With making change . Also, the debate over kink at pride. Some say these events need to be more familyfriendly, others say pride has to welcome absolutely everyone. The chairman of San Franciscos leathermens Discussion Group joins us live. And lgbtq history goes back a lot further than you might think. Our producer brings us the latest research on people like Alexander The Great and william shakespeare. From nbc news in washington, im Joshua Johnson, welcome to the week. This week brought some big developments in the fight over Voting Rights. Yesterday, the doj announced that it is suing the State Of Georgia over restrictive new voting laws passed there. This as the biden administrations first major move against numerous republicansupported laws. Critics say theyre designed to make it harder to vote. The lawsuit comes just days after democrats in congress failed to advance the for the people act. Attorney general Merrick Garland called on congress to do more. Our complaint alleges that recent changes to georgias election laws were enacted with the purpose of denying or abridging black georgians to vote on account of their race or color. We are using at every method in our disposal and in our enforcement efforts. But that is not enough. We urge congress to act to provide the department with important authorities it needs to protect the Voting Rights of every american. Meanwhile, in arizona, the ap is reporting that a socalled Election Audit there has wrapped up. To be clear, its an audit in name only. It has no power to change the results of the election. But, that is not going to stop the former president s supporters from rallying around this count. They claim to believe that it will turn up evidence of fraud. Republican officials in maricopa county, thats the phoenix area, have repeatedly insisted that the election was fair. Republicans in the Michigan State senate also shot down Donald Trumps claims of voter fraud in their state. In a report released on wednesday, republicans could not have been clearer. Quote, this Committee Found no evidence of widespread or systemic fraud in michigans prosecution of the 2020 election, unquote. Despite their findings of a safe and secure election, theyre still urging their colleagues to pass new voting restrictions. And in texas, Governor Greg Abbott is calling State Lawmakers back for a special legislative session. The docket may well include Election Restrictions put forward by Texas Republicans in a previous session. Democrats blocked the restrictions from passing in a lastditch effort last month, but not without consequences. Last week, Governor Abbott followed through on his threats to cut hay for texas state legislative staffers over this move. Lots to discuss with our panel tonight. Joining us now is comedian and actress, margaret cho. Her new movie, good on paper, is streaming on netflix. Also with us, are tim miller and msnbc political analyst and writer at large for the bulwark, and eugene daniels, an msnbc political contributor, White House Correspondent for politico and coauthor of the politico playbook. So much fabulousness in one panel, i can scarcely take it. I want to start with eugene, and your fabulous opinions and perspectives on this voting bill, and the doj lawsuit against it. Whats our sense of how that might play out . Yeah, i think what we know and what the doj knows and what this Administration Knows is that nothing is going to happen in congress, unless a lot of changes happen. Unless they can convince people like sinema, people like manchin, other democrats who are behind the scenes, of allowing those two to be the proxies and take the shots. To change their minds on the filibuster. I talked to some of the Texas Democrats who came to the white house last week, some of those people who walked out, in order to make sure that that Voting Rights restriction bill didnt pass in texas. And theyre putting a lot of stock in the federal government doing something. And they also meant the doj. So what theyre seeing is that this administration, when they know they have these slim majorities in the house and the senate, that they cant do much of anything, unless theres broad, broad support in congress with republicans. The doj is going to do the things that it can. They have beefed up the amount of people that can look into Voting Rights and civil rights investigations, and its possible that we see the doj, this Doj Go State By state, as some of these laws go into place. And sue them. And take them to court, to test whether or not these things are actually what, you know, what people in georgia or in texas or in florida say theyre supposed to be about. And i think that is what were going to continue to see, because it doesnt seem like anything in congress is going to happen anytime soon. Yeah, tim, with regards to going statetostate, i have to say, these laws in some states feel very much like a fait acompli. With the composition of a number of state houses, the republicans control more of them than democrats do. In a number of states, there arent enough lawmakers, democratic or other parties besides the Republican Party to push back. So absent litigation, the doj doing something, it seems like we can expect more of these kinds of laws to end up on the books, either temporarily or