2016-06-23 18:29:24.503	Test test test test test test 

2016-06-23 18:29:25.505	test test test test test test 

2016-06-23 18:29:26.552	test test test test test test 

2016-06-23 18:29:33.503	test test test test 

2016-06-23 18:30:56.06	♪[MUSIC]♪♪ 

2016-06-23 18:41:17.942	>> Hello. 

2016-06-23 18:41:18.939	Hello! 

2016-06-23 18:41:19.983	Hi, everyone. 

2016-06-23 18:41:21.988	I know this is the hardest part, 

2016-06-23 18:41:23.026	because you're just seeing 

2016-06-23 18:41:25.066	everybody, and it's exciting, 

2016-06-23 18:41:26.069	but if you could start to take 

2016-06-23 18:41:27.102	your 

2016-06-23 18:41:28.104	seats, that would be 

2016-06-23 18:41:28.106	wonderful. 

2016-06-23 18:41:30.147	Thank you! 

2016-06-23 18:41:32.185	We'll get started in just a 

2016-06-23 18:41:33.233	moment, once everybody is 

2016-06-23 18:41:40.391	settled. 

2016-06-23 18:41:59.735	♪[MUSIC]♪♪ 

2016-06-23 18:43:52.743	>> Hello, everyone! [Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:43:58.908	[Cheering] >> Welcome to 

2016-06-23 18:44:00.944	T.C.G.'s 26 

2016-06-23 18:44:02.992	national conference and welcome 

2016-06-23 18:44:05.021	to Washington, D.C.! 

2016-06-23 18:44:08.111	[Cheering] [Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:44:13.237	>> So this is our first plenary 

2016-06-23 18:44:14.243	session of the conference. 

2016-06-23 18:44:15.271	But we have 

2016-06-23 18:44:16.286	been extremely busy 

2016-06-23 18:44:16.288	this week. 

2016-06-23 18:44:19.318	And so I want to tell you a 

2016-06-23 18:44:20.355	little something 

2016-06-23 18:44:20.357	about what 

2016-06-23 18:44:21.364	we've been up to. 

2016-06-23 18:44:24.401	First of all, our grantees have 

2016-06-23 18:44:25.411	been 

2016-06-23 18:44:27.448	meeting for networking and 

2016-06-23 18:44:28.494	professional development 

2016-06-23 18:44:29.526	opportunities since Sunday. 

2016-06-23 18:44:30.535	And yesterday, we 

2016-06-23 18:44:31.537	held two 

2016-06-23 18:44:31.539	preconferences. 

2016-06-23 18:44:34.57	We had a global preconference 

2016-06-23 18:44:35.614	which 

2016-06-23 18:44:36.612	brought together 125 

2016-06-23 18:44:39.651	attendees from 25 countries, for 

2016-06-23 18:44:40.654	really powerful 

2016-06-23 18:44:40.655	conversations 

2016-06-23 18:44:43.74	about exile, migration and 

2016-06-23 18:44:46.856	global collaboration. 

2016-06-23 18:44:47.864	Yes? 

2016-06-23 18:44:48.901	You can... [Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:44:53.948	>> Our 

2016-06-23 18:44:56.998	equity diversion and 

2016-06-23 18:44:59.07	inclusion institute -- our 

2016-06-23 18:45:02.151	inaugural 

2016-06-23 18:45:03.154	cohort shared a vision 

2016-06-23 18:45:04.189	developed over the last four 

2016-06-23 18:45:05.196	years 

2016-06-23 18:45:06.242	for racial equity, with 

2016-06-23 18:45:09.317	our newly launched cohort and 

2016-06-23 18:45:10.32	where we discuss 

2016-06-23 18:45:12.399	the role of 

2016-06-23 18:45:15.439	LGBTq theatres and ending hate 

2016-06-23 18:45:17.446	crimes and discriminatory 

2016-06-23 18:45:18.502	legislation. 

2016-06-23 18:45:18.503	[Cheering] >> Uh-huh! 

2016-06-23 18:45:22.604	>> Those conversations continue 

2016-06-23 18:45:23.608	today, during the launch of 

2016-06-23 18:45:25.612	the -- at the 

2016-06-23 18:45:25.614	interactions arc. 

2016-06-23 18:45:28.646	And I wanted to acknowledge that 

2016-06-23 18:45:30.656	the Latina group has 

2016-06-23 18:45:31.692	created an 

2016-06-23 18:45:31.693	installation piece and it will 

2016-06-23 18:45:33.738	be in the building. 

2016-06-23 18:45:34.786	So I encourage all 

2016-06-23 18:45:36.795	of us to 

2016-06-23 18:45:36.796	visit. 

2016-06-23 18:45:38.821	It expressed solidarity with the 

2016-06-23 18:45:39.862	lives 

2016-06-23 18:45:41.874	lost in Orlando and I'd 

2016-06-23 18:45:43.908	encourage all of us to go to 

2016-06-23 18:45:44.94	that wonderful 

2016-06-23 18:45:44.942	piece and leave 

2016-06-23 18:45:46.989	something behind. 

2016-06-23 18:45:50.038	Today we also brought... 

2016-06-23 18:45:53.151	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:45:54.155	>> Today we also brought more 

2016-06-23 18:45:55.157	than 

2016-06-23 18:45:57.194	200 theatre people to 

2016-06-23 18:45:59.287	Capitol Hill for meetings with 

2016-06-23 18:46:00.321	legislators and 

2016-06-23 18:46:01.322	witnessed some 

2016-06-23 18:46:03.362	powerful advocacy at work. 

2016-06-23 18:46:05.365	A small group of theatre people 

2016-06-23 18:46:07.404	slipped away to try and see the 

2016-06-23 18:46:09.445	protest on the house floor for 

2016-06-23 18:46:10.493	gun control 

2016-06-23 18:46:11.496	legislation. [Cheering] 

2016-06-23 18:46:18.618	So we hear that just when it 

2016-06-23 18:46:20.656	looked like they'd never get in, 

2016-06-23 18:46:22.657	a guard said that if they could 

2016-06-23 18:46:24.702	assemble a group of 20 or more 

2016-06-23 18:46:25.738	people, she'd bring them 

2016-06-23 18:46:25.739	up. 

2016-06-23 18:46:27.752	So they did what theatre people 

2016-06-23 18:46:27.753	do best. 

2016-06-23 18:46:29.786	They rallied a group of 

2016-06-23 18:46:30.787	strangers 

2016-06-23 18:46:31.794	into a community and 

2016-06-23 18:46:33.874	the sergeant of arms brought 

2016-06-23 18:46:34.9	them to witness 

2016-06-23 18:46:34.901	the last 35 

2016-06-23 18:46:37.997	minutes of the sit-in. 

2016-06-23 18:46:38.994	Yeah! [Cheering] 

2016-06-23 18:46:44.148	[Applause] >> And 

2016-06-23 18:46:46.167	that included John 

2016-06-23 18:46:48.24	Lewis's closing remarks where he 

2016-06-23 18:46:49.286	said we got in trouble, we got 

2016-06-23 18:46:50.291	in 

2016-06-23 18:46:53.334	the way, good trouble, 

2016-06-23 18:46:55.372	necessary trouble, by sitting in 

2016-06-23 18:46:56.405	we were really standing up. 

2016-06-23 18:46:58.494	Yeah. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:47:03.576	>> So this brings me to a 

2016-06-23 18:47:05.652	confession. 

2016-06-23 18:47:07.656	When we chose "Theatre Nation" 

2016-06-23 18:47:08.694	as the theme of this conference, 

2016-06-23 18:47:10.74	there was a lot we didn't know. 

2016-06-23 18:47:13.806	We knew we'd be in our nation's 

2016-06-23 18:47:14.795	capital during an election year. 

2016-06-23 18:47:15.818	We 

2016-06-23 18:47:16.867	knew we wanted to question 

2016-06-23 18:47:18.955	our definitions of nation and 

2016-06-23 18:47:19.99	citizen and ask 

2016-06-23 18:47:21.993	if our theatre 

2016-06-23 18:47:24.042	movement could model a more 

2016-06-23 18:47:25.048	inclusive, 

2016-06-23 18:47:25.049	equitable union. 

2016-06-23 18:47:27.073	We knew that we had a lot to 

2016-06-23 18:47:28.118	celebrate. 

2016-06-23 18:47:29.155	But there was a lot we didn't 

2016-06-23 18:47:30.165	know. 

2016-06-23 18:47:31.2	We didn't know that this 

2016-06-23 18:47:33.207	election year would be marked by 

2016-06-23 18:47:36.291	a frightening 

2016-06-23 18:47:37.294	rise of where 

2016-06-23 18:47:38.3	nation would be defined by the 

2016-06-23 18:47:40.318	building of walls and turning 

2016-06-23 18:47:42.368	away of refugees. 

2016-06-23 18:47:46.445	We didn't know that transgender 

2016-06-23 18:47:49.542	and nonconforming people would 

2016-06-23 18:47:51.57	face 

2016-06-23 18:47:52.631	dehumanizing legislation 

2016-06-23 18:47:53.66	that puts them at the risk of 

2016-06-23 18:47:54.663	violence when all they want to 

2016-06-23 18:47:55.698	do is 

2016-06-23 18:47:56.712	use the bathroom. 

