
When we're asking for support of the NFL, it's not just monetary, but it's coming to us when
we have these meetings with congressmen and senators and those that are in positions of power,
because then those conversations change.
Because there are a lot of owners in the NFL that can guarantee that some of those people are in the seats that they're in because of their support.
So when we ask the NFL, you know, to lend us your platform, it's coming to these meetings
with us. It's understanding what exactly it is that we're fighting against. And I can tip my hat
to Roger because he's come along on several of those occasions. He's come to us, he's come along with us when we've spoken to
you know people in positions of power. He's come and tried to see while we were doing court hearings,
like what's the process. So he, I can give him a, you know, kudos for trying to understand
what exactly it is that we're talking about, trying to step outside of his self and
put itself in our shoes and understand the issues that we're screaming about.
It is interesting because sports has often been the place where people say politics doesn't
exist.
Sports is often the place where we all go to escape.
You just support your team, you have a good time and that's that.
But it feels like there are moments in time when politics is inescapable. You know, there are issues that can't be ignored when people step onto a field. There are issues that athletes can't ignore, you
know, because you have platforms, you have spaces to speak out.
Drew Breese was one of those athletes recently, you know, who came out and
said comments that he then later took back and said, look, were insensitive.
When you look at the players, you know, when you're talking to all of the players, is there a platform or space where players get together and hash these things out,
or do you find that there's a disconnect? Is, let me put it this way, is, do we work under the assumption
that the players are always like these tight-knit communities think there's pockets where they are.
I think you have a number of players that are on the same page.
You have guys that are connected in that way.
And then you have guys who have differing opinions.
But I would say the one thing that I do think is true,
that we're all fighting for the same cause.
we might see it a little different of how we get there, but I think we're on the same page that change needs to happen in this country. And we talk about sports, you know, uniting everybody and bringing everybody
together. The one thing I'm happy that is not happening right now is that sports isn't being played,
right? The world is at a standstill, right? Because think about it. Had life been normal,
you would have the NBA playoffs, right? You would have the NFLfail. The the NFL. The the the the thiiiiiii. th. th. thi. thi. 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, you thi, you thi, you thi, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you thi, you thi, you thi, you 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 thi thi thi, you would have the NBA playoffs, right?
You would have the NFL would be in OTAs. You would have MLB season would be underway.
You would have NASCAR. You would have PGA tournaments. You would have tennis tournaments.
And everybody could be distracted by those things that are going on. But because you don't have sports,
everybody's attention is focused on this one thing.
And I think for us, this is the opportunity for us to really create change.
It's an opportunity for us to really strategize and have a game plan going forward.
So I'm actually happy that there are no sports, because there's nothing to distract people
from the real issue that needs to be talked about. What would you like some of
those changes to be? There's a lot of changes that I would like to happen.
Obviously we know the over-policing and the African-American community is a
big one and I think one of the things that we're missing also is the
immunity that's giving to law enforcement, not only law
enforcement but but to government officials. And that's one of the big
problems. Like a lot of people don't really understand why there's a lack of
accountability when an officer does something or what allows an officer, like
the guy in Minnesota to continue to be on the force after 18
complaints and we don't look at the contracts between the unions and the guy in Minnesota to continue to be on the force after 18 complaints. And we don't look at the contracts between the unions and the cities.
And I think that's something that we need to start taking a look at.
Well, Anquan, I want to say thank you for your time.
I know it's always painful to relive old memories, but what you're doing is amazing.
And hopefully that these stories to tell. So thank you for joining me. No problem, Trip. Thanks for having.
Appreciate you, my dude.
Thank you so much, Anquan.
Well, that's our show for tonight.
But before we go, the Daily Show and Comedy Central have been donating to three groups
who are fighting against police brutality and systemic racism, the NWACP And if you're able to, and you'd like to help these groups, then you're more than welcome
to go to the following link and donate whatever you can.
Until tomorrow, though, stay safe out there.
The Daily Show with Trevor Noa, Ears Edition.
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content and more.
This has been a Comedy Central podcast.
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.