Return to Transcripts main page
Quest Means Business
Inequality In America; Nationwide Movement To Defund Police Gains Support; "Gone With The Wind" Temporarily Removed From HBO Max; Minneapolis Police Chief Stops Police Union Negotiations; U.S. Cities Mull Police Reform After Death OF George Floyd; The Chronic U.S. Economic Racial Gap. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired June 10, 2020 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:12]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Good evening, everyone. I'm Zain Asher. Usually on this program, we will be talking about records and the stock
market or new economic forecasts. Tonight, we are looking at something different.
For weeks now, protesters in the United States have demanded that their stories are heard. They are furious with police brutality aimed at black
Americans. Furious with a culture that tolerates racism and furious with an economic system that doesn't pay out equally.
So, tonight, we are devoting the full hour to that very subject. It won't be the only coverage we give the story in the weeks and months ahead and it
won't be separate from the business agenda because the two stories are intertwined.
Tonight, we are focusing on inequality in America.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER (voice over): Protests over the death of George Floyd are about more than police brutality. They are about an economic system which has created
a huge racial divide.
But to hear U.S. President Donald Trump speak about it, all is well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Hopefully, George is looking down right now and saying, there is a great thing that's happening
for our country, it is a great day for him. It's a great day for everybody.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER (voice over): The facts tell a sobering story, by almost every metric of economic wellbeing, black Americans are worse off than whites. Poverty,
wages, unemployment, even the coronavirus pandemic that has ravaged the economy has had a disproportionate effect on the black community.
The virus has preyed on poor communities and on essential workers who are statistically more likely to be people of color. George Floyd himself was
COVID positive at the moment of his death.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREA JENKINS, VICE PRESIDENT, MINNEAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL: We have two viruses that we have to deal with in America, and that is the coronavirus
as well as the virus of racism that has infected our entire society for far too long.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER (voice over): Corporate America has once again seized the moment. Top executives in companies are making anti-racism pledges and lobbying for
change. But the Boardrooms where these decisions are made are still overwhelmingly white.
Just four companies in the fortune 500 have a black CEO, all four of them men. George Floyd lived and died in an economy where people like him were
too often overlooked.
Now, the protests are lifting the voices of some who want radical change.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CORNEL WEST, PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY, HARVARD DIVINITY SCHOOL: We are witnessing America as a failed social experiment. It's capitalist economy
could not generate and deliver in such a way that people could live lives of decency.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: All right. So you just saw there that African-Americans are worse off than whites by almost every economic measure. Today in America, the
median wealth of black households is ten times less than that of white households.
The black poverty rate is the more than double the white poverty rate, and this economic divide is certainly nothing new. In fact, the race/wealth gap
remains just as wide as it was in 1968 during the Civil Rights Movement.
Speaking just a few moments ago, Donald Trump's top economic adviser says he does not believe that the United States is a systemically racist country
today. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARRY KUDLOW, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: I don't believe there is systemic racism in the U.S. I am not going into a long riff on it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right, NAACP President Derrick Johnson joins us live now. So, Derrick, first question to you, what doesn't Larry Kudlow understand?
DERRICK JOHNSON, PRESIDENT, NAACP: Well, he doesn't understand the experience of African-Americans. He has not studied the issue to recognize
that a structural systemic racism is decades old long.
The NAACP, we are 111-year-old organization, and one of our founders, W. E. B. Du Bois said the question for the 21st Century in America is a question
of race. We have never addressed that question and the disparities you see and all of the indicators is a direct result of structural racism based on
our possible policy structure.
ASHER: So when you think about these protests that are happening across the country, there are so many factors that are fueling them. Obviously, George
Floyd's death was the main impetus. But it is also the fact that black people, we live in a country where there is systemic discrimination in
terms of jobs in terms of economic opportunities, and certainly in terms of education. What needs to change going forward do you think?
JOHNSON: Much of this is built out on our public policy landscape, local, state, and Federal. This country really wants to address the structural
deficit that exists among African-Americans and whites.
[15:05:10]
JOHNSON: But we have to look at our public policy landscape. You want to address the issue of education, the funding of schools, if a person is born
in one zip code, it lessens their ability to obtain a quality education compared to another child in another zip code. That's a structural problem.
You want to address the issue of police violence and aggression in our communities, all police departments are not the same, and you can see the
difference based on the communities that they are serving.