2016-06-23 18:47:57.747	We didn't know that the sacred 

2016-06-23 18:47:59.827	space of a 

2016-06-23 18:48:00.827	gay bar would become 

2016-06-23 18:48:02.826	a place of grief. 

2016-06-23 18:48:03.823	We didn't know that the epidemic 

2016-06-23 18:48:04.858	of 

2016-06-23 18:48:04.86	violence against women would 

2016-06-23 18:48:06.865	be revealed in a culture of 

2016-06-23 18:48:08.942	silence in our own theatre 

2016-06-23 18:48:10.951	community. 

2016-06-23 18:48:11.996	So we're all carrying wounds 

2016-06-23 18:48:13.001	from the past year. 

2016-06-23 18:48:15.046	And for many here tonight, 

2016-06-23 18:48:15.047	those 

2016-06-23 18:48:17.045	wounds have struck terribly 

2016-06-23 18:48:18.071	close to home. 

2016-06-23 18:48:20.114	But we also carry something 

2016-06-23 18:48:21.118	else. 

2016-06-23 18:48:22.117	We carry the compassion of 

2016-06-23 18:48:24.159	costume shops in Orlando, 

2016-06-23 18:48:25.194	stitching 

2016-06-23 18:48:26.206	together angel wings 

2016-06-23 18:48:29.29	to protect families. 

2016-06-23 18:48:34.822	[Cheering] 

2016-06-23 18:48:38.41	>> Who would bring hate to the 

2016-06-23 18:48:38.411	funerals. 

2016-06-23 18:48:40.454	We carry the truth of those 

2016-06-23 18:48:41.496	fighting against cultural 

2016-06-23 18:48:43.547	appropriation, showing us 

2016-06-23 18:48:45.576	authentic beauty instead 

2016-06-23 18:48:45.577	of crypt face and leading us 

2016-06-23 18:48:52.798	beyond 

2016-06-23 18:48:52.799	Orientalism. 

2016-06-23 18:48:54.835	We carry the courage 

2016-06-23 18:48:54.837	of theatre 

2016-06-23 18:48:56.902	people posting all gender signs 

2016-06-23 18:48:57.902	on bathrooms, taking theatre to 

2016-06-23 18:48:59.953	the streets to 

2016-06-23 18:48:59.954	protest state 

2016-06-23 18:49:02	violence against communities of 

2016-06-23 18:49:03.044	color, opening the sanctuary of 

2016-06-23 18:49:05.054	theatre 

2016-06-23 18:49:07.082	to immigrant 

2016-06-23 18:49:07.083	communities. 

2016-06-23 18:49:09.157	And we carry the fire of those 

2016-06-23 18:49:10.156	who said "not 

2016-06-23 18:49:12.243	in our house." [Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:49:18.327	>> In a time where hate seeks 

2016-06-23 18:49:20.365	out the places with we gather to 

2016-06-23 18:49:23.408	celebrate life and love, places 

2016-06-23 18:49:24.452	like black churches and gay 

2016-06-23 18:49:25.499	bars, 

2016-06-23 18:49:26.503	to commit acts of 

2016-06-23 18:49:27.499	violence, we carry the faith 

2016-06-23 18:49:30.568	that theatre can be a radical 

2016-06-23 18:49:31.621	act, radical in the sense of 

2016-06-23 18:49:32.673	going to the roots of things, to 

2016-06-23 18:49:35.7	the heart of the questions 

2016-06-23 18:49:36.703	democracy has always asked. 

2016-06-23 18:49:38.748	Can we share this world in 

2016-06-23 18:49:39.746	peace? Can 

2016-06-23 18:49:43.836	we spread its bounty 

2016-06-23 18:49:43.837	equitably? Can 

2016-06-23 18:49:47.867	we bear its pain together? 

2016-06-23 18:49:47.868	Can we ever 

2016-06-23 18:49:50.954	truly become one for 

2016-06-23 18:49:50.955	many? 

2016-06-23 18:49:53.047	So those are some of the 

2016-06-23 18:49:54.049	questions we're going to be 

2016-06-23 18:49:55.077	asking over the 

2016-06-23 18:49:56.115	next three days, 

2016-06-23 18:49:57.131	which should be more than enough 

2016-06-23 18:49:58.117	time to answer them. 

2016-06-23 18:49:59.164	Ha ha! [Laughter] 

2016-06-23 18:50:02.295	>> It will be intense. 

2016-06-23 18:50:05.364	But it will also be joyful and 

2016-06-23 18:50:05.365	celebratory. 

2016-06-23 18:50:10.451	We have three days with over 

2016-06-23 18:50:11.454	1,100 amazing human beings to 

2016-06-23 18:50:13.497	exchange knowledge, build 

2016-06-23 18:50:15.542	relationships, share new 

2016-06-23 18:50:15.543	models, 

2016-06-23 18:50:16.577	dine around and dance and 

2016-06-23 18:50:17.548	experience the wonderful theatre 

2016-06-23 18:50:19.579	city that is Washington, D.C. 

2016-06-23 18:50:20.58	So to 

2016-06-23 18:50:21.618	help us do just that, I'd 

2016-06-23 18:50:23.699	like to welcome our host 

2016-06-23 18:50:24.7	committee shares, Chris Jennings 

2016-06-23 18:50:25.704	and 

2016-06-23 18:50:27.791	Meghan Pressman. 

2016-06-23 18:50:27.792	[Applause] [Cheering] 

2016-06-23 18:50:33.873	>> Can you do yours... 

2016-06-23 18:50:33.874	>> Yes. Yes. 

2016-06-23 18:50:35.957	>> Okay. >> Hi! 

2016-06-23 18:50:40.047	Hi! 

2016-06-23 18:50:41.049	>> Hey! 

2016-06-23 18:50:43.123	We are here to welcome you to 

2016-06-23 18:50:44.157	D.C. With so many sights 

2016-06-23 18:50:45.158	to see, from 

2016-06-23 18:50:47.165	the monuments with the best site 

2016-06-23 18:50:49.202	of all, the congressional sit-in 

2016-06-23 18:50:50.204	for 

2016-06-23 18:50:51.249	gun control. 

2016-06-23 18:50:51.25	>> Woo! 

2016-06-23 18:50:54.298	>> We are a city that is the 

2016-06-23 18:50:56.334	central home for our 

2016-06-23 18:50:56.335	country's 

2016-06-23 18:50:56.336	debates. 

2016-06-23 18:50:58.404	We're also an international 

2016-06-23 18:50:59.406	community that houses many 

2016-06-23 18:51:00.417	embassies 

2016-06-23 18:51:01.413	for countries, from 

2016-06-23 18:51:02.453	around the world. 

2016-06-23 18:51:03.499	>> But this is not just a 

2016-06-23 18:51:04.503	political center. It is also 

2016-06-23 18:51:06.547	a major arts 

2016-06-23 18:51:08.577	community. 

2016-06-23 18:51:10.62	The national center for arts 

2016-06-23 18:51:12.66	research started a new arts 

2016-06-23 18:51:14.698	index and for two years running, 

2016-06-23 18:51:15.718	the 

2016-06-23 18:51:16.703	greater D.C. area has been 

2016-06-23 18:51:18.752	ranked number one in terms of 

2016-06-23 18:51:20.821	most vibrant arts major region 

2016-06-23 18:51:22.824	in country! 

2016-06-23 18:51:24.829	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:51:25.874	>> And the many of us 

2016-06-23 18:51:25.875	who live 

2016-06-23 18:51:28.946	and work here, I don't think are 

2016-06-23 18:51:29.955	surprised -- in fact I 

2016-06-23 18:51:29.957	know 

2016-06-23 18:51:30.993	there's at least 150 of those 

2016-06-23 18:51:31.994	folks in this room. 

2016-06-23 18:51:33.044	To show how vibrant that 

2016-06-23 18:51:35.074	community is, would you all 

2016-06-23 18:51:36.073	raise your hands? 

2016-06-23 18:51:37.074	>> Woo! 

2016-06-23 18:51:38.079	>> Oh, my gosh! 

2016-06-23 18:51:38.08	Yes! Yes! 

2016-06-23 18:51:41.12	That's great! 

2016-06-23 18:51:44.166	About 25 of those folks are on 

2016-06-23 18:51:45.198	the 

2016-06-23 18:51:46.199	staff of Woolly mammoth. 

2016-06-23 18:51:47.254	That's right! 

2016-06-23 18:51:50.293	We're also home to over 

2016-06-23 18:51:50.294	95 

2016-06-23 18:51:51.305	theatre companies in this 

2016-06-23 18:51:55.324	greater D.C. area, more than 50 

2016-06-23 18:51:58.419	of whom participated in the 

2016-06-23 18:52:00.455	inaugural 

2016-06-23 18:52:00.457	women's theatre 

2016-06-23 18:52:02.501	festival this fall, all 

2016-06-23 18:52:04.545	producing plays by women. 

2016-06-23 18:52:04.547	Pretty awesome. So 

2016-06-23 18:52:07.574	on behalf of that great 

2016-06-23 18:52:08.579	community, and a tireless host 

2016-06-23 18:52:10.663	committee, we welcome you! 

2016-06-23 18:52:13.749	We had a whopping and I believe 

2016-06-23 18:52:14.793	record 52 people serving as 

2016-06-23 18:52:15.797	volunteers of 

2016-06-23 18:52:15.799	the host committee 

2016-06-23 18:52:19.865	in D.C., representing 21 

2016-06-23 18:52:19.867	organizations. 

