Intro (1 min)
Lebert & Paul: Happy Monday everybody! You are currently tuned into another episode of Thoughts From A Counselor. We are your hosts Lebert Lester III and Paul Singleton II.
Paul: Who are we? (2 min)
Two Black counselors in training who are bridging the gap between what they were taught, what they know, and what they think they know. All through understanding the world by recognizing the world is still being formed.
Paul pass to Lebert to introduce the topic
Episode Topic: Juneteenth and Protesting - What Do You Know?
Segment 1: Background on Protesting
(Lebert) Intro: Protesting is an integral part of civic duty, and its reoccurring need is always present in our lives. To do our duty and supply a neat definition for how we will be moving forward with the term of “Protest” that we will be operating on for this discussion. Today, we selected dictionary.com’s first definition which is “an expression or declaration of objection, disapproval, or dissent, often in opposition to something a person is powerless to prevent or avoid”.
(Paul) Question 1: Now that we have a formal definition, let’s get down to explaining what folks mean to us. I mean, this is a show were we of our thoughts for people to agree with, disagree with, and comment on our IG page about. So, what does protesting mean to you?
(Lebert) Question 2: To match the many definitions protesting has, protesting has also existed all throughout history. In a lot of ways, protesting is history. When did you first learn about protests and the importance of protesting?
Segment 2: Juneteenth
(Paul) Intro: On June 19th, we joined our community at the Juneteenth protest where various parts of the community came together to mutually heal due to the recent murders of multiple Black people in the media. This includes Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Shaki Peters, Brayla Stone and more. Originally, Juneteenth was created to honor federal troops arriving in Galveston, Tx to announce that the civil war had ended and the enslaved were now free.
(Lebert) Question 1: Now I suppose we should talk about how we felt and what we observed at the protest, right? Start us off Paul, how did it feel to be at that space given the recent police brutality incidents as well as coronavirus going on?
(Paul) Question 2: What kind of individual as far as age did you see out there at the protest?. Also, what are some ways folks who were not present physically, still supported or could support from afar?
Segment 3: Miseducation about Protesting
We open with a few clips
(Lebert) Question 1: We wanted to play those clips Many folk have reacted to recent instances of protesting by trying to complain about the ways in which it is done, with some most notably implying that rioting and looting are inauthentic forms of protest. In what ways has our education on protesting influenced such thoughts?
(Paul) Question 2: With the passing of John Lewis and C.T. Vivian, we are once again reminded that the issues of civil rights are still present at these very moments. In what ways can we draw upon the words of icons who have passed such as these two, but also those who are still living like Nikki Giovanni and Angela Davis?
(Paul) Lead by example
