December 21, 2025 • 40 mins
Melina Abdullah is Professor and former Chair of Pan-African Studies at Cal State University, Los Angeles. She earned her Ph.D. and M.A. from the University of Southern California in Political Science and her B.A. from Howard University in African American Studies. She is the Director of BLM Grassroots and lead organizer for Black Lives Matter LA.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
KBLA Talk fifteen eighty. Good morning, Good morning, and God
bless I'm Dominic d Deprima. This show is called First
Things First, and my very first thing every day is
given thanks to God.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Just some prayer, giving, thanksgiving, praise, asking.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
For blessings from the Most High, asking for the blessings
of the ancestors and the elders.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
And let's go.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
We have a lot to talk about and a lot
to do and glad you're here for it. So this
is how we do it on a think tank Thursday.
Think Tank Thursday. Our one we look local, our two,
we go national, international, and beyond. And in the third
hour we do a deep dive on a hot topic
or a person or persons of interest. Sometimes it's a
(00:43):
combination of all of those things.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Today we will be.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Talking with some of our African Focus Incorporated trail Blazers.
I'm wearing my sweatshirt, which you could see if you
were watching the live stream on YouTube at KBLA fifteen eighty.
In there, I'm wearing my African Focused Trailblazers a sweatshirt.
So we'll talk about our trips and some folks will
give their impressions, their thoughts, and we'll talk about Africa
(01:11):
in general. You're invited to hop on that train. That's
gonna be a lot of fun. We always have a
wild bunch with us, and it'll be good to see
folks again.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Our two.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
We've got the phone lines open and yeah, we have
the phone lines wide open hour two and you know
it'll be one of those. My think tank, and I
know this is kind of corny, but you know you
can serve with it as you will, is what do
you want to leave in twenty twenty five and what
(01:46):
do you think we should carry forward with us into
the new calendar year. What do you want to leave
behind here? I mean there's a lot of things we
wish we could leave behind, maybe the president, maybe tariffs
and high prices. Perhaps it's just all the stress, whatever
you want to leave behind, But I think it's also
(02:09):
really productive to think about what we gained, what we loved,
what we want to keep, what you know, it's the
old what Sahara A Leios says, a focus on what
you want part. So that's my think tank. Easy lob
over the holiday home plate.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
For you on thistinc Tank Thursday.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
I think there's some value though in looking at what's good,
not only what's bad, and believe it or not, a
lot of great things happen in twenty twenty five. You know,
we know that when it bleeds, it leads, and there
has been some terrible, tragic occurrences and the constant barrage
of news that seems to hell bent on making us
(02:54):
depressed and discouraged. But when we gather ourselves and you know,
take stock of the victories, take stock of the lessons
of the miles traveled, of the books, read of the
friends hugged, of the family loved up, on all of
(03:17):
those good things, that is when we remember that there's
a lot we.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Can hold on to.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
In twenty twenty five, so fulle lines open hour two
of the show, I'm gonna do it collar amnesty with
one small caveat it means even if you've called before,
you can call again, because we typically try to limit
it to once a week. But it's in the spirit
of the holidays, we're going to do some collar amnesty
and kind of wind down twenty twenty five.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
I will say this.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
Though, in winding down twenty twenty five, that you know
we always want you to stay with us and ride
with us through the whole whole spectrum on the holidays, Kwanza, Christmas, Hanukkah,
and the New Year, all of that. But I wanted
(04:11):
my caveat for the caller amnesty today is, you know,
we'll keep them a little short and sweet. We'll do
you know, small to medium size points instead of entire manifestos,
just so that we make sure there's room for anybody
and everybody who wants to weigh in before this.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
Year is out. So that's our two.
Speaker 1 (04:33):
And then right now as we focus on what's local,
on what's going on on the left coast, this side
of town. And of course you're welcome every hour to
call at eight hundred nine two oh fifteen eighty. See
that I just had a New York accent for one second.
You wilcome to cool at one eight hundred nine two
oh fifteen eighty one eight hundred nine two oh fifteen eighty.
(04:56):
I am joined by my friend and colleague, my fellow mom.
She's also got a lot of jobs. She's some of
them paid, most of them not. She's a professor at
cal State LA. She's a director of Black Lives Matter Grassroots,
and she is the lead organizer for BLMLA doctor Malina Abdullah,
good morning.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
Hey, good morning, sister Dominie.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Uh oh, she's been protesting again. The voice is almost gone.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Good morning. Great to hear from you.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
I was just talking about, you know, kind of setting
the tone for this think tank think tank Thursday, one
of our final weeks of the year, in looking at
what we want to leave in twenty twenty five and
what we want to bring forward with us in twenty
twenty six. And you always say we need to celebrate
the wins.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
And the victory.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
So I think that's a good place to start, because
one of the things we are bringing into twenty twenty
six is Jakeisha's Law, a huge victory for Black Lives Matter,
Grassroots for BLMLA, BLM California and Assembly Member Isaac Brian
and all families who have loved ones incarcerated or who
(06:09):
may ever have loved ones incarcerated.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
Absolutely, we are so grateful about the passage and implementation
of Waksha's law. It shouldn't have to be a law.
It shouldn't have to be a law, but what it
does is require twenty four hour family notification when a
loved one is killed or injured or harmed in prisons, jails,
(06:34):
and detention centers. And it's named in honor of Wakisha Wilson,
who was a black mama killed inside LAPD Metro Detention
Center and her family spent four days in an excruciating
search for her before even learning that she was dead.
And so I know you had sister Sheila Hines on.
(06:57):
I know we've talked with and I was grateful to
be with you last week, and our assembly Member Isaac Bryan,
who authored the law, and really it took almost ten
years of work in Wakesha's name to get that law passed.
And of course Wakeisha's mom and Auntie were at the
front of that fight, and BLMLA BLM grass Roots was
(07:20):
honored to struggle alongside them and have the ability to
sit with legislators who were courageous events like Isaac, to
take on police associations. And our only opposition was the
sheriff who wanted to black that law.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
You know, it's funny you'd say that the lawmakers stood
courageously on this, and I know that we even had
at least one or two Republican votes on this particular bill,
because like you said, it shouldn't have to be a
law Oh whats we killed your loved one, you know,
to let you know, Oh, they're in the hospital.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
That said, I think that's really.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
An interesting point because here we are in a time
where I feel like people are very scared.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
A lot of people are.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
I see some folks distancing themselves from Black Lives Matter.
I've actually had a couple folks advise me to distance
myself as a so called celebrity and whatnot, and.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
So the fear is palatable.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
But at the same time, you're able to get this
major success in taking this law across the finish line,
and we were seeing some courage and spots with lawmakers.
I mean, I think the fact that some lawmakers, some Republicans,
stepped up yesterday and said, we're you know, we're gonna
call for a vote on these subsidies for the Affordable
(08:44):
Care Act, even Republicans. So it's like this weird combination
of cowardice and bravery that are happening at the same time.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
What do you make of that?
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Yeah, Well, for Wakisha's law, we didn't have an issue
with lawmakers voting correctly on the bill. What we had
an issue with is finding an author for the bill
because nobody wanted to take it on. Nobody wanted to
be the lead, nobody wanted to be out front. Gratefully,
you know, Isaac is actually, maybe he might not want
(09:15):
me to say this, but the sheriff already hated him
because of measure Ja. So Isaac was like, I'll take it.
He's also really grounded in the work that we do,
and you know, had been a part of the demonstrations
at LAPD headquarters, had been a part of doing work
(09:35):
in LA Police Commission to call for justice in the
name of Wakisha Wilson. So the courage came from him
being willing to initiate. Once he initiated the law, once
he authored it and introduced it, he did a lot
of work having conversations with lawmakers. But it was interesting
(09:56):
being in those hearings and watching as virtually every lawmaker
couldn't be moved. They could not be moved by sister
Lisa Hines as she talked about what happened to her daughter,
and nobody voted no, that we know it. So, but
(10:18):
the sheriff had the nerve to come up in there
and go it would it would take us too much
time to call everybody, Well, then the problem is you killed.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
You're killing too many people?
