November 11, 2021 • 52 mins
The host of the #DidSheSayThat podcast, Sonnie Johnson checks in with Tezlyn to discuss what if anything has changed in the conservative movement in 2021.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Yeah, let's just keep a real straight shot with no Jason.
I'm gonna get a little bit rougher. I'm here for it.
Those who really believe in the American process, all of
us straight Shot No Chaser. What's your Girl? Tesla Figua
(00:23):
on the Black Effect podcasting that word that work? What's
happening everybody? This is Tesla and Figure Oh your girl,
the host of straight Shot No Chaser. I am bringing
back one of the realists in the game. I don't
care if you compare her to a conservative, Republican, a Democrat,
a liberal, libertarian, a progressive. I don't know. We got
so many different titles in the game, but she is
(00:45):
the one and the only. Sunny Johnson, the host of
the series x M Patriot. You can catch that on
one on your Serious x in Radio Sonny's Corner and
she's always went by. Did she say that? The so
that did? She saved that podcast? And yes, friends, she
did say that. Welcome Sis, thank you fiving me back,
(01:08):
boss lady. How you doing doing well? As you always
call me boss lady. But just for the listeners knowing
I'm not no bossing nobody. She liked to call me that.
I guess because I'll be bossing in these streets, but
I don't. I don't want to be no leader. Now days,
leaders gotta they got a loud on their shoulders, Sonny.
And that's why I wanted to bring you back number one.
Shout out to you again and thank you for coming
(01:30):
back a second time. You came on. Um. When I
first rolled out my podcast, you were one of the
first people I wanted to interview. Your show did really
really well, I mean really well. People wanted to hear
what you had to say. A lot of folks that
do not lean on the right side understood your position.
They respected you. They understand why voices like yours are
(01:53):
not elevated in the conservative space because you are a threat.
So since then, it's been a year. I guess. We
had you on in October November of last year, so
it's been a year, and I wanted to bring you
back to give an update, not an update to you
and I because you and I met. I want to
say it was over a decade ago now, Sonny on
Facebook and we have talked about the same thing over
(02:17):
and over and over and over about how black voters
are not appreciated, how black voters. I've always and what
I've loved about our relationship is we've always talked about
it from our camp. You know, I didn't. I don't
try to get in and tell what conservatives you guys
need to do this, and you guys can do that
because I don't work in that space. And a lot
of people don't understand that about me, because they say,
we why don't you tell the Republicans what you do?
(02:38):
Whyn't you tell the Democrat? Well, I can only speak
of my camp, you know, where the races that I've
worked on, what I have seen for myself. It's certainly
not because I'm rocking with the Republican Party. But I
don't know much, and unlike most people on social media,
I don't like to make ship up as I go.
I only speak about how I have seen Democrat, good
(02:59):
black Democrat candidates not be supported on the local level,
not get the resources that they need, and basically to
be shifted on by on the federal side, which hurts
them in local elections. So here we are. This will
air a couple of weeks from the day that we're
recording this, but I do want people to know that
this is election day November two. I'm saying that because
(03:20):
I want this time stamp. I want this conversation time
stamp um so they can know what we're saying the
day of election, before the numbers come in. That is
really critical to our conversation. And from the left side
of things, you know, I've been talking about the mistreatment
of black people, treating us like a mistress, leaving us
in the wet spot, treating us like the girlfriend. And
(03:41):
now people are starting to see what I was talking about.
When I initially started talking about it in two thousand
and eight, two thousand, nine, thousand ten, two thousand ten,
when I became independent, people couldn't really hear me sunny
because they were so infatuated with the presidency, the romanticizing
of the Barack Obama a president ency, and everything that
(04:02):
I said they looked at as a slight to him.
Fast forward everything that I said, which I said then
when Trump was in office, they looked at as a well,
you must be helping Trump. So now that both of
those things are out of the way and it's Joe Biden,
I am starting to see on my end an awakening
(04:23):
of what many of us have been talking about. So
I want to shut up and let you the guests,
kind of give us a picture on what you have
been talking about on the Republican side or on the
conservative side. And do you see any change within the
last year. We know that there's motivation from the Trumpers
at least, and I'm sure there's motivation from non Trumpers
(04:46):
as well. There always is for the party that's that,
you know loss, But I want you to give us
a snapshot of what has changed, if any, within the
last year. You did a tweet the other day, and
I don't know if you want to share what you
meant about that, but you said, and I'm paraphrasing, for
those of you who are just pretending like you don't
see what's going on. You basically you were saying, you
see what's going on. I know what's going on. Y'all
(05:08):
just pretending you can only you know, ignore it for
so long. And so I'm paraphrasing, you can only pretendpa
so long. Yeah, yeah, you can only pretend for so long.
And I think that that's what a lot of the
Republican pundits are going to realize. Like five years ago,
they could have they could have get away with some
of the ship that they were doing. Like if because
(05:29):
we're specifically U tie stamp this, I can say this
that this was today one of the Republican representatives down
in Arizona wished good luck to the Virginia voters to
make generally proud. You know what I'm saying, Like, it
is amazing to understand that they don't learn ship, They
(05:50):
don't understand anything. They don't take the time to use
critical thinking skills to put themselves in a better position.
And it is one of my things about this whole
idea of white supremacy, like there's nothing superior about these people.
They don't think superior, they don't plan superior, they're not
(06:13):
tactically superior. These people aren't even organized. So the best
thing where where you say like there's energy, the energy
is like in a fucking slogan, Let's go Brandon, that's
the slogan. Asked me, have they activated? Asked me, have
they created a pack like alc created her pack and
(06:34):
is now getting people elected into office. Asked me, are
they doing anything remotely symbolizing that they have learned that
they have to do something different, and they haven't learned
a damn thing. They're going right back to symbolism. They're
going right back to being reactionary and just waiting for
(06:56):
Democrats to do something and then having some them to
say about that, instead of being forward thinking and putting
together a plan and actually knowing how they plan on operating.
So the only thing that I would say that's in
any different is now there's a bunch of us uppity
ones at the bottom. Because it was really cool and
(07:17):
easy for them to kind of ignore and push me
off when it was just me. But now that I
have this whole little uppity group of black conservatives that
are with me, that are all starting their own platforms,
that are all developing their own message um, that have
all decided they're gonna be uppity. They're not gonna play along,
(07:38):
they're not gonna fit in those stereotypes. They're gonna say
what the hell they want to say, when they want
to say how they want to say it. And I'm
just grateful that I played a part and getting those
voices out and and into the ether, into the conversation.
But that's the only thing that I have seen actually change.
So where I would say, like five years ago, I
(07:58):
was lonely as hell, now at least have people around
that understand the work, understand the mission, understand what we're
trying to do, and are not easily swayed by the
Republican and conservative acceptance that is very empty and hollow.
And like you said, Leaves does nothing. Believe them in
(08:21):
a wet spot when it's over with. So if you
look at a lot of the black faces that were
so popular on the trunk, what the hell are they now? Yeah,
exactly nowhere because they won't doing ship, they won't produce
a ship, they won't effective in anyway, and now they're
pushed to the side in a history Why they get
ready to bring in some new black faces that they
(08:42):
think are gonna be the new prototype. So my mission
is to destroy that prototype. And let's talk about that,
because you talked about it, and then we're gonna go
back and unpack how everything that you said is how
I feel on the Democrats side, only while actually I'm
not a Democratic. Want to make sure they're sure if
I'm clear independent, but I lean Leaft obviously. But everything
that you said about we say that you guys are organized.
(09:06):
We say that you do have the best messaging because
at least you're your slogans work. Our slogans are trash.
We say that there there is strategy, and they do plan.
So we're gonna unpack that in a moment. This is
why I love having you on because even when I
travel to different cities, people say, oh, well, you know,
it's just like that here in Newark, we're different, or
it's just like that here in Oklahoma City, or no,
(09:27):
you gotta see it's different. We're like this and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
And I tell everybody we get their home. A lot
of these cities have the same issues. We're just not
communicating those issues and seeing how No, there's always that
elder in every city that knows everything. There's that young
person in every city that's trying to take over. There's
that fight of ego pride, there's that this group doesn't
(09:50):
like that group, and people trying to bring each other down.
There's a lot of similarities and they repeat themselves over
and over in the space of organizing. And what you
just said is the same that we have on the
black liberal side. But before I go to that, explain
the prototype, because you broke that down in the first episode,
and for those who didn't catch it, the first time,
go back and listen to it before the sake of
(10:11):
this conversation, explain what is the black conservative prototype that
that we see that's out there that you're trying to
destroy it. It is the the passive black person that
likes to deny that they're black. Black can't be in
their conversation. And that's of course they're talking something derogatory
when it when it comes to black people like black
(10:33):
own black crime, or or black fatherless homes or you
know what I'm saying. When it's something derogatory, they have
no problems and speaking about race. But when you want
to speak about black empowerment, black ownership, entrepreneurship, black equity,
anytime you want to speak on anything positive having to
do with the black community, then you have these black
(10:53):
faces that come out and say, I'm not black, I'm American,
or um, I think that this is my funny, this
is the this is the thing that I learned. I
guess that I would add that is new. This idea
that they think, because we don't run from our blackness,
that we are somehow oppressed, you know, kinda in the
(11:14):
aspect of what some others may say. And they talk
to me like that, and I've come to realize that
they are not ready two accept blacks that walk in
their superiority, ones that are not afraid to talk about
(11:39):
the history, to talk about the culture, to talk about
the community, to talk about theirselves, their families, their marriages. Like,
they are not ready to realize that black people are
not the stereotype that they have in their head. So
to me, that whole prototype of Okay, you gotta marry
(12:00):
a white spouse, you have to live in a white area,
you have to attend all of the white conferences, and
like be an example of the only black face that
is showing up, like that prototype that they consistently go to.
And you know that it's a prototype because it never lasts.
It only last one elections, like and then they have
(12:22):
to throw all of those away to bring in new,
fresh versions of the prototype. So that's how you know
it is fake. It is fraudulent, and it is built
on nothing. It stands for nothing, It has principle and nothing,
It conserves nothing, and it is ineffective as hell. So
that's what they want. They want an ineffective, effectless, powerless
(12:46):
focus lists set a black people that they can just
use from election to election to say, hey, look, we
got black people here and that is the prototype that
needs to be destroyed. So somebody would say to that,
well they do that. I'm I'm giving you the talking
points of playing devil's advocate because you know, I don't
say the Democratic Party has any love for us as well.
