Stories of Black America: 4 Women

This episode is brought to you by AT&T. AT&T is open in connected learning centers across the country to give students in need access to free high speed Internet and computers. Because when students stay connected, they get closer to their dreams. To learn more, visit att.com ConnectedLearning Facebook.

Is building tools to enhance safety and security. Over 40 million people are using Facebook's.

Privacy checkup each month.

That's nearly 60 times the population of Washington, D.C. learn more about the Work Ahead facebook.com action and welcome to the Gap, the Get Attitude podcast and the 8:46 interviews. My name is Glenn Bill, founder of the University of Attitude, keynote speaker and author of the number one international best selling book, the ABCs of Attitude. The Gap. We are bridging the gap from where you are to where you want to be and from who you are to who you want to become. And we're going to be doing that with our 846 interviews. It's a special edition of the Gap in light of what occurred on May 25. But first, a little housekeeping. As I said, my name is Glenn Bill. I've been fortunate enough to help tens of thousands of people get Attitude. Attitude is the secret formula to success in your business and in your life. Love it. Hey, this is what live broadcasting is all about. I could have sworn I took it off. Sorry, guys. Shame on you.

Glenn.

Can you see me? See, so look at. Everybody can screw up and it's still fine. I'm gonna kill that guy. He's obviously not listening to me. All right, so anyway, I apologize for that because you know what? We have an unbelievable show with unbelievable guests and it is our opportunity to learn from four incredible guests. I do want to make sure that if you like what you're hearing and you like what you do, like what we do, that you go to the Get Attitude podcast on Facebook and like it. If you like what is being talked about today, please share this podcast. If you're not listening live and you're listening later, please share it. You can get the Get Attitude podcast on any format and we are here to change the world one attitude at a time. I want to thank my guests and I want to jump into what the 846 interviews are all about. Why we did the 846 interviews. And this is our second edition with four black women. And we are going to hear their stories of Black America on May 25th. Right. I mean, May 25th. It seems so long ago and it's. And it's evident to me that we're starting to forget again. We're starting to forget again. It's not being talked about. We're getting distracted. But on May 25, our country changed and George Floyd was publicly killed in an event which was filmed and witnessed for us all to see in real time. He was unable to breathe. He was tortured for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, unable to speak what was on his mind, haunting us all. To come to grips with that time frame of the suffering that he endured, we created the 846 interviews. These 846 interviews are meant to help us all grasp the amount of time that George Floyd suffered and to give a voice to his black brothers and sisters for that amount of time in which he could not express his feelings or his words. And we ask that our guest today channel George, as desperate as that was, and I hope that whatever he was thinking comes through in our guest today. These are four dear friends of mine. We will be talking with them to express their feelings in this time frame of 8:46. You guys, if you're watching this, will see a counterclock at 8:46. And each guest will be interviewed for that amount of time. And at the end, it will pause, and we will pause. And I hope that we'll pause to say a prayer. I hope we'll pause to reflect on what was just said. And I hope that we'll pause to create more understanding and a deeper level of insight into the stories of black America. I'm looking forward to hear them discuss their race story, their thoughts on change, and their advice for the future. So, as we always say, attitude is a secret formula to success in your business and in your life. And this podcast will help you get yours. So let's get some sound good. All right, so we want to, first of all, open up with the wonderful Serena Brown. Travis. Serena, welcome to the Get Attitude podcast.

Thank you so much. I'm so happy to be here with you today.

And thank you for blessing us with your presence. Serena is the manager of operations of Les Brown Enterprises, and Les is a major influence in my life. And I can't imagine that sounds like a pretty big job. You guys got a lot going on there, don't you, Serena?

We have a lot going on and a huge figure to manage, I tell you that.

Yeah, I don't think you can manage a guy like that, right?

No. You just have to put your seatbelt on and hope for the best, right?

So, yeah, Les is your father. You're not his daughter. I wanted to make sure we introduced you that way. Right. Les is your father, right?

He's my daddy.

Now. You are an entrepreneur as well. You are a co owner of the Good Kitchen. Give me just a little taste of what the Good Kitchen is all about.

Well, I love that you used the word taste. The good kitchen 614 is a soul food restaurant here in Columbus, Ohio. And so this is where you come if you want to taste some good food.

I like it. Do you know Obie Stilwell?

I do not.

Okay. Obie played for Ohio State. I was on his show, and he's got a radio show there in Columbus. So I'm going to make sure I tell him to get down to come see you.

Indeed.

And so what we want to do is start with you on this journey through 8:46. And here we go. We're going to start the clock. I want to ask you this, Serena, to please share with me your personal or shared racism experience story. I'd like to know how old you were when you experienced it, and I want to know how it made you feel. So with that, please tell us.

All right, first of all, thank you so much for doing this and for giving us a voice. You don't have to do it. You don't look like us. So this is not your struggle. But we appreciate you putting yourself out and your neck out for us to have this conversation. At the age of 24, I started working for the state of Ohio, and I decided I wanted to work on my master's degree. I was fresh from finishing my bachelor's degree at 22, and, you know, I had a little work experience. But of course, the next progression in life is to go for your master's degree. I asked my manager, who did not look like me, I said, hey, you know, I need you to fill this out. It's a recommendation form. And as you know, it will ask you questions. Give me their strengths and give me your. And give me the applicant's weaknesses. Well, the strengths had three lines. The weaknesses had three lines. Well, this lady who I obviously there must have been an issue. She chose to write in a few more lines to describe my weaknesses. One of the weaknesses that really stood out to me, and I realized, oh, we have a problem is she said that I believe Serena is overambitious. I'm not sure why she's not satisfied with her bachelor's degree alone. And I think she's doing too much to pursue a master's degree at her age. I think she should focus on where she is right now. Now I'VE never heard anyone discourage anyone from moving to another level of getting a higher education. Fortunately for me, I come from a family of motivational speaking. The man who says, shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you land them on the stars. That conversation, that criticism may have worked for someone else, but for someone who has been a part of a goal achievement lifestyle, it really did not sit with me the right way. When I went to ask her, hey, Ms. Carol, what did you mean by this? Well, I just think, you know, you should just be proud of right where you are, not advance, not do more, not stretch myself even further than where I am. And she said that she thought I should stay right where I was. And that was my first experience of not only racism, but a very true experience of someone keeping their thumbnail on me. And so obviously I had to switch departments real quick before things got lit up up in there.

