December 8, 2023 • 32 mins
In this powerful final episode with Areva Martin, we explore the path forward for gender equality in the workplace and society as a whole. Areva shares her insights on fostering supportive communities, encouraging women to embrace leadership roles, and collectively moving towards progress. She sheds light on her impactful nonprofit, the Special Needs Network, dedicated to serving black and brown communities impacted by autism. The discussion also touches on a compelling case related to reparations in the Palm Springs area. Join us for a thought-provoking conversation on advocacy, leadership, and creating positive change.
Host IG:@itstanyatime
Guest IG: @arevamartin
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
And if I am offending you by asking you to
support them, I'm sorry, but that's my job and I'm
going to.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Keep pushing for these kids.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
So that's what I tell people who are raising money
in a nonprofit space. You've got to separate that it's
not for you, it's not about you. And so when
you know that you're asking for a worthy cause and
you see the fruits of what that labor, then it
makes it easier. Now, it doesn't necessarily mean that yes
are going.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
To come buster, but but yon's you to keep going.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
It will allow you to hear the know and not
get knocked down, because that can be really hard.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
You're listening to Money Moos powered by Greenwood, a finance
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(00:56):
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(01:19):
me on all Things social at It's Tanya. Time to
stay locked in to new episode. Hey Money Movers, Welcome back. Today,
we continue our conversation with California super lawyer and best
selling author Areva Martin. Feel like having the conversations because
I see all these things.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
It will pop up on social media.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
It's everywhere, and I'm always looking for like how do
we move past it? And I feel like it's having
these open, honest conversations. You know, sometimes there's safer spaces
to have them, sometimes there aren't, so that you can
help sort of like explore what people actually.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
Think, unpack them.
Speaker 4 (01:55):
But what do you think the solutions are that will
help us to like move this needle.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
I think it's it's self reflection because again, people think
that you know, these attitudes belong to someone else, and
it's a hard thing to say to yourself that I
harbor biases, right, that that I do treat people, either
(02:21):
in my own family or friends circle differently colorism.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
You know that conversation in our own family, yes, three kids.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
One of my daughters is super fair skinned, my other
daughter is brown skinning. One of her cousins ask her
what is it like to be in the family and
be the darkest one?
Speaker 2 (02:41):
Wor bless her heart? Literally, but you know he's the kids.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
I told him that, And so how do you dispel
something You can't fix what you don't acknowledge. And I
think the solution is acknowledging it having these.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
Really uncomfortable conversations. And you know, I think when I
know the.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Discussions I've had about the book, everybody's not going to
agree with you.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
And people are going to always eat the whole role
the first time.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
But I always feel like, even if people argue with
you on the surface disagree, there's probably some of that
there's something in there and probably that next conversation they're
going to repeat something you totally.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
That's great, And I just I love conversation. I love dialog.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
I love diversity of thought in different viewpoints. Because I
learned something I think it's exactly that. It's like spreading
those dandelions to the world. Absolutely, Okay, I want to
make sure because I'm such a bibliophile. I love books.
We talked about the lies. Let's touch a little bit
on leadership, because I think you are a leader. You're
(03:50):
a trailblazer. You've worked in the civil rights movement and
in that area of laws, so there's so much that
you've done. Talk to us a little bit about how,
as as a black woman, how you're.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Really viewing how we grow more leaders.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Yeah, it's a we have a crisis right of leadership,
and I think it's everyone's responsibility. Again, we have to
dispel the lie that men are natural one leaders and
women are not. We have to get women out of
the frame of thinking that they should always be subservient
and in the background and let the man go forward.
(04:29):
And we I think we just have to propel and
push women forward. We have to make opportunities and explain
and educate and raise awareness about what leadership is. Leadership
comes in so many forms. Everybody is not going to
run for president of the United States. Somebody's not going
to be Kamala Harris's not going to be the vice president.
We need someone to do that, but there are ways
(04:50):
that people can lead that look differently based on your talents,
your skills, you know, your own desires, what you want
in your own life. I think we have to give
people a sense that whatever it is they can do
where they are, you know that that also has value,
That has value, and it's important and it's helping. You know,
(05:12):
if all of us are doing a little part, that's
then one giant thing happening, you know, simultaneously. And I
think too often a lot of times people think if
I can't do the really big thing, then I do nothing.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
And you know, I think that's funny because we all
suffer from that.
Speaker 3 (05:28):
Okay, you know, the end goal has to be so big,
but even when you talk about doing work of service
in our communities, you're leading whatever it is, a girl
guide troop or coaching something, those small things, you know,
and people always ask me, how do I get involved
in tech? Or how do I do like you do
those small little touch points, and you realize I can
(05:49):
do so much more, Yes, And I think it's just
it's smaller than people thinking.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Jumping in, just getting started.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
And you know, if you're organizing, you know, a group
in your community, to do a clean up or to
go serve food, you know, for the homeless, or you know,
to do some kind of community service project.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
That's leadership.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
That's leader that is that's leadership, or even you know,
running for city council.
Speaker 5 (06:12):
Those are such huge roles that our politics are local,
so you don't have to be And I have a friend,
this is a guy friend h he has longed to
be in politics and he's always wanted to be a senator.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Great, you know, wonderful aspiration. And I've always.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
Tried to say, Okay, that's great, but there's so many
other things that you can do. And so you don't
let you know, your your desire for the perfect be
the enemy of the goods, you know.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
If you just have to help people understand.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
And I think it's important for us to praise, acknowledge,
and support when people do those things. So everybody doesn't
end up on some Grammys or oscar.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
It's not going to get that.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
But we can make people feel special and we can
recognize their work, and we know when we do that
that incentivizes them to do more, and then others who
are watching will then also be encouraged to do well.
Speaker 4 (07:14):
And you have such a good heart.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
I want to move on to the nonprofit that you formed,
the Special Needs Network.
Speaker 4 (07:20):
Can you tell us a little bit about that.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
So I started Special Neies Network when my son ha said,
I have three kids. I have two daughters and a son,
and my son, Marty was diagnosed with autism when he
was two, and I was just overwhelmed. I now can
use the word depression. I fell into a state of
depression at the same time my mom was dying. She
(07:45):
was living across the country. I was a caregiver for her.
So it's just that moment in my life when everything
seemed to be crashing and I wasn't able to find
the kind of help that I wanted. And you know,
as a lawyer, like I like black white learners or
problem solutions, you know, and this wasn't that this was
(08:08):
a disorder that there were more questions than answers. A
lot of the information was very disjoined, very hard to
find a lot of disinformation, uh not a lot of
services that were available. So it was just a really
difficult time. And you know, I did this Ted talk
(08:31):
about this, and I felt.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
Like I needed to do something.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
I felt I was like, what would my god mother
or grandmother do what would they do in this instance?