(13:08):
I'm with the Malcolm makes for them all, but I'm
gonna play devil's advocate of what someone would say to that, Okay, Sunny, well,
that's because they don't respect black people. That's because they're racist.
That's because they don't um they don't want black people
to be involved. So if they don't want black people
to be involved there, the question would be to you,
why are you still a part of this party? Because
(13:30):
it's not their principles. They don't own them, they don't
have power or control over them. And for another part,
they're abusing them and using them all, so they're not
even they're not even star wars or protecting what they're
trying to keep me from. And on top of that,
my dedication to conservatism doesn't have a fucking thing to
(13:52):
do with white people. My entire historical context of why
I am a conservative can be put into the faces
of Frederick Douglas, the faces of the Book of See Washington,
the faces of Carter Woodson, the faces of Malcolm X.
So I can tell my entire conservative story without a
white person mentioned in it. But just because they act
(14:13):
the way that they act, or behave the way that
they behave, what do you expect me to do? Run
from them? Am I supposed to be the coward? Am
either one that's supposed to back away and just give
up what I believe in because it was some white
person has to say no? So I would much rather
go into their face, go into their space, go into
(14:36):
their bubbles, go into their comfort zones, and pop every
single one of them consistently. So if you want you
don't want me here, I'm here. You want me to
shut up, I'm gonna be louder. You don't want to
hear what I gotta say, Fine, I'm coming after your kids.
So it doesn't matter what you want. I am not
(14:56):
some oppressed black person that that needs you to operate
in a space. I am an uppity black woman that
has focused and knows what I want. And if you
get in my way, I don't care what color you are.
I'm coming straight through you. So that's my response to that.
I am not a coward. I'm not gonna run from
a space because someone um gives me ship face or
(15:21):
thinks that they can utter a few words out of
their mouth that are gonna discourage me from being the
who who the hell I am. It doesn't work that way.
So if you think that's what you're running into, if
you think that that's what I am, then I feel
sorry for you when we actually meet on the battlefield
of ideas, because just like I'm not running from them,
(15:41):
I'm not gonna run from anyone that questions why I
stand on conservatism. Tintoes down heard that that is the
host the Did she say that? Podcast? I felt like
this sounded like a whole little intro. I needed to say,
that's the whole did you say that? Podcast? This is
what I love. I did alive with Killer MIKEAE and
(16:01):
we were talking about his mission to plot, playing, strategized, organized, mobilized,
and one of the things we always talk about on
a consistent basis, not just on the live that we did,
was everybody has a role, and there there is a
role inside the party, there's a role outside the party,
and if I choose to be outside both parties, it
(16:23):
doesn't make me weak. It doesn't mean that I'm running
from something. It doesn't mean because you know and she's
weak about me. It doesn't mean that I'm not willing to,
like you said so eloquently, meet on the battlefield ideas.
I just think that's the space that we need to
be in. But I love how you're in the conservative space.
I love how people like uh Anina Turner is in
(16:47):
the Democrats space, challenging Democrats. She always asked herself, what
is wrong with me? I'm still over here not And
she said one of the things that she always says
is I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of leaving the party.
So hey, I wouldn't get in a satisfaction to take
it my boot off. They right, they want, but put
you in a position where you run. I will be
(17:10):
damned if they make me. Absolutely and I see that
role for you. But when it comes to me and
those who want to be independent and not associated with
a party, it certainly doesn't mean that I'm running. It
is that I understand and that we understand the very
small group of us that are blind pushers in our
own way, that there has to be voices in all areas.
(17:34):
You know what I'm saying. And my area is fuck
both of y'all. You know what I'm saying, Like, that's
my area because when we're having conversation, I like to
be able to have a conversation with Sonny and have
a conversation with somebody on the far left and have
a conversation with a moderate and they not easily try
(17:54):
to put me into a well you're a conservative or
well you're a Democrat, because when I'm able to push
back and say no, I'm not either one. I'm telling
you that you both trashed that you don't respect us
as a on the conservative side, because I talked to
Sunny Johnson, you don't respect us on the liberal side.
Because I've worked on these campaigns, it allows me conversations
in certain spaces. Um That made that maybe people will
(18:17):
receive me on a different level. So I think when
it comes to voices, uh, I love the fact that
we recognize as full grown women that there is space
for all of us and all of these spaces. And
I'm mainly talking about when I say us, I'm talking
about the ones with voices, the ones with microphones. Who
are you know, uh, sending messages? You know, I'm not
(18:39):
talking about just and again no disrespect to you know,
average voters, but I'm talking about people like us, talking heads.
Like you said, you felt very lonely, and I felt
very lonely being independent. I remember after doing commentary for
years on Fox, they would always try to and they
asked me, you know, would you like to be a
contributor as a Democrat? It was only a Democrat available.
(19:01):
I don't. I don't want to do that. I don't.
I don't care what the do, what the bag is,
what the opportunity is. I do not want to be
here every day, day in and day out, defending all
things Democrats. I just won't do it. Now. Should somebody
do it? Absolutely, But that's not for me. So I
felt lonely for a long time of you know, where
(19:22):
are the independent? Who are people? And you know, we
got our friend who's a libertarian, uh, Lawrence Jones, And
he classifies himself as a libertarian. And I'm not questioning
if he is. But I know, because of being on Fox,
they see anybody on Fox, you know, leaning even for
your libertarian, They see you leanymore right. But I love
my space sunny because I really do like to say
(19:44):
fucking both. I enjoy it. It makes me feel good,
it makes my soulier good. And during I do I do,
I do a balant. I do a balance of fucking
both as well. Like I'm not a Republican, I identify
as a conservative. It is a difference specifically because I
(20:04):
want people to know what conservatism means um not not
how they bastardize it, but what it actually stands for.
And that's why instead of just saying independent of both
political parties, I stick with conservative as the title. It's
basically because I want to introduce the principles in a way,
(20:25):
in a way that I define them and not one
that has been put out by the definition of others.
But that leaves me a lot of space to say
fun both politicals. I don't want bats. I don't I
don't want balance. I want to say fucking both all
the time. I want to say both all the time.
I want to say both in the morning and the afternoon.
And my I don't want no balance, but I do
(20:46):
say that I have concerned But you know that I'm
saying I have conservative values. And I have liberal values
because you're absolutely This comes down to political education, people
understanding the difference between values and a political party. There
is a difference, a huge difference. I was raised and
most black people, especially in the Midwestern and the South,
(21:08):
or if they have any Southern roots, which all black
people do in one way or the other, have some
type of southern roots. You were raised with some concerned
at least one conservative value. You had to because your
mother's mother came out of the depression. And a conservative
value is literally conservating. We conserve the orange juice. We conserved, uh,
the jar bottles, the jars of jelly became cups. And
(21:31):
you know, in my grandmother's household, we raised our own food. Uh,
my grandmother farmed. We had a farm. They raised it,
they killed it, they cooked it. They believe both of
my grandparents were self employed. The other side of my grandparents,
the other side is so interested in my grand Both
of my grandparents name or Thomas. Both our grandfather's name
were Thomas. Both our grandmother's name were Joyce. On my
(21:52):
parento and my maternal side, my grandmother Joyce and Thomas Taylor.
Where we're too self employed? Eight people my grandmother owned
a beauty supply, I mean a beauty a beauty salone.
She that helped her get out of an abusive marriage
and she ended up Marying. The only grandfather ever known.
My grandfather who she married, Thomas Taylor, owned a mechanic shop,
(22:14):
his own shop that's still stays today. Rest in peace.
Both he has passed away, but his shop is still there.
My other grandparents, Grandma Joyce Figaro, enjoyed in Thomas Figaro.
Thomas figure Ro was Vietnam and Korea vet. He retired
in the Air Force. He worked at the post office.
Mother grandfather worked in the was in the army as well.
(22:36):
But my grandfather Figaro retired in the Air Force and
then he went to a government job, you know, at
the post office. Even after he retired, he still went back.
My grandmother, Joyce Taylor, I mean Joyce Figaro, was not
an entrepreneur, but she drove a school bus. She worked
in the school system. She drove a school bus, and
she was a lunch lady. She was a lunch cafeteria lady.
(22:56):
So both of them two totally different ideologies. And my
grandmother Taylor was the I'm Jesus cousin never heard of
say a cuss word. We went to church seven days,
and I mean literally sunny I'm talking you know how
it is like we went Wednesday, Uh I bribe, will study,
Thursday cry with her. So Sunday, Saturday youth services, and
(23:18):
Sunday it was prayer before we left. We held hands.
We prayed every Sunday. Then it was Sunday school, regular church,
beat and beat, three o'clock service as somebody else's church,
and then six o'clock the night. Grandma Figaro, totally opposite Catholic,
cuss your ass out. This is where I get obviously,
I get my energy from Louisiana. So they have a Creole,
(23:40):
a lot of the Italian and the Native American and
all of those different cultures that's in the Crea. In
the Creole culture, you know, totally opposite. We want to
go on to church. They went to Mass, but it
wasn't a seven day, four or five day a week
church type of thing. And so it's the balance of
both those were And then my cousins was in the streets.
They weren't in the streets. They was pushing its sellen dope.
(24:00):
So and I got cousins on my mama's side, that
we're doing dope. You know that was a result of
I really got to write a book as I think
about my life. But both of those balances, Sonny, is
why I can say that I have some conservative values
and also some liberal values. And I think values are important.
(24:22):
I think that education is important. Um, But when it
comes to political parties, I really do kind of like
to say, fucking vote. You have told us that not
much has changed, that they don't respect what it is
(24:42):
that you're still trying to do. And why is that, Sonny?
Is it because they fear that once black people awaken
themselves to this space that they could possibly own and occupy.
Is that the fear or are they just playing dumb
and not taking an opportunity where they could snatch up
some of these black voters who are totally disgruntled with
(25:03):
the Democratic Party. They are indoctrinated and don't want to
admit it. So if you look at like the current
ky uh, the current argument uh surrounding critical race theory,
and you think about what critical race theory actually is.