And I can go on and on. All of this can be addressed through some policy, affirmative focus so that the deficits that we all know exists can be
eradicated and this nation can truly live out its creed of equal protection under the law and all men and women are created with certain inalienable
rights.
ASHER: Absolutely. You know, George Floyd's brother said something I think is important. He said we need to make sure that my brother, i.e. George
Floyd is more than just another name on a t-shirt.
The fact is that these protests that we have seen across this country to end police brutality, during these protests, we have seen even more police
brutality. What does that tell you about how deeply rooted and systemic this problem is?
JOHNSON: There is a sense of police entitlement that when you have individuals who take to the street to exercise their First Amendment right,
the level of aggression by some of the officers is an indication that the lack of respect for one's rights, and if you look across the country, the
diversity of the crowds across black, white, male, female and young, and old. Many of those police officers are aggressive to everyone, which shows
you there is a sense of entitlement that must be broken.
We have to change the culture of policing in this country so that police officers and communities have a different type of relationship that is
respected and everyone can understand the role that we must all play.
ASHER: Again, Mr. Johnson, do stand by. I am going to come back to you in just a couple of minutes.
George Floyd's death galvanized a national movement. Cities from New York to Los Angeles are now considering changes to police funding.
And this is something I am going to talk about with the NAACP President as well as in just a moment.
In the city where Floyd was killed, local legislators have already take ten first steps towards defunding the police. CNN's Josh Campbell explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In the streets, and even from caravans of cars decrying racial injustice, one movement calling
to defund or cut police department budgets is becoming the focus of some demonstrators.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are here today to begin the process of ending the Minneapolis Police Department.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMPBELL (voice over): In Minneapolis, where George Floyd died while in custody of authorities two weeks ago, nine members of the City Council
expressed their support to disband the police department.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LISA BENDER, PRESIDENT, MINNEAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL: We committed to dismantling policing as we know it in the City of Minneapolis and to
rebuild with our community a new model of public safety that actually keeps our community safe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMPBELL: Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender says this process will not be quick.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENDER: When I think about the ask, it is that instead of investing in more policing that we invest in those alternatives, those community-based
strategies.
The idea of having no police department is certainly not in the short-term.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMPBELL: This, one day after the Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey was met with this reaction from protesters when he told them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR JACOB FREY (D), MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: I am to the for abolishing the entire police department.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMPBELL (voice over): The idea of defunding police departments involves redistributing money from enforcement activities to programs that support
the community.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti pledging to make a small step towards defunding the police saying he will slash up to $150 million from the
L.A.P.D.'s proposed budget of $1.86 billion, about eight percent.
In New York City, where large crowds convene once again, Mayor Bill de Blasio says he is committed to use some N.Y.P.D. funding on youth and
social services programs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK CITY: I also will affirm, while doing that, we will do it in a way that we are certain, it continues to ensure
that this city will be safe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMPBELL: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, pushing back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D), NEW YORK: No police? You get looting. That's what you get. Nobody wants that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right. NAACP President Derrick Johnson is back with us again now. So, Mr. Johnson, what are your thoughts on the calls to defund the
police at least just in terms of major restructuring to a police department's budget. Some people say that, listen there are cities out
there that spend one third of their budget on police. Isn't that money better spent towards public education, job creation, job training -- that
sort of thing?
[15:10:10]
JOHNSON: Well, we really need to take a serious look at how we prioritize our resources and how we shift the culture of policing across the country.
I don't think anyone is saying not to have a police force. There are critical things that's going to be required such as who do you call if
there is an issue of domestic violence?
I don't think everyone who is calling for this is saying that we need to do something different.
Crime has gone down in this nation over the last 30 years substantially, but yet budgets for law enforcement stations have gone up, and they have
gone up substantially.
There is an imbalance, because as you see the budgets of police stations go up, you are seeing community programs go down. You are seeing the
preventive measures that should be in place get defunded.
So much of the call is about right sizing the culture of policing, right sizing the relationships with communities, and ensuring that we are
providing the necessary support for healthy communities and not police states.
ASHER: Right. Because the job of the police is supposed to be to serve and protect, and if they are not necessarily doing that, then of course
something needs to change.
Beyond the calls to redistribute the budget, what else do you think should be done just in terms of training and teaching police officers to learn to
deescalate as opposed to ramping up violence?
