Community Connection - May 12 2026 - Tina Cosby with Open Lines and later IMPD Special Operations Commander Charles DeBlaso joins the show - Community Connection With Tina Cosby

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Anyway, IPS has announced a seventeen million dollar central office reduction.
The reason they say is to ensure long term fiscal stability.
Fiscal anytime you hear that word in a sentence, they're
talking money. Okay, there was a Well, let me read

(00:21):
the press release first. Following a previous announcement of seven
million dollars in school level budget reductions, today the Indianapolis
Public Schools IPS Superintendent doctor Elisia Johnson detailed a second
phase of the district's proactive financial strategy, seventeen million in
additional reductions targeting central office operations and administrative expenditures to

(00:47):
address funding decreases and enrollment ships. Funding decreases and enrollment ships.
And we were just talking about funding decreases, having to
to be more creative with the money that you have,
cutting out certain things, putting other things in place. And

(01:08):
it's happening all across the board, folks, it just is.
And I hate to see it happen, especially in the
educational realm, because this is this is what these are,
our kids, this is they are the future. And to
see them get just you know, funding, to them becoming

(01:29):
shorter and shorter, they already can't eat in some places
because those fund those funds have been you know, cut short.
So now I don't know, are they going to pack
fifty or sixty to a classroom and have one teacher
to I don't know, but to this set administrative which
you know, I guess administrative can be pretty top heavy
at times, you know, I don't know, but yeah, so

(01:52):
just look for that. It's it adds that both the
school level and central office reduction, which will be effective
for the twenty six twenty seven school years, so that's
the upcoming school year. They're designed to streamline district efficiency
while protecting the classroom experience and maintaining the district's commitment

(02:16):
to student outcomes. And here's a quote from doctor Johnson.
These are not easy decisions, but they were made with
a clear focus on spending less at the district level
to minimize the impact on our schools. As we collaborate
with the Indianapoli's Public School Corporation, that newly formed board
we were telling you about, and advocate for a referendum

(02:40):
this November, it's vital that we demonstrate our continued commitment
to fiscal discipline. We are tightening our own belt to
ensure we manage our financial reality with integrity. So breaking
it down by the numbers, it says the district's central

(03:04):
office reductions focus on the following areas of operation central
office personnel. Approximately twenty eight central office positions are being
eliminated and the effective staff have been notified by their supervisors.
Between the school based and central office reductions made for
the upcoming school year, IPS has reduced its workforce by

(03:26):
eighty seven staff members out of three seven and nine employees.
Vendor contracts they're reducing or eliminating vendor contracts were possible
across the departments and realigning workstreams based on these choices. Athletics,
they're not going to remove athletic offerings, but they're changing

(03:47):
how some of them are run in both elementary and
middle school, including a shift toward clinics for some sports offerings.
And it goes on and on and on in terms
of how they're planning to to make these cuts. Well,
here's one extracurricular buses. Starting next score year, fewer extracurricular
buses will be provided now for a lot of parents.

(04:10):
That's a that's a lifesaver. Extracurricular means, UH, the kids
just used to call it the late bus. You're gonna
take the late bus, and that that got kids home,
that stayed for track, tennis, football, basketball, volleyball, you name it,
tutoring clubs, you know, chess clubs, and anything that happens

(04:32):
after school. You can catch a bus home on the
late bus exactly. Well, they're not not anymore, not an IPS.

Speaker 2 (04:41):
It seems I think I talked about it off the heir.

Speaker 3 (04:44):
It seems that with IPS it has been cut cut, cut,
cut cut for years.

Speaker 1 (04:54):
Every year.

Speaker 2 (04:54):
They've consolidated for years to try to save money, and
it just seems, this is my own personal opinion, are
they trying to dissolve it?

Speaker 1 (05:06):
Well, I think it's under attack. I don't think that
there's any doubt.

Speaker 3 (05:09):
Not that the school system itself trying to dissolve it.

Speaker 1 (05:12):
But I think it's definitely under attack. No, the school
system itself not.

Speaker 2 (05:19):
Yeah, yeah, but it just it seems so weird that
it's all the cuts, all the adjustments, all of the
things they've done to try to downsize make the system
more efficient. It's like it continues more and more and
it just doesn't make any sense to me.

Speaker 3 (05:38):
It's like it's been I.

Speaker 2 (05:39):
Mean, it seems like decades they've been having to do this,
and of course now with the you know, the whole
thing with the state what taking over the system, for
the most part.

Speaker 1 (05:54):
Well that that committee is stay oh gosh, okay, it.

Speaker 3 (05:57):
Seems to me maybe, I'm that's just my opinion.

Speaker 1 (05:59):
I'm yeah, you're you're not You're not too far off.
I don't think you're off at all. I don't you know,
when what are we what are we supposed to do
with these kids?

Speaker 3 (06:10):
Exactly?

Speaker 1 (06:11):
I mean, and your tax dollar And they're talking about
floating another referendum in November to get even more my
I mean, I'm sure parents won't mind paying it as
long as it goes to the kids that needed. But
exactly when these referendums are are dolled up and IPS
floats it, and then the charter schools get the money
or the legislature orders IPS to get it's just a

(06:33):
it's just a hot mess.

Speaker 3 (06:35):
It is, and the news really says, you know, for
more than a.

Speaker 2 (06:38):
Decade, IPS has made operations more efficient by consolidating, building, streamlining, streamlining,
streamlining purchasing, improving transportation, all those things.

Speaker 1 (06:50):
Mm hmm.

Speaker 3 (06:52):
Has it helped.

Speaker 1 (06:53):
It should well, I would say.

Speaker 3 (06:57):
But it I'm going to grant that called you.

Speaker 1 (07:00):
Okay, okay, I don't know what what help is or
you know, I just don't know anyway. It says starting
next school year, fewer extracurricular buses are going to be provided.
The district can no longer offer these buses on Friday
afternoons to practices, coaching, tutoring. However, the district will continue
to offer transportation for games and competitions that occur on Fridays.

(07:24):
This won't impact the number of extracurricular and internship opportunities
available to students. Yeah, it won't impact the things that
are available to them. But a big part of just
being able to participate in them is having a way
home because the parents, I don't know, the parents can't
always get there. Late bus is a lifesaver for a

(07:45):
lot of families. And there's nothing wrong with it because
all these families are paying taxes anyway, so they should
be getting should be getting the shows. Yeah, so three, one,
seven for zero, thirteen to ten. Joe, you have a
comment ahead.

Speaker 4 (08:00):
How are you good, afternoon, Tina?

Speaker 1 (08:02):
How are you?

Speaker 5 (08:05):
I went to Tech High School and in the sixties
and Tech High School had every technical opportunity that you
could think of. Carpentry, uh, it taught you how to
build houses. We had electrical shops, we had electricity, we

(08:26):
had housewie, we had plumbing. I took foundry. I even
took aviation, which drove me to be an aircraft mechanic
in the Air Force, all of us. We even had
our own radio station, Tina WFQ. We had our own

(08:46):
radio stations.

Speaker 6 (08:48):
All of those, all of those.

Speaker 5 (08:50):
Different shops are gone, none of them are there. And
now my high school, Carmo Ben Davis has got those
type of same type of opportunities for students. And when
I was in school, you could come out if you

(09:13):
wanted to get into a technical field, you could come
out and basically go in and understand what it takes
to get you a journeyman card in the Union. Wow,
Now what happened to all of those positions? They they
even had printing, they had dry cleaning.

Speaker 1 (09:34):
They did it all, Yeah didn't.

Speaker 5 (09:40):
We had we had autobody repair, we had everything you
think and they got it over and they got the facility.
I don't know what they're using it for. Its Margant hall,
but I don't understand that.

Speaker 1 (09:57):
Well, what was the reason particular to funding?

Speaker 3 (10:01):
It was always always funding.

Speaker 1 (10:03):
I can't imagine that these programs would all be gone
if there was money to fund them.

Speaker 5 (10:08):
Let me ask you a question. Sure, I thought that
when they did the lottery that part of that money
was to fund public schools in Indianapolis, or public schools period.

Speaker 1 (10:24):
Somehow, either the lottery changed the messaging or it was
never quite that way. I know that that was here.
Here's here's what I think happened. I think in order
to get it across the finish line at the legislature,
it was it was taught. There was a lot of
talk about what the lottery could provide for if we

(10:45):
get this lottery. We've got extra money that we could
use toward you know, the streets. We've got extra money
we can use toward education. We've got extra money we
can you know, all of those different things. And yet,
as as we stand today, to the best of my knowledge,
the lottery, the funding from the lottery, who's your lottery

(11:08):
goes to pay for? And there's nothing wrong with it,
but it's a far cry from what all of the
possibilities were offered up Because I don't know if those
were shared as possibilities or those were promised. I need
to look that up. But what we have now is
Police and Firefighter pension fund. That's where the Who's Your
Lottery is going.

Speaker 5 (11:26):
And they showed that to us, saying that that money
was going to go to public schools to improve the
public schools. And if you look it out, if I'm wrong,
I'm wrong, But I'll take you something else. I know
for a fact that in and after schools are not

(11:47):
only under attack. Like you said, all you have to
do is say one word, and that's certification. They want
Tech High School so bad that they do not know
what to do. But they want Tech High School because
of the enormous property of seventy two acres and they

(12:10):
want to turn that into something for their kids, not
for us.

Speaker 1 (12:15):
That's it. But you know it is a formal military arsenal.

Speaker 6 (12:19):
Right, I think.

Speaker 1 (12:21):
Yeah, So it strategically placed and.

Speaker 5 (12:24):
They bought it. They bought Tech High School property for
one dollar and it was to be used and only
to be used as a school.

Speaker 1 (12:37):
Wow.

Speaker 5 (12:38):
And Tech High School is a beautiful campus.

Speaker 6 (12:43):
It is it is it really is it?

Speaker 5 (12:44):
It's yeah, But just remember this when I was going
to school. We had something called the square. You know,
the square was tore down and redone and made into
a fountain. Do you know what. No black people hung
out of the square, and white people claim that they

(13:04):
were scared to go through the square because they.

Speaker 6 (13:07):
Might get beat up.

Speaker 5 (13:08):
Not true, not true at all. Okay, they tore that
square down and built a fountain there. Now, so when
you walk through going to Stewart Hall or any of
those different places, the square is gone.

Speaker 1 (13:26):
I did not know that.

Speaker 3 (13:27):
I had no idea.

Speaker 1 (13:29):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (13:30):
Yeah, well, anyway, I hope you can get this straightened out.
But I'm getting ready to write a letter and see
it to the head person at I p S. I
don't really like what she's done anyway.

Speaker 1 (13:43):
Okay, that's certainly, yeah, that's that's citizen involvement. That's what
we're supposed to.

Speaker 5 (13:48):
Do the letter with you.

Speaker 1 (13:52):
Okay, Well, that's fine, thank you, Joe, appreciate it. By
we haven't. Well, this man is an educator, extraordinary. Actually
everything he does is extraordinary. Oh absolutely so, so we're
gonna we're gonna go right to him.

Speaker 3 (14:06):
He's here.

Speaker 1 (14:06):
He is none other than doctor Tommy Brown, our colleague
here on Praise AM thirteen ten and ninety five point
one FM heard Saturday mornings at nine AM with Operation
bread Basket presents Hurra. I'm bag hallo bag Hey. We
want to find out a little bit more about that
upcoming trip to Ghana as well.

Speaker 7 (14:25):
Okay, well, I'll let Griffin give all.

