Wendy Williams Show Guest Roland Martin Credits Black Lives Matter With The ‘Most Rigorous Discussion of Police Brutality’ In History
Wendy Williams, after getting blasted last week by News One host Roland Martin, decided to invite him to appear on her show. Wendy apparently offended a lot of viewers as well, according to Rolling Out. She has apologized several times and again on Thursday’s show. Wendy was simply uninformed on the issue. After calling to personally apologize to Mr. Martin for some misinformed comments she made about historically black colleges and the NAACP, Wendy found Roland to be so well informed on black issues that she felt her entire audience would benefit from his knowledge.
Roland Martin appeared on Thursday’s Wendy Williams Show and did not disappoint. His information provided not only historically accurate information regarding black institutions in America but also a very interesting commentary on how far blacks have come and just how far they have yet to go.
“So, why is it that in 2016 we are still fighting for voter rights. We are still fighting for income equality. And so our institutions are allowing us to survive in America even though we built this country.”
Wendy Williams Show viewers sat quietly as if spellbound for most of the conversation, learning all that Mr. Martin offered to teach them. Even if one watched the show, the video is worth a second, third, or even fourth viewing. There was just so much information crammed into a short space of time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-_nPDV30U4
Roland Martin explained to the audience that black slavery began in America in 1619, and so blacks were always a part of this country, providing labor and economic advantages.
“American became an economic power because of slavery.”
Roland Martin told Wendy Williams Show viewers, how little was accomplished by emancipation and other legislation passed by national lawmakers, in light of Jim Crow laws, prejudice, and discrimination, and just how long it took for blacks to become fully free in America.
“If you had to place a marker on when black folks have been technically fully free Americans. it’s 1970. That’s only 46 years [ago.] … Black folks have been trying to force America to live up to its ideals of all men and women created equal. But the reality is that was nice on paper, but it hasn’t been in reality. So when it comes to our colleges we couldn’t go to those schools. “
“You just had a desegregation order to desegregate a school district in Mississippi a month ago. They have been fighting it since 54.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qep4ouyMrYo
Wendy Williams asked Roland Martin which issue was the greatest issue facing blacks today. For Roland, the foremost issue is the right to education. Roland was emphatic that education is a vital element to the potential for success in this century.
“Education still is the most vital issue facing us because it is tied to income inequality, it is tied to folks who are in prison it is tied to every critical issue. And so if we are getting educated then we are on a much better path to being empowered. But we still should fight for other issues as well.”
Wendy Williams Show viewers gained a lot of educational information about black history, as well as sound information about current issues and the Black Lives Matter issues. There were fascinating tidbits of information just packed into the ten-minute discussion. Few People likely knew that the NAACP was founded in 1909, following a race riot in Springfield, Illinois, for example.
Roland Martin Martin expressed approval of Black Lives Matter and the progress they had made toward police accountability. By raising public awareness of inequality in law enforcement, the organization has gained historic results.
“The reason Black Lives Matter has been so successful is because they have forced the most rigorous discussion of police brutality and accountability in the history of America. We have never seen this level of discussion in America’s history.”
Wendy Williams Show viewers learned that police accountability is the real problem. There is resistance to releasing body camera and dash camera footage in most cases. Prosecutors rarely go after police. Roland Martin explained to Wendy that there is a level of complicity built into a flawed system of justice that is designed to protect police officers from being held accountable.
“The problem we have in America is literally there is no accountability for cops. Less than one percent of cops involved in a shooting ends up being indicted… They don’t want a level of accountability, and that is the problem.”
Roland Martin explained to Ms. Williams and her viewing audience there is a tremendous loyalty between police personnel, especially when it comes to reporting misconduct. This has become a significant issue, due to the life and death nature of their work.
“The problem is cops talk about ‘don’t snitch’ in the streets The greatest ‘don’t snitch’ policy in America is in police departments. They don’t want to talk. They don’t want to turn each other in, and that is the problem.”
Wendy Williams’ show segment closed with a discussion of how to talk to young people about the potential for deadly altercations with law enforcement. Mr. Martin stressed that young people are not and should not be taught to hate cops. Roland explained that neither he nor anyone he knew had been taught by their parents to hate law enforcement officers. He also said, “the talk” was necessary, for black teens.
Roland Martin explained that black teens need to be warned not to make sudden movements when encountering police officers as discussed on BET. They need to be instructed to follow all instructions to the letter and to be very polite. Roland expressed the idea that their lives may depend on it, much more so than white teens. He also said that if someone is disrespected by an officer, they should continue to be polite, but should also note the officer’s badge number or license plate number, if possible, in order to report the incident later.
Wendy Williams then related that she felt she was racially profiled in a drug store this week. Ms. Williams thought they might accuse her of stealing cosmetics. The intercom dispatched an associate to cosmetics, apparently because Wendy was on that aisle. While it is impossible to know with certainty the intent of these employees, it was striking coincidence for an incident like that to have occurred this week, as Ms. Williams awaited this conversation about race.
Wendy Williams and Roland Martin’s conversation this Thursday was very educational and a timely message for those seeking a better understanding of racial issues.
[Photo by Gustavo Caballero and Monica Schipper/Getty Images]