2016-06-23 18:52:21.873	We forged our way through with 

2016-06-23 18:52:22.911	some rounds of margaritas. 

2016-06-23 18:52:24.922	Not as many 

2016-06-23 18:52:24.923	as we'd like. 

2016-06-23 18:52:25.95	>> But a few. 

2016-06-23 18:52:26.967	A few. 

2016-06-23 18:52:28.993	>> And our goal as a committee 

2016-06-23 18:52:29.996	was to welcome you 

2016-06-23 18:52:29.997	all to the 

2016-06-23 18:52:33.049	city, to recruit local 

2016-06-23 18:52:36.079	attendees, volunteers, students, 

2016-06-23 18:52:37.081	advocates to fund raise, to 

2016-06-23 18:52:39.128	showcase the D.C. theatre 

2016-06-23 18:52:40.166	community, to 

2016-06-23 18:52:40.167	showcase our city 

2016-06-23 18:52:42.211	and to hopefully show you a 

2016-06-23 18:52:43.257	fabulous time. 

2016-06-23 18:52:44.248	That took a ton of work and it 

2016-06-23 18:52:45.26	was a big 

2016-06-23 18:52:45.261	group. 

2016-06-23 18:52:47.293	We'd like to ask all of them to 

2016-06-23 18:52:48.293	please stand, so we can 

2016-06-23 18:52:50.333	acknowledge their hard 

2016-06-23 18:52:50.334	work over 

2016-06-23 18:52:52.379	the last six months. 

2016-06-23 18:52:53.375	Host committee, everybody. 

2016-06-23 18:52:55.422	There's a lot of you! 

2016-06-23 18:52:55.424	>> Come on. 

2016-06-23 18:52:56.468	Come on. 

2016-06-23 18:52:57.492	[Cheering] 

2016-06-23 18:52:58.499	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:52:58.5	>> There we go. Thank you all! 

2016-06-23 18:53:02.55	In particular, I just want to 

2016-06-23 18:53:03.578	shout out a few names of the 

2016-06-23 18:53:05.583	folks who led communities within 

2016-06-23 18:53:07.62	the host committee and did some 

2016-06-23 18:53:08.623	extra heavy lifting. 

2016-06-23 18:53:10.664	That includes Amy 

2016-06-23 18:53:11.708	Austin, Meredith 

2016-06-23 18:53:15.8	berkiss... 

2016-06-23 18:53:22.957	thank you, 

2016-06-23 18:53:22.958	sincerely! 

2016-06-23 18:53:25.05	I truly hope that after this 

2016-06-23 18:53:26.055	weekend, you'll all be as 

2016-06-23 18:53:27.078	equally convinced that this is 

2016-06-23 18:53:29.083	the most vibrant arts scene in 

2016-06-23 18:53:30.123	the 

2016-06-23 18:53:30.124	nation. 

2016-06-23 18:53:31.125	Not that it's a competition. 

2016-06-23 18:53:33.166	This is about everybody. 

2016-06-23 18:53:34.178	>> As Teresa said, we're 

2016-06-23 18:53:35.209	gathered over 

2016-06-23 18:53:35.211	the next three 

2016-06-23 18:53:37.251	days under the theme "Theatre 

2016-06-23 18:53:37.252	Nation." I was lucky enough, 

2016-06-23 18:53:40.298	the first 

2016-06-23 18:53:42.333	T.C.G. conference I went to was 

2016-06-23 18:53:44.409	20 years ago when August Wilson 

2016-06-23 18:53:45.409	gave 

2016-06-23 18:53:45.41	that amazing speech. 

2016-06-23 18:53:48.458	And as Lynn said, I got to be in 

2016-06-23 18:53:50.504	the room where 

2016-06-23 18:53:51.545	it happened, as a 

2016-06-23 18:53:52.595	student, graduate student, 

2016-06-23 18:53:54.634	watching theatre Giants that I 

2016-06-23 18:53:55.664	admired in 

2016-06-23 18:53:56.701	a room discussing and 

2016-06-23 18:53:57.707	debating the issues that 

2016-06-23 18:53:59.751	affected our community and our 

2016-06-23 18:53:59.752	country. Last 

2016-06-23 18:54:01.745	year, I went to Cleveland. 

2016-06-23 18:54:03.803	And I got to see students and 

2016-06-23 18:54:05.867	fellows who I got to work 

2016-06-23 18:54:05.868	with, 

2016-06-23 18:54:08.878	and I was honored to equally 

2016-06-23 18:54:09.915	invite into 

2016-06-23 18:54:10.951	a room and see them 

2016-06-23 18:54:13.958	now, assuming roles as artistic 

2016-06-23 18:54:15.002	and 

2016-06-23 18:54:16.001	managing leaders in our 

2016-06-23 18:54:17.043	country. 

2016-06-23 18:54:18.047	>> For those of you particularly 

2016-06-23 18:54:20.12	on twitter who are keeping 

2016-06-23 18:54:22.175	a 

2016-06-23 18:54:24.219	Hamilton reference scorecard 

2016-06-23 18:54:25.247	over the next few 

2016-06-23 18:54:25.249	days, that now 

2016-06-23 18:54:26.297	is one. 

2016-06-23 18:54:27.297	>> We get this one moment to 

2016-06-23 18:54:28.3	come together as a community 

2016-06-23 18:54:29.329	every year. And to 

2016-06-23 18:54:31.336	remind ourselves why 

2016-06-23 18:54:34.418	we're fighting to make payroll 

2016-06-23 18:54:35.459	every 

2016-06-23 18:54:36.496	week. 

2016-06-23 18:54:38.547	And we may be a theatre nation 

2016-06-23 18:54:40.638	but we are also a family, a 

2016-06-23 18:54:42.623	multi-generational family of 

2016-06-23 18:54:43.626	various leaders. And we are so 

2016-06-23 18:54:46.671	proud to invite 

2016-06-23 18:54:50.798	you, our family, into our home. 

2016-06-23 18:54:53.836	Together, my family, let's over 

2016-06-23 18:54:54.886	the next several 

2016-06-23 18:54:54.887	days -- let's 

2016-06-23 18:54:56.928	talk how to grapple with 

2016-06-23 18:54:58.963	Ferguson, how to eliminate 

2016-06-23 18:55:00	yellow face, 

2016-06-23 18:55:00.995	how to prevent 

2016-06-23 18:55:02.002	dividing walls being built and 

2016-06-23 18:55:04.053	most of all, let's mourn our 

2016-06-23 18:55:05.087	brothers 

2016-06-23 18:55:06.122	and sisters that were 

2016-06-23 18:55:08.163	lost in Orlando. 

2016-06-23 18:55:10.224	>> So it is truly 

2016-06-23 18:55:11.245	an honor and 

2016-06-23 18:55:12.296	privilege on behalf of this 

2016-06-23 18:55:14.316	great community and our host 

2016-06-23 18:55:15.303	committee to 

2016-06-23 18:55:15.305	welcome you all to 

2016-06-23 18:55:17.378	our home and to hope that you 

2016-06-23 18:55:19.376	enjoy a wonderful few days in 

2016-06-23 18:55:20.423	Washington, 

2016-06-23 18:55:20.424	D.C.! 

2016-06-23 18:55:22.463	>> And some margaritas! 

2016-06-23 18:55:23.497	Thank you! [Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:55:29.629	>> Thank you, Chris and 

2016-06-23 18:55:30.666	Meghan, 

2016-06-23 18:55:32.705	who also happen to be members of 

2016-06-23 18:55:33.702	the T.C.G. board. 

2016-06-23 18:55:34.714	In addition to the work of the 

2016-06-23 18:55:35.747	host 

2016-06-23 18:55:36.796	committee, this conference 

2016-06-23 18:55:38.84	wouldn't be possible without the 

2016-06-23 18:55:40.914	support of our conference 

2016-06-23 18:55:40.916	sponsors. 

2016-06-23 18:55:43.998	I am going to name all of our 

2016-06-23 18:55:43.999	sponsors right now. I'm 

2016-06-23 18:55:46.05	going to ask you to hold 

2016-06-23 18:55:48.051	your applause until I'm 

2016-06-23 18:55:48.053	finished. 

2016-06-23 18:55:50.091	But this is -- we're just 

2016-06-23 18:55:52.088	profoundly grateful to all who 

2016-06-23 18:55:53.129	have supported this conference. 

2016-06-23 18:55:55.166	Bank of America. 

2016-06-23 18:55:57.203	D.C. commission on the arts and 

2016-06-23 18:55:57.204	humanities. 

2016-06-23 18:55:59.212	Disney creative. Weissburg 

2016-06-23 18:56:01.255	foundation. 

2016-06-23 18:56:03.341	Theatre mania ovation ticks. 

2016-06-23 18:56:06.414	Ruth Easton 

2016-06-23 18:56:07.417	fund. 

2016-06-23 18:56:08.416	Edgerton foundation. 

2016-06-23 18:56:10.454	Intrinsic impact. 

2016-06-23 18:56:12.506	Patron technology. The KAFORTS 

2016-06-23 18:56:15.552	foundation. 

2016-06-23 18:56:18.625	The Sherry and Les biller family 

2016-06-23 18:56:18.626	foundation. 