Right. So you were 24. And so I think I know how it made you feel, but if you can go back to that, tell me how you felt.

Well, I've never had anyone, I've never told a goal to someone and then someone completely discouraged it. You know, usually someone maybe try to talk you out of it or steer you in a different direction. This was as clear as clear could be. And it really said to me in so many words, stay in your lane, little girl. Stay in your lane. And don't do too much. Stay in your lane. So that's what it made me feel like. It made me feel like that maybe I was trying to dream too big. Maybe my aspirations were far beyond me. But I've never heard the term that someone was being over ambitious.

Yeah, that's just crazy. And so at 24, I would have to think you experienced racism before that. Now that may have made the biggest impact on you. And we're doing good. And you're so eloquent. Can you tell me maybe when you were a child, when you felt that.

You know what was funny? I think I live in Columbus, Ohio, so apparently I must live in a bubble. I could not think of anything that was serious that happened to me. The only thing I do remember is I wanted a blonde wig. And my mom was like, well, why do you want a blonde wig? I did go to a school where a lot of people, some people look like me and a lot of people did not. And I was obviously intrigued with blonde hair. So my mom was like, well, I'm gonna get you a blonde wig. So she got me a Tina Turner wig.

Oh, my God.

She wasn't feeling no blonde wig, but she said, I'll get you a Tina Turner wig. So, you know, fortunately for me, I went to a black church. I had a lot of strong black figures around me. So if I did experience it, I've always been taught to look above it. So fortunately for me, I didn't see. I'm sure I can now go back and I have started to let my mind go back to, oh, that's what they meant by that. But I'm also, you know, a positive, you know, positivity streams through our blood. And unfortunately, many of us, we, we have experienced racism, but because of our religion, because of how we've been empowered, we have just really chose to let it fall off our back. In fact, we'll say, well, we say a term, it's no skin off of our back. So with that being said, it literally just went right over my head and did not affect me the way that my 24 year old experience affected me.

Man, that's beautiful. And I think it's something for everybody who's listening to feel your power, to feel your spirit, to feel your positivity in this time that is not so positive. So now we've just elected you, Serena Brown Travis, ruler of America, because ultimately, legislation is really going to be the only way to make this work. Can you tell me, have you thought about it? What are the one or two things that you think we need to do legislatively to make things different or rules or how cops handle blacks or whatever it might be?

Well, first of all, when we say justice for all, that's exactly what that needs to mean. Justice for all. For all. People who don't look like us, talk like us, smell like us for all. So, as you know, whatever the issue is, justice for all, that's what's in our, in our laws, our bylaws, our constitution, our pledge of say what we mean and mean what we say. The other thing that we also need to do is that when we do start creating laws, we need to have every representative at the table. And, and I don't just mean white and black, I mean our Asian friends, our gay and lesbian friends, our friends with disabilities, all of those people. I grew up with a grandmother who had polio. So even at my young age, I'm always conscious of where's the wheelchair ramp, There's a steady banister, or if I see an older person walking, I make myself available to extend my arm. Or when I was a little kid, I used to have to let grandma and every other old person hang onto my head so they can walk to their car. I see people like that. So we need to have every representative at the table, because there's certain experiences that I have that you may not have or that you have that I may not have. And then when we all express them properly, then we can start to move things in the right direction.

And let me ask you this, which we did with the other guests. What do white people need to do? What do they need to hear? What do they need to say?

Well, first of all, I went, as you can imagine, went to several Black Lives Matter marches here lately. I first want to thank our. Some of our white brothers and sisters who came out and were just as passionate as we are to hang signs and to march with their children and husbands to say, white. Black lives matter. So we appreciate you and we thank you for not letting us go through this battle by ourselves. Now, for our other white friends who don't necessarily understand, or if you think we've made this up, I need you to practice compassion and consideration, because we have not gone through this this long. Like the figures that's represented on my shirt, you may or may not be able to see that.

Go ahead. You can stand up.

Can you all see that? Oh, you can't see anything at all.

I can see you. No, we're on YouTube. We're good.

Fair enough. But our black historical figures, they didn't make this up. They didn't march in the 60s and 70s just for kicks and giggles. The pictures of dogs biting us and our fire hoses being sprayed at us, that wasn't just someone's artwork. That was real life. They were marching for a reason. So you have to have consideration that we're not making this up. Like, we are really going through some things that honestly, our generation, we've been, again, we've been programmed to look beyond it, to pray beyond it, to sing beyond it. But now we're at a point, you saw George Floyd just like we did. So now all of a sudden, oh, wow, maybe there's something to this. So we just need you to have compassion and consideration when we say black lives matter. We don't want to immediately hear that white lives matter because it's not the same. It doesn't make us racist. It doesn't make you racist. We just need you to take a pause to say, oh, my goodness, my black brother and sister, our minority brothers and sisters, they're really struggling right now. Compassion and consideration. Trust you me, we have better things to do with our time in the midst of a pandemic than to try to march and tell you guys that black lives matter. So compassionate consideration is all we're hoping for.

