What my approach is to trying to, you know, make those connections and, and try to create that sense of community as Americans, you know, not just sitting in my, you know, echo chamber here in Boston, but you know, when I've traveled to Ohio or I travel to Texas or Florida, like being just open and receptive to what people have to say while still holding my own morals and beliefs. It's true, but trying to like sort of just bridge that gap and make people feel like I, I hear you, I get it. And I, I don't, I don't hate you for that.

The award winning a black executive perspective podcast presents pull up, speak up where meaningful conversations, drive progress. And every voice makes a difference. So what's on the table for discussion today?

It's time to show up, speak up and get real. Welcome to pull up, speak up the new series from a black executive perspective podcast, your safe space for raw unfiltered and honest discussions on the tough issues. Many shy away from. I'm your host, Tony Tidbit,

and I'm your cohost, Chris P. Reed. As we like to do at this time, we'd like to shout out our partners at Code M Magazine. Remember to check out Code M Magazine, where the mission is saving the black family by first saving the black man. That is Code M Magazine's 2 Ms. Check them out.

Yeah, definitely check them out. And today check out our round table as they return to dive into the truth, lies and fallout of the 2024 election, exploring the emotional and social reactions and the broader impact on our nation.

Before we go too far, let me introduce this dynamic round table panel featuring three remarkable voices together 2024 election and the aftermath. First. We have Iris Ivana Grant, CEO of Genesi Group and a visionary leader known for driving impactful change through innovation and community focused solutions. Iris Ivana Grant, welcome to Pull Up, Speak Up.

Glad to be here.

Cool. Next, we have the incomparable Courtney Mitchell, a seasoned advertising executive whose insights and intersection of media, culture, and messaging bring a fresh perspective to the table. Courtney Mitchell, welcome to Pull Up, Speak Up.

Thanks, Chris. Happy to be here.

And of course, rounding out the panel is our man, Brad Bowling, uh, president of CodeM Magazine, an influential voice in media, fostering conversations that evaluate and elevate diverse narratives and spark cultural progress. Brad Bowling. Welcome to Pull Up, Speak Up.

Thank you, sir. I'm excited to be back. And, uh, hello to everyone.

So I'm gonna start with you, Brad, and then I'll come back around the room. Let us know kind of where you are and what's going on in your world nowadays, where your family is and things of that nature.

Well, I'm based in Cleveland, Ohio. We just celebrated our man of the year with George Frazier on the cover. And so December is a fantastic month for us. Last night, we had the ceremony. And it was a fantastic event and, you know, we exist because of people like George, who's been in a game for over 50 years, teaching, networking, uh, loving on his fellow black man. And he's just, uh, you know, we are heroes. We don't get the chance to touch and feel our heroes anymore, but George is still here. He's alive. And it was just a fantastic night to celebrate him and, uh, share his tutelage with our audience.

Always good to give flowers. Courtney, tell us a little bit about where you are and where your family is.

I am in Boston, Massachusetts. Um, I, uh, am the proud cat mom of, uh, two cats shout out childless cat ladies. Uh, but my family, I grew up in Western Mass. So, um, lifelong asshole, as, as we went say. Good

business, good business. Home is where the heart is, that's where the family, you know. Yeah. So, and then, and then Iris Ivana Grant, let us know where you are and, and where your family is.

So, I am currently residing in Atlanta, Georgia. Um, I'm a native New Yorker raised in Baltimore and I've got family a little bit of everywhere. So, we're all over the place.

I, I knew you were a transplant because when I lived in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. We only pronounce the T, the people that live there say Atlanta with no T.

well, more importantly, welcome to the round table. And obviously I want to ask you guys all the questions because you guys got busy careers. You're doing a lot of stuff. You're traveling. I know Courtney, you and I talked a little bit earlier before we started the show. So the question I'm going to start off with Iris and then I'll go around. What inspired you guys to join Pull Up, Speak Up round table to discuss this? These topics that we're going to talk about today, Iris.

I think it's the opportunity to engage in really raw conversation, uh, with people that have passion. And it doesn't mean that they have the same answer or perspective that I do, but they have passion, right? And they're able to express it. And so, um, that's what I, I really enjoy about this opportunity. Um, it's, it's phenomenal to be able to have fun. Real conversation about things and really engage.

Awesome. Courtney, same question.

Uh, similar to Iris, I love having these types of conversations. Um, your old conversations on race when we used to work together were like the highlight of my week. And I think I really took a lot away from that in terms of how to have conversations respectfully with people that you don't necessarily agree with. And I think, um, that. Opportunity to come back and do that here today was I can't say no.

All right. Well, I'm glad you're here. And Brad again, buddy, we love you. We always want to have you at the bottom or at the back, but at the end of the day, talk, talk to us. Why did you want to come on my friend?

Well, I mean, you know, the election taught us that nobody's coming to save us. And as black people, we need to start to have these kinds of conversations to make sure that we understand the challenge in front of us. And so, you know, you can't understand where you're going unless you understand where you've been. And so these conversations are meaningful, uh, if Blacks are going to pick up the reins and start to take care of ourselves.

Thanks, my friend.

One of the things that, that was brought up by Iris a few times was the passion. And so what we'd like to do here for the audience and for the panelists is make sure that we employ 10 rules to having safe and constructive dialogue. And I'll read off those 10 rules. Rule number one, respect all voices. Rule number two, listen actively. Rule number three, no personal attacks, please. Rule number four, avoid interrupting with the passion. Sometimes we can get a little anxious. It'll show up on your face and that's good for the camera, but hold off, hold off. It'll get, you'll get a turn. We'll give everybody a turn. Rule number five, stay open minded. Rule number six, speak from your own experiences. It's not a situation where you heard from somebody that heard from somebody else that they seen it somewhere. Try to stay poignant in your experiences. Rule number seven, stay on topic. We don't need to Kareen off into different avenues because we got a lot to discuss. We got a little bit of time, which brings us to rule number eight. Follow the time limits, please. You know, think about it like a funeral. You get two minutes, get yours off and then we can move on. Rule number nine, challenge ideas and not people. None of this is. You know, personal, even though we're passionate. And then the last rule, rule number 10, no butts, you know, everything that someone says, if you put a butt in there, it tends to disqualify what they just spoke about. So we want to make sure that we can, you know, not have that inserted into our dialogue.

All right, guys. So Chris, thanks for the ground rules. So if you guys agree with the ground rules, I need to see a thumbs up. All right, this is now a safe space and let's talk about it.