Speaker 4 (10:28):
Right?
Speaker 3 (10:28):
What? Right?
Speaker 1 (10:30):
What kind of illogic is that man? Almighty people with
their crazy illogical logic. So when we come forward, I
wanted to ask you to put on your political scientist
hat for a moment because on yesterday it was reported
by the La Times and I was somewhat touched on
it about council Member John Lee getting this uh fine,
(10:53):
and what reminded me of it was the bad excuses
he was making for why they why he didn't take
the bribes. I went to Nancy Dinners, but I didn't eat,
and stupid stuff like that, Why why does that guy
get a fine? And you know Current Price and Mark
Ridley Thomas get hunted down, Doctor Mark Ridley Thomas and
council member Current Price get hunted down with criminal charges.
(11:17):
Just hoping you can make it make sense that and
more when we come forward on KBLA Talk fifteen eighty
Right now, Jacqueline Anderson points out that I forgot one
of your important bona fides, Doctor Abdullah, that you are
the president of the Prince Fan Club internationally. Thank you
for the reminder and no disrespect intended there, Doc.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Look, thank you so much for So what do you
make of this?
Speaker 1 (11:45):
Council Member John Lee cases now they're going to the
Ethics Commission, says he's got to pay one hundred and
thirty eight dollars four hundred and twenty four. No, one
hundred and thirty eight, four hundred and twenty four dollars pricey,
you know, expensive meals, bottle service, gambling chips when he
went to Vegas. Apparently all of these things were bribes.
He accepted his boss at that time, Councilmember Mitch Englander
(12:09):
actually did.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Go to jail. You know, I don't I don't know better,
so he knew better.
Speaker 1 (12:18):
And not only that, I mean, I don't see how
this is not a clear violation. You're taking basically bribes.
The judge in the case said he he did take
stuff he wasn't supposed to take, but they stopped short
of saying he misused misused his position, which is confusing
to me because if I use my position to get bribes,
(12:41):
that seems like a misuse of a city council seat.
But you know, I'm not a judge, I'm not a lawyer.
What I don't get is how he gets a fine, grant,
I grant you, it's a steep fine. And Current Price
council member, Current Price who didn't even take bribes. He
just put his wife on his insurance when they weren't
(13:03):
actually legally married yet, or he wasn't legally divorced from
the other one, and.
Speaker 2 (13:07):
He could just pay that back instead, they want to
bring charges against him. Don't get it, well.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
I get it. I mean it's the same thing like
I used to have a student who used to say,
the answer is white supremacy. The answer is always white supremacy,
right that. You know, black politicians are being set up
from the moment they take office, from the moment they
consider taking office. And so I'm not saying that Current
(13:39):
Price is, you know, at the vanguard of the struggle
or anything like that. I'm really mad at the entire
black political class right now around you know what's happening
with funding for LAPD, with their unwillingness see and stand
up for workers, with these the Olympic suages. I'm really
(14:03):
mad at them. And Current Price is still a black man,
I mean a regular black man. I remember seeing the
last time I saw a Current Price it was when
not inside City Hall was when we were standing in
line for Phillips Barbecue on Crimshaw right, which in regular,
and so he's being set up. That's what's happened to
(14:24):
Current Price, to Mark Ridley Thomas. And the contrast is
John Lee is not a black man. He's also doesn't
have even as progressive of a track record as a
Current Price or Mark Ridley Thomas, and so of course
the system is treating them very differently.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
You know, I noticed that about LA when I first
came here too, that the press treats black electeds way
more harshly than anybody else, even others so called BIPOC people,
the LA Times in particular, but the LA press in
general loves to tear down black electeds.
Speaker 2 (15:02):
It's it's like a sport.
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, because how dare you run in the
first place? How dare you hold that position in the
first place? I mean, to your answers, white suppress anti blackness,
white supremacy.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
That's the answer to.
Speaker 1 (15:18):
Your point about being angry with local electeds. What you know,
I know that you also have a position with your union.
I didn't include that in your bio, your intro either,
But what I don't understand what happened with the Council president.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
Really.
Speaker 1 (15:37):
I mean I understand it in the most basic way,
which is he's moving to delay the promised increases in
SAP pay hourly wages for people who work at the Olympics,
you know, tourism workers. And I'm assuming that the rationale
(15:58):
is our budget woes. But I'm really not understanding how
it's working politically because typically politicians, especially progressive Democrats, tend
to be cooperative with labor.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Yeah, I think it's a terrible political calculation that Marquise
Harris Dawson made. Terrible political calculation. And I'm saying that
first because Marquise, like most politicians, it seems he puts
his calculation, puts himself in his political ambitions ahead of
(16:34):
how he's serving community. And I'm saying this as someone
who has genuine love for Marquise as a person. The
column that I wrote for today that comes out in
the Sentinel today is about how used to be progressive
is ain't good enough. And it's a letter to Karen Bass,
(16:57):
Marquise Harris Dawson, and the entire black political class. It's
not good enough for you to happen to be black
It's not good enough for you to say I used
to do good work at community coalition. When you betray
black people, when you betray the working class, there should
be political consequences. It's astounding to me that he is
(17:22):
misplaying even the political calculus of what's happening. This is
a betrayal of labor, which is the only real kind
of powerful counterbalance to the balance of the right wing
and the Police Protective League. But it seems like he's
(17:42):
playing for the support of the Police Protective League because
at the same time he's saying Olympic workers shouldn't get
thirty dollars an hour, which is not a high wage.
Anybody who lives in LA and knows that the average
cost of an apartment is too thousand dollars a month.
He also said it from the days that the police
(18:05):
chief will get every single dollar he ever requests.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Okay, but to be fair, I mean, thirty bucks an
hour is not a lot to try to live in LA.
But it is a lot compared to the minimum wage,
compared to what you know, what is it? What most
a lot of other workers in lower wage jobs the
sixteen bucks an hour, or if you're in you know,
certain jurisdictions up closer to twenty it is. It is
(18:35):
a lot more than those folks.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
It's higher. It's not enough. But there was a study
that came out that's it really a livable wage in
Los Angeles is more like doubled at more like sixty
dollars an hour. To be the affordability wage would be
sixty dollars an hour. So I get what you're saying,
it's better than the bottom of the barrel. But we're
(18:59):
talking about about an Olympics wage. We're talking about money
that's coming in where you're essentially saying that these companies
don't have to pay their workers a greater share of
their profits.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
But the thing that I don't get. I mean, what
he did is he what if it's you know that motion.
What it does is it phases in that wage over
a longer period of time, so they wouldn't get the
thirty bucks until twenty thirty. But I just don't The
business groups tried to get repeal this wage and get
(19:35):
it on the ballot, and they failed, So why.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
Not let it rest? That's right, why not let it rest?
Speaker 1 (19:42):
They failed? So leave it alone. But that is not
what he chose to do. Man, we are really going
to have to go into a speed round here.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
We do have a lot to cover.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
I'm going to try to be more disciplined after news,
traffic and sports. Doctor Malina Abdullah Dominic to Freeman for
KBLA Talk fifteen. Yes, doctor Malina Abdullah is my guest.