And I knew they wouldn't like be in a bed
with the covers over, which is what I was doing that.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Sometimes it's like the men who have a lot on
her plate, we have to give ourselves the grade.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Yes, now do those women didn't, but now we're learning
that culture, right.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
So I just kind of thought about what they would do,
and it just kind of dawned on me that, Okay,
just do something to Reva. And the first thing that
I did was just hosted with another mom this big
event in South Los Angeles.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
So we just invited people. It's like, who else is
going through this?
Speaker 1 (09:14):
So the first thing was am I alone or other
mothers Black mothers like me having these same feelings of
isolation and depression and confusion and frustration, all these emotions.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
And literally a thousand people showed up this day.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
We're at a boys and girls club on Vermont in
South Los Angeles.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
We were there for like six hours and we invited
elected officials and school officials and it was just a
mic and the floor and people just could come up
and share their story with these elected officials and these
city leaders, school board.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
Leaders, because no one felt heard, no one felt like
the issue of autism in the black community in la
is you know, the black and brown community was being recognized.
The faces of autism were predominantly little white Jewish kids.
And that event and the success of it, and the
(10:13):
stories that people told, and the vulnerability, fathers coming up crying,
black men in tears talking about how hard it had
been to find services for their kids, and how some
kids were locked in the house because they didn't know
what to do it. The stories were just, I mean,
just gripping. And that was the start of the organization.
(10:37):
And I remember going to talk to a woman, an
older white woman who worked in the field, telling her
what we were planning to do, and she told.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
Me, she, why are you doing that? We already have
organizations like that.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
And she was being defensive because I said, we really
want to focus on black well, we already do that.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
We talked to the black community, blah blah blah. And
I got that meeting.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
I said, if I had any doubts that I was
going to do this, I am more determined than ever
because she just told me the biggest lie, the biggest gas.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
Lighting, and she's told me not to do it, and that.
Speaker 4 (11:13):
Was need we already have this, And I was like,
I know you don't have.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
It hasn't touched my life and the lives of the
other black women that I know. So that's in my
law firm with my legal assistant as my first volunteer employee.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
Out of her.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
Little cubicle, start Specialties network and now. And I didn't
know where it was going. I already had a full
time job. I was very three kids, kids, you know,
I was not looking to start another.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
But I am a serial entrepreneur, so I took it on.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
And now the organization we have three hundred employees, We
have an eight figure budget, and we have four sights
and we are.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
One of the biggest.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
Autism organization is in the state that focuses on black
and brown communities, underserved communities. We just opened a new
center across the street from the MLK Hospital that is
a state of the art, first of US kind center
for kids.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
And here we are right, Oh my god.
Speaker 4 (12:18):
So that is incredible.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
And you know, there's so many of our money movers
that are listening, and it ties full circle into what
you're saying. Sometimes you just have to start align with
what you love, your passions, find a problem that you
know other people have, and it's just it'll surprise you.
A thousand people turned out and now, I mean, this
is just an incredible success story.
Speaker 2 (12:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
And sometimes your pain you turn that into your power.
Speaker 2 (12:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:44):
And working and helping other kids really help me get
over my own sorrow and grief with my son. And
I tell you it is nothing more gratifying and helping
someone with their child parents, the love, the the I mean,
it's it's if.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
You got it. It gave me the tiniest little thing.
Speaker 1 (13:07):
But this was a community that was waiting for us,
and we showed up and you know, they responded, and
I worked really hard. It's really important to.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
Me growing up poor.
Speaker 1 (13:21):
And I tell everyone in my team this, we don't
do raggedy, we don't do junk. We want I want
people with all this community. I feel like they are
in Beverly Hills because I remember when you're poor and
you're living a ghetto. A lot of times do good
mean good White people would come into our neighborhood and
(13:42):
it just it was.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
Not good.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
And I just had vivid memories of that and said,
I never want anyone to feel like they're begging. I
don't want them to feel like they're less than and
I don't want them to feel like this is how
we do it in the hood, but if you go
over to the west side of town, this is how
they do And so I mean to this day and
my team will tell you, I'm anal about that, because
(14:06):
I know what it's like to have to go and
stand in a line and get some toys at Christmas,
or you know, go to the store when there was
food stamps. Now you know, get a credit card eb
D card, but you know, literally have to.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
It's it could be meaning, it could be demoralizing.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
And so we treat our families the way they deserve.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
They deserve to be treated.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
And I am so protective and we get calls and
I'm all over the nation. People wanted to come in,
and I do surveys and study and see how access
and I always tell my team, you know, these families
are not guinea pigs.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
This is not an experiment, and.
Speaker 1 (14:50):
We won't give you access to them unless we feel
like you are really.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
Committed to be healthy.
Speaker 1 (14:58):
Yes them and authentic take way and you're you're here,
You're gonna make a commitment to this community, and you
know that that has propelled us, and that has been
you know what has God knows from that little Cuba
go in my law firm to you know where we are.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
And sometimes it's scary for me because.
Speaker 1 (15:18):
This need is so great and the resources out there
to do it are so available. I was just thinking
the other day, like, I've been trying to plan a
transition plan out because oh, yeah, you know, because I'm,
let's call it a charismatic leader. And in the nonprofit world,
when charismatic leaders transition, most nonprofits, yeah, they just implode
(15:43):
because the founder, you know I work, called me at
two in the morning, call me a five And so
the paid you know, executive director is not going to
do that.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
And so one of the things.
Speaker 1 (15:56):
I had to do is figure out a way to
make the organization sustain stand on its own. You know,
if the next leader doesn't have you know, the cell
phone number to the mayor, how are they going to
raise money and be you know, keep the organization going.
So I've created, uh, you know, we have these contracts
now that don't require you to be a you know,
(16:17):
fundraiser or to be you know, a rain maker because
their government contracts, so we are sustainable. But you know,
every time I get to that point where I feel
like and I told my mom I had this goal,
this financial goal. I was about to ask this financial goal,
and I said, when we get to this level of revenue,
I'm going to leave. We there and above and now,
(16:40):
of course, you don't know. What my brain has told
me is, well maybe you should leave when you get to.
Speaker 4 (16:44):
This another, this next peak, well I deal with I
don't know.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
Because there's something beautiful in this. You know, it started
with just a little dream and a vision. Let's have
this meeting, and now you have this very successful nonprofit.
You have standalone buildings. If you could tell us as
we sort of close out, for those that want to
take a chance and build a dream in the nonprofit space,
talk to me about fundraising, because this is it's hard.
Speaker 2 (17:11):
It's so hard, freaking hard.
Speaker 3 (17:14):
It is so hard raising money, you know, asking people
for money.