Speaker 1 (14:28):
Yeah, he can come on and give the d He
sent me the flyer, but I don't have any more. Okay,
I'll may correction.

Speaker 7 (14:34):
Yeah, make sure you get that. But Joe was dead
on target.

Speaker 1 (14:39):
Okay, okay, I'm.

Speaker 8 (14:41):
A graduate of tech okay, eighteen fifty nine sixty.

Speaker 1 (14:44):
Oh wow, and he ain't lying.

Speaker 7 (14:47):
We had everything now, I took I did printing, but
my main thing was to stick with all OTC when
I came out. I was qualified to be a private
going into the army. But they wouldn't touch me because
of my dad's involvement in the movement. Oh they wouldn't

(15:09):
touch me. And but no, but what has been described,
Eric was on target. Joe gave an outline naming all
of that. But remember Tina, well you wouldn't You was
still baby too, I guess, but see in nineteen ninety two,
ninety three, ninety four, ninety five I was I was
a school commissioner.

Speaker 1 (15:30):
Okay, and.

Speaker 7 (15:33):
I saw what was being developed when the time we fought.
When I say we fought in the nineteen seventy seventy
one seventy two when I got out of Sneak. Then
when I got out of school, I came back in
Annapolis in seventy four, and that's when they were desegregating

(15:54):
and started the bussing program. And my suggestion was, don't
bust my children, bust the teachers, and keep our schools
like they are saying. I finished school twenty six, and
there was up the up the hill, there was school

(16:14):
thirty seven, There was school twenty one schools in the
black community. But Joe did hit it kind of unique gentrification.
The dynamics of what was going on on Martindale, all
the houses, when they built those interstates, that was that

(16:36):
was another movement of splitting up the black community because
we had a power base. We had a power base
on the east side, we had a power base on
the west side, and we were developing one on the
north side. And the whole method of Indianapolis's controlling that SAI.

(17:00):
At one point we could have been able to elect
the black mayor. That's not going to happen now, and
I know that makes so safe. Why is he saying
that it's not gonna happen.

Speaker 1 (17:11):
You don't think so.

Speaker 7 (17:14):
Now, Now that's just me. No, it's not gonna happen
because we're spread out and we're not, as you all
have mentioned very clear, we're not participating in voting like
we should.

Speaker 1 (17:33):
Hmm.

Speaker 7 (17:34):
I mean you all have expressed that. And the fact,
look at our turnouts. I'm using the word the turnouts.

Speaker 9 (17:40):
Really Okay, it's it's uh, it's it's it's a falling
that not even we couldn't even get up to fifty
if you can round it all.

Speaker 1 (17:52):
Even though, and it's it's really disturbing that people were celebrating,
celebrating the fact that we had got to fifteen or
fourteen point nine percent according to county election officials. Yeah so,
I mean, I mean eighty five percent of y'all or us,
everybody stayed home or didn't go.

Speaker 7 (18:12):
Yeah, your own target, I mean, your your analysis. And
we can't get caught in what doctor King used to
say to us in the movement where we were sneak
and stuff. Don't be comfortable don't end up the paralysis
of analysis, don't be analyzed and not getting stuff done.

Speaker 1 (18:32):
Yeah, yeah, you know.

Speaker 7 (18:34):
We analyze and it's almost like having an orgasm. Oh yeah,
I know. Yes, don't get me started. But no, I.

Speaker 1 (18:43):
Was just I was just trying to draw the bridge there.
But I'll trust your word for it.

Speaker 7 (18:51):
Yeah, it's an emotional kind of thing, you know. We
we can get joy out of grieving. We get happy
in shout when he says was crucified. That ain't the
time for me to shout.

Speaker 1 (19:04):
No.

Speaker 7 (19:04):
No, if he's gonna shout, shout on his resurrection. But
if he's gonna shout on it, make sure you're doing
something because you are alive with that Christ's consciousness. That's
all I tell folk, you know, uh uh you know.
And we say, the people come and accept Christ. Well,
Christ has accepted you. Come on, let's get busy. And

(19:27):
you know that's that's me. And people don't particularly like that.
But back to that school situation, No, Eric, you were
good in your analysis. And and and the young man,
the gentleman who came across, he's not lying. He covet
it because I was. I went to tech when when

(19:48):
my parents moved out there on forty fourth Street and
Butler Tarkington area. I caught the bus every day going
back to Tech. Most of the people in that area
were going to what sharp Ridge we called sharp Ridge
the bourgeois school, And of course I didn't go to

(20:09):
at it because Tech had every fee that you can imagine.
People I know came out with the abilities and construction,
brick lane and all of that kind of stuff. And
particularly in the fifties, Uh, that's why we had more
black businesses, more more construction workers, because we were getting

(20:33):
what one would call trades. Tech was a good trade school,
and it was it was good in academics because everybody
had to work on getting their SAT scores up high
so you could get into college. And of course when
I finished, my dad and mom had already already determined

(20:54):
I was going to HBCU. I'm down in Marshall, Texas
at Bishop College and then ultimately graduating, ended up working
as a director of recruitment and admissions the Bishop and
working for the United Negro College FUNT. So that whole
Black college thing worked positively because when I was a snake,

(21:18):
I was going to all of the black colleges making
sure we get students to come out in protests in
the Carolinas and Tennessee, so that that whole kind of
pass of a movement has disappeared. And we're back into
what my sister girl over in Ohio wrote that the
new Jim Crow.

Speaker 4 (21:39):
It's mine.

Speaker 1 (21:41):
Okay, And you know what, Doctor Brown, you have these
phone lines lit up there, and we're gonna let everybody
that's out there way in. We're gonna take a real,
real quick commercial break, and then we will be back.
Doctor Brown. Couldn't agree with you more, couldn't agree with you,
all right, thank you. No, you can stay there. A

(22:02):
lot of folks they probably want to talk to you anyway.
They don't want to talk to me, they want to
talk to you. Well, yes, stay right there, We'll be
right back.

Speaker 10 (22:10):
Okay, Okay, let's get back to the conversation.

Speaker 11 (22:20):
It's Community Connection with Tina Cosby, brought to you by
Child Advocates, a champion for justice, opportunity and well being
for children, on Praise AM thirteen ten, ninety five point
one FM.

Speaker 1 (22:34):
And we're back with Community Connection, Doctor Brown, our good friend,
doctor Tommy Brown and colleague of course here on AM
thirteen ten and ninety five point one FM. You know,
we were talking about a press release IPS sent out
this morning basically announcing more cuts this time you know,
the administrative area. And you know it's like, and Eric

(22:56):
made a good point, how much more is the school
system expected to take? I mean, you just keep coming
at him, coming at him, and I don't know, I don't.

Speaker 7 (23:05):
Know they're gonna shut it down and take it over.

Speaker 1 (23:08):
But that's that seems to be playing.

Speaker 3 (23:09):
That looks like that.

Speaker 1 (23:11):
That's how it seems to be the plan. Let's go
back to the phone lines. Attorney Bohannan, go ahead, how
are you?

Speaker 3 (23:16):
It's the second thing to let me?

Speaker 1 (23:18):
Yeah, yeah, okay, go ahead, go ahead. Attorney Bohannan. How
are you today?

Speaker 4 (23:24):
I'm doing good. How you did that?

Speaker 1 (23:25):
Oh good? Thank you?

Speaker 4 (23:27):
Good couple of things. Tommy, you you correctly in terms
about the possibility of not to go to the black
the black mayor. I know you white people want to
hear that, but you saved with the clerk is announced
last week the number of Republicans in Senate Township wrote
by twenty two percent who voted. What think about that?

(23:51):
The number Senate Township? Now you think about the developing
Senate townships and the number uh occasionally moving in and
the development and the number of development of houses going
half made out the more. And so that tells you
the pologa shouldn't this move. And so she gave him
a warning bell. She said that, And so Thomas correct that.

(24:14):
You know, given that we're now going out to vote
that block of the vote, you may have a white mayor,
or you may have a mayor that they find amaleable.
And I say that point blank because I'm looking at
folks running. I'm trying to figure out why. And I
perhaps had discussed with a couple of friends of mine's
about some of the candidates. And this is not trying

(24:36):
to get into it, but I raised real serious question
about as to why certain people are running, and when
I look at their platforms, it raise serious questions. But
that's another story. The second is to do was I
said a long time ago the ip was up for
grab because remember Steve goes with Steve goes to the point,
wh point was that IPAs was a drag on Center
Township and Marion County economy. He said that consistently kept

(24:59):
saying that he you want it, I feel to be
detaked by all the contingents of school districts and they
have built IPS and he said that wasn't happening. He agreed.
He said that I feel should just be centralized only
for high schools. So the new board that's in place,
that this the legislature sweet and tell them for what

(25:21):
they deal was. It was not about simply transportation. They
raised it by simply saying we just want to do
a transportation. But if you notice that when they went
to the final build went through, it gave them ult
of financial stuff. They did not say that they're going
to do a referendum. And now you find out they'll
be a referendum. And so the second question becomes, if

(25:41):
they're gonna do a referendum, why the IPS need to
find out they need to have two two retrenchments at
the staff and budget if we're doing it, if we're
doing a a a referendum is supposed to come down
this this fall and less the referendless you're telling us
that the referendum will.

Speaker 7 (25:59):
Not be it.

Speaker 4 (25:59):
But i PS building facilities rather than chart to school
build a facility and staffing. So we need to look
very carefully and to referendum. See what happened? How is happening?
And third, you know this issue is taking place at DEI.
You know, the reality is we have always had an
issue in Tommy Knows asks about who can vote the

(26:20):
constitution going back when his career was always about who
had their building to vote, who had the right to vote,
and who had the right to participate in civil society. Unfortunately,
our population, I mean a Black community unwilling to engage
in the very simple thing of voting simply gives credits
to the point that why should we worry about their

(26:41):
participating in civic life when they won't even vote, And
why we're about to being educated when they won't vote
and so are unwilling to vote and get involved in
civil rights and join the different orderation, I don't care
what the paternity sorority, churches and institute whatever. Simply simplified
to the majority community that they don't care, we don't care,

(27:03):
so why she would care about them?

Speaker 7 (27:06):
That's that's my buddy. Rod. Rod came to this city
years ago. I am a correct Rod.

Speaker 4 (27:12):
In six Yeah, the first fight, the first fight we
had had to do was over over and uh oh
well yeah, yeah, yeah, mm hmm.

Speaker 2 (27:26):
Yeah, Well, having the highest test scores in the state
means nothing.

Speaker 1 (27:32):
The robotics team going to a world championship.

Speaker 3 (27:35):
Yeah, you know that means nothing.

Speaker 1 (27:37):
Uh and and so on and so forth. So there's
a lot more. There's a lot of great things going
and I'm like you all, I don't know. I had
I had to retool, you know, refuel to because there's
a lack of voting, the apathy, the lack of interest
in doing so is exhausting. It's like, what is it

(27:57):
going to take? What's it?

Speaker 7 (28:01):
Hey? That Tina. It's almost like and Rod would probably
I try to keep it humorous. That's why they now
call us Naptown.

Speaker 1 (28:13):
Quite positively. Yeah.

Speaker 4 (28:16):
Are you going to Ghana?

Speaker 7 (28:18):
Am I?

Speaker 1 (28:19):
Are you going to Ghana? Doctor? Doctor Brown?

Speaker 5 (28:21):
Oh?

