Washington for the at National Action network is hosting this rally followed by a margin commemoration, the march is called get your knees off my neck, in response to the death of george floyd in minneapolis. Serving as a contributor to , from 1 00pton show to 4 00 monday through friday. Because of her dedication to the activism, and lifetime outside of her career, in 2016 the president barack obama Lifetime Achievement order. At welcome marco host, please welcome our cohost, ebony. Ebony thank you. Before i begin i want to quote some of the words from the late john lewis that he said in 1963. He said my friends, let us not forget that we are involved in a serious social revolution, by and large american politics are dominated by politicians who build their careers on immoral compromises and ally themselves economic, and, social expectation. I will ask the same question that he asked, where is the Political Party that will make it unnecessary us to keep having to march on washington . Speaker is a 2019 graduate from Marjorie Stoneman douglas high school. Was inuary 14, 2018 she a class attacked by gunmen who went on to murder 17 students and staff raid since then she has stepped up to speak out on vocalolence and remains on the gun violence that affects africanamericans daily. Andis a nonprofit organizer cofounder of concerned citizens has not onlythat continue to organize protests, but also has a list of federal demands. Please welcome leah eastman please welcome our next speaker. I am one of the millions of young black women who makes up the back one of the american progressive men. Like too many of us, my journey started by a senseless act of gun violence when a fellow student open fired in my classroom in parkland, florida. As i lay beneath the lifeless body of my classmate, nicholas, to survive, as my screams melted into the cries of the wounded, i was born again with a voice that cannot and will not be muzzled. While the details of my story may be different from other impacted youth, my brush of gun is an experience shared by too many of our generation. Im not the first and my family to be affected by gun violence. My uncle patrick was gun was gunned down in brooklyn at the age of 18, month after being beaten by nypd who deemed his black body in a white neighborhood a threat. Gun violence is pervasive and extends well beyond highprofile mass shootings. Its not inherent or a coincidence. As the result of poor choices made by policymakers that too often have racial undertones associated with appear the flow of guns into already struggling communities is often still attended by white gun store asers who look the other way guns are used to terrorize black communities. It extends beyond the path of a bullet and creates multigenerational cycles of poverty and social and canonic and economic injustice. Law enforcement has failed to prevent the flow of guns into black communities and perpetuated violence in these communities. Gunies show that consistent violence directly results from entrenched disadvantages, economic advantages and racist policymaking. In many ways gun violence is the last domino to fall at the end of a long line of racism, trauma, and indifference. But its not inevitable. Holistic, culturally sensitive and embedded teams can stop violence before it starts. We demand funding for these programs. Shooting from my high school gain worldwide attention but the mass shooting that happened in southeast d. C. , where 17yearold Christopher Brown lost his life and 20 people were wounded got no attention. For blackd equally lives. Its important as i talk about gun violence that i address police violence. We must move it from a punitive to rehabilitative model. There is a need for a National Conversation of Defunding Police departments and refunding communities. We must reallocate those funds and the needs for a comfortable life. We need to eliminate conduct that places suspects in extreme harm once in custody and has been established, officers nationwide lack accountability. For an officer who knows that he can kill an unarmed black man or woman and have paid desk duty as a result is business as usual. We must change reality and empower citizens. Its important that we recognize that the systematic oppression that continues to marginalize our communities is not an accident. America is built on a system thats doing its job. Police violence is gun violence. Gun violence is the leading cause of death for black youth we demand to live in. In peace. We demand to live in places where the best of black culture can survive. For black women are Business Executives and Vice President s. Where trends sit trans sisters and brothers dont fear being themselves. Realizedam cannot be until we have this dream cannot be realized until we have a federal government that has our best interest at heart. We are removing barriers to cast a ballot, making vote by mail available to all and restored the Voting Rights of americans who have paid their debt to society. We have so much good trouble to get into. I want to thank Community Organizers, especially rev. Al sharpton and Martin Luther king the third for the work that they do. Not just today but every day in giving us a place at the table. As i returned from louisville yesterday, where Breonna Taylor was killed, its clear that black women are unprotected. As i stand here in pain from the aftermath of tear gas and rubber bullets, black women are still the backbone of this movement. I am an executive Council Member of and cofounder of concerned citizens d. C. , thank you. [applause] our next speakers is marcus w king, the president of teamsters local three ferdie one in new jersey, a secondgeneration teamster, he has been a member since 1983 after he was asked to join the International