Speaker 4 (17:18):
Do you have any tips?
Speaker 1 (17:19):
Yes, get out of your head, I tell myself, because
people can be rude.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Oh yeah, very very rude. And you're going to hear
know a lot, so you got to get used to hearing. No.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
I have to tell myself I'm not asking you to
pay my mortgage. I'm asking you to help some kids
that have autism. And when I go into that frame,
then I'm not fearful. I'm not afraid of your No,
you're not going to insult me. You're not going to
make me feel any kind of way about asking you
because people try to make you feel white.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Oh this is so okay.
Speaker 1 (17:54):
You can tell you I'm not an overly pushy person.
I am a confident person. So when I first started fundraising,
people would say I was really pushy. And you know, again,
they wouldn't say that if it was andrew In said
of Arriva. But Arriva was pushy. So and I started
saying to people, you know, I am pushy. I'm pushing
because those kids need this. And that's going to start saying,
(18:16):
I'm not asking you to pay for me. I should say,
that's Martin, Martin, I got a law firm over here.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
I gotta sew a say income.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
These kids over here, though, they need someone to be
pushy for them, and they haven't had someone standing up
for them. And if I am offending you by asking
you to support them, I'm sorry, but that's my job
and I'm going to keep pushing for these kids.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
So that's when I tell people who are raising money
in a nonprofit.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
Space, you've got to separate that it's not for you,
it's not about you. And so when you know that
you're asking for a worthy cause and you see the
fruits of what that labor.
Speaker 2 (18:56):
Then it makes it easier. Now it doesn't necessarily mean
that yes is are.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Going to come back, but it allows you to keep going.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
It will allow you to hear the no and not
get knocked down, because that can be really hard. You know,
a lot of people hate sales, right, they hate asking
for even a lot of my friends who are in politics,
they hate call time.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
We got to get on the phone and say, hey,
how you doing it? And by the way, you know,
I'm trying to raise you know, blah blah blah. So
they had to get comfortable.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
It was never really an issue for me because see,
I already was a business developer in my law firm, so.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
I was used to asking people for stuff. So I
have a problem asking people for things. But I did
have to get used to the rejection. There's a lot
of rejection.
Speaker 1 (19:39):
It's just a very competitive you know, I think a
lot of subpetitions.
Speaker 3 (19:45):
You know, where people put their disposable income, it has
to align with them.
Speaker 4 (19:49):
Everyone has a passion.
Speaker 3 (19:50):
So that's why I feel like for me in fundraising
for any type of nonprofit, I don't blame you.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
If this isn't for you.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
I actually want you to put your.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
Money where it feels good for yes, where it aligns,
because that's also how I feel like you get more yes.
Speaker 1 (20:03):
And when you tap into where people are passion, their passion, uh,
you can get them to give.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
And then the other advice I.
Speaker 1 (20:11):
Would give to someone, philanthropy is a great, big umbrella term.
There's a lot of money out here, and it may
be government contracts, which we have a ton of government
contracts now.
Speaker 2 (20:23):
It might be.
Speaker 1 (20:25):
Foundations do the research get money is sharance their corporations.
Speaker 2 (20:31):
There are high net worth individuals.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
I mean, so there's a lot of ways to raise money,
and you have to have a very diverse uh you know, strategy,
so you're not just focusing in on any one area,
but that you are looking across you know, this whole
big umbrella.
Speaker 2 (20:47):
Uh. And if you do that, you can raise money.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
Money is raisable, so inspiring.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
You've done so much, and I feel like we've barely
scratched the needle. Or I have another question for you,
and I be remiss if we didn't talk about this,
because you've been very high profile in talking about some
reparations cases for black and brown families that had their
homes demolished by the city of Palm Springs in the
nineteen sixties.
Speaker 4 (21:14):
Tell us more about this.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
Yeah, this is really a civil rights warriors dream. I
am really honored to be representing over one thousand residents thousand,
one thousand. Yes, these are predominantly African, American and Latino families.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
In the nineteen.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Forties and fifties, black families trying to escape Jim Crowism
in the South moved to California.
Speaker 2 (21:39):
Many of them landed in Palm Springs.
Speaker 1 (21:41):
And at the same time, Palm Springs, which is this desert,
you know, exotic.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
You know, vacation location, was building itself up.
Speaker 1 (21:51):
It was building its golf courses, its tennis courses, restaurants,
you know, becoming this getaway for the rich and famous.
Yea Hollywood Times from La you know, Bam, Yes, geene Archery.
All of them had vacation homes in Palm Springs. So
you have these black families moving in looking for opportunities.
You have a city that's looking for laborers and so
(22:12):
perfect marriage, and you know, these black folks and minne
Latinos start building working in Palm Springs to build the
foundation of this city. Unfortunately, a lot of the racially
restrictive policies and discriminatory policies that were part of the
South also existed in California. So if you were black
(22:32):
and you moved into Palm Springs forties fifties, you couldn't
live in these neighborhoods where were traditional traditional redlining, traditional
housing discrimination policies. And there was one section of land
known as Section fourteen that was owned by the Aquacliente
tribe and they owned a lot of Palm Springs at
(22:52):
the time, they allowed the families by folks moving into
Palm Springs to live on this reservation.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
There was still a lot of.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
Indigenous people living there as well, and they didn't own
the land, but they were allowed to build their own
homes and they created this.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Very vibrant community.
Speaker 1 (23:08):
First Black Baptist church in Palm Springs built on Section fourteen.
Other businesses, boarding homes, restaurants, built six hundred and forty
six acres of land right in the heart of downtown
Palm Springs. And so, you know, these families try to
make it better for the next generation going about living,
(23:29):
the women working as domestics, as nannies and cooks, and
the men are chauffeurs. The men are also laborers working
in construction and gardening.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
But the city had an issue. As the commercial.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
Value of this land that was in the heart of
downtown started to rise, the city realized that for it
to have the image that they wanted to project to
the Snowbirds of being this homo genious, white, wealthy vacation spot,
they needed to get rid of these black and brown
people that were in the heart of their downtown. So
(24:07):
rather than use the legal process, they literally went door
to door and in some cases didn't even do that,
but gave verbal notice that the families had to move.
And some families literally went from street to street to street.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
Owners like, where these families did they own?
Speaker 2 (24:24):
They owned their homes.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
And they some of them had leases on property that
was owned by others that they didn't own the land.
But it was very typical in this period in Palm Springs.
For you to build a house on one location and
then move that house to a plot of land that
you were able to buy. And the reason they didn't
own a couple of reasons. One had to do with
financing and banking, because you couldn't get a loan if
(24:47):
you were black, and you were making substandard wages because
you were black. So the city decided to get rid
of them. And the way they did it was they
literally would burn the houses down.