JOHNSON: In the United States, we have this thing called qualified immunity. It pretty much absolves of police of any responsibility or
accountability when they commit certain acts.
We are calling for the abolishment of qualified immunity. We also need to have a National Registry so if an officer is involved in an incident, they
cannot simply resign and go to another station or another agency and their record not follow them. Many of the bad actors have gone from agency to
agency because they know their records won't follow them.
There are several other measures including training around de-escalation when there are events that's taking place that should be required. And the
power of police unions needs to be right sized. Not that unions are bad, but the fraternal order of police have been a problem in many communities
and not supportive of the notion of protecting and serving.
ASHER: And as you mentioned, that issue of qualified immunity is certainly in the spotlight right now. Derrick Johnson live for us there. Thank you so
much.
JOHNSON: Thank you for having me.
ASHER: All right, still to come here on -- you are very welcome. Still to come here on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS, many companies are backing the Black
Lives Matter Movement, and yet the U.S. has certainly a long way to go when it comes to diversity in the workplace.
We will discuss with the CFO of our parent company, WarnerMedia. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:15:45]
ASHER: HBO Max has temporarily taken "Gone With The Wind" out of its streaming library citing its racist depictions on African-Americans. The
1939 movie which was set during the U.S. Civil War will eventually be presented in historical context.
HBO Max like CNN is owned by WarnerMedia.
Pascal Desroches is the CFO of WarnerMedia. He joins us live now from New York via Skype. Pacal, thank you so much for being with us.
So, given this news that HBO Max is removing temporarily "Gone With The Wind" from its streaming library, what do you think the role is of the news
and entertainment industry in this conversation about racial inequality and injustice in America?
PASCAL DESROCHES, CFO, WARNERMEDIA: Hey, Zain, thank you for having me on. It is a pleasure to be here, and really important that we talk about these
important topics.
You know, where I would start with the decision by HBO Max to remove "Gone With The Wind" is -- look, there are -- "Gone With The Wind" is but one
example of a film that portrays blacks in an unrealistic and unflattering light.
There is not much we can do to change the past. What I think as a company our obligation is to do is to tell stories in a much more authentic way
about the black experience. And how do we do that? I think it is important that we hire black creatives that actually can tell the story in a very
authentic way and make sure that blacks are being portrayed much more realistically than they have historically.
ASHER: Okay, you mentioned one key word that I really want to expound on, and that is hiring. I want to read you, Pascal, some frightening
statistics. In 2018, black professionals held just three percent -- 3.3 percent to be exact -- of executive or senior roles at U.S. companies.
And last year, more than one third of S&P 500 companies did not have a single black Board member. Today out of all of the Fortune 500 CEOs, only
four are black.
Pascal, is there anything surprising? Does anything in what I just said surprise you at all?
DESROCHES: Zain, sadly, I would say no. And it really is disappointing. I wish we were in a different place in the country's evolution, and none of
this surprises me. It is consistent with my experience and part of the issue is, I think corporations by and large have not placed sufficient
priority and intentionality around making sure that there is diversity, not only among the rank and file, but among the most senior levels of the
organization, including the Board of Directors.
ASHER: I do want to touch on your personal experience as a very senior black person at a major company that is predominantly white. Dick Parsons,
the former CEO of Time Warner said that while he was coming up or he was rising in the ranks, he felt that he always had to be twice as good to get
half as far. Is that something you can personally relate to? Is that something that you also have had to get used to in your career?
DESROCHES: Look, you know, that is a sentiment that is shared by many blacks across the company and among senior leadership spots. Obviously,
it's a -- it's something that is really hard to prove. With that said, I think if you look anecdotally at the percentage of blacks and the
percentages that you quoted among Board members, et cetera, I think it demonstrates that we have a lot of work to do as a country and as a
society.
And I will tell you just personally what I have observed is this. We oftentimes we see white males are hired based on potential notwithstanding
having gaps in their experiences. But I think minorities, especially blacks, are hired based on demonstrated accomplishments.
And so when they are not -- when there isn't an objective set of criteria to evaluate promotions, invariably, subconscious biases kick in and I think
minorities get disproportionately impacted.
[15:20:31]
ASHER: And that is so important. That is an important point that you touched on. And just in terms of the solution here, a lot of companies,
WarnerMedia, several other companies, are talking about just the importance of diversity.