And do you remember when you saw what happened?

I do remember what I saw what happened. And to be quite honest, it was shocking. It was appalling. At the same time, unfortunately for many of us black people, we have seen it before. So all of a sudden, when George Floyd became a movement, honestly, we said, oh, we've got a march. Now we have some people who are trying to help us verbalize what we've been saying for years. So, yes, we appreciate the marches. We appreciate the monuments coming down. We appreciate the flags that are being changed and altered. And so now we also need a seat at the table to start adjusting laws on our behalf.

I love it. I love it. Serena, thank you so much. Now, you just hang on because we're gonna come back to you, if that's okay.

All right, I'll be right here. I can't wait to hear from my sisters.

All right, so we got sister Mioshia. How are you, Myoshia?

I am well. How are you?

Yes, you are well. I am so thankful that you have come on to be with us today. I want to introduce you. Myoshia had no money, had no savings, and had no college degree. But you know what? She started two great companies and she grew those companies into multimillion dollar organizations. She is now an award winning founder and CEO of one of the leading IT consulting companies in the country, and that is called Antech Solutions, LLC. So, Miosha, welcome to the Get Attitude podcast. The 846 interviews.

Thank you so much, Glenn. I am truly excited to be here. It was encouraging for me to hear my sister Serena speak, and I'm just excited to be able to do the same.

Very good, Very good. Well, we want to get to know you and we certainly want to get to know your story. One of the reasons that I'm keeping this simple is because I've always believed that a lot of people, white people, see black people as black people, and they don't understand that there is a story inside of the black person. They're just not black. And it's a story that white people don't have. And it's a story that resonates in their nervous system. And it's the reason why, in my opinion, friction exists. That's where the vibration starts. And so it's important to me that I get as many stories of black America out on this podcast as I can. And I appreciate everybody for being vulnerable enough to talk about it, for being brave enough to talk about it. And so I honor you all. So, Myoshia, if you don't mind, we'll start the clock on you. And please give me your race story.

Alrighty. So I'll start by saying, you know, thank you for the introduction. And, yes, I have been able to attain a certain level of success by the public's eye, right? But growing up, what I did not share with a lot of people over the past, you know, several weeks is that George Floyd and I grew up in the same neighborhood. We walked the same streets, we went to the same elementary, we went to the same high school. So this story and this event and this malicious act hit very close to home for me, right? So as I'm sitting here enjoying the leisures that I have now in this, you know, country that I live in, it really made way for pause. So no matter where I am today, let me take you back to elementary school, right? Let me take you back to Frederick Douglass elementary in historic Third Ward, Texas, because we do believe that our community is not confined by our city. So we're not from Third Ward, Houston, we're from Third Ward, Texas. So I'm going to take you back to Frederick Douglass Elementary. And I remember being in class, right? And now, mind you, we are in an inner city school, so we are in a predominantly black school. And while a lot of our instructors and teachers were also African American, there were some that were not. Some that were of high caliber and still to this day hold high esteem with me. But there were some who were not, who were just plain mean. And I didn't necessarily understand it then, but I remember a teacher of mine grabbing my arm and reprimanding me for something that not only I was doing, but the other kids in my class, two others in particular, two of which were not. Did not look like me, but I was the only one that was reprimanded. And the way she said, girl, you better stop still, even now, I'm getting ready to start rocking in my seat. But even now, what that did to me, and when I went home and told my mom, and I actually told my grandmother, I went home and told my grandmother what happened. And her, you know, her first thing was, you know, well, what did you do wrong? And, you know, and all of this. But then when I told her the situation her, you know, it really hit her, you know, in the stomach and in the belly as well. And that wasn't the only time that I was reprimanded by this teacher. And I mean, it literally got to the point where we had to really start, you know, screaming for our corporal punishment laws and all of that in our school. So I remember that and I remember feeling. I remember the feeling that I had the feeling of being less than and why did I get reprimanded and they didn't. So. And that has carried on. I too was going to start with a 26 year old story because that was the one that today has had a pivotal impact on the way I operate my business and train my team and all of that. But that third grade story still resonates with me today.

You know, one of our guests on our last podcast, Rafael Coffey, who's an attorney, and I learned from this, like, you guys are so good. You gals are so good. But this concept of feeling less than, and that's why I want to know when you experienced what was the feeling and feeling that you're less of a person and that you don't measure up, that would piss me off, to be very honest with you. And I've never had to deal with that. And so I want to thank you for that honest story. But now, since you let us into it, I want to know the 26 year story that made that got the fire in the belly and the money in the bank.

Exactly. Because I truly believe that that money does have a certain level of power. Right. So 26 years old, I'm already, you know, an entrepreneur at this point. Right. So I, you know, started my company and I am still in technology right at this moment. So I'm in technology and I am pitching a deal to one of the largest law firms in this southern region. Right. So I'm pitching the deal and I know that I am one qualified to do the work. I know that there is an express need that they have that they need to be met. And I know that I am the person for the job. Right?

Yep.

So I'm pitching this proposal to them, and I am literally in a room of white men. One white woman, but seven white men and a white woman. My proposal is dismissed, it is rejected, and it is not selected. I literally, Glenn went and I gave the same proposal to a white colleague of mine and gave them the instruction to go back and pitch this deal.

Oh my.

I did not change a word of the proposal. I did not change a number. I did not change a character.

Right.

And they accepted it with flying colors. Actually, they commended it. So once they did, that's real, that that's Real. Real. So once they did, I went back with that colleague of mine. I let them know that she was actually an employee of mine and that this was the exact same proposal that had been pitched to them previously. And I politely told them, thanks, but no thanks.

