The last few weeks since the death of george floyd, what would you like to see come from all of this . Guest i am pleased that you have individuals of many backgrounds and communities taking to the streets. Next we have to take it to the polls. Many of the issues that have been raised will have to star in the november election. Public policy is changed by policymakers who hold the values and the interests of the communities that put them in office. As we see the Energy Industry with protests and demonstrations, we now have to november. R march in host how does that change in Public Policy affect what we have seen in the last few weeks . Guest it would impact us greatly. Whether it is police policy, whether it is how this nation finally addresses the issue of , whether it issm how we manage our economy as a priority, the priority we place corporations. Us it will be based on how we value the quality of life and the health of our communities. We are in the midst of a health , on top of all of the underlying issues that have impacted this nation for decades. Host when it comes to the issue of racism, if it does not fall to policy what could be done policy wise to make these changes . Guest you look at the gaps between everything from access to health care, quality how we view the culture of policing in our community, and how we address issues of disparities around employment and economic opportunity, those are structural and longstanding policies that have racial impacts. We have to account for the historical realities of the structural gaps, many of which were very intentional. What we are looking at now is not only the death of Ahmaud Arbery in georgia, or george floyd in minneapolis, or any of the other issues, we are looking at all of this stuff combined in the frustration you are seeing spilling out in the streets. Host i see them by the nature of your discussion that joe biden is the one who can address these issues . Guest i am not addressing any one person can address Public Policy, it is not changed by one person. But it does require some leadership. We are lacking in leadership both in many governorships, legislative bodies, congressional leadership, and in the white house. This is not a oneperson proposition, this is holistic. Nation to determine as a , will we muster the political will to move in the right react,on or continue to to incidents as they occur and then go back to business as usual. Host let me take it to the congressional level. We saw House Democrats unveil a legislative package in dealing with police reform. Walk through what they proposed and what you think the impact could be if it was passed. Guest i think the leadership of the Congressional Black Caucus, andg with Speaker Pelosi the majority of the members of the house, they have listened to many of the concerns on the streets. It is not perfect, but when you begin to propose policies that address the issue of qualified immunity, being able to hold Police Officers accountable for their actions. That is one of the biggest failures for officers to be held accountable. Or establishing a registry so that Police Officers who have been identified as bad actors, their records are not shielded. The type of training that is provided for Police Officers. There are several components of that legislation that i think is really important to begin to shift the culture around how we view policing in this nation, particularly when it comes to africanamericans and other situated. S similarly host our guest is with us until 9 30. You can call and question on 2027488001 for republicans, democrats on 2027488000, and 2027488002. Guest there is always room for improvement. As we are looking at the legislation, i am sure the more time that goes by, we will identify some of the gaps. I am just glad we have some momentum around this question that has tested this nation for many years. Andou look at the riots incidents throughout the history of this nation, it has always been connected somehow to local Law Enforcement not carrying out their duties. The naacp, cp in we had a campaign in the 1920s because of africanamericans being lynched. We had a sign at the local office saying a black man was lynched yesterday. Citizens included the local sheriffs and Law Enforcement who were participating in the most egregious offenses. The most egregious was when residents would come and have a picnic. That is how audrey just the situation was doing that particular how outrageous the situation was doing that particular period of time. To the current time, there has been instances where injustices have become so outrageous that citizens have no other choice but to take to the streets in protest, which opens the door for some of the riotous behavior we have also seen. Host one of the things that stemmed from that over the last few days is the idea of defunding or dismantling the police. Where does your organization stand on those concepts . Guest we understand the Energy Behind the need to change the culture of policing. I have heard a few definitions of what it means. For me, i would say we need to change the culture. Growing up in detroit and being give what to go across to canada, you could see a different culture between community and policing relations. Law officers in canada for the most part dont carry firearms. There was a different relationship between the parties on the community. We have seen a substantial drop in criminal activity over the