You know, the study of systems of government and the
racism from those systems, and you listen to what they're
(25:28):
actually talking about, and you know that they're not talking
about critical race theory. They're talking about being forced to
recognize black history, and that is because of how bad
they have been indoctrinated. So they don't want to admit
(25:49):
that it's happened to them. They very much believe that
us as black people have been indoctrinated into you know whatever,
but they don't want to be that they have. So
when you actually start going in and being like, well,
why are but when and you know, they'll be like,
why are black communities this way? And then you start
(26:10):
actually telling them, then they're like, well, I never knew
that happened. Of course you didn't because you don't know
ship about what you are talking and your pundits made
it that way. You've had an entire generation of Republican
and conservatory conservative punditry class that has made it their
(26:30):
mission to whitewash everything. The people under them don't know
that it's being whitewashed. They're thinking that they're being given
accurate information from these pundits that they trust, and these
pundits that they trust are presenting themselves like there are
(26:50):
some kind of experts on on the subject, especially when
it comes to like black America and what our quote
unquote flaws are. They are not experts. They don't know
what the hell they're talking about. In in in order to
hide that fact, they whitewash and try to push a
color Bryant, color blind conversation to the people that are
(27:12):
following them. This allows them to not have to talk
about racism at all. They don't have to address it.
It becomes an issue that they can um very very
easily sweep to the side. But as they start to
see or realize the abuses of government and those abuses
(27:35):
are now focused on them. Now all of a sudden,
they're like, wait a minute, um, um, the police shouldn't
be doing X, Y and Z. What the hell do
you mean? Like, did you not hear like millions of
people launching throughout the streets telling you that police should
not be doing that. But you said that that that
(27:55):
that it didn't happen, that it was imaginary, that they
made it up. But now when you think that it's
happening to you all of a sudden, it is a
sign that America is on its way down and decline.
It wasn't on its way down and decline. When it
was doing it to us, when it was black bodies
on the street, that was perfectly okay. But now that
(28:16):
you think that you're the target, now it must be
addressed and must be stopped. And this is what I
have tried to tell Republicans and conservatives and tell you
acknowledge what you let happen. And you could say, well,
I didn't vote for her, I didn't pass it, or
I didn't believe in it. I don't care about that.
(28:37):
You said silently and let it happen. You said nothing
to stop it. You waged no campaign to conserve what
we say are our basic tenants and that which was
which was ode in the Bill of Rights. You didn't
protect that, you didn't defend that. So and tell you
(28:58):
can recognize that you failed as a as a population,
as we the people. You let government abuses continue to
go on without saying anything because they did not affect you.
Now that they're affecting you, you want us to rally
behind you. Hell, no, acknowledge this entire time what we
(29:19):
have been trying to tell you. Acknowledge the abuses of
this government aren't our people this entire fucking time. And
if you can't acknowledge that, don't run to me and
ask me to defend you. Know, I'm gonna wait for
the revolution to come get your ass because if if
you cannot protect it for all, I am damn sure
(29:40):
I'm not gonna stand on the front lines protecting anything
for you. So that's what they need to understand now.
And and when when I tell you, when I go
back to that thing about supremacy, and they are not
supreme in any way, I promise you they they don't
understand how local government works. They've into the federalized utopia
(30:02):
that somehow, if you get Trump into place, everything is
gonna be solved. Like they are as warped and danced
as they think that we are. But they don't want
to admit it. And that's what I do. I basically
throw it in their face every single way that I
possibly can to let them understand, your hypocrisy is what's
(30:26):
killing his country, Your apathy is killing is what's killing
this country. Your silence is what is killing this country.
And until you remove those things and realize that race
is not a conversation to run from, but one to
run towards to solve, then nothing is gonna change, and
you're gonna continue to get this vitriol in our country
(30:47):
where the people that are complaining about the abuses against
their rights are going to get louder and louder and
louder and louder, and Ship is going to continue the
bird because they're plan anymore. And I don't blame them.
So either you find a way to get to bridge
the gap and get to those people and actually started conversation,
(31:10):
or we're inevidently going to see the outcome going a
completely different way for this country. And the choices now,
the choices now, do you think they want it all?
And they're like, no, we don't we this, we're doing
this about design, We don't want to do that. We
like it. Well, I talked to the people, the people
(31:32):
on the ground. I don't really um try to get
into I've been in the upper echelon circles and I
can tell you the people in the upper echelon circles
they're happy with low black voter turn out. They're not
gonna try to go out of their way to get
the black vote. They would prefer the black vote to
just sit down and they not have to spend any
(31:55):
money on it, you know what I saying. And those
are the people that are at the top, and I
will never lie to protect them. I can tell you
a million and one stories about how fucked up their
philosophy is when it comes to things like black outreach.
But I talked to the people on the ground, the grassrooms,
the average people. They want this solved because they are
(32:19):
losing their kids. They are losing their kids. They're like,
I've never taught my kids to be racist. I've never
taught my kid. I've talked them to be color blind, this, that,
and that, and I'm looking at them like, and now
your kid goes to a multicultural school trying to pretend
he's color blind, right, Like you you screwed your kid
(32:43):
because your kid is not going in like, oh, let
me learn your culture, let me gain from you, let
me teach you mine. That's like, that's not how your
kid is going in. Your kid is going in. You
have no culture, you have no history, you have know
anything other than what I was taught in my household
(33:04):
because I'm color black. And You're wondering why your kids
are getting screwed up. And then your kids and their
kids are like, I just want to love my friends.
My friends are black and they're Hispanic, and you know
what I'm saying, They're Muslim, they're gay, they're all of this.
I just want to love my friends. Whatever fight you
(33:24):
got going on, whatever bag that you've got going on,
whatever backstory y'all got going, I don't want to be
a part of that. So they are losing their kids
because they're not even preparing their kids. And yeah, and
that's what's frightening for them. It's so interesting you said that,
because when I said that this week, I don't know
if I said it on BNC. I did say it
(33:45):
on BNC. I said that what what is scaring them
the most is because they're losing their children because our
children are not having the conversations that we're having. My
daughter's fourteen and the school that she was in and
Latin Middle School, very diverse school. It was almost eight
percent Asian American UH school and Pacific Islanders. And they
(34:11):
really don't when we say color blind and don't look
at color and all at her age, they really they
really see, they understand color. They have the conversations they
talk about racism. I subbed in the classroom so I
hear them having the conversations much better than adults. But
they really I just wanted, like you said, they just
want to love their friends. When I was fourteen years old,
(34:34):
you know, I was in the hip hop so I
was loving all the stuff I shouldn't be, like n
w A or Little Kim or you know, any of
any of those artists that I shouldn't have been listening to.
My daughter's favorite band is BTS and I tell people,
I tell people BTS an't like, oh, you don't know
what I say. Yes, they're one of the most popular,
(34:55):
the most popular boy band in the world. It's an
It's an Asian band, are group and pop. I'm taking
her to l A to see this concert and their
kids from everywhere and they, you know, have taken hip
hop to a whole another level. I am a hip
hop head. My daughter's favorite group is Panic at the disco.
It's like, I have no I have no clue who
(35:18):
that is you because I'm like, what in the world, Like,
how did this happen? How did how did me being
a hip hop they? How did I? How did I born?
How did I raise? Whose favorite band is? But yeah,
they have they have a freedom that we did not have,
(35:39):
and they are taking full advantage of it. They're not
limiting themselves to what we classify as our definitions. They're like, no,
I want like my daughter's favorite culture is Japanese culture.
So like they want to branch out, they want to learn,
(36:00):
they want to know, they want to grow, they want
to accept, and us as parents should be doing our
best to help them with that, not trying to reduce
them to um to our petty baggage or our petty
conversations are our petty politics. We should be letting our
(36:24):
children figure out how they are going to run this
country when it is their turn. And if the way
that they want to run this country when it is
their turn is to love and to accept and to
grow together, not under a guise of diversity, but under
(36:45):
a guise of loving the people that they love. If
that's what they want to do, that it would be
it is our detrimental neglect not to give them that.
And if we can't give them that, starting with faith,
basic conversations in our own house about issues we know
that they are gonna face when they go out into
(37:06):
the world, then we are failing them. And we can't
blame the school systems for that. We can't blame the
government for that, the political parties for that, anybody else
for that. And that's what I'm trying to get white
Conservatives and Republicans to understand. You're gonna lose to us.
They love us more than they love the bullshit you're
(37:27):
teaching them, so understand you are going to lose to us.
So your best bet is to figure out a way
to learn and to grow and to mature with your kids,
not to not to abandon your adultness and turn it
over to them. Don't do that, That's not what I'm saying.
(37:48):
But learn a way to grow with them. Absolutely. And
also for clarification for those are listening, because I don't
want to make sure you're clear. We're clear. Although my
daughters friends and it literally looks like United Nations. UM.
When I looked at her birthday party was her UM.
She has her best friend is Brazilian, she has a
Asian friend, White, Black, and Indian American. Literally like that's
(38:14):
what her friend group looks like. But at the same time,
as a black parent, as a black woman, UM, I
make sure that Jada understands that our role is different,
that there are different challenges that there are, you know,
not to make her any different than them, but there's
certain things she has to know, just simple things, you know,
like the privilege of I'll just use this as an
(38:36):
example where their parents may say, oh, you know, just
go outside and you know whatever. You know, have more
freedom and you know, growing up, we would say, well,
you know, that's white pols. They let white white kids
get to do that. Instead of me telling her that,
like I was told, you know, you your mom ain't
no white mama. You can't just do whatever you want
to do, I explained to her because I have an
understanding the reasoning behind the things that I say. So
(39:00):
for example, her one of her friends has more autonomy
than we do because there they grew up with the
privilege of that nothing will happen where I grew up
very different and so not trying to give her that trauma,
but I make sure Jada understands. Listen, if something happens
to you, they don't come look for black girls the
way that they look for white girls. You have to
(39:21):
understand that the way they move and how their parents
may they may view the world, it is very different
than our reality. So it's okay. For you to have
other friends, but understand that this world is not your
friend group. And so I think if you can be responsible,
you know enough to do that and to have the
maturity and not make her feel bad for having. For
(39:42):
everybody don't want to be fight the power, you know,
that's what that's what they call and fight the power,
you know, power to the people. Everybody don't want to
be Fred Hamptons. So she has her own personality, but
I also sunny try to make sure that she understands
there's differences, because there is a difference where Molly can
just kind of go not to say that, you know,
they would look for her her as well, but we
know for damn sure they don't look for black little girls.