Not a girl. Did you. And. And I think the reality is, is that that story has happened a hundred thousand times in the past 50 years. Right? Barred when you hit the door. Barred when you hit the door. Thanks for sharing that. I'd like to know if you feel that there is a law or legislation or a rule or a norm that if you could snap your fingers and change it, that could possibly heal what we're going through, that could have possibly saved George's life. Did you know George Floyd?

I knew Perry. Yes. We called him Perry, but, yes, he was younger than me, but so he.

So out of the blue. Out of the blue, I call you.

Yes.

Now, is God working? Is God working? Like, that's crazy. I didn't know you until I started calling you. That's just crazy. He's speaking from the grave. All right, so have you thought about it? Have you thought about legislation? What's the one change that you would like to see?

I'll tell you, here's a napkin. And most of you who are listening to us can't see this, but I am literally ripping a napkin. I mean, it's not one, Glenn. It's not one. It is. Everything that would. That is. Is. That carries some inequalities. Everything. Tear it all up. Literally tear it all up. And let's start from scratch, because, again, to Serena's point, you know, if we're supposed to all be equal, then, hey, hell, let's all be equal, right? Tear it all up.

Right?

Tear it all up. That's what I think.

And then let me ask you this. What can or what should white people do, say or listen to that could make a difference?

You know, I think first and foremost, when you know better, do better. Literally. You cannot hide behind the veil of ignorance anymore. When you know better, do better. Try to first try to study history, and not just history of black people in America, but globally. Listen to every inequality that we are identifying in America. Listen to it because.

All right, now you know how George Floyd felt. He had something to say and the time got cut off. Miosha. That was killer. Thank you so much. Stay on with us, right?

I will.

Definitely. We're gonna get some more. All right, I'm gonna turn it to my dear friend Misty, Misty Ackles Dumas. And Misty is an educator. And thank you for what you do for our children. Misty works in the Metropolitan School District of Lawrence Township. She's a teacher, an educator, a principal's consultant at the Teachers College at Columbia University. She also was the founding principal of Lighthouse Academies. And Misty and I went to high school together. And I remember Misty being a freshman. And Misty was always outspoken and proud to be black. And that's why I love to have you. And you are never afraid to engage with me. And so welcome to the Get Attitude podcast.

Thank you so much. I am just so appreciative of the invite. Thank you. Thank you for wanting to listen to our stories, to my story.

So I think what we'll do is just jump right on in. How does that sound? So what I want to know, again, keeping with the theme, and boy, we've had two great stories, is, and I can't say this enough, but we need to start looking at the stories inside of black people. Not only do we need to be looking at them, we need to feel them. And so that's why this has been so good. So, Misty, tell us your race story.

Yeah. Yeah. Thank you again. As you said, I am a teacher. So my story with racism goes back to education. When I was young, when I was 12 or 13, here in Indianapolis, the students were mandated. It was a lawsuit against the Indianapolis public schools. And so because of the lawsuit, the students were mandated to go out into the townships of the suburban schools from the inner city to integrate the schools. And so I was a part of the first group. And so the backstory to that is two years prior to that, my family had moved to where we were living at that time because of gun violence. A good friend of mine, my next door neighbor, was killed. And so when she was killed, my family, my mom and dad, quickly moved us from that little, nice, really close knit family community to 41st and Broadway, really the inner city here of Indianapolis. And so we moved there. And so it was really different for me. I was the baby, the only girl in our family, and we had a beautiful family. And so we moved to a new home pretty quickly, about 60 days. They sold their house really quick and moved when my best friend was killed. And so about two years after moving there, it was this big lawsuit here in Indianapolis. And so the students in my neighborhood was bussed. And so we were bused from 38th and College, Broadway area to Franklin Township. And so we had a series of meetings.

And that's not a short way.

It is not. That's a 30 minute bus ride, 30 to 45 minutes. And in the winter a little longer.

Yeah.

And so we had a series of meetings for the community and the families. We went, we went to visit the school. And so my parents were really in education. They just started. It sounded like a really good thing being an educator. 29 years now, this year is my 29th year being a teacher. I often read back about busing and I try to figure out what was the reason and what was the goal because it was definitely, it was a failed attempt at whatever the judge was trying to do. Integration, yes, integration. It was just failed. Didn't work, did not work at all. And so we were bused there. And I remember the first day of school, in fact, it gives me chills to this day because when we left our area and rode the buses to Franklin Township, we were met with protests, with signs with families from that community that they threw eggs at the bus. And as I said, I was from a family, a really close knit family and a loving family. I knew nothing about racism, I knew nothing about what I was experiencing, but it was really real. And not only real from, but when we got off of the bus, the teachers weren't really welcoming and the students were mimicking what they heard at home.

Oh boy.

So the classroom was challenging, the hallways were challenging. I never forget I had a small little altercation and I received five day suspension. I didn't know anything about that. And so every morning and every evening, my family, we had this big pep talk. He said, you can do it, it's just going to be one year. My parents never thought of taking me out of school and taking me to another school. They just said we would get through it. So every morning and every night we talked about that. And I remember about two weeks into school, my dad told me one morning, said, misty, I just want to tell you that they really want to arrest you. I said, arrest? What do you mean they want to take?

How old were you?

I was in the eighth grade. You were 13 and 13. And he said, they really want to arrest you. And it was just so hard for me, for me to fathom that. And so I left my home and we would have to get on the bus so early in the morning because it was a really long ride. And then to arrive at Franklin Township and experience that we did have one or two teachers, as I look back, that seemed to be pretty fair. And however, majority of the people there, they weren't very nice at all. It was just a true battle, especially for young girl. And so I never forget at Christmas time, my parents told us that they were saving their money. And I didn't realize, but they were saving their money to send me to a Catholic school. So I ended up going to Chautauquart High School. And that's how I met you. And so then after that, I graduated from Tennessee State University and received several degrees after that. And I've always wanted to be a teacher. And in going and accepting, experiencing that in Franklin Township, it just make me love on my students even more. I really try to go above and beyond to help them because education is truly the coin that equalizes the playing field. And I believe in education for all.