When it comes to the issue of diversity, how did we make sure that we are not just seeing diverse in the entry level, sort of minimum wage jobs at
the very bottom of the corporate ladder, but actually there is more diversity as you move up higher within the company as well?
DESROCHES: I really believe that this comes down to intentionality, and how we are prioritizing these issues. It starts at the Board of Directors.
As a company, is the Board of Directors prioritizing and valuing diversity? Are they setting up incentives for the senior leadership team to ensure
that its work force is diverse not only at the entry levels, but throughout? What are repercussions for not having a diverse work force?
You know, the thing that -- being around corporate America for as long as I have, the one thing I know is this. If you want to improve something, you
measure it. You incentivize upon it and then you set -- you make sure that you are making progress against it.
If we want to improve diversity, you lay out specific goals on what you want to do, and you continue to monitor how you are doing against it, and
if you are not doing well against it, make sure that there are repercussions for that.
ASHER: So Pascal, just to sort of put the spotlight on you for just a second, as one of the few sort of senior black executives at this company,
you have a major responsibility. I want to ask you now, how are you going to use, going forward, your sphere of influence just to make sure that the
black people that come into WarnerMedia at entry-level jobs feel welcome and feel that they have a chance moving up higher on the ladder?
DESROCHES: That is a great question. But I will tell you, if it is solely up to me as a black leader to make progress, it is not going to happen. I
think it has to be a shared vision among the John Stankey and the entire senior leadership team at AT&T to embrace this. Otherwise, it is not going
to happen.
And in terms of what am I doing? Look, when I look at my senior team, I have nine direct reports. Five of them are women. Two are people of color.
And you know, candidly, I need to do better.
But relative to when I got here, it has gotten much better, and we have more work to do. But I think as an organization, it can't simply be the
senior black executives' problem. I mean, it has to be something that is shared across the Board starting from the Board of Directors down to the
senior leadership team.
ASHER: So then, how do we -- just moving forward, just in terms of everybody being on the same page, I think it is important to note that
having a diverse work force isn't just something that is nice to do. It is actually good business as well.
Talk to us about that.
DESROCHES: There are so many studies that show that more diversity drives innovation, drives better performance across companies. Sad to say, I don't
think companies -- they either don't believe it or they choose to ignore it.
I don't know which it is, because it is not resulting in a more diverse work force among the most senior levels. And I think if we -- we measure --
if we measure it and we incentivize upon it, it would get better.
ASHER: All right. Pascal Desroches, great having you on the show. Thank you so much for a great discussion. Appreciate it.
DESROCHES: Thank you, Zain. Take care.
ASHER: Racial bias in the U.S. is so deep rooted it can impact every aspect of life for a person of color, their ability to get a job, to get paid
equally, to get a loan, to buy a house, or even start a business.
At each step, black entrepreneurs in America are faced with more obstacles than whites to succeed. Here's Clare Sebastian with more.
[15:25:00]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In 2016, an e- commerce startup set out to fill a gap in the market, delivering hard to find African and Caribbean groceries to immigrant communities, a need close
to the hearts of the two Nigerian-American founders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOYEDE SOBITAN, CO-FOUNDER AND CEO, OJAEXPRESS: I think the most serious thing about retail was an investor we spoke with that took a meeting with
us asked us if immigrants even have money. That was -- that happened -- from my perspective, that meeting the over. They didn't believe in the
market.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEBASTIAN (voice over): It would be another four years and around $200,000.00 of their own Boyede Sobitan and Fola Dada two were accepted
into several accelerated programs and gained some seed funding. They are now planning to expand beyond their hometown of Chicago.
Between 2013 and 2017, only one percent of venture-backed founders in the U.S. were black according to a study by ratemyinvestor.com. It is a
struggle Diana Vertus knows too well.
She started her Boutique Events business in 2010 with just two and a half thousand dollars.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DIANA VERTUS, FOUNDER, CURATION AGENCY: I was extremely discouraged by one investor. I was told that I should be should have a Caucasian person be the
face of the company and I should be the background, and that was like a way for me to get more funding.
From that point on, I did not move forward with asking for funding.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEBASTIAN (voice over): Before COVID-19 hit, she had hired a small team and was making six figures in annual revenue. In the wake of the nationwide
protests that followed the killing of George Floyd, there has been a wave of support for black entrepreneurs.