permanently. But how do you see it . Yeah, absolutely agree with that. And i just do have to say, given the previous segment that i am onboard for free britney and i wanted to take a strong stand with that. You put it on the record. We appreciate it. As far as this legislation is concerned, look, if you look at a place like georgia, despite the fact that the democrats won both senate seats, despite the fact that joe biden won, because of the gerrymandered state legislature, because of its kind of historic status as a red state, the State Chambers and the State Offices are still very, very republican. And so they can basically do what they want with the new voting restrictions. I think that the democrats options going forward, looking at these red states, and even looking at a lot of purple states like wisconsin has a very republican state legislature, for example, despite having gone democrats in national races, the democrats only options are twofold. One is the doj route and the lawsuits. Obviously, elias has been on the ball. The other big option is raising as big of a stink as possible in these states. And there is Political Science evidence that actually, a lot of times Voter Suppression efforts backfire and they create more turnout, greater turnout in the election. And i think theres some reason to look at that in the georgia election. The turnout was up greatly because of all of the controversy around, you know, obviously, President Trump trying to a coup, in addition to the Voter Suppression effort s with s, right . So i think those are the two cards that democrats have to play. Margaret cho, first of all, first of all, margaret cho, welcome. Im so glad to have you on the program. Delighted to have you with us. Thank you. I was going to ask you about that aspect of all of this. Not simply because, but also because, in georgia in particular, there was a significant increase in turnout among aapi, Asian American and Pacific Islander voters. What is your sense on the impact this might have on voting . I hear tims point, that even with these efforts to suppress the vote, it might end up backfiring and actually causing more people to be more involved and more resolute about turning out to the polls, No Matter What. Which i love. Which i love and thats the one weapon we have, is educating ourselves. The world has changed so much. And Voter Suppression has definitely backfired, because now were so much more aware of whats happening, and this is due to social media, due to the internet, due to this kind of News Coverage thats happening now. Republicans only care about voting when they lose. And the fact that theyre losing and cannot accept that theyve lost is like, its just to the point where the doj has to be involved, is really insane. And so i feel like with the aapi community, in particular, my parents have never voted, because theyve never felt like that this is their country and now theyre realizing the mistake of that. Asian americans, Pacific Islanders are realizing theyre here, were not all queer, but i am, and were here to vote. Dig into that a little more. You said your parents had never voted because they never felt like they were a part of this country. What has that shift been like for them and for you . I think its really hard for them to sort of connect to this idea of being here. Because a lot of times, asian immigration has been about this kind of weve got to go back to our homeland, without actually realizing, this is our homeland, and we have generations that have been here. And so, this mindset, it really is something that is kind of continually reinforced by our own invisibility within american society, which has only recently started being lifted now. This fog of visibility around asian. This is kind of like now sort of going away and melting away. Were seeing more of an americanization of the asians, which i think is really, really important. Eugene, i do need to shift and ask you briefly about Something Else that came up this week, which is the prospect of criminal charges to be filed against the trump organization, that might come from the Manhattan District Attorneys Office as soon as this coming week. How much do we know about this and what do we expect . I presume, at least from the nature of the charges that i believe will be filed, that the d. A. Must feel fairly confident in the evidence if hes going to bring these charges against the company. No, they absolutely do feel confident, because they wouldnt bring those charges, because this is a former sitting president , the trump name is huge in america, so they know that they have to have their ts crossed and their is dotted here. But what we know right now is this is about taxes, its about some perks that were doled out to wildsberg and some other executives. Tens of thousands of Private School children. To rent apartments and car leases and these are all things that have been reported on. And whats really interesting is this has been escalated over and over and over. And i was one of those people who was pretty cynical that something was going to happen here, because of the fact that this is the company of the former president , and for those that are kind of getting excited, because the trump name is in this, its not clear what exposure President Trump