(40:03):
So I have to give her that game so that
she's informed. My daughter finds her difference in her hair. Okay, So, um,
I started getting perms when I was like seven years old,
you know what I'm saying. So I've kind of been
that way my entire life. I don't even know what
my natural hair looks like. I will very soon, but um,
(40:23):
I don't even know what my natural hair looks like. Um,
my daughter has never had chemicals in her hair. Ever,
so this year's this year, she came to me and
she's like, I want to dye my hairpinink. And I'm like,
you want to do what? And she's like, I want
to dye my hair, my entire head bright freaking pink.
(40:45):
And I'm like, yeah, you know, you know, and she's like,
this is what I want to do. And so I
went and I got her hair dyed pink for her.
Um she's a great kid, you know. Um all A's
in school. She never gives me any problem. Like, she's
a great kid. If if the if the most She's
gonna give me his pink hair, then I'm gonna take it. Um.
(41:07):
Her her her edges, her roots started to grow back out,
and you started to see her brown and her roots again.
And she tells me, she's like, Mom, you think I'm
like running from being black? And uh, it's a conversation
that we have all the time. She's like, my roots
are always gonna come in like this. You know, they're
(41:27):
always gonna be nappy, they're always gonna be kinky, they're
always gonna be coyly, and they're always gonna be dark
brown when they come in. Don't worry I'm not gonna
forget who I am and like, yeah, when you can
do that for your child, like, yes, you can love
Japanese culture. Yes, you can love Panic at the disco.
(41:50):
You can do you can have a eclectic group of friends.
But you understand your roots are always gonna come out
that dark brown and you know that and you understand
what that means. Like I was like, Okay, I feel
safe with you understanding your position. Yea, our daughters will
(42:14):
always be very well clear about where they stayed as
as mother's. Before we get out of here, I know
we only have a few minutes left. Are you still
in the Virginia area? Okay? Tell us about Virginia. This
(42:36):
is time stamps on election day, all of the conversations
saying the Democrats are gonna get their ass whoop. Historically,
Virginia has always went in the opposite direction of whoever
was in power. However, uh, when Terry, what do? I
can never pronounce the plans this last name for me
mc luck, m mccauliffe, mccaulliffe, mccaulliffe. When he was in office,
(42:58):
when he was elected in two thousand four two, that
was the first time that it did swing towards the
administration and power. Will he be able to do it
again tonight? And if not? Why what do you see
on the ground. I know what I see from the
Democrat Party standpoint and voters, you know, giving people the
finger and not being motivated because people are just over it.
(43:18):
But what do you see on the ground locally in
your community? So everywhere I live in northern Virginia and
you're you're not, you don't see a lot of You're
not supposed to see a lot of Republican signage. Uh,
there's a lot of Republican signage. A lot. I heard
that they were talking about that the other day, that
(43:40):
there was that that was a lot. It's way more
than I have ever seen the entire time that I
have been living in UM in Virginia. Let me not
make a prediction and let me say this instead. When
I first got into politics in two thousand and eight,
Virginia had a Republican governor UM in office, Bob McDonald.
(44:04):
One of the first things he did when he got
into office was he declared it Confederate History Month, and me,
being new to politics at the time, I was like,
I'm confused that I'm really, really confused by this, Um,
aren't you were Republican And he was like yes, And
I was like, um, then why are you declaring like
(44:25):
Democrat history month, Like I don't understand what you're doing here.
And I never got an answer to that question. And
I have asked every politician in Virginia that question for
the last twelve years now, you know what I'm saying.
Every single white GOP candidate that I have come across
(44:47):
in the state, I have asked them that same question
and have yet to get an answer from any of them,
including Glenn Juncan so H, and I did get a
chance opportunity to interview him. So what I'll say it
to this is, it doesn't matter what who gets in
(45:09):
as far as black people are concerned our issues, the
things that we need addressed in the state of Virginia,
specifically the Richmond area and Newport News area, they are
going to continue to get pushed aside until we have
competing voices in these areas. GEO, the Virginia g OP
(45:31):
is a ship show. It is not serious as a
political party, and it does very little to help the
Republican Party apparatus itself, let alone anything having to do
with Black Americans. So in our state, if they if
we do not decide that we need to, you know,
like follow killing Mike's example and plot and strategize and
(45:55):
realize exactly what outcome we want. It's not gonna matter
who becomes governor, it's not gonna matter who's going to
become president. We are going to continue to be fectless
and runnerless and unable to change the direction we are
currently heading in and with the rich history that we
have in this state, especially in the city of Richmond
(46:17):
itself that was once a black wall Street, that is
unacceptable to me. So while we have to understand the
place of politics, we also have to understand that there
is a place for activation, and we all need to
be making sure that we have activated in some way
to bring empowerment, equity, ownership, and entrepreneurship to our community.
(46:41):
The more we contribute and pour into those four pots,
the more we're gonna be able to make the political
change that we deem necessary. And I'm not talking about
a political party. I'm not talking about Democrat or Republican.
I am talking about us fundamentally changing what we see
in these dilapidated, destroyed communities and instead of going the
(47:01):
pathway for gentrification, actually having a way where we can
move our people into ownership. That has to be our plan,
that has to be our our our agenda, and we
have to realize, like you said, it's gonna be fun
both politics, both political parties, until we can pour enough
into those four buckets to make it so they cannot
ignore us anymore. Absolutely, well, you just gave I don't
(47:23):
even have to repeat, mind, because you just gave the
summary for what is exactly happening on the left, Which
is why I love having your own Sunday because it
shows that there are some commonalities. You know, I use
the analogy earlier, have you know people to say it's
different here, and it's different here, and there are differences,
you know, there's different culture, there's different regions that do
things differently. You have different leadership in different areas. But
(47:44):
for the most part, people want to see black people win.
If you are in black people, you are really black
for real and in politics for real. And if you
are in if you are black and in politics for real,
you want to see us win. And that should be
able to have the maturity to put the party party
politics and really at least be able to have a conversation.
I always feel good to know that you're on that
(48:05):
side pushing the line. You give me the same respect,
always bumping me up. You do such a wonderful job
of that. One of the things we talked about last
night was ego. Was that a lot of times folks
don't allow their egos, you know, they keep the egos
in the way and don't know how to uplift other people.
It's not that I'm trying to get more shine than
(48:25):
you or you're trying to get more shine than than me.
We're just tired of being lonely, you know, and not
happen enough people. We want allies, we want accomplices, we
want soldiers, you know, I always say on this show. Yeah,
so we yeah, just allies, and not just that, but real,
real soldiers that are willing to get their hands dirty.
(48:46):
So you gotta feel good knowing that, by nothing else,
by default, you're gonna get something dumb for black people.
You're gonna push it. I'm gonna be pushing over here,
and at the end of the day, it benefits us all.
So thank you so much again, Sonny. I think you
are one of those conversations that we need to have
come back, you know, every whether it's every quarter, twice
a year, whatever, you know, just to really give us
an update because I have yet to have to meet
(49:09):
a conservative at least and and my you know, my
circle that has been so consistent, consistent about your message,
consistent about what you believe in, consistent about your values,
and you have a way of getting people to hear
things that they otherwise would not have. When we did
the show last time, Marcy was like, Wow, I've really
(49:31):
learned a lot. And initially if you were just say
I'm bringing on a conservative, because they do they only
see the prototype, and so you are the example of conversations,
uh that need to be had, and they know it
and intentionally try not to raise her voice the same
way they do with with me. You know, I don't
want to minimize my opportunity at our Heart or Black
Black News Channel at all, but Black News Channel literally
(49:54):
had to be created, Uh, the black effect had to
be created because for the last ten years there was
no home. I had no home for my boys at all.
So I just want to thank you Sunny again for
coming by ses. I look forward to talking to you again.
We're gonna see what these Virginia election results come in.
I'm gonna put my prediction. My prediction is whether it's
(50:16):
winning or losing tonight. You better stop playing with black
people that's on the left, the right, in the middle.
Stop playing black people because we ain't playing with you.
So thank you so much for joining us. And where
can they find you? Before we get out of the
sunny Where can they find you on your Twitter? Yeah?
My favorite, uh social is the Twitter. You can find
me ask Sunday Johnson, asked O and I E and
(50:38):
every single Saturday on Serious x M one for Sunday's
corner Fire Conversations. We gotta get you back on the
show task. Yeah, of course I've gotta come over and
spread some liberal love conservative viewers. But though thank you
so much, Sunny as always always coming through whenever, as
you are such a gym and people don't know how
(50:59):
many people you pushed my haim the scenes. I always
want to give you this credit, Flowers in public. We
do a lot behind the scenes. But one of the
first opportunities that I've had to have my voice written
in national print was you quoting me when you were
writing a piece a long time ago, ten years ago
with bright Barden. Whether people like Brightboard or not, I'm
sure they. I'm sure they don't, especially with Steve Bannon,
(51:20):
But that's not the point. The point is you refer
to my voice in that space and that's powerful. And
I tell liberals and democrats if you don't like it,
when are you gonna refer to me? Oh? I'm sorry
you gonna do? So? Shut up? So thank you so much, Sonny,
y'all not taking it better to have a boss lady
(51:40):
on y'all side. Y'all gotter wake up and realize y'all
got a gym and y'all y'all need to be treating
or right. So I appreciate you so much, shast thanks
for having me. I appreciate you too, honey. Thank you
so much. All right, everybody, thank you for listening that
with straight Shot Don't Chase until next time piece. If
you like what you heard on Straight Shot No Chaser,
please subscribe and drop a five star review and tell
(52:01):
a friend. Straight Shot No Chaser is a production of
the Black Effect Podcast Network and I Heart Radio an
Tessa figure and I'd like to thank our producer editor Mixer,
the one and only Marcy dpina, a mixed master Dwayne Crawford,
and our executive producer, Charlottage Nagod. For more podcast from
I Heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple podcast,
(52:21):
or wherever you get your podcasts.