SoftBank has launched a new $100 million opportunity fund intended only for people of color. And Jason Horowitz announcing a $2.2 million fund for
underserved founders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MELISSA BRADLEY, MANAGING PARTNER, 1863 PARTNERS: I am deeply concerned about the amount of money that is pouring into our community that is
probably going to be controlled by the people who write the check, who don't understand our reality, who don't experience the racism and
challenges we have and the desired outcomes will be unrealistic.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEBASTIAN (voice over): Melissa Bradley who served in the Clinton and Obama administrations has spent several decades funding and mentoring black and
minority business.
She says this is about much more than just investor prejudice.
According to 2014 data from the Federal Reserve, 47 percent of black-owned businesses who applied for credit were fully funded, compared to 75 percent
of white-owned.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRADLEY: The inputs for those credit loans require a set of assets that oftentimes declined to black Americans, and so you obviously get different
ratings if you rent versus if you own. You obviously get different ratings if you have student loan debt versus no student loan debt and those are
inputs that are to no fault of our own, but literally because of lack of access, lack of scholarship, bias and applications.
But yet, we are penalized for the rest of our lives.
SEBASTIAN: Do you think this might be a moment where things change.
VERTUS: I am optimistic that things will change, but I don't want it to be a one-time marketing campaign with these companies.
SOBITAN: We are not looking for a handout. We are not looking for charity. We are looking for the same type of access you would give a white founder
who came from Harvard.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEBASTIAN (voice over): Clare Sebastian, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: All right when we come back, the Minneapolis Police Chief calls for reform. We will hear from the Minnesota Mayor that believes it is long
overdue. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:31:42]
ASHER: The Minneapolis police chief, says he has pulled out of negotiations with the police union. And he told reporters Wednesday that advisers will
help him restructure the department's contract and is looking for actionable reform.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MEDARIA ARRADONDO, POLICE CHIEF, MINNEAPOLIS POLICE DEPARTMENT: Race is inextricably a part of the American policing system. We will never evolve
in this profession if we do not address it head-on. Communities of color have paid the heaviest of costs and that is with their lives. And our
children must be safeguarded from ever having to contribute to the horrific and shameful chapter of this country's history.
My plan will focus on imperative and respected community collaboration with an emphasis on the science of justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: CNN correspondent Lucy Kafanov is in Minneapolis, Minnesota. So, Lucy, clearly at this point, there is so much lost trust between the black
communities of Minneapolis and the police department. What other reforms did the police chief talk about there?
LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there. Well, this has been a significant announcement by the Minneapolis police chief. He's been under
harsh national spotlight as the representative of a mostly white police department that is now blamed on the death of yet another black man here in
America, George Floyd.
The police chief announced several critical steps. One is that effective today, the police department will not be negotiating contracts with the
local police union. And why is this significant?
The police unions have been, according to some, a major obstacle in instituting meaningful reforms to police departments. He cited this as an
example if there is an officer who has due cause to be terminated, often, the police chief and the department is not in the position to fire that
person because they then have to negotiate with this third party, which is the police union.
So, by ending these contracts, by trying to put about a meaningful change that looks at things like excessive use of force, the role that supervisors
play in responding to calls. The kinds of uses of force that police officers are authorized to put into place, that will give him more freedom
to potentially shift things around.
Another thing that they're talking about putting into place is using a research-based early warning system that will allow the police department
to identify problem officers early on before things escalate and to address that before those officers even hit the streets. That's something that he
came out with today.
The mayor here in Minneapolis, also saying that he steps out in support of these reforms. The city council, the majority of the city council actually
approved legislation to disband to defund the police department here. But the details of that, what that would actually look like not yet clear.
The police chief, saying he's not going to support something like that until it is guaranteed that all citizens will be protected. But what we can
say is that there has been so much international and national pressure. And we still, still see protests across the streets of America, not just here
in Minneapolis, but literally, coast to coast.
[15:35:02]
KAFANOV: A lot of people are frustrated that this story keeps on happening, you know, the names might be different, the police departments in question
might be different. But the systemic problems, the systemic issues of racism remain.
And so, we are now seeing a nationwide conversation that sort of looks at the root causes of these problems, and this is one of the measures being
put into place to try to address that. Zain.
ASHER: Right, But the big question going forward is that -- is how much will they satisfy the protesters? Lucy Kafanov, live for us there. Thank
you so much.