Speaker 7 (28:21):
Not this time, I've been. I've been that two or
three times. This is trying to open the doors with
through winning experiences for young people and some parents to
get to see Ghana as it is now compared to
what I saw Ghana oo week back in nineteen to
seventy one, seventy two, Ghana, India, South Africa and even

(28:44):
in the nineties. I bring it on up, but no
I won't be going on this one.

Speaker 4 (28:52):
I just came. I just came back from Ghana twos ago?

Speaker 1 (28:55):
How was how'd you find it?

Speaker 4 (28:56):
What?

Speaker 1 (28:57):
Yeah? I'm like doctor Brown, how was it?

Speaker 4 (28:59):
I'm so prospering because we had the opportunity to go
and you know, for example, we think of slavery being
three hundred and twenty fifty years, not realizing that. God,
I was like, seve one hundred and forty.

Speaker 7 (29:11):
Years, right, don't you were correct? Didn't that blow your mind?

Speaker 4 (29:14):
It blew my mind. And talking to the staff people,
I mean the bitnish people the government said they were
like on our trip, we went through it with a winnesschool.
There a couple people in engineers And what's interesting was
the government folks will say we would love for black
folks who have skills to come here, but what they
said was they don't have the abilities of money to

(29:35):
pay us. Are saying, if you're going to bring you
bring your skills, you need to come for the financial
sport base. Now can you imagine that You're trying to
ask folks who got skills like the medicine and engineering
stuff to come there to lend their skills and you
can't pay them the other things interesting was watching the
Chinese and we're not paying attention what's happening worldwide and

(29:57):
turning the politics cho poltics. But but a Ghana. Two
things structured our self specific One what the Chinese are
building the roads in Ghana and the women who the
engineers said that these roads would never be allowed in
the unit saying well you know in the word the
way they building, they just don't be leveling. And then
quint Tarnet. But what this is in the labor force,
the labor force with all Chinese. The Chinese are bringing

(30:18):
in the unemployed and prison folks, and the locals are
not being not being invited to the road on a lot
of the roads they building. The other things with the
seaport and the fishermen are blocking the Chinese want to
rehab the seaport and and a crop and the communities
fishermen saying no because they want to bring in their

(30:39):
huge trousers. So it isn't watching this fight taking place
where the government is trying to rebuild infrastructure, take whatever
it deals they can have in order to do that,
and the populations saying we're not included, No you won't.
So I'm still processing, just observing, seeing and watching this
world you positive play out in Africa and not realizing

(31:04):
that you know, and I'll shut up. The time you
probably went to the last of the first the last fast,
and I didn't realize that the last past is where
the slaves who marched nine hundred miles on the river
and then to this castle. But that I couldn't imagine
nine months of marching.

Speaker 7 (31:23):
Marching and a rod when I was there. The question
that kept running through. There's no railroads in Africa.

Speaker 4 (31:30):
Hardly none. And the whole thing about it is the whole.

Speaker 1 (31:34):
West, the entire continent and.

Speaker 4 (31:38):
The west part the west coast of When you live at.

Speaker 1 (31:40):
The West coast, Okay, Okay, westn.

Speaker 4 (31:43):
You realize that that whole region was slavery. The god
that the whole region and the whole region understand why
the whole region is is it a deficit?

Speaker 7 (31:55):
Yeah, the whole region. And see he's getting the twenty
first century view. Uh and uh, everything he says, correcting
and I know what the Chinese are doing. Uh. But
I was just amazed when I was there. There's no railroads, transportation,
and like you said, the slave thing just blows, blows.

Speaker 12 (32:15):
Your mind.

Speaker 7 (32:15):
Now get a chance go to Kenya. That's a whole
nother story.

Speaker 4 (32:20):
Well when I look at that on my go list.
But anyway, I'll get up. I'll let you get off
your phone and let other folks call it. But thanks y'all, folks,
all right.

Speaker 1 (32:27):
Thank you, thank you, appreciate it. Three one seven fight
zero thirteen ten three one seven for eight zero thirteen ten. Kevin,
you have a comment? Go ahead? How are you?

Speaker 3 (32:38):
That's the second I have a little issue with the screen.

Speaker 1 (32:41):
Here's I'm sorry, let's go three.

Speaker 3 (32:44):
Okay, okay, Kevin, are you there?

Speaker 12 (32:48):
Hey?

Speaker 4 (32:49):
Yeah, I'm here. How you guys doing good?

Speaker 1 (32:51):
Goods?

Speaker 6 (32:52):
Hey?

Speaker 4 (32:53):
Hey, I called just to tell in some of this stuff. Uh,
please forgive me.

Speaker 13 (32:57):
I'm coming from, uh some frustration. I think a lot
of times we come together as victims, but we actually survivors.
I've been calling this show about the program I do
with the Corpentine Union, the HVAC.

Speaker 4 (33:12):
Union, and the Pipe for.

Speaker 13 (33:14):
Re Union for over a year now. I think we
just graduated our last five guys last week.

Speaker 6 (33:19):
Out of the five, four.

Speaker 13 (33:21):
Of them started on Monday. The one who hadn't started
yet he hasn't graduated high school, he graduated high school
in two weeks. I think we've got twenty five men
through there. You do the numbers, that's one point three
million dollars a year. That's not the brag. I say
that to say it's hard for us to get funding.
I want us to fund ourselves. I've been calling in
here for like I said, over a year, I have

(33:42):
not got one dime from anybody in college say hey,
I want to help out. When we first started, we
had a black millionaire who funded us for our first year,
one of the fundings for another year. He started getting
some backlash from this new governor WITHDEI, so he had
to drop off. We gotta start using unconventional ways. Yes,

(34:04):
they took it off our schools. But I've I've been
showing that this program works. Have I got a call
maybe eight months ago where the union needed thirty people
a sack. I did not have thirty people to get
into the union because of funding. I think we ended
up sending them fifteen to eighteen guys. This stuff works, y'all,

(34:24):
it's works. We got to get our young men off
these streets, pish some money in their pocket. They start
at twenty five an hour and ninety days, they'll have
their full benefits.

Speaker 4 (34:34):
They get a pension. Out of this, they pick up
a skill.

Speaker 13 (34:37):
It's a four year process and the four years they
get their Journeyman card where they can take anywhere in
the United States. Call your union haller up and say hey.

Speaker 4 (34:44):
I will be in your city. You guys have work
for me. Put me to work.

Speaker 13 (34:48):
You also get a social degree from ivy teching your
four years. You start off as a first year apprentice
and you wake your way all the way to your journeyman.
We got to start thinking not as victims, but we
got to figure out how to survive. And I'm trying
to show us how to survive. So I'm be honest
and getting frustrated when we can't get funding. I got
unlimited supplied bodies, but coming up with the funding, I

(35:10):
want us to fund ourselves.

Speaker 14 (35:12):
This is for us.

Speaker 13 (35:13):
I don't want any government come in and say I'm
gonna pull the wood from under y'all to roo come
up under y'all because I don't believe in d I
the Union is going through that now. My connection out there,
the Briny, putting pressure on him because our programs like
mine that cater toward majority of young black men. So
we got to figure out a way to start taking

(35:33):
care of ourselves. And whoever you're allowed to feed, you
allowed you to allow them to start of you start
feeding our sales.

Speaker 4 (35:37):
Y'all?

Speaker 1 (35:39):
Okay, all right, there you go, there you go? All right?
Mayhem online five mayhem? Are you there? Go ahead?

Speaker 15 (35:48):
Hey?

Speaker 14 (35:48):
Hey, good show, good show, goodness mission. Hey doctor Brown,
let me ask you separate?

Speaker 5 (35:54):
How long?

Speaker 14 (35:55):
How long do you think, uh it would be before
won't be that many black people inside.

Speaker 16 (36:03):
The bowl because this gentrification is going on.

Speaker 14 (36:06):
Well, as I said, forty fifty years, it seemed like
to me they don't want nothing black inside the bone.

Speaker 12 (36:13):
Uh.

Speaker 14 (36:14):
When our upper elite started leaving the bowl, Uh, then
they want to blame the ones that didn't know anything.
They want to blame they want to blame the U
as they say, the bottom feeding. But our at least
left uh the bowl first, they took it across the
green grass and it never came back. So how long

(36:37):
do you think before they really don't want nobody anything black.

Speaker 4 (36:42):
Inside the mark?

Speaker 14 (36:44):
They take an IPS, they're gonna take tex. So how
long do you think it's gonna before not that's really black.

Speaker 16 (36:51):
Inside the boat.

Speaker 14 (36:52):
I take it out there, thank you.

Speaker 12 (36:54):
Man.

Speaker 7 (36:55):
Yeah, man, man asked the ask the right question. What's
he already had an answer, because it's going it's gonna
hit us. It's gonna hit us in twenty eight.

Speaker 12 (37:08):
Oh twenty eight, Yeah, twenty twenty eight.

Speaker 1 (37:14):
It's less than two years from now.

Speaker 7 (37:16):
Yeah, watch what happens on this mone.

Speaker 1 (37:19):
Are you talking about the major general election? Yeah?

Speaker 7 (37:23):
Yeah, watch that. Now we may get we may get
something different on the What is it in November that's
gonna be interesting?

Speaker 1 (37:35):
The midterms? The midterms?

Speaker 7 (37:38):
Yeah, yeah, midterms. I forget to use the word.

Speaker 1 (37:44):
Okay.

Speaker 7 (37:45):
Well, when it comes to him Indianapolis or when it
comes to Indiana, the twenty eighth is going to hit us.
It's going to get us.

Speaker 1 (37:58):
Let's go back to the phone lines. Mister Williams, go ahead,
how are you?

Speaker 6 (38:02):
How you doing Meschino?

Speaker 1 (38:04):
Doing good? Doing good, sir, And.

Speaker 16 (38:06):
For you and your south, you are but a beautiful
show going to day than Yeah, we got we gotta understand.
There's a lot to be said. When they trained up
a chaw in the way he shaid go go, and
when he become old, he will not department see often

(38:28):
check used to be one of the most sophicificated who's
in the city. Matter of fact, in the state.

Speaker 4 (38:35):
Actually, yeah, that's.

Speaker 1 (38:36):
What I heard in the state state wide.

Speaker 17 (38:40):
Yeah, they were winning Nationalwife Scientific Award. Nobody mentioned that
when they started talking about this bending and getting rid
of and.

Speaker 16 (38:53):
Putting it on hold and all this. They never talk
about the proficiency of the South. The teachers that was
there at that particular attack, people used to cut up
about to learn about half much the system were learning.
You know, we were always going back to Africa. We
will have to go back forth, but we could go

(39:15):
back to yesterday. I hate to I hate to go
against the opinion of the people. That is a system
that the people ben Ghana were played. You they want
not the people was not played in the in the country, uh,

(39:39):
in the continent and the concident of Africa. You know,
they was a well versed people in the country of Africa.
And what we were looking at was the keys and
the rope side around the waist and the bow and
arrows and the steels going in the I'm gonna look

(40:00):
at for a monkey.

Speaker 17 (40:01):
As you kids, Yeah yeah, okay, okay, look your little grass.

Speaker 18 (40:09):
Yeah.

Speaker 16 (40:10):
Well we were made too and we didn't understand that
it was the apple can't compel me.

Speaker 7 (40:19):
And the.

Speaker 16 (40:23):
The community even to this day and not out how
that pill man will built, but some of the stone
will be bigger than called.

Speaker 3 (40:35):
It's true.

