Episode Transcript
[00:00:01] Speaker A: Good morning, happy Tuesday and welcome to the power wall. Yes, indeed. You know what time it is and let's talk about the stuff that is going on.
Okay.
Well, clearly I need to figure out what I'm going to be doing with health insurance with this big, beautiful bill and the implications that it's going to happen and the timing of that. And I don't know if anyone has had an opportunity to read some of the pages of what's happening in this legislation and policy that's being passed, but it has been a wild ride to read some of the things that are happening that are being implemented in the United States of America and the implications that will have for so many different Americans and citizens that is just trying to get by with the rules and the changing goal post on how to survive and thrive. It's so sad when I see content where folks are like, I'm regretting voting for who they voted for.
And it's like, save it, save it. Save your think pieces.
Save your apologies.
Save it.
No, nobody wants to hear that right now. No, nobody wants to hear that. People are like, what's next?
Well, you have people that's like, well, we need to stay in the fight. And you have some folks that are like, I'm tired, I'm not getting on the front lines, I'm not fighting. I did my part, I did what I could and look what happened. I. And I'm not going to be on the front lines. And I say to you, I understand, I feel you. There are some people that are now thinking about what does change look like and how can I make a change.
So those change agents, I appreciate you.
I thank you, I support you. I'm rooting for you because it's going to require a village of change agents and truth tellers and folks that know how to get receipts and to hold people accountable, to set receipts and to what was said and to what has been done, because it's been a lot.
And the conversations that I've been having with individuals, some of them are tired and tapped out and exhausted and quite frankly, some people don't know where their next check is going to come from with all the different cuts of funding that has happened. I mean, billions of dollars that was supposed to be provided to our public schools, Poof, gone.
Not deposited.
And how are schools supposed to fill in the gap with that when several of them are dealing with deficits already? Our school systems deserve so much better and our children deserve so much better. They didn't ask to be here.
And it is said that right as school is preparing to start up for another school year, money and resources that should be allocated to help with the education of children are being stripped away with no accountability.
And that is sad. So there are some new laws that I need parents to be aware of, particularly if you live in the state of Florida.
The Florida legislator passed a bill where it bans the use of cell phones for elementary and middle school students during the school day. They can have the cell phone, but it's prohibited for them to use them.
Now, we can have policy to say that we're not going to have children on these devices, but when we underfund education where we don't have a proper technology ratio and children are then using their phones for educational purposes, it does blur the lines as to how the cell phones are being used. You have some school districts that are strict in their policy where they don't want the cell phones at all.
Don't bring it to school. If you bring it to school, we confiscate it, and the parents got to come pick it up at the end of the school day.
You have some school districts where that becomes so much of a liability of holding phones, because what if a phone is lost? Who ultimately is liable for the cell phone? There have been so many things that, as it relates to social media safety and cell phone use with these devices that I need parents and caregivers and community members to be intentional about and be aware about, because these are laws that are being passed by lawmakers where property insurance is sky high, we can't have proper health care, the infrastructure in Tallahassee is so dismal.
I don't even want to get into my story about just getting a cardiologist that's in my local area. So I just say all that to say that we really have to reimagine what our education system is going to look like because it's not sustainable, particularly when federal funds that was supposed to go to said schools just magically disappear. And these school districts have to scramble to figure out how they're going to be able to meet these gaps when there's going to be children that are going to be appearing very, very soon.
I go back to the performative politics that exists, and you'll have some lawmakers that will say, and this is a legacy bill when it's not being enforced. What's the point of having policy when it's very broad and not specific and requires a bunch of litigation in order to get clarity on something that could have been clarified before it Got to the governor's desk like I said and will continue to say our children under the age of 14 still on social media in the state of Florida in particular is what I'm referencing. And the answer to that is yes, there are children under the age of 14 that still have social media accounts, they still have access to websites and things that they shouldn't have access to.
And some of the lawmakers can't even properly describe the features that they claim they're saving children from.
And again, I continue to uplift that. Performative politics saves no one.
Save it. Save it.
It's too much on the line and too much at stake to have selective outrage and participation regarding matters.
Save it. Sending prayers to the folks in Texas with the flood and yesterday I had spent some time to do research to figure out all the different things that occurred. I just say a prayer to the families, to the children, to the folks that are having to rebuild from that.
You still have families in Florida that are still rebuilding from the back to back hurricanes that occurred and the devastation that's happening.
So sad to see. And I just pray to God for those individuals that are struggling, that need additional support, that need assistance. I'm one of those people included. I'm thankful that these doors are opening up for me because when I tell you I had been struggling and just trying to do the best that I can and I thank God that in it God has been able to sustain me as best as possible where I'm still here, still standing strong on my faith and holding myself accountable to the three keys, accountability, transparency and integrity. But it's tough.