Yeah, let's just keep a real straight shot with no Jason.
I'm gonna get a little bit rougher. I'm here for it.
Those who really believe in the American process, all of
us straight Shot No Chaser. What's your Girl? Tesla Figua
(00:23):
on the Black Effect podcasting that word that work? What's
happening everybody? This is Tesla and Figure Oh your girl,
the host of straight Shot No Chaser. I am bringing
back one of the realists in the game. I don't
care if you compare her to a conservative, Republican, a Democrat,
a liberal, libertarian, a progressive. I don't know. We got
so many different titles in the game, but she is
(00:45):
the one and the only. Sunny Johnson, the host of
the series x M Patriot. You can catch that on
one on your Serious x in Radio Sonny's Corner and
she's always went by. Did she say that? The so
that did? She saved that podcast? And yes, friends, she
did say that. Welcome Sis, thank you fiving me back,
(01:08):
boss lady. How you doing doing well? As you always
call me boss lady. But just for the listeners knowing
I'm not no bossing nobody. She liked to call me that.
I guess because I'll be bossing in these streets, but
I don't. I don't want to be no leader. Now days,
leaders gotta they got a loud on their shoulders, Sonny.
And that's why I wanted to bring you back number one.
Shout out to you again and thank you for coming
(01:30):
back a second time. You came on. Um. When I
first rolled out my podcast, you were one of the
first people I wanted to interview. Your show did really
really well, I mean really well. People wanted to hear
what you had to say. A lot of folks that
do not lean on the right side understood your position.
They respected you. They understand why voices like yours are
(01:53):
not elevated in the conservative space because you are a threat.
So since then, it's been a year. I guess. We
had you on in October November of last year, so
it's been a year, and I wanted to bring you
back to give an update, not an update to you
and I because you and I met. I want to
say it was over a decade ago now, Sonny on
Facebook and we have talked about the same thing over
(02:17):
and over and over and over about how black voters
are not appreciated, how black voters. I've always and what
I've loved about our relationship is we've always talked about
it from our camp. You know, I didn't. I don't
try to get in and tell what conservatives you guys
need to do this, and you guys can do that
because I don't work in that space. And a lot
of people don't understand that about me, because they say,
we why don't you tell the Republicans what you do?
(02:38):
Whyn't you tell the Democrat? Well, I can only speak
of my camp, you know, where the races that I've
worked on, what I have seen for myself. It's certainly
not because I'm rocking with the Republican Party. But I
don't know much, and unlike most people on social media,
I don't like to make ship up as I go.
I only speak about how I have seen Democrat, good
(02:59):
black Democrat candidates not be supported on the local level,
not get the resources that they need, and basically to
be shifted on by on the federal side, which hurts
them in local elections. So here we are. This will
air a couple of weeks from the day that we're
recording this, but I do want people to know that
this is election day November two. I'm saying that because
(03:20):
I want this time stamp. I want this conversation time
stamp um so they can know what we're saying the
day of election, before the numbers come in. That is
really critical to our conversation. And from the left side
of things, you know, I've been talking about the mistreatment
of black people, treating us like a mistress, leaving us
in the wet spot, treating us like the girlfriend. And
(03:41):
now people are starting to see what I was talking about.
When I initially started talking about it in two thousand
and eight, two thousand, nine, thousand ten, two thousand ten,
when I became independent, people couldn't really hear me sunny
because they were so infatuated with the presidency, the romanticizing
of the Barack Obama a president ency, and everything that
(04:02):
I said they looked at as a slight to him.
Fast forward everything that I said, which I said then
when Trump was in office, they looked at as a well,
you must be helping Trump. So now that both of
those things are out of the way and it's Joe Biden,
I am starting to see on my end an awakening
(04:23):
of what many of us have been talking about. So
I want to shut up and let you the guests,
kind of give us a picture on what you have
been talking about on the Republican side or on the
conservative side. And do you see any change within the
last year. We know that there's motivation from the Trumpers
at least, and I'm sure there's motivation from non Trumpers
(04:46):
as well. There always is for the party that's that,
you know loss, But I want you to give us
a snapshot of what has changed, if any, within the
last year. You did a tweet the other day, and
I don't know if you want to share what you
meant about that, but you said, and I'm paraphrasing, for
those of you who are just pretending like you don't
see what's going on. You basically you were saying, you
see what's going on. I know what's going on. Y'all
(05:08):
just pretending you can only you know, ignore it for
so long. And so I'm paraphrasing, you can only pretendpa
so long. Yeah, yeah, you can only pretend for so long.
And I think that that's what a lot of the
Republican pundits are going to realize. Like five years ago,
they could have they could have get away with some
of the ship that they were doing. Like if because
(05:29):
we're specifically U tie stamp this, I can say this
that this was today one of the Republican representatives down
in Arizona wished good luck to the Virginia voters to
make generally proud. You know what I'm saying, Like, it
is amazing to understand that they don't learn ship, They
(05:50):
don't understand anything. They don't take the time to use
critical thinking skills to put themselves in a better position.
And it is one of my things about this whole
idea of white supremacy, like there's nothing superior about these people.
They don't think superior, they don't plan superior, they're not
(06:13):
tactically superior. These people aren't even organized. So the best
thing where where you say like there's energy, the energy
is like in a fucking slogan, Let's go Brandon, that's
the slogan. Asked me, have they activated? Asked me, have
they created a pack like alc created her pack and
(06:34):
is now getting people elected into office. Asked me, are
they doing anything remotely symbolizing that they have learned that
they have to do something different, and they haven't learned
a damn thing. They're going right back to symbolism. They're
going right back to being reactionary and just waiting for
(06:56):
Democrats to do something and then having some them to
say about that, instead of being forward thinking and putting
together a plan and actually knowing how they plan on operating.
So the only thing that I would say that's in
any different is now there's a bunch of us uppity
ones at the bottom. Because it was really cool and
(07:17):
easy for them to kind of ignore and push me
off when it was just me. But now that I
have this whole little uppity group of black conservatives that
are with me, that are all starting their own platforms,
that are all developing their own message um, that have
all decided they're gonna be uppity. They're not gonna play along,
(07:38):
they're not gonna fit in those stereotypes. They're gonna say
what the hell they want to say, when they want
to say how they want to say it. And I'm
just grateful that I played a part and getting those
voices out and and into the ether, into the conversation.
But that's the only thing that I have seen actually change.
So where I would say, like five years ago, I
(07:58):
was lonely as hell, now at least have people around
that understand the work, understand the mission, understand what we're
trying to do, and are not easily swayed by the
Republican and conservative acceptance that is very empty and hollow.
And like you said, Leaves does nothing. Believe them in
(08:21):
a wet spot when it's over with. So if you
look at a lot of the black faces that were
so popular on the trunk, what the hell are they now? Yeah,
exactly nowhere because they won't doing ship, they won't produce
a ship, they won't effective in anyway, and now they're
pushed to the side in a history Why they get
ready to bring in some new black faces that they
(08:42):
think are gonna be the new prototype. So my mission
is to destroy that prototype. And let's talk about that,
because you talked about it, and then we're gonna go
back and unpack how everything that you said is how
I feel on the Democrats side, only while actually I'm
not a Democratic. Want to make sure they're sure if
I'm clear independent, but I lean Leaft obviously. But everything
that you said about we say that you guys are organized.
(09:06):
We say that you do have the best messaging because
at least you're your slogans work. Our slogans are trash.
We say that there there is strategy, and they do plan.
So we're gonna unpack that in a moment. This is
why I love having you on because even when I
travel to different cities, people say, oh, well, you know,
it's just like that here in Newark, we're different, or
it's just like that here in Oklahoma City, or no,
(09:27):
you gotta see it's different. We're like this and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
And I tell everybody we get their home. A lot
of these cities have the same issues. We're just not
communicating those issues and seeing how No, there's always that
elder in every city that knows everything. There's that young
person in every city that's trying to take over. There's
that fight of ego pride, there's that this group doesn't
(09:50):
like that group, and people trying to bring each other down.
There's a lot of similarities and they repeat themselves over
and over in the space of organizing. And what you
just said is the same that we have on the
black liberal side. But before I go to that, explain
the prototype, because you broke that down in the first episode,
and for those who didn't catch it, the first time,
go back and listen to it before the sake of
(10:11):
this conversation, explain what is the black conservative prototype that
that we see that's out there that you're trying to
destroy it. It is the the passive black person that
likes to deny that they're black. Black can't be in
their conversation. And that's of course they're talking something derogatory
when it when it comes to black people like black
(10:33):
own black crime, or or black fatherless homes or you
know what I'm saying. When it's something derogatory, they have
no problems and speaking about race. But when you want
to speak about black empowerment, black ownership, entrepreneurship, black equity,
anytime you want to speak on anything positive having to
do with the black community, then you have these black
(10:53):
faces that come out and say, I'm not black, I'm American,
or um, I think that this is my funny, this
is the this is the thing that I learned. I
guess that I would add that is new. This idea
that they think, because we don't run from our blackness,
that we are somehow oppressed, you know, kinda in the
(11:14):
aspect of what some others may say. And they talk
to me like that, and I've come to realize that
they are not ready two accept blacks that walk in
their superiority, ones that are not afraid to talk about
(11:39):
the history, to talk about the culture, to talk about
the community, to talk about theirselves, their families, their marriages. Like,
they are not ready to realize that black people are
not the stereotype that they have in their head. So
to me, that whole prototype of Okay, you gotta marry
(12:00):
a white spouse, you have to live in a white area,
you have to attend all of the white conferences, and
like be an example of the only black face that
is showing up, like that prototype that they consistently go to.
And you know that it's a prototype because it never lasts.
It only last one elections, like and then they have
(12:22):
to throw all of those away to bring in new,
fresh versions of the prototype. So that's how you know
it is fake. It is fraudulent, and it is built
on nothing. It stands for nothing, It has principle and nothing,
It conserves nothing, and it is ineffective as hell. So
that's what they want. They want an ineffective, effectless, powerless
(12:46):
focus lists set a black people that they can just
use from election to election to say, hey, look, we
got black people here and that is the prototype that
needs to be destroyed. So somebody would say to that,
well they do that. I'm I'm giving you the talking
points of playing devil's advocate because you know, I don't
say the Democratic Party has any love for us as well.