Speaker 1 (40:35):
Yeah, that is true. I have a cousin that strongly
believes it was aliens.

Speaker 3 (40:40):
I've heard people say that, Yeah, not of.

Speaker 1 (40:43):
This world, some some you know, because man has.

Speaker 16 (40:46):
Not in the world well.

Speaker 1 (40:50):
But not not. Nobody since then has been able to
duplicate that feat. No modern man cannot. It would be
possible and being possible to do. Take Yeah, there you go.

Speaker 16 (41:04):
You know, we got to take a good look, a
deep down analysis of our selves and see what we
have accompanies in this world before before and get out
after we do that. We have to come together talking
like unity now I commented together and get out and vote.

(41:27):
Think it's like good enough for us the regions for
the vote. I got a registration card. You got to
stand in the place, select the person that you have
children and make sure you understand that all of the
rest of the people that you know is voting for
that person be about Yeah, tell you know exactly what

(41:50):
he does, what he's plans for.

Speaker 1 (41:51):
Yeah, and that's.

Speaker 16 (41:53):
Why, and that's what would be the reason of why
you re voted.

Speaker 1 (41:56):
Yeah, and William, what you just said, thank you, thank
you for your call. What you just said is what
we have been saying. I guess we're going to continue
to say, doctor Brown, you've gotta it's it's a it's
not the answer to everything, but it sure is the
start of a lot of things. And yeah, but if
we don't even start with that, if we don't even
have the starting point with voting, we don't have that down.

(42:18):
We don't have that muscle memory, you know, it's just
there's more to it. Let's let's take this last call. Joyce,
go ahead, number Joyce. Are you there?

Speaker 5 (42:30):
Oh the Texas?

Speaker 8 (42:31):
When I go to the Texas when it said I
had paid in February, and yeah, yeah, that's good.

Speaker 1 (42:39):
Thank you, Joyce. What okay are you talking to us?

Speaker 16 (42:44):
Hello?

Speaker 1 (42:45):
Okay, yeah, Joyce, go ahead?

Speaker 18 (42:47):
Yeah aheank you.

Speaker 8 (42:49):
Yes, I was calling because back in the day ninetee
my daughter went to tech but I was working at
the place me at center am I yeah, not followed me?
That don't look like it looked like go I'm on
the phone. Okay, So at any rate. What I'm saying

(43:11):
is that my daughter went to tech and uh yeah,
uh they was in the Center for Leadership Development, you
know they was uh oh you still hear me, tiny
because your static is off the train.

Speaker 1 (43:31):
The static, Yeah, the static is on your end. I
do believe we're clear.

Speaker 8 (43:36):
My my landline, yeah, okay, account for me being disconnected
at any rate? A foreigner house us about four five
generations in yeah, yeah, okay, So.

Speaker 1 (43:55):
It is so what did did you want to were
you looking to talk.

Speaker 8 (43:59):
To come in when this ips went astray? It's when
our government decided he didn't want to dwell as a
millionaire on Meridian? How about that? If they got any pastors,
anybody recognized what happened? What did y'all doing with that property?

(44:20):
Government entities should be able to obtain money in fines?
Uh the like the man mentioned the taxes or no,
he said something about how the uh the that they
government they went gambling things they ain't mentioned nothing. Teachers
was supposed to be paid more, doctor, I.

Speaker 1 (44:42):
Mean teachers Joyce.

Speaker 8 (44:45):
The solution is to back to Obama's little checking balance.
But y'all already knew where and the fact remains ain't
nobody after he got out of office. Why wouldn't see
where pill? This is a real messing with right now again,
So what okay, how do you how.

Speaker 1 (45:07):
Do you suggest we stem that tid How do you
suggest we do something already established?

Speaker 8 (45:13):
Teeny, You ain't got reinvent the wheel. These laws were
already established.

Speaker 1 (45:18):
Okay, well that's what buddy does.

Speaker 8 (45:21):
Let me let.

Speaker 1 (45:27):
Okay, yeah, Joyce, we we have to. I'm sorry, but
I have to because I've tried to follow. I've tried
to follow your school of thought, Joyce, but I'm trying,
and I just I'm getting dizzy.

Speaker 2 (45:41):
But you know, oh my goodness, my whole thought is
really with our history and we know evidently they know
a lot about us too, and they've done everything they
can to try to keep us from voting, keep us
from doing this, you know, cutting us off of the knees,

(46:01):
basically to try to keep us from doing anything. And
it's they know what we have, the skills, the abilities
that we can do.

Speaker 3 (46:11):
We have to know that.

Speaker 2 (46:13):
We have to realize that, yes, we have skills, we
have talent, we're creative.

Speaker 3 (46:18):
It's everywhere.

Speaker 7 (46:19):
Mary, Yes, your own target, Tina, your own target, and
you all have projected. Think about this, and my dad
told me this years ago, and you know what your
mama's and your papa's told you. You know what we're
caught in. We are the consumer slave. They want us

(46:42):
to keep consuming whatever they send out. You know, economics,
you all know is production distribution and are consumptional But
it's a cycle and we're not in the production or
the distribution nomics and the imperialistic capitalism. We are the

(47:04):
main consumers. Just look at the record on we consume.
We spend more than we produced or we distributed. And
as slaves, we were the producers of this nation's wealth.
Now we are it's consumers of it.

Speaker 1 (47:23):
A lot we weren't. Access was not allowed back then. Yeah,
just be there in the house. Access simply was just
not allowed. And consuming.

Speaker 7 (47:34):
Yeah, hey we we we drive the best, we dressed
the best, even we produced the best.

Speaker 8 (47:41):
In regard to.

Speaker 7 (47:43):
What you call entertainment and and and sports, we are
top of the but we are the consumer.

Speaker 3 (47:52):
Mmmm.

Speaker 1 (47:54):
Well, changing that mentality is important as well. Uh, doctor,
It's it's not anything it's going to happen overnight, but
it is something we have to be aware of and
be intentional about. We have to be intentional about it.
There's okay, we slipped into a zone here, that's fine.
It's not that you've slipped, it's how you remove yourself
from it. That's that's going to be the indicator of

(48:16):
our success going forward, is what we do as a
result intentional.

Speaker 7 (48:20):
I'm gonna play with that word intentions.

Speaker 1 (48:23):
Yeah, we got to be intentional.

Speaker 7 (48:25):
Intentional of liberating ourselves from the consumption and become intentional
and being the producers and controlling what we produce.

Speaker 1 (48:35):
Absolutely absolutely, Doctor Brown. So do you do you have
your Saturday show lined up just shed or is it
still a work in progress?

Speaker 7 (48:43):
That's a working problem.

Speaker 1 (48:44):
Okay, okay, okay, Well we look forward to at nine
am right here on these this very stations AM thirteen,
ten and ninety five point one. Doctor Brown is always
the pleasure has been ours, and we'll be talking to
you again soon. I'm hanging on to those those headphones
for you.

Speaker 7 (49:00):
Yeah, yeah, thank you, Yeah yeah.

Speaker 1 (49:02):
Yeah, hanging on to them. We'll be right back with
more community connection right after this.

Speaker 11 (49:15):
WTOC AM W two three six C are Indianapolis broadcasting
from the Praise Indi Indiego Studios, Indiego boldly moving Indy forward.
It's Community Connection with Tina Cosby, brought to you by
Child's Advocates, a champion for justice, opportunity and well being
for children, on Praise Am thirteen ten ninety five point

(49:36):
on FM.

Speaker 1 (49:37):
And we're back with communic Connection heading into our second hour.
Boy Eric, a lot of interest in absolutely it. It
just it seems like death by a thousand cuts, you know,
it does. Every time that you know, you hear something
about IPS is usually cutting or layoffs or whatever. Uh So,
that's why it's always such a pleasure to share news

(49:59):
like the Robodies team and and other things. Tony Laman
our colleague here. He is a media instructor there. Yes,
and so I talked to Tony about it a lot,
and Tony said, they've got those kids are off the chain.
He said, they're just so smart, so good, and you know,
it's it's heartbreaking sometimes to hear about it being picked

(50:19):
on and to watch the slow disintegration.

Speaker 3 (50:22):
I don't know how to I don't know how the
test scores, I mean their yeah.

Speaker 1 (50:26):
They scored better than most students in the States exactly.

Speaker 3 (50:30):
Someone what does that mean? That means nothing?

Speaker 2 (50:33):
Yeah, I don't know, and I, to be honest, it's
getting pretty upset.

Speaker 3 (50:37):
So I had to go away and allow you and
doctor Brown to talk.

Speaker 1 (50:41):
Oh well, well, don't don't get too well it's.

Speaker 3 (50:43):
Like that's wrong.

Speaker 1 (50:44):
Yeah, no, it's it absolutely is, and we'll we'll certainly
go back to that and just we just got to
keep making people aware. We just got to keep connecting
the community with the info and hopefully resources and the
ability to know what to do and how to do it.

Speaker 3 (50:59):
So definitely so.

Speaker 1 (51:01):
But moving on, we were talking about the Indianapolis five
hundred being the largest how did they put that? The
largest single day sporting event in the world. Yes, I
think largest single day sporting event in the world. At
a minimum three hundred thousand people to move through the city.

Speaker 3 (51:20):
That's a lot of people.

Speaker 1 (51:21):
That's a lot of folks. That's bigger than the stadiums,
game Bridge and Lucas Oil.

Speaker 3 (51:29):
Isn't that the largest I think crowd assembly.

Speaker 1 (51:32):
The largest outdoor outdoor assembly? Well, yeah, because when you
consider it's over the course of two and a half
mins and half so think of how many people it
takes to fill up, and it's usually sold out.

Speaker 6 (51:43):
That's true.

Speaker 1 (51:44):
We're anticipating a sellout, which means it won't be blacked out,
so the folks here don't have to drive to tear
Hote or to watch it, or to Richmond, I mean
not rich Yeah, Richmond to watch me both both sides,
or Kentucky or Michigan, I guess, depending on what you know,
which where you want to go. But anyway, our guest
coming up is the i MPD Indianapois Metropolitan Police Departments,

(52:07):
a special operations commander. He is Commander Charles Devlaso and
commander welcome. How are you doing today?

Speaker 12 (52:15):
Pretty good, Tina, I'm honored. How are you?

Speaker 1 (52:17):
I am well and the pleasure is mine, appreciate it.
So how has planned the five We're gonna talk about
the five hundred today? By the way, eric in, Commander,
I do believe is the first full day of practice
out there?

Speaker 3 (52:32):
I think so?

Speaker 1 (52:33):
Is that the first day of practice? So so when
when does special five hundred details start? Do they start
on a day like today with special you know, units
and traffic control and things of that nature, with today
being the first day of practice, and then go all
the way up to the day of the race, or
do you just generally wait until the day of the race.

Speaker 12 (52:54):
No, no, no, no, so Tina, that that that process
starts actually if actually we're out there for uh really
the Grand Prix that was last weekend and.

Speaker 1 (53:05):
Then okay, okay, yeah, I forgot about that.

Speaker 4 (53:08):
Yes, we're out.

Speaker 12 (53:09):
There pretty much every day now until the race. There's
always something going on out the track.

Speaker 1 (53:14):
MM so what starting with May first?

Speaker 12 (53:18):
Yeah, basically, you know, I mean we're really you know,
heavy into the planning and that planning process you know
that starts from last year, and that's that's ongoing right now.
That we're having meetings out there consistently, you know, pretty
much every week now and talking about you know, upcoming
you know, you may mention them three hundred thousand, it's
upwards of over three hundred and fifty thousand now that

(53:39):
they expected out there. So that's that. That's a lot
of people. You're right, that's that's uh, that's a long
day for us.