Speaker 2 (25:01):
And then bring in a bulldozer and bulldozer and.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
Oftentimes the belongings of the people were in the homes
and people literally would come home and see smoke.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
I mean, this is reminiscent of what happened in Tulsa,
Oklahoma with Greenwood.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
This very similar. Now, fortunately no one was murdered.
Speaker 1 (25:22):
Lots of people murdered in Tulsa, and this was an
atrocity that just went on, I mean, and that's they
literally burned this community out.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
And it was the City of Palm Springs fire department.
Speaker 1 (25:32):
So you know, if you have a fire on your street,
you call the city fire department. In this case, it
was the city fire department that was setting the houses
on fire.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
And it went on for a long period of time.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Until they literally dispossessed this entire community. And fast forward
sixty years from that period, we are filing an action.
I'm the lead attorney in a lossuit against the city,
trying to force this city to acknowledge the harm, the
(26:06):
racial trauma, the racial targeting, and nobody.
Speaker 4 (26:09):
Has brought this to trial. Is that the right word?
Before this? I mean, this is a huge atrocity.
Speaker 1 (26:16):
But think about how unempowered black people were in the citties,
how fearful they were, how respectful and reverent they were
in terms of city government, and how they were led
to believe that the city had the right to do it.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
So that was the lie and the narrative that was,
you know.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Disseminated and perpetuated for six days, is that the city
had a right to do this because this was an
eye sore. And after George Floyd's murder, you know, people
started to have a different consciousness about removal statutes, about
you know things, you know, atrocities that happened, and it
(27:00):
really empowered this community and we are now involved in
a litigation against the city. We had a very prominent economist,
doctor Julianne Malveo do an assessment. The city never even
assessed what the value of this loss is. She puts
this loss at two billion dollars.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
In sixty five, the Attorney General for the state of
California came into Palm Springs did an investigation.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
A scathing report.
Speaker 1 (27:27):
The Attorney General's office wrote called this a city engineered holocaust.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
Yes. In writing.
Speaker 1 (27:36):
Twenty twenty one, the city's own Human Rights Commission did
an evaluation of what happened. Found pretty similarly to what
the Attorney general found, that this community was targeted.
Speaker 4 (27:48):
So what is your goal? What is the outcoming best
case scenario?
Speaker 2 (27:51):
Best case?
Speaker 1 (27:53):
The city acknowledges in a really authentic way what it did.
It has issued an apology, but they.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
Need to do it again in a more authentic way.
The survive you.
Speaker 3 (28:03):
Mean putting as we talked about reparations and putting money
behind this to that, Yes.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
You don't run into my car, and so I'm sorry,
you're sorry, but here's my hires. Right, I'm sorry, but
here's how you can get your car fixed.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
And they need to do that part.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
So what this looks like for us is that kind
of acknowledgment. They're about three hundred and fifty of that
thousand that are survivors that were there at the time,
cash payments to them, returning land to families because families
lost generational wealth. We talk about that, you know, the
(28:43):
ten to one wealth gap in this country between blacks
and whites is because of the loss opportunities that African
Americans have had in terms of home ownership, because we
know that's the way primarily everyday people build wealth, and
so these families were deny that opportunity store that.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
We want to have these families acknowledge.
Speaker 1 (29:05):
If you drive into Palm Springs today, there's not a plaque,
there's not a monument, there's not a sign.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
There is no indication. And in fact, if you talk
to some of your friends.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
In La No, I would tell you I didn't know
black people lived in Palm Springs.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
No. And so we want to change that.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
We want them to create a racial and cultural healing center.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
We want healing.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
For this community because not only the physical loss, the
economic loss, the traumatic intergenerational trauma is real. We've had
experts come in as psychologists to talk about intergenerational trauma,
how it manifests itself in terms of mental health issues,
in terms of physical issues. So we want to heal
(29:48):
this community this.
Speaker 3 (29:50):
I mean, this is the first time hearing about this,
and I'm sure for many of us they hadn't heard.
Speaker 4 (29:54):
Where can people find more information? Where can they can
support you on this?
Speaker 1 (29:57):
Yes, they can find an information on my law firm's website.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
My law firm's website is Martin Martin dot com.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
There's lots of information there about the lawsuit. Get to
know their links to interviews that the families have done.
Speaker 2 (30:15):
You get to know these families. You can get involved.
Speaker 1 (30:17):
We're launching a public awareness campaign and make sure that
tourists going into Palm Springs are aware of this history
and asking people to support and asking people to sign
a petition to say to the city of Palm Springs,
you need to do the right thing. You need to
step up, and you need to you know, make these
(30:39):
families home. And you know, it's a community that relies
seventy five percent of its income and revenue is tourist dollars.
So people coming in from all over the country, and
I think a lot of people would.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Want to know this history before they spend thousands and
thousands of dollars in this community.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
So public awareness campaign will be on our website and
I just ask people to be conscious of this because
this is a moment in time where black people, I think,
you know, feel the power.
Speaker 2 (31:11):
There's so many other and when they.
Speaker 3 (31:13):
Look back at feel that at the events that came
out of post George Floyd era, like people are starting
to understand that we do have a power and there
was you know, out of such a tragedy.
Speaker 4 (31:25):
There is this momentum that we're gaining.
Speaker 3 (31:27):
But I want to make sure that we get the
opportunities so that you can share where our moneymover's audience
can find you on social where they can find your
different initiatives, also your books, So please let us know
where they can follow you.
Speaker 1 (31:39):
They can follow me on all things social Atareva Martin
and find my website Atreva Martin dot com. They can
find special Needs Network, the nonprofit at snl s in
LA dot org and Specialties Network also has social pages
across all social media platform.
Speaker 3 (31:57):
Thank you so much for your advocacy, Thank you for
the work that you're doing in the communities that you're serving.
We will make sure that we check out your book Awakenings, Ladies,
Leadership and the Lies they've told us, let's come on,
let's crack down the patriarchy.
Speaker 2 (32:11):
Thank you so much for your time today.
Speaker 4 (32:12):
You are truly an inspiration.