himself has. And so that is thats some caution for folks that are looking for something to happen to him within the next week. But also, weve reported in playbook, officials where maralago is you know, the winter white house, he would call it located, they were trying to figure out and gaming out what it would be like to arrest a former president , what the Secret Service would be doing. So people in the Legal Community have been trying to figure out how they navigate if something were to happen with donald trump, with him needing to be arrested, what that would look like. Theres a lot that we dont know here, but what we do know is that the d. A. Seems to be wrapping up their case here. And before we pause, tim, the former president is actually speaking at a rally tonight in wellington, ohio. Thats southwest of cleveland. There you see him on the dais. What is your sense, tim, of what all of this might mean for his future political prospects . We know that mike pence spoke earlier this week at the Ronald Reagan president ial library, where he kind of expressed pride of having stood up for the Election Certification on january 6th, but did not quite go as far as condemning mr. Trump for his actions and his words on this day. What does all of this mean for the possible potential of a trump political resurgence going forward, before we pause . Yeah, well, look. I mean, if he wants to do it, there are going to be people there that want him to do it. And hes going to be extremely formidable. I was punishing himself before i came on here with watching a few minutes of this, and theres a massive crowd, theres no pregnancy for this. After george h. Bush lost in 92, he wasnt going around and doing rallies where he was condemning bill clinton and attacking the rinos, the party that wasnt loyal to him. This is a completely without precedent action, from a president without precedent. And the Republican Base right now wants him. So if he were to want to run again in 2024, he would get it. And this is the bed that the rest of the republican establishment has made. They had a chance to impeach and convict him. They got seven votes, they only needed three more votes. But there he is, giving this speech in ohio in front of a huge crowd. Jim jordan he brought up on stage. Jim jordan said, im only here to say one sentence, i want trump in 2024. Thats where the mindset of the party is right now, whether folks like it or not. Margaret, ill spare you from having to say anything about donald trump on stage, because i have that much respect for you. Im just going to let that go and well move on to more fun things in our next segment. So margaret, tim, eugene, dont go anywhere. Weve got much more to talk about, including marketing to lgbtq people during pride month. How should the community respond to being commercialized . Well get into that with our panel in a minute. And later, kink at pride . Why do we need floats if kinky people in leathermen are in the parade anyway . Good question. Well ask a leatherman, just ahead. But first, richard lui is here with the headlines. A very good saturday for you. Some of the stories were watching this hour. A fifth person has died after a Hot Air Balloon crashed in albuquerque, new mexico. That balloon crashed into a power line early saturday. The victims were between 40 and 60 years old. The city of sydney, australia, and surrounding areas will go into a twoweek lockdown beginning saturday. The move comes in response to the highly infectious Delta Variant that has grown to 80known cases there. Australia struggles with its vaccine rollout. Under 5 of the country is fully vaccinated. The Pacific Northwest has an historic heat wave this weekend. Temperatures in washington and oregon broke alltime records, reaching over 30 degrees above normal. Residents scrambled to adjust. Public Schooling Centers opened. Many Outdoor Events were canceled. More of the week with Joshua Johnson right after break. Jos johnson right after break works fast and lasts. Keep it. Youre gonna need it. Kick pain in the aspercreme nobody builds 5g like verizon builds 5g. Thousands of engineers taking business to a whole new level. Employees are empowered. Customers are engaged. Near Real Time Data for fast decision making. This is business at the speed of 5g. Because the more businesses do with 5g, the more your network matters. Its us pushing us. Its verizon vs verizon. Shingles . Camera man yeah, 1 out of 3 people get shingles in their lifetime. Well that leaves 2 out of 3 people who dont. I dont know anybody whos had it. Your uncle had shingles. You mean that nasty red rash . And donna next door had it for weeks. Yeah, but theres nothing you can do about it. Camera man actually, shingles can be prevented. Shingles can be whaaaat . Camera man prevented. You can get vaccinated. Baby, call the doctor. Camera man hey you can also get it from your pharmacist 50 years or older . Get vaccinated for shingles now. Breyers is always so delicious. I can tell that they used your milk, matilda. Great job moo youre welcome. Breyers Natural Vanilla is made with 100 grade a milk and cream and only sustainably farmed vanilla. Better starts with breyers. Watch the Olympic Games on xfinity root for team usa and feel the energy 7000 plus hours of the olympics on display