Yeah, there's no doubt that I can't imagine being ripped from your neighborhood, thrown on a bus and sent out to WHITEVILLE.

Exactly.

At 13.

At 13.

And there was a whole busload of you.

A bunch, yes.

And I went to. I was going to school. And what was your biggest curse was probably my biggest blessing because the black kids all came to my school, and I was one of the few white kids that didn't get sent out. And that allowed me to have the understanding to live the culture, to eat at the tables of my black brothers and sisters. And so it was a blessing to me. But I can't imagine what you went through. And I would be willing to bet that people just don't know. Like that story that you just told, Misty, is not being told except on the gap. All right, so, Misty, you now become president of the United States. Talk to me. And maybe it's about education reform, police reform, or legislation. If you could create a law, if you could make a change and nobody could stop you, what would it be?

Well, as I said, I believe education is a playing field, and we definitely need to continue to fund communities and education. The one thing that I think would really help all is to provide for banks, financial institutions to provide zero or no interest loans for African Americans. If you really want to equalize and to help that gap. Yeah, give us the money.

Right.

That's one thing. Another thing, I think body cameras, they just, they. They have to be. Everybody needs to wear them. They. We need to have cameras on the cop cars. And in the event that something happens, don't put them on leave, fire them, investigate. And if something that they can come back, then let them come back. But people need to realize that you cannot continue to make mistake after mistake. And when you're speaking of someone's life, someone's, Their whole family, you impact a community when you hurt someone.

And what we saw on May 25, though, you've seen all your life, but now the nation saw it. So now things are different. Right. When you think about your interactions with white America, what would you say to them? What would you say that we could do with? What can we say or what should we listen to to bridge the gap between blacks and whites?

Well, the one thing I think that people need to stop and do is to learn. I think a lot of times it really goes back to ignorance. Some things they don't know. And so, as our other panelists said, to go and learn globally, learn, just not about Indianapolis or Indiana or the Midwest or the United States, learn about other things. And also to. When you are learning and communicating with people, I think the one big thing that's missing here is integrity. We see so many times that people are not honest when things happen. They don't tell the truth. I think that if we would tell the truth and integrate integrity into everything, we would be so much better. And also the stop and frisk law, I think that it's just. It's just way out of proportion. It needs to be eliminated. So I think to give people the money they need, also the stop and frisk law, education and integrity, it's just key. We have got to get to the point where we truly tell the truth and be honest with one another. And that way we can have a conversation that will impact our community and therefore the world.

And who was your major influence in on your attitude?

I would say my major influence was my dad. He just recently passed away in 2019. But I remember, like I said, when I was going to Franklin Township and then after that to Chatard and Tennessee State, he was just a constant motivator, just really motivated me. Being in Franklin Township, there was always something that they were just targeting us.

Let me know when we're back. All right. And we're back. All right. Misty, thank you for your story. That was quite a story, and I could feel it. And I hope everybody that is listening can feel it. And I hope that hearing these stories awakens something within you. I hope that these stories allow you to look at things differently. I hope that these stories give you compassion and. And. And the realization that black America has stories that are not the same as white America, period. And. And that's just the way that is. So. Okay, so now we're gonna go to my girl, Tamiko. Tamiko Creighton. Welcome to the 846 interviews. How are you?

I'm great.

Good. I want to read A little intro of you. Tamiko also went to high school with me and Tamiko, you were a prom queen, weren't you?

I was a prom king.

Right, and I was a prom king, yes. But we were different years.

That's all right.

So that's all right.

We're still royal.

You are royalty. That is right. So, Tamiko, thank you for being here. Tamiko is a manager with excellent extensive experience in leading a team to develop and deliver results oriented learning, maximizing customer satisfaction which is needed and enhancing company's overall productivity. Known for developing and retaining top talent and building relationships with new clients. Comfortable working with senior management to perform gap analysis and this identification of learning opportunities critical in determining training opportunities for all levels with the potential to increase the company's revenue. That's you, girl. And so you are also a coach, right?

I am, Yes. I am a certified coach.

Right, You're a certified coach and you may be doing some private training. So if anybody needs some. Anybody needs some help, Tamiko's here. So it's great to have you.

Thank you so much. I really appreciate you taking the opportunity to hear our stories because they matter. So thank you so much.

They do matter.

They do.

All right. And we learn. And I learn. All right. So, Tamika, we're going to get on with your story, okay. And I want you to tell me about how old you were. I want to hear how you felt, and I want to know your race story. Okay?

All right. So my. I had to think back on this. And so my first recollection was I was a sophomore in high school, and it was in geometry class. So let me preface. Geometry was not my thing. It was just, I know my strengths. That was not my strengths. I knew that early on. So I struggled a lot in geometry, but I had a white counterpart who also struck. So we struggled together.

Was it me?

I'm not gonna tell our family business, but no, it was not you. But I had a white counterpart. And so we were struggling. We were making it through. We were getting there. But when you want to go to the next level because we were doing bad, the teacher had to sign and approve you to go to that next level math course. And so went to the teacher, I'm like, okay, I can do algebra. I know algebra. I'm ready to go. And the teacher wouldn't sign. I was like, no, I know. I'll be okay. Would you please sign this? Nope. You have to go get a note from your parent. Okay. So I thought that's what you did to people who Weren't doing well, you would go and ask them to have their parents sign. But my white counterpart, when I talked to her.