(13:08):
I'm with the Malcolm makes for them all, but I'm
gonna play devil's advocate of what someone would say to that, Okay, Sunny, well,
that's because they don't respect black people. That's because they're racist.
That's because they don't um they don't want black people
to be involved. So if they don't want black people
to be involved there, the question would be to you,
why are you still a part of this party? Because
(13:30):
it's not their principles. They don't own them, they don't
have power or control over them. And for another part,
they're abusing them and using them all, so they're not
even they're not even star wars or protecting what they're
trying to keep me from. And on top of that,
my dedication to conservatism doesn't have a fucking thing to
(13:52):
do with white people. My entire historical context of why
I am a conservative can be put into the faces
of Frederick Douglas, the faces of the Book of See Washington,
the faces of Carter Woodson, the faces of Malcolm X.
So I can tell my entire conservative story without a
white person mentioned in it. But just because they act
(14:13):
the way that they act, or behave the way that
they behave, what do you expect me to do? Run
from them? Am I supposed to be the coward? Am
either one that's supposed to back away and just give
up what I believe in because it was some white
person has to say no? So I would much rather
go into their face, go into their space, go into
(14:36):
their bubbles, go into their comfort zones, and pop every
single one of them consistently. So if you want you
don't want me here, I'm here. You want me to
shut up, I'm gonna be louder. You don't want to
hear what I gotta say, Fine, I'm coming after your kids.
So it doesn't matter what you want. I am not
(14:56):
some oppressed black person that that needs you to operate
in a space. I am an uppity black woman that
has focused and knows what I want. And if you
get in my way, I don't care what color you are.
I'm coming straight through you. So that's my response to that.
I am not a coward. I'm not gonna run from
a space because someone um gives me ship face or
(15:21):
thinks that they can utter a few words out of
their mouth that are gonna discourage me from being the
who who the hell I am. It doesn't work that way.
So if you think that's what you're running into, if
you think that that's what I am, then I feel
sorry for you when we actually meet on the battlefield
of ideas, because just like I'm not running from them,
(15:41):
I'm not gonna run from anyone that questions why I
stand on conservatism. Tintoes down heard that that is the
host the Did she say that? Podcast? I felt like
this sounded like a whole little intro. I needed to say,
that's the whole did you say that? Podcast? This is
what I love. I did alive with Killer MIKEAE and
(16:01):
we were talking about his mission to plot, playing, strategized, organized, mobilized,
and one of the things we always talk about on
a consistent basis, not just on the live that we did,
was everybody has a role, and there there is a
role inside the party, there's a role outside the party,
and if I choose to be outside both parties, it
(16:23):
doesn't make me weak. It doesn't mean that I'm running
from something. It doesn't mean because you know and she's
weak about me. It doesn't mean that I'm not willing to,
like you said so eloquently, meet on the battlefield ideas.
I just think that's the space that we need to
be in. But I love how you're in the conservative space.
I love how people like uh Anina Turner is in
(16:47):
the Democrats space, challenging Democrats. She always asked herself, what
is wrong with me? I'm still over here not And
she said one of the things that she always says
is I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of leaving the party.
So hey, I wouldn't get in a satisfaction to take
it my boot off. They right, they want, but put
you in a position where you run. I will be
(17:10):
damned if they make me. Absolutely and I see that
role for you. But when it comes to me and
those who want to be independent and not associated with
a party, it certainly doesn't mean that I'm running. It
is that I understand and that we understand the very
small group of us that are blind pushers in our
own way, that there has to be voices in all areas.
(17:34):
You know what I'm saying. And my area is fuck
both of y'all. You know what I'm saying, Like, that's
my area because when we're having conversation, I like to
be able to have a conversation with Sonny and have
a conversation with somebody on the far left and have
a conversation with a moderate and they not easily try
(17:54):
to put me into a well you're a conservative or
well you're a Democrat, because when I'm able to push
back and say no, I'm not either one. I'm telling
you that you both trashed that you don't respect us
as a on the conservative side, because I talked to
Sunny Johnson, you don't respect us on the liberal side.
Because I've worked on these campaigns, it allows me conversations
in certain spaces. Um That made that maybe people will
(18:17):
receive me on a different level. So I think when
it comes to voices, uh, I love the fact that
we recognize as full grown women that there is space
for all of us and all of these spaces. And
I'm mainly talking about when I say us, I'm talking
about the ones with voices, the ones with microphones. Who
are you know, uh, sending messages? You know, I'm not
(18:39):
talking about just and again no disrespect to you know,
average voters, but I'm talking about people like us, talking heads.
Like you said, you felt very lonely, and I felt
very lonely being independent. I remember after doing commentary for
years on Fox, they would always try to and they
asked me, you know, would you like to be a
contributor as a Democrat? It was only a Democrat available.
(19:01):
I don't. I don't want to do that. I don't.
I don't care what the do, what the bag is,
what the opportunity is. I do not want to be
here every day, day in and day out, defending all
things Democrats. I just won't do it. Now. Should somebody
do it? Absolutely, But that's not for me. So I
felt lonely for a long time of you know, where
(19:22):
are the independent? Who are people? And you know, we
got our friend who's a libertarian, uh, Lawrence Jones, And
he classifies himself as a libertarian. And I'm not questioning
if he is. But I know, because of being on Fox,
they see anybody on Fox, you know, leaning even for
your libertarian, They see you leanymore right. But I love
my space sunny because I really do like to say
(19:44):
fucking both. I enjoy it. It makes me feel good,
it makes my soulier good. And during I do I do,
I do a balant. I do a balance of fucking
both as well. Like I'm not a Republican, I identify
as a conservative. It is a difference specifically because I
(20:04):
want people to know what conservatism means um not not
how they bastardize it, but what it actually stands for.
And that's why instead of just saying independent of both
political parties, I stick with conservative as the title. It's
basically because I want to introduce the principles in a way,
(20:25):
in a way that I define them and not one
that has been put out by the definition of others.
But that leaves me a lot of space to say
fun both politicals. I don't want bats. I don't I
don't want balance. I want to say fucking both all
the time. I want to say both all the time.
I want to say both in the morning and the afternoon.
And my I don't want no balance, but I do
(20:46):
say that I have concerned But you know that I'm
saying I have conservative values. And I have liberal values
because you're absolutely This comes down to political education, people
understanding the difference between values and a political party. There
is a difference, a huge difference. I was raised and
most black people, especially in the Midwestern and the South,
(21:08):
or if they have any Southern roots, which all black
people do in one way or the other, have some
type of southern roots. You were raised with some concerned
at least one conservative value. You had to because your
mother's mother came out of the depression. And a conservative
value is literally conservating. We conserve the orange juice. We conserved, uh,
the jar bottles, the jars of jelly became cups. And
(21:31):
you know, in my grandmother's household, we raised our own food. Uh,
my grandmother farmed. We had a farm. They raised it,
they killed it, they cooked it. They believe both of
my grandparents were self employed. The other side of my grandparents,
the other side is so interested in my grand Both
of my grandparents name or Thomas. Both our grandfather's name
were Thomas. Both our grandmother's name were Joyce. On my
(21:52):
parento and my maternal side, my grandmother Joyce and Thomas Taylor.
Where we're too self employed? Eight people my grandmother owned
a beauty supply, I mean a beauty a beauty salone.
She that helped her get out of an abusive marriage
and she ended up Marying. The only grandfather ever known.
My grandfather who she married, Thomas Taylor, owned a mechanic shop,
(22:14):
his own shop that's still stays today. Rest in peace.
Both he has passed away, but his shop is still there.
My other grandparents, Grandma Joyce Figaro, enjoyed in Thomas Figaro.
Thomas figure Ro was Vietnam and Korea vet. He retired
in the Air Force. He worked at the post office.
Mother grandfather worked in the was in the army as well.
(22:36):
But my grandfather Figaro retired in the Air Force and
then he went to a government job, you know, at
the post office. Even after he retired, he still went back.
My grandmother, Joyce Taylor, I mean Joyce Figaro, was not
an entrepreneur, but she drove a school bus. She worked
in the school system. She drove a school bus, and
she was a lunch lady. She was a lunch cafeteria lady.
(22:56):
So both of them two totally different ideologies. And my
grandmother Taylor was the I'm Jesus cousin never heard of
say a cuss word. We went to church seven days,
and I mean literally sunny I'm talking you know how
it is like we went Wednesday, Uh I bribe, will study,
Thursday cry with her. So Sunday, Saturday youth services, and
(23:18):
Sunday it was prayer before we left. We held hands.
We prayed every Sunday. Then it was Sunday school, regular church,
beat and beat, three o'clock service as somebody else's church,
and then six o'clock the night. Grandma Figaro, totally opposite Catholic,
cuss your ass out. This is where I get obviously,
I get my energy from Louisiana. So they have a Creole,
(23:40):
a lot of the Italian and the Native American and
all of those different cultures that's in the Crea. In
the Creole culture, you know, totally opposite. We want to
go on to church. They went to Mass, but it
wasn't a seven day, four or five day a week
church type of thing. And so it's the balance of
both those were And then my cousins was in the streets.
They weren't in the streets. They was pushing its sellen dope.
(24:00):
So and I got cousins on my mama's side, that
we're doing dope. You know that was a result of
I really got to write a book as I think
about my life. But both of those balances, Sonny, is
why I can say that I have some conservative values
and also some liberal values. And I think values are important.
(24:22):
I think that education is important. Um, But when it
comes to political parties, I really do kind of like
to say, fucking vote. You have told us that not
much has changed, that they don't respect what it is
(24:42):
that you're still trying to do. And why is that, Sonny?
Is it because they fear that once black people awaken
themselves to this space that they could possibly own and occupy.
Is that the fear or are they just playing dumb
and not taking an opportunity where they could snatch up
some of these black voters who are totally disgruntled with
(25:03):
the Democratic Party. They are indoctrinated and don't want to
admit it. So if you look at like the current
ky uh, the current argument uh surrounding critical race theory,
and you think about what critical race theory actually is.
