#TalkRadio – June 3: Race In the US 2025! Fighting Racism and Authoritarianism & Reparations Victories

SPEAKERS:

Dr. Karen McRae: 12:00 PM – 12:57 PM Eastern Time
President & CEO, Concerned Black Men of America; Board Member of the Transformative Justice Coalition

INTRODUCTION:

Hi Igniters For Change! The Igniting Change Radio Show on Tuesday, June 3rd, 2025, from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Eastern Time, entitled “Race In the US 2025! Fighting Racism and Authoritarianism & Reparations Victories”, with Radio Show Co-Hosts and Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC) Co-Leaders Attorneys Barbara Arnwine, Esq. and Daryl Jones, Esq. will be recording live from Santa Monica, California and will feature special guest Dr. Karen McRae.

Our show will begin with our condolences to the victims and families of the victims of yesterday’s terror attack in Boulder, Colorado at the Pearl Street pedestrian mall. The suspect, now in FBI custody and identified as Mohamed Sabry Soliman, a 45-year-old Egyptian national. yelled “Free Palestine” while using a makeshift flamethrower and throwing incendiary devices at a group advocating for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Reports indicate between 6 to 12 people suffered burns and other injuries, with victims’ ages ranging from 52-88, with some being airlifted to hospitals with severe burns. The FBI is treating this as a targeted terror attack and Colorado Governor Jared Polis condemned the attack as a hate crime.

You can read more from these sources:

– [PBS](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/authorities-investigate-after-8-injured-in-colorado-attack-by-man-they-say-yelled-free-palestine)

– [USA Today](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/06/01/boulder-colorado-pearl-street-attack/83980484007/)

– [ABC News](https://abcnews.go.com/US/victims-attack-peal-street-mall-boulder-colorado-police/story?id=122401509)

Following up on our show on reparations, on the first official Tulsa Race Massacre Observance Day, Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols announced the creation of the Greenwood Trust, a $105 million private charitable initiative aimed at repairing the generational harm caused by the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. Justice For Greenwood welcomes this step forward and is encouraged to see several key proposals from its 13-point Project Greenwood reparations plan reflected in the mayor’s vision. Igniting Change is proud of Damario Solomon Simmons, Mother Fletcher, Mother Randall, Justice For Greenwood and the spirits of all the ancestors who continue the fight for justice and reparations for the devastation of the Tulsa Massacre. Of course, this battle is not over but Good to see this step of Tulsa finally acknowledging its role and making some recompense. Somewhere John Hope Franklin and his Dad and Charles Ogletree are saying “Well Done! Keep on Fighting!”

Harvard University will relinquish 175-year-old photographs believed to be the earliest taken of enslaved people to a South Carolina museum devoted to African American history as part of a settlement with one of the subjects’ descendants. The photos depict Renty and his daughter Delia and will be transferred from Harvard’s Peabody Museum to the International African American Museum in South Carolina. Tamara Lanier, who identifies Renty as her great-great-great-grandfather, sued Harvard in 2019, arguing that the university wrongfully possessed and exploited the images. The daguerreotypes were originally commissioned by Harvard biologist Louis Agassiz, whose theories on racial differences were used to justify slavery. In 2022, the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled in Lanier’s favor, recognizing Harvard’s complicity in the creation of the images and its past abuses. The settlement includes an undisclosed financial agreement, but Harvard has not publicly acknowledged Lanier’s connection to the subjects or its role in perpetuating slavery. Lanier and the museum plan to ensure the images are displayed in a way that honors the full story of Renty and Delia. (source: https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/after-15-year-battle-harvard-agrees-settlement-relinquish-122262582?cid=social_twitter_abcn )

Major corporations, including Oracle, McDonald’s, and Morgan Stanley, are cutting ties with law firms that complied with Trump’s executive orders. These firms, such as Paul Weiss, Latham & Watkins, and Skadden Arps, had adjusted their policies to align with Trump’s directives but now face backlash from corporate clients who question their ability to stand firm in legal battles. Meanwhile, law firms that challenged Trump’s orders in court, including WilmerHale, Jenner & Block, Perkins Coie, and Susman Godfrey, are winning cases and gaining new business. Federal judges have struck down Trump’s executive orders, ruling them unconstitutional acts of retaliation. These firms are now attracting clients who value their independence and willingness to fight.