So I'm actually going to throw you a bone, Brad, and let you, you know, bad lead off. What was your initial thoughts during the election cycle and how did they align with your impression of the results? After everything was over,

you know, I wasn't surprised by the win. If you take a look at the last four elections, you know, before Obama got into office, things were normal after Obama took office there, the pendulum swung the other way and there was an overcorrection for having a black man in office. And so we saw Trump come in the first time after that, uh, you know, uh, the pendulum swung back the other way when people realized the threat of having somebody like him in office. And then it went to bite. And so after Biden got in office, the pendulum swung back to Trump. And so, well, it'd be interesting to see what he does with these four years. And if the pendulum swings back to the democratic rule, I'm a little worried though, because they failed to identify future leaders. And so, you know, this is the first time I think after Trump, we don't know what American politics looks like.

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for you during the cycle. Was there anything different that you felt then after the cycle had concluded and Trump was reelected?

I mean, I feel like the whole election cycle was an emotional roller coaster. Um, you know, it was at first I felt really energy when, when she came into the race, I felt really energized. Um, I'm a registered independent by the way. So I, I actually dislike both political parties, but I'm also someone that loves democracy and, um, didn't really didn't want to see someone who tried to overthrow the government and subvert the peaceful transfer of power be reelected. Um, but it became clear, I think, during the cycle where it, it, it just felt like he had a lot of momentum and that, um, one of the things I did, uh, I went out and knocked on doors and canvas in Pennsylvania a couple of weeks before the election. And based on some of the conversations I had with people in Pennsylvania, which was the absolute must win state in this whole thing. It made me very nervous. So when Trump won, I wasn't surprised, but I was kind of sad. Um, and I, we can get into the postmortem of like what the Democrats could have done. I really agree with Brad is that we've been saying since 2016 that the Democrats need to find like young leadership to come up and take control of the party. Um, and we haven't seen any of that. Um, so it's, I think I agree with Brad also that it's going to be interesting to see what happens after these four years that the pendulum goes back. To the Democrats, or if we continue down this Trump Ian path,

and so Iris, how did you feel or what was your response? How did it align with your impressions throughout the cycle? And then, of course, at the end, the results came out on Tuesday. Didn't take all week like we thought. But how did you feel when the results finally hit you?

I mean, like my my, um, My counterparts and colleagues here. I had a lot of the same sentiment. Um, I kind of knew like, maybe I would say three weeks before the election. I just had a feeling, you know, um, I had a sense of urgency that we needed to look beyond the election that either way, whoever won, there was, there were things were going to pop off, right? There will be things that we weren't going to like, um, and it was the first time I will say that. And all the years of me following and watching election night that I signed off about 1030 that night, you know, um, with disappointment of, and a little bit of disbelief, like belief, but disbelief, like I was, I was done, I was like, I just can't tonight. I got to deal with moving forward. And I think that if I had not have had that mindset three weeks prior, three or four weeks prior of just being like, you know what, this is not going to be what we want it to be. Um, from all the little signs, because it was even hard to share that people were very anti, you know, Oh, you're being anti, I'm, I'm not, I'm being realistic. And we need to think, Clearly about what's about to happen, right? Um, as much as possible. So I had some disappointments. Um, a little disbelief in terms of not it happening, but in time, in terms of just feeling like I want to say a level of stupidity. It's how we're really doing this. We're just looking at the moment and we're not looking beyond, like Brad said, what's going to happen in the next four years after that year five, six and seven. We don't know what that looks like. So that's where I landed on that.

You know, so number one, thanks for sharing all you guys, Courtney, I want to back up to you because you said you were volunteering in Pennsylvania and you were knocking on doors, right? And obviously. Thank you. Uh, swing state, the biggest swing state. And you said, as you started hearing what you were hearing, it started making you nervous. So what was you, what were you hearing from people at the doors you were knocking on?

The number one issue that people brought up was immigration. Um, Kamala was the border czar and people were really unhappy with, uh, the immigration. some of the immigration policy or lack thereof. And I think that there was a lot of fear mongering on the part of the Republican part in terms of these illegal immigrants are getting paid money to like sit home, which I think is not really a fact, but I think that a lot of the messaging was geared to create fear of that sort of situation. And I also think that people were not enthused by Harris. I heard a lot of anger that there wasn't a real primary process. And I think that people A lot of things that I heard were people were really frustrated and angry at the Democratic Party. They felt left behind.

You know, it's one of the things though, I, I, I've heard that and you know, Brad, I'm going to shift to you on this, right? Cause you and I had a conversation, you know, after the election, if it wasn't right the next day or a few days after, and you were talking about how, uh, you were at an event, um, and this brother was next to you. And he talked about how he voted for Trump. And that, you know, he thought the Democratic Party was raggedy or didn't, and I'm, I don't want to put words in your mouth. I'm, I'm just paraphrasing. Right. Yes. Um, but I want you to speak on what Courtney just got finished saying, right? Uh, the Democrat people feel that the Democratic Party left them behind. What does that mean?

Well, I didn't get the sense. Uh,

maybe you didn't from your friend. Right. But I just hear that a lot. Right.

Well, I participated in the, uh, get out the vote campaign, not necessarily for Democrats or Republicans, but just for black people to get out and use the process, use the right that they've earned a vote to vote. And so, you know, we went door to door and we tried to get a thousand men to register to vote and I did not necessarily hear that. I don't know if blacks felt left out of the Democratic Party. I just know that they don't feel served by the Democratic Party. And so from, from my perspective, it's a little different. And the other thing is, is that, yes, I was at a Cavs game and I, you know, was sitting with somebody, a black person who, uh, very fluential, but he's a registered Republican and his points that the Republicans were making about the democratic platform was a problem for him. Uh, you know, uh, the, uh, transgender. Uh campaign that democrats were on sanctuary cities, uh, you know, uh men playing in women's sports Uh, these are problematic for people and it seemed to be that that And i'm not saying that with the democratic platform that they ran on right, right, but they're not running away from it. Right, right most of us believe In in god most of us believe in two sexes Most of us believe that immigration should be controlled. And so you have to wonder, you know, as a black person right now, black people don't have a party because, you know, I'm not a Democrat or Republican, but I don't believe in a lot of the platforms that the Democrats were running on. And so where do I go? Right. And so, you know, if you take a look at Columbus, Ohio, a couple weeks ago, we had the neo Nazis running up and down the street yelling, you know, the N word and stuff like that. And I'm like, what do we do to y'all? I thought y'all hated Jews. But, you know, we're very similar, uh, with Jewish people in our belief systems. And so, you know, we had to figure out as black people who should we vote for we got to vote for the person Not the party at this point going forward,

right? Let me ask this though before you move on. Um It sounds like that you've reserved yourself and this can be expanded to each of the panelists. You've reserved yourself That the most powerful country in the world has been relegated to choose the lesser of two evils.