She's the director of Black Lives Matter Grassroots, the actual
real Black Lives Matter, not the not the Global Network Foundation,
which is holding the money that they took, stole, grifted,
(20:18):
however you want to call it. So let's talk about
my speed around here. Let's talk about this AB seven
seven fifteen. I believe it is the Assembly bill that
recently passed this fall, which I call it the fake
civil rights bill because it says that it's fighting an
anti Semitism, but it looks like what it really does
(20:40):
is deputize the ADL and conservative students to rat out
professors who try to talk about anything that they don't
like and or criticize Israel.
Speaker 3 (20:52):
Yeah, this is a really, really scary bill. AB seven
fifteen is something that Black Lives Matter grass Roots in
my young in the California Faculty Association, along with virtually
every education group staunchly opposed. AB seven fifteen was rammed
through at the last minute. It makes it you can
(21:15):
discipline teachers for what they say, do or make you
feel in the classroom. So anything that a teacher does,
a K three twelve teacher does that makes someone who
identifies with Israel feel uncomfortable is subject to disciplinary action.
When there's already a mechanism if you do something that's
(21:37):
out of line, then it's supposed to be reported. It's
also an anti labor bill because that's negotiated in labor negotiations,
right that if a teacher is supposed to be disciplined, fired,
or remoted or moved from the classroom, that has to
go through a process. This bill goes around that process.
So unfortunately, and I'll say it because some peopeople are
(22:00):
afraid to say, the Israeli lobby absolutely bought and paid
for this bill. It was interest like APAK and they
don't want me to say JPACK, but it was JPAK
to Jewish Political Action or Political Public Affairs Council is
what PACK stands for. But they mean PACK right. That
(22:23):
maneuvered this bill, that used members of the Jewish Legislative
Caucus to be really really unethical and bully and pass
it through, and then the governor signed it, and we
were opposed then and we're opposed now. We're grateful that
yesterday the first challenge to the bill made its way
(22:45):
into court and the Arab American Defense Council is leading
that challenge. My union, the California Faculty Association, side gone.
But we have to make sure that this bill doesn't happen.
Here's a the clinch. The clincher is the debate that
they're having in the court is do classroom teachers have
(23:09):
First Amendment rights? That's crazy, that's what's being debated.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
That's really crazy.
Speaker 1 (23:14):
So like, how could it so like as if classroom
teachers aren't people, because those are the rights of humans
in this supposedly in this country, right every.
Speaker 3 (23:25):
Other job in the world. You don't forego your First
Amendment right because you take the job. But this is
how afraid they are also of education. This is how
afraid they are to talk. I mean that would mean
if this bill goes into full effect, you could say
anything makes you feel uncomfortable and it's reportable. Wearing a
(23:47):
wearing a Black Lives Matter T shirt could make some money.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Yeah, I mean.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
And the fact is nobody can make you feel anything.
Your response to something is something you control. So if
I can just say you make me feel uncomfort, are
you gonna will this administration or will this bill support
me if I say I feel uncomfortable because my teacher
is a white man, like, that's up to me to
(24:12):
figure out how to navigate that. I don't think they would,
but anyway, there, I guess the goal is a preliminary injunction.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
To stop them.
Speaker 3 (24:22):
Taking Yeah, that's right to blacket from taking effect. I'm
gonna say, the reason I think you were hypothetical is possible.
It's the same forces that pass this bill have said
one of the reasons they're challenging my credibility as a
classroom teacher is because my last name is Abdula. So yes,
(24:43):
they could say your identity makes them uncomfortable.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
Well we should do a test case. I'll go sign
up for somebody's classes.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Say I feel uncomfortable because Ben Shapiro.
Speaker 3 (24:56):
No, no, no, no, of course not right, of course not.
But you don't identify with Israel?
Speaker 1 (25:03):
Right?
Speaker 3 (25:04):
If you identify with Israel, then your comfort is important.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
And that's why it's fake civil rights because it only
gives protections to one group and not other groups. To me,
that's what makes it fake civil rights. You know, it's
supposed to be equal protection. We spend some time on this. Okay,
let me hurry up here. Let's talk about Frank Tyson.
I think that this terrible case is not getting a
lot of coverage. Many people haven't even heard of it.
(25:31):
Talk to me about what happened with Frank Tyson in
what's going on now?
Speaker 3 (25:36):
It is the example of we have a chant on
the front lines right. The whole damn system is guilty
as hell. It is the example of the whole damn
system as guilty as hell. Frank Tyson was a fifty
three year old black man. It's a very very tragic story.
He was framed by the system when he was twenty
eight years old, set to prison for twenty four years
(25:59):
on something, and then he absolutely didn't do It was
a non murder charge in the first place, But he
didn't do what he was even accused of doing. He
was actually in the process of, even after having served
the time, trying to get that charge overturned, trying to
get that conviction overturned. But he comes home he's only
(26:20):
out thirteen days. He gets into an auto accident, wanders
into a white private bar and asks for help. The
white patrons call police on him. One of the white
workers tells the police when they arrived, get him out
of here now. The police tackle him to the ground,
(26:41):
sit on his back, handcuffed, and hogtie him. And he
gasped seven times, I can't breathe. The answer to him
was shut the f up. And he lays on the
ground and dies. The police were charged in that case.
But what's happening now is five judges recused themselves, refuse
(27:05):
to hear the case. There's finally a judge from a
neighboring county overseeing the case. Now, the prosecutor has asked
to be let off the case because he said he's
afraid of the police. So he's been let off of
the case, and they assigned a new special prosecutor who's
a white prosecutor, conservative prosecutor from a neighboring county, who
(27:29):
is a member card carrying member of the Fraternal Order
of Police, who has written op eds on why police
shouldn't be prosecuted. So it's a setup. It's a setup.
It's a setup. And the only way they'll be justice
in the name of Frank Tyson is if we expose this.
This is happening in Ohio, but we see many versions
(27:50):
of it happening in LA with Christopher DeAndre Mitchell and
the DA here Nathan Hoptman trying to dismiss the charges
against the cops here, and we have to expose what's
happening as well as stop electing these conservative prosecutors who
are extensions of police themselves.
Speaker 2 (28:11):
I mean, that's crazy.
Speaker 1 (28:13):
The prosecutor actually said he was worried about the police response.
That's he or she, I should say, because I don't
know if it's a male or female.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
It was a he. Yeah, he said he didn't want
to he was worried about their response. And he has
relationships with them, which is what we always say. They
work with cops in every other case, so they see
cops as their friends. How are they going to prosecute them?
And that's why for the most part, they don't.
Speaker 1 (28:41):
Oh that's crazy, and so what can what can folks
do if they want to help?
Speaker 3 (28:48):
So right now we're looking at petitions. There's not a
whole lot we can do, So we're looking for a
legal input. We know they don't like it when we
show up. So Black Lives Matter grass Roots was there
last week, Ohio as cold, y'all. So when we were
there last week and it did make a difference. The
(29:08):
family was really grateful to have Black Lives Matter grass
Roots in the room with them. And so we're working
on a strategy. But at the top of that strategy
is to just keep eyes on what's happening and can't
Ohio and say the name of Frank Tyson so they
know that's another chance that the whole world is watching.
(29:29):
The whole world is watching.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Yeah, So talking about it and knowing about it as
part of what we have to what we have to
do to improve the situation.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
That's just so terrible.
Speaker 1 (29:44):
And one of the reasons that I always go back
to this is because I think that sometimes there's a
temptation to believe that because these things are not in
the news, that it's not happening anymore, that it's not,
you know, still a problem. So I just I'm so
glad you guys are doing the work that you're doing.
(30:04):
When we come forward, I want to talk a little
bit about black X mess what that really is. It's
it's prime Black x Miss season, and we'll have a
little recap of what occurred at the well honoring of
what BLM Grassroots says, no honoring of thieves. Well, the
(30:25):
honoring of thieves went down, and we'll find out what
happened there. More straight ahead only on KBLA Talk fifteen eighty.