Sources:

MSN. (2025, June 2). Major Corporations — Including Oracle, McDonald’s, and Morgan Stanley — Are Dumping Law Firms That Caved to Trump. Retrieved from [2](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/major-corporations-including-oracle-mcdonald-s-and-morgan-stanley-are-dumping-law-firms-that-caved-to-trump/ar-AA1FX04u).

MSN. (2025, June 2). Trouble for law firms that bent to Trump orders: Clients say firms \”don’t have a hard line.\” Retrieved from [3](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trouble-for-law-firms-that-bent-to-trump-orders-clients-say-firms-dont-have-a-hard-line/ar-AA1FWYDI).

MSN. (2025, June 2). Major Companies Abandon Law Firms That Signed Deals with Trump: Report. Retrieved from [4](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/major-companies-abandon-law-firms-that-signed-deals-with-trump-report/ar-AA1FVAfn).

Curtis Yarvin, also known by his former pseudonym Mencius Moldbug, is a political theorist and software developer. He is best known for founding the neo-reactionary movement, also called the Dark Enlightenment, which advocates for replacing democracy with a CEO-style autocracy. His ideas have gained traction among some conservative circles, particularly in Donald Trump’s second administration, where figures like Vice President J.D. Vance and tech billionaires Peter Thiel and Elon Musk have echoed aspects of his philosophy. Yarvin argues that American democracy is a failed experiment and should be replaced with a monarchical system modeled after corporate governance. He has also coined the term “the Cathedral” to describe what he sees as a network of universities, media, and bureaucracies that enforce liberal ideology. His work has influenced Silicon Valley investors and Republican politicians, including Michael Anton, a senior member of Trump’s State Department.

Sources:

MSN. (2025, June 3). Who is Curtis Yarvin? Meet the ‘intellectual source code’ of the second Trump administration. Retrieved from [2](https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/other/who-is-curtis-yarvin-meet-the-intellectual-source-code-of-the-second-trump-administration/ar-AA1FZggV).

The American Conservative. (2025, May 23). At Harvard, the ‘Cathedral’ clashes with Curtis Yarvin. Retrieved from [3](https://www.theamericanconservative.com/at-harvard-the-cathedral-clashes-with-curtis-yarvin/).

Politico. (2025, January 30). Curtis Yarvin’s ideas were fringe. Now they’re coursing through Trump’s Washington. Retrieved from [7](https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/01/30/curtis-yarvins-ideas-00201552).

The influence of Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and David Sachs – all South Africans- continues to also influence the Trump Administration with a double standard for immigration admissions. While this Administration is kidnapping people off the street and deporting them to countries they’ve never seen in slave labor camps, White South Africans are being given special expedited processes. While Venezualeans are being deported, so are White Ukranians, highlighting a “preferred Whites” policy. 

Elon Musk’s cost-cutting efforts at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have largely failed to deliver the promised savings. Initially, Musk claimed he could cut $2 trillion from the federal budget, but that figure was later revised down to $1 trillion, and eventually $150 billion. However, independent analyses suggest that DOGE’s actual savings are far lower than reported, with many figures being exaggerated or miscalculated. Some of the major issues with DOGE’s reported savings include counting contracts that were never awarded or had expired years ago, triple-counting savings from the same government programs, confusing millions with billions in financial reports, and canceling scientific studies mid-way, effectively wasting money already spent. Despite Musk’s claims that DOGE saved $175 billion, experts estimate that implementation costs alone have exceeded $135 billion, meaning the net savings may be negligible or even negative. Additionally, overall government spending has increased by 6-7% compared to the same period last year.

Sources:

Dodds, I. (2025, May 31). Elon Musk’s cost-cutting at DOGE has been a colossal failure. But he has achieved something more dangerous. *The Independent*. Retrieved from [8](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/elon-musk-leaving-doge-impact-b2760276.html).

Kapula, H. S. (2025, May 30). Elon Musk’s DOGE Exit: Looking Back at His Major Contributions. *Analytics Insight*. Retrieved from [4](https://www.analyticsinsight.net/dogecoin/elon-musks-doge-exit-looking-back-at-his-major-contributions).

Francis, M. (2025, May 30). Elon Musk resigns from DOGE: What it means for stimulus checks 2025. *USA Today*. Retrieved from [10](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2025/05/30/why-elon-musk-left-doge-dividend-stimulus-check-2025-checks-status-update-how-much-money-doge-saved/83922254007/).