Speaker 1 (53:45):
Yeah, I would suspect, so, I would suspect it would
be a little bit of a long day. So the
five hundred what are what are some of the special
challenges that that event, which is a worldwide event, what
are some of the challenges that that event poses that
aren't true of other events that this city hosts on

(54:07):
the regular, just that particular event. What are some of
the challenges there?

Speaker 12 (54:11):
Yeah, wow, obviously, you know, primarily, I would say just
the sheer number of people. It is such a heavy
load to move three hundred fifty thousand people from A
to B, to get them inside that track, and then
to get them outside the track safely. So that just
the sheer number of trying to move that many people

(54:33):
is you know, every year we try to get better
at it. But you know, the traffic issues obviously, you
know in the city right now, there's a lot of
construction going on, so trying to that's that's a challenge too.
But I would just go back to Tina, it's the
sheer challenge, so that hundreds of thousands of people we're
trying to get in there safely, and then we're trying
to get out safely too.

Speaker 1 (54:54):
So the sixteenth Street bridge, which is due for oh,
that'll be that'll be the day after the race, right.

Speaker 12 (55:00):
Yes, I'm not sure exactly that that's after.

Speaker 1 (55:03):
Yeah, yeah, it's in June. It's in June, not the
day after a week or a week or so afterwards.
But have you looked ahead to that bridge being out
for twenty twenty seven and how oh have you and
how things are going to.

Speaker 12 (55:17):
Go for that mean, we just got the thirtieth Street
bridge back for how many years now as it had
been out of play? I think at least.

Speaker 9 (55:23):
Three maybe it's been a while.

Speaker 12 (55:26):
So yeah, that definitely affects our traffic pattern. So we
take a look at all that, and you know, we
work with the track and those folks over there, and
with our state police partners and speedway partners of you know,
what's the best traffic pattern? And the goal really is
to get people out. You may not want to go
in a direction you're going, and you may have to
come back around, you know, a mile or two down

(55:47):
a road, but the goal is to get people farther
out away from the track. Then it starts to staying out,
if that makes sense.

Speaker 1 (55:53):
So is the goal of your office in your command
primarily traffic enforcement or what else? Does? What else do
you do?

Speaker 4 (56:01):
Oh?

Speaker 12 (56:01):
Wow, that's a that's just a piece of the pie.
There's so many that we work with. You know, we
work with our state and federal partners. You know, there's
a lot of threats out there right now you know,
drome mitigation is a big one, so we have to
worry about that. We have to worry about, you know,
our bomb dogs and our bomb sweeps. We have to
worry about our tactical units, you know, radiological nuclear detection.

(56:26):
I can go on and on, but that's that's it's
such a huge and heavy lift that these officers do
for this race and for this community. So there are
so many, so many items going on. But traffic, traffic,
it takes the longest. Yes, it takes roll over about
three and a half hours to clear out that track.

Speaker 1 (56:43):
Yeah, so after the race is over.

Speaker 12 (56:45):
So now traffic's one piece of the pie. It's a
large piece. But there are so many other things that
we have to you know, that we're concerned with too.

Speaker 1 (56:52):
Yeah. And one of the things, it sounds mostly you
know and people, but I was curious about the city, County,
count Sol's temporary, uh strict, temporary tightening of the youth
the youth curfew, and so how is that going to
affect impact IMPD operations because they've moved up the curfew deadlines?

(57:17):
Uh do you does your office or does your department
get involved in any of that at all?

Speaker 12 (57:23):
Oh?

Speaker 4 (57:24):
Absolutely so, oh no, okay, that.

Speaker 12 (57:27):
The curfew has really given us another resource to really
intervene on you know, our young folks lives and you know,
we all know that, you know, juveniles and being out
after hours in the streets don't mix. You know, typically
there's those there was some bad things that could happen
out of that. So with this early curfew, that's that's
you know, in effect for one hundred and twenty days

(57:49):
and you know, after that the Council can reconvene to
see they want to extend it, but it should go
through September. At this point, you know, it gives us
an opportunity to really to per se lock up juveniles,
because that's definitely not the goal, and that's not what's
you know, what's happening here. What's happening is it gives
us a means to intervene and really if we do

(58:10):
pick up juveniles that are out, you know, we take
them to what we call our connection centers that we
staff with other resources, and they're there and we contact
their parents and at that point it's not a criminal offense,
but it's it's an opportunity for us to really get
together and to offer some resources, some assistance and some
tools to really help help family members and these young juveniles,

(58:33):
you know, to get the resources they need to stay
off the streets.

Speaker 1 (58:37):
So how is looking to enforce the new stricter temporary
curfew rules? How how is that going to impact what
you normally do? Or I mean, you know, where's the
balance there?

Speaker 5 (58:49):
How do ye do that?

Speaker 12 (58:51):
Yeah? Exactly, I mean we can't, you know, because of resources.
We don't we're not going to have a connection center's
open you know every weekend for this. But but we guardless,
the curfew you know, ordinance is still in effect, so
officers have the ability to really make contact with these
with juveniles and these young folks and and and really
to have a chance to sit down with them. So

(59:11):
you know, like you said, it's usually a couple hours now,
I mean, you know, really sixty year olds Friday and
Saturday are now from eleven p to five am they
can't be in public. Uh and then Sunday through Thursdays
nine pm and five five am. So excuse me. So
we're really gonna key up on that, and we're really
gonna take a look at that. And like I said,

(59:33):
when when we see juveniles that are contragrating, and it's
laid out. We're gonna we're gonna intervene and really get
to get them downtown and get them to a safe
place and really have that conversation with their parents because
we can't do it without their parents. Well, I mean
we all know that here, We've seen it. You know,
there's violence out there, and the goal is the goal

(59:53):
is to really to sit down and find out what's
going on in their lives and then offer some assistance
and some resources to them.

Speaker 1 (59:59):
Yeah, I'm here in the studio with this commander is
one of our executives from chief executives from Corporate, Dion Levingston,
former GM here and Dion, you had a look on
your face when you were standing outside the studio. Were
you not aware that the youth curfew had been tightened
up by the city County Council.

Speaker 19 (01:00:18):
I've been traveling so much and I was just listening
to that.

Speaker 1 (01:00:21):
Yeah, you look puzzled. Well, they tightened it up for
the summer for one hundred and twenty days.

Speaker 6 (01:00:27):
I mean the summer. There.

Speaker 19 (01:00:30):
I have to apply what the city does with youth,
with the youth employment as far as jobs and other
stuff and what Congressman Carson is doing as well.

Speaker 6 (01:00:43):
When we do all for years, how many years have we.

Speaker 1 (01:00:45):
Done youth opportunities fair? Yeah, yeah, at least yeah, ten, eleven, twelve,
maybe yeah?

Speaker 19 (01:00:52):
And how many years has the city done the summer
jobs program?

Speaker 1 (01:00:57):
That is, well, the summer jobs program with the bonuses.
Because I don't know about you, but when I got
a summer job, I did not get a signing bonus.
And the city is off Yeah, so they I don't
know how they've been offering summer jobs forever, but with
the signing bonus. And don't want to get too par offit,

(01:01:17):
but the signing bonus. I think that that has been
since COVID. I think that was COVID related a little,
because you know, everybody was discombobulated and what have you,
and so trying to get the workforce back up, get
the kids back out in the society, they are offering
sign on bonuses. And the sign on you've graduated. I mean,

(01:01:38):
if you apply and get the bonus and get hired
during this timeframe, you're going to get a five hundred
dollars bonus. If you wait and you get hired at
a later point, you get a two hundred and fifty
dollars sign on bonus, but the bonuses are still there,
so that that should help a lot. I mean, I
hope these junctions don't take that regret because summer jobs
with the parks Department, the pool and things of that nature,

(01:02:01):
those are standard jobs. But to get those jobs with
a sign on bonus, that's that's just absolutely incredible.

Speaker 19 (01:02:08):
Because I think the more things we can do to
keep our youth engaged and give them other options and
opportunities go line in line. I understand the curfew and
what we're saying from that end, but on the other side,
what are the other things that the city can continue
to do in that way?

Speaker 1 (01:02:26):
Well, Commander, my understanding is this is not punitive, correct,
I mean, these children are not going to be under arrest.
Can you can you explain to to Dion how that
that system or how the process works. Say, for instance,
if you see a couple of violators, kids that aren't
going home from work or that aren't with the parent,
that are of a certain age, and that are out

(01:02:46):
past the new restricter curfew deadline, what happens?

Speaker 12 (01:02:51):
So yeah, exactly, I mean there are some exceptions there,
and I think you just noted the majority of them
that they can be out, but no, so if an
officer does come across a juvenile that's out past curfew,
it is definitely not a criminal offense, and there's no
criminal record or arrest per se. I said, we would,
we would take them, secure them, and we would take
them to our Connection Center or RSR where that process starts,

(01:03:12):
where we sit down with them, make sure they have food,
make sure they have their needs taken care of, and
then we're going to involve their parents and have that conversation,
and then we're going to offer some resources to see
if we can find out exactly why they're out and
and maybe the parents are struggling too. I mean, everybody
talks about the juveniles, but maybe maybe single mom, single dad,

(01:03:33):
or maybe the parents are working, or maybe there's something
going on in their lives also that maybe we can
we can give some resources for them also. And like
I said, the goal is to intervene early and get
these youngsters back on the right track. And you know
you're exactly right in your in your conversation. You know
you've got to provide youngsters with with with purpose and direction,

(01:03:53):
and I think that's a great start to get them,
you know, off the streets.

Speaker 1 (01:03:58):
So how many different departments are going to become or
will be a part of this month of May special
operations because it's not I m p D alone. Simply,
I can't imagine we'd be able to staff that. I mean,
don't you have help from other departments or other areas?

Speaker 12 (01:04:15):
Oh yeah, it's a it's all hands on deck tema.
So we you know, with our partners from Speedway PD,
Marion County Sheriff's Office I s P, and then all
of our federal you know, uh partners, and we can
go along down the list, but there's numerous from the
FBI to d HS too, you know, d A or

(01:04:37):
a t F. There's there's it's a whole all hands
on deck and definitely not I m p D. Without them,
we couldn't do it alone. There's just the sheer amount
of volume and and uh, you know, obviously what's going
on in the world today. We got to keep an
eye on to for the for the assessment. So we
do our best to secure it outside and inside, and
we can't do it alone.

Speaker 1 (01:04:57):
Is there a lot of juvenile traffic out you know, Uh,
during the month of May around the track.

Speaker 12 (01:05:04):
Uh, I would say not so much the track, not
during race day itself. Obviously a lot of those a
lot of those youngsters are with their parents, so not
too much of an issue. But yeah, the month of
May seems to really start things off in the city,
brings in summer and hopefully warmer weather. So and we
know when there's warmer weather, there's a lot more people out,
and so yeah, typically in May we see an uptick

(01:05:26):
you know, around downtown just you know, not so much
out of the track of race day, but just it
seems to start the festivities for the whole city. So yes,
there's definitely an uptick uptick in the month of May, uh,
for around the city, not necessarily the track itself for juveniles,
but just just as a whole around the city.

Speaker 4 (01:05:44):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:05:44):
Indeed, we have a color that has a question. Lisa,
go ahead, go ahead, do you have a question?