So let's talk about black x Miss, what it is
and what it ain't. Some people think thought it was
some kind of disrespect of Christmas. Clearly not that, but
break it down no, of course.
Speaker 3 (30:47):
So black x Mess is a campaign that we initiated
after the murder of John Crawford inside a Walmart store
in twenty fourteen. John Crawford was a young black dad,
he was twenty two years old walking through the isles
of Walmart picked up store merchandise, which was a BB gun,
(31:07):
and as he's just casually walking through the isle, police
are called on him and they murder him in the
isle of the store. And so the premise is that
white supremacist capitalism does not respect black life. And so
during the period from Black Friday through January first, we
(31:30):
boycott white supremacist capitalism. And we're grateful that this year
people are starting to pay more attention to the value
of our own dollars and using our own dollars as
a form of protests. So withdrawing their dollars from places
like Target and Walmart. But we say, withdraw our dollars
from white supremacist capitalism overall, and instead we build black.
(31:53):
Remembering that you don't have.
Speaker 2 (31:55):
To buy an all that stuff. You don't have to
anything at all.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Yeah, we don't. If you don't need nothing else, don't
buy nothing else. You know what makes a great gift.
If you want to give something to me, donate it
to BLM Grassroots so we can continue to do the work.
So we can buy the plane tickets to go to
Ohio in January to be there for Frank Frank Tyson's family. Right,
so donate, We say build black, build black organizations, build
(32:22):
Black institutions, rather than spending on a bunch of stuff
that you don't need that the season and white supremacist
capitalism tries to tell you that you do. Second, if
you do need something by black, Remember you don't have
to go to Walmart for skateboard. You can go to
neighbor skateshop. You can go to ride On for your
(32:43):
bike rather than spending at Target. So if you're gonna buy,
buy black. And we have a whole website and do
black owned businesses of the day every single day during
the Black Xmiths season, and people can go to Blacksmiths
dot org or to see black businesses all around the
country and they're categorized. So in LA you can look
(33:07):
for restaurants, you can look for a plumber, you can
you know, whatever it is you need is we're building
that database. And then lastly, bank Black, move your money
out of these white corporate banks. We just got a
new It seems like every month there's a new example
of a bank customer being abused by the bank. Right,
(33:28):
a sister now outside of Atlanta being sent through all
of these hoops and criminalized for being a customer of
that very bank. We saw it with Bank of America
and Ryan Coogler. So move your money out of white
corporate banks and into black owned banks and credit unions.
So it's not a disrespect of Christmas, it's saying we
(33:52):
are exing out white supremacist capitalism and instead building black buying,
black banking Black.
Speaker 1 (33:59):
The smart Alex in the chat are up to no good. Uh,
Prester John says it's kwansa clause.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
It's there we go, there we.
Speaker 1 (34:08):
Carl Tucker says Kwanza no clause to it, and Prester
John then said Malcolm X mess. So there you have it.
The smart Alex Heart are doing their thing in the chat.
But I think it's a you know, it is a
good balance between a total boycott where you don't get
to you know, celebrate and be festive, and just a
(34:30):
conscious way of do I donate to some to a
cause instead of getting into a capitalist, you know, shopping frenzy,
or do I really need to buy anything at all?
And what's the state of my money? Can I, even
if I don't want to move all of my money
to a black bank, at least move some of it.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
I got that from j Anthony Brown.
Speaker 1 (34:52):
Who he used to joke about how he gets how
to keep some of his money in the white bank.
Like whatever it is, it's it's kind of almost like
a formula for how to be mindful and still be
festive and still you know, be respectful and joyous of
our holidays. I got a a DM from someone saying
referencing our conversation about Frank Tyson and saying that's why
(35:15):
we have to remember to vote for judges and to
be intentional about doing so. So yeah, great point, great,
great point.
Speaker 2 (35:25):
So what happened last week?
Speaker 1 (35:26):
You know, I know, but I wasn't there, but I
know because I you know, I found out. We found
we all found out that this nonprofit organization was going
to be honoring Cecily Gay, who is.
Speaker 2 (35:42):
The board president.
Speaker 3 (35:44):
Chief thief.
Speaker 2 (35:45):
She chief thief.
Speaker 3 (35:47):
She's the chief thief. She is the the board chair
at the fake Black Lives Matter. They're they're the ones
who stole our resources, platforms, and good name. Couldn't figure
out why are they honoring Cecily Gay, who is a thief,
She has no track record of doing anything in community,
(36:09):
and it looks like Afrikis is doing some good work
bringing shoes to Africa. Why are they honoring Cecily Gay?
And so we tried to petition them and say, don't
honor her, or here's the receipts on what she's done
and why she shouldn't be honored. What we found out,
and I don't know if I've talked to you about it,
(36:29):
probably informally, but what we found out from the inside
is this gala that they honored Cecily Gay at was
actually paid for by the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation,
and so they wouldn't withdraw the honor because they didn't
want to not have this gala, which was, in the
(36:51):
words of some people who were there, disgusting. It was
a show of this is their word again, opulence, where
Cecily Gay and deejen A. Parker, who are the remaining
two board members of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation,
rolled up and blacked out SUVs with multi thousand dollars handbags,
(37:13):
wearing couture, with an entire glam squad. This is money
that was meant for the movement. They're living like they
are celebrities, off of your money, off of my mama's money,
off the money that was donated in the name of
Frank Tyson and Ezel Ford and you know, Trayvon Martin.
And so this is what's happened. We did have a
(37:37):
group of protesters there and Black Lives Matter, the so
called gaysy Black Lives Matter called police on black people.
That's to show what frauds they are.
Speaker 4 (37:48):
We would never call the police on black people, right,
So they called the police, I mean for those who
haven't been following along as a group of consultants that
in the transition of you know, of leadership, seize the
moment and seize control of ninety million dollars in counting,
plus the social media platforms of the.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
Real Black Lives Matter, which is BLM, Grassroots. Molly Bell says,
doctor Malina abdul Doula, your our prince says, there are
thieves in the temple, and so the police were called,
but no one was arrested.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
Everyone's okay, right.
Speaker 3 (38:26):
Right, There was a dispersal order of people left and
we went and did some other things. But yeah, the
police were called. Apparently they've also filed a restraining order
against me personally. I wasn't even there. All I did
was make a comment on Instagram.
Speaker 1 (38:44):
You're talking about the Afrikicks? Are you talking about the
Global Network Foundation?
Speaker 3 (38:48):
Now? The Global Network Foundation?
Speaker 1 (38:50):
Okay, so they're trying to get a restraining order against
you for protesting, which is also ironic.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
You have to do. What would the real Black Lives.
Speaker 1 (38:59):
Matter be bringing a restraining order against someone for protesting?
Speaker 2 (39:02):
I think not?
Speaker 3 (39:04):
Right? Well, I haven't been served, but that's their notices.
They're going to file a restraining order against me, So
we'll see, we'll see if that happens and if there's
anything to fight. We do want to remember that there's
good work moving through BLM Grassroots, and people should be
following BLM Grassroots for all of the work to support
(39:26):
Frank Tyson, to support Christopher DeAndre Mitchell, to advance black exmuth,
to hold corrupt politicians accountable. That's all the work of BLM.
Speaker 1 (39:36):
Grassroots, yep, not to mention so many things in the
year to come. So they should follow BLM Grassroots and
BLM Grassroots on all platforms or blmgrossroots dot org.
Speaker 3 (39:49):
That's right, that's right, that's the real deal. That's where
we really at.
Speaker 1 (39:52):
Yes, Doctor Malina Abdullah as always, thank you for stopping in.
Speaker 3 (39:58):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (39:59):
Sister Dominique, don't forget.
