The biggest threat to Black Lives isn't what you think | Hawk Newsome | TEDxFultonStreet
URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkn_TZLlPik Video ID: pkn_TZLlPik ============================================================ Transcriber: Translate TED Reviewer: Leonardo Silva I'm Hawk Newsome. I'm the president of Black Lives Matter, New York. And apparently, I'm a human rights activist. (Laughter) (Applause) The question that I want to pose to you is: why do people say no to ending racism? There are many ways that you can say no. You can shake your head, you can outright say no, or you can say no through your inactivity. For years, actually centuries, black people have been oppressed here in America. And most good people with love in their hearts say, "I want to help you. I want to help to end racism." But at the end of the day, they don't show up. I could give a speech to you today and wow you and motivate you, but will you carry that message outside? Because I see the bigger picture. I see more than just black and white. I see love and I see hate. And what we're experiencing here in America is people who have hatred in their hearts are out-mobilizing and out-organizing the individuals who have love in their hearts. I want to tell you a story. About three years ago, we marched from New York to Washington D.C. It was amazing. There was about a hundred of us. You had black people, Jewish people, white people, Muslims, everybody marching, holding signs, singing songs, saying what? "Black lives matter." Saying, "End racism." Everybody stood together in harmony. We slept in mosques, we slept in synagogues. It was beautiful. On the eighth day of this journey we were at a church in Baltimore and we heard that Freddie Gray died. Could you imagine? You just walked 26 miles a day, you're sore, you're achy, you're fighting for justice, just to hear that another black man died in police custody on that day, in that city, when the mayor just met with you the night before and said that would never happen here? So we heard that people were rioting at the precinct, and we as organizers said, "Let's go over to this precinct to calm people down and show them how to react the right way." So we started our march, and we had this chant, and it was called "Off the sidewalks and into the streets." "Off the sidewalks and into the streets." And I'm out front. There are about five police cars with us, there are helicopters, there's news, news reporters everywhere. Fox News was there just in case we messed up and did something crazy. (Laughter) But there was older people were getting off the sidewalk, kids were jumping into the streets with their bikes, and we're marching, and I see these people across the street. Three brothers walking, and I'm like, "What's up? We're all way down from New York, we're marching for you. Why aren't you with us?" They start crossing the street. And one of those brothers is nudged by a car that was coming, and he ran and he opened the door, so I jogged over from the front of the line, and I said, "No, this isn't the fight. This isn't the way we do things. Let's march with us, let's go to this precinct. Let's let our voices be heard." And he kind of looked at the driver, and then he walked and he joined me. I don't believe in coincidence. I believe in God-incidence. That was Freddie Gray's brother. (Audience wows) And he marched with us there. So we get to the precinct, we calm people down, we're standing outside, we're chanting, and a car pulls up. It's a squad car. And he says, "That's him. That's the cop that killed my brother." So we walk over to the car. The police officer rolls down his window. And Freddie's brother says, "What did you do to my brother? What did you do to my brother?" The officer looked us all up and down and laughed. He laughed in our faces. This officer who killed his brother looked at him and laughed in his face. And then he rolled his window back up. This is what we're facing. This is our reality. This has been our reality since we were lynched and hanging from trees. And what I'm saying to you is that your tears and prayers aren't enough. We need your action, we need your voices. Don't just tell people to vote. Tell them that they need to vote for ... what? Vote to end police brutality. Vote for equal rights. You have to get active. And whenever we start talking about Black Lives Matter, people say what? "What about black on black crime?" Oh God, I hate that term. Right? Say violence in the community, say anything else, but they're saying blacks are killing other blacks, and that's the leading cause of death. But let me tell you what takes more black lives than any other black person, and it's called food injustice. Do you know that food and beverage companies spend 10 billion dollars a year targeting poor communities, trying to get them to consume poisons? Right? Soda companies, fast food companies. To tell you the truth, I grew up in the south Bronx, a hard working Christian family, and my dad got sick. My dad actually died on his seventh heart attack. And a lot of that is because of what he consumed. We didn't necessarily know how to eat, but we couldn't afford to eat good food. We lived in the south Bronx, which was a food desert. So here we have it. People are eating, they're becoming obese, and these companies are running chemical tests to get people addicted to food. There are foods sent to poor communities that have the ingredients modified just for those communities. And then we turn around and say, "Look at you, you're fat. You made this choice. You're killing yourself." In actuality, these people are hooked on these foods. Food injustice is real. And why aren't you hearing about this? Because companies like Coca Cola, Pepsi, donate to the NAACP. Some of the most famous activists receive money from these companies. So when you hear the term "systematic oppression," it is very real! It is so real and it attacks us from every angle, and we need help! Yes, we're organizing our communities, but let's face the facts: minorities are the "minority" in this country. Right? And it isn't until the majority of people care enough to do something about it that change will come. Do you have love in your hearts? Do you love your neighbor? Do you believe in the Bible? The Quran? Do you believe in your religious teachings? Because I guarantee you, all of them tell you to help your neighbor. The time has come for us to stop standing around and allowing people to die! Five centuries of death without any justice. Are you going to be the generation to say enough is enough? Because I'll tell you this: many of you say, "If I were alive during the Holocaust, I would've done this. I would've done such and such. If I were alive during slavery, I would've done such and such." We're living in similar times. And I tell you that you're doing the same thing now that you would've done back then, and you have the ability to change it. God bless you. (Applause)