And exactly. That's what I'm hearing here. All right. I don't want to put

words in your mouth. Like Tony said, I don't want to, I don't want to, you know, infer on your behalf, but really the sentiment of your words cobbled together is like, I mean, what the hell are we going to do?

Sherrod Brown, who was running for reelection here in Ohio, uh, came to ask for, you know, it was about a hundred of us to get together and he. pled for our vote and, uh, said that he was supportive of everything that blacks were running for and then did not come to CODE M Magazine to support. And so, you know, there's a lot of words with politicians, but there's no action. And so I think people, we're, we're smarter than ever before. You know, the internet, you can go and self educate, right? And so people just are not. Falling for the smoke and mirrors anymore of, Hey, every four years, I'm a pop up and ask for your vote. And then over the next three years, nothing happened. And so I think people are wiser. Uh, life has never been more serious than it is right now with inflation, uh, macro factors, micro factors of survival. And, uh, people are kind of fed up with politics in general.

Right. Right. Let me, so here's the thing though, brah. And Iris, I'm going to come to you on this, right? And again, I don't want to parse words, um, because You know, there's a lot of misinformation, disinformation out there, right? And, you know, they're eating the dogs. They're eating the cats. Right, Courtney? Right, right. And so we, so when I hear that people are more wiser, I don't really believe that. Okay. I believe, you know, and again, but let me hear, Iris, jump in here. Let's hear your thoughts about what Brad and Courtney stated.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. I, I wouldn't use the word wiser. I think that because people have access to information, I wouldn't even necessarily say it's good information or it's truthful knowledge. Um, it's based on perspective if they don't really do their research. And I don't think people do that. They have 30 seconds worth of attention. They have seven seconds to hurry up and read something or be entertained. And then they're back to their independent brand. I think wisdom looks at the, this is my moral compass. This is where I stand and I'm a registered Democrat in Georgia because you can only pick two. I prefer to be independent, but if you want to be able to vote in Georgia, You have to choose a side. So I chose to be independent. Um, because I do believe in, although my moral compass may say certain things and my faith base may feel a certain way. Um, I also look with depth to have the ability to allow My choice is to look out for everybody's humanity and everybody's opportunity to live their life to make decisions freely, um, without the taxation of my personal opinion or my moral compass. And so I struggle with. Um, people of color in general, not even just black people, but people in color of color in general right now who are making or have made a decision based on it was better to choose an individual that would give you freedoms as a person versus an individual that would like to make America great again based on where we have already been, right? And where his base is. So for me, there's a problem there in, Choosing, um, certain discriminatory statements, ignoring how somebody feels and makes comments about women and women's bodies and women's thoughts, um, and does not see people of color, period, as a part of making decisions Uh, America great, but we have these wonderful black jobs like I have a problem with when it comes down to it, selecting someone, um, who is not for anyone that does not look like them and putting economics or faith or personal perspectives over what is good for all of us as Americans. I struggle with that. I don't call that wisdom. Um, I, I think that's everybody having. Their own grasp on something and, and not really being, and not being really paying attention to the reality of what we might, what we really face right now, which is dangerous to me.

Right, right, right. Courtney, thoughts on that?

I, I basically agree with everything that, uh, Iris just said. Um, I think that we're at an inflection point. in America and societally. I mean, I believe in the separation of church and state. I don't think that I think that's a pillar of American democracy, and I don't think that religion should play any role in determining the laws in our country. Um, I think that a lot of people who backed Trump. I don't agree with that and want there to be more, you know, want Christianity to be the national religion, um, which troubles me greatly because freedom of religion is again one of those constitutional pillars, a backbone of American democracy when the founding fathers set everything up, um, that was, that was something that was very important to them. Um, yeah. I think that the quality of the media that people are consuming like we've talked about people can go on the internet and find anything but whether that's true or not, they really, a lot of people can't discern what's false and what is not. And I think that there is a huge distrust of the mainstream media right now. And I think that the way that people consume news and information as we move towards more of a creator economy in media, I think it's going to be really interesting to see how that impacts the mainstream media and the news sources that those of us who are of a certain generation, we only know those. I don't get my news on tick tock. Um, I do follow, there are certain news creators that I, I do follow who I trust And who if I read something that or if I watch something that they've produced, I trust that it's factual. Um, but I think that what I think really bothers me about the election is how much, how much lying happened that like, he would just say whatever. And people take that as gospel. Um, and with the transgender stuff, like I was, when I was knocking on doors in Pennsylvania, I, I saw an ad that I was like, there's like big hairy guy on a slide. Soccer, soccer field with little girls and he is for you and she is for they. And I think that again, like there was a lot of fear mongering on the Republican side. And I think that because the Democrats were just like, Hey, we're better than he is, but they didn't really say what they were going to do or how they were going to do it. They really missed an opportunity to, you know, um, win the election.

Right, right, right, right.

Go ahead. Can I jump in? No,

buddy. Rebut. Rebut. Yeah. So I think I think

you guys are confusing wise for knowledge. And when I say wiser, people are more wise that nobody's coming to save them. Correct. People are wiser that if I call the police, there's a likelihood that The burglar will survive and I'll get shot. People are wiser that if Obama's in office, Biden's in office, Trump is in office, nothing changes for me. I got to hustle. My bills are due on the first. And so whoever's in office doesn't impact me personally. And so people are wiser that they, there's a game in politics. That they're not playing anymore. I'm not saying they're not more knowledgeable about candidates. They don't care because at a visceral level, at a personal level, nothing changes for me. And so people are wiser that wasting my time, looking at a debate, wasting their time, going to a rally doesn't change anything in their lives. And so they're not choosing to participate anymore because they're just trying to keep a roof over their head. And figure out how the 100 that they used to spend on groceries went from 80 bags to now four bags. And so they're wiser to the political process that it doesn't have any influence on their daily lives. Now we can argue if that's true or not. But that's how most people feel. And the less you make, the more you feel it.

I think the tough part about that is we can, we don't want to go down the road of semantics, but what we talk about as democracy is now evolved to the American political process, right? Because from everybody's testimony here, even, even. You know, Courtney has a couple of pockets of trust here and there, but it seems as if, it seems as if you guys have, you know, and you, and, and battle me on this, you guys have devolved my country into the greatest heist movie ever trust. No one trust. No trust where you tell you what

you

want to hear. That's the premise of every, that's the premise of every great heist movie, right? Like trust no one, right? But in that regard, there was a portion. Of the population, a large portion, in fact, that Trump's message resonated with. So my question to you, Courtney is. Why do you believe that that message resonated with such a large portion of the electorate in 2024?