2016-06-23 18:56:20.667	National Endowment for the Arts. 

2016-06-23 18:56:21.712	Ridgewell's catering. 

2016-06-23 18:56:24.798	August wine group. Chronicle 

2016-06-23 18:56:28.872	of philanthropy. Scott B. 

2016-06-23 18:56:32.953	slider. Lynn 

2016-06-23 18:56:34.961	Deering. 

2016-06-23 18:56:37.002	Abby Luol. Anita 

2016-06-23 18:56:41.054	ANTUCHI. And Andrew 

2016-06-23 18:56:45.163	armormnd. 

2016-06-23 18:56:46.165	And now we can express our love 

2016-06-23 18:56:48.22	for them. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:56:52.352	>> Thank you. 

2016-06-23 18:56:54.414	Now it's my pleasure to welcome 

2016-06-23 18:56:55.42	one of 

2016-06-23 18:56:56.42	the great leaders of our 

2016-06-23 18:56:57.455	field who seems to be under the 

2016-06-23 18:56:59.466	impression she's retiring. Ha! 

2016-06-23 18:57:02.513	I have no doubt that even in 

2016-06-23 18:57:03.555	retirement, from the national 

2016-06-23 18:57:06.631	performance 

2016-06-23 18:57:07.665	network, M.K. wegman 

2016-06-23 18:57:09.711	will remain a force in our 

2016-06-23 18:57:10.764	national 

2016-06-23 18:57:10.766	field. 

2016-06-23 18:57:10.766	Yeah! 

2016-06-23 18:57:13.849	You can clap for M.K. 

2016-06-23 18:57:15.92	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:57:18.955	>> Most especially in her two 

2016-06-23 18:57:20.005	homes in Georgia 

2016-06-23 18:57:22.101	and New 

2016-06-23 18:57:23.107	Orleans, Louisiana, and it's to 

2016-06-23 18:57:25.131	honor a fellow resident of 

2016-06-23 18:57:25.133	the 

2016-06-23 18:57:30.258	Crescent City that we welcome M. 

2016-06-23 18:57:32.309	K. to the stage to present our 

2016-06-23 18:57:33.341	Visionary Leadership Award. 

2016-06-23 18:57:35.347	Come on up, M.K. 

2016-06-23 18:57:41.423	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 18:57:49.63	>> Don't start me to talking or 

2016-06-23 18:57:50.623	I'll tell everything 

2016-06-23 18:57:51.632	I know. 

2016-06-23 18:57:53.708	I first heard those words from 

2016-06-23 18:57:55.748	John O'Neal at a reading 

2016-06-23 18:57:55.75	of 

2016-06-23 18:57:58.754	volume one of the Junebug series 

2016-06-23 18:58:00.808	of plays in 

2016-06-23 18:58:03.874	the Marengo street 

2016-06-23 18:58:05.919	commune in New Orleans in 197 

2016-06-23 18:58:06.921	As a cofounder of the Free 

2016-06-23 18:58:08.924	Southern Theatre, the cultural 

2016-06-23 18:58:09.964	arm of the 

2016-06-23 18:58:11.006	civil rights 

2016-06-23 18:58:12.008	movement, a field director of 

2016-06-23 18:58:14.008	the student nonviolent 

2016-06-23 18:58:15.055	coordinating 

2016-06-23 18:58:15.056	committee and a 

2016-06-23 18:58:17.1	national field program director 

2016-06-23 18:58:19.13	with the committee for racial 

2016-06-23 18:58:20.168	justice, John O'Neal had 

2016-06-23 18:58:20.169	a 

2016-06-23 18:58:21.217	vision for theatre as an 

2016-06-23 18:58:23.306	organizing tool. 

2016-06-23 18:58:25.348	As a strategy to 

2016-06-23 18:58:25.35	use great art 

2016-06-23 18:58:28.419	to support a press people in 

2016-06-23 18:58:29.466	their -- oppressed people in 

2016-06-23 18:58:30.459	their struggles for 

2016-06-23 18:58:30.46	justice. 

2016-06-23 18:58:33.498	At the demise of the Free 

2016-06-23 18:58:35.508	Southern 

2016-06-23 18:58:35.51	Theatre, Junebug 

2016-06-23 18:58:36.574	Productions emerged. 

2016-06-23 18:58:39.566	The Junebug plays became the 

2016-06-23 18:58:40.583	core 

2016-06-23 18:58:42.6	artistic source of how that 

2016-06-23 18:58:44.633	vision manifested over the last 

2016-06-23 18:58:45.673	35-plus years. 

2016-06-23 18:58:46.716	Anchored in New Orleans, this 

2016-06-23 18:58:48.778	work has reached global 

2016-06-23 18:58:48.779	communities. I use the 

2016-06-23 18:58:51.851	word communities and 

2016-06-23 18:58:53.883	not just audiences, because the 

2016-06-23 18:58:54.922	vision is to 

2016-06-23 18:58:54.924	contribute to a 

2016-06-23 18:58:56.969	movement for justice. 

2016-06-23 18:59:00.012	The stories come from people and 

2016-06-23 18:59:02.1	are given back to people in 

2016-06-23 18:59:05.137	performance, a complete circle. 

2016-06-23 18:59:07.171	John O'Neal has written 18 plays 

2016-06-23 18:59:09.221	and he performed in most of them 

2016-06-23 18:59:10.267	as well. 

2016-06-23 18:59:11.301	Touring these plays was a 

2016-06-23 18:59:12.359	lifeblood. 

2016-06-23 18:59:15.46	A means of support for Junebug 

2016-06-23 18:59:15.462	Productions' work. 

2016-06-23 18:59:16.462	But that only scratches the 

2016-06-23 18:59:18.504	surface of his visionary 

2016-06-23 18:59:19.509	leadership. John was 

2016-06-23 18:59:21.559	an active collaborator 

2016-06-23 18:59:24.617	and commissioner of other 

2016-06-23 18:59:25.628	artists' work, 

2016-06-23 18:59:26.677	a traveling 

2016-06-23 18:59:29.717	Jewish theatre, roadside 

2016-06-23 18:59:30.752	theatre, just some 

2016-06-23 18:59:31.809	of the 

2016-06-23 18:59:32.848	companies with whom John 

2016-06-23 18:59:34.878	co-created and performed and who 

2016-06-23 18:59:36.925	were 

2016-06-23 18:59:36.927	enlisted. 

2016-06-23 18:59:38.917	Under John's leadership, at 

2016-06-23 18:59:39.927	least three 

2016-06-23 18:59:39.928	major national 

2016-06-23 18:59:40.965	projects were developed, 

2016-06-23 18:59:41.999	organized and presented by 

2016-06-23 18:59:45.063	Junebug Productions. 

2016-06-23 18:59:45.064	A value diction without -- 

2016-06-23 18:59:51.179	VALdiction without warning. 

2016-06-23 18:59:54.317	In the 1990's, the echo 

2016-06-23 18:59:55.348	environmental 

2016-06-23 18:59:56.351	justice festival. 

2016-06-23 18:59:57.351	A five-year project was 

2016-06-23 18:59:59.379	commissioned and presented nine 

2016-06-23 19:00:00.42	new 

2016-06-23 19:00:01.427	performance works, each 

2016-06-23 19:00:03.469	created through partnerships 

2016-06-23 19:00:04.526	between communities from across 

2016-06-23 19:00:05.555	the 

2016-06-23 19:00:09.67	United States, artistic 

2016-06-23 19:00:10.671	companies from 

2016-06-23 19:00:10.673	across the 

2016-06-23 19:00:12.717	United States and Louisiana 

2016-06-23 19:00:13.755	activist organizations. 

2016-06-23 19:00:15.81	And after 2005, in partnership 

2016-06-23 19:00:18.882	with alternate roots, the 

2016-06-23 19:00:19.928	Katrina 

2016-06-23 19:00:21.967	project, an ensemble of 

2016-06-23 19:00:25.099	Gulf Coast artists who devised a 

2016-06-23 19:00:28.107	touring work, including those 

2016-06-23 19:00:30.167	100,000 people who have 

2016-06-23 19:00:30.168	still 

2016-06-23 19:00:31.177	not been able to return home in 

2016-06-23 19:00:33.18	the reach of that touring 

2016-06-23 19:00:35.257	production. 

2016-06-23 19:00:36.258	John also brought his leadership 

2016-06-23 19:00:38.304	to serve the field, including 

2016-06-23 19:00:40.355	alternate roots and the American 

2016-06-23 19:00:41.388	festival project, as well as 

2016-06-23 19:00:44.431	committees, panels and task 

2016-06-23 19:00:45.466	forces, too 

2016-06-23 19:00:46.467	neumable to name. 

2016-06-23 19:00:48.507	He always stepped up when asked. 

2016-06-23 19:00:51.556	Many of us have a vision. 

2016-06-23 19:00:52.598	John O'Neal's vision lives on in 

2016-06-23 19:00:55.611	the legacy of his work, in his 

2016-06-23 19:00:57.634	plays, in the organizations he 

2016-06-23 19:00:59.678	founded and led, and the 

2016-06-23 19:01:00.728	communities that have been 

2016-06-23 19:01:01.72	touched by him. 