Last night I watched Bad Influence on Netflix and there's a docu series talking about an influencer family that basically created a content house and generated money on YouTube. I'm on episode two of the three part series, so I still have a lot more to watch.
But just even the first episode alone of what I saw, I'm telling you the devastations of social media and wanting to be an influencer and children that are wanting to do that. If you survey our children, they will say that they want to be a YouTuber, a streamer.
The times are changing now and I hope that parents and caregivers are really aware and intentional of what they, their children have access to and, and what they're doing.
Last night I watched black young men who are streamers that participated in some very dangerous activity for the fourth of July. They lit up fireworks in the home.
I want to post a clip for those that are watching this on Facebook. And I hope that if you're listening to this podcast that you go to the playlist that I have for this and that you take the time to watch this video, because I just want to just put a clip of the devastation that happened in the house and the subsequent incident that happened when the neighbors called the police. Because the neighbors say that they are tired of the antics that are happening at that house.
[00:10:59] Speaker B: Got Craig. Word about motherhood watch.
Broke the fridge, yo. Look. Broke the fridge. Broke the oven, yo. They went crazy. This m. Word of my dead m.
Look at the bathroom door.
My room. The only room stand. I was not going for nothing.
They flipped all the furniture.
Security, though. Security.
Not nobody in D block besides day. Both security.
Security.
You know. You know what they did. I'm right here by my door. You see what I'm saying? It was two. You know, I had two doors. Security broke down. This security tried to punch the door, hit my daughter. Boom. My still standing on my desk. I got my monitors, all my still Gucci. My closet. Everything is Gucci. Where my mother.
Everything Gucci.
Recar. Room is literally on fire. Where my mother Literally.
[00:12:02] Speaker A: All.
[00:12:02] Speaker B: I bet. Yeah. We got to get out.
I'm about to go. I'm about to go on stream. I ain't. I want to get up right now. Buddy was bugging in this.
[00:12:21] Speaker C: Look at my room.
[00:12:23] Speaker A: Look at my room, man.
A precious room, bro. Everything. All the memories. Everything's over, bro.
At least Syracuse stays strong.
Your chat. At least Syracuse stay strong.
I thought I was pump faking, yo.
[00:12:39] Speaker C: The fireworks that you guys are setting off.
[00:12:43] Speaker B: I apologize.
[00:12:44] Speaker A: No, you.
[00:12:45] Speaker C: You don't apologize to me. This is keeping the neighborhood safe.
[00:12:49] Speaker B: I'm sorry.
[00:12:50] Speaker C: No, don't apart. This isn't an apology.
[00:12:52] Speaker B: I'm sorry.
[00:12:53] Speaker C: This is keeping this neighbor safe. This is criminal behavior.
[00:12:57] Speaker B: I'm sorry.
[00:12:57] Speaker C: I'm appalled.
How dare you.
[00:13:01] Speaker B: So sorry.
[00:13:02] Speaker C: Are you?
[00:13:03] Speaker B: Yes, I am.
[00:13:04] Speaker A: No.
[00:13:04] Speaker C: I have three elementary children who live in this neighborhood.
No.
How dare.
This is permanent. What you guys are doing in this big and in this house specifically. And I have all of the footage, all of it.
[00:13:22] Speaker A: We own out there.
[00:13:23] Speaker C: Excuse me.
You own what we own out there. I know that you own it.
[00:13:30] Speaker B: Exactly.
[00:13:31] Speaker C: I know that you own it.
You cannot throw.
[00:13:34] Speaker A: You.
[00:13:34] Speaker C: It is criminal behavior to shoot fireworks inside a home.
No, no. This is criminal behavior.
[00:13:43] Speaker B: I'm not hollering at you. I'm coming at you.
[00:13:45] Speaker C: This is criminal behavior. I have three.
No, I will not come down.
You were shooting fireworks inside that home.
They were shooting fireworks inside that hole. This is criminal behavior.
No, I am not gonna. I am not gonna.
I heard this from 1:00 clock in the morning.
[00:14:18] Speaker A: Our children watch this content and if you just see some of the comments that are happening as the event is going on, you have people that are encouraging and promoting this type of behavior.
On one of my episodes of Morning Tea and Allegations, I showed a clip of a Twitch streamer that set off Pokemon fireworks in the house with their mom present.
And it set off all different types of alarms and it was really sad to see. And it's alleged that he has a multi million dollar contract for streaming coming soon.
And I just want to say that streaming can be a very lucrative field to get into.
But I just want you to think of some of the antics and the things that had to happen in order to get that type of viewership.