Speaker 1 (40:00):
You can hear her Saturday morning eight to eight to ten.
This is not a drill and it's only here on
k b LA Talk fifteen eighty
KBLA Talk fifteen eighty. Good morning, Good morning, and God
bless I'm Dominic d Deprima. This show is called First
Things First, and my very first thing every day is
given thanks to God.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Just some prayer, giving, thanksgiving, praise, asking.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
For blessings from the Most High, asking for the blessings
of the ancestors and the elders.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
And let's go.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
We have a lot to talk about and a lot
to do and glad you're here for it. So this
is how we do it on a think tank Thursday.
Think Tank Thursday. Our one we look local, our two,
we go national, international, and beyond. And in the third
hour we do a deep dive on a hot topic
or a person or persons of interest. Sometimes it's a
(00:43):
combination of all of those things.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Today we will be.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Talking with some of our African Focus Incorporated trail Blazers.
I'm wearing my sweatshirt, which you could see if you
were watching the live stream on YouTube at KBLA fifteen eighty.
In there, I'm wearing my African Focused Trailblazers a sweatshirt.
So we'll talk about our trips and some folks will
give their impressions, their thoughts, and we'll talk about Africa
(01:11):
in general. You're invited to hop on that train. That's
gonna be a lot of fun. We always have a
wild bunch with us, and it'll be good to see
folks again.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Our two.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
We've got the phone lines open and yeah, we have
the phone lines wide open hour two and you know
it'll be one of those. My think tank, and I
know this is kind of corny, but you know you
can serve with it as you will, is what do
you want to leave in twenty twenty five and what
(01:46):
do you think we should carry forward with us into
the new calendar year. What do you want to leave
behind here? I mean there's a lot of things we
wish we could leave behind, maybe the president, maybe tariffs
and high prices. Perhaps it's just all the stress, whatever
you want to leave behind, But I think it's also
(02:09):
really productive to think about what we gained, what we loved,
what we want to keep, what you know, it's the
old what Sahara A Leios says, a focus on what
you want part. So that's my think tank. Easy lob
over the holiday home plate.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
For you on thistinc Tank Thursday.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
I think there's some value though in looking at what's good,
not only what's bad, and believe it or not, a
lot of great things happen in twenty twenty five. You know,
we know that when it bleeds, it leads, and there
has been some terrible, tragic occurrences and the constant barrage
of news that seems to hell bent on making us
(02:54):
depressed and discouraged. But when we gather ourselves and you know,
take stock of the victories, take stock of the lessons
of the miles traveled, of the books, read of the
friends hugged, of the family loved up, on all of
(03:17):
those good things, that is when we remember that there's
a lot we.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Can hold on to.
Speaker 1 (03:23):
In twenty twenty five, so fulle lines open hour two
of the show, I'm gonna do it collar amnesty with
one small caveat it means even if you've called before,
you can call again, because we typically try to limit
it to once a week. But it's in the spirit
of the holidays, we're going to do some collar amnesty
and kind of wind down twenty twenty five.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
I will say this.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
Though, in winding down twenty twenty five, that you know
we always want you to stay with us and ride
with us through the whole whole spectrum on the holidays, Kwanza, Christmas, Hanukkah,
and the New Year, all of that. But I wanted
(04:11):
my caveat for the caller amnesty today is, you know,
we'll keep them a little short and sweet. We'll do
you know, small to medium size points instead of entire manifestos,
just so that we make sure there's room for anybody
and everybody who wants to weigh in before this.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
Year is out. So that's our two.
Speaker 1 (04:33):
And then right now as we focus on what's local,
on what's going on on the left coast, this side
of town. And of course you're welcome every hour to
call at eight hundred nine two oh fifteen eighty. See
that I just had a New York accent for one second.
You wilcome to cool at one eight hundred nine two
oh fifteen eighty one eight hundred nine two oh fifteen eighty.
(04:56):
I am joined by my friend and colleague, my fellow mom.
She's also got a lot of jobs. She's some of
them paid, most of them not. She's a professor at
cal State LA. She's a director of Black Lives Matter Grassroots,
and she is the lead organizer for BLMLA doctor Malina Abdullah,
good morning.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
Hey, good morning, sister Dominie.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Uh oh, she's been protesting again. The voice is almost gone.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Good morning. Great to hear from you.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
I was just talking about, you know, kind of setting
the tone for this think tank think tank Thursday, one
of our final weeks of the year, in looking at
what we want to leave in twenty twenty five and
what we want to bring forward with us in twenty
twenty six. And you always say we need to celebrate
the wins.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
And the victory.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
So I think that's a good place to start, because
one of the things we are bringing into twenty twenty
six is Jakeisha's Law, a huge victory for Black Lives Matter,
Grassroots for BLMLA, BLM California and Assembly Member Isaac Brian
and all families who have loved ones incarcerated or who
(06:09):
may ever have loved ones incarcerated.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
Absolutely, we are so grateful about the passage and implementation
of Waksha's law. It shouldn't have to be a law.
It shouldn't have to be a law, but what it
does is require twenty four hour family notification when a
loved one is killed or injured or harmed in prisons, jails,
(06:34):
and detention centers. And it's named in honor of Wakisha Wilson,
who was a black mama killed inside LAPD Metro Detention
Center and her family spent four days in an excruciating
search for her before even learning that she was dead.
And so I know you had sister Sheila Hines on.
(06:57):
I know we've talked with and I was grateful to
be with you last week, and our assembly Member Isaac Bryan,
who authored the law, and really it took almost ten
years of work in Wakesha's name to get that law passed.
And of course Wakeisha's mom and Auntie were at the
front of that fight, and BLMLA BLM grass Roots was
(07:20):
honored to struggle alongside them and have the ability to
sit with legislators who were courageous events like Isaac, to
take on police associations. And our only opposition was the
sheriff who wanted to black that law.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
You know, it's funny you'd say that the lawmakers stood
courageously on this, and I know that we even had
at least one or two Republican votes on this particular bill,
because like you said, it shouldn't have to be a
law Oh whats we killed your loved one, you know,
to let you know, Oh, they're in the hospital.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
That said, I think that's really.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
An interesting point because here we are in a time
where I feel like people are very scared.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
A lot of people are.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
I see some folks distancing themselves from Black Lives Matter.
I've actually had a couple folks advise me to distance
myself as a so called celebrity and whatnot, and.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
So the fear is palatable.
Speaker 1 (08:22):
But at the same time, you're able to get this
major success in taking this law across the finish line,
and we were seeing some courage and spots with lawmakers.
I mean, I think the fact that some lawmakers, some Republicans,
stepped up yesterday and said, we're you know, we're gonna
call for a vote on these subsidies for the Affordable
(08:44):
Care Act, even Republicans. So it's like this weird combination
of cowardice and bravery that are happening at the same time.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
What do you make of that?
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Yeah, Well, for Wakisha's law, we didn't have an issue
with lawmakers voting correctly on the bill. What we had
an issue with is finding an author for the bill
because nobody wanted to take it on. Nobody wanted to
be the lead, nobody wanted to be out front. Gratefully,
you know, Isaac is actually, maybe he might not want
(09:15):
me to say this, but the sheriff already hated him
because of measure Ja. So Isaac was like, I'll take it.
He's also really grounded in the work that we do,
and you know, had been a part of the demonstrations
at LAPD headquarters, had been a part of doing work
(09:35):
in LA Police Commission to call for justice in the
name of Wakisha Wilson. So the courage came from him
being willing to initiate. Once he initiated the law, once
he authored it and introduced it, he did a lot
of work having conversations with lawmakers. But it was interesting
(09:56):
being in those hearings and watching as virtually every lawmaker
couldn't be moved. They could not be moved by sister
Lisa Hines as she talked about what happened to her daughter,
and nobody voted no, that we know it. So, but
(10:18):
the sheriff had the nerve to come up in there
and go it would it would take us too much
time to call everybody, Well, then the problem is you killed.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
You're killing too many people?