2016-06-23 19:01:05.813	I am honored to present the 

2016-06-23 19:01:05.815	T.C.G. Visionary Leadership 

2016-06-23 19:01:06.854	Award to the man I have been 

2016-06-23 19:01:10.883	listening to for the last 35 

2016-06-23 19:01:13.929	years, John O'Neal! [cheering 

2016-06-23 19:01:20.057	and applause] 

2016-06-23 19:01:36.392	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:01:47.603	[Cheering] 

2016-06-23 19:02:14.013	>> Thank you. This one? 

2016-06-23 19:02:16.05	This one? 

2016-06-23 19:02:18.059	Oh, yeah, that's the one. 

2016-06-23 19:02:19.11	[Laughter] >> Yeah. 

2016-06-23 19:02:21.143	I don't know these things from 

2016-06-23 19:02:22.135	each other. Ha ha! 

2016-06-23 19:02:35.383	Thank you. 

2016-06-23 19:02:35.384	Thank you for being here. 

2016-06-23 19:02:35.385	And for participating in all the 

2016-06-23 19:02:35.386	hard work that you've had to do 

2016-06-23 19:02:35.881	to make this evening happen. 

2016-06-23 19:02:39.468	Thank you. And let 

2016-06-23 19:02:41.471	us all make a commitment 

2016-06-23 19:02:45.602	to keep on working 

2016-06-23 19:02:46.629	harder and 

2016-06-23 19:02:48.634	getting stronger. 

2016-06-23 19:02:51.674	Thank you very much! 

2016-06-23 19:02:51.676	[Cheering] 

2016-06-23 19:03:01.922	[whistling] 

2016-06-23 19:03:19.213	>> Thank 

2016-06-23 19:03:22.263	you, John! 

2016-06-23 19:03:23.263	You've been such a good friend 

2016-06-23 19:03:25.309	to me and to T.C.G. over 

2016-06-23 19:03:25.311	the 

2016-06-23 19:03:26.327	years. 

2016-06-23 19:03:29.358	Now we're about to take a moment 

2016-06-23 19:03:30.403	to honor 

2016-06-23 19:03:31.391	a seminal moment in 

2016-06-23 19:03:33.432	conference history, one that 

2016-06-23 19:03:35.471	Chris Jennings just referenced. 

2016-06-23 19:03:39.601	20 years ago, august Wilson 

2016-06-23 19:03:40.61	stood on 

2016-06-23 19:03:41.625	the T.C.G. national 

2016-06-23 19:03:42.609	conference stage and delivered 

2016-06-23 19:03:43.61	his remarks, the ground on which 

2016-06-23 19:03:44.614	I stand. It was 

2016-06-23 19:03:47.686	a powerful cry for full 

2016-06-23 19:03:49.725	creative autonomy for black 

2016-06-23 19:03:50.724	artists 

2016-06-23 19:03:51.76	and equitable funding 

2016-06-23 19:03:53.858	for black theatres, prompting a 

2016-06-23 19:03:55.892	follow-up debate with Robert 

2016-06-23 19:03:56.933	that was moderated by none other 

2016-06-23 19:04:00.012	than our plenary speaker this 

2016-06-23 19:04:00.014	evening, Anna Deavere Smith. 

2016-06-23 19:04:02.058	But before we honor that moment, 

2016-06-23 19:04:04.133	I want to acknowledge that 20 

2016-06-23 19:04:05.137	years 

2016-06-23 19:04:07.179	before that, someone else 

2016-06-23 19:04:09.262	delivered similar remarks on the 

2016-06-23 19:04:10.31	very 

2016-06-23 19:04:11.364	first conference stage back 

2016-06-23 19:04:12.358	in 1976. 

2016-06-23 19:04:15.384	He spoke of the power of 

2016-06-23 19:04:16.395	theatre 

2016-06-23 19:04:18.473	and his people's struggle for 

2016-06-23 19:04:19.518	liberation against oppression 

2016-06-23 19:04:19.519	and poverty. That 

2016-06-23 19:04:21.56	speaker's name was John 

2016-06-23 19:04:23.609	O'Neal. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:04:33.769	>> And he was accused of 

2016-06-23 19:04:35.827	separatism in the New York 

2016-06-23 19:04:35.829	times 

2016-06-23 19:04:39.855	article, by none other than 

2016-06-23 19:04:42.891	Robert Brucesteen. 

2016-06-23 19:04:44.922	So where does our ground stand 

2016-06-23 19:04:44.923	now? Before we 

2016-06-23 19:04:47.975	ask that question, we 

2016-06-23 19:04:50.01	wanted to share with you 

2016-06-23 19:04:50.011	an 

2016-06-23 19:04:53.019	audio excerpt from august's 

2016-06-23 19:04:54.062	address those 20 years ago, the 

2016-06-23 19:04:55.106	very 

2016-06-23 19:04:56.136	first T.C.G. national 

2016-06-23 19:05:01.218	conference that I ever attended. 

2016-06-23 19:05:03.232	>> I speak about economics and 

2016-06-23 19:05:05.265	privilege and if you will look 

2016-06-23 19:05:06.268	at one significant fact that 

2016-06-23 19:05:08.304	affects us all, in the American 

2016-06-23 19:05:12.401	theatre, is that of the 6 

2016-06-23 19:05:14.428	theatres. There 

2016-06-23 19:05:18.514	is one that can possibly 

2016-06-23 19:05:21.552	be considered black. 

2016-06-23 19:05:24.605	From this one could falsely 

2016-06-23 19:05:25.611	assume that there 

2016-06-23 19:05:25.612	aren't a 

2016-06-23 19:05:27.653	sufficient number of blacks 

2016-06-23 19:05:28.677	working in American theatre to 

2016-06-23 19:05:29.718	sustain and support more 

2016-06-23 19:05:32.812	theatres. 

2016-06-23 19:05:34.855	If you did not know, I will tell 

2016-06-23 19:05:35.852	you. 

2016-06-23 19:05:35.853	Black theatre is alive 

2016-06-23 19:05:41.936	and it's 

2016-06-23 19:05:41.937	vibrant. It is vital. 

2016-06-23 19:05:48.062	It just isn't funded. 

2016-06-23 19:05:50.109	Black theatre doesn't share 

2016-06-23 19:05:50.11	in 

2016-06-23 19:05:52.115	the economics that would allow 

2016-06-23 19:05:55.178	it to support its artists 

2016-06-23 19:05:55.179	and 

2016-06-23 19:05:57.227	supply them meaningful avenues 

2016-06-23 19:05:58.26	to develop their talent and 

2016-06-23 19:06:01.318	broadcast and 

2016-06-23 19:06:01.319	disseminate ideas 

2016-06-23 19:06:03.363	crucial to its growth. 

2016-06-23 19:06:05.389	The economics are 

2016-06-23 19:06:06.391	reserved as a 

2016-06-23 19:06:08.43	privilege to the overwhelming 

2016-06-23 19:06:09.479	abundance of institutions that 

2016-06-23 19:06:10.472	preserve, 

2016-06-23 19:06:12.515	promote and perpetrate 

2016-06-23 19:06:13.56	white culture. 

2016-06-23 19:06:15.609	This is not a complaint. 

2016-06-23 19:06:18.64	This is an advertisement. 

2016-06-23 19:06:19.657	[Laughter] >> Since the 

2016-06-23 19:06:22.678	funding sources, 

2016-06-23 19:06:26.725	both public and private, do not 

2016-06-23 19:06:29.806	publicly carry avowed missions 

2016-06-23 19:06:30.808	of exclusion 

2016-06-23 19:06:30.809	and segregated 

2016-06-23 19:06:32.887	support, this is obviously a 

2016-06-23 19:06:37.977	glaring case of oversight. 

2016-06-23 19:06:37.978	Or... 

2016-06-23 19:06:42.055	Perhaps we, proponents of black 

2016-06-23 19:06:44.066	theatre, have not made our 

2016-06-23 19:06:45.062	presence or 

2016-06-23 19:06:46.065	our needs known. 

2016-06-23 19:06:47.118	I hope tonight to correct both 

2016-06-23 19:06:49.139	of those oversights and 

2016-06-23 19:06:50.144	assumptions. 

2016-06-23 19:06:52.191	I do not have the time in this 

2016-06-23 19:06:54.226	short talk to reiterate the long 

2016-06-23 19:06:55.225	and 

2016-06-23 19:06:57.26	distinguished history of 

2016-06-23 19:06:59.275	black theatre, often 

2016-06-23 19:07:00.307	accomplished 

2016-06-23 19:07:01.319	amid adverse and 

2016-06-23 19:07:02.361	hostile conditions. 

2016-06-23 19:07:03.36	But I would like to take the 

2016-06-23 19:07:07.389	time to mark a few high points. 

2016-06-23 19:07:09.392	There are and have always been 

2016-06-23 19:07:10.394	two distinct 

2016-06-23 19:07:10.395	and parallel 

2016-06-23 19:07:12.394	traditions in black art. 

2016-06-23 19:07:14.431	That is art that is conceived 

2016-06-23 19:07:15.431	and 

2016-06-23 19:07:17.477	designed to entertain white 

2016-06-23 19:07:19.482	society and art that feeds the 

2016-06-23 19:07:20.538	spirit 

2016-06-23 19:07:21.576	and celebrates the life 

2016-06-23 19:07:24.645	of black America by designing 

2016-06-23 19:07:25.684	its strategies 

2016-06-23 19:07:27.721	for survival and 

2016-06-23 19:07:27.722	prosperity. 