Speaker 18 (01:05:50):
Yes, I was wondering what was going to happen with
the one. Well, we're a part of foster's care or don't,
don't really kind of just out there on their own,
but kind of being bounced around through the foster system.

Speaker 1 (01:06:08):
Okay, can you repeat that, Lisa? Because you dropped out
for just a second. You were saying, what's going to
happen with and then we lost you.

Speaker 18 (01:06:15):
Majors that might be out there or that are homeless,
that are a part of maybe foster care, Okay, ones
that not not may not be getting along with their
family and trying to do it on own to make
it out here, what resources or what or what are
they going to do with them? And can they possibly

(01:06:37):
have families that could be like safe houses that they
could put them in as opposed to locking people up anyway,
all right.

Speaker 1 (01:06:47):
Thank you, thank you, Lisa. Yes, perhaps you should make
it clear that if children are picked up, they're not
going to be locked up.

Speaker 12 (01:06:57):
Yeah, that's correct. So obviously great question from Lisa on that.
And that's the whole goal. The goal. They are not
going to be arrested per se and have a criminal
record and a trial and all that. This is not
a criminal act. So this is a plan put together
to really start the process of intervening early. So as

(01:07:17):
I said, they will have access to therapists, counselors, resources
from the city and state level to really talk about
what is the problem. We talk about foster care and
stuff like that. If we find something that parents aren't
involved or something to that effect, then yes, those resources
will kick in and we'll get these answers some help.
You know, at the end of it. If there is

(01:07:40):
something of a situation where the children are homeless, in
these juveniles and they're having family issues or in foster
homes already, that's something I think that's going to really
expand out, not just from the city but to the
state level to where we can maybe get these children
some resources. But no, not a criminal We're not going

(01:08:01):
into this as a criminal mindset. This is not a
criminal This is this is a mindset of how do
we intervene early and get these youngsters some help?

Speaker 1 (01:08:10):
Yeah, yeah, it's it's it's going to be huge. Its
gonna be huge. And I guess the curfew of the
newer stricter curfew that it goes into effect immediately, correct,
I mean it's in effect now, correct, That.

Speaker 12 (01:08:24):
Is correct, it's min understanding.

Speaker 1 (01:08:25):
Yes, yeah, right after that, right after the city County
council meeting, it went into effect. Yes, okay, okay, we
have another caller. Let's see who is that sand SIS
SID SID SID Do you have a question? Go ahead,
said need to put my glasses.

Speaker 4 (01:08:41):
On, sheriff or whoever's there.

Speaker 15 (01:08:44):
It's not in regards to the five hundred. But this
year there's going to be an International Church convention downtown
and the services are probably run after nine pm and
young people will more likely be going to it.

Speaker 18 (01:08:58):
Whether it be lead way, are.

Speaker 15 (01:09:01):
Grace given to those individuals that go to events like that?

Speaker 12 (01:09:05):
So yeah, great question again. So yes, there are exceptions
written into the state law and the curfew that a
religious service is an exception to that.

Speaker 4 (01:09:14):
That's my answer, thank you.

Speaker 12 (01:09:16):
Okay, you're welcome.

Speaker 1 (01:09:17):
Now they do they have to be in the care
of a parent. I guess is there a certain age
or just a religious service in general?

Speaker 12 (01:09:25):
I believe it's just a religious service in general.

Speaker 1 (01:09:26):
Okay, okay, just in general? All right, Well, yeah, so
you know folks that that whose children or youngsters are
going to be out during this biggest month actually of
the year. We're about halfway through and I can't believe
we're almost halfway through the month of May. That's important
to know in terms of operations and things of that nature.

(01:09:49):
So anything else that we forgot.

Speaker 12 (01:09:54):
I don't think so, I mean, if any you know,
if as far as the race itself, if anybody plans ongoing,
you know, the one thing I will say, be patient,
Please be patient. There are a lot of people. It
takes time to get people in and out, hundreds of
thousands of a person, so please just just be patient.
We'll get you to where you need to be. And

(01:10:16):
you know, and to the folks that aren't going to
the race, you know, I just want them to know
that their police department is on canceled days off and
so neighborhoods, certain neighborhood services and communities will not be
impacted by the race. There'll be a full vote of
officers working each shift. So that's typically the month of

(01:10:37):
May is really xed out for us, and these officers
sacrifice a lot to make sure that these events go
off and people still have services they need.

Speaker 1 (01:10:45):
So all right, all right, well, thank you commander. And
I understand next week is National Police Week, so congratulations
on that and have a good National Police Week as well.

Speaker 12 (01:10:55):
I appreciate that to you. Thank you very much.

Speaker 1 (01:10:56):
All right, thank you appreciate And yeah, that's uh, Leon,
did you did you get up to date or up
to speed on that one idea? Yeah, that's a good one.

Speaker 19 (01:11:08):
I'm just trying to get up to speed on everything
in Indianapolis in like two weeks.

Speaker 1 (01:11:14):
You know what, this is something you and I have
talked about, ad knowledge and for years, and that is
I'm so glad you popped in voter participant, No, I
am voter participation. There people were acting like you know,
county election officials were screaming from the raftors. We had
fourteen point nine percent voter participation in the primary. Fourteen

(01:11:37):
point nine percent, almost double what we've had in the
you know, in previous primaries. I mean, you can go
all the way back to nineteen if you want, and
I did go back that far single digit. I think
it was like eight point six something. So I would
think that there's two ways to look at that. Yeah,
it's good that there was more interest in this past

(01:11:58):
primary than we've ever had in a long time. But
why do we still only have less than twenty even
less than eighteen percent? Or why is that? And the
other thing that was pointed out, which is something you
talk about all the time. I can't remember. Do you
remember who the public official was, Eric that said we

(01:12:19):
don't have a voter problem, we have a we don't
have a voter registration. We have a voter participation.

Speaker 3 (01:12:26):
I cannot They were on the show.

Speaker 1 (01:12:27):
Yeah, they were on the show, and I said, and
I told them, that's what you've been saying for years,
and it's true. It's like why somebody I think they
were saying. It's like getting dressed up and saying you're
going to go to the ball and then you don't go.
You just sit there. You know, I'm not going to go.

Speaker 6 (01:12:42):
Well and buy.

Speaker 1 (01:12:43):
Your clothes, do everything you need to do.

Speaker 6 (01:12:45):
And what people don't realize.

Speaker 19 (01:12:46):
I got into a discussion with someone and they were
telling me they don't vote in the primaries. I said, well,
you don't vote and they said, I've never missed the
election since I was eighteen. I said, well you've missed.
I said, how long you live in Indiana. I've lived
in Indiana for fifty years. Okay, well then you haven't

(01:13:07):
voted recently. And they were looking at me. They were hot,
and I said, let me explain this to you. And
I said this over and over again on the show.
If you live in the city of Indianapolis, you live
in a blue city that has a super majority in
a red state that has a supermajority. So if you

(01:13:29):
do not vote in the primary, you effectively did not vote.
And what I mean by that is very rarely is
a Republican going to win a city wide office in Indianapolis.
Ballad came through years ago, but in general, rarely, rarely,

(01:13:53):
rarely is a Republican gonna win a city wide ballot
in Indianapolis. So whoever moves from the primary is defecto
the general election winner. Right, and we live in a
red state. Tell me the last and I remember it

(01:14:13):
because he was in this building and we had a
conversation with him, And tell me the last statewide Democrat?

Speaker 1 (01:14:25):
Statewide democrat, meaning okay, in terms of what.

Speaker 19 (01:14:29):
Any office that was that covered the whole state, it
was it was a US senator.

Speaker 1 (01:14:36):
Oh by, it was Donelly done.

Speaker 6 (01:14:41):
And when was that twelve years ago? Maybe it was
a while ago.

Speaker 19 (01:14:48):
Well, because he lost, But he's he's he's not state
wide US. It's Donalley because there has been no governor,
no tenant governor.

Speaker 6 (01:15:00):
No, I mean you don't.

Speaker 19 (01:15:03):
You don't win that office if you're a republic if
you're a Democrat. It's those officers are won by Republicans.
So if you vote. If you're a Republican, you didn't
vote in the Republican primary, guess what you've de facto done.
So when I say that, and somebody is mad, and
I said, I come in here all the time, and
I said, depending on the election, twelve to fourteen percent

(01:15:25):
in the state of Indiana determines what the rest of
the state has and who they vote on. The people
who vote in the primaries in the state, especially if
you live in Marion County, your primaries you either vote
Democrat or Republican, and that's it.

Speaker 6 (01:15:39):
It's over.

Speaker 1 (01:15:40):
Yeah, what do you make of And I don't know
if you were aware of this or not, Bob cern
democratic candidate got more than forty five hundreds.

Speaker 6 (01:15:50):
And it's the difference between and it.

Speaker 1 (01:15:52):
Was a difference between Carlo Lopez Owns and Kate Tweeney
Bell who's either it was it was the difference.

Speaker 6 (01:15:57):
It actually was more than the difference that it was
more in the difference And how long ago did he die?

Speaker 1 (01:16:05):
April third, So I mean on April third, so called
me April first. Yeah, So that's a schedule an interview,
an interview.

Speaker 19 (01:16:15):
So that and that mean when I saw that, I
was like, wow, that that made a huge that was
the difference.

Speaker 1 (01:16:22):
But Dion, I gotta believe. I mean, I've been watching
Bob Kern for a long time and I.

Speaker 6 (01:16:26):
Shared he's coming here all the time.

Speaker 1 (01:16:28):
Yeah, yeah, I know, but I've shared this. I have
never known him to get more than a thousand or fifteen.

Speaker 6 (01:16:33):
People voted for.

Speaker 1 (01:16:36):
I don't know. I got to believe that some people
didn't know he was dead.

Speaker 6 (01:16:40):
I gotta believe that too.

Speaker 19 (01:16:41):
But and it's ironic that that is the difference in
the election. And quite honestly, nobody thought, I mean, Ryan
came out and supported Carlo, and nobody thought that she
had a chance. And to be that close and margin

(01:17:01):
says something when inside of itself, because nobody thought that
was going to happen, and it was that close.

Speaker 1 (01:17:09):
Yeah, he was on it was she worked in she
works in his office. Yeah, Miss Cordelia was and yeah,
and uh I some of these races that were yeah,
you're right, that were close. I'm I was kind of surprised.
But that one, that one surprised me the most. And
two things that surprised me was the dead man got

(01:17:29):
I don't know how many almost almost five thousand votes,
and that voter participation was up to fourteen point nine percent,
or you want to round it off to fifteen percent,
and people were excited about it.

Speaker 19 (01:17:39):
I think people are going to vote in the general election.
I think people are going to vote. I think they're
going to vote a lot. I think voter turn out
unless something happens, is going to be up across this country.
And it's going to be very interesting in some of
these districts that have been jerrymandered. They have been jerrymandered
based on previous votes in the past, so it'll be

(01:18:00):
interesting that if some of those districts come into play.
I think this is going to be a very, very
very interesting election.

Speaker 1 (01:18:08):
How do you think statewide Republicans are going to do,
especially those that are brown, they're going.

Speaker 6 (01:18:13):
To do well.

Speaker 19 (01:18:15):
It's you to be a seated governor, Democratic or Republican.
To be a seated governor in the state of Indiana,
you have to do a lot of things wrong to
have people under you not continuing office and for you
not to continue in office. Now, President Trump came out

(01:18:39):
and that affected a bunch of people.