I mean, he's, say what you want about the guy, for whatever reason, he's like Teflon, nothing sticks to him. People seem to have forgotten January 6th, like that, I thought after Jan 6th, he was going to have to like, leave the country in shame and that. This would be the end of him. But he just kept quiet and like it went away. And I don't think I've ever seen anything like that in American politics where like people have a really short memory when it comes to him. And he could like when he says he could shoot somebody on the street on Fifth Avenue. I think that's correct. And and people would be like, Yeah, it's fine. Um, and I don't know. I think that for why he resonates with people, because I think people are very resentful of it. People that are not like them. And I think that he comes in and these people who are resentful are like, Oh, great, he's going to hurt the people that I don't like. And I'm going to vote. I'm going to get on board with that. And I think that's why he resonates so much is because he, they all hate the same people. And it's like, if we can take that stuff away from, you know, we can roll back women's rights, we can, you know, deport people. People get excited about that stuff. It's like the if he's running, he runs the government like it's a reality show,

you're going to say the word, but I got you iris. Why do you believe it resonated with it? Because keep in mind, this is the first time that he actually got the popular vote. And so, um, and I know there was a visceral reaction of shock and awe In the Clinton election where she lost. And we were like, what the hell happened because of the polls and blah, blah, blah. This one, you guys seem to have taken a little bit better, but in the idea of so many people actually voted for this guy, why do you believe that happened?

I mean, I agree with Courtney and kind of like in the, in the words of Kendrick Lamar, They're not like us. I think that was people's perspective. Like, Oh, this is me. And that's you. That's them. Um, and when you talk about the way Brad was, was sharing with it, I think he's correct in a way of people looking at like, what happens to me and my hundred dollars. And so then you start classifying yourself, right? Another form of classification of, Oh, it's, it's us over here in. And you guys over there, and it does come out into what people's personal perspectives are, right? It brings out, maybe they may not want to admit it. It brings out the ugly, right? And where I identify and how I identify. And then all of my anger comes out or all of my frustration comes out and whatever that looks like. And I, and I think too, there's a cultural perspective too, because in this country, we have so many, uh, different cultural. I don't, I don't even want to say, you know, we have a first, first, first generation, second generation, third generation immigrants here, um, American citizens, um, we have dreamers and everybody's coming from a different cultural perspective, right? We have people in this country that have. had to flee their country. There's a different perspective on what democracy looks like because there's a much larger population now of mixed cultures. And I think that that has a perspective too of when American language is so vested and tied up in the slang of it all and the kind of the double entendre of it all. Like I say this, but it really means that. And I think that there's a lot of that that plays into. The advertisement, the, the, um, the whole ad perspective of politics and what you see and how that translates from your various cultural perspectives, right? Of what you don't want to go back to what does democracy mean to you and look like to you as an American citizen or as a participant in this democracy. And I think it does bring out us in a them. And unfortunately it does bring out. a fear factor, I think, and some of the most primal, primary fear factors that we may not want to look at, but we're, we're, we're really forced to look at it now in a different way. Right.

Right.

And Brad, would you be in one of the reigning members that are woke mob? Um, how do you think that his message resonated so well with his constituents or with the electorate in 2024?

So you have to take a look at, What he's saying, uh, is he a reflection of society or is he influencing society? Uh, when a young man, uh, that they hired to change the campaign for Budweiser, I think that's the beer company. There was a backlash from, uh, that campaign. Target had a backlash when they put gay products at the front of their store. Uh, and then you take a look at everything that is happening in our country. Again, if you take a look at You know, pronouns, uh, being, you know, forced down our throat, uh, you know, mixed use bathrooms, uh, men being able to go in girls bathrooms, uh, the young lady that was beat up in the Olympics by a man pretending to be a woman. So you have to take a look at what society is choosing. Is trump going along with that or is he influencing it? So again, you know, I I personally believe that You know in god we trust I don't necessarily believe in a separation of church and state when brown versus board of education was announced You saw the the beginning of the fall of our country. And so there's nothing holding us together There are no principles holding us together anymore. It's the lowest class wins And so if you don't stand for something you'll fall for anything and you're watching that happen right in front of us So I don't know if I'm surprised at the response that he got. Most Americans feel like we want to protect the border. Most Americans feel like they're losing their little piece of their happiness. And so we're all clinging to our, you know, and defending our, our right to our little piece of pie. And so, you know, it's just very interesting what's happening. And I'm gonna tell you, I really don't know, you know, over the next four years, I can tell you over the next four years what's going to happen. I just can't tell you over 5678 what's going to happen. I don't see the Democrats having a candidate strong enough to compete with whoever the republicans come in next with because they don't plan for the future. Their platform is weak. Uh, their empty promises are tired. And so who else are we voting for I mean like right it's a one party system at this point Did you did you guys take a look at the country how much red was around the country got little pockets of blue? Detroit, Cleveland, Atlanta, the bigger cities and

stuff to that nature, right? Yeah, the whole country's red. Well, here's uh, Go ahead finish your thought. That's

it. That's it.

Here's the thing though So, you know, i'm not gonna say I don't disagree with some of the stuff that you said I think that all of us on here Probably agree to some of it or majority of it. My challenge, and this is a question I want to ask you guys, because I don't believe the election was about the economy. Okay. I just don't, I believe exactly. It was a cultural election. It was about all the other things that you just got finished talking about Brad and Irish, you talked about, that's what it was about, right. And it's about an underbelly. That in 20, 30 years, minorities will be the number one, they would be the, they will be the most populous people in the United States. And there is a fear for white people. Okay. And Trump speaks to that fear. Okay. And I'm not saying everybody voted for him because of that, but what I'm saying is those are the things, because here's the thing. This is the point I want to get to. And I want to ask you guys questions on this. So I don't disagree my challenge where I struggle. Is looking at him as being the savior in terms of making America, uh, uh, wholesome again. Okay. Well, you know, you can't have a gangster. Okay. That's somebody that's all for themself. That's all that has done nothing in terms of talking about a rooted foundation in terms of the right moral things to do. He doesn't even have that track record, but he got voted. That's where I struggle. That so that tells you right there. It wasn't in my opinion. I want to hear you guys thoughts. It's had nothing to do with the economy. Nothing. Yes. Groceries were a little bit. Groceries were expensive. Yes. I can hear that. But let's back up, you know, in 20, in 2008, Barack Obama. Took over in a, a, a, what do they call it? A financial collapse. Businesses were going out. Lehman Brothers, Bear Stern, financial businesses collapse. The real estate market went upside down because they were, they were managing and, and, and packaging fake real estate deals into the, these companies. So people were losing their houses. The, The auto industry came to the, came to the White House with their hats in their hand looking for a bailout because they didn't get a bailout. They would have went under. So when we talk about economy, that was way worse than what we're dealing with today when we have inflation, right? That had a lot to do with the pandemic. All right. People were saying, oh, I had more money when Trump was president. Well, guess what? You were in your house for a year or two. Okay. You wasn't spending no money. Okay. We were locked down. So of course you had more money. Number two, the prices came down lower, right? And then once we started coming back out, people, not the government people, businesses said, guess what? We want to make our money back. So they started inflating the prices. Okay. That's the deal. Okay. Now. Can did the Democrats do a rotten job in explaining that? Absolutely. Okay, absolutely. But at the end of the day, don't tell me it was on the economy because it wasn't. It was cultural issues that you brought up. Brad Courtney, you stated Iris. You talked to that's just now. People won't say that. They'll say it was this, they'll say, uh, a traditional hot, a traditional button that why they voted, but deep under, that's what it was. And he was able to stop fear to make those things happen. All right. To get people out of their seats. Let me hear you guys's thoughts on that.