2016-06-23 19:07:28.722	An important part of black 

2016-06-23 19:07:30.812	theatre that is often 

2016-06-23 19:07:30.813	ignored 

2016-06-23 19:07:33.936	but is seminal to its tradition 

2016-06-23 19:07:34.977	is 

2016-06-23 19:07:39.017	its origins on the slave plan 

2016-06-23 19:07:40.056	plantations of the 

2016-06-23 19:07:41.063	south. 

2016-06-23 19:07:43.059	Some went to the big house to 

2016-06-23 19:07:45.109	entertain the sloaf owner 

2016-06-23 19:07:45.11	and -- 

2016-06-23 19:07:48.183	slave owner and his guest. 

2016-06-23 19:07:50.265	It reached its pinnacle in the 

2016-06-23 19:07:53.357	heyday of the Harlem 

2016-06-23 19:07:53.358	renaissance. 

2016-06-23 19:07:55.363	This entertainment 

2016-06-23 19:07:55.364	for whites 

2016-06-23 19:07:57.362	consisted of whatever the slave 

2016-06-23 19:07:59.394	imagined or knew that his master 

2016-06-23 19:08:00.431	wanted to 

2016-06-23 19:08:01.479	see and hear. 

2016-06-23 19:08:06.608	This tradition has its present 

2016-06-23 19:08:08.652	life, counterpart in the 

2016-06-23 19:08:10.72	crossover Ayers 

2016-06-23 19:08:14.77	crossover artists, material for 

2016-06-23 19:08:15.771	white con supping consumption. 

2016-06-23 19:08:23.899	The second was when he sought to 

2016-06-23 19:08:25.942	conceive in his art and song and 

2016-06-23 19:08:27.976	dance a world in which he was 

2016-06-23 19:08:31.021	the 

2016-06-23 19:08:33.058	spiritual sensor and his 

2016-06-23 19:08:34.063	existence was a manifest act of 

2016-06-23 19:08:35.114	the 

2016-06-23 19:08:38.157	creator from whom life 

2016-06-23 19:08:38.158	flowed. 

2016-06-23 19:08:39.186	He could then create an art that 

2016-06-23 19:08:40.227	was 

2016-06-23 19:08:41.274	functional and furnish him 

2016-06-23 19:08:43.315	with the spiritual temperament 

2016-06-23 19:08:45.406	necessary 

2016-06-23 19:08:46.435	for his survival and 

2016-06-23 19:08:49.471	the humanizing status attendant 

2016-06-23 19:08:49.473	to that. I stand 

2016-06-23 19:08:52.484	myself and my art 

2016-06-23 19:08:55.61	squarely on the 

2016-06-23 19:08:55.611	self-defining 

2016-06-23 19:08:56.616	ground of the slave quarters and 

2016-06-23 19:08:58.615	I found the ground to be 

2016-06-23 19:09:00.644	hallowed and made fertile by the 

2016-06-23 19:09:01.649	blood and bones of the men and 

2016-06-23 19:09:03.657	women who can only be described 

2016-06-23 19:09:07.749	as warriors on the 

2016-06-23 19:09:08.728	cultural 

2016-06-23 19:09:09.78	battlefield that affirmed their 

2016-06-23 19:09:10.767	life's 

2016-06-23 19:09:11.769	work as there is no idea 

2016-06-23 19:09:13.819	that cannot be contained by 

2016-06-23 19:09:13.82	black life. 

2016-06-23 19:09:15.891	These men and women found 

2016-06-23 19:09:16.946	themselves to be sufficient and 

2016-06-23 19:09:17.975	secure in their art and in their 

2016-06-23 19:09:23.073	instructions. 

2016-06-23 19:09:23.075	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:09:34.269	>> So where does our ground 

2016-06-23 19:09:36.275	stand now? 

2016-06-23 19:09:38.315	Is black theatre in the work of 

2016-06-23 19:09:40.372	all theatres of color more 

2016-06-23 19:09:41.407	equitably funded than 20 years 

2016-06-23 19:09:43.447	ago? Do black artists 

2016-06-23 19:09:46.522	and all artists 

2016-06-23 19:09:49.608	of color have full creative 

2016-06-23 19:09:50.612	autonomy to tell 

2016-06-23 19:09:51.662	their stories 

2016-06-23 19:09:52.664	authentically? 

2016-06-23 19:09:53.69	Do those stories reach the 

2016-06-23 19:09:54.692	communities who need them for 

2016-06-23 19:09:55.725	their survival? 

2016-06-23 19:09:57.731	Questions like this were 

2016-06-23 19:09:59.775	explored in a recent series of 

2016-06-23 19:10:00.809	articles in 

2016-06-23 19:10:00.81	American theatre 

2016-06-23 19:10:02.864	where we asked a diverse group 

2016-06-23 19:10:04.915	of theatre people to respond to 

2016-06-23 19:10:06.945	Wilson's 

2016-06-23 19:10:06.946	essay. 

2016-06-23 19:10:08.938	And their own take on the ground 

2016-06-23 19:10:09.977	beneath us now. 

2016-06-23 19:10:10.982	We'll also hear 

2016-06-23 19:10:12.016	from community 

2016-06-23 19:10:14.066	legacy leaders of color, 

2016-06-23 19:10:15.112	theatres of color as 

2016-06-23 19:10:17.117	part of our 

2016-06-23 19:10:19.144	ground at 20 arc here at the 

2016-06-23 19:10:19.145	conference. I 

2016-06-23 19:10:21.189	strongly encourage you to 

2016-06-23 19:10:22.19	attend at least one of these 

2016-06-23 19:10:24.226	sessions to bear witness to 

2016-06-23 19:10:24.228	these essential voices. 

2016-06-23 19:10:25.28	There's 

2016-06-23 19:10:26.311	an insert with more 

2016-06-23 19:10:29.362	information in our packets. 

2016-06-23 19:10:30.375	And now 

2016-06-23 19:10:31.391	it is my great pleasure 

2016-06-23 19:10:33.407	to welcome the moderator of that 

2016-06-23 19:10:36.438	famous debate between 

2016-06-23 19:10:37.483	Wilson and 

2016-06-23 19:10:40.565	Brucesteen and one of the 

2016-06-23 19:10:42.575	greatest artist of our theatre 

2016-06-23 19:10:44.616	field through works like 

2016-06-23 19:10:45.645	"twilight in 

2016-06-23 19:10:45.646	Los Angeles." 

2016-06-23 19:10:47.659	She has created a new kind of 

2016-06-23 19:10:50.697	theatre, matching her gifts 

2016-06-23 19:10:50.698	as 

2016-06-23 19:10:53.777	an actor with a willingness to 

2016-06-23 19:10:55.812	engage difficult social issues 

2016-06-23 19:10:58.859	all grounded in a passionate 

2016-06-23 19:11:00.91	curiosity for the hundreds 

2016-06-23 19:11:00.911	of 

2016-06-23 19:11:04.94	interviewees whose stories have 

2016-06-23 19:11:05.975	seeded 

2016-06-23 19:11:05.977	her work. 

2016-06-23 19:11:06.99	She's received a MacArthur 

2016-06-23 19:11:09.085	Fellowship and was a runner-up 

2016-06-23 19:11:11.068	for the Pulitzer 

2016-06-23 19:11:11.069	prize. 

2016-06-23 19:11:12.113	She's university professor at 

2016-06-23 19:11:14.164	New York university where she 

2016-06-23 19:11:15.185	also directs the institute on 

2016-06-23 19:11:17.231	the arts and civic dialogue. 

2016-06-23 19:11:19.235	Please join me in welcoming Anna 

2016-06-23 19:11:20.233	Deavere 

2016-06-23 19:11:24.361	Smith to the stage! [Cheering] 

2016-06-23 19:11:49.868	>> Thank you 

2016-06-23 19:11:51.869	so very much and 

2016-06-23 19:11:54.923	thank you, Teresa, thank you, 

2016-06-23 19:11:56.939	Devin, 

2016-06-23 19:11:57.984	Hannah, Natalie, Gus for 

2016-06-23 19:12:01.034	all the work you've done to get 

2016-06-23 19:12:04.078	me here and thank you, Stephanie 

2016-06-23 19:12:05.125	Schneider, in 

2016-06-23 19:12:06.126	my office for 

2016-06-23 19:12:08.166	pushing everything along. 

2016-06-23 19:12:10.229	It is -- I don't have a 

2016-06-23 19:12:10.23	word for 

2016-06-23 19:12:12.237	it. 

2016-06-23 19:12:14.323	I don't want to say intimidating 

2016-06-23 19:12:16.318	or... 

2016-06-23 19:12:18.372	I don't want to make myself seem 

2016-06-23 19:12:20.442	real small, because 

2016-06-23 19:12:20.443	I think 

2016-06-23 19:12:24.481	about that thing that was said, 

2016-06-23 19:12:25.484	don't 

2016-06-23 19:12:26.485	be humble. 

2016-06-23 19:12:27.521	You're not that great. 

2016-06-23 19:12:33.667	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:12:33.668	>> But it is true 

2016-06-23 19:12:35.691	that it is 

2016-06-23 19:12:38.729	awesome to have spent some time 

2016-06-23 19:12:39.74	looking back, reading back, 

2016-06-23 19:12:41.783	thinking 

2016-06-23 19:12:44.871	back to the Wilson debate 

2016-06-23 19:12:48.986	and also to be here with 

2016-06-23 19:12:50.992	John O'Neal. 

