“There’s a disconnect between our white brothers and sisters and our black brothers and sisters and it’s because of limited exposure,” former NFL star and sports analyst Acho says
Former NFL star and veteran sports analyst Emmanuel Acho knows all too well the challenges that African Americans face in fighting racial injustice and inequality in the United States. Getting all Americans on board with understanding the issues and pushing for substantive change continues to be a struggle.
“I grew up in white culture. I went to an all-white private school in Dallas, Texas, and I’m first-generation American, I’m Nigerian American,” Acho told TheWrap editor in chief Sharon Waxman Tuesday during a webinar titled “Allies Unite: Fixing a Broken System and Using Your Platform for Change.”
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“I don’t deal with the same hurt and pain in my heart due to years upon years of slavery, but nonetheless I’m clothed in a 6’2” 240-pound black frame and so when I step outside I’m still perceived as a threat and so I realized there’s a disconnect,” said Acho, who will soon replace Jason Whitlock as co-host of FS1’s “Speak for Youself.” “Let’s call it what it is: There’s a disconnect between our white brothers and sisters and our black brothers and sisters and it’s because of limited exposure.”
That disconnect prompted Acho to produce and host the unscripted video series “Uncomfortable Conversations With a Black Man,” whose first episode has garnered more than 22 million views across various social platforms since it premiered last week (a second episode, with actor Matthew McConaughey, debuted on Wednesday). “Ultimately my goal was to start a dialogue,” he said. “I hung out with so many of my white friends and they asked me questions I never thought they had.”
Also Read: Black Women Activists and Stars to Run White Stars' Instagram Accounts for #ShareTheMicNow Campaign
Tika Sumpter, the star of ABC’s “mixed-ish,” said she has felt a range of emotions since the killing of George Floyd and the subsequent protests and unrest, from feeling hopeless to feeling hopeful, and wondered what she can do to make lives better for others and for her 3-year-old daughter. “I think this is an open dialogue,” she said. “I think now more than ever it’s driving us to talk about the wound that has never been healed.”
The actress, who also co-founded of Sugaberry, a lifestyle brand for “moms of color,” said she was mindful of the hazards of public protests while the country is still in the middle of a pandemic. “We’re doing all the things to save our own lives while also being the highest at-risk group of people,” she said.
For Dr. Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, the widow of the late U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Maryland) and the CEO of Global Policy Solutions, the current push to address racial inequality feels all too familiar. “I’m experiencing this moment as a sense of deja vu,” she said. “I don’t know if you all remember but just five years ago, it was Baltimore city that was up in arms with troops on the street, tanks on the corners, and upset African Americans who were just basically mad because of years, decades, of having bad relationships with the police.”
Cummings stressed the importance of turning the momentum of the protests into meaningful action. “We will continue to be here if we don’t address the structural changes that are needed in this society, not only in the area of policing, but in the area of health, education, and economic security,” she said. “We have work to do as a nation and that work is to get rid of the racist anti-black system, that’s currently operating across our areas of influence so that we can actually have real opportunities for diverse people to live in a fair and inclusive society.”
Media-tech entrepreneur Adam Platzner, who is producing a PSA focused on how white people can effectively respond to the Black Lives Matter movement, noted the role that white allies can play in pushing for change. “We need to take responsibility, white people need to take responsibility for racism in their daily lives, and stopping it, and calling it out, if you see it, if it seems like a small thing, it’s not a small thing,” he said.
“If we’re going to disrupt racism, we need to do things that we haven’t been doing before,” he added.
Watch the video above.
George Floyd Remembered at Minneapolis Memorial Service (Photos)
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Photo credit: Getty Images
A memorial service was held for George Floyd in Minneapolis Thursday, ten days after a police officer killed him by using his knee to choke him for more than 8 minutes, while other officers standing by mocked his pleas for help.
All four former Minneapolis police officers involved in the fatal arrest have been charged. Derek Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes, faces second-degree murder charges. The three other officers are charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder.
Thursday's memorial at North Central University is the first of several; services will also be held in North Carolina and Texas.
Rev. Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy in front of attendees which included the Floyd family, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Reps. Ilhan Omar, Sheila Jackson-Lee and Ayana Pressley, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Martin Luther King III and more.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
George Floyd's hearse arrives at North Central University for the first of several memorial services. In the upper right, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo and Sgt. Dave O'Connor kneel as the hearse drives by.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Floyd's memorial service was streamed on television and online.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Reverend Al Sharpton arrives at George Floyd's memorial service. Sharpton and other mourners wore face masks given the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The NAN logo stands for the National Action Network the civil rights organization Sharpton founded in 1991.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
George Floyd's casket is prepared before the service. The image in the background is the mural drawn near the sidewalk where he was killed. NAN banners flank the artwork.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Floyd's family stand in solidarity during the service.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Shareeduh Tate, cousin of George Floyd, is held by Brandon Floyd, nephew of George Floyd, as those gathered paused silently for eight minutes and 46 seconds -- the length of time Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Actress Tiffany Haddish weeps during the moment of silence. Other celebrities in attendance were T.I., Ludacris, Tyrese Gibson, Kevin Hart and Marsai Martin.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Brandon and Philonise Floyd, brothers of George Floyd embrace while listening to Shareeduh Tate speak. The Floyds wore pins emblazoned with "I Can't Breathe" -- their brother's final words.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Pallbearers wheel out George Floyd's golden casket following the service.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Media and on-lookers watch as George Floyd's casket is loaded into a hearse. His body will be transported to his hometown of Raeford, North Carolina, where a private family service will be held on Saturday. A public service will be held Monday in Houston, Texas -- two weeks after his death.
Rev. Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy for Floyd, who was killed in police custody on Memorial Day
A memorial service was held for George Floyd in Minneapolis Thursday, ten days after a police officer killed him by using his knee to choke him for more than 8 minutes, while other officers standing by mocked his pleas for help.
All four former Minneapolis police officers involved in the fatal arrest have been charged. Derek Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes, faces second-degree murder charges. The three other officers are charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder.
Thursday's memorial at North Central University is the first of several; services will also be held in North Carolina and Texas.
Rev. Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy in front of attendees which included the Floyd family, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Reps. Ilhan Omar, Sheila Jackson-Lee and Ayana Pressley, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Martin Luther King III and more.
Umberto Gonzalez
Film Reporter ◘umberto@thewrap.com◘Twitter: @elmayimbe