Brotherhood of teamsters as a field representatives, one of 331,ssignments was local they asked him to stay on and he was successful in being elected president in 2009, reelected in 2012, 2015, and 2018. He has served on the ups Negotiation Committee for the philadelphia metro area. Please welcome marcus w king. Marcus good morning. Thank you rev. Al sharpton, Martin Luther king jr. Iii and then National Action network for assembling us today. This is an awesome event. Good morning. I bring you greetings on behalf , ther general president Teamsters Union has a long history of standing not only for americansut for those been discriminated against overlong. For 57 years after the first march on washington, the teamsters against and with you proud to reaffirm our support for racial and economic equality in this country. The teamsters brothers and sisters, black, white, men, women, all stood with dr. Martin luther king jr. To fight for justice. Now we must finish the fight. Fight. Finish this forust complete the mission genuine equality. There are forces out there working against us to dismantle. He union and labor laws they have circumvented civil theys laws in our courts, have tried to block our wagerpetuating minimum standards that no one can survive on. They are even going after labor unions. They have tried to strip away the voice to protect workers as we write for fair wages, equal pay, Good Health Care and a decent pension for retirement. Now they are trying to separate gapican labor by putting a between the haves and the havenots. As he gets wider and wider. Just look at what jeff bezos made this year. Brothers and sisters, its time for action. Words are not enough. We will not be ignored any one we will ask congress to pass the george floyd act. Lewisl lobby the john r Voting Rights act, but most important, number three, we must vote. We musting november vote. We have to tell the country to take the knee off of our next. For those can no longer be with us. Make your voice count. Floyd, ahmad taylor Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, jacob blake. Do it for my friends or do it for you. Make your voice count, make it a better place for us and our children. Black lives matter because our lives matter. Stay safe. God bless you. Everyone in the movement, teamster strong. Thank you. [applause] next we have allen, who coauthored the nations first gay rights bill in 1970 and ,erved as its chief lobbyist and he formed the city ocratic club, and lg tv Q Organization and he currently serves as secretary of the Civil Rights Museum built in Harlem New York harlem, new york, under the leadership of rev. Al sharpton read lets give him applause. [applause] i am here to tell everybody that the lesbian gay Bisexual Transgender Community is part of this struggle. We join with black lives matter. We march with you. We get arrested and we get brutalized in support. After all the Gay Rights Movement was formed because of brutality of the police in a bar known as stonewall. Isil the black community until policeequal, harassment, belittlement, end, wes, and killings will stand united. We are all one. We want you to know that we will continue demonstrating. We will continue marching. We will continue to protest. Will continue to step upset the power structure. We will continue to risk the risks. We will continue to be arrested. We will be proud of this moment and did all of the demonstrations that protest in ,ew york and across the country you can see our rainbow flags matter. Ers, black lives its one of the most important organizations. At one of the most important movements in this country and history. I thank you all, i think rev. Al sharpton and the National Action network for putting this together and being such a good gtb community. Lt outther in victory, vote the racist in the white house and the total administration and its supporters. Thank you. [applause] our next black lives matter protester and lead organizer of to standfrom milwaukee in solidarity with the National March on washington, please welcome frank. I am here with fellow activist, we took a 750 mile track across the country to get here. I will let frank speak on the journeys and what we faced during this journey. But i would like to thank our facebook friends, our photographers, our videographers , the marchers who march with us, the caravan and the medic cruise who came with us. I love you and god bless you. Outow are you all doing there . They only gave me two minutes so im not in a talk about my journey but what i came here to about. Getctivists, we need to organized. Every three month when a black person is killed, that cant be the only time we find out about black people getting killed by the police. We need to get organized as a nation so that we can call in each other when we need help. We need to demand change, not ask for change. They think this is a negotiation. Change. Ere to demand im tired . Are you tired . Im tired . We are marching for the same stuff my granddaddy marched for. This is a revolution. We just marched from milwaukee, wisconsin, for 24 days, because we are not stopping until we get change. All of you came today, i know you have been marching in your cities, dont stop marching. We have to organize and come together. Having our kids marching, this is it. We have been marching for the same stuff for 60 years lack people should not be marching the same stuff Martin Luther king was marching for. Im tired. Im tired of asking for justice. I wanted to stop. We dont want justice, thats what racist police due to us prewe need them out of the police. Thats what the police do to us, we need them out of the police. Us,ybody chastised everybody had shotguns, everybody who messed with us had trump signs, trump 2020. They take