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PoliticsNation with Al Sharpton - Season 2025 Episode 94
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00:00This week, President Trump chose to put Minnesota's Somali community in the crosshairs of his administration's anti-immigrant agenda.
00:11Residents say normally vibrant neighborhoods in Minneapolis are eerily quiet as some in the community lay low,
00:20fearing a crackdown from federal authorities after the president called out the state's Somali population garbage.
00:28In the wake of a deadly shooting that took place thousands of miles away in Washington, D.C.,
00:35and was allegedly carried out by an Afghan immigrant with no links to Somalia at all.
00:43The White House seems uninterested in letting the facts get in the way of its racist narrative
00:48as it seeks to justify an unprecedented assault on Americans' basic civil liberties.
00:56In a moment, we'll discuss all things Minnesota.
01:00But first, joining me now is Democratic Congressman Gabe Amo from Rhode Island.
01:06Congressman, as a child of two African immigrants yourself,
01:11and a member of the Congressional Black Caucus that condemned these insults and attacks,
01:16what is your reaction to what we've been hearing in the recent days from this administration?
01:23You're muted, Congressman.
01:35You're muted.
01:43You're still muted.
01:45You're still muted.
01:46They've been trying to quiet me for years, so I know the feeling.
01:54I don't think he's hearing.
01:57All right, let me take a break.
01:59We'll go right, come right back.
02:01We'll try to straighten it out.
02:02We apologize, but we are back with Democratic Congressman Gabe Amo of Rhode Island.
02:12I'm glad we got you back because it's important to have you in this discussion
02:16because we're discussing President Trump's attacks on the Somali community in Minnesota.
02:22Minnesota, you yourself, the son of people that were born outside of the country,
02:29and you're raising children in the country.
02:31So given your own situation, what's your reaction to this whole attack to Somalis in Minnesota?
02:39Well, thanks for having me on, Reverend.
02:41The fact of the matter is, this is a continuation of Donald Trump and his attacks on people of
02:48color, specifically the African community and people across this country who work hard
02:55and are trying to build a good life in this country.
02:58He has transformed from a dog whistle to a loud dog bark.
03:03And it's unfortunate to see the Oval Office be a venue for such hatred and racist remarks
03:13that really undermine our values here in this country.
03:16Now, I want to stick with this for a moment.
03:20Just yesterday, the Supreme Court announced they will be hearing the case of whether Trump's
03:26efforts to end birthright citizenship with an executive order is constitutional.
03:32While many lawyers have indicated that this is essentially a cut and dry issue,
03:38the Supreme Court has surprised us before in its deference to Trump.
03:43And this birthright citizenship goes back to the Dred Scott decision in slavery.
03:49How concerned are you about this case?
03:52Well, look, the legal precedent is clear.
03:55For 150 years in this country, we have had an established law.
04:00And when challenged, it has sustained.
04:03However, my concern runs deep because of the consistent attacks on, frankly, all immigration out of the Trump administration.
04:14This consistent attack is yielding great fear and uncertainty for countless people here in our country.
04:24And so I am cautiously optimistic that the precedent will reign.
04:31But, of course, this is another attack that undermines our values in America.
04:37Earlier this week, Trump welcomed the leaders of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the White House,
04:44allegedly to broker a peace treaty between the two nations who've been fighting over minerals and resources for decades.
04:54And while the fighting on the ground paused during the talks within 40, 24 hours, the fighting and bombing continued.
05:03What are your thoughts on Trump thinking he can play peacemaker in this situation?
05:09This is Donald Trump with another deceptive advertising process.
05:17The fact of the matter is, he wanted to rename the Institute of Peace after himself.
05:24He is in great pursuit of a Nobel Peace Prize, so much so that FIFA gave him his own peace prize.
05:32And the truth on the ground is, we need a stable commitment to diplomacy, a real commitment to seeing this through,
05:43and not just to focus, as usual from Donald Trump, on enriching his billionaire friends who want to focus on extracting rare earth materials.
05:53That is short-sighted and does not give the people in the region the safety and security and lasting peace that they deserve.