You know, the study of systems of government and the
racism from those systems, and you listen to what they're
(25:28):
actually talking about, and you know that they're not talking
about critical race theory. They're talking about being forced to
recognize black history, and that is because of how bad
they have been indoctrinated. So they don't want to admit
(25:49):
that it's happened to them. They very much believe that
us as black people have been indoctrinated into you know whatever,
but they don't want to be that they have. So
when you actually start going in and being like, well,
why are but when and you know, they'll be like,
why are black communities this way? And then you start
(26:10):
actually telling them, then they're like, well, I never knew
that happened. Of course you didn't because you don't know
ship about what you are talking and your pundits made
it that way. You've had an entire generation of Republican
and conservatory conservative punditry class that has made it their
(26:30):
mission to whitewash everything. The people under them don't know
that it's being whitewashed. They're thinking that they're being given
accurate information from these pundits that they trust, and these
pundits that they trust are presenting themselves like there are
(26:50):
some kind of experts on on the subject, especially when
it comes to like black America and what our quote
unquote flaws are. They are not experts. They don't know
what the hell they're talking about. In in in order to
hide that fact, they whitewash and try to push a
color Bryant, color blind conversation to the people that are
(27:12):
following them. This allows them to not have to talk
about racism at all. They don't have to address it.
It becomes an issue that they can um very very
easily sweep to the side. But as they start to
see or realize the abuses of government and those abuses
(27:35):
are now focused on them. Now all of a sudden,
they're like, wait a minute, um, um, the police shouldn't
be doing X, Y and Z. What the hell do
you mean? Like, did you not hear like millions of
people launching throughout the streets telling you that police should
not be doing that. But you said that that that
(27:55):
that it didn't happen, that it was imaginary, that they
made it up. But now when you think that it's
happening to you all of a sudden, it is a
sign that America is on its way down and decline.
It wasn't on its way down and decline. When it
was doing it to us, when it was black bodies
on the street, that was perfectly okay. But now that
(28:16):
you think that you're the target, now it must be
addressed and must be stopped. And this is what I
have tried to tell Republicans and conservatives and tell you
acknowledge what you let happen. And you could say, well,
I didn't vote for her, I didn't pass it, or
I didn't believe in it. I don't care about that.
(28:37):
You said silently and let it happen. You said nothing
to stop it. You waged no campaign to conserve what
we say are our basic tenants and that which was
which was ode in the Bill of Rights. You didn't
protect that, you didn't defend that. So and tell you
(28:58):
can recognize that you failed as a as a population,
as we the people. You let government abuses continue to
go on without saying anything because they did not affect you.
Now that they're affecting you, you want us to rally
behind you. Hell, no, acknowledge this entire time what we
(29:19):
have been trying to tell you. Acknowledge the abuses of
this government aren't our people this entire fucking time. And
if you can't acknowledge that, don't run to me and
ask me to defend you. Know, I'm gonna wait for
the revolution to come get your ass because if if
you cannot protect it for all, I am damn sure
(29:40):
I'm not gonna stand on the front lines protecting anything
for you. So that's what they need to understand now.
And and when when I tell you, when I go
back to that thing about supremacy, and they are not
supreme in any way, I promise you they they don't
understand how local government works. They've into the federalized utopia
(30:02):
that somehow, if you get Trump into place, everything is
gonna be solved. Like they are as warped and danced
as they think that we are. But they don't want
to admit it. And that's what I do. I basically
throw it in their face every single way that I
possibly can to let them understand, your hypocrisy is what's
(30:26):
killing his country, Your apathy is killing is what's killing
this country. Your silence is what is killing this country.
And until you remove those things and realize that race
is not a conversation to run from, but one to
run towards to solve, then nothing is gonna change, and
you're gonna continue to get this vitriol in our country
(30:47):
where the people that are complaining about the abuses against
their rights are going to get louder and louder and
louder and louder, and Ship is going to continue the
bird because they're plan anymore. And I don't blame them.
So either you find a way to get to bridge
the gap and get to those people and actually started conversation,
(31:10):
or we're inevidently going to see the outcome going a
completely different way for this country. And the choices now,
the choices now, do you think they want it all?
And they're like, no, we don't we this, we're doing
this about design, We don't want to do that. We
like it. Well, I talked to the people, the people
(31:32):
on the ground. I don't really um try to get
into I've been in the upper echelon circles and I
can tell you the people in the upper echelon circles
they're happy with low black voter turn out. They're not
gonna try to go out of their way to get
the black vote. They would prefer the black vote to
just sit down and they not have to spend any
(31:55):
money on it, you know what I saying. And those
are the people that are at the top, and I
will never lie to protect them. I can tell you
a million and one stories about how fucked up their
philosophy is when it comes to things like black outreach.
But I talked to the people on the ground, the grassrooms,
the average people. They want this solved because they are
(32:19):
losing their kids. They are losing their kids. They're like,
I've never taught my kids to be racist. I've never
taught my kid. I've talked them to be color blind, this, that,
and that, and I'm looking at them like, and now
your kid goes to a multicultural school trying to pretend
he's color blind, right, Like you you screwed your kid
(32:43):
because your kid is not going in like, oh, let
me learn your culture, let me gain from you, let
me teach you mine. That's like, that's not how your
kid is going in. Your kid is going in. You
have no culture, you have no history, you have know
anything other than what I was taught in my household
(33:04):
because I'm color black. And You're wondering why your kids
are getting screwed up. And then your kids and their
kids are like, I just want to love my friends.
My friends are black and they're Hispanic, and you know
what I'm saying, They're Muslim, they're gay, they're all of this.
I just want to love my friends. Whatever fight you
(33:24):
got going on, whatever bag that you've got going on,
whatever backstory y'all got going, I don't want to be
a part of that. So they are losing their kids
because they're not even preparing their kids. And yeah, and
that's what's frightening for them. It's so interesting you said that,
because when I said that this week, I don't know
if I said it on BNC. I did say it
(33:45):
on BNC. I said that what what is scaring them
the most is because they're losing their children because our
children are not having the conversations that we're having. My
daughter's fourteen and the school that she was in and
Latin Middle School, very diverse school. It was almost eight
percent Asian American UH school and Pacific Islanders. And they
(34:11):
really don't when we say color blind and don't look
at color and all at her age, they really they
really see, they understand color. They have the conversations they
talk about racism. I subbed in the classroom so I
hear them having the conversations much better than adults. But
they really I just wanted, like you said, they just
want to love their friends. When I was fourteen years old,
(34:34):
you know, I was in the hip hop so I
was loving all the stuff I shouldn't be, like n
w A or Little Kim or you know, any of
any of those artists that I shouldn't have been listening to.
My daughter's favorite band is BTS and I tell people,
I tell people BTS an't like, oh, you don't know
what I say. Yes, they're one of the most popular,
(34:55):
the most popular boy band in the world. It's an
It's an Asian band, are group and pop. I'm taking
her to l A to see this concert and their
kids from everywhere and they, you know, have taken hip
hop to a whole another level. I am a hip
hop head. My daughter's favorite group is Panic at the disco.
It's like, I have no I have no clue who
(35:18):
that is you because I'm like, what in the world, Like,
how did this happen? How did how did me being
a hip hop they? How did I? How did I born?
How did I raise? Whose favorite band is? But yeah,
they have they have a freedom that we did not have,
(35:39):
and they are taking full advantage of it. They're not
limiting themselves to what we classify as our definitions. They're like, no,
I want like my daughter's favorite culture is Japanese culture.
So like they want to branch out, they want to learn,
(36:00):
they want to know, they want to grow, they want
to accept, and us as parents should be doing our
best to help them with that, not trying to reduce
them to um to our petty baggage or our petty
conversations are our petty politics. We should be letting our
(36:24):
children figure out how they are going to run this
country when it is their turn. And if the way
that they want to run this country when it is
their turn is to love and to accept and to
grow together, not under a guise of diversity, but under
(36:45):
a guise of loving the people that they love. If
that's what they want to do, that it would be
it is our detrimental neglect not to give them that.
And if we can't give them that, starting with faith,
basic conversations in our own house about issues we know
that they are gonna face when they go out into
(37:06):
the world, then we are failing them. And we can't
blame the school systems for that. We can't blame the
government for that, the political parties for that, anybody else
for that. And that's what I'm trying to get white
Conservatives and Republicans to understand. You're gonna lose to us.
They love us more than they love the bullshit you're
(37:27):
teaching them, so understand you are going to lose to us.
So your best bet is to figure out a way
to learn and to grow and to mature with your kids,
not to not to abandon your adultness and turn it
over to them. Don't do that, That's not what I'm saying.
(37:48):
But learn a way to grow with them. Absolutely. And
also for clarification for those are listening, because I don't
want to make sure you're clear. We're clear. Although my
daughters friends and it literally looks like United Nations. UM.
When I looked at her birthday party was her UM.
She has her best friend is Brazilian, she has a
Asian friend, White, Black, and Indian American. Literally like that's
(38:14):
what her friend group looks like. But at the same time,
as a black parent, as a black woman, UM, I
make sure that Jada understands that our role is different,
that there are different challenges that there are, you know,
not to make her any different than them, but there's
certain things she has to know, just simple things, you know,
like the privilege of I'll just use this as an
(38:36):
example where their parents may say, oh, you know, just
go outside and you know whatever. You know, have more
freedom and you know, growing up, we would say, well,
you know, that's white pols. They let white white kids
get to do that. Instead of me telling her that,
like I was told, you know, you your mom ain't
no white mama. You can't just do whatever you want
to do, I explained to her because I have an
understanding the reasoning behind the things that I say. So
(39:00):
for example, her one of her friends has more autonomy
than we do because there they grew up with the
privilege of that nothing will happen where I grew up
very different and so not trying to give her that trauma,
but I make sure Jada understands. Listen, if something happens
to you, they don't come look for black girls the
way that they look for white girls. You have to
(39:21):
understand that the way they move and how their parents
may they may view the world, it is very different
than our reality. So it's okay. For you to have
other friends, but understand that this world is not your
friend group. And so I think if you can be responsible,
you know enough to do that and to have the
maturity and not make her feel bad for having. For
(39:42):
everybody don't want to be fight the power, you know,
that's what that's what they call and fight the power,
you know, power to the people. Everybody don't want to
be Fred Hamptons. So she has her own personality, but
I also sunny try to make sure that she understands
there's differences, because there is a difference where Molly can
just kind of go not to say that, you know,
they would look for her her as well, but we
know for damn sure they don't look for black little girls.