And with me now, the mayor of Saint Paul, Minnesota, Melvin Carter. Mr. Mayor, thank you so much for being with us. So, you are the first black
mayor of the city of Saint Paul. And your father was actually one of the first black police officers on the Saint Paul's police force after
segregation ended.
What are your thoughts just given that context of our background, what are your thoughts on these calls to defund the police department?
MAYOR MELVIN CARTER (D), SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA: Thank you for having me on. I appreciate that.
Yes, I'm the son of an African-American police officer. My father joined the Saint Paul Police Department in the early 70s after a lawsuit required
our city to desegregate our police department.
And even as a police officer, he knew he had to have the talk, the conversation with his young African-American son, me, about how to engage
when I meet a police officer, and how to make sure that I could get out of those conversations safely.
When I hear around our country is a loud call for essentially two things. One is a level of accountability to make sure that our officers do not have
the ability to wield deadly force with impunity. I think that's critical.
But then, two, I think there's a level of impatience. As we see our country spend over $100 billion a year on policing, over $80 billion a year on
prisons, and yet, cannot afford things like clearing the Section 8 waiting list, things like housing supports and food supports and child care
supports that would help our families live in stability.
When we see a public safety system that's centered around what happens after something terrible happens, and I think I'm hearing a very loud call
across our country, which I agree with, that we ought to think more deeply about how we invest in the type of supports in our families, in our
children, and in our neighborhoods, that can help us prevent crime for happening before we find ourselves calling 911.
ASHER: So, then, Mayor Carter, how do you think that the city budget there in Saint Paul should be reallocated -- just really to level the playing
field between blacks and whites in your city?
CARTER: You know, I think, leveling the playing field between blacks and whites, and you know, here in Saint Paul, we have a very diverse community.
We have people who come here from all over the country and all over the world. A large Asian immigrant community, a large African American
community -- I'm sorry, a large African immigrant community as well.
And I think what I'm saying is, that's going to require far more than shifts in police budget. It's going to require shifts in how we think about
economic empowerment, how we think about job creation, how we think about just the employment in the public services that we provide.
And I think what we're hearing across the country is that there's just no simple answers to the rage, to the frustration that we're hearing all over
this place and in our streets right now. It's going to require a complete all-in approach. And that's what we've modeled in Saint Paul over the past
few years.
ASHER: I want to hear a bit more about your experience as a first black mayor of the city of Saint Paul. Because you've talked openly about the
fact that, you know, even working in city government, you've been stopped by police, you've been pulled over for no clear reason other than the color
of your skin.
CARTER: Well, sure. And I think that's something that every African- American man in particularly knows, you know that -- you know, we don't have the time for me to share with you all of those such experiences that
I've had. And the sometimes comical tragedy that you feel when you get pulled over again, and again, and again.
And no, it has absolutely nothing to do with how I was driving, or how fast I was driving. It's just the fact that you know, there are some of us who
when we look at law enforcement, we feel protected and there are some of us who when we look at law enforcement, we historically feel suspected.
And for the majority of my life, I've landed in that suspected category as my friends and I will be pulled over again, and again, and again. Despite
the fact that we're high school students or college students or city employees on our way to try to do something wonderful for our community.
ASHER: So, beyond just changes when it comes to the city's budget, how else do you think the systemic racism within the department should be addressed?
CARTER: I think this is a very critical question. And you alluded earlier to the predictability the fact that we've been here before. As we kind of
took eight minute and 46 second moment of silence during George Floyd's funeral this week, I was reflecting on the number of times we've already
seen this funeral.
[15:40:08]
CARTER: The number of times we've already call of this rallying cries. The number of time we've said, never again -- that we can never do these things
again.
Unfortunately, while Mr. Floyd's death was a tragedy and that was heartbreaking, we can't look through history and call it a surprise, or
something that nobody could have seen coming.
Unfortunately, we've looked at these videos that have played out over and over and over again. Many of us have asked a heart-breakingly rhetorical
question, how bad it have to be, how blatant does it have to be in order for somebody to be held accountable for one of these videos. These four
officers have been charged now. We're hoping to see them convicted, to see that they're held accountable for their actions.
But the work that we need to do in Saint Paul, we've actually been doing for the past few years. We started my administration in the first quarter
of my administration, we completely rewrote our use of force policies, we've completely rewrote the rules of engagement for our canine unit in our
Saint Paul Police Department as well. We've already started the work last year of embedding social workers in with our police officers to correspond
to individuals in crisis.