Absolutely right.

Go ahead. Go ahead. Courtney.

Well, I think that. When Brad talked about the pronouns and the transgender stuff, I used to be very much in that boat. And then I actually met and talked to and got to know transgender individuals. And the pronouns are such a light lift. Like, I get it. It's like she, her, he, him, they, them. I get it. And so I mess them up too sometimes, but like, it's such a low lift to make people, people feel included that I don't have a problem with it. Um, and I think that with regards to like the bathroom stuff that, um, I mean, there was a man at the museum of science in Boston, an old man, not transgender, just an old creepy guy who followed a teenage girl into a bathroom at the museum of science and tried to assault her. And she screamed and people came and he got arrested. So I think that these people are going to go into bathrooms. Regardless, and if someone is transgender, a lot of times you can't even tell, but I do agree that the fear there was so much fear mongering around that. And I think that if half the country who has this hate in their heart for people who are different would actually meet a transgender person and interact with them, they might change their minds. And I think it's very similar growing up in the nineties. You were either straight or closeted because gay people were not socially acceptable in the nineties. And I feel like that's the same kind of thing that's happening right now with transgender people and that once people meet them and have them in their circles and realize they're just regular people who want to live as themselves. And I, I think that that's, you know, that's the beautiful thing about America is we are supposed to all be able to live as who we were, have the freedom of speech and the freedom of choice and the freedom of religion. And I shouldn't be able to tell you, you have to live your life in a certain box. When that's not who you are. Um, so I do agree that there was a lot of fear mongering around that and I think that ignorance certainly won out. But I think that people will, will say, Tony, like you said, that this election was about the economy. But if you actually thought about it and the Democrats really missed the mark on not communicating the fact that like if you deport all the illegal immigrants. You know how much the price of groceries is going to go up? Because there's nobody to pick the produce. And if you deport the people who work in the factories, prices are going to go up. And the corporations, you're right, had inflated everything under the guise of like, Oh, prices have gone up. So we're going to improve, you know, Make our prices higher. There's record corporate profits, and you think he's the one that's going to reign that in. I mean, it's not about the economy. If you're thinking about any of those things, and I don't know, it's I agree that a lot of the societal issues that Brad mentioned are exactly why he won the election.

I'll say this, Courtney. An argument is always easier to win when you only are arguing one side.

Yeah.

And so what the Democrats were trying to do with split hairs. And cater to both bases to some degree, and that's just not the nature of our country because of the divisiveness that has been elicited by the people that have been in charge. And if we think about it, collectively, the last election, or the only election in my lifetime that I cared about that I can remember, that was one off the platform of hope was the first Obama election. The others have been mudslinging, fear mongering. Election cycles, right? And that's just the way politics works in in our ecosystem, unfortunately. So, but Iris, you know, same question that Tony posed, you know, with Courtney. You know, do you think that it was the economy? Do you think it was the xenophobia? Do you think it was racial sex, sexism? What do you believe? You know,

uh, I think, I think there is a little truth to some of the economy perspectives, because of course people are going to be concerned about their finances, but I don't think that was the final decision. I think you had a woman that was placed in a nomination period. You had a. Um, a black woman who also is mixed cultured, period. Um, and she's very liberal, period. And I think that everybody looked at their own perspectives. You know, um, I'm a PK, I'm a preacher's kid. So I didn't hear one person on Trump's side talk about love. I didn't hear them crossing the line, have dinner with anybody that was different from them. So, you know, we throw in these, These moral codes, we throw in these, um, faith based codes and I am a Christian. Um, but I think there has to be a space where you do have to look at like we're American and so what's good for people and humanity. Um, and I didn't see anybody on that side mentioned hope. I, I heard mudslinging. I had name calling. I heard, oh, she's as dumb as a rock. People cheer, people loved it. I have a problem with that, right? How are we really, there was no issues. There was, there was not, that's not about economics. I do believe we need to tighten up our border. Making everyone a mass murderer, a killer, a criminal, and then they're eating dogs and cats. That just, that just to me is just. It's just not logical. It's not plausible. And so when we throw in all these other little personal innuendos, I think at the same time, we don't do it with a broad stroke of, these are people that we're talking about. And we're choosing a person who does not give reverence for human life, right? He gives reverence to my kind, my people, like the Proud Boys. I don't, I, I, um, Don't understand how you can side with a group, especially a person of color, whatever nationality you are, whatever culture you're from. We are talking about people really choosing you because of the color of your skin. And so if you have been in any place in, on this planet, that that is the target and that makes you a target. I just don't understand how you could choose him. Even in using the base of. Faith or economics. I just don't see how you could choose that. And I do believe that this, this, um, election came down to just that.