drop,ear, a substantial but we continue to see an increase in police budgets. The real question is how do we place a priority on where we should be as a nation . Should we put more resources into preventative measures . Should we provide more training for Police Officers so they can have a different outlook on the community they serve . Should Police Officers live in the communities they are serving so they understand and can appreciate the dynamics of those communities . Times we see policing in certain communities and not others, and some type of militarized resins to ensure a order when there is no increase in nothing that is out of order. But there is a need for people to communicate, for people to see one another as a part of a community. I can say from experience growing up in the neighborhood i grew up in, we dealt with two type of Police Officers in my neighborhood, those we did not trust that had a reputation of harassing, and in one case, killing individuals, then there were those who came from the communities that we knew. When we saw those officers pull up, we would say, that is officer hawkins, or lieutenant. Sometimes they played basketball with us and would talk to us. But other Police Officers, we knew there was trouble. Not that we were involved in trouble, but they created the trouble. President ick johnson, and ceo of the naacp. Our first call is from robert in massachusetts. Go ahead. Caller hi, ledger and hi, derek. I have a question first about defending. I want to thank the chief. One of the caller talked about the way people were acting on the street. We cannot be focused on that because we will always blame a few people that acted a certain way. This is why she is worried about if we defund the police, where we would be. Host the last segment. This is a new guest. What is your question for the guest . Defunding, people should realize that we have a lot of police that become that was in the military and come back. They are trained to kill. We must hire people that are mentally ready to be policing people. This doesnt mean that when we called 911 for a fire, the police come, or when we call 911 someone is in crisis or a heart attack, the ambulance comes. When we have somebody in distress, like an overdose, we dont need to call the police with a gun and a badge. We have a lot of bad apples who show up in a situation they are not ready for. Host ok, robert. Mr. Johnson . Guest he makes an important point. We need more training for officers on how to deescalate the situation and not postured to escalate situations. Individuals are bringing experiences where they have not been properly supportive. Particularly if you were in the armed forces and you fought overseas for our nation, there is a level of support you need mentally to transition back and begin to see civilians that you protect is noto being combatants. Host from oklahoma on the republican line, roberta. Caller yes. I wanted to ask a question. I have heard many times that we send our Police Persons to israel for training. Is that true . Guest i cannot answer that, i think that is department by department. I do not know where officers get trained outside of their local state academies. I can only imagine that if they there are relationships, their possibly could be scenarios where officers are trained outside the country. Host at these protests, what does it mean that many white people are showing up to participate . You saw senator romney himself participate. What does that suggest to you about how the climate has changed . Guest it is outstanding. It is what is needed at this time. This is not a black or latino problem. This is an american problem. Anytime we can watch live someone murdered in the middle of the street in broad daylight, and the officer casually place their knee on an individuals neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds. Arrest. Ot resisting he was laying flat on his stomach and handcuffed, and he had a cry for help. That is perhaps one of the most inhumane things that many of us have seen on television so i am glad that more americans are standing up and asking the question. This cannot continue to be america. We knew this had always taken place. I am now glad to see people join in. For senator romney, i commended him for his stance and for his march. Now i want to see him stand up and help support policy that will change the reality in which many of us live in. Host to that end, mr. Johnson, there was a recent oped by you and other members including an alliance your organization has with the church of latter day saints. Can you describe that . Guest i come from the position that in order to be a stronger nation, we have to reach across communities and build understanding and acknowledge past wrongdoings. , ithe beginning of my tenure reached out to many committees to open up a dialogue. How can we Work Together . What are the things we have in common . So the dialogue with the church of latterday saints predated this incident. But it was with incidents like these in mind that we began the open dialogue. Host you can find it online. Guest. Johnson is our we go to virginia on the independent line, hi. Caller good morning. I know the popular saying right now is, lets have a conversation about this. I agree. Now, everybody sees major cities around this country are having a problem. Part of it is the tax base. They dont have enough taxes to support things. Why do they not have enough