00:00Welcome to Essence Debates Live. I'm Lauren Williams, Features Editor at Essence Magazine,
00:07and I'm here with Anthony Mackie. And today we'll be discussing New Orleans,
00:1110 years after Katrina. So Anthony, as a New Orleans native, talk about the improvements
00:16you've seen in the city over the past 10 years. Well, the improvements been massive. I mean,
00:20I feel like the state has done a really important job on maintaining and improving infrastructure,
00:27which I feel like if you know anything about America right now, our biggest downfall is our
00:32infrastructure. So everything now is just moving forward. It's progressing. The neighborhoods are
00:36changing because there's a lot of money coming into New Orleans now with the building of the VA
00:41hospital. We're building one of the largest VA hospitals in the world right here in New Orleans.
00:45So it's great. I mean, there's a lot of drastic improvements as far as community projects,
00:50as far as youth projects, and the city's really becoming more diverse and more integrated,
00:56and it's changing a lot. Where do you think there's still more room for improvement?
01:00Uh, jobs. I think, you know, New Orleans, we don't have a median lifestyle like most large cities.
01:07I feel we're the only major city in America that does not have a true middle class. And I think
01:12that's where the confrontation comes in. The part of the problem with what you saw with Katrina was
01:18you had all the people with money who were able to leave and all the people who didn't have money
01:23couldn't, so they had to stay. I think when you have a city like a New York or Chicago or LA that has
01:28a true thriving middle class, that's when the city grows because there's more people for the flow
01:34of money to go between. Right. So talk about the people of New Orleans. Talk about the resilience of
01:39New Orleans natives. What are the people here like? You know, the people who stayed behind and
01:44really fought to rebuild the city. I think with Essence being here, what, almost 20 years now,
01:49I think you realize once you come to New Orleans there's a flare and a spectacular reality about
01:54the city that you can't find anywhere else in the world. I think New Orleans is truly the most
01:59individual, the most amazing city in this country for one specific reason. It has its own culture,
02:05and it was the true original melting pot before it spread through the United States, and that's
02:09100 percent because of the Mississippi River. I think, you know, if you look at the history of this
02:14country, it all grows, starts, and generates from New Orleans, and that can't be forgotten,
02:19and I think we all know that. I think the biggest lesson we learned from Katrina was how valuable
02:24and how unique our city was, and once you get taken from that, it's your life's goal to get back to it.
02:30Absolutely. And lastly, it was recently announced that you'll play Martin Luther King in an HBO
02:36forthcoming film All the Way about Lynda B. Johnson. What can we expect from you in the film?
02:40Well, you can expect me to be called Martin Luther King. No, it's shocking. I've been approached
02:50several times to play Martin Luther King, and I was very nervous and apprehensive because I didn't feel
02:54like I had the gravitas to pull it off. I'm very conscious of who I am and where I am in my life,
03:00and I finally feel like I'm at a point as a man and as an actor that I can do it, and being opposite
03:09Bryan Cranston doesn't hurt. Being produced by Steven Spielberg doesn't hurt, and I'm a huge fan
03:15of Jay Roach, and I love his movies. I love his style of directing, and I felt very confident after
03:21meeting with him that he could direct me into a memorable performance as one of the most memorable
03:27figures in the history of the world. Right, right. Well, we're very much looking forward to it.
03:30Thank you so much. Thank you for joining us, Anthony, today,
03:33and be sure to join us again on Essence Debates Live on Essence.com.
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