Brad, I'm going to ask you to educate me and possibly the majority of the audience. Courtney has intimated such terms as liberty, justice, Freedom and, and everything except the land of the brave, right? Right? Uh, why, why is she so, so, why is she so doggone patriotic in these times and believes that that's still emblematic of this United States of

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I, I think we all believe in freedom, uh, in, in every adjective you just said or every word you just said. And I think that, you know, I'm, I'm a diehard, I love America. And so I still believe in the principles of America. And, uh, even though You know, I love my country. Sometimes I wonder if my country loves me. And so that's, that's the problem. I think that black Americans are facing. And I think what we have to understand, especially on this panel, is that, you know, when black people choose to stay at home and don't vote, what are they voting for with their non vote? Right, right, right, right. And so I think we need to take a look at that and start talking about that because, okay, Trump won. I have a lot of friends who had high anxiety. I'm, I'm leaving, you know, uh, dad helped me get a passport. You know, friends are like, I'm going to Belize. And so, you know, you have to wonder what are they leaving and why are they leaving? So Trump is in office for four more years. He may get two more Supreme court picks. He may appoint some more federal judges. So, I'm looking at that and I'm thinking to myself, how does that change my life? Because right now, if I call 9 1 1, they're gonna come kill me. I'm thinking, are any more black men gonna be prosecuted more or less because of these changes? We're already being prosecuted at a high rate, right? Uh, we're already the court system, you know, the rule of law doesn't apply to black people Uh, dei is being killed. Well, does that change under trump or does it get better under trump? So, you know when I look at what's going on It was already a crappy deal for me before he got in the office so We have to pick ourselves up by our bootstraps. I recommend every black person go join a local organization Start picking your mayors, pick your police chief. You know, if you live in a neighborhood where they don't want you leave and go where they do want you, um, it's time for us to save ourselves. So I'm not saying that I don't care who's president. I'm just saying that I can't care anymore of how my vote counts. And I can't be the, no, I still voted and I voted for Ms. Harris, but at the same time, I wasn't surprised that Trump won because I wasn't upset at his platform. I wasn't, I just, I got to tell you, I wasn't upset. And I understand that transgenders have a right and they want to be her. I get all of that. I just don't want it forced down my throat. And so. Uh, I want my Children to have the ability to decide what they want to be. I don't want somebody telling me, well, gender affirming drugs should be given without parent consent. Are you crazy? So when you take a look at the Democratic platform and some of the stuff that they're going for, I disagree wholeheartedly at the core of my belief system. Because how can you be an American and then look at the Democratic platform and believe in that too? So I'm in, I have an internal conflict of what they're, what they're Preaching and what their platform is versus what my personal belief systems are.

Right?

So, you know going forward We have to figure out as a black people You know, do we come up with the fourth party? Do we have our own party? Do we forget the parties we have to do something here? We need to start to have that conversation now

Where I challenge you on this Brad and tony just give me a moment Um the liberties and the freedoms that you're saying you're not expressing in the rhetoric that you're presenting Because I was raised under the auspices if I made enough money I can live here next to these white folks. I was raised that if I, if I could afford to get into the restaurant, if I could, there came a time after Jim Crow and all this other stuff. If I had the money, we were predicated on a financial. Economic striation, right? Like the country, we are capital of country and if I can afford it, damn it. It's mine because of these liberties and these freedoms and all that. Now we don't want to get into the moral aspects of paying for stuff and into the OJ trial and all that. But the more, but the premise is if I can afford it, I should be afforded it. And you're saying. Even if you can't afford it. If they don't want you don't consume it. Don't embrace it. I don't like that Brad. I'm

sorry But that's okay You can be a black man driving a late model vehicle in a freaking Military uniform and get pepper sprayed because they can't see the tag on your car Okay, you can be living in a white community and be a part of the military and they still come to your home From a noise complaint and shoot you as soon as you open the door. Well, yep.

We know that.

So when you say we should be able to afford certain things, we're no longer safe, bro. We can't jog down the street. They're, they killed affirmative action, right? You can't, you can't use race to decide who gets into college anymore. DEI is being killed. DEI is what? 10, 12 years old. Is it gone already, bro? I think it didn't even survive the

four years

old. Yeah, bro. It was shorter than freaking blockbuster lasted longer than DEI. But here's the thing though,

bro, just real quick, not to interrupt, but here's the thing. So I see that, but that's why. So, see, this is why I'm struggling a little bit is because what you're saying is true. This is why you, so it does matter in a way who's running stuff. Okay. Because that situation is only going to get worse. All right. So when you don't vote. You just basically what you said. And again, I don't want to, I don't like generalizing, but at the end of the day, knowing the circumstances that people of color deal with, knowing the circumstances of people that are different deal with, okay, that ain't going to get better. So if they killed affirmative action, that's That affects you. That affects us. That does affect your daily life. Okay. If they kill DEI, that affects you. That does affect our daily life.

I don't know if you're hearing me though. I didn't say don't vote for your mayor. Go vote for your police chief. Go join an organization where see what you have to understand is I can't worry about what I can't control. And until white people decide they want better for everybody, they want better for nobody. And that's what they're voting for is nobody, right? They're voting for themselves. Okay. They think they are, but they're not. Right, right, right.

But here's the thing though, buddy. So I, I got your point. What, uh, the point I was trying to make is, is that earlier you were saying, Hey, I don't Who's in the white house doesn't really affect me. Okay. And what I'm saying is it kind of does because those people that's in there are the ones spearheading. The affirmative action eradication, the D. E. I. Eradication all these other things. The stuff at the local level. You're 100 percent right. We have more control there. We should be voting. But my bigger point was just more of the lack of activism in terms of what's going on. We all as citizens have to be more aware of what's going on. That's my point, right? I get macro and micro, macro and micro.

This is the thing that we have to. And I would agree with

Brad on that.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Just let me say this real quick. We got to go back to what Martin Luther King, uh, the process he used because we had a grassroots campaign that changed the world from the bottom up. I'm not saying that the top doesn't impact us. I'm saying that we have to change our strategy and we have to go back to rooting for us. That's true. That's all I'm saying. And so I'm not saying that Trump being in office doesn't impact us. My children, my future grand, my grandchildren, I'm saying that the playbook has changed to the point to where we have to go back to grassroots. And so if, because if we're not winning at the top, so we got to go back to the bottom and start winning from the bottom. I'm sorry, let's grant. Go ahead. You were going to say something.

Yeah, go ahead. Iris and then I'll come in.

Yeah, I was going to say there was a, there was a point that Brad made that I did agree with in terms of if people are looking at what do I do now? I think this is the wake up call for communities, right? Just communities that are different, right? Um, because I think we missed the mark. We got so, um, overwhelmed and comfortable coming out of COVID and out of the murder of George Floyd that there was so much, I will speak from a philanthropic perspective, um, and industry, there was so much money coming into the nonprofit industry from, um, gifts and contributions and at, um, and advocacy that I think there was also a, a, uh, a false, um, comfort that we're on the other side of this. Right where some of that was a lot of marketing and PR and a lot of people just jumping in and there were some things that were very authentic and I think that what we lacked in terms of communities and diverse communities was continually to try to drive forward and to seeing what this meant for us, right? Um, and what it meant for us, continuing a civil rights or civil movement. Right. Right for for everybody that is different. And I think, um, to Brad's point, what it has done has caused people to rethink now, unfortunately, at a very dangerous influx. But to rethink of how do I engage? How do I activate? How do I, um, what does this mean for me? Do I leave the country or not? I mean, I'm never I got my back, my passport ready. You know what I'm saying? It's been ready for a couple of years now. Um, but I think that there was this level of comfort for me. Oh, I think we, we might be okay. And that bottom crashed out. And so now we're talking about grassroots. Well, we should have never left the grassroots.