Speaker 3 (32:14):
Thank you thanks for listening to today's episode. If we
helped you make your money move, please share it with
your community, subscribe and leave us a review on iHeartRadio
and Apple podcasts. Follow us on social media at Greenwood
and visit us at Gogreenwood dot com for more financial
tips and remember, money movers. If this were easy, everyone
(32:34):
would do it. So take the lessons you've learned from
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subscribe
And if I am offending you by asking you to
support them, I'm sorry, but that's my job and I'm
going to.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Keep pushing for these kids.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
So that's what I tell people who are raising money
in a nonprofit space. You've got to separate that it's
not for you, it's not about you. And so when
you know that you're asking for a worthy cause and
you see the fruits of what that labor, then it
makes it easier. Now, it doesn't necessarily mean that yes
are going.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
To come buster, but but yon's you to keep going.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
It will allow you to hear the know and not
get knocked down, because that can be really hard.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
You're listening to Money Moos powered by Greenwood, a finance
podcast dedicated to dropping all the knowledge and gems from
the world's leading celebrities, entrepreneurs and experts, and tech business
and more. I'm your host, angel investor, technology enthusiasts, and
media personality Tanya Sam. Each week, we talk with guests
who are making significant strides in their fields and learn
(00:56):
how they are making their money mood. If you're someone
who's looking to make your money move, you're in the
right place. So open up your notes app and lock
us in because this podcast will give you the keys
to the kingdom of financial stability, wealth, and abundance you
so rightly deserve. Before we start the episode, I'd like
to remind you to check us out at gogreenwood dot
com and follow us on social media at Greenwood and
(01:19):
me on all Things social at It's Tanya. Time to
stay locked in to new episode. Hey Money Movers, Welcome back. Today,
we continue our conversation with California super lawyer and best
selling author Areva Martin. Feel like having the conversations because
I see all these things.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
It will pop up on social media.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
It's everywhere, and I'm always looking for like how do
we move past it? And I feel like it's having
these open, honest conversations. You know, sometimes there's safer spaces
to have them, sometimes there aren't, so that you can
help sort of like explore what people actually.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
Think, unpack them.
Speaker 4 (01:55):
But what do you think the solutions are that will
help us to like move this needle.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
I think it's it's self reflection because again, people think
that you know, these attitudes belong to someone else, and
it's a hard thing to say to yourself that I
harbor biases, right, that that I do treat people, either
(02:21):
in my own family or friends circle differently colorism.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
You know that conversation in our own family, yes, three kids.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
One of my daughters is super fair skinned, my other
daughter is brown skinning. One of her cousins ask her
what is it like to be in the family and
be the darkest one?
Speaker 2 (02:41):
Wor bless her heart? Literally, but you know he's the kids.
Speaker 1 (02:47):
I told him that, And so how do you dispel
something You can't fix what you don't acknowledge. And I
think the solution is acknowledging it having these.
Speaker 2 (03:00):
Really uncomfortable conversations. And you know, I think when I
know the.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Discussions I've had about the book, everybody's not going to
agree with you.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
And people are going to always eat the whole role
the first time.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
But I always feel like, even if people argue with
you on the surface disagree, there's probably some of that
there's something in there and probably that next conversation they're
going to repeat something you totally.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
That's great, And I just I love conversation. I love dialog.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
I love diversity of thought in different viewpoints. Because I
learned something I think it's exactly that. It's like spreading
those dandelions to the world. Absolutely, Okay, I want to
make sure because I'm such a bibliophile. I love books.
We talked about the lies. Let's touch a little bit
on leadership, because I think you are a leader. You're
(03:50):
a trailblazer. You've worked in the civil rights movement and
in that area of laws, so there's so much that
you've done. Talk to us a little bit about how,
as as a black woman, how you're.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Really viewing how we grow more leaders.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Yeah, it's a we have a crisis right of leadership,
and I think it's everyone's responsibility. Again, we have to
dispel the lie that men are natural one leaders and
women are not. We have to get women out of
the frame of thinking that they should always be subservient
and in the background and let the man go forward.
(04:29):
And we I think we just have to propel and
push women forward. We have to make opportunities and explain
and educate and raise awareness about what leadership is. Leadership
comes in so many forms. Everybody is not going to
run for president of the United States. Somebody's not going
to be Kamala Harris's not going to be the vice president.
We need someone to do that, but there are ways
(04:50):
that people can lead that look differently based on your talents,
your skills, you know, your own desires, what you want
in your own life. I think we have to give
people a sense that whatever it is they can do
where they are, you know that that also has value,
That has value, and it's important and it's helping. You know,
(05:12):
if all of us are doing a little part, that's
then one giant thing happening, you know, simultaneously. And I
think too often a lot of times people think if
I can't do the really big thing, then I do nothing.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
And you know, I think that's funny because we all
suffer from that.
Speaker 3 (05:28):
Okay, you know, the end goal has to be so big,
but even when you talk about doing work of service
in our communities, you're leading whatever it is, a girl
guide troop or coaching something, those small things, you know,
and people always ask me, how do I get involved
in tech? Or how do I do like you do
those small little touch points, and you realize I can
(05:49):
do so much more, Yes, And I think it's just
it's smaller than people thinking.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Jumping in, just getting started.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
And you know, if you're organizing, you know, a group
in your community, to do a clean up or to
go serve food, you know, for the homeless, or you know,
to do some kind of community service project.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
That's leadership.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
That's leader that is that's leadership, or even you know,
running for city council.
Speaker 5 (06:12):
Those are such huge roles that our politics are local,
so you don't have to be And I have a friend,
this is a guy friend h he has longed to
be in politics and he's always wanted to be a senator.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Great, you know, wonderful aspiration. And I've always.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
Tried to say, Okay, that's great, but there's so many
other things that you can do. And so you don't
let you know, your your desire for the perfect be
the enemy of the goods, you know.
Speaker 2 (06:43):
If you just have to help people understand.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
And I think it's important for us to praise, acknowledge,
and support when people do those things. So everybody doesn't
end up on some Grammys or oscar.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
It's not going to get that.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
But we can make people feel special and we can
recognize their work, and we know when we do that
that incentivizes them to do more, and then others who
are watching will then also be encouraged to do well.
Speaker 4 (07:14):
And you have such a good heart.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
I want to move on to the nonprofit that you formed,
the Special Needs Network.
Speaker 4 (07:20):
Can you tell us a little bit about that.
Speaker 1 (07:22):
So I started Special Neies Network when my son ha said,
I have three kids. I have two daughters and a son,
and my son, Marty was diagnosed with autism when he
was two, and I was just overwhelmed. I now can
use the word depression. I fell into a state of
depression at the same time my mom was dying. She
(07:45):
was living across the country. I was a caregiver for her.
So it's just that moment in my life when everything
seemed to be crashing and I wasn't able to find
the kind of help that I wanted. And you know,
as a lawyer, like I like black white learners or
problem solutions, you know, and this wasn't that this was
(08:08):
a disorder that there were more questions than answers. A
lot of the information was very disjoined, very hard to
find a lot of disinformation, uh not a lot of
services that were available. So it was just a really
difficult time. And you know, I did this Ted talk
(08:31):
about this, and I felt.