06:03Now, while Trump attempts to play peacemaker and collects so-called peace awards from sports organizations,
06:14his administration is ratcheting up tensions in Venezuela.
06:19Earlier this week, Navy Admiral Frank Bradley briefed select members of Congress on the details of the bombing of the alleged drug boat in the Caribbean this September
06:31that has Defense Secretary Hexeth in a hot water.
06:35What can you tell us about this briefing?
06:38And what is your level of confidence in the Pentagon leadership right now?
06:43Well, I did not see this video or participate in this briefing, but I have heard from many of my colleagues on the Armed Services Committee
06:52and on the Intelligence Committee who said what they learned was disturbing, the visuals were disturbing.
06:59But the president has said there's nothing wrong with the video footage.
07:03So, out of an abundance of transparency, we need to see that video footage.
07:10We also need to see a real, robust hearing in public settings of the Secretary of Defense and Admiral Bradley.
07:21I want to know where the Secretary of Defense was.
07:24If it is the case that he did not put forward an order for Admiral Bradley to execute,
07:29where was he, what was his mindset, and what was his direction?
07:34Because the fact of the matter is, this is unsettling.
07:38So, we need a public airing of facts as soon as possible.
07:42Congress needs and deserves a seat at the table to make this clear for the American people.
07:49And I might add, we learned now that the boat was going to a vessel,
07:53and the vessel wasn't even headed to the United States.
07:56But before I let you go, earlier this week, you held a town hall in your district
08:01to discuss the looming Obamacare health care premium crisis
08:05that could skyrocket premiums for as many as 40,000 of Rhode Islanders.
08:12What are you hearing from your constituents?
08:14I'm hearing so much fear from people all across my congressional district,
08:20and I'm hearing the same from my Democratic colleagues who are hearing heartbreaking stories
08:26of impossible decisions being placed at the feet of their constituents across this country
08:33who will need to decide whether they are able to pay for health care or pay for food or pay for rent.
08:41This does not have to be this way.
08:43Republicans should come to the table, work with Democrats,
08:48and move forward either on the discharge petition that Leader Jeffries is leading,
08:53that has every single House Democrat on it,
08:56or come forward and let's pass legislation that extends the ACA tax credits
09:02and let people get the health care that they deserve.
09:06And so I'll keep fighting alongside my colleagues,
09:08but the pain is real, and we only have a few weeks to go.
09:13All right. Thank you for being with us, Rhode Island Representative Gabe Amo.
09:20Now to Minnesota's junior U.S. Senator Tina Smith.
09:24Thanks for being with us, Senator.
09:26The president began attacking Somalis almost immediately after the D.C. National Guard shooting last week,
09:34even though the community has not been linked to that incident in any way.
09:40And his administration has not let up since.
09:42At this week's cabinet meeting, the president said he didn't want any Somalis in the country.
09:49And ICE has reportedly been instructed to step up operations in the Twin Cities starting next week.
09:56What are you hearing from Somalis in your state, Senator?
10:01Well, first, everyone can see what's happening here.
10:04This, what President Trump is doing, this is what racism looks like.
10:08It is dehumanizing of an entire group of people.
10:12It is deeply disrespectful and arrogant.
10:15And what I'm hearing from people in Minnesota, both from the Somali community as well as from everybody else,
10:21is just an abhorrence of this.
10:23Of course, there's a huge amount of fear in the community.
10:26I know that folks are feeling like they need to take their passports with them to prove their American citizenship.
10:33And, Reverend Sharpton, you've been to Minnesota many times.
10:36And you no doubt know that we have over 80,000 folks of Somali descent living in Minnesota.
10:43The vast majority of them are U.S. citizens.
10:46Nearly 60 percent of them were born in the United States.
10:50But, of course, when you know that an ICE agent without a badge with a mask over their face
10:56could swoop into your place of business, your kid's school, and detain you with no due process,
11:04of course it causes so much fear.
11:07Now, there are about 80,000, 85,000 people of Somali descent in the Twin Cities, according to the census.