taxes . Because of businessman will not open a business in a city where when something goes wrong, they are coming in and burning down places. People do not want to live there. Here in richmond a couple of weeks ago, there was an eightyearold girl who was shot and killed. She was sitting in her apartment. Unless and until we rip the scab off in chicago over the memorial day weekend, i think there was 60 people shot. If we are going to have this conversation, lets address it, because i do not hear anyone ever talk about chicago. Why cant they solve that . If we will create a program, lets create one in chicago, in baltimore. Lets see if it works. If it works, absolutely, lets try it everywhere. Guest i love the concept of ripping the scab off. I think what the caller is getting to is the structural racist policies and institutions that exist. The reason why you have the like of unrest in cities chicago or baltimore i grew up in detroit is because the institutions that should be in place to support the ability for young people to aspire to their highest often times are underfunded, defunded, or diverted. Our system is really based on who gets taxed and who are not taxed, and how those tax dollars spent. In many cases, for Public Education, for example, in all those cities, there was a lot of decisions to divert funds people intion to have the best position to add value to their communities and their nation. Risk, witherlay that all the other structural requirements that committees should have and you take tax dollars out of it, you create problems. Chicago is not suffering from a lack of attacks ace a tax base. Chicago has always suffered from how money is spent. If teachers are not assigned to school for the most to schools where the most need is. You have some schools with a critical shortage of experienced teachers, and you have others with highperformance quality teachers, you create a disparity. When the Services Required for any community are not in some communities but are in other communities, such as the reality that we have Many Americans in urban areas live in food deserts. They dont even have a grocery store. The lack of health care. I could go on and on. That is part of ripping the scab off to address the problem. What he was talking about is the symptom of the problem. And a symptom of the problem is some of the unease you find in those communities. But those are symptoms, not the problem. Lets talk about the problem. Host in Los Angeles California on the independent line, hi. Caller good morning, gentlemen. Vet, inson, as a vietnam am looking at the situation you are saying. To pull the scab off this is what i am an independent both parties are the same. Only thing is republicans let you know where they are coming from. Democrats are just as bad, they have racist policies themselves. Policies such as Ronald Reagan and all of the north and the drug ar cartels. Then you have eric holder and obama with fast and furious, where they sent weapons to the drug cartels. Threatening the black communities with illegals. Now we have to learn spanish or we become unemployed. This is where they become with the family separations. That is because when a black man becomes unemployed host what would you like our guest specifically to address . Caller tell me, who should we vote for . You have one with racist policies in your face and others with a singles who they want to give Free Education and health care. When black americans asked for that, you told us that was reparations, man guest we need to be clear not to demean where we are. This is not about a partisan posture. Political parties are nothing more than vehicles for agendas. Americans, to define what will be the agenda moving forward for everyone. How do we address the past injustices that were intentionally created an move forward as a nation, recognizing that a substantial population within this nation have been preyed upon. The predators from the financial industry. The predators around Public Policy. The predators around police policy. Perfect,cal party is but the real question different a device now is where do we go from here . That is what we should be addressing. It should not be leading to some type of political tennis match because at the end of the day, no Political Party has been perfect. At that end of milosevic, we are not partisan. This is about how do we at the naacp, we are not partisan. This is about, how do we move forward. Host on the republican line, go ahead. Caller i live in an area that is predominantly run by a democratic party. Whenu see a correlation you look around where these problems are happening, and you see the party in control is a democrat with a police chief who is most likely appointed by the party in control, way dont consider mrs. In those areas why dont constituents in those areas want to see a different Political Party in control . Guest once again, this is not about Political Parties. Both parties have not stepped up thehe plate to address structural systemic racism in this country. Having a partisan argument. Unfortunately, we tried to posture something as systemic and longlasting as this as if it was a partisan conversation. Lets be clear, Political Parties are nothing more than agendas, vehicles for agendas. Political parties are nothing more than vehicles for agendas. There was a time the Democrat Party was the party of the segregationists of the south. Because the democratic already