Speaker 2 (08:34):
Like I needed to do something.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
I felt I was like, what would my god mother
or grandmother do what would they do in this instance?
And I knew they wouldn't like be in a bed
with the covers over, which is what I was doing that.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Sometimes it's like the men who have a lot on
her plate, we have to give ourselves the grade.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Yes, now do those women didn't, but now we're learning
that culture, right.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
So I just kind of thought about what they would do,
and it just kind of dawned on me that, Okay,
just do something to Reva. And the first thing that
I did was just hosted with another mom this big
event in South Los Angeles.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
So we just invited people. It's like, who else is
going through this?
Speaker 1 (09:14):
So the first thing was am I alone or other
mothers Black mothers like me having these same feelings of
isolation and depression and confusion and frustration, all these emotions.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
And literally a thousand people showed up this day.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
We're at a boys and girls club on Vermont in
South Los Angeles.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
We were there for like six hours and we invited
elected officials and school officials and it was just a
mic and the floor and people just could come up
and share their story with these elected officials and these
city leaders, school board.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
Leaders, because no one felt heard, no one felt like
the issue of autism in the black community in la
is you know, the black and brown community was being recognized.
The faces of autism were predominantly little white Jewish kids.
And that event and the success of it, and the
(10:13):
stories that people told, and the vulnerability, fathers coming up crying,
black men in tears talking about how hard it had
been to find services for their kids, and how some
kids were locked in the house because they didn't know
what to do it. The stories were just, I mean,
just gripping. And that was the start of the organization.
(10:37):
And I remember going to talk to a woman, an
older white woman who worked in the field, telling her
what we were planning to do, and she told.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
Me, she, why are you doing that? We already have
organizations like that.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
And she was being defensive because I said, we really
want to focus on black well, we already do that.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
We talked to the black community, blah blah blah. And
I got that meeting.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
I said, if I had any doubts that I was
going to do this, I am more determined than ever
because she just told me the biggest lie, the biggest gas.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
Lighting, and she's told me not to do it, and that.
Speaker 4 (11:13):
Was need we already have this, And I was like,
I know you don't have.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
It hasn't touched my life and the lives of the
other black women that I know. So that's in my
law firm with my legal assistant as my first volunteer employee.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
Out of her.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
Little cubicle, start Specialties network and now. And I didn't
know where it was going. I already had a full
time job. I was very three kids, kids, you know,
I was not looking to start another.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
But I am a serial entrepreneur, so I took it on.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
And now the organization we have three hundred employees, We
have an eight figure budget, and we have four sights
and we are.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
One of the biggest.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
Autism organization is in the state that focuses on black
and brown communities, underserved communities. We just opened a new
center across the street from the MLK Hospital that is
a state of the art, first of US kind center
for kids.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
And here we are right, Oh my god.
Speaker 4 (12:18):
So that is incredible.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
And you know, there's so many of our money movers
that are listening, and it ties full circle into what
you're saying. Sometimes you just have to start align with
what you love, your passions, find a problem that you
know other people have, and it's just it'll surprise you.
A thousand people turned out and now, I mean, this
is just an incredible success story.
Speaker 2 (12:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
And sometimes your pain you turn that into your power.
Speaker 2 (12:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:44):
And working and helping other kids really help me get
over my own sorrow and grief with my son. And
I tell you it is nothing more gratifying and helping
someone with their child parents, the love, the the I mean,
it's it's if.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
You got it. It gave me the tiniest little thing.
Speaker 1 (13:07):
But this was a community that was waiting for us,
and we showed up and you know, they responded, and
I worked really hard. It's really important to.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
Me growing up poor.
Speaker 1 (13:21):
And I tell everyone in my team this, we don't
do raggedy, we don't do junk. We want I want
people with all this community. I feel like they are
in Beverly Hills because I remember when you're poor and
you're living a ghetto. A lot of times do good
mean good White people would come into our neighborhood and
(13:42):
it just it was.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
Not good.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
And I just had vivid memories of that and said,
I never want anyone to feel like they're begging. I
don't want them to feel like they're less than and
I don't want them to feel like this is how
we do it in the hood, but if you go
over to the west side of town, this is how
they do And so I mean to this day and
my team will tell you, I'm anal about that, because
(14:06):
I know what it's like to have to go and
stand in a line and get some toys at Christmas,
or you know, go to the store when there was
food stamps. Now you know, get a credit card eb
D card, but you know, literally have to.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
It's it could be meaning, it could be demoralizing.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
And so we treat our families the way they deserve.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
They deserve to be treated.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
And I am so protective and we get calls and
I'm all over the nation. People wanted to come in,
and I do surveys and study and see how access
and I always tell my team, you know, these families
are not guinea pigs.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
This is not an experiment, and.
Speaker 1 (14:50):
We won't give you access to them unless we feel
like you are really.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
Committed to be healthy.
Speaker 1 (14:58):
Yes them and authentic take way and you're you're here,
You're gonna make a commitment to this community, and you
know that that has propelled us, and that has been
you know what has God knows from that little Cuba
go in my law firm to you know where we are.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
And sometimes it's scary for me because.
Speaker 1 (15:18):
This need is so great and the resources out there
to do it are so available. I was just thinking
the other day, like, I've been trying to plan a
transition plan out because oh, yeah, you know, because I'm,
let's call it a charismatic leader. And in the nonprofit world,
when charismatic leaders transition, most nonprofits, yeah, they just implode
(15:43):
because the founder, you know I work, called me at
two in the morning, call me a five And so
the paid you know, executive director is not going to
do that.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
And so one of the things.
Speaker 1 (15:56):
I had to do is figure out a way to
make the organization sustain stand on its own. You know,
if the next leader doesn't have you know, the cell
phone number to the mayor, how are they going to
raise money and be you know, keep the organization going.
So I've created, uh, you know, we have these contracts
now that don't require you to be a you know,
(16:17):
fundraiser or to be you know, a rain maker because
their government contracts, so we are sustainable. But you know,
every time I get to that point where I feel
like and I told my mom I had this goal,
this financial goal. I was about to ask this financial goal,
and I said, when we get to this level of revenue,
I'm going to leave. We there and above and now,
(16:40):
of course, you don't know. What my brain has told
me is, well maybe you should leave when you get to.
Speaker 4 (16:44):
This another, this next peak, well I deal with I
don't know.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
Because there's something beautiful in this. You know, it started
with just a little dream and a vision. Let's have
this meeting, and now you have this very successful nonprofit.
You have standalone buildings. If you could tell us as
we sort of close out, for those that want to
take a chance and build a dream in the nonprofit space,
talk to me about fundraising, because this is it's hard.
Speaker 2 (17:11):
It's so hard, freaking hard.
Speaker 3 (17:14):
It is so hard raising money, you know, asking people
for money.