11:16Half of them have been here over 15 years.
11:19Somalis work in high-demand sectors like health care and food processing.
11:24Many run small businesses.
11:26Can you respond to the lie being put forth by this president that Somali people are destroying your state
11:34rather than adding to it?
11:37Well, I'm happy to set the facts straight here.
11:40Not only in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, but in communities all over Minnesota.
11:45As you say, Reverend Sharpton, Somali people are the entrepreneurs that are revitalizing main streets.
11:52They are the doctors and the nurses that are treating you in hospitals.
11:57They are the police officers and the EMS emergency responders that are making sure that you get to the hospital
12:04if you've been in an accident.
12:06They are the teachers in your children's daycare and in the schools.
12:12They are a vital part of our community, and they contribute huge amounts of money in terms of economic benefit to this state,
12:21in terms of economic activity, and in terms of paying taxes to this state.
12:26So they are a crucial part of the economy of Minnesota and a valued part of our community.
12:32You know, I was just thinking, as I had been posting about this on social media,
12:37I got this kind of onslaught of messages from Minnesotans sharing with me on social media
12:43what the people in their communities who are Somali or of Somali descent,
12:48what they mean to them and what they have contributed to their lives.
12:51And I think that that tells you a lot about who Minnesota is
12:54and how much we reject what Donald Trump and some Republicans are doing.
12:58Now, while the president has been out there smearing Minnesota's Somali population,
13:05the Republican-led House Oversight Committee and Trump's Treasury Department
13:10have opened investigations into allegations of fraud
13:14revolving around a nonprofit food charity called Feeding Our Future
13:19that was receiving state and federal funds.
13:23Now, Republicans are seeking to weaponize the scandal politically,
13:26which has implicated some prominent state Democrats and members of the Somali community.
13:33What's your take on what's going on?
13:36Well, first of all, Minnesota has a zero tolerance for fraud of any kind.
13:43And it is very important that the folks that stole this taxpayer's money are prosecuted.
13:49And I want to also just say that Governor Walz is getting after it.
13:53He is taking the steps to make sure that we have strong, secure guardrails to protect the taxpayers.
14:02And he has brought in outside auditors to ensure the integrity of these programs.
14:07Because, as I said, we have zero tolerance for this kind of fraud.
14:11But, you know, what the president is doing is to basically condemn an entire group of people
14:17because of the criminal activity of a few.
14:20That is the definition of what bigotry is.
14:22And it is what we are standing up against right now in Minnesota.
14:27Staying with issues confronting your state, Senator,
14:30the clock is ticking for Minnesota's hemp industry.
14:34A ban on hemp-derived THC products like a seltzer that was included in the bill to end government shutdown
14:45is set to take effect in just under a year, if that happens.
14:52The state's brewing companies warns it could wipe out a quarter of the jobs in the industry statewide.
14:59The state's congressional delegation has been looking for a solution.
15:03Do you have any updates?
15:06Yeah, so what happened here is when the bill to end the federal government shutdown was passed,
15:11there was snuck into it this provision that has the impact of devastating the hemp sector in Minnesota and around the country.
15:20And it's become a very important part of what microbreweries and craft brewers have been doing to expand their market share.
15:28In Minnesota, we're very proud that we have a very robust regulatory environment to make sure that,
15:35for example, if you're under the age of 21, that you can't buy a THC beverage,
15:40that it can't be sold in gas stations and places where young people could get a hold of it.
15:46But what happened with this Republican provision, which is now law,
15:51is that all of that could be wiped out in less than a year.
15:54So I'm working with Representative Ilhan Omar and Senator Klobuchar and others to find a path forward
16:00that will protect the jobs and the industry that is really important here in Minnesota.
16:05Before I let you go, I want to get your take on some recognitions the president received this week.
16:13The soccer organization, FIFA, F-I-F-A, FIFA, awarded him their first ever Peace Prize ahead of next year's World Cup,
16:23just days after the State Department renamed what's left of the U.S. Institute of Peace after Donald Trump.
