longer exist. and that is hugely disappointing, but also a wake up call. on thursday, the day before yesterday, i was here with kamala harris along with the civil rights leaders. she later spoke here at the essence festival with a crowd of black leaders and influential decision-makers. she reflected on the court s reversal of affirmative action. take a listen. it is a complete misnomer to suggest this is about color blind. when in fact, it is about being blind to history. being blind to data. being blind to empirical evidence about disparities. being blind to the strength and that diversity brings to classrooms, to boardrooms. what have you been hearing
coming down from the court, we re also very focused on empowering ourselves and creating our own opportunities to build wealth and level the playing field. and also fight back. i mean, we have children that are now growing up who will not understand our history, because they are being told in at least 26 states that they can t teach black history. i just got off a panel a few minutes ago with crenshaw, all of you know, who kimberly is. a famous professor of law. at columbia i believe. and she talked about 26 states in this country now are banning the teaching of black history. this is directly linked to the supreme court decisions that are stripping away our fundamental rights. so if a child growing up today, not understanding the vestiges of history or the vestiges of slavery, i should say, is a huge concern. when alfonso, leaders from all sectors of black leadership are here in new orleans.
from your fellow black leaders and influencers about the supreme court decisions? because i almost feel what you re announcing tonight when we go out there is all more necessary based on this decision. but what have you been hearing? i mean, what i ve been hearing is a reflection of what the vice president has been saying. this is a reminder to all of us that we have an activist supreme court, and that court is denying our history. that s what this is. you know, black americans especially need to recognize that we are moving backwards. we have a court that is stripping away our fundamental principles and denying our history. you know, the global black economic forum is a place for black leaders and other leaders who are supporting issues that affect black and brown people, not to just discuss social and economic justice, but also to build partnerships into strategize and make real progress. so as we see these decisions
economically. focusing on the economic benefits and the economic entitlements that people should be focused on. you mentioned the supreme court decision, the supreme court decisions are certainly a huge blow to many people. but i see them as a wake up call. all of the recent rulings against gay rights, against affirmative action, against the right to choose, against student loan relief show that we have an activist supreme court that s really intent on stripping all of us of our fundamental american rights. so yes, i m an lgbtq activist, but i m also a black man. and all of these decisions are really stripping away fundamental principles that the court said were deeply embedded in our history and tradition. this is the 14th amendment. i ve been practicing law for 20 years, i went to law school reading these cases. and now these cases, there are new cases that are saying the pillars that we have been relying on constitutionally no