with xfinity you get every hour of every day different sports on different screens, you can watch it anywhere and with the voice remote you never have to leave your chair show me team usa. All of this innovation could lead to some inspiration and you might be the next one to represent our nation this summer on your tv, tablet, or any Screen Xfinity is here to inspire your biggest dreams the arrival of pride season brings with it a range of Marketing Campaigns, targeting the Lgbtqi Community and their allies. Here is part of a commercial that levis produced for pride this year, its called all pronouns, all love. My liberation is wrapped up in your liberation. Do you think youre free . Well, youre not until i am. No matter how well meaning, such Marketing Campaigns are often met with charge of Rainbow Capitalism or the commoditization of pride. The criticism is that companies chase lgbtq discretionary dollars in june, but mostly abandon the community for the rest of the year. It may boil down to a simple question. Is it better to be Kmodkmod Anir World . Remember the words of oscar wilde. Theres only one thing worse in the world than being talked about, and that is not being talked about. Margaret cho is back. Let me start with you and another ad thats become something of a classic, i think. Look. Skinny latte, extra foam. Listen, honey, your little cutesy flirty thing is not going to work with me. And remember what, one more thing, lady, you need to margaret, what do you make of this debate over Rainbow Capitalism over the Commodification Of Pride . What do you think . Wherever Bianca Del Rio gets a check, im happy. I dont want care. Im grateful for it. Im here for it. I love bianca. Im glad for the Commodification Of Pride. I think its really great to see them out there, i mean, theyre supporting us, which i think is, weve come such a long way. This was not always the case. I really welcomed that. I think i really welcomed their presence and welcomed that so many of these corporations have lbgtqi foundations inside their ranks. Theyre definitely looking to reach out and make an impact with our community. And im here for it. Tim, theres another aspect of this, i think, which is sort of the Commodification Of Pride as it relates to politics, which politicians show up when Pride Marches come around, shaking hands and meeting people and throwing out their platforms. And then you dont really hear much from them when larger controversies show up. But may make sure they show up to shake hands, take pictures, and try to whip up some votes. Yeah, look, i think its good when people go to pride. I think its process. Ten years ago, gay men and women couldnt openly serve in the military. So if ten years from now, Lockheed Martin wants to have Bianca Del Rio out for a death drop float, like, that seems like progress to me, right . At the gay pride parade. I can understand why some people roll their eyes at some of this stuff. I can understand Holding Politicians accountable. Im trying to let that drift into my soul. And then, Lockheed Martin. I am there for this. Thats what progress looks like. So if people dont live up to it, hold them accountable, criticize them, for sure. But i think thats great. And ive got to say, thank you to people like margaret who are out there early, back when i was still hating myself. And you know, and saying the fword, the bad fword to other kids in school because i was doing with my own internalized homophobia, margaret was out there. I think the progress from having only margaret and a few other people out there to having everybody jabaroni that wants to come put on a rainbow and celebrate us, i think thats great, and if politicians dont live up to it, they should be held accountable. But generally speaking, this is all good. Heres another piece from a classic spot from virgin holiday, which poses the question, what if straight travelers were treated the way some gay travelers are treated. Jim, look. Theyll let anybody stay here, wont they . Icky. Eugene, what about this idea of the Commodification Of Pride, particularly because these large corporations, in a way, lets just be real, they help to bankroll some of those festivities. And if those dollars went away, the reach of some of these events would change, but also the political balance of these events might change, to some topics that maybe some corporations might not be so eager to touch. I think thats right. And something thats been really interesting over the last year or so, after all of these protests weve had in this country, a lot of things that have happened during the trump administration, younger activists, younger year activists, younger plaque activists, they have changed the conversation about what they want their celebrations to look like, who they want to go. So what im hearing from folks is, you know, if you come, you have to stay forever. If you want to come skbrat with us, you have to support us after the fact. And that is, you know, wher theyre tubb the Commodification Of Pride, that is the biggest concern that i hear. It sounds exactly like when you talk to black voters. When we go out and talk to plaque voters, they say the same thing about democrats and republicans. If youre going to want my vote or my attention or want a pat on the back, because