2016-06-23 19:12:53.022	John, I don't know if you 

2016-06-23 19:12:55.031	remember that when I was a 

2016-06-23 19:12:58.117	student at Act and I needed to 

2016-06-23 19:13:00.204	go to New York and I 

2016-06-23 19:13:00.206	lived by 

2016-06-23 19:13:02.276	the diary of the Free Southern 

2016-06-23 19:13:04.312	Theatre, I took a bus across 

2016-06-23 19:13:05.33	country in order 

2016-06-23 19:13:07.364	to stop and 

2016-06-23 19:13:08.411	meet you. 

2016-06-23 19:13:09.446	And you remember when we took 

2016-06-23 19:13:10.491	that 

2016-06-23 19:13:12.577	drive from New Orleans to 

2016-06-23 19:13:13.57	Florida? 

2016-06-23 19:13:15.614	And it changed my life. 

2016-06-23 19:13:17.628	And it informs the work that I 

2016-06-23 19:13:19.67	have been doing for decades. 

2016-06-23 19:13:20.691	I have 

2016-06-23 19:13:21.694	to thank you too. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:13:29.817	>> Okay. So 

2016-06-23 19:13:32.867	they asked me to speak for 45 

2016-06-23 19:13:33.908	minutes. End of summer, 196, 

2016-06-23 19:13:36.939	I had -- 

2016-06-23 19:13:39.982	1966, I had stepped off the 

2016-06-23 19:13:40.984	campaign trail which is 

2016-06-23 19:13:40.985	where I 

2016-06-23 19:13:43.034	spent the summer and fall of 

2016-06-23 19:13:45.114	1996, during research for my 

2016-06-23 19:13:47.163	play, house arrest, commissioned 

2016-06-23 19:13:48.165	by the stage. 

2016-06-23 19:13:50.194	I think Steven Richard is 

2016-06-23 19:13:50.195	here 

2016-06-23 19:13:51.193	tonight and maybe Doug is too. 

2016-06-23 19:13:53.237	The American press, the 

2016-06-23 19:13:54.241	relationship of the press to the 

2016-06-23 19:13:55.277	presidency. 

2016-06-23 19:13:58.313	I was traveling on both 

2016-06-23 19:14:00.316	president Clinton's 

2016-06-23 19:14:01.363	campaign 

2016-06-23 19:14:03.371	plane and Bob Dole's. 

2016-06-23 19:14:04.411	I even traveled with the young 

2016-06-23 19:14:05.419	Republicans on a 

2016-06-23 19:14:06.448	train to 

2016-06-23 19:14:07.498	San Diego, where their 

2016-06-23 19:14:07.498	convention was. 

2016-06-23 19:14:09.533	I got home to San Francisco, had 

2016-06-23 19:14:10.527	a brief 

2016-06-23 19:14:11.528	break. 

2016-06-23 19:14:16.669	And into my road-weary suitcase 

2016-06-23 19:14:16.67	I threw alcohol-saturated 

2016-06-23 19:14:20.736	pros, 

2016-06-23 19:14:20.737	big sur. 

2016-06-23 19:14:23.869	I was bound there for rest and 

2016-06-23 19:14:23.87	reinvigoration. Along the 

2016-06-23 19:14:25.917	truly dramatic 

2016-06-23 19:14:28.949	California coast, I tossed in 

2016-06-23 19:14:31.988	some Edda James 

2016-06-23 19:14:35.041	C.D.'s. 

2016-06-23 19:14:37.07	The press culture remained 

2016-06-23 19:14:38.115	chronically unread until the end 

2016-06-23 19:14:39.169	of my journey. And 

2016-06-23 19:14:42.202	a small New Testament. 

2016-06-23 19:14:44.258	I had stopped off in the 

2016-06-23 19:14:45.283	campaign trail more 

2016-06-23 19:14:45.284	than once 

2016-06-23 19:14:48.366	during that summer to 

2016-06-23 19:14:49.376	visit where black churches had 

2016-06-23 19:14:50.369	been 

2016-06-23 19:14:52.417	burned to the ground in the 

2016-06-23 19:14:53.449	south. And reverend 

2016-06-23 19:14:57.446	weaver, Pentecostal 

2016-06-23 19:15:00.481	preacher whose church 

2016-06-23 19:15:01.593	had been 

2016-06-23 19:15:02.537	burned, one brown eye, one white 

2016-06-23 19:15:03.575	eye. 

2016-06-23 19:15:04.572	He made so many biblical 

2016-06-23 19:15:05.617	references that 

2016-06-23 19:15:05.618	I didn't 

2016-06-23 19:15:07.667	understand when we had our 

2016-06-23 19:15:09.673	breakfast one morning in a 

2016-06-23 19:15:10.691	backwoods diner. 

2016-06-23 19:15:13.798	Somehow in the midst of this 

2016-06-23 19:15:15.824	packing, I got 

2016-06-23 19:15:15.825	a message. 

2016-06-23 19:15:18.871	This was before text, before the 

2016-06-23 19:15:20.917	proliferation of e-mail. 

2016-06-23 19:15:24.991	From Don Shirley, critic at the 

2016-06-23 19:15:26.024	Los Angeles times. 

2016-06-23 19:15:28.118	He wanted to know my opinion of 

2016-06-23 19:15:28.119	the debate. I was so 

2016-06-23 19:15:31.169	ensconced in 

2016-06-23 19:15:32.168	presidential campaigns that I 

2016-06-23 19:15:33.196	thought he was talking about 

2016-06-23 19:15:35.283	Lincoln-Douglas. 

2016-06-23 19:15:36.327	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:15:37.376	>> And I was sort of out of it 

2016-06-23 19:15:39.418	in terms of theatre. I 

2016-06-23 19:15:41.449	was out of the real world of 

2016-06-23 19:15:43.488	theatre. 

2016-06-23 19:15:44.491	And, of course, what he was 

2016-06-23 19:15:45.531	talking about 

2016-06-23 19:15:46.541	is what we now 

2016-06-23 19:15:47.57	call ground. 

2016-06-23 19:15:49.572	I read both. We've had the 

2016-06-23 19:15:51.667	advantage of 

2016-06-23 19:15:54.695	hearing some of it today. 

2016-06-23 19:15:55.698	And as I sort 

2016-06-23 19:15:56.739	of sniffed around, 

2016-06-23 19:15:57.744	people were very shocked at 

2016-06-23 19:15:58.784	Wilson's passion. 

2016-06-23 19:15:59.784	Maybe they were shocked because 

2016-06-23 19:16:00.821	of 

2016-06-23 19:16:01.867	his stature in the theatre. 

2016-06-23 19:16:03.917	Seemed like he'd be happy or 

2016-06-23 19:16:05.993	content. 

2016-06-23 19:16:05.994	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:16:07.989	>> Very decorated. Pulitzers, 

2016-06-23 19:16:14.072	Tonys. Brucesteen came as 

2016-06-23 19:16:15.124	a result of 

2016-06-23 19:16:19.199	his not getting a Tony award 

2016-06-23 19:16:20.203	that 

2016-06-23 19:16:20.204	very year. 

2016-06-23 19:16:23.281	I will propose that August 

2016-06-23 19:16:24.282	Wilson's discontent was less 

2016-06-23 19:16:25.317	about his 

2016-06-23 19:16:25.318	own situation and more 

2016-06-23 19:16:28.375	about the situation of his race. 

2016-06-23 19:16:30.421	Bruce Steen was among those 

2016-06-23 19:16:31.424	critics in the 90's who 

2016-06-23 19:16:34.449	cautioned us or flat-out 

2016-06-23 19:16:35.486	denounced 

2016-06-23 19:16:36.488	"victim art" which is 

2016-06-23 19:16:37.488	what he thought the speech was. 

2016-06-23 19:16:39.528	I returned the call from the 

2016-06-23 19:16:40.534	side of 

2016-06-23 19:16:42.572	the road somewhere 

2016-06-23 19:16:44.621	around Salinas. I said to the 

2016-06-23 19:16:45.671	journalist, thank 

2016-06-23 19:16:47.743	you. 

2016-06-23 19:16:48.789	I said, you know, that I was 

2016-06-23 19:16:50.784	calling about his 

2016-06-23 19:16:51.83	request. 

2016-06-23 19:16:52.873	He seemed very surprised that I 

2016-06-23 19:16:53.881	had called back so soon. 

2016-06-23 19:16:55.923	He said thank you 

2016-06-23 19:16:55.924	for calling 

2016-06-23 19:16:56.922	back so soon. 

2016-06-23 19:16:58.96	I said, sure, but I can't talk 

2016-06-23 19:16:59.998	to you about that debate, 

2016-06-23 19:17:01.029	because I haven't spoken 

2016-06-23 19:17:01.03	to 

2016-06-23 19:17:04.081	either Mr. Wilson or Mr. Bruce 

2016-06-23 19:17:04.082	steen. A long 

2016-06-23 19:17:05.122	pause. 

2016-06-23 19:17:06.133	Oh. While I was in big Suhr 

2016-06-23 19:17:12.298	sur, I got an 

2016-06-23 19:17:12.299	idea. 