Speaker 4 (17:18):
Do you have any tips?
Speaker 1 (17:19):
Yes, get out of your head, I tell myself, because
people can be rude.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Oh yeah, very very rude. And you're going to hear
know a lot, so you got to get used to hearing. No.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
I have to tell myself I'm not asking you to
pay my mortgage. I'm asking you to help some kids
that have autism. And when I go into that frame,
then I'm not fearful. I'm not afraid of your No,
you're not going to insult me. You're not going to
make me feel any kind of way about asking you
because people try to make you feel white.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Oh this is so okay.
Speaker 1 (17:54):
You can tell you I'm not an overly pushy person.
I am a confident person. So when I first started fundraising,
people would say I was really pushy. And you know, again,
they wouldn't say that if it was andrew In said
of Arriva. But Arriva was pushy. So and I started
saying to people, you know, I am pushy. I'm pushing
because those kids need this. And that's going to start saying,
(18:16):
I'm not asking you to pay for me. I should say,
that's Martin, Martin, I got a law firm over here.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
I gotta sew a say income.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
These kids over here, though, they need someone to be
pushy for them, and they haven't had someone standing up
for them. And if I am offending you by asking
you to support them, I'm sorry, but that's my job
and I'm going to keep pushing for these kids.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
So that's when I tell people who are raising money
in a nonprofit.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
Space, you've got to separate that it's not for you,
it's not about you. And so when you know that
you're asking for a worthy cause and you see the
fruits of what that labor.
Speaker 2 (18:56):
Then it makes it easier. Now it doesn't necessarily mean
that yes is are.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Going to come back, but it allows you to keep going.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
It will allow you to hear the no and not
get knocked down, because that can be really hard. You know,
a lot of people hate sales, right, they hate asking
for even a lot of my friends who are in politics,
they hate call time.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
We got to get on the phone and say, hey,
how you doing it? And by the way, you know,
I'm trying to raise you know, blah blah blah. So
they had to get comfortable.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
It was never really an issue for me because see,
I already was a business developer in my law firm, so.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
I was used to asking people for stuff. So I
have a problem asking people for things. But I did
have to get used to the rejection. There's a lot
of rejection.
Speaker 1 (19:39):
It's just a very competitive you know, I think a
lot of subpetitions.
Speaker 3 (19:45):
You know, where people put their disposable income, it has
to align with them.
Speaker 4 (19:49):
Everyone has a passion.
Speaker 3 (19:50):
So that's why I feel like for me in fundraising
for any type of nonprofit, I don't blame you.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
If this isn't for you.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
I actually want you to put your.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
Money where it feels good for yes, where it aligns,
because that's also how I feel like you get more yes.
Speaker 1 (20:03):
And when you tap into where people are passion, their passion, uh,
you can get them to give.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
And then the other advice I.
Speaker 1 (20:11):
Would give to someone, philanthropy is a great, big umbrella term.
There's a lot of money out here, and it may
be government contracts, which we have a ton of government
contracts now.
Speaker 2 (20:23):
It might be.
Speaker 1 (20:25):
Foundations do the research get money is sharance their corporations.
Speaker 2 (20:31):
There are high net worth individuals.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
I mean, so there's a lot of ways to raise money,
and you have to have a very diverse uh you know, strategy,
so you're not just focusing in on any one area,
but that you are looking across you know, this whole
big umbrella.
Speaker 2 (20:47):
Uh. And if you do that, you can raise money.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
Money is raisable, so inspiring.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
You've done so much, and I feel like we've barely
scratched the needle. Or I have another question for you,
and I be remiss if we didn't talk about this,
because you've been very high profile in talking about some
reparations cases for black and brown families that had their
homes demolished by the city of Palm Springs in the
nineteen sixties.
Speaker 4 (21:14):
Tell us more about this.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
Yeah, this is really a civil rights warriors dream. I
am really honored to be representing over one thousand residents thousand,
one thousand. Yes, these are predominantly African, American and Latino families.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
In the nineteen.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Forties and fifties, black families trying to escape Jim Crowism
in the South moved to California.
Speaker 2 (21:39):
Many of them landed in Palm Springs.
Speaker 1 (21:41):
And at the same time, Palm Springs, which is this desert,
you know, exotic.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
You know, vacation location, was building itself up.
Speaker 1 (21:51):
It was building its golf courses, its tennis courses, restaurants,
you know, becoming this getaway for the rich and famous.
Yea Hollywood Times from La you know, Bam, Yes, geene Archery.
All of them had vacation homes in Palm Springs. So
you have these black families moving in looking for opportunities.
You have a city that's looking for laborers and so
(22:12):
perfect marriage, and you know, these black folks and minne
Latinos start building working in Palm Springs to build the
foundation of this city. Unfortunately, a lot of the racially
restrictive policies and discriminatory policies that were part of the
South also existed in California. So if you were black
(22:32):
and you moved into Palm Springs forties fifties, you couldn't
live in these neighborhoods where were traditional traditional redlining, traditional
housing discrimination policies. And there was one section of land
known as Section fourteen that was owned by the Aquacliente
tribe and they owned a lot of Palm Springs at
(22:52):
the time, they allowed the families by folks moving into
Palm Springs to live on this reservation.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
There was still a lot of.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
Indigenous people living there as well, and they didn't own
the land, but they were allowed to build their own
homes and they created this.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Very vibrant community.
Speaker 1 (23:08):
First Black Baptist church in Palm Springs built on Section fourteen.
Other businesses, boarding homes, restaurants, built six hundred and forty
six acres of land right in the heart of downtown
Palm Springs. And so, you know, these families try to
make it better for the next generation going about living,
(23:29):
the women working as domestics, as nannies and cooks, and
the men are chauffeurs. The men are also laborers working
in construction and gardening.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
But the city had an issue. As the commercial.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
Value of this land that was in the heart of
downtown started to rise, the city realized that for it
to have the image that they wanted to project to
the Snowbirds of being this homo genious, white, wealthy vacation spot,
they needed to get rid of these black and brown
people that were in the heart of their downtown. So
(24:07):
rather than use the legal process, they literally went door
to door and in some cases didn't even do that,
but gave verbal notice that the families had to move.
And some families literally went from street to street to street.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
Owners like, where these families did they own?
Speaker 2 (24:24):
They owned their homes.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
And they some of them had leases on property that
was owned by others that they didn't own the land.
But it was very typical in this period in Palm Springs.
For you to build a house on one location and
then move that house to a plot of land that
you were able to buy. And the reason they didn't
own a couple of reasons. One had to do with
financing and banking, because you couldn't get a loan if
(24:47):
you were black, and you were making substandard wages because
you were black. So the city decided to get rid
of them. And the way they did it was they
literally would burn the houses down.