16:31I've got some thoughts on all this coming up, but I wonder what's your reaction,
16:35especially coming the same week a Navy admiral on the Hill answering questions about targeting survivors
16:44during a strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean.
16:49Well, Reverend Sharpton, I can't even quote for you what my 95-year-old father had to say about this
16:55when he sent me a message last night. I mean, this is pitiful.
17:00I can't imagine what FIFA is thinking. And, of course, what goes around comes around.
17:05It seemed like such a pathetic pantomime for the president of the United States to be putting on this fake medal
17:12as if he had done something incredible when that is obviously not the case.
17:19And, of course, it's all a big distraction from the fact that, you know, meanwhile, as you said,
17:23Admiral Bradley is testifying about how it could be that the United States military
17:28is literally blowing boats out of the water at the direction of Pete Hegseth,
17:32the secretary of defense, and with no evidence that I've ever seen about what is going on on those boats.
17:41So this is another distraction on the part of the president.
17:45And as I said, I think it's actually kind of pathetic.
17:48All right. Minnesota Senator Tina Smith, thank you for being with us.
17:52In regards to your father, thank you for being with us.
17:55Thank you, Reverend Sharpton.
17:56Coming up, no Nobel, no problem.
18:00President Trump wants a peace prize so bad, he's got people making up honors to give him.
18:06I'll explain next in this week's Got You.
18:14For years, Donald Trump has been obsessed with the idea of winning the Nobel Peace Prize.
18:20And with the Norwegian nominating committee snubbing him yet again this year, the president and his allies are taking matters into their own hands.
18:31This week, the administration confirmed it is renaming the U.S. Institute of Peace for President Trump.
18:38It turns out to be a fitting tribute, although perhaps not in the way Trump intended.
18:45The Institute's headquarters on the National Mall has sat nearly empty for nine months since Doge seized the building and fired most of the staff.
18:55The fate of the building and the organization it once housed is now tied up in the courts, with former employees arguing the institute created by Congress during the Reagan administration isn't part of the executive branch and shouldn't be subjected to presidential authority at all.
19:15Despite this, the New York Times reports the administration quietly rehired some employees in advance of placing Trump's name on the building in large silver letters to coincide with this week's White House ceremony, supposedly making the end of hostilities between Rwanda and the Congo.
19:37That deal seems almost as empty and hollow as Trump's embrace of the Peace Institute itself.
19:44Fighting between militia groups representing the two African nations continued even as their two leaders were in the United States, celebrating an agreement that has been in the works since the summer.
19:59The entire affair clearly shows President Trump's commitment to peace is symbolic at best.
20:05This president takes credit for solving conflicts he barely even understands as he refashions our Defense Department into the Department of War and threatens countries like Venezuela with military action.
20:20Trump is trying to bolster his legacy with the same toxic combination of bluster and lies that has fueled his entire political career.
20:30But while he can put his name on a building or manipulate soccer leagues into honoring him for his supposed peacemaking, Trump may find out that history is a judge that cannot be easily fooled or manipulated.
20:47I got you.
20:50Welcome back to Politics Nation on MSNOW.
20:54Now, Navy Admiral Frank Mitch Bradley appeared on Capitol Hill on Thursday to give a closed-door testimony regarding the September attack on an alleged drug boat strike in the Caribbean.
21:10Now, the revelation sparked a firestorm of controversy as Democrats and some Republicans voiced concerns.
21:18That the follow-up strikes that the follow-up strikes that killed two survivors could have constituted war crimes.
21:25Take a listen to some of what lawmakers had to say after his testimony.
21:32What I saw in that room was one of the most troubling things I've seen in my time in public service.
21:37You have two individuals in clear distress without any means of locomotion with a destroyed vessel who were killed by the United States.
21:51I saw two survivors trying to flip a boat, loaded with drugs, down for the United States, back over so they could stay in the fight.
22:01No, I didn't see anything disturbing about it.
22:03Joining me now to discuss this is my political panel, both former members on Capitol Hill, former Democratic New York Congressman Max Rose and former Republican Pennsylvania Congressman Charlie Dent.