decided to change their platform in the early to mid 60s, many of those same segregationists ran to the Republican Party because they were more comfortable forming an alliance to do the same. So both parties have been used as vehicles for an agenda that is neither appropriate under our constitution, consistent with the language of our constitution, and have created systemic, racist policies that both structure lizst and institutionalized. City,michael in mason iowa. You are next. Caller hello, i am 53 years old and i am the father of 12 children. Most of them are all adults. But i have five kids at home, four of which are school age. I understand that george floyd was murdered. Literally murdered. I watched that video so many times. To look at the white mans face and see the devil in his eyes. He was murdered. But all of this black lives matter, i believe in it. We need somebody to be pushing it. King right at the forefront Martin Luther king said, i have a dream. Iwould love to see his dream come true in my lifetime. But to say defund the police and then have these schools break contracts with the police departments, that have officers staying at those schools to help us make sure that our next generation of protesters and senators and all of those people that we will be putting in power in the next coming years are safe and can go to school and ok, iin a safe manner would like to know, what can we do different that is not going to take away the protection of our children for a black lives Matter Movement of that seems to be pushing police out the door . Guest i think that is a sincere question. We really should be talking about, how do we change the culture of Community Police and relationships . There is no reason that for those of us who live along the canadian border, we can go less than one mile across the border and it is a completely different culture. Police are not carrying guns, they are not all over the schools, they are not aggressively targeting certain communities. We can do the same here. That is a question of political will. A question of Public Policy. A question of our ability to reimagine Something Different than what we currently see. It isnt working and it has not worked. As a result of that, the question here is how do we change the culture to go to something that can and will work, and those examples we can see in other similarly situated countries. You dont have to go that far. Just across the border to canada, you see it works. But they also have done such an things to address Structural Racism that we have not done or we have not put in place some of the structural policies or they have not heard in some of the structural policies in place. This is about a system that has systemically undermined and impeded the ability for africanamericans to fully participate as citizens, whether it is water suppression tactics, undermining Public EducationVoter Suppression tactics, undermining Public Education, undermining our ability to negotiate fair contracts, insurance policies, you name it. A system of oppression that needs to be addressed once and for all. Host are you saying that canada does all those things and it makes a difference . Guest i am saying canada lacks the history we lack around race and race relations. They have not proactively pushed policies that have absolutely disadvantaged whole communities the way the United States has done. Our adoptions of the Social Security program is a great example. What a Great Program it is. Southern legislators were able and a appeal that it would apply to workers with the exception of domestic and agricultural workers. During the time of adoption, africanamericans were both either domestic or agricultural workers. The Mortgage Loan program, what a Great Program. The real was a push by estate and Banking Industry to allow the decisions of who could qualify for the feha mortgages that allowed it to be the decision of local bankers and local communities. They were able to create a design to lock africanamericans out of qualifying for mortgages. Particularly if they were seeking a particular neighborhood. Those are policies that we put in place, that we maintain, and in many cases, we find remnants of those policies still impacting the quality of life today. Ican americans host this is derrick johnson, president and ceo of the naacp. Burlington, vermont on the democrats line, go ahead. Caller good morning, mr. Johnson. Also. Span, host go ahead with your question or comment. Caller i would like to make a comment and a question. I would like to ask mr. Johnson, you mentioned something about qualified immunity earlier. Wondering, do you think it would be easier for citizens, particularly africanamerican citizens, we are the ones experiencing systemic racism regarding the police and other areas of this country. Usc 1241, the judge himself is allowed discretion to forward a complaint if he sees sufficient host what would you like our guests to address . Caller would it help . Right now you cannot do that. You can talk all you want and pass all kind of legislation you want, but the policeman are not being held accountable in the court. Host thanks, zach. Guest part of the legislation that is being proposed by the Congressional Black Caucus and is speaker just agreed to, to do away with qualified immunity. Aalified immunity was courtimposed doctrine. That, then to legislation speaks to the question of local District Attorneys and the