Right.

Did not have to go and get a note from her parent. So I go home, explained to my mom. She knew my struggle. But of course she signed. You know, it wasn't a big deal. She. She signed. I took it back. And she looked at the note, and she looked like, did you forge. I did not write this note. But she was like, I don't think that you're gonna be able to do it. And I was like, I'll be fine. And for me, that was, like, the first time someone told me I couldn't do something right.

And I think, even to Serena, you listening?

I mean, like, even to this day, when there's things that I'm, like, struggling, like, no, no, no, no. I should be able to do this. We're gonna find a plan. I'm gonna ask for some health. It doesn't really matter. Do not tell me I can't do something. It just. That just really set me over the edge at 14, 13. 14 years old.

And so you felt that. And what would you say? Was it anger? Was it disdain? Was it. Did you feel that feeling that you were less that we hear. Have heard about?

Yeah, I mean, I did. I was like, wait, wait a minute. I don't tell. I can't do this. Right. I might have to apply myself. For the record, I did get an A in algebra. Look, I know my strengths here. But, yeah, I was like, well, first I was like, well, why did the white girl not have to get a note from her parents? And I did. So what was it about me that I was treated differently? And then for someone to question my actual ability, it did do something for me.

Yeah.

At that point.

Yeah. That's hurtful.

It is.

And. And you can see. I can see it in your face.

You know, I was like, oh, shaking.

But it's. And it's amazing when I do these. The body language, the tempo, the breathing patterns, when people go through this story. And then when I say, what can white people say or do to help? And then, you know, what, Breathing changes, body temperature. It's crazy. And so that's why the visual part is big. So that's. That's one. I'm just wondering, do you have. What about when you were younger? Grade school? Anything like that?

So I grew up. Yeah. It didn't at that point, because I grew up in the 46218 area code.

Okay.

So I went to a black Catholic school. So we were just all. All the same and got along. So it really wasn't until I got into high school that I had this exposure.

And so you've been out, you've been in the business world. When you think about, what can we do as society, legislatively, corporately, corporate racism is certainly. If you could change something, what would the Tamika Law be?

Yes, the Tamika Law. So I'm a build on my sister because there's a part of it where I do agree. We. We need to tear it up, start it all over. But because it's the education, corporate educator in me, I think that all companies should offer, like, unconscious bias training, not just to their C suite level people, but to all employees. Right. And so. And then be accountable for that. So many times we see it in training that, you know, I went through.

Check.

It's a checkbox.

Right.

I went through my unconscious bias training. I'm done. But then you need to live that. You need to be. Hold each other accountable or create an awareness. Because some of these things, most of these things are taught, they're ingrained in you. So when you slide off that scale, your coworker needs to say, come on. Come on, Glenn. That. That wasn't appropriate. Let's get back over here. Let's talk about this. Let's talk why this is wrong. But everyone needs to have that particular.

Training, and so let's delve into that one a little bit. Right.

Unbiased, unconscious bias.

Unconscious bias, white boy. Never heard it.

Okay, so there are things that you.

Well, I know. No, yeah.

I'm like, what? Yeah. People don't think they have it, but it's there.

Oh, yeah. It's there even for the enlightened ones. It's there because it's in our DNA.

It is.

So we can help. Give us one or two points of that training. Right?

Yeah.

So, you know, I mean, I'm sure it's easy. It is.

Well, I wouldn't say it's easy, you know, because you have to be self aware. But there are things that people say, even to this day when you're working that you're like, did you mean to tell me that I was articulate?

Like what?

Like tell me that I was articulate.

Oh, you're very articulate.

Yes. Yeah. No, really, thank you. Thank you for that. Or I had one lady tell me, someone said to her, you don't look like I was expecting you to look.

Oh, my gosh. Yeah, Right.

Oh, okay. Yes. Or recently I just had someone say, oh, that was a very intelligent thought. Right, okay. Well, those are little comments that it was a thought in. Maybe it was good, but why would I throw something that wouldn't be intelligent And.

Right. Because you're black.

Right, Right.

And so the, and so that training, right. I'm guessing that's a day, two days, three days. Is there something that people can do? Is there either an exercise or is there a question? What's the tool that people can do to become more aware?

Yeah, you know, I think, for me, when I think about. So I'll be very honest, I actually don't do unconscious bias training. I have gone through, I have gone through it. But I, I would say, you know, from my perspective, thinking about your, your why and is this true and is this the reality? I think also thinking about how what you say impacts others and what do you mean by that? There are also some things that I'm like, I grew up saying this.

Right.

I grew up, up saying this because my parents may have said this and that might be hurtful to other people or it may not even be a factual statement.

And then the typical response is, well, that just shouldn't hurt you.

So you're too sensitive.

Right. So how does that make you feel? Like that story you were just telling?

Exactly, you're too sensitive. So I always feel like people are quick to say, well, you know, perception is reality. Well, it's always your perception is reality, but my perception is also reality as well. And I don't think that they look at that side of it either. It's a very one sided view when you say and do things.

And it's, and it's very defensive. It is, it's very defensive. And I think, I feel that, you know, when Todd Fennell said, glenn, racism isn't a black problem, it's all of our problems. So the dumbass question that you just wanted to ask about what can blacks do to help others? He's like, we already know the answer to that. You need to ask what do white people need to say and do? And I, my first, my gut was go like this and go, damn. I don't know that I want to ask that. But I did.

But you did.

And it feels good.

It feels great. Thank you.

And I learned and we're getting better. So I want to know what can, in your opinion, white America do, say or pay attention to?