Speaker 6 (01:18:42):
Would understand and how much money he spent and.

Speaker 19 (01:18:45):
Understand when you're talking about such a limited amount of
people who vote in the primaries. That's how you catch
people like that. You catch them in the primaries. There
was a mayor in my wife's hometown in Mount Vernon,
Indiana forever. I think he's the longest seated mayor in
the state, and he might have been one of the

(01:19:06):
longest seated mayors in the country. And what a bunch
of people did to get him out of office was
they switched over and they voted.

Speaker 6 (01:19:14):
You know what I'm saying.

Speaker 1 (01:19:15):
I know what you're saying.

Speaker 19 (01:19:17):
So few people can determine that when people don't vote
in the primary, and that's the way they got him
out of office. But so I think that's going to
be I think it's going to be very, very, very
interesting as we get up. I would not be shocked
if the Democrats still win the House. I would not
be shocked, and I would not be shocked if the

(01:19:37):
Senate is closer than what people think it will be.

Speaker 1 (01:19:42):
So you don't think the Democrats can take both.

Speaker 19 (01:19:45):
I don't know if they can take both, but I
think they The House is going to be close, and
I think the Senate's going to be close. And I
just left I've got the fans sports shirt on its
is upstairs because JMV went on the area yesterday and
he was saying, JMV has been saying all season, love
the Pacers throwing games, that Commerce is going to come
back to bite you, and Carma came back to bite

(01:20:05):
him on Sunday and he took his victory lap on
the area yesterday.

Speaker 6 (01:20:08):
So I was telling him, I said, you kind of
took your victory lap.

Speaker 19 (01:20:11):
And so I'm as I walked through here and I
was just walking through the hallway.

Speaker 6 (01:20:15):
First off, this is gorgeous. This building is. This is
the first studio I've actually been in.

Speaker 1 (01:20:21):
It is.

Speaker 6 (01:20:21):
This is the first studio I've actually been in. This is.
This building is gorgeous.

Speaker 19 (01:20:25):
The studios are gorgeous, and it's just good to be
back in this building.

Speaker 1 (01:20:31):
Can you imagine, I mean you, you and I knew
what it looked like before, and the mind that that
was able to create what has been created out of
the space that was here is incredible.

Speaker 19 (01:20:41):
Imagine this. Everybody says they need a Geene jacket like this.
This jean jacket goes back. It's probably older than most
people's kids in this building. This radio one jacket so,
but it's interesting that I think Indiana is going to
be We're going to see a lot next year in
the mayor's race is going to be very very very

(01:21:02):
very very.

Speaker 1 (01:21:05):
Very very How many more do you think we'll jump
in on the Democratic side, because there's already three declared.

Speaker 6 (01:21:11):
I told you, and I said this a year ago.
You remember this.

Speaker 19 (01:21:16):
I said, there'll be three candidates at least and a
fourth dark course, and the dark coast is probably seating
in the sitting in the chair right now. And two
of the three have already jumped in.

Speaker 1 (01:21:29):
You're talking about the mayor, I'm talking about.

Speaker 19 (01:21:31):
No, the dark horse being the mayor, and I'm talking
about Vop and Andrea have already jumped in. And there
is one more that I believe will jump in. And
do not be shocked if the mayor runs for a
fourth term. I just I was in New York City

(01:21:53):
when Bloomberg said over and over and over and over
again he was not going to run for a third term,
and he did, and he did it the last minute.
So do not be shocked if the mayor runs for
a fourth term.

Speaker 3 (01:22:05):
You do you think he would win if he would run?

Speaker 19 (01:22:08):
Like right now today, the problem is the primary again,
because and I don't know, and y'all and y'all tell me.
In Indiana, you have to get fifty percent in the primary,
or do you'd have to just win straight out?

Speaker 1 (01:22:24):
I don't want to say either way. I'm thinking just
straight out because a lot of the winners didn't get
That's true, it didn't they.

Speaker 6 (01:22:32):
Oh what's her name? Didn't get fifty percent? Yeah, you're right,
So it's just went straight out. Okay, straight out.

Speaker 19 (01:22:38):
So if you have to just win straight out, I
think the mayor has a very good chance of.

Speaker 6 (01:22:44):
Winning just on name recognition.

Speaker 1 (01:22:47):
Well no, I'm.

Speaker 6 (01:22:49):
Just being honest.

Speaker 1 (01:22:50):
No, no, no, I agree. I've seen him out in
crowds and people go crazy love.

Speaker 19 (01:22:54):
I think on name recognition. And it's something I said
in here off Mike. I saw that the Star News
said interesting because this there's two candidates right now. I
strongly believe that there's three candidates. I strongly believe there's
going to be a third candidate right who's going to

(01:23:16):
be as strong as those other two candidates. Each candidate
has their different challenges that they need to get over.
But this field right now, Bob is a very strong candidate.
Andrew is a very strong candidate, I mean, and the

(01:23:38):
third candidate I think will jump in will be a
very strong candidate. Of course, the mayor will be a
very strong candidate.

Speaker 1 (01:23:44):
So it's going to be administrator. David Bright is the
third candidate right now. Yeah, yeah, And he.

Speaker 19 (01:23:51):
Was one of the presidents of one of the unions,
one of the trade unions, so is.

Speaker 1 (01:23:59):
Not ruled out of fourth term.

Speaker 19 (01:24:01):
Yeah, And I think Hawk said we'll see, And I
do think there's a third candidate that will jump in there.
And two of them have a lot of money, right so,
well on the one that has not. One of them
that's in the race has a good deal of money

(01:24:22):
right now. The candidate I'm haven't because I'm like going
people's names out there, haven't done stuff. The candidate has
not jumped in has a lot of money, and the
mayor will have a lot of money, right And what
I said off air in here, I guess the Star
News wrote an article about I haven't seen yet that

(01:24:42):
people should not discount Andrew. People should not discount her
if she can raise the money. She is a She
is a strong candidate, period, especially from her background as
a principal and what she's done. She is a very
strong candidate and her activism in this community. If she

(01:25:04):
can raise the money. And I sat in here all
the time and talk about this because people don't realize
it's about the money. When Biden, when the money got
cut off from Biden, before there was any announcement or whatever,
I stood in here and said, Biden's done, the money's
cut off. Remember that the money's gone. It's all about
the money. And it sounds bad to say it like that,

(01:25:25):
it's all about the money.

Speaker 1 (01:25:26):
Well, look at all of the Republican senator state senators
that Trump primaried. They had an increase in spending in
that race five thousand percent, dyon five thousand percent. So
it went from what normally all five of those would
have been around two hundred and fifty thousand a quarter
of a million, to thirteen point five million. So, yeah,

(01:25:47):
you put that much money and you're gonna get some action.

Speaker 6 (01:25:49):
And it's all about the primary allot.

Speaker 19 (01:25:52):
When you've got four or five legitimate candidates, you just
got to get more than more votes than the other one. Yeah,
So the money becomes name recognition like crazy. Yeah, So
it becomes about the money.

Speaker 1 (01:26:09):
Katie, very quickly. You want to way in here.

Speaker 20 (01:26:12):
Yes, I've just been hearing you talk about the man
that died want the vote, But I can't understand because
of the man of that statue should have been out
in the news, the newspaper. So it's all my understanding
this stuff could have been done intentionally.

Speaker 1 (01:26:29):
What do you mean, I'm not following. I agree, I
agree with you.

Speaker 19 (01:26:34):
I agree with you. I and Tina said some people
didn't know. And when I said I agree with you,
I think some of those people as a protest vote, right.

Speaker 6 (01:26:44):
Just against everything going on. So it was a protest vote.

Speaker 20 (01:26:49):
We just dumb people in an Innneapolis because there's no
what it's no way this man death wouldn't have been
on TV, the news, radio and everything else.

Speaker 19 (01:26:58):
Especially when Tina said the most he got was fifteen
hundred two thousand in the past. Now, what I do
think is unfortunate if if someone did use it as
a protest vote for whatever reason, it became the margin
of victory for somebody.

Speaker 1 (01:27:13):
Yeah, yeah, that's the.

Speaker 20 (01:27:16):
Stend it up so they can have.

Speaker 1 (01:27:18):
The If you're Carla Lopez, what are you thinking of that?

Speaker 14 (01:27:21):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (01:27:21):
Yeah, well yeah, okay, I got you, I gotcha, gotcha?
All right, you too, thank you. So there it was.
I can't wait until the front, I mean till the
general uh in November, because I think it's going to
be it's gonna be good. We're gonna see some surprises.

Speaker 19 (01:27:39):
Well in in Indianapolis and Indiana.

Speaker 6 (01:27:43):
I don't I don't know how many surprises we're going to.

Speaker 19 (01:27:45):
See in places that are seriously up to grabs like
Georgia and some of those other places.

Speaker 6 (01:27:53):
The amount of money.

Speaker 19 (01:27:54):
That's going to be spent, and I think some of
those places, the turnout is going to be like already.
I was in Atlanta last week and they already had
the largest prerechi. I think the election is today, right,
I think.

Speaker 1 (01:28:12):
I think Georgia is today.

Speaker 6 (01:28:14):
I think it's today, and they had the largest.

Speaker 1 (01:28:16):
Somebody started.

Speaker 6 (01:28:19):
Today.

Speaker 1 (01:28:19):
Somebody started early voting either yesterday or today as well,
I can't remember which state that was.

Speaker 19 (01:28:24):
And they had the largest early verter voter turnout in
their history already in Georgia. And I think that's gonna go.
I think that's just gonna carry out for the election.

Speaker 3 (01:28:35):
I think in.

Speaker 19 (01:28:35):
Texas, I think the people are gonna turn out and Texas, Like,
it's hard to say somebody is in trouble in red
red states.

Speaker 6 (01:28:47):
You know it is?

Speaker 1 (01:28:48):
It really is, it really is.

Speaker 19 (01:28:50):
Because everybody talks about how much bron is in trouble
here and I and I challenge it. Always give me
a legitimate and everybody comes for me. I'm a Republican
on Republican before you come from me. I'm just asking
a question. Give me a legitimate name that can win
a state wide office. And Bay is the only name

(01:29:10):
that comes up, right, Yeah, And the and the question
does is buy does Bay do what Dad did? Get
the one seat on the state wide office and flip
and turn around and run for governor.

Speaker 2 (01:29:26):
Georgia's Georgia's primary is the nineteenth, So it's.

Speaker 19 (01:29:29):
Next, it's next month, next, it's next Tuesday.

Speaker 1 (01:29:33):
So did they start early voting today?

Speaker 6 (01:29:35):
They started?

Speaker 19 (01:29:35):
No, they started early voting already before and they had
the largest amount of like mail everything else.

Speaker 1 (01:29:42):
Somebody started today or yesterday, I can't remember. But anyway, Yeah,
that's good, that's good, that's good. I can Boy, do
you think Stacey Amams isn't running for anything yet? No,
she's just going to keep working in the field.

Speaker 19 (01:29:55):
But Kisha Lance Bottoms is running, so that'll be interesting that.
I mean, she can definitely raise the money. She definitely
has name recognition, former mayor, Yeah, former mayor of Atlanta.
It will get down to voter turnout.

Speaker 1 (01:30:13):
Right, Yeah, Well, they don't have to worry about weather
as much as we did here. I wonder if the
weather may have impacted the turnout here on election day
because our primary election numbers were over where they were
at the same time point in time during the primary
election early voting. I think across the country, early voting

(01:30:36):
was up.