the administration and hide behind it. We have to vote. If you are an activist, its time. Its the revolution. This is the revolution. [applause] our next speaker is the executive director of the black economic alliance, the nations only coalition of Business Leaders and advocates committed to economic progress and prosperity in the black community with a specific focus on work, wages, and wealth. And localthe State GovernmentRelations Team at j. P. Morgan chase. He has a graduate of Howard University school of law where he was editor of a law review. And the university of Albany State University new york of new york and he sits on the board of the National Urban league. Please welcome david clooney. David i am david clooney. I lead the black economic alliance, group of black Business Leaders and allies dedicated to improving work, wages, and wealth for black people. We know that the 1963 march on washington was a march for jobs and freedom. The wealth gap between blackandwhite americans has not changed significantly in 50 years. By some measures its even wider. Point, it maya have taken 400 years plus eight minutes and 46 seconds to get here but there is increasing racismtion that systemic continues to oppress black people in every part of American Life reads the what do we do with this moment . We need to continue to fight for social justice. But we need to fight for economic justice. We need to fight for better work, wages, and wealth for black people. Thats skills training for the future of work, closing the blackwhite pay gap and building generational wealth for black families. We absolutely have to vote. Congress has passed the john lewis Voting Rights act to ensure free and fair elections. E have to show up and vote over 40 states will allow early voting this year. Your voten, make sure is counted before election day. We owe it to the civilrights giants who marched, bled, and died for us. Whowe it to the families have suffered from institutional racism, we owe it to america to keep our promise to all of us. Im so inspired by the demand we justice that emanating have to march in congress, corporate board, and with our vote. So we can finally achieve social and economic justice. Coming to this stage is portia taylor, the founder of black girls rise, a magazine and Community Launch as a place for women of color who ride, which has grown to include all women, what inspired her to launch black girls ride was the lack of representation that she saw when she started riding, especially longdistance. Not at the hottest parties or occupying the gym, she can be found on her bike and always living her best life. Please welcome portia taylor. Good afternoon. I am portia taylor. I am here as a representative of black girls ride. We are a movement of women passionate about motorsports. Over 100 women road across america to be here today. We are our ancestors wildest dreams. Women of color on the ground traveling across the land of the free. We are your mothers, your grandmothers, your aunts, your sisters, and your daughters. Beach,e started in long california, as we went through texas i thought about sandra bland and how a traffic stop ended in her death. We witnessed George Floyds death, the heartbreaking death of Breonna Taylor as she slept in her home. Less than a week ago jacob blake was shot in the back and paralyzed. With each act of senseless violence we feel a stirring in our souls. When a call to march was issued we knew it was time to mount up. We packed up our bikes and road thousands of miles in protest against Police Brutality. We ride unapologetically for back black lives. We support those on the front lines and we ensure the freedom of our future leaders. We have come a long way but our journey is not over. Ridevember, black girls will read our engines, we will go to the polls and fill the ballot boxes of these nation that will and choose a leader that will provide the unity our country needs. We invite you to vote like your life depends on it. Thank you. Our next speaker needs no introduction, and stays on the front line, congresswoman ayana pressley. Shes an activist, a legislator, the first woman of color to be elected from the commonwealth of massachusetts. She has fought to ensure that the pain are to closest to the power, driving and informing policy making. Boston cityn the council for eight years and was the first woman of color elected yeare council in its 100 history. Please welcome congresswoman ayana pressley. [applause] morning. Sley good today i am speaking to the ancestors, not just the ones in our history books but the ones omitted from those pages. The justice seekers. The freedom riders, organizers, the community builders, every loved one that passed a brown bag lunch, that risked their that sent uslihood a prayer. Their sacrifice and selfdetermination shaped history. And brought us to this moment. The truth of the matter is we are because of them. We are black with a capital b. We are the manifestation of the movement. We are a symbol of social, political, and cultural progress. If my granddaddy were here. He would whisper in my ear, he would say grandbaby, make it play. I intend to do just that. Make it play. E are in unprecedented times we are challenged by the state of the nation, but the state of our movement is strong. And another world is possible. It is possible to legislate justice and accountability. People over profits, joy over fear, yeseedom over it is possible to write budgets that value black lives. If it feels unfamiliar, thats because its never been done in america. We will meet the moment. Healing,ork towards justice, and collective liberation like our lives depend on it. Because they do. We will march on, clear in our convictions, grounded in our intentional. Let me mak