(40:03):
So I have to give her that game so that
she's informed. My daughter finds her difference in her hair. Okay, So, um,
I started getting perms when I was like seven years old,
you know what I'm saying. So I've kind of been
that way my entire life. I don't even know what
my natural hair looks like. I will very soon, but um,
(40:23):
I don't even know what my natural hair looks like. Um,
my daughter has never had chemicals in her hair. Ever,
so this year's this year, she came to me and
she's like, I want to dye my hairpinink. And I'm like,
you want to do what? And she's like, I want
to dye my hair, my entire head bright freaking pink.
(40:45):
And I'm like, yeah, you know, you know, and she's like,
this is what I want to do. And so I
went and I got her hair dyed pink for her.
Um she's a great kid, you know. Um all A's
in school. She never gives me any problem. Like, she's
a great kid. If if the if the most She's
gonna give me his pink hair, then I'm gonna take it. Um.
(41:07):
Her her her edges, her roots started to grow back out,
and you started to see her brown and her roots again.
And she tells me, she's like, Mom, you think I'm
like running from being black? And uh, it's a conversation
that we have all the time. She's like, my roots
are always gonna come in like this. You know, they're
(41:27):
always gonna be nappy, they're always gonna be kinky, they're
always gonna be coyly, and they're always gonna be dark
brown when they come in. Don't worry I'm not gonna
forget who I am and like, yeah, when you can
do that for your child, like, yes, you can love
Japanese culture. Yes, you can love Panic at the disco.
(41:50):
You can do you can have a eclectic group of friends.
But you understand your roots are always gonna come out
that dark brown and you know that and you understand
what that means. Like I was like, Okay, I feel
safe with you understanding your position. Yea, our daughters will
(42:14):
always be very well clear about where they stayed as
as mother's. Before we get out of here, I know
we only have a few minutes left. Are you still
in the Virginia area? Okay? Tell us about Virginia. This
(42:36):
is time stamps on election day, all of the conversations
saying the Democrats are gonna get their ass whoop. Historically,
Virginia has always went in the opposite direction of whoever
was in power. However, uh, when Terry, what do? I
can never pronounce the plans this last name for me
mc luck, m mccauliffe, mccaulliffe, mccaulliffe. When he was in office,
(42:58):
when he was elected in two thousand four two, that
was the first time that it did swing towards the
administration and power. Will he be able to do it
again tonight? And if not? Why what do you see
on the ground. I know what I see from the
Democrat Party standpoint and voters, you know, giving people the
finger and not being motivated because people are just over it.
(43:18):
But what do you see on the ground locally in
your community? So everywhere I live in northern Virginia and
you're you're not, you don't see a lot of You're
not supposed to see a lot of Republican signage. Uh,
there's a lot of Republican signage. A lot. I heard
that they were talking about that the other day, that
(43:40):
there was that that was a lot. It's way more
than I have ever seen the entire time that I
have been living in UM in Virginia. Let me not
make a prediction and let me say this instead. When
I first got into politics in two thousand and eight,
Virginia had a Republican governor UM in office, Bob McDonald.
(44:04):
One of the first things he did when he got
into office was he declared it Confederate History Month, and me,
being new to politics at the time, I was like,
I'm confused that I'm really, really confused by this, Um,
aren't you were Republican And he was like yes, And
I was like, um, then why are you declaring like
(44:25):
Democrat history month, Like I don't understand what you're doing here.
And I never got an answer to that question. And
I have asked every politician in Virginia that question for
the last twelve years now, you know what I'm saying.
Every single white GOP candidate that I have come across
(44:47):
in the state, I have asked them that same question
and have yet to get an answer from any of them,
including Glenn Juncan so H, and I did get a
chance opportunity to interview him. So what I'll say it
to this is, it doesn't matter what who gets in
(45:09):
as far as black people are concerned our issues, the
things that we need addressed in the state of Virginia,
specifically the Richmond area and Newport News area, they are
going to continue to get pushed aside until we have
competing voices in these areas. GEO, the Virginia g OP
(45:31):
is a ship show. It is not serious as a
political party, and it does very little to help the
Republican Party apparatus itself, let alone anything having to do
with Black Americans. So in our state, if they if
we do not decide that we need to, you know,
like follow killing Mike's example and plot and strategize and
(45:55):
realize exactly what outcome we want. It's not gonna matter
who becomes governor, it's not gonna matter who's going to
become president. We are going to continue to be fectless
and runnerless and unable to change the direction we are
currently heading in and with the rich history that we
have in this state, especially in the city of Richmond
(46:17):
itself that was once a black wall Street, that is
unacceptable to me. So while we have to understand the
place of politics, we also have to understand that there
is a place for activation, and we all need to
be making sure that we have activated in some way
to bring empowerment, equity, ownership, and entrepreneurship to our community.
(46:41):
The more we contribute and pour into those four pots,
the more we're gonna be able to make the political
change that we deem necessary. And I'm not talking about
a political party. I'm not talking about Democrat or Republican.
I am talking about us fundamentally changing what we see
in these dilapidated, destroyed communities and instead of going the
(47:01):
pathway for gentrification, actually having a way where we can
move our people into ownership. That has to be our plan,
that has to be our our our agenda, and we
have to realize, like you said, it's gonna be fun
both politics, both political parties, until we can pour enough
into those four buckets to make it so they cannot
ignore us anymore. Absolutely, well, you just gave I don't
(47:23):
even have to repeat, mind, because you just gave the
summary for what is exactly happening on the left, Which
is why I love having your own Sunday because it
shows that there are some commonalities. You know, I use
the analogy earlier, have you know people to say it's
different here, and it's different here, and there are differences,
you know, there's different culture, there's different regions that do
things differently. You have different leadership in different areas. But
(47:44):
for the most part, people want to see black people win.
If you are in black people, you are really black
for real and in politics for real. And if you
are in if you are black and in politics for real,
you want to see us win. And that should be
able to have the maturity to put the party party
politics and really at least be able to have a conversation.
I always feel good to know that you're on that
(48:05):
side pushing the line. You give me the same respect,
always bumping me up. You do such a wonderful job
of that. One of the things we talked about last
night was ego. Was that a lot of times folks
don't allow their egos, you know, they keep the egos
in the way and don't know how to uplift other people.
It's not that I'm trying to get more shine than
(48:25):
you or you're trying to get more shine than than me.
We're just tired of being lonely, you know, and not
happen enough people. We want allies, we want accomplices, we
want soldiers, you know, I always say on this show. Yeah,
so we yeah, just allies, and not just that, but real,
real soldiers that are willing to get their hands dirty.
(48:46):
So you gotta feel good knowing that, by nothing else,
by default, you're gonna get something dumb for black people.
You're gonna push it. I'm gonna be pushing over here,
and at the end of the day, it benefits us all.
So thank you so much again, Sonny. I think you
are one of those conversations that we need to have
come back, you know, every whether it's every quarter, twice
a year, whatever, you know, just to really give us
an update because I have yet to have to meet
(49:09):
a conservative at least and and my you know, my
circle that has been so consistent, consistent about your message,
consistent about what you believe in, consistent about your values,
and you have a way of getting people to hear
things that they otherwise would not have. When we did
the show last time, Marcy was like, Wow, I've really
(49:31):
learned a lot. And initially if you were just say
I'm bringing on a conservative, because they do they only
see the prototype, and so you are the example of conversations,
uh that need to be had, and they know it
and intentionally try not to raise her voice the same
way they do with with me. You know, I don't
want to minimize my opportunity at our Heart or Black
Black News Channel at all, but Black News Channel literally
(49:54):
had to be created, Uh, the black effect had to
be created because for the last ten years there was
no home. I had no home for my boys at all.
So I just want to thank you Sunny again for
coming by ses. I look forward to talking to you again.
We're gonna see what these Virginia election results come in.
I'm gonna put my prediction. My prediction is whether it's
(50:16):
winning or losing tonight. You better stop playing with black
people that's on the left, the right, in the middle.
Stop playing black people because we ain't playing with you.
So thank you so much for joining us. And where
can they find you? Before we get out of the
sunny Where can they find you on your Twitter? Yeah?
My favorite, uh social is the Twitter. You can find
me ask Sunday Johnson, asked O and I E and
(50:38):
every single Saturday on Serious x M one for Sunday's
corner Fire Conversations. We gotta get you back on the
show task. Yeah, of course I've gotta come over and
spread some liberal love conservative viewers. But though thank you
so much, Sunny as always always coming through whenever, as
you are such a gym and people don't know how
(50:59):
many people you pushed my haim the scenes. I always
want to give you this credit, Flowers in public. We
do a lot behind the scenes. But one of the
first opportunities that I've had to have my voice written
in national print was you quoting me when you were
writing a piece a long time ago, ten years ago
with bright Barden. Whether people like Brightboard or not, I'm
sure they. I'm sure they don't, especially with Steve Bannon,
(51:20):
But that's not the point. The point is you refer
to my voice in that space and that's powerful. And
I tell liberals and democrats if you don't like it,
when are you gonna refer to me? Oh? I'm sorry
you gonna do? So? Shut up? So thank you so much, Sonny,
y'all not taking it better to have a boss lady
(51:40):
on y'all side. Y'all gotter wake up and realize y'all
got a gym and y'all y'all need to be treating
or right. So I appreciate you so much, shast thanks
for having me. I appreciate you too, honey. Thank you
so much. All right, everybody, thank you for listening that
with straight Shot Don't Chase until next time piece. If
you like what you heard on Straight Shot No Chaser,
please subscribe and drop a five star review and tell
(52:01):
a friend. Straight Shot No Chaser is a production of
the Black Effect Podcast Network and I Heart Radio an
Tessa figure and I'd like to thank our producer editor Mixer,
the one and only Marcy dpina, a mixed master Dwayne Crawford,
and our executive producer, Charlottage Nagod. For more podcast from
I Heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple podcast,
(52:21):
or wherever you get your podcasts.
Host
Tezlyn Figaro
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