22:20Max, first to you, Admiral Bradley told the lawmaker's defense secretary, Pete Hickseth, did not give the order to kill them all in regards to the September 2nd boat strike.
22:36But the Washington Post reported last week that Hickseth gave a spoken directive ahead of the attack.
22:44I must note that both the White House and Hickseth denied that he issued such an order.
22:51Now, you're a veteran in the military, of the military, and of Congress.
22:56What's your response to the details of this testimony?
23:00Yeah, you know, I'm also a veteran of many conversations with you.
23:03And you taught me something about politics, which is that eventually the facts catch up to you.
23:09And the facts are clearly catching up with the administration here, not just in regards to this one incident, but look at the overall situation, which is that at this point they have engaged in sustained attacks, deadly attacks, in and around the coast off of Venezuela.
23:28Now, I'm no constitutional expert.
23:31My understanding is, is that there's only one body in the federal government that can allow for the United States military to engage in sustained offensive action.
23:40And that is the United States Congress.
23:42And this administration has completely ignored Congress's sole obligation and authority to declare war here.
23:50So now they either have two options, either this is unauthorized murder, or this is a war crime killing of two people that are defenseless in the face of a military attack.
24:05And that is not, either of those are very poor options.
24:08This will devolve into politics.
24:10Folks like Tom Cotton will just defend this administration no matter what they do.
24:15But the facts here are absolutely clear.
24:17Charlie, there was a time when military affairs were in areas, both lawmakers of both parties are often on the same page.
24:27Are you surprised by the divisions over how this testimony was interpreted this week?
24:34Not really, but I think we have two issues.
24:37And my friend Max, I agree with him that the law is crystal clear here.
24:41However, it's unambiguous that we cannot kill, if these are enemy combatants who are floundering in the water, hanging onto a wreckage or a raft, you can't kill them.
24:52That's the law.
24:53Now, we have to also put all these folks under oath, from the secretary to the admiral and to others involved with this strike.
25:02We need to put them under oath to get all the facts.
25:04And I believe the president of the United States has now said that he was willing to release the video that I believe was seen in the classified setting that none of us have seen.
25:13So I think the president should be held to his word and he should release these files so we can make a determination as to exactly what happened here.
25:23And Hengsteth, I think, is in a real dilemma, as Max has pointed out.
25:27You know, he's being accused of a war crime or murder.
25:30I mean, that's not a great argument that you want to have.
25:32I mean, this is a he's being accused of a war crime without a war.
25:35I think George Will said that the other day.
25:37So we have ourselves one hell of a mess.
25:40But right now, it's incumbent on Congress to exercise this oversight to get to the bottom of what actually happened.
25:46And frankly, let the American people make a judgment.
25:49Let them see the video themselves.
25:51Now, switching gears, Afghan immigrants are now facing uncertainty about after years of creating a home here in the United States.
26:00Following the deadly attack on National Guard members in Washington, D.C. in November, that authorities say was carried out by an Afghan man.
26:10Since then, the Trump administration announced plans to suspend all Afghan immigration cases.
26:17Now, Max, you served in Afghanistan and are familiar with many Afghan immigrants who had helped the American government end the war on terror in the 2000s.
26:29Do you feel that Trump's response to the National Guard shooting is appropriate?
26:34No, it's not.
26:36And first of all, we'd be remiss not to note the incredible sacrifice in service of the victims of that attack and and the soldier who was murdered.
26:47But that is a reason to punish the assailant to the fullest extent of the law and do everything we can to protect our service members going forward.
27:00It is not an excuse, however, to seek vengeance and retribution for a whole class of people who were it not for their service and sacrifice.
27:11We would have lost more service members in Afghanistan.
27:15I spent nearly a year in Afghanistan as an infantry platoon there.
27:19And I can tell you every single day, not only did my unit rely on the Afghans who were working alongside us,
27:26but when we were in our vehicles, I can tell you the enemy couldn't tell the difference between either of us.
27:32Their lives were just as much in danger as our own.
27:37And we have worked for years to make sure that we looked out for them as a country, that they that we didn't forget their service and sacrifice.