We're doing these things because we're listening to community, we're listening deep, we're talking to community about what the problems are, and
again, instead of figuring out how to -- how to chase crime after it happens. We're doing a deep work of engaging with community members,
engaging with community partners and organizations to solve the underlying problems in community that lead to crime in the first place.
ASHER: Well, certainly, no small feat. Mayor Carter, thank you so much for joining us. We wish you the best of luck. Appreciate it.
(CROSSTALK)
CARTER: Thanks much -- thanks for having me on.
ASHER: This social -- You are very welcome. This social unrest is playing out against a backdrop of economic pain. Now, the Fed says its minority
communities who have suffered the most. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: The Federal Reserve is leaving rates unchanged, near zero. The Central Bank also projects no interest rate increases through 2022. The Fed
chair Jerome Powell spoke earlier about the tremendous economic hardship the coronavirus has brought. He also acknowledged which communities have
been hit the hardest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEROME POWELL, CHAIRMAN, FEDERAL RESERVE: The downturn has not fallen equally on all Americans, and those least able to shoulder the burden have
been the most affected.
In particular, the rise in joblessness has been especially severe for lower-wage workers, for women, and for African Americans and Hispanics.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[15:45:08]
ASHER: U.S. stocks are mixed after the Fed decision. Despite massive unemployment some, U.S. stocks are at record highs. However, that doesn't
matter to many African Americans, few of whom own stocks as the vast majority is owned by white people who went to college.
Valerie Wilson is director of the Program on Race Ethnicity and the Economy at the Economic Policy Institute; she joins us live now. Valerie, thank you
so much for being with us.
I think that one of the statistics that I found the most disheartening is really the fact that prior to the Civil Rights Act way back before 1968 --
back in 1962, in fact, white people on average were seven times richer than black people.
Now, 50 years later, that income inequality, that gap is actually getting wider. What are we doing wrong?
VALERIE WILSON, DIRECTOR, ECONOMIC POLICY INSTITUTE: So, I think that so often we look at our current situation and assume that it is something
recent or something that is an anomaly. And the fact is that racial economic inequality is large and incredibly persistent.
Many of the disparities we observe today are larger than they were 50, 60 years ago, or at best, the same as they were 50 or 60 years ago.
ASHER: Spend just in terms of coming up with a solution, a lot of people, particularly Democrats are talking about raising the minimum wage.
Obviously, the federal minimum wage right now is stuck at $7.25 an hour, it's been at that level for 10 years.
How much would raising the minimum wage to say $10.00 an hour, how much would that do to lift a significant portion of black people out of poverty?
WILSON: Oh, we know that black workers are disproportionately represented among low-wage workers. So, any policy to raise the minimum wage
particularly at the federal level is going to have a disproportionate effect on African American households.
But it's also true that there is a racial wage gap at every level of the workforce, not just among low-wage workers. And, in fact, among college
graduates, we found that the black-white wage gap has grown the most over the last 45 years.
ASHER: So, what is an accurate way of gauging how well a society were doing at tackling income inequality? Because clearly, we talk about the stock
market a lot, but that's not it, because a lot of black people are not invested in the stock market at all.
We talk about GDP numbers, but clearly, that's not it. How do we get an accurate sense of how well we're doing in tackling this issue?
WILSON: Well, there are a number of things that we can look at. One, you know, every month we get new data on employment statistics. And
unfortunately, throughout history, the black unemployment rate is typically double the white unemployment rate.
I spoke just a few moments ago about racial wage gaps that are persistent, income disparities, the median black household has about 60 percent of the
income of the median white household.
And then, wealth is another one that I think is particularly important when we're considering economic vulnerability and one's ability to weather a
downturn like we're seeing now.
The median black family has just 10 percent of the wealth of the median white family in this country.
ASHER: You know, Valerie, some experts have said that it would take at least two centuries to close the gap -- the economic gap between blacks and
whites in this country. I certainly pray that, that is not the case. Valerie Wilson, live for us there. Thank you so much, appreciate it.
WILSON: Thank you.
ASHER: As the death of George Floyd sparks protests worldwide, many corporations are taking a stand against racism. We'll have more on that,
next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:51:20]
ASHER: Welcome back. As protesters across the globe rally around the call to end racial injustice, corporations are hearing that call for change.