Speaker 4 (10:28):
Right?
Speaker 3 (10:28):
What? Right?
Speaker 1 (10:30):
What kind of illogic is that man? Almighty people with
their crazy illogical logic. So when we come forward, I
wanted to ask you to put on your political scientist
hat for a moment because on yesterday it was reported
by the La Times and I was somewhat touched on
it about council Member John Lee getting this uh fine,
(10:53):
and what reminded me of it was the bad excuses
he was making for why they why he didn't take
the bribes. I went to Nancy Dinners, but I didn't eat,
and stupid stuff like that, Why why does that guy
get a fine? And you know Current Price and Mark
Ridley Thomas get hunted down, Doctor Mark Ridley Thomas and
council member Current Price get hunted down with criminal charges.
(11:17):
Just hoping you can make it make sense that and
more when we come forward on KBLA Talk fifteen eighty
Right now, Jacqueline Anderson points out that I forgot one
of your important bona fides, Doctor Abdullah, that you are
the president of the Prince Fan Club internationally. Thank you
for the reminder and no disrespect intended there, Doc.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Look, thank you so much for So what do you
make of this?
Speaker 1 (11:45):
Council Member John Lee cases now they're going to the
Ethics Commission, says he's got to pay one hundred and
thirty eight dollars four hundred and twenty four. No, one
hundred and thirty eight, four hundred and twenty four dollars pricey,
you know, expensive meals, bottle service, gambling chips when he
went to Vegas. Apparently all of these things were bribes.
He accepted his boss at that time, Councilmember Mitch Englander
(12:09):
actually did.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Go to jail. You know, I don't I don't know better,
so he knew better.
Speaker 1 (12:18):
And not only that, I mean, I don't see how
this is not a clear violation. You're taking basically bribes.
The judge in the case said he he did take
stuff he wasn't supposed to take, but they stopped short
of saying he misused misused his position, which is confusing
to me because if I use my position to get bribes,
(12:41):
that seems like a misuse of a city council seat.
But you know, I'm not a judge, I'm not a lawyer.
What I don't get is how he gets a fine, grant,
I grant you, it's a steep fine. And Current Price
council member, Current Price who didn't even take bribes. He
just put his wife on his insurance when they weren't
(13:03):
actually legally married yet, or he wasn't legally divorced from
the other one, and.
Speaker 2 (13:07):
He could just pay that back instead, they want to
bring charges against him. Don't get it, well.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
I get it. I mean it's the same thing like
I used to have a student who used to say,
the answer is white supremacy. The answer is always white supremacy,
right that. You know, black politicians are being set up
from the moment they take office, from the moment they
consider taking office. And so I'm not saying that Current
(13:39):
Price is, you know, at the vanguard of the struggle
or anything like that. I'm really mad at the entire
black political class right now around you know what's happening
with funding for LAPD, with their unwillingness see and stand
up for workers, with these the Olympic suages. I'm really
(14:03):
mad at them. And Current Price is still a black man,
I mean a regular black man. I remember seeing the
last time I saw a Current Price it was when
not inside City Hall was when we were standing in
line for Phillips Barbecue on Crimshaw right, which in regular,
and so he's being set up. That's what's happened to
(14:24):
Current Price, to Mark Ridley Thomas. And the contrast is
John Lee is not a black man. He's also doesn't
have even as progressive of a track record as a
Current Price or Mark Ridley Thomas, and so of course
the system is treating them very differently.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
You know, I noticed that about LA when I first
came here too, that the press treats black electeds way
more harshly than anybody else, even others so called BIPOC people,
the LA Times in particular, but the LA press in
general loves to tear down black electeds.
Speaker 2 (15:02):
It's it's like a sport.
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, because how dare you run in the
first place? How dare you hold that position in the
first place? I mean, to your answers, white suppress anti blackness,
white supremacy.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
That's the answer to.
Speaker 1 (15:18):
Your point about being angry with local electeds. What you know,
I know that you also have a position with your union.
I didn't include that in your bio, your intro either,
But what I don't understand what happened with the Council president.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
Really.
Speaker 1 (15:37):
I mean I understand it in the most basic way,
which is he's moving to delay the promised increases in
SAP pay hourly wages for people who work at the Olympics,
you know, tourism workers. And I'm assuming that the rationale
(15:58):
is our budget woes. But I'm really not understanding how
it's working politically because typically politicians, especially progressive Democrats, tend
to be cooperative with labor.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Yeah, I think it's a terrible political calculation that Marquise
Harris Dawson made. Terrible political calculation. And I'm saying that
first because Marquise, like most politicians, it seems he puts
his calculation, puts himself in his political ambitions ahead of
(16:34):
how he's serving community. And I'm saying this as someone
who has genuine love for Marquise as a person. The
column that I wrote for today that comes out in
the Sentinel today is about how used to be progressive
is ain't good enough. And it's a letter to Karen Bass,
(16:57):
Marquise Harris Dawson, and the entire black political class. It's
not good enough for you to happen to be black
It's not good enough for you to say I used
to do good work at community coalition. When you betray
black people, when you betray the working class, there should
be political consequences. It's astounding to me that he is
(17:22):
misplaying even the political calculus of what's happening. This is
a betrayal of labor, which is the only real kind
of powerful counterbalance to the balance of the right wing
and the Police Protective League. But it seems like he's
(17:42):
playing for the support of the Police Protective League because
at the same time he's saying Olympic workers shouldn't get
thirty dollars an hour, which is not a high wage.
Anybody who lives in LA and knows that the average
cost of an apartment is too thousand dollars a month.
He also said it from the days that the police
(18:05):
chief will get every single dollar he ever requests.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Okay, but to be fair, I mean, thirty bucks an
hour is not a lot to try to live in LA.
But it is a lot compared to the minimum wage,
compared to what you know, what is it? What most
a lot of other workers in lower wage jobs the
sixteen bucks an hour, or if you're in you know,
certain jurisdictions up closer to twenty it is. It is
(18:35):
a lot more than those folks.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
It's higher. It's not enough. But there was a study
that came out that's it really a livable wage in
Los Angeles is more like doubled at more like sixty
dollars an hour. To be the affordability wage would be
sixty dollars an hour. So I get what you're saying,
it's better than the bottom of the barrel. But we're
(18:59):
talking about about an Olympics wage. We're talking about money
that's coming in where you're essentially saying that these companies
don't have to pay their workers a greater share of
their profits.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
But the thing that I don't get. I mean, what
he did is he what if it's you know that motion.
What it does is it phases in that wage over
a longer period of time, so they wouldn't get the
thirty bucks until twenty thirty. But I just don't The
business groups tried to get repeal this wage and get
(19:35):
it on the ballot, and they failed, So why.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
Not let it rest? That's right, why not let it rest?
Speaker 1 (19:42):
They failed? So leave it alone. But that is not
what he chose to do. Man, we are really going
to have to go into a speed round here.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
We do have a lot to cover.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
I'm going to try to be more disciplined after news,
traffic and sports. Doctor Malina Abdullah Dominic to Freeman for
KBLA Talk fifteen. Yes, doctor Malina Abdullah is my guest.
She's the director of Black Lives Matter Grassroots, the actual
real Black Lives Matter, not the not the Global Network Foundation,
which is holding the money that they took, stole, grifted,
(20:18):
however you want to call it. So let's talk about
my speed around here. Let's talk about this AB seven
seven fifteen. I believe it is the Assembly bill that
recently passed this fall, which I call it the fake
civil rights bill because it says that it's fighting an
anti Semitism, but it looks like what it really does
(20:40):
is deputize the ADL and conservative students to rat out
professors who try to talk about anything that they don't
like and or criticize Israel.