27:46But in the end, this is an administration that hates all immigrants, particularly, in fact, in this case, those who served alongside service members.
27:55It's horrifying. Charlie, we're almost a year into Trump's first term.
28:01And it seems this administration is intent on not just reshaping how we use our armed forces to conduct foreign affairs,
28:09but on changing the culture of our military itself.
28:14What do you think will be the impact of this?
28:17Well, it's certainly unsettling when we hear, you know, top leaders like the secretary of defense in particular talking about, you know, getting rid of rules of engagement.
28:29I mean, we have rules for a reason.
28:33And I'm all for reviewing rules of engagement from time to time, seeing if they can be updated or made better.
28:38But to use to use the military in ways that are being used now to conduct a war that has not been declared by Congress,
28:49no case has been made to the American people or to the Congress for why we're doing this.
28:54I mean, there used to be a time we used to interdict, you know, people on drug boats.
28:58Now we just simply kill them and talking about using American soldiers on the streets of our cities, in my view, in violation of posi comitatus.
29:09Of course, we should use the National Guard when there are moments of civil unrest and the governors can call them up.
29:15But I feel like everything is being misused here.
29:18These authorities are being misused.
29:21And again, this is another area ripe for congressional oversight to set the record straight about how the armed forces will be used both domestically and internationally.
29:31And finally, on the point of those Afghan refugees, we have a moral obligation, a duty to help those people who helped us.
29:38I had a young Afghan refugee, a young woman, lived with my family for one year.
29:43Her father was killed in front of the entire family by the Taliban.
29:46None of her family can be sent back to Afghanistan.
29:49They'll be killed. And that's true of many of these people who served with Max and others who were, you know, who were translators or served in some kind of other security roles to support our troops.
30:00These people did it at great risk to themselves and their families, and they just simply cannot be returned to the Taliban.
30:05So they use this horrible incident, this tragedy where our soldier was murdered as a reason to go after a whole class of people.
30:15It's simply wrong. And I would say it's immoral.
30:17All right. Former Congressman Max Rose and former Congressman Charlie Dent, thank you both for being with us.
30:26Up next, just as division has come to define the American experience, a story celebrating our similarities takes center stage in New York City.
30:37More on the message for this moment after the break.
30:40Welcome back to Politics Nation on MSNOW.
30:46One of the reasons for the success of the civil rights movement in the 60s was the shock and awe of the pitches on the nightly news.
30:57Peaceful and unarmed black folks attacked for demanding their rights.
31:01Now, the violent images like the bombing of the so-called drug boats in the Caribbean barely causes a ripple amongst our desensitized population.
31:13That's why the off-Broadway revival of the play Gruesome Playground Injuries is causing such a stir,
31:20reminding all of us of the big and small injuries that bind us all.
31:26Joining me now is two-time Tony-winning actress Cara Young.
31:31Cara, talk to me about the show which drew you to this particular role and story.
31:38Yeah.
31:39This play, this very iconic play by Rajiv Joseph.
31:43It was directed by Neil Pepe, starring myself and Nicholas Braun.
31:48The play follows two people over a 30-year span, from 8 years old to 38.
31:55And you see them in these times in their life that shapes their friendship.
32:00And I think that one of the things about the play that makes people are leaving feeling all sorts of feelings
32:07is our lack of human connection these days to really fall into the fact that we are here on this earth together
32:17and that we have to be connected.
32:20And I think that we're in a state right now where, you know, the feelings are being sort of desensitized.
32:27And that's what theater does.
32:28It forces us to feel.
32:29And now you can see two people really kind of going through their lives
32:35and trying to figure out what happened in the time between.
32:40Yeah.
32:40Now, the show isn't for the squeamish.
32:44Though you never leave the stage, as the show details 30 years of your relationship,
32:49you break into really deep and important conversations, everything from injuries to mental health.
32:55Why is this an important show for audiences to see now?
33:00I think theater in general, theater, plays, is like a vibration for the human experience.
33:11It's a moment for us to really lean in together.