Speaker 2 (25:01):
And then bring in a bulldozer and bulldozer and.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
Oftentimes the belongings of the people were in the homes
and people literally would come home and see smoke.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
I mean, this is reminiscent of what happened in Tulsa,
Oklahoma with Greenwood.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
This very similar. Now, fortunately no one was murdered.
Speaker 1 (25:22):
Lots of people murdered in Tulsa, and this was an
atrocity that just went on, I mean, and that's they
literally burned this community out.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
And it was the City of Palm Springs fire department.
Speaker 1 (25:32):
So you know, if you have a fire on your street,
you call the city fire department. In this case, it
was the city fire department that was setting the houses
on fire.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
And it went on for a long period of time.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Until they literally dispossessed this entire community. And fast forward
sixty years from that period, we are filing an action.
I'm the lead attorney in a lossuit against the city,
trying to force this city to acknowledge the harm, the
(26:06):
racial trauma, the racial targeting, and nobody.
Speaker 4 (26:09):
Has brought this to trial. Is that the right word?
Before this? I mean, this is a huge atrocity.
Speaker 1 (26:16):
But think about how unempowered black people were in the citties,
how fearful they were, how respectful and reverent they were
in terms of city government, and how they were led
to believe that the city had the right to do it.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
So that was the lie and the narrative that was,
you know.
Speaker 1 (26:39):
Disseminated and perpetuated for six days, is that the city
had a right to do this because this was an
eye sore. And after George Floyd's murder, you know, people
started to have a different consciousness about removal statutes, about
you know things, you know, atrocities that happened, and it
(27:00):
really empowered this community and we are now involved in
a litigation against the city. We had a very prominent economist,
doctor Julianne Malveo do an assessment. The city never even
assessed what the value of this loss is. She puts
this loss at two billion dollars.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
In sixty five, the Attorney General for the state of
California came into Palm Springs did an investigation.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
A scathing report.
Speaker 1 (27:27):
The Attorney General's office wrote called this a city engineered holocaust.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
Yes. In writing.
Speaker 1 (27:36):
Twenty twenty one, the city's own Human Rights Commission did
an evaluation of what happened. Found pretty similarly to what
the Attorney general found, that this community was targeted.
Speaker 4 (27:48):
So what is your goal? What is the outcoming best
case scenario?
Speaker 2 (27:51):
Best case?
Speaker 1 (27:53):
The city acknowledges in a really authentic way what it did.
It has issued an apology, but they.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
Need to do it again in a more authentic way.
The survive you.
Speaker 3 (28:03):
Mean putting as we talked about reparations and putting money
behind this to that, Yes.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
You don't run into my car, and so I'm sorry,
you're sorry, but here's my hires. Right, I'm sorry, but
here's how you can get your car fixed.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
And they need to do that part.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
So what this looks like for us is that kind
of acknowledgment. They're about three hundred and fifty of that
thousand that are survivors that were there at the time,
cash payments to them, returning land to families because families
lost generational wealth. We talk about that, you know, the
(28:43):
ten to one wealth gap in this country between blacks
and whites is because of the loss opportunities that African
Americans have had in terms of home ownership, because we
know that's the way primarily everyday people build wealth, and
so these families were deny that opportunity store that.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
We want to have these families acknowledge.
Speaker 1 (29:05):
If you drive into Palm Springs today, there's not a plaque,
there's not a monument, there's not a sign.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
There is no indication. And in fact, if you talk
to some of your friends.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
In La No, I would tell you I didn't know
black people lived in Palm Springs.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
No. And so we want to change that.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
We want them to create a racial and cultural healing center.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
We want healing.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
For this community because not only the physical loss, the
economic loss, the traumatic intergenerational trauma is real. We've had
experts come in as psychologists to talk about intergenerational trauma,
how it manifests itself in terms of mental health issues,
in terms of physical issues. So we want to heal
(29:48):
this community this.
Speaker 3 (29:50):
I mean, this is the first time hearing about this,
and I'm sure for many of us they hadn't heard.
Speaker 4 (29:54):
Where can people find more information? Where can they can
support you on this?
Speaker 1 (29:57):
Yes, they can find an information on my law firm's website.
Speaker 2 (30:02):
My law firm's website is Martin Martin dot com.
Speaker 1 (30:06):
There's lots of information there about the lawsuit. Get to
know their links to interviews that the families have done.
Speaker 2 (30:15):
You get to know these families. You can get involved.
Speaker 1 (30:17):
We're launching a public awareness campaign and make sure that
tourists going into Palm Springs are aware of this history
and asking people to support and asking people to sign
a petition to say to the city of Palm Springs,
you need to do the right thing. You need to
step up, and you need to you know, make these
(30:39):
families home. And you know, it's a community that relies
seventy five percent of its income and revenue is tourist dollars.
So people coming in from all over the country, and
I think a lot of people would.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
Want to know this history before they spend thousands and
thousands of dollars in this community.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
So public awareness campaign will be on our website and
I just ask people to be conscious of this because
this is a moment in time where black people, I think,
you know, feel the power.
Speaker 2 (31:11):
There's so many other and when they.
Speaker 3 (31:13):
Look back at feel that at the events that came
out of post George Floyd era, like people are starting
to understand that we do have a power and there
was you know, out of such a tragedy.
Speaker 4 (31:25):
There is this momentum that we're gaining.
Speaker 3 (31:27):
But I want to make sure that we get the
opportunities so that you can share where our moneymover's audience
can find you on social where they can find your
different initiatives, also your books, So please let us know
where they can follow you.
Speaker 1 (31:39):
They can follow me on all things social Atareva Martin
and find my website Atreva Martin dot com. They can
find special Needs Network, the nonprofit at snl s in
LA dot org and Specialties Network also has social pages
across all social media platform.
Speaker 3 (31:57):
Thank you so much for your advocacy, Thank you for
the work that you're doing in the communities that you're serving.
We will make sure that we check out your book Awakenings, Ladies,
Leadership and the Lies they've told us, let's come on,
let's crack down the patriarchy.
Speaker 2 (32:11):
Thank you so much for your time today.
Speaker 4 (32:12):
You are truly an inspiration.
Speaker 3 (32:14):
Thank you thanks for listening to today's episode. If we
helped you make your money move, please share it with
your community, subscribe and leave us a review on iHeartRadio
and Apple podcasts. Follow us on social media at Greenwood
and visit us at Gogreenwood dot com for more financial
tips and remember, money movers. If this were easy, everyone
(32:34):
would do it. So take the lessons you've learned from
this episode and apply it to your life. Money Moves
is an iHeartRadio podcast powered by Greenwood Executive produced by
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