you put a rainbow float on, youll have to support me after the fact. And that is where this conversation is going, especially because these young kids are not scared to say what they want to say and thats probably a good thing, but it does change the conversation quite a bit about some of these things. I want to give you the last word for the topic of our next segment, which has to do with the presence of kinksters, fetishists, leathermen at pride. This seems like a perennial conversation which seems louder because of social media. Before we move on to our next segment at our next guest, having grown up in San Francisco and for me having lived in San Francisco for 6 1 2 years before i came east, what is your sense of this debate . About keeping pride palatable, respectable to a mainstream public, even as it tries to welcome all kinds of people, before we go. Well, i think, kink at pride is really important. It represents a part of our community. Kink, it goes deeper than just a Sexual Identity. Its actually identity. And it goes really, really well with the idea of a pride parade. I think its very, very important to have kink represented. We are here in this community, we belong, and theyre so welcome. Im so excited theyre always there and i love it. Margaret cho, tim miller, eugene daniels, so glad to have had the three of you with us. Thanks very much. We really appreciate it. Up next, as we mentioned, Rainbow Capitalism is hardly the only debate over pride, over the years. Many festivals have become more familyfriendly, but what about being fetish friendly . Well consider whos welcomed at pride today, with the chairman of the San Francisco leathermens Discussion Group, just ahead. Stay close. Stay close a product of mastery. Get 0. 9 Apr Financing on the 2021 es 350. Experience amazing at your lexus dealer. When you really need to sleep you reach for the really good stuff. Get 0. 9 Apr Financing on the 2021 es 350. New Zzzquil Ultra helps you sleep better and longer when you need it most. 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Kinksters were among the very first activists in the early days of this movement and among the first aids activists, as well. Those who prefer a more mainstream look say its a matter of consent, telegraphing your sexuality in public could violate the sensements of those who might not wish to see it. Those who disagree say that kind of selfcensorship demeans the movement itself. The. It was born out of a movement of oppression at a time when the community was seen as an inherent affront to decency. So whos right . Joining us now is alhan luhan. Thank you for being with us. Happy pride to everyone out there. Let me put that dichotomy to you. Who do you think is right . Well, i have two reactions. The first one is my guttural reaction. And that is that, look, im a queer man of color, a leatherman, and i go wherever the hell i want to go. And if you dont like it, kick rocks. The second one is a little more nuanced. Which is, weve been there. Weve been around since the 50s and 60s, and like you mentioned, we were there at stonewall next to our brothers and sisters, year folks, trans folks, drag queens, and people of color, fighting the fight. Again, you mentioned the aids epidemic. We were there. I was arrested multiple times trying to get services to our people. We started the fundraising model in our bars to get funds to fund research, to support our brothers and sisters, who were struggling. So weve been there all along. And, you know, were part of the community and, you know, theres theres a lot of infighting and i think that we should really focus our energies elsewhere. I dont want you to have to generalize from the people who are in an organization, but if i asked people what leatherman means to them, what being in leather means to them, what are some of the answers i might hear . Bearing in mind, there are a probably a lot of people watching this who have never had a chance to ask this question to anyone in the community, what kind of answers might we hear if we ask what does this Community Mean to you. This community, well, its a family. Its really a family of likeminded folks and there is really a broad and diverse subset of the leather and kink community, that i may not interact with everyone in the leather and kink community, that maybe is not in my interest, but we acknowledge each other and support each other and we understand our plight for more visibility, for acceptability. So people may think like, oh, this is all about sex, but really, its not. This is my identity, this is who i am, this is who i identify as when i get up in the morning. Im going to lay some cards on the table and not pretend to not have any idea what the leathermans Discussion Group is. I used to live in San Francisco, i presented at lgbt meetings, i presented at lgbt, including a workshop on the leatherman. So i know a lot of people who have been involved and hold nit high regard, partly because of what groups like lgd groups is to explain all of these wild, kinky, interesting things that people are interested in, so they dont get hurt. And to me thats part of the value of having this visibility, is because wherever you meet someone who is into this or not, if youre entitle, sooner or later youre going to