Speaker 3 (20:52):
Yeah, this is a really, really scary bill. AB seven
fifteen is something that Black Lives Matter grass Roots in
my young in the California Faculty Association, along with virtually
every education group staunchly opposed. AB seven fifteen was rammed
through at the last minute. It makes it you can
(21:15):
discipline teachers for what they say, do or make you
feel in the classroom. So anything that a teacher does,
a K three twelve teacher does that makes someone who
identifies with Israel feel uncomfortable is subject to disciplinary action.
When there's already a mechanism if you do something that's
(21:37):
out of line, then it's supposed to be reported. It's
also an anti labor bill because that's negotiated in labor negotiations,
right that if a teacher is supposed to be disciplined, fired,
or remoted or moved from the classroom, that has to
go through a process. This bill goes around that process.
So unfortunately, and I'll say it because some peopeople are
(22:00):
afraid to say, the Israeli lobby absolutely bought and paid
for this bill. It was interest like APAK and they
don't want me to say JPACK, but it was JPAK
to Jewish Political Action or Political Public Affairs Council is
what PACK stands for. But they mean PACK right. That
(22:23):
maneuvered this bill, that used members of the Jewish Legislative
Caucus to be really really unethical and bully and pass
it through, and then the governor signed it, and we
were opposed then and we're opposed now. We're grateful that
yesterday the first challenge to the bill made its way
(22:45):
into court and the Arab American Defense Council is leading
that challenge. My union, the California Faculty Association, side gone.
But we have to make sure that this bill doesn't happen.
Here's a the clinch. The clincher is the debate that
they're having in the court is do classroom teachers have
(23:09):
First Amendment rights? That's crazy, that's what's being debated.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
That's really crazy.
Speaker 1 (23:14):
So like, how could it so like as if classroom
teachers aren't people, because those are the rights of humans
in this supposedly in this country, right every.
Speaker 3 (23:25):
Other job in the world. You don't forego your First
Amendment right because you take the job. But this is
how afraid they are also of education. This is how
afraid they are to talk. I mean that would mean
if this bill goes into full effect, you could say
anything makes you feel uncomfortable and it's reportable. Wearing a
(23:47):
wearing a Black Lives Matter T shirt could make some money.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Yeah, I mean.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
And the fact is nobody can make you feel anything.
Your response to something is something you control. So if
I can just say you make me feel uncomfort, are
you gonna will this administration or will this bill support
me if I say I feel uncomfortable because my teacher
is a white man, like, that's up to me to
(24:12):
figure out how to navigate that. I don't think they would,
but anyway, there, I guess the goal is a preliminary injunction.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
To stop them.
Speaker 3 (24:22):
Taking Yeah, that's right to blacket from taking effect. I'm
gonna say, the reason I think you were hypothetical is possible.
It's the same forces that pass this bill have said
one of the reasons they're challenging my credibility as a
classroom teacher is because my last name is Abdula. So yes,
(24:43):
they could say your identity makes them uncomfortable.
Speaker 2 (24:46):
Well we should do a test case. I'll go sign
up for somebody's classes.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Say I feel uncomfortable because Ben Shapiro.
Speaker 3 (24:56):
No, no, no, no, of course not right, of course not.
But you don't identify with Israel?
Speaker 1 (25:03):
Right?
Speaker 3 (25:04):
If you identify with Israel, then your comfort is important.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
And that's why it's fake civil rights because it only
gives protections to one group and not other groups. To me,
that's what makes it fake civil rights. You know, it's
supposed to be equal protection. We spend some time on this. Okay,
let me hurry up here. Let's talk about Frank Tyson.
I think that this terrible case is not getting a
lot of coverage. Many people haven't even heard of it.
(25:31):
Talk to me about what happened with Frank Tyson in
what's going on now?
Speaker 3 (25:36):
It is the example of we have a chant on
the front lines right. The whole damn system is guilty
as hell. It is the example of the whole damn
system as guilty as hell. Frank Tyson was a fifty
three year old black man. It's a very very tragic story.
He was framed by the system when he was twenty
eight years old, set to prison for twenty four years
(25:59):
on something, and then he absolutely didn't do It was
a non murder charge in the first place, But he
didn't do what he was even accused of doing. He
was actually in the process of, even after having served
the time, trying to get that charge overturned, trying to
get that conviction overturned. But he comes home he's only
(26:20):
out thirteen days. He gets into an auto accident, wanders
into a white private bar and asks for help. The
white patrons call police on him. One of the white
workers tells the police when they arrived, get him out
of here now. The police tackle him to the ground,
(26:41):
sit on his back, handcuffed, and hogtie him. And he
gasped seven times, I can't breathe. The answer to him
was shut the f up. And he lays on the
ground and dies. The police were charged in that case.
But what's happening now is five judges recused themselves, refuse
(27:05):
to hear the case. There's finally a judge from a
neighboring county overseeing the case. Now, the prosecutor has asked
to be let off the case because he said he's
afraid of the police. So he's been let off of
the case, and they assigned a new special prosecutor who's
a white prosecutor, conservative prosecutor from a neighboring county, who
(27:29):
is a member card carrying member of the Fraternal Order
of Police, who has written op eds on why police
shouldn't be prosecuted. So it's a setup. It's a setup.
It's a setup. And the only way they'll be justice
in the name of Frank Tyson is if we expose this.
This is happening in Ohio, but we see many versions
(27:50):
of it happening in LA with Christopher DeAndre Mitchell and
the DA here Nathan Hoptman trying to dismiss the charges
against the cops here, and we have to expose what's
happening as well as stop electing these conservative prosecutors who
are extensions of police themselves.
Speaker 2 (28:11):
I mean, that's crazy.
Speaker 1 (28:13):
The prosecutor actually said he was worried about the police response.
That's he or she, I should say, because I don't
know if it's a male or female.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
It was a he. Yeah, he said he didn't want
to he was worried about their response. And he has
relationships with them, which is what we always say. They
work with cops in every other case, so they see
cops as their friends. How are they going to prosecute them?
And that's why for the most part, they don't.
Speaker 1 (28:41):
Oh that's crazy, and so what can what can folks
do if they want to help?
Speaker 3 (28:48):
So right now we're looking at petitions. There's not a
whole lot we can do, So we're looking for a
legal input. We know they don't like it when we
show up. So Black Lives Matter grass Roots was there
last week, Ohio as cold, y'all. So when we were
there last week and it did make a difference. The
(29:08):
family was really grateful to have Black Lives Matter grass
Roots in the room with them. And so we're working
on a strategy. But at the top of that strategy
is to just keep eyes on what's happening and can't
Ohio and say the name of Frank Tyson so they
know that's another chance that the whole world is watching.
(29:29):
The whole world is watching.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Yeah, So talking about it and knowing about it as
part of what we have to what we have to
do to improve the situation.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
That's just so terrible.
Speaker 1 (29:44):
And one of the reasons that I always go back
to this is because I think that sometimes there's a
temptation to believe that because these things are not in
the news, that it's not happening anymore, that it's not,
you know, still a problem. So I just I'm so
glad you guys are doing the work that you're doing.
(30:04):
When we come forward, I want to talk a little
bit about black X mess what that really is. It's
it's prime Black x Miss season, and we'll have a
little recap of what occurred at the well honoring of
what BLM Grassroots says, no honoring of thieves. Well, the
(30:25):
honoring of thieves went down, and we'll find out what
happened there. More straight ahead only on KBLA Talk fifteen eighty.
So let's talk about black x Miss, what it is
and what it ain't. Some people think thought it was
some kind of disrespect of Christmas. Clearly not that, but
break it down no, of course.