The antics and the things that this particular Twitch streamer has done.
Very dangerous.
And unfortunately, that type of content and the high pace and the adrenaline of it all, it does get people to watch.
Just like I sat there and watched how these Twitch streamers broke into the house, put fireworks inside of said house, and caused so much devastation to that neighborhood around one o' clock in the morning.
And one of the neighbors was like, I have three kids.
I have three elementary school kids that live here.
And the stuff that happens in this house, I have pictures, I have videos, as if she's had to document the things that have happened at that house.
And I believe her.
So these content houses and these spaces that people are getting together to make content with one another, some have been very predatory in nature and in the bad influencer Netflix series, to see the children be exploited and not have the same child labor laws and protections that they would have if they were part of a Disney movie or a Nickelodeon series. It's just hard to see the loopholes that happen with some of these younger influencers and being exploited for clicks and views on the Internet.
There are so many different challenges that I can name off just the top of my head where these were dangerous challenges and ones that invoked trauma in children, all for likes and views on the Internet.
And we really need to be cautious about how we operate with sharing pictures of our children online and sharing videos and content of them, particularly because there are now cases where folks are taking said children's photos and they're making graphic content using artificial intelligence.
So children's safety is so important for me and I really hope that we all can be intentional about that, that we can see that we need to protect and have safeguards and that our children cannot have unlimited access to the Internet. And maybe they shouldn't be to sleep with their devices without supervision. And maybe there should be guard rails to prevent them getting onto the Internet during certain times of the day. And maybe we should limit the type of access that they have with apps and people that they interact with. But also to my fellow adults and community members, just like I'm talking about the children, we need to talk about us too. Because some of the content that we watch and that we explore are not helpful and nice and positively moving us forward. So we also need to be mindful of who we're interacting with and who we're communicating with and the things that we are sharing on these social spaces because it is important.
So my folks in Florida next school year, please remember that it is against the law in the state of Florida for children under the age of 14 to be on social media.
And it's also against the law for elementary and middle school children to use their devices unless it's for educational purposes, which in most times they're going to have their phone for educational services and educational opportunities because we don't have the infrastructure to make sure that every child has a device when they go to school.
To my teachers, support professionals, administration, I thank you.
I thank you for continuing to be in this fight, knowing how politicized education is and having uncertainty on if you're going to get your raise, if you're going to even get paid on time because of the different funding cuts and the things that are happening on the federal level, but also at the state level.
I just want to continue to uplift the folks that are working in our school systems because they need our support, they need our love. And we cannot continue to have performative politics as it relates to these matters either.
We are funding alternate systems without prioritizing the public system that was established first. How does that work?
We are funding charter schools, defunding public schools, and then when it's time to have a conversation, you have some lawmakers that say charter schools are our public schools.
The statute actually reads those two entity types very different.
So to even say that is very disingenuous.
But okay, so continue to be involved, continue to be aware, continue to be intentional, please.
Because our children didn't ask to be here and they deserve so much better. And unfortunately, the way that things are shaping out, I don't know what the future holds, but you have to figure out what is going to be best for you and your family and ultimately making sure that your children receive education outside of those four walls of the classroom and not rely on these systems to provide your child everything that they need to survive and thrive out here, it's going to require way more than that. And especially if you have a child that has a 504 IEP and have some sort of disability, now more than ever, you're gonna have to advocate and fight for your children. I'm just sending so much love, light and peace as folks navigate these systems and how these systems are not sustainable.
And I've been saying this for over five years now. And ultimately, you're gonna have to figure out what is going to work best for you and your family.
And if you have a collective to do that to where you're not trying to figure it out by yourself, even better, because you're definitely going to need a village out here to support each other because the cost of living continues to go up. Just thinking about all the things that have happened just make me sad. And with the beautiful bill that is being pushed through in the ripple effects of that, I gotta figure out a new way of how I'm going to live and have insurance for myself. Being someone who has a chronic illness and disability, having heart failure, it's a very real thing and very scary to think about and to process.
And I hope that more folks pay attention, because as I've said on these power walks, policy is personal.
And you can't sit up there and say, I don't do politics. And clearly politics is doing you and the people that you love. So please get activated in some type of capacity.
Be aware of what's happening. Talk to folks in your village so that they know what's going on.
Because we can't just act like everything is okay and it's not.
Insert meme here. Everything's on fire. Saying, this is fine, it's not.
But also honoring your capacity in that, because some people are tired of saying the same thing. Being on the front lines and advocating in the way that God has called them to, but are still showing up because that's what God has told them and called them to do.
So this concludes the power walk.
Make today amazing.
Enjoy life. Life is short. And until next time, peace.