2016-06-23 19:17:14.325	I thought about one of my 

2016-06-23 19:17:15.37	favorite 

2016-06-23 19:17:16.384	recorded human 

2016-06-23 19:17:18.424	interactions, a rap on race. 

2016-06-23 19:17:20.458	Margaret Mead had invited 

2016-06-23 19:17:20.46	James 

2016-06-23 19:17:21.493	Baldwin to have a long 

2016-06-23 19:17:22.526	conversation about race. 

2016-06-23 19:17:24.573	They talked for hours. 

2016-06-23 19:17:25.584	I had bought 

2016-06-23 19:17:27.614	records, when they 

2016-06-23 19:17:28.671	were -- but vinyl is coming 

2016-06-23 19:17:30.671	back. 

2016-06-23 19:17:32.696	Six-record set at the American 

2016-06-23 19:17:33.747	museum of natural history. 

2016-06-23 19:17:36.78	It was a long, 

2016-06-23 19:17:37.791	exciting talking, 

2016-06-23 19:17:40.83	sharing of ideas! 

2016-06-23 19:17:43.873	Sort of broke into full-fledged 

2016-06-23 19:17:45.945	verbal battle every once in a 

2016-06-23 19:17:45.946	while. 

2016-06-23 19:17:49.046	So staring at the fantastic rock 

2016-06-23 19:17:50.083	art at 

2016-06-23 19:17:50.084	the beach, I thought 

2016-06-23 19:17:51.114	about that exchange. 

2016-06-23 19:17:55.205	And I thought, wow! 

2016-06-23 19:17:57.247	Maybe, maybe we could do 

2016-06-23 19:17:59.292	something with Brucesteen. And 

2016-06-23 19:18:01.321	with Wilson that would be 

2016-06-23 19:18:01.322	like that. 

2016-06-23 19:18:05.42	I'm going to just read a 

2016-06-23 19:18:06.454	teeny 

2016-06-23 19:18:06.455	tiny bit of it. 

2016-06-23 19:18:09.537	We think a lot about gender, so 

2016-06-23 19:18:10.581	the voices I'm 

2016-06-23 19:18:10.582	going to go back 

2016-06-23 19:18:14.575	and forth, between Baldwin and 

2016-06-23 19:18:14.576	Mead. Mead has 

2016-06-23 19:18:16.678	a much deeper voice. 

2016-06-23 19:18:17.702	Well, I'm just sorry! 

2016-06-23 19:18:20.736	So when I'm like that, I'm her. 

2016-06-23 19:18:22.741	And Baldwin's voice kind of 

2016-06-23 19:18:24.787	skips across, like skipping 

2016-06-23 19:18:25.79	across a 

2016-06-23 19:18:25.791	lake. 

2016-06-23 19:18:28.838	We talk about spiritual... 

2016-06-23 19:18:29.84	Let's talk about power. 

2016-06-23 19:18:30.836	That's him. 

2016-06-23 19:18:32.917	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:18:34.952	>> So we start with Mead. 

2016-06-23 19:18:35.989	The what I'm trying 

2016-06-23 19:18:35.99	to consider 

2016-06-23 19:18:39.041	is whether it is an inevitable 

2016-06-23 19:18:40.077	difference in 

2016-06-23 19:18:41.079	the spiritual 

2016-06-23 19:18:41.08	sense. 

2016-06-23 19:18:43.165	Well, we can't talk about the 

2016-06-23 19:18:45.168	spiritual 

2016-06-23 19:18:45.169	sense. 

2016-06-23 19:18:47.202	We are talking about power. 

2016-06-23 19:18:49.239	I'm talking about that south 

2016-06-23 19:18:50.257	African minor on 

2016-06-23 19:18:51.291	whom the entire 

2016-06-23 19:18:53.332	life of the western world is 

2016-06-23 19:18:53.333	based. Well, I'm just 

2016-06-23 19:18:56.369	sorry, because it 

2016-06-23 19:18:58.42	isn't only based on that south 

2016-06-23 19:19:01.456	African minor, it is based 

2016-06-23 19:19:02.491	on -- 

2016-06-23 19:19:03.547	it's the same principle. 

2016-06-23 19:19:05.58	>> It isn't the same 

2016-06-23 19:19:05.581	principle. 

2016-06-23 19:19:06.583	As long as you're going to 

2016-06-23 19:19:07.614	continue making it racial. 

2016-06-23 19:19:09.674	>> You are being racial! 

2016-06-23 19:19:10.703	>> Charles Dickens 

2016-06-23 19:19:11.704	talked about 

2016-06-23 19:19:12.739	kids being dragged through the 

2016-06-23 19:19:14.76	mines long before anybody 

2016-06-23 19:19:15.782	discovered 

2016-06-23 19:19:15.783	Mead. 

2016-06-23 19:19:17.823	>> That's right! 

2016-06-23 19:19:18.825	>> But, you know, we're not 

2016-06-23 19:19:19.883	having a rational conversation 

2016-06-23 19:19:20.92	at 

2016-06-23 19:19:20.921	this point. 

2016-06-23 19:19:23.928	What I feel is this. 

2016-06-23 19:19:24.959	We agree that we're both 

2016-06-23 19:19:27.035	Americans. 

2016-06-23 19:19:28.042	We agree in a sense of 

2016-06-23 19:19:29.077	responsibility for the present 

2016-06-23 19:19:31.078	and the future. 

2016-06-23 19:19:33.125	You have approached this present 

2016-06-23 19:19:34.169	moment by one route. 

2016-06-23 19:19:35.173	And I have approached 

2016-06-23 19:19:35.174	it by 

2016-06-23 19:19:37.173	another. 

2016-06-23 19:19:39.207	In the terms, in the colors of 

2016-06-23 19:19:40.239	our 

2016-06-23 19:19:43.324	skin, you represent a course 

2016-06-23 19:19:45.367	of victimization and suffering 

2016-06-23 19:19:46.374	and exploitation. 

2016-06-23 19:19:47.422	Everything in the world. 

2016-06-23 19:19:50.456	And I represent -- now wait a 

2016-06-23 19:19:50.457	minute. 

2016-06-23 19:19:53.539	If you just use skin color, I 

2016-06-23 19:19:55.537	represent the group that were 

2016-06-23 19:19:55.538	in 

2016-06-23 19:19:59.623	the a-- they were the 

2016-06-23 19:20:00.625	conquerors, had the 

2016-06-23 19:20:00.627	power. 

2016-06-23 19:20:01.668	Own the land. 

2016-06-23 19:20:02.702	Say anything you like. 

2016-06-23 19:20:02.703	All right. 

2016-06-23 19:20:05.763	Now, here we both are. 

2016-06-23 19:20:08.828	Now, furthermore, 

2016-06-23 19:20:09.83	nevertheless... [Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:20:13.927	>> Is it necessary 

2016-06-23 19:20:19.038	for you to narrow 

2016-06-23 19:20:21.079	history, and I still 

2016-06-23 19:20:23.168	think this is the phrase, and 

2016-06-23 19:20:25.203	express only despair or 

2016-06-23 19:20:29.25	bitterness while I express hope? 

2016-06-23 19:20:31.29	And 

2016-06-23 19:20:32.342	is this intrinsic to our 

2016-06-23 19:20:35.372	position at the moment, or can 

2016-06-23 19:20:37.426	we, both of us, out of such a 

2016-06-23 19:20:39.455	different past, and such a 

2016-06-23 19:20:41.458	different experience, and a 

2016-06-23 19:20:46.499	contemporarily different 

2016-06-23 19:20:47.532	experience, because you in your 

2016-06-23 19:20:50.62	own country, wherever you 

2016-06-23 19:20:50.621	go, 

2016-06-23 19:20:53.701	are likely to meet with insult, 

2016-06-23 19:20:55.747	indignity, danger, 

2016-06-23 19:20:55.748	yeah! 

2016-06-23 19:20:57.788	Whereas, wherever I go, on the 

2016-06-23 19:20:58.803	whole, if they hadn't heard me 

2016-06-23 19:21:00.836	say I was in favor of 

2016-06-23 19:21:00.838	marijuana, 

2016-06-23 19:21:02.869	I am greeted on the whole with 

2016-06-23 19:21:03.873	kindness. 

2016-06-23 19:21:04.918	So... Now... 

2016-06-23 19:21:06.96	Given that fact, can 

2016-06-23 19:21:13.074	we both, 

2016-06-23 19:21:15.125	nevertheless, stand shoulder to 

2016-06-23 19:21:16.169	shoulder, a continent or ocean 

2016-06-23 19:21:18.209	away, working for the same 

2016-06-23 19:21:18.21	future? 

2016-06-23 19:21:19.241	Now, I think this is the real 

2016-06-23 19:21:23.341	problem. 

2016-06-23 19:21:24.367	>> So I thought about that. 

2016-06-23 19:21:28.46	Ha! 

2016-06-23 19:21:28.461	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:21:32.497	>> When I was on the beach, rap 

2016-06-23 19:21:33.498	on race. 

2016-06-23 19:21:35.533	I thought, I've always wanted to 

2016-06-23 19:21:37.589	see a modern rap on race. 

2016-06-23 19:21:38.617	That happened in the 70's, kind 

2016-06-23 19:21:39.625	of putting together the pieces 

2016-06-23 19:21:40