explore and its important that you know what youre doing, so you dont get hurt and you dont hurt somebody else. Absolutely. And the leathermans Discussion Group is an organization who seeks to educate and to mentor anybody, whether youre young or old, new or part of the scene for many years. So, our vision was just really to educate on a Broad Spectrum of topics, whether its depression and suicide, whether its substance abuse, whether its actually kink play and consent. So, we we have been really at the forefront of trying to get education across the board and like to, like, inform people who may not be into kink, but at least can have a broader perspective of like what it is that were about. Where do you think this divide comes to today. There was a piece in Rolling Stone that referred to puriteens. Im not sure this is generational. I think this has been here since the Community Coalesced in the last few decade, but where do you see this debate coming from . I think that the right has a way Oaf Infiltrating our subconscious to where theres a little selfloathing. But i have to say, whether miami wearing high heels or boots or a fig leaf marching down mark street, im still part of this community and the right is never going to accept me or look out for me or want me, part of the broader picture. So lets Stop Infighting and start focusing on advancing our community. Yeah, theres bigger battles to fight than within each other. You know, sexuality, its human nature. We portray ourselves a little more hypersexual than maybe other parts of the community, but were still part of this community. Before i have to let you go, there may be someone whos watching this who either identifies with you as a leatherman or knows someone who is kinky or whos into something that may seem unusual and just doesnt know what to do with them or with themselves anymore. For someone who may be wrestling with that, thinking about that, what would you say to them before ive got to let you go . I would say that, you know, do some research. Read and part of leathermans Discussion Group component is the component of mentorship. We have a Mentorship Program where we bring in folks who are curious, who have questions, and we pair them up with elderlies, who are people wlor more experienced, and really to answer those questions and explore the dynamic of kink bdsm, within their own lives to see how it fits. And it may be that it doesnt. And thats fine. But its really great to ask questions, to really seek out the more experienced folks in the community and ask those questions. Al rahm lujhan, i think we made some history on cable news. I bet no one has ever had a leatherman on cable news before ever. And im thrilled to have had you on tonight. Thank you very much. I am proud to be part of this and happy pride. We should note that there was an appearance as we told you earlier in the program by former President Trump. It just wrapped up in wellington, ohio, tonight. Weve monitored his remarks, he covered a range of topics, immigration, covid, the 2020 election. Weve been very judicious about the cuts that we will play for accuracy, if nothing else. But moments ago, he remarked On The Issues of his onetime personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani. Heres part of what he said. But now if you question an election and you fight for the constitution, like the greatest mayor in the history of the city of new york, Rudy Giuliani, they cancel your law license. Radical leftwing democrats, they cancel your law license and the Fbi Agents Go and raid your home, like they did to Rudy Giuliani. Think of it. He was the greatest mayor in the history of the city. He took a city that was almost as bad as it is now with crime, and he solved the problem. And he made it a hot, great place. And this is the way they treat him. Its a very, very sad and very, very dangerous time for our country. Thats donald trump speaking in ohio and indeed, Rudy Giuliani did have his law license suspended for fomenting the lies and Conspiracy Theories around the 2020 election. Coming up, what do shakespeare, Alexander The Great, and achilles have in common . Experts suggest they might have been lgbtq, too. Well delve into gay history, when we come back. Because if youre queer, your history is much deeper than you think. And you deserve to be proud of it. Proud of it only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Welcome back to that same old place that you laughed about well, the names have all changed since you hung around welcome back, america. It sure is good to see you. Upbeat Pop Music in background throughout oh are you using Liberty Mutuals welcome back, america. Coverage customizer tool . So you only pay for what you need. Sorry . Limu, youre an animal only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. How far back does lgbtq history go . The answer might surprise you. Experts are now unveiling new theories suggesting that some of the most notable figures in history and mythology might be part of the community, if they were alive today. The week producer Tom Ransweiler spoke to some of those experts for a new series called gay history. The lgbtq Rights Movement grows bigger and becomes more accepted, were more open to interpreting the character of achilles as almost like