Right.

So I do agree with him in that space. I don't know that we're going to get there. It is going to take community. I think community is going to look very different because I do think that what the divide has based on who you voted for and who you did not vote for, I think that's put another divide in the seam of conversation. Um, I have people that I know who were friends who no longer are friends because of this election, because they can't come to a moral agreement, um, of, of where they are. So I think community is going to look very different. And I think that we have to be very cautious about how we draw those lines, those lines of community, um, and commonness. Right. What we have in common. Um, cause I think we are at a very dangerous influx of even what community looks like right now.

Let me ask you this though, Courtney, I'll pose this to you because what they're saying was a playbook that I feel like can no longer be run because there's no such thing as good faith negotiation any longer. I don't, once again, the trust is eroded in such a way that I don't believe anything you're telling me or signing off on. And so therefore without good faith negotiation. So we think about the King movement. It was based off of, it just like abolition, right? It was based off of a very kind hearted, civil, interested, white folks,

collectively

collaborating. Absolutely. It was a sense of collaboration. But what has happened is, we've seen the rise of, and I'll call it domestic terrorism, in the Proud Boys or in these other groups, to where They're being allowed to express their freedoms while our freedoms and liberties are being suppressed. So what am I to believe in? Or as Brad said, tell my children or my children's children, when we are not who we, who we presented ourselves to be for the last 150 years.

No, I totally agree with that. I think that, um, the election of this man now twice is only emboldening those types of people, the proud boys, the neo Nazis, like the hateful people. But like, if we go back to Martin Luther King, the only thing that can drive out hate is love. So how do we cross the aisle and work with people that we disagree with and have conversations respectfully with people we disagree with? And for me, like I made a lot of political posts on Facebook in the run up to this election because I was very again, patriotic. I love America. I don't I was really nervous that this man was gonna get elected again. And I had a really good friend of mine, one of the best people I know in my life, reach out to me and and tell me, I don't agree with you. And I'm going to vote for him. And I hope we can still be friends. And I said to him, I'm like, this, The problem with with culture right now is that if we don't agree with somebody, we cut them out entirely. And then we create these echo chambers where I'm only going to talk to or socialize with people that agree with me politically. And I know like, we're not supposed to talk about politics that I mean, I'm terrible at that. Um, but we can't do that for this to get better. We have to like bridge those gaps and have conversations even if they're difficult, and reach out with love to people that we don't necessarily agree with. I mean, do I? Am I going to like be best friends with someone in the proud boys? No. But if someone you know, if I have to interact with somebody who has those beliefs, I'm going to try to approach it with empathy and compassion and love. Because if I approach it, and I'm combative and hate. full right back. It's only going to feed the hate beast. And I think the hate beast is already so freaking big that like, how can we have more love in our society? And Tony, you and I talked about this the first time I came on like, yeah, sometimes I think about the people that like the mega people and I get really cranky, but I'm like, they're Americans. Like, that's the beautiful thing about America is that we all get one vote. We all get to have our own opinion. And I think what social media has done is like really drive that wedge in, like, And the way it worked in 2020 with now the parties don't want to work together and, you know, I'm in charge of the Senate, so I'm not going to hear, I'm not going to even consider your judicial nominee because I don't have to. And that stuff has to go away and we have to, we have to work for America and for people.

Right.

Versus like, well, I don't agree with them, so they're wrong and everything is going to have to be our way.

So let me ask you guys this final question. So that was an excellent point. And that's going to dovetail into that because look. Brad, you said this earlier, he's elected, right? The past is the past, okay? Nothing we can do to change it, right? We can be upset all day long, but it is what it is. And then all you guys made excellent points in terms of moving forward, grassroots, um, you know, what Courtney talked about, you know, all the stuff in terms of the division, you know, I have neighbors that live right next to me, right? Who I know for a fact. If something happened with me and my wife or the kids and we hit a button, they would be here in a minute, but they voted for Trump. Okay. So let me ask you guys this final question based on what Courtney just got finished talking about. How are you going to move forward and create, uh, uh, uh, Uh, create a, uh, a circle of love with people that, you know, disagree with your thoughts. Just, they voted for the man. Um, I love to hear that because at the end of the day, nothing happens unless we start doing that. So Brad, you, I'm going to start with you, my brother.

You know, some of my best friends are white. Some of my best friends are Republicans. And in everyday life, you know, the vitriol that we think we have for each other, I don't see. Um, my neighbors. Love me. I love them. Uh, you know, I own a business. I deal with white advertisers. Uh, white people read our publication. I think we're a lot closer than you think. What I hope and pray for though, is that we want the same for everybody. We all want to be in love. We all want the best for our kids. We all want to create an income that will allow us to be happy, pay our bills, travel a little bit, right? And so we all essentially want the same things. I think where we fall apart. Is that, you know, on a national level, it becomes combative. And I think if we stay grassroots and you stay committed to becoming a better person, I think that we can get the kind of effect that we're looking for, um, from ourselves and from our counterparts. And so I, I just pray and I hope that we continue to underneath it all. We stay Americans. We believe that we're one country under God, right? And I don't want to go through the rest. But we all understand what's at stake because the entire country is at stake right now. We're in a global economy, right? And so, you know at some point Uh, we're going to continue to fall in world rankings We don't lead in anything anymore. And so we have to start paying attention to that. And, you know, do I want the, uh, education department dissolved? Well, you know, has it worked for blacks? You know, so I don't know, you know, let's see what happens over the next four years. I'm not as gun shy as most people think that they need to be. Uh, you know, presidencies tend to move like, you know, glaciers and continents. You feel the earthquake, but did you see the ground move right? It's going to take 100 years for us to get further away from Africa or closer to Africa. So what can he do in four years? Really go love on your family, stay committed to your children, work harder, you know, uh, make more money, love your kids more, love yourself more. And I think we'll be okay. Iris man, I think it's tough. Um,