Speaker 3 (30:47):
So black x Mess is a campaign that we initiated
after the murder of John Crawford inside a Walmart store
in twenty fourteen. John Crawford was a young black dad,
he was twenty two years old walking through the isles
of Walmart picked up store merchandise, which was a BB gun,
(31:07):
and as he's just casually walking through the isle, police
are called on him and they murder him in the
isle of the store. And so the premise is that
white supremacist capitalism does not respect black life. And so
during the period from Black Friday through January first, we
(31:30):
boycott white supremacist capitalism. And we're grateful that this year
people are starting to pay more attention to the value
of our own dollars and using our own dollars as
a form of protests. So withdrawing their dollars from places
like Target and Walmart. But we say, withdraw our dollars
from white supremacist capitalism overall, and instead we build black.
(31:53):
Remembering that you don't have.
Speaker 2 (31:55):
To buy an all that stuff. You don't have to
anything at all.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Yeah, we don't. If you don't need nothing else, don't
buy nothing else. You know what makes a great gift.
If you want to give something to me, donate it
to BLM Grassroots so we can continue to do the work.
So we can buy the plane tickets to go to
Ohio in January to be there for Frank Frank Tyson's family. Right,
so donate, We say build black, build black organizations, build
(32:22):
Black institutions, rather than spending on a bunch of stuff
that you don't need that the season and white supremacist
capitalism tries to tell you that you do. Second, if
you do need something by black, Remember you don't have
to go to Walmart for skateboard. You can go to
neighbor skateshop. You can go to ride On for your
(32:43):
bike rather than spending at Target. So if you're gonna buy,
buy black. And we have a whole website and do
black owned businesses of the day every single day during
the Black Xmiths season, and people can go to Blacksmiths
dot org or to see black businesses all around the
country and they're categorized. So in LA you can look
(33:07):
for restaurants, you can look for a plumber, you can
you know, whatever it is you need is we're building
that database. And then lastly, bank Black, move your money
out of these white corporate banks. We just got a
new It seems like every month there's a new example
of a bank customer being abused by the bank. Right,
(33:28):
a sister now outside of Atlanta being sent through all
of these hoops and criminalized for being a customer of
that very bank. We saw it with Bank of America
and Ryan Coogler. So move your money out of white
corporate banks and into black owned banks and credit unions.
So it's not a disrespect of Christmas, it's saying we
(33:52):
are exing out white supremacist capitalism and instead building black buying,
black banking Black.
Speaker 1 (33:59):
The smart Alex in the chat are up to no good. Uh,
Prester John says it's kwansa clause.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
It's there we go, there we.
Speaker 1 (34:08):
Carl Tucker says Kwanza no clause to it, and Prester
John then said Malcolm X mess. So there you have it.
The smart Alex Heart are doing their thing in the chat.
But I think it's a you know, it is a
good balance between a total boycott where you don't get
to you know, celebrate and be festive, and just a
(34:30):
conscious way of do I donate to some to a
cause instead of getting into a capitalist, you know, shopping frenzy,
or do I really need to buy anything at all?
And what's the state of my money? Can I, even
if I don't want to move all of my money
to a black bank, at least move some of it.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
I got that from j Anthony Brown.
Speaker 1 (34:52):
Who he used to joke about how he gets how
to keep some of his money in the white bank.
Like whatever it is, it's it's kind of almost like
a formula for how to be mindful and still be
festive and still you know, be respectful and joyous of
our holidays. I got a a DM from someone saying
referencing our conversation about Frank Tyson and saying that's why
(35:15):
we have to remember to vote for judges and to
be intentional about doing so. So yeah, great point, great,
great point.
Speaker 2 (35:25):
So what happened last week?
Speaker 1 (35:26):
You know, I know, but I wasn't there, but I
know because I you know, I found out. We found
we all found out that this nonprofit organization was going
to be honoring Cecily Gay, who is.
Speaker 2 (35:42):
The board president.
Speaker 3 (35:44):
Chief thief.
Speaker 2 (35:45):
She chief thief.
Speaker 3 (35:47):
She's the chief thief. She is the the board chair
at the fake Black Lives Matter. They're they're the ones
who stole our resources, platforms, and good name. Couldn't figure
out why are they honoring Cecily Gay, who is a thief,
She has no track record of doing anything in community,
(36:09):
and it looks like Afrikis is doing some good work
bringing shoes to Africa. Why are they honoring Cecily Gay?
And so we tried to petition them and say, don't
honor her, or here's the receipts on what she's done
and why she shouldn't be honored. What we found out,
and I don't know if I've talked to you about it,
(36:29):
probably informally, but what we found out from the inside
is this gala that they honored Cecily Gay at was
actually paid for by the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation,
and so they wouldn't withdraw the honor because they didn't
want to not have this gala, which was, in the
(36:51):
words of some people who were there, disgusting. It was
a show of this is their word again, opulence, where
Cecily Gay and deejen A. Parker, who are the remaining
two board members of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation,
rolled up and blacked out SUVs with multi thousand dollars handbags,
(37:13):
wearing couture, with an entire glam squad. This is money
that was meant for the movement. They're living like they
are celebrities, off of your money, off of my mama's money,
off the money that was donated in the name of
Frank Tyson and Ezel Ford and you know, Trayvon Martin.
And so this is what's happened. We did have a
(37:37):
group of protesters there and Black Lives Matter, the so
called gaysy Black Lives Matter called police on black people.
That's to show what frauds they are.
Speaker 4 (37:48):
We would never call the police on black people, right,
So they called the police, I mean for those who
haven't been following along as a group of consultants that
in the transition of you know, of leadership, seize the
moment and seize control of ninety million dollars in counting,
plus the social media platforms of the.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
Real Black Lives Matter, which is BLM, Grassroots. Molly Bell says,
doctor Malina abdul Doula, your our prince says, there are
thieves in the temple, and so the police were called,
but no one was arrested.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
Everyone's okay, right.
Speaker 3 (38:26):
Right, There was a dispersal order of people left and
we went and did some other things. But yeah, the
police were called. Apparently they've also filed a restraining order
against me personally. I wasn't even there. All I did
was make a comment on Instagram.
Speaker 1 (38:44):
You're talking about the Afrikicks? Are you talking about the
Global Network Foundation?
Speaker 3 (38:48):
Now? The Global Network Foundation?
Speaker 1 (38:50):
Okay, so they're trying to get a restraining order against
you for protesting, which is also ironic.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
You have to do. What would the real Black Lives.
Speaker 1 (38:59):
Matter be bringing a restraining order against someone for protesting?
Speaker 2 (39:02):
I think not?
Speaker 3 (39:04):
Right? Well, I haven't been served, but that's their notices.
They're going to file a restraining order against me, So
we'll see, we'll see if that happens and if there's
anything to fight. We do want to remember that there's
good work moving through BLM Grassroots, and people should be
following BLM Grassroots for all of the work to support
(39:26):
Frank Tyson, to support Christopher DeAndre Mitchell, to advance black exmuth,
to hold corrupt politicians accountable. That's all the work of BLM.
Speaker 1 (39:36):
Grassroots, yep, not to mention so many things in the
year to come. So they should follow BLM Grassroots and
BLM Grassroots on all platforms or blmgrossroots dot org.
Speaker 3 (39:49):
That's right, that's right, that's the real deal. That's where
we really at.
Speaker 1 (39:52):
Yes, Doctor Malina Abdullah as always, thank you for stopping in.
Speaker 3 (39:58):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (39:59):
Sister Dominique, don't forget.
Speaker 1 (40:00):
You can hear her Saturday morning eight to eight to ten.
This is not a drill and it's only here on
k b LA Talk fifteen eighty
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