need to have independent investigations and Prosecutorial Authority so that District Attorney officers who work with Police Officers day in and day out are not put in a conflict of interest scenario. Because it is difficult to have an office or you have to work with day in the officer responsible for investigating you. Host from jackson, tennessee. On the independent line, though ahead go ahead. Anne in jackson, tennessee, hello. Lets go to a me from georgia on the democrats line. Amy, good morning. Caller good morning. I think this is a very interesting conversation but a very familiar one. After these incidents in our country. , doing amr. Johnson wonderful job of educating your audience about the history of racism in this country. But white people are at the center of this. The mantle ofe up educating themselves about the real history of racism in this country and how they benefit from it, there will not be any real change. We will be in this continuous cycle of outrage, the privity, marches, people advocating for change. But until white people start looking at themselves honestly in this country and having this conversation, asking thems asking themselves, things will not change. Mr. Johnson, what do you think about that . Thank you. Guest we have been here before. But something is a little different. I hope this time. One, you look at the diversity of the crowds across the country, it is more reflective of who we are as a nation, not just africanamericans who are and ingry and upset fear. Much of the reaction that you see in the streets is out of fear that at some point, the lives of our children, our spouses, our family members, has to matter. That we are actively participating in this country and in this economy, we pay well more than our fair share of taxes, we have to have we have built this country in ways in which we have not been properly compensated. And yet, in 2020, there is this approach many people have that our lives are expendable. Some of those individuals are feeding off the tax dollars our communities are putting into their coffers. What is different now is that it is a much more diverse outcry taking place. It could be because the video is so clear. There was no justification for holding a man down with the knee on the neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds. Close attention to anything you are doing and just stop for eight minutes and 46 seconds, that is a long time. The other difference is that there is a level of energy and enthusiasm around this issue that can be carried to the november elections. I am not saying that elections will be the panacea to fix all things. I am saying that to fix much of these Public Policy issues, you have to start with ensuring that individuals who have a value system are elected. And once elected, we must push toward a type of agenda these problems. That is what is different, the timing. We walked right into election season five minutes from now. If we can keep this and a gmo mentor the diversity we see in the crowds, also understand what is at stake, we can make big changes in this nation. But we must continue the dialogue. Not for the purpose of talking, but to move from protest to power. Host in terms of the specifics, what does change look like in your mind . Guest change looks like individuals assuming office who understand it takes a different type of Value Proposition to the positions they adopt with private and Public Policy, state and federally, that reflects the america we read about. Host from internet in philadelphia antoinette in philadelphia on the democrats line. Hi. Caller good morning, gentlemen. I am a black woman in my 60s. For me, i dont get up for a lot of things. Us, for me, and a lot of think at times like this, we have never had the debt paid. You have to the beginning to solve a problem. For us, going back to the beginning and being told that even the definition in itself of reparations is selfexplanatory. But even scientifically, black folks were moved from point a to what happened. O reparations is compensation for a group of persecuted people. The men whontly as were raped by priests. It came on tv, they are getting their reparations. A lot of this is a stigma on us but is negative that is negative. Could had that, we develop our own programs, our own schools, our own equal black Police Officers. I am not about taking away policing. But when you see nothing but white Police Officers at the root of the problem, we need our own. We are made to feel as if we dont qualify to ask for a debt to be paid. There. Igma is until that is dealt with, you ise a scale of justice that unequal. Host let us get your response. Mr. Johnson, go ahead. Guest what she is saying is legitimate. We have to address the injury that was placed upon us in the past for us to move forward. Often times we go to this question, well, i wasnt involved in slavery, that was back then. This has everything to do and nothing to do with slavery at the same time. Their Public Policy ansiderations have created reality for africanamericans. Consider how we fund Public Education across this country, and how many kids are locked into a life of underperformance as a result of the zip code they are born in. That is unconscionable for us to assume that that is ok, when some of these kids can go a short distance from where they live and find an educational system that is far more productive and amenable to the needs and interests of the