I think he can do a lot in four years. Because he had four years to make adjustments and plan and have a strategy and 2025 is a plan. It's, it's not a thought. He's, he's not even in office yet and he's already, um, showing himself to be more organized and strengthened and empowered than he was four years ago. So I think that he can do a lot because this is not four years, from now is definitely not going to regress and look like four years did four years ago. Um, in my heart as to who I am, I come from a very diverse background and family. I have very diverse friends, um, culture, race, faith base. I, I work in philanthropy. I have to cross the aisles. Um, I will say that I am going to continue to do the work and I have been looking very differently about who really is about the work and who says they're about the work. And for me, if your comfort level is that you still, um, after the election are still only really in your same circles. You're, you're not really about the work because you should be strategizing about how you can cross the aisle, how you can talk to the Native Americans in this country, how you can talk to the Jewish people and the Palestinian people in this country, um, how you can talk to the Mexican and you can talk to the Caucasian and the black, um, black female, the black, the black male. Um, everybody has a different perspective and they have a different need. Um, and so for me, I need to figure out where the lines have been crossed for me so that I can keep the purity of my heart and work because I love people and I love being an American and it matters to me that you're comfortable because I want to be comfortable, right? It matters. We, we may need to have to make some adjustments and I may have to make some personal adjustments. Um, but. It matters to me. And so, um, for me, I'm going to continue to do the work and the work may look a little different. I may have to make some adjustments because the needs of the people that I serve. Making adjustment. And when you are a servant leader, you have to do that. There's not a question. It doesn't become just about me and my space and who I work with or live with or who are my friends. It's about us as Americans. And so, um, we need to be able to find that empathy button and find the common ground that's way beyond political party and way beyond, um, um, Our moral compass and our personal faith walks and really look at this is a country in need where people are in need. Right, right. Um, and what does that look like? Right. Right. And having those conversations, um, without any hindrance of being able to express what you think and feel, because everybody's feelings are important. Everybody's needs are important. Um, but then how do we come together and really move forward in the next four years so that we do have impact on some things that might. That should not happen, not that we don't want them to happen. They should not happen in this country.

Courtney, you have the final word. Well, when we say talking about the country coming together, I always think back the, the, the most unified I think I've ever felt as an American was after nine 11 and I don't know that. If something like that happened today, it would be very interesting, like, like sociologically from a sociological experiment perspective to see how the country reacted. Um, but my, my own personal ethos is just, you know, I'm not a, I'm not, I don't, I don't subscribe to organized religion, but I do. I like to say that I practice the religion of kindness. So I treat everybody with kindness and love and I lead with love. And I think that having these types of conversations with people from all kinds of walks of life and not discounting people because they voted for a certain way. That's how my, what my approach is to trying to, you know, make those connections and, and try to create that sense of community as Americans, you know, not just sitting in my, you know, echo chamber here in Boston, but you know, when I've traveled to Ohio or I travel to Texas or Florida, like, you know, I'm being just open and receptive to what people have to say, while still holding my own morals and beliefs true, but trying to like, sort of just bridge that gap and make people feel like I, I hear you, I get it. And I don't, I don't hate you for that. So, um, it's an interesting spot we're in right now. And I think you're, I agree with Iris that there's, uh, the, the judiciary is what makes me the most nervous about the next four years. Right. So,

right. Well, look, at the end of the day, um, I'm excited about you guys, Chris and I, because you guys are, you know, solid human beings who love, you know, not just themselves and their family, but there are other Americans, obviously we have different, uh, diverse opinions, which is cool. Yeah. You know, because I mean, I was with you just sitting on this call, you know, on this show with you guys, I've learned, I took a couple of little nuggets. I got a little notepad right here. I wrote, I didn't even think of that. Right. So I think that's very important that we do that. Um, but I want to thank you guys for coming on, pull up and speak up and sharing your perspectives. And I love that there was obviously some disagreements, but that's the only way we learn. That's the only way we move forward. But at the end of the day, I love each and every one of you.

You too, buddy.

We love you too.

I absolutely, you know, I echo that and thank you guest. I would like to say, Courtney, just for my edification, the 2nd largest religion in the world would disagree to a post 9 11 view of, uh, Camaraderie and togetherness, the Muslims,

but

the idea of, I will be, and I'm telling the audience now, Courtney has already copyrighted the black, uh, the red, white, and blue shirts that say, uh, starved to hate beast. It's already done. And so I will be purchasing the starved to hate me shirt from you when it comes out. And I appreciate that so much, but thank you guys. Thank you audience for tuning in to this. This has been a wonderful dialogue as Tony intimated different perspectives, different, uh, areas of interest, uh, from a, uh, cultural seat, but we all have the same thing that was resonated. We all love America. We love this country and we're going, we're going to fight for it and willing to make adjustments to make this thing work. And so we definitely appreciate it.

Absolutely. So I think it's now time for Tony's tidbit. All right. So the tidbit today is this, and I quote, the strength of a nation lies in this willingness to confront its truths, no matter how uncomfortable and to find common ground for the greater good. And that's how we ended on this today, my friend. So really, really appreciate it. Everybody sit tight. Cause you're going to help us with BEP's call to action.

At this point in time, we want to remind you and employ you to tune in to our weekly segment on Black Executive Perspective podcast called Need to Know with Dr. Nsenga Burton. Each week, Dr. Nsenga Burton dives into timely and crucial topics that shape our community and our world. Make sure that you tune in for insights or education or information. Because you don't want to miss it.

Absolutely. Definitely check her out. And I hope you enjoy today's Pull Up, Speak Up episode post election truth lies and fallout. We always have to end with something that we're very passionate about here. And that is our call to action. Remember to incorporate L. E. S. S. Our goal is to eliminate all forms of discrimination and to achieve this, we're asking everyone to embrace less. Courtney, kick us off with your understanding of that action.

The L stands for learn. Educate yourself on racial and cultural nuances.

The E stands for empathy. Be open to understanding diverse views.

The S stands for share. Share your insights to enlighten others.

Thanks, Iris. And the final S stands for stop. We want to actively stop discrimination as it walks in our paths. So if Aunt Jenny says something at the Thanksgiving table or the Christmas table or Sunday dinner that's inappropriate, you say, Aunt Jenny, we don't believe that and we don't do that. And you stop it right there. So if everyone can incorporate less, L E S S will build a more fair, more understanding world. And more importantly, we'll all see the change that we want to see because less will become more.

And we're incorporating this idea of growth collectively with you. So make sure you tune in to our future episodes. Check out our past episodes, pull up, speak up is taken off. It's a wonderful thing. We have other episodes that are coming to the platform as well. Go to our website, sign up for the newsletter, leave us reviews, subscribe, comment, let us know where to meet you. Tony, where can they follow us?

Buddy, they can follow a black executive perspective podcast on YouTube, Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcast. And you can follow us on our socials of TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube. And, uh, X for our fabulous panel, Iris, Ivana, Grant, Courtney, Mitchell, and the, my, the baddest dude in Cleveland, Brad Bowling. We want to thank them for the co host with the most, my brother down in Dallas, Chris P. Reed. I'm Tony tidbit. We talked about it. We learned about it. We even disagreed about it, but guess what? We love you. And we're out

a black executive perspective.