33:14And the why of it now, there's just so many reasons and there's so many things to pick apart in this play.
33:21But the fact that we must understand each other, the fact that we must lean into each other,
33:30I think that the time is now for us to see something like this and feel a little deeper,
33:37experience the experience, get in touch with the person that you haven't spoken to in two years.
33:44Let's tap in.
33:46Let's say hello to our neighbors, you know?
33:48Now, you, you yourself are blazing a trail.
33:52You are on Ebony Magazine's Power 100 list, on Time's 100 next list.
33:59And earlier this year, you made history as the first black actor to be nominated four years in a row
34:06for Best Featured Actress in a Play and the first to ever win back to back Tonys.
34:13We both know that for black actors, there's so much more ground to cover in this industry.
34:18Talk to me about helping to pave that path and inhabiting roles that are not only about storytelling,
34:27but embody history at times as well.
34:30Wow.
34:30That's a really great question.
34:33And it's really big.
34:34It's hard to understand what kind of path you are forming as you're just taking the next step in your life.
34:43I am so committed to the work.
34:45I am so committed to telling stories.
34:47I had the incredible opportunity, fortunate opportunity, to be in the revival of Ozzie Davis' Pearly Victorious,
34:58stepping into the role that our legendary Ruby Dee originated.
35:03The play has so much packed in there.
35:06You talk about history.
35:08It's one of those plays that should be a classic.
35:11It should be in every classroom.
35:13Every student should be reading it.
35:15And that was such a beautiful offering to the community.
35:19And I just feel very fortunate to have done all of that.
35:23But all of the accolades, it's not mine.
35:25It belongs to the people who raised me.
35:27It belongs to Harlem.
35:28It belongs to Belize.
35:29It belongs to all the people who had every director, every writer, every actor, you know, that I've ever worked with.
35:37That's just not just me.
35:39That's a lot of us.
35:40I want to go back to, you said Belize, because you're the child of immigrants.
35:44Both your parents immigrated from Belize.
35:46Notably, your father has been working at the Rainbow Room in our old stomping grounds at 30 Rockefeller Center for more than 30 years.
35:55Talk to me about your journey to this point in your career, the programs and opportunities that led you here.
36:01And what needs to be protected so future carers have the opportunity to grace the stage?
36:08Wow.
36:08What needs to be protected?
36:09Our children need to be protected.
36:11Our children need to be poured into.
36:13I am so grateful and so honored that there was just so many people pouring into me as a child.
36:19And so many people believing that there was magic in me, you know.
36:25And, yeah, I just protect, protect, protect the youth and the elders, you know.
36:31Right.
36:32Yeah.
36:32And I hope they protect those programs and action academies that produce carers like you.
36:39Carol.
36:39Yes.
36:40Actress Cara Young, thank you for being with us tonight.
36:43Thank you, sir.
36:44Now for my final thoughts, this week marks the 70 years since Rosa Parks refused to give her a proceed on that Montgomery, Alabama bus and set off a movement to change the course of American history.
36:58Parks quiet courage on that December day in 1955 lit the fuse that forced this nation to finally confront who was included in American democracy and who was left out.
37:12I had the honor of speaking at her funeral and reminding the nation that our civil rights were not given out freely.
37:20We had to fight for them.
37:25James Crow, Jr. Esquire.
37:28That's who we got to fight.
37:29And if we are to win, if we are to really memorialize Rosa Parks, she would tell us to do in the generation of his sons what she and Dr. King did as daddy.
37:45They didn't talk a fight.
37:47They fought the fight.
37:50They didn't show up at funerals.
37:53They showed up on the picket line and the march line and the jailhouse.
38:0070 years later, we owe Rosa Parks more than our respect.
38:05We must honor her with action.
38:07Don't just get upset.
38:09Do something.
38:10Sometimes that means standing up.
38:13And other times it means sitting down.
38:15That does it for me.
38:18Thanks for watching.
38:19I'll see you back here tomorrow at 5 p.m. Eastern.
38:21The weekend primetime starts right here on MSNOW at the top of the hour.
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