Sephora has committed to the 15 percent pledge and has called on big retailers to follow and reserve 15 percent of its shelves to black-owned
businesses.
Adidas, says that it will fill 30 percent of its new positions in the U.S. with the Black and Latino applicants. And shipping giant, UPS will then
donate more than $3 million to programs supporting African American communities. It will also step up its unconscious bias training for its
workforce.
Joining me now is Kevin Warren, he is a chief marketing officer for UPS. Kevin, thank you so much for being with us. So, just give us the sort of
global overview of what you think corporate America's role is in addressing income inequality in this country.
KEVIN WARREN, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, UNITED PARCEL SERVICE: Zain, thanks for having me.
So, corporations now think -- I'll talk specifically for my company, UPS. We know that we have an obligation to make the world better, particularly,
in the communities in which we do business.
So, we need to be able to use all of our resources to make a difference. And so, when we first, you know, saw all these things, these atrocities
that were happening for, you know, innocent people, and really been murdered, we knew at UPS, although we do a lot, we had to kind of raise our
game.
And we really have taken two approaches. One is outside in the community, and that is, you know, how can we advocate from a political standpoint to
make sure that anti-lynching -- the Anti-Lynching Act at a national level and hate crimes at a state level, particularly, those, those, those, states
that haven't adopted that including our home state of Georgia here that we kind of push that.
Secondly, we did want to invest, and you kind of referenced the additional $3 million with our partners such as United Negro College Fund and the
Executive Leadership Council and others to make sure that we, we upped our investment to be able to make a difference.
Thirdly, we want to -- we wanted to ensure that we just weren't writing a checkbook. That we wanted to make sure that our employees were engaged in
the community. So, we pledged a million hours -- a million employee hours in communities and black communities there -- could that were affected, how
to be able to make a difference as well.
So, that was really kind of our -- you know, we wanted to take this heartbreak that we had to then change the anger, to then change that to
action.
ASHER: I do want to touch on the $3 million you mentioned because it is going towards anti-racism groups, civil rights groups at the NAACP National
Urban League colleges like Morehouse and Spelman.
$3 million, obviously a nice gesture. But from a practical perspective, how much of a difference do you really think that's going to make?
WARREN: Well, that's -- you know, that's, that's not a net investment, that's an additional investment that the UPS foundation has already been
deploying. So, you know, this was -- you know, we kind of took the inventory as to what we were doing because this is one of our values, and
we said, OK, that's good. But we need to kind of take it up a level.
And so, those $3 million was more -- was an additional investment than what we've already been doing.
ASHER: And in terms of the unconscious bias training or educating your staff on racism, just walk us through what that would actually look like
just in terms of how you're going to be educating your staff.
WARREN: Yes. So, you know, not only do we want to make a difference externally, we're also looking internally. And, you know, this is -- you
know, diversity inclusion is one of our core values of our company. I know a lot of companies might say that.
[15:55:03]
WARREN: But when you look at the top 11 executives inside of our corporation, over half of them are diverse. Including three African
Americans, Hispanic American, and three women, including our CEO Carol, tell me.
So, yes, we already were starting from a foundation of this is something that's important, but we know it's not enough. And so, we said, OK, let's
take this as an opportunity to engage our employees to be able to have crucial conversations, to kind of raise awareness, and maybe raise
awareness by, you know, some of our white colleagues.
They may be doing things they're not aware of that could come across and actually be unfair. So, that's a -- that's some training that we're going
to undertake to make our company even better.
ASHER: All right. Mr. Warren, thank you so much for being with us. Appreciate it. We back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right. And finally, this hour, I want to leave you with some very, very powerful testimony from a man who is clearly in grief. Philonise
Floyd, spoke before Congress Wednesday about the death of his brother, George Floyd. He urged lawmakers not to let this moment of national
reflection pass them by. I want you to listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHILONISE FLOYD, BROTHER OF GEORGE FLOYD: George wasn't hurting anyone that day. He didn't deserve to die over $20.00. I'm asking you, is that what a -
- is that what a black man's worth? $20.00? This is 2020.
Enough is enough. The people marching in the streets are telling you enough is enough. By the leaders that in our country, the world needs the right
thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: He also urged them, saying, please, do not let my brother's face just be another face on a t-shirt, urging them to make reforms.
And that is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. I'm Zain Asher in New York. The news continues right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