Yeah, you know, I think just being aware of situations and black people and being more sensitive. Just recently I was walking with two black women walking on a trail. A white woman Came up, saw us getting close, literally sped up.

Can't see. People do that when they see me walking.

They. They don't lock the doors when you come up?

No. They're like, oh, that big, nice white man with a big smile. He's so good.

Exactly.

I love it. All right, sister Serena, I know you've been listening, and I gotta. I gotta call you back. Jason, what's our runtime? Right now we're at 53. Cool, cool. So what I'd love to do with our last seven to ten minutes is you guys were amazing. You guys taught me. You guys played hard, you played to win, and you delivered what I hoped you delivered. So thank you, and I honor you all. Is Serena still around?

I'm here.

There she is. So, Serena, we'll start with you. What did you garner from this? What are your thoughts, and what do you want to leave for the gappers? My audience are called gappers, right? And they're trying to bridge the gap from who they are to who they want to become and from where they are to where they want to go. So I'd love to have you mold this into a closing statement for us and give us. Give us something that we can all walk out of here with.

Well, I'm honored to, I guess, close. I don't feel worthy.

No, they're. No, they're all going to close. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

There's too much wisdom of the life to let my young blood self close out.

Right.

I still have milk on my breath, you know? But nonetheless, I appreciate everyone sharing their story. What stood out to me is that I am probably the youngest. But all of your stories still resonated. I can still understand. I mean, I found myself nodding my head to each and every one of your experiences. And so my question to you is, I thought this was over. I thought when you all marched, when your grandparents marched, when your great grandparents marched, and when they told you all the stories of how they had to march, how they had to sit in the back, how they were served last, how they were perhaps served cold food or no food at all, I thought we were done with this. And so the fact is that when I took myself and my children out to march and I watched them lie on their stomachs for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, and my daughter said, mommy, that was crazy. I didn't even have a man's neck, a knee on my neck, and I can't breathe for real. Her body on her rib cage. And I said to myself, I thought this was over. So the fact of the matter is, we're still here. Yet again, yes, you can say, oh, you guys have got degrees and you've had a black president and there are black people in power. We're still marching. And we're not angry black women. We're not making this up as we go. My heart bled when I, I forget your name, but someone said that they were. They were basically wanted for arrest in the eighth grade. I can't even imagine what that feels like to have to perhaps even look over your shoulder and say, someone wants me and they want me locked up just because of my skin color. So, bottom line is, I thought this was over. However, here we are. And don't be fooled. We will still be just as resilient as we were before. I mean, we let our education, you know, try to fill in the gap. And so I appreciate the conversation about education where our education we thought would neutralize us. My father would teach us to have strong communication skills because he'll say, once you open your mouth, you tell the world who you are. He thought our communication skills would neutralize us. We can still march. We can still go ahead and do some sit ins. We can still do this. We now have power. We have education behind us. We still have our history that keeps us empowered and keeps us on fire to keep on marching. So the march for us is not over. I appreciate you again, Glenn, for having this and for being. I know, you know, being the only or probably one of the few white people around, you've probably been called White Chocolate and all of those, all those names, you know, to try to make you cool. But I appreciate you being bold enough to do this and to include our voices and our stories. And again, it's not over. But we're so glad that we're not where we were, but we're not where we need to be. So it's not over. But as my father also says, for us black folks, when things go wrong, don't go with them. As First Lady Michelle Obama says, when they go low, we go high. So when I heard one of my other colleagues on this panel say that she got pep talks at home, that was why I didn't know what was happening, because we had so many pep talks. And as soon as we got in the house and we wanted to lie down and cry in a pillow and someone said, oh, no, no, put your head up, put your head up, put your head up. Stick your chest out and you're going to do this again and again and again. And so again we thank you for allowing us to have this platform. We will keep marching. We will keep seeking justice, and I believe at some point we will prevail.

And you know, your father, you know, I spoke to a young black group last night, and I said, how many of you know Les Brown? Not one hand raised. I spoke to Providence, Cristo Rey, all blacks. And I started the program. You have greatness within you. You have greatness within you. You have greatness within you. And it's on video. I'll send it to you.

Please do.

And. And that captivated him. And I said, how many. How many young black people ever heard of Les President? Not one. And your father put his hand on my shoulder, and I sent you a picture of him looking at me like, who is this white guy? And he. And he said, dude, you're anointed, and you need to do this. And there's something deep inside of me that's telling me this is what I should be doing. So I'm doing it out of love and respect for your dad because he's meant a lot to me, and the best thing we can do is further his legacy. And I know so many people say, ha, ha. You shouldn't be quoting Les. You need to make sure you say. And I said, look it. You know, I need to. Young black people don't know him. I mean, it's crazy. And I speak to him all the time, so I'm spreading his legacy. I'm spreading his word. And thank you so much for being with me today. You're fantastic.

I appreciate you and thank you for keeping his voice alive.

You know it. You know it. I'll send you the video. You'll love it.

Please do. I can't wait to see it.

You're going to love it.

We're going to have a good laugh. Looking at a white man saying, you've done greatness with, you trying to sound like my daddy.

Yeah, that's exactly right. And I'll keep trying. I ain't afraid.

Amen.

Well, listen, I appreciate you, and again, thank you so much, ladies, for sharing your stories as well. You all have all inspired me.

All right, so we're going to go to Miosha real quick. Miosha. I know you've been listening, and I know you've been thinking and you crushed it. And I need to hear from you and tell me what you learned and tell me what we need to take from this podcast.