kids in school. I can go on and on, with this current day reality that is wayrous by the Public Policy and our tax dollars are spent. It is different if African Americans were not as productive and putting money into the coffers and carrying their fair share. That is far from the case. In many cases, we are overproviding a more than our fair share. Many africanamericans pay the maximum amount of taxes required. They dont have a tax write off. They dont have the expertise to get a tax write off. Our corporations get more welfare from this system than anyone else and are still benefiting from additional support. What we have always said is equality and equity are important. Equity is, what are the injuries of the past and how do we make amends for those injuries so that we can all be on the same footing . We are not on the same footing now. Much of that is in Public Policy. Host this is from charles in charlotte, North Carolina on the republican line. Caller mr. Johnson, it is such a pleasure to speak with you this morning. In charlotte a few years ago there was an effort called project list, where a group of operations and benefactors and focusedillion on three underperforming schools in the west side of charlotte. They did everything they could with computers, tutoring and needle. Ng to move the and after several years, they did an analysis and figured out they had not moved the needle very much. One of the things that most people say is it is a breakdown in the family structure. I follow you on twitter. You have a gorgeous family. Youre the household. The fact is 77 of africanamerican babies that are born today do not have a father in the household. Naacp doing . What is the program youre going to head up to try to get mens responsibility of raising their families and children . Guest it is a great question and one i hear a lot. Often that is a justification for bad Public Policy. Is not a better example really focusing on how to is wade county, North Carolina, where wade county had a system where they did not allow for segregated and allms or schools shared the same amount of instruction and access. It was successful. Not only was it successful, but outcomes that were academically based because whether you are low income, high income, africanamerican, or white, that program did well. Unfortunately, that program also came under attack. There was a series of lawsuits and aggressive campaigns. They dissolved that program in wade county, North Carolina, a program that probably lasted 10 to 15 years and was a basic school design. Blackid not allow children to be provided last access to quality less access to quality instruction. Corporations these did x and it did not work. Lets look at what actually worked. It goes beyond just structure. You are looking at someone who who actuallyamily are belittling. Family is not just the family structure. I have many friends who came from two parent households that wears dysfunctional is anything you can imagine. One of my closest friends, who was white, both his parents were extreme alcoholics and he was lucky to survive that scenario where his siblings did not. Lets not try to excuse the structural, institutional damage that has been caused in this nation by not maintaining a andem to allow young people communities from moving forward and then tried try to justify by the solicitor family structure. Host last call on this topic from washington, d. C. Caller thank you for taking my call. For the last three years, i have been waiting. Johnson, i would ise to find a from him if he a program for the youth in communities like programs where they mentor young people, like from 10 years old, to keep from going on the streets and hanging out, if they can have specific programs to occupy these children. And teach them taboos like young people should not fight with old people. The other question i want him to training, a new outlaws choke holds and particular techniques would your restraining people. Mandate system. I thank you for taking my question. Naacp, we are an advocacy organization. We welcome you to go on our naacp. Org, to get engaged. Our job is to make democracy work for everyone. We must as a nation move away from pointing fingers and began to walk in the same direction toward how to ensure protection of the law for all citizens are and how do we want to display the values of this nation . To have a to continue nation where divisiveness is spewing from the white house . We need to move forward as a nation. We can only do that together. And notke this moment use the lessons of the past, we have been here before. We have seen this before. We have had protests in the streets before. E have to make a decision john lewis gets across the and in pettus bridge Edmund Pettus bridge. To decision is are we going walk across this bridge to make this unit a more Perfect Union or are we going to go backwards through the history we have learned so clearly is not working, will not work, and could destroy this nation . I am going to ask everyone to join us in our efforts to make democracy work for all. This is not about partisanship. This is about restoring stability to dialogue. This is about making sure the constitutional creed is honest and true to everyone, that all men and women are endowed with certain inalienable rights. We should make sure those rights are afforded in an equal way. We fightt naacp. Org as to make democracy work for everyone. Host derrick johnson