171 The People of a BLM Protest

Published: June 4, 2020, 12:12 a.m.

BLM RALLY

This episode of the podcast is a conversation with people at the BLM rally in Spokane WA. 

People go to protests to create action and be heard. But we often don’t actually sop, listen, and hear anyone or their inner thoughts. 

We live in a world of over saturation due to social media. People racing to tell us what to think in 15 second sound bites or in 140 characters. 

I wanted people to have a chance to voice their thoughts and ideas alongside others. Excluding one cop and the two homeless people at the end, all of the people in this episode are black and brown. 

I’ve tried to keep the conversations unedited as much as possible. Unfortunately it was windy and I wasn’t prepared and had to trim a few things. I also removed myself a few times so the focus could be on their voices. Finally, there is a moment during “Between now and the next Killing” when the recorder stopped for 2 seconds. I 100% avoided manipulating their POV’s.

Many of them are regular people. They’re not influencers. They’re not celebrities. They’re not thought leaders or authors. They’re people living life.

I personally see what I learned and have some takeaways. Would I have changed some of my questions knowing what I know now? Yes, I cringe at some of my questions now. Would I have talked with more people? Yes, I definitely would and will do something similar to this episode again. The recorder ran out of space so unfortunately I had to stop when I did. Would I have carried something to block the wind? ABSOLUTELY (sorry everyone for the wind noise!).

I kindly ask you listen with an open mind and heart when hearing myself, the protestors, and the cops during all of this. I’m trying to figure things out, they’re trying to be heard, they’re trying to do their job, and the world is telling us all what to do and how to think. 

Below are the conversations you’ll hear. I’ve included time stamps so you can find specific conversations you may want to share with friends. I encourage you to use their ideas as a way to have real dialogue. 

0:20 We all bleed red
5:20 We all need to love each other as brothers and sisters 
14:30 A Mexican Peacemaker, a Black Protester, and a Native American Cop have a conversation at a protest
21:55 We gotta turn from our wicked ways
24:52 #MMIW #MMIWG: Being murdered and going missing and nobody knows
33:12 Coming of Age #1
35:12 We are exhausted 
36:02 Put your humanity above your job 
45:46 Coming of Age #2
46:50 A mother of a son
51:23 Openly carrying a gun to a protest 
58:32 Cop #2: It’s just what it is 
59:012 White homeless perspective on Black Lives
1:11:42 The Middle Ground
1:16:57 Between now and the next killing

Thanks to Noah Lampert for the music: http://syncpodcast.com