I think, you know, first and foremost, you know, this was an amazing conversation, and I think you have curated A group of phenomenal black women. And as one of them, I am so honored to be in this space for such a time as this. Right. So it is a heavy load to carry, but we all carry it together. Blacks, whites, yellows, greens and browns. We are all in this together. We cannot make change by ourselves. We can't get White people can't make change by themselves, but together we can do it. And that is my message, or the one thing that I would want to leave us with today is that it is going to take us all. Now, the burden may be a little bit heavier for some, but it is incumbent upon all of us to do our parts again. We cannot stand behind the veil any longer. So now that it's been lifted, and unfortunately, there's been a lot of collateral damage, a lot of collateral damage, but it has brought us to this point. So what are we going to do? Yesterday is no more. Yesterday is no more. And we can't get it back. We can't get our loved ones back. But we can march forward in their honor. So what are we gonna do? Those of us that are sitting here on this panel, to the gappers that are looking, to the gappers that are watching, to the gappers that are listening, what are we gonna do? Because it's gonna take we. So less of me, more of we. Let's go do it.

Great. Let's bridge the gap. Let's bridge the gap. Here we go. One thing that came out of the. For black men that we interviewed was the toll that this is having on black women and black mothers. And I know you each have children. I want you to say whatever you were going to say. But if. If you want, because I was going to ask them, talk to me about being a black woman in America and a black mother in America. And is it taking a toll on you? And what don't people know? And you can wrap up however you want, but I would love to hear. Is it. I've always said it's. It's tough enough to be black, but it's got to be worse to be a black woman. Hello. And so I have an affinity for black women. I love them. All right, so, Misty, we'll. We'll go with you, and we'll end with Tamiko.

Okay. Definitely. I have a 17 year old. She is getting ready to be a senior here at Cathedral High School and here in Indianapolis, and she works at a swimming pool. And so I tell you, she is a swimmer, a great swimmer. She has a challenge with people in that community that Come by. And she's the only African American lifeguard there at the pool. And so I tell you three or four times a day, my husband and I, that's our summer job, to drive past the pool and to check on her to make sure that she's okay. And every day we have prayer before she goes in the pool, and we have a debrief when she leaves. So it is a challenge raising a girl in this world. You have to continue to remain steadfast and continue to encourage her. She's an honor roll student, really smart. As I said, she's a swimmer. She just received her gold award as a Girl Scout. She works in the community. She's a great person. However, the threat is there, and we have to prepare her. In thinking about our conversation here, I really appreciate you inviting me to the table. The women here were phenomenal. It was wonderful. Thank you for allowing us to share our story. Although some of the information in the stories were suffocating. You know, I think about it, I think about George Floyd. I think about my experience as a 13 year old. It was suffocating. We can go forth in the world and make a change if we continue to have integrity, communicate, and to give people what they need. Just be fair. You don't have to go overboard. Just do the right thing and do it with integrity, and we can make our world better.

I love it. Thank you, Misty. That's great. Thanks for sharing your story.

Thank you.

Great. Okay, Tamiko, you're gonna. We're gonna finish with you, all right?

We can work through this.

I like it. So tell me how you're feeling. Tell me what you learned. Tell me what it's like being a black mother of a black daughter.

Yes.

And tell me what you think. All these great people that we had on today.

Sure. Well, so like you said, I have a daughter. She is now 23, attending LSU. But like Misty's daughter, she was a swimmer. And she started swimming from the time she was 7, 8 years old. And so, like, one of the things that really stuck out to me is we were at a swim meet, and Kennedy was a good swimmer. And so she was at a meet in the middle of the meets. They would do their awards and do the honors. So she was up on the podium, first place with the rest of her team. It was a relay. They played music, the team danced. Next award, she got up there, first place. You know, she did her little dance. And I remember in the crowd hearing I was with another black mom, and she was like, did they just ask if she was black. And I'm like, yeah, but that's okay. We just gonna keep going. Kennedy made the podium again, first place. And she started dancing in celebration. And we both got very uncomfortable by the rumblings. So much so that when she came over to give me her awards, I was like, kennedy, when you make the podium again, don't dance. Just stand there and smile. And we both, the other mother, we were like, we kept our eyes on our children because our first inclination was, we want to take our girls and we want to leave. We want to protect our children. But when you think about that, what I basically did was I told my child, don't celebrate your success.

That ain't cool.

That's not cool. Because everyone else did. And I look at that, and I think about, as she continued swimming, you know, she would get to the podium again, and she would just smile. Like, I would can smile, like, really cheese. And be happy about it. But I always go back to that incident because I think after I told her why, I think that played a part into how she accepted her awards. So that was very challenging. And you think about what you did to your children just to protect them.

God bless you for that. That's not easy.

That's not easy.

And we're not all perfect.

We're not. We're not.

But it's a shame that you had to do that.

I did. Because we were really afraid for the baby. We were really concerned about that.

All right.

I didn't mean to keep going. So from this panel of great women that you have here, you know, and I think everyone said it, there is so much more work to be done. And it's not just black people's work. It's everyone's work. So many times I hear from people and they're like, well, I can't go out and protest, but there are things that you can do. You can write letters, you can vote. You can make phone calls. So I would say for me, that people need to realize there is something that they can do. There is always something for everyone to move this effort forward.

I love it. Okay, well, thank you all. Gappers. I hope. I hope we woke you up. I hope we opened your hearts. I hope we opened your mind. I hope that you continue to listen to the Get Attitude podcast on any of your favorite stations. If you like what you heard today, please share this. We need this shared. We need this going out. And I want to thank all four of my beautiful guests. You guys are beautiful. I love you all. I feel like I've made two new friends, and I'm here for you. If you need me, you just call me and I got your back. God bless you all. God bless the Black American story. This is Glenn Bill signing off from the University of Attitude and the Get Attitude podcast. This podcast is a part of the C Suite Radio Network. For more top business podcasts, visit c suiteradio.com.