an lgbt figure. Yes, exactly. And this is not a stretch at all. As i said, in the ancient world, that would have been a very, very common interpretation. And you mentioned that homer at no point said that they were lovers. And the basic argument about that is that homer never says that they were lovers because they werent. Or homer never says that they were lovers because it would have been completely obvious to everyone in the ancient world that they were. Were you guys surprised by the reaction from the Lgbt Community when you first came out and said, its clear, shakespeare was a bisexual man. Well, the way in which we presented shakespeares sonnets has been gratefully received by the lgbtq plus community. And weve even suggested that shakespeares bisexuality is in part the reason that hes such a great writer. After a discussion, would you say that its almost certain that Alexander The Great, if alive today, applied to todays labels, would have fallen under the Lgbt Umbrella . Yes, i think so. I think the thing that would lean him towards what wed call lgbtq and all of that today is the fact that its clear that his emotional involvement with his male lovers was much stronger than with his female lovers. You can catch more conversations like that by searching for gay history on youtube. Granted, i find it incredibly rude of him to drop such a fantastic story on us on his way out the door. This is his last weekend with the week. Tom worked with us as a line producer, keeping our program on point and on time. He also ensured that our Britney Spears coverage was on point, as well. Were a better show for all of it. And we will miss him terribly. Tom, thank you. And best of luck in your next chapter. A Quick Program note. Tomorrow, we will be live from new york citys Stonewall Inn for The Week In Pride. Well talk to lawmakers and activists about the fight for equality. Thats at nine oclock p. M. Eastern here on msnbc. Pride is not just about parties and parades, its about inclusion and love. But when you boil it all down, what should these events be about . Ill share my thoughts before we go. Go only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Facing leaks takes strength. So heres to the strong, who trust in our performance and comfortable longlasting protection. Because your strength is supported by ours. Depend. The only thing stronger than us, is you. Like many people with moderate to Severe Ulcerative Colitis or crohns disease, i was there. Be right back. But my symptoms were keeping me from where i needed to be. So i talked to my doctor and learned humira is the 1 prescribed biologic for people with uc or crohns disease. And humira helps people achieve remission that can last, so you can experience few or no symptoms. Humira can lower your ability to fight infections. Serious and sometimes fatal infections, including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. Tell your doctor if youve been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if youve had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flulike symptoms or sores. Dont start humira if you have an infection. Be there for you and them. Ask your gastroenterologist about humira. With humira, remission is possible. Today, stronger immunity and Better Nutrition ask your gastroenterologist about humira. Are more important than ever. Thats why egglands best gives you and your family more. And thats healthy news, for everyone. Only egglands best. Better taste. Better nutrition. Better eggs. Not everybody wants the same thing. Thats why i go with Liberty Mutual they customize my Car Insurance so i only pay for what i need. cause i do things a bit differently. Wet teddy bears wet teddy bears here only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Its amazing the things people notice about you when youre on television. One thing that bugs some viewers, you probably have never seen it unless you watched me before the week debuted last fall. Did you know i used to have a mohawk . Its true . Even while i was in d. C. Hosting a show on npr, feels like a lifetime ago and i had it when i joined msnbc last year. Its a cut i always wanted and after a while i did it. Turns out no one i worked with said anything about it. If they hated it, they certainly bit their tongues. I got rid of it because barbershops closed during the pandemic and i wasnt going to attempt that cut by myself, can you imagine . I arrived at the d. C. Bureau for the first time i came in with that cut. Ultimately i decided if people could not see past my hair style to the quality of my work, then i guess they were not made for me and i was not made for them. We spent a good part of this hour talking about what pride he wants should focus on and how they should present themselves to the world. Oddly enough, a particular hair style sharpened my opinion on this. Shacarri richardson qualified for the u. S. Olympic track team last week. She won the 100 meters in 10. 86 seconds. Watch this. Womens 100 is under way. Jimmy and oliver, a fantastic start. Here comes shacarri. Richardson is going to tokyo, 10. 