Texas Senate Bill 13 was advanced by the Texas House on June 2, 2025, after final approval by lawmakers from both chambers. The bill now heads to Governor Greg Abbott for his signature. Senate Bill 13 gives parents and school boards more control over the books available in public school libraries. It allows parents to challenge books, and school boards can remove books based on complaints. The bill also establishes advisory councils made up of parents to recommend books for school libraries. The House version of the bill required 20% of parents to sign a petition to form an advisory council, but the final version agreed upon between chambers lowered the requirement to 50 parents or 10% of parents in the district, whichever is less. The bill defines harmful materials as content that portrays sex organs or activities in a patently offensive way or includes grossly offensive language. Critics argue that the bill could lead to overzealous book bans, restricting access to literature with diverse perspectives. Some lawmakers worry that books like Catcher in the Rye or Romeo and Juliet could be banned under vague interpretations of the law.

Sources:

Red River Radio. (2025, May 28). Latest Texas book ban bill advances in legislative session. Retrieved from [2](https://www.redriverradio.org/news/2025-05-28/latest-texas-book-ban-bill-advances-in-legislative-session).

KERA News. (2025, June 2). Bill giving Texas parents, school boards more control over library books heads to Gov. Greg Abbott. Retrieved from [3](https://www.keranews.org/education/2025-06-02/bill-giving-texas-parents-school-boards-more-control-over-library-books-heads-to-gov-greg-abbott).

MSN. (2025, May 28). Bill advancing at Texas Capitol gives school boards, parents process to remove books in public school libraries. Retrieved from [4](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/bill-advancing-at-texas-capitol-gives-school-boards-parents-process-to-remove-books-in-public-school-libraries/ar-AA1FBl3f).

QUESTIONS:

Our show will begin with our condolences to the victims and families of the victims of yesterday’s terror attack in Boulder, Colorado.

• Arnwine and Jones give the Heroes of the Week Award to the corporate general counsel who are withholding work from the law firms that capitulated and Harvard’s defiant graduation; and, every community standing up to ICE to stop people from being “disappeared”.
• Villain of the Week goes to Curtis Yarvin and Elon Musk. Arnwine will remind listeners when you make those daily calls to the Congress at 202-224-3121, be sure to tell your Senator at their home office to say NO to the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” and NO to the SAVE Act and remind people to stay in those streets!]
• Since we had our last show, the New York Times did a whole expose on Elon Musk’s heavy drug addiction, which once again highlights the incompetence and his lasting influence of the destruction of the federal government. Despite 127 lawsuits obtaining victories, we can’t run democracy on court injunctions; we need a competent administration. What do you think the lasting impact of Elon Musk’s influence will be on our democracy, the federal government, and American society?
• Let’s discuss the double standard for immigration admissions- that while this Administration is kidnapping people off the street and deporting them to countries they’ve never seen in slave labor camps, White South Africans are being given special expedited processes.
• Let’s talk about the influence of Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and David Sachs, the three South African billionaires influencing this Administration’s policies.
• While Venezualeans are being deported, so are White Ukranians, highlighting a “preferred Whites” policy. Karen, Daryl, what does all this say about racism and the White Supremacist underpinnings of this Administration?
• We want our audience to know that reparations are happening: during the 104th Anniversary of the Tulsa Massacre, the new mayor has approved a new city trust that will serve to repair some of the damage caused by the Tulsa Massacre. This is one of only two incidents where the U.S. has bombed its own people, as the police and others allowed Tulsa to be bombed. We will do a more in-depth show. Shout out to Miss Laneer’s q5 year battle against Harvard- showing how individuals can make a big difference during this time.
• June 14th is “No Kings Day”- please join this and the July 17th John Lewis Day of Action. They can go to tjcoalition.org and sign up for events on mobilize. The more resist, the more we can destroy this racial coup.
• Let’s talk about some of the horrific actions states are engaging in, such as Texas’ new bill banning books and voter suppression, which we will talk about also in a later show.
• How can our listeners get involved?
• What are your one-minute final thoughts to our listeners?
• Thank you so much for joining us today. How do our listeners get in contact with you?

[TJC will continue to vigorously defend the rights of all Americans and will fight the implementation of Project 2025 and our future shows will continue to cover any hate crimes and how we effectively protect ourselves while advancing our agenda for justice.]

[Daryl, Barbara, and guests may share their favorite books and encourage people to donate towards TJC’s giveaways of banned and affirming books.]