Speaker 6 (01:30:37):
People are going to.

Speaker 19 (01:30:38):
Turn out and vote for this election based on what's
happening in America right now, based on what's happening. How
many people do you know who didn't vote in protests
last year, Tina, I can.

Speaker 6 (01:30:49):
Sit here and just name lots and keep going.

Speaker 1 (01:30:53):
A whole lot of them called here.

Speaker 6 (01:30:54):
And what did that get you?

Speaker 7 (01:30:56):
Well?

Speaker 19 (01:30:57):
Yeah, and they got mad when I wouldn't when I
wouldn't put him on air.

Speaker 1 (01:31:03):
Well, you don't put anybody that calls in as anonymous
on air. Yeah, that's that's your rule.

Speaker 12 (01:31:09):
You got her opinion.

Speaker 19 (01:31:10):
You gotta you gotta be male or female enough to
stand by whatever you're.

Speaker 6 (01:31:15):
Saying, I just say that way.

Speaker 1 (01:31:16):
There's nothing wrong with that. So all right, what time
is your meeting? Two thirty?

Speaker 19 (01:31:20):
I'm late, Tina. You know exactly what you do. Yeah, yeah,
she's good at that.

Speaker 6 (01:31:29):
All right, y'all.

Speaker 1 (01:31:31):
Much love to you, Tina, Thank you, thank you, same
to you, and we're gonna be giving away some tickets
DJ gino Celebration of Choir coming up right before we
get off the air, so stay tuned.

Speaker 11 (01:31:42):
Let's get back to the conversation. It's Community Connection with
Tina Cosby, brought to you by Child Advocates, a champion
for justice, opportunity and well being for children on phrase
Am thirteen ten ninety five point one FM.

Speaker 1 (01:31:57):
And we're back with three to Connection. Tina be here
with our producer Eric Garns. Eric, let's go ahead and
give away those tickets to DJ Geno's upcoming celebration of Choirs.
Three yeah, three, one, seven, four eight zero thirteen ten.
That's the number to call and when we give you
the number, you can call then or because if you
call it now, you're not going to be that number.

(01:32:18):
Call give you the number and.

Speaker 2 (01:32:20):
Also you can only you can't have one you cannot
have won in the last thirty days.

Speaker 3 (01:32:25):
If you won like twenty eight days ago. Eh, you
can't win.

Speaker 1 (01:32:29):
Okay, I'm going to give you the number three one
seven four eight zero thirteen ten. Three one seven four
eight zero thirteen ten. That's the number to the show.
If you are a caller number, Eric, I'm gonna say seven,
caller number seven, seven seven, you will win two free
tickets to the show. DJ Geno's Celebration of Choirs coming
to Clues Memorial Hall Campus at University May thirty first.

(01:32:53):
Ricky Dillard was special featured guest Vincent Bohannon and Sov
and the Chicago Mass Choir, as well as five local
choirs that will open the show with well known local
choir directors. All of that's coming up. Eric, Oh my goodness,
look at the line. So you're gonna do your thing.

Speaker 3 (01:33:11):
I'm gonna go grab caller seven. We'll come right back.

Speaker 1 (01:33:14):
Okay, you're gonna grab collar seven and you come right
back al right. Well, in the meantime, Oh, you want
to hear about the local choir directors. The Reverend Carl
Doctor Carl Liggins for Mount Olive, James Andrews, Total new Direction,
Total New Beginnings, James Andrews Total New Beginnings, Mondo Hall
with New Direction, Sherry Garrison with Eastern Star, and Bryce
and Robinson from Light of the World. You can get

(01:33:36):
your tickets now at Clues Memorial Hall's box office or
at djgen No dot net Djgino dot net.

Speaker 7 (01:33:46):
Here.

Speaker 1 (01:33:46):
Well, Eric is doing I just wanted I hesitated and
I said, okay, I'll go ahead and put it out
here for a few minutes anyway, but social media is
absolutely on fire regarding one of our local athletes and
uh a gesture that was made man for you do okay.

Speaker 3 (01:34:07):
I think we have call her seven?

Speaker 1 (01:34:10):
Oh you? Oh, well go ahead?

Speaker 3 (01:34:11):
Then, Hello, who's there?

Speaker 4 (01:34:13):
This is Marcus.

Speaker 2 (01:34:14):
Marcus got good news for congratulations calling number seven.

Speaker 3 (01:34:19):
You're number seven?

Speaker 1 (01:34:20):
Well congratulations Marcus. Are you at work?

Speaker 17 (01:34:27):
Yes?

Speaker 1 (01:34:27):
Okay? Oh so you can talk at work?

Speaker 5 (01:34:29):
Then?

Speaker 18 (01:34:29):
Right?

Speaker 12 (01:34:30):
Yes? Yes?

Speaker 1 (01:34:32):
Good, alrighty alrighty. So who you're gonna take to the
show with you?

Speaker 4 (01:34:36):
Probably one of my sisters. I haven't decided yet.

Speaker 1 (01:34:39):
Oh you're a good brother. That's very nice. Is nice,
very very nice work? So who do you have a
favorite on the on the ticket?

Speaker 7 (01:34:46):
There?

Speaker 1 (01:34:47):
Anybody you especially are looking forward to sing?

Speaker 4 (01:34:50):
Ricky Dillard.

Speaker 1 (01:34:51):
Oh okay you before go ahead, Eric, That's what I
was gonna.

Speaker 2 (01:34:57):
Well, when you do, get ready for or you probably
if you try to move like he does, you'll be sweating.

Speaker 3 (01:35:04):
I guarantee you.

Speaker 4 (01:35:05):
Okay, Okay, Ricky, he's.

Speaker 3 (01:35:07):
Into it with the directing. That does he sing, Tina,
I'm trying to think.

Speaker 1 (01:35:10):
I know he does.

Speaker 3 (01:35:14):
He talks.

Speaker 1 (01:35:15):
Yeah, it's similar to Kirk Franklin, who doesn't necessarily break
down in songs. Yeah, bust out, but.

Speaker 4 (01:35:21):
He's always got a good card.

Speaker 2 (01:35:23):
He's got most definitely, and he he directs. His directing
is off.

Speaker 3 (01:35:27):
The off the chain, the just amazing.

Speaker 1 (01:35:30):
Amazing, amazing, Marcus, congratulations, say on the line. And Eric's
gonna get you all hooked up there, okay, all right,
all right, enjoy, enjoy, and uh. While Eric's getting Marcus
all taken care of, I think, yeah, well, yeah, we
told you who was all going to be on the

(01:35:50):
on the ticket for the show. We're gonna give away
another one, another set tomorrow, so you know, stay tuned,
tune in again tomorrow. Tomorrow might be your lucky day,
your lucky day. This No one is social media driven.
Its talking about a local athlete Caitlin Clark with the
Indiana fever. Apparently there's this country music star named Morgan

(01:36:11):
Wallan who has a tradition of whatever city he goes to,
he picks a celebrity from that city to take the
walk I guess, walk out on stage with him. As
it has been explained to me. I don't know. I
didn't even know who Morgan Waller was. But anyway, apparently
cait Clark on Saturday walked on stage with him. Now,

(01:36:33):
Waller is a bit of a controversial figure in that
he used the N word against several black people near
his house back in twenty twenty one. That was all
over TMZ. Since that incident, it kind of blew up
because he got suspended. He since apologized. He went to
rehab and donated money from his album sales, which, by

(01:36:56):
the way, happened to spike over the controversy. His album
sales went up to the tune of over five hundred
thousand dollars. He took that money and donated it to
black organization because he was so remorseful for what he
had done. But apparently, you know, and he again he

(01:37:19):
has since been in rehab and some other things. But
just a year before, he had been arrested for drunkenness
at kid Rocks bar. Kid Rock, of course, musician and huge, huge, huge,
huge Trump supporter, and then just two years ago arrested

(01:37:40):
for drunkenness after reportedly tossing a chair off of a bar.
I don't remember what city that was, but anyway, for
tossing a chair off of a bar. So I say
all that, and hopefully you all are connecting the dots.
This guy has a substance abuse problem, or so it

(01:38:01):
would appear. He also has a problem with diversity, even
though he's apologized and paid money. But even before that,
he was hanging out with Kid Rock, who we all
know is a big maga type of person. So for
one of our local athletes to walk out on stage
with him, even though this stuff was five, six, whatever

(01:38:21):
years ago, and he's tried to make it right, people
just went nuts. They went nuts. They're still going nuts
on social media, saying she shouldn't have done that, that
was tone deaf, and you know, blah blah. It was
not too long after a game The Fever played last
Saturday at one and I think the concert was that
evening here in Indianapolis and she walked out with him.

(01:38:44):
So no word from her just yet on how she's
responding to the controversy. I can tell you looking on
social media, one post after another after another, podcasters, everybody's
weighing in on how she could take the stage and
walk out with someone who has been hostile to us,

(01:39:09):
to black people, and who represents you know, what he represents.
So yeah, that's that's kind of, you know, kind of
what they've been talking about. And I thought I didn't
do I didn't go to it yesterday because I thought
it might be today. It's even you know, there's even
more you know, more heat out there on it. So

(01:39:30):
I don't know if there is anything. I don't know.

Speaker 3 (01:39:34):
I don't know what could she say she.

Speaker 1 (01:39:36):
Likes country music, I don't know.

Speaker 3 (01:39:39):
Maybe maybe then you can't justify what he said. Nope,
and then walk out on well that stuff.

Speaker 1 (01:39:45):
You know. I think another part of that is folks
need to just get over not get over it, but
just stop trying to assign uh perfection to these athletes
because they're not a lot of them, uh you know,
A lot of them are very kind, inches very society friendly,
very community friendly. A lot of them, don't you know,

(01:40:05):
they don't really know or don't understand or don't care
what have you. And so just I don't know. I
don't know what she could say at this point.

Speaker 2 (01:40:13):
Anyway, go ahead, want to say again congratulations to Marcus Kradock.
He was our winner of the Celebration of a Choir tickets.
In case you were still trying to call, congratulations to
Marcus and Tina. You know the one Voyage twenty twenty
six is here is coming up. You can sail with
the Ricky Smiley from Miami at this October. The Ultimate
adults only Experience supports HBCU. Students staying in school can

(01:40:34):
lock in your cabin right now at one Voyage Cruise
dot com.

Speaker 3 (01:40:39):
One Voyage Cruise dot Com.

Speaker 1 (01:40:42):
Love the cruise, I want to get that. Yeah, love
hearing about it and love the fact that folks go
and help keep our kids in school. Oh absolutely, is
absolutely fantastic. So now we got to run already.

Speaker 3 (01:40:54):
Yeah, I'm looking at the clock when I'm going that
can't be right.

Speaker 1 (01:40:57):
Uh yeah, I looked at it too, and I was like,
ericskin play the music, Yeah, I guess, Yeah, Well that's
all the time we do have for right now. Williemore Jr.
On the radio is up next. Our website is Praiseindy
dot com. You can access that twenty four to seven.
We'll be back tomorrow for everyone here. Thank you as

(01:41:18):
always from everyone here, Thank you as always for listening.
And again, like I said, we'll be back tomorrow. Until then.
For Eric Garnes and myself, this is community connection

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Community Connection - May 12 2026 - Tina Cosby with Open Lines and later IMPD Special Operations Commander Charles DeBlaso joins the show

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Community Connection - May 12 2026 - Tina Cosby with Open Lines and later IMPD Special Operations Commander Charles DeBlaso joins the show