87. [ bleep ]. How can you watch that and not smile o. Every time i watch that, it makes me smile. And, like many olympians, she had fans in the stands cheering her on. After the race, she fell into the arms of her grandmother, one of many people rooting for her. She may have gained more fans as we learned about her back story. That fiery hair style that made her look like a superhero, she said it was her girlfriends idea, something loud and vibrant that reflected her personality. We learned about someone who was not there to cheer her on in person. She has been praising for me, going from just last week, losing my biological mother and im still here. What did you say . You lost your mother . Yeah. Im still here. Last week finding out my biological mother passed away, and still choosing to pursue my dreams, still coming out here, still here to make the family that i do still have on this earth proud, and the fact that nobody knows what i go through. Everybody has struggles and i understand that, but yall see me on this track and yall see the poker face i put on. But nobody but them and my coach know what i go through on a daytoday basis and im highly grateful for them. Without them, there would be no me. Without my grandmother, there would be no sha rari richmond. My family is everything. Its unclear whether her mother died last week or she found out about the death last week. But to go from that right to the olympic trials and perform that strongly is pretty remarkable. Then again, what else would you do . You spend your life working and waiting for the chance to turn on the afterburners and leave it on the track, you have to go for it, No Matter What comes your way. And not only run, but strut. Swagger in bold and brilliant colors for the world to know youre here, and then do what you came to do. If they didnt like her look, well, then i guess they were not made for her and she was not made for them. As i said, we spent a good amount of time this hour talking about pride events, whether they should reflect the struggles of the community or be more of a celebration. But why cant they be more shacarri than that . Pride doesnt have to just be about activism or entertainment, not just for kids, queens, or kinksters, to become everything, and so can we. And so can you, whoever you are. Your life and this country does not have to define itself by any one piece of itself. See, inclusion means more than adding stripes on a flag for people eof color or transgender people. It means making room for all that we are. You wont notice every color all the time, but theyre all there. If this flag is not for you, thats cool. Some of us prefer this one instead. It speaks to who we are more than the rainbow does. Or maybe this one if youre beefy and hairy. Maybe your bearish appearance opened the door to this community and a transcribe you never new existed. But whichever flag you fly, if you fly one at all, the point is still the same, you can be all of what you are. And isnt that kind of the point of pride in the first place . My decision to wear a mohawk on nbc news was genuinely terrifying. I was rehearsing how i would handle the rejection. Maybe you can relate to that. The hardest part was accepting their acceptance. And as a result, accepting myself. Im not normal. I was born to stand out, not blend in. And maybe thats the true test of pride, learning to embrace all that this community represents and making room for those different parts to coexist, even if they dont overlap. Its amazing what people see when they look at us, but the key is taking pride in all that we see when we look at ourselves. And with that said, wed love to hear from you. Wed lava to know what your taking pride in this month. Email us, or tweet us. Feel free to send us pictures as long as you took them yourself. Do tell us your name and where you live. The week at nbc. Com or tweet us. Well share some of your stories and pictures tomorrow. Make sure you follow us on social media. Were eon tiktok and twitter now. Find us on instagram the week underscore msnbc. Tomorrow night, The Week In Pride live at new yorks stonewall in, tomorrow night at 9 00. Tomorrow morning ill be a panelist on meet the priest with chuck todd. Check your listings on nbc. Until we meet again, im Joshua Johnson in washington. Thanks for making time for us. Well see you at stonewall. Good night. Get 1. 9 Apr Financing on the 2021 rx 350. Experience amazing at your lexus dealer. At pnc bank, we believe in the power of the watch out. Thats why we created low cash mode, the financial watch out that gives you the options and extra time needed to help you avoid an overdraft fee. Its one way were making a difference. Low cash mode on virtual wallet from pnc bank. Welcome to allstate, are you down, dddown, dddown, dddown where were driving down the cost of insurance. 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All of this innovation could lead to some inspiration and you might be the next one to represent our nation this summer on your tv, tablet, or any Screen Xfinity is here to inspire your biggest dreams youve been listening to the latest updates from officials in south florida where the Search And Rescue efforts continue following thursdays building collapse. The death toll, now, stands at five, with 131 residents, still, unaccounted for. Nbcs Vaughn Hillyard joins us now from florida. Vaughn, what can you tell us about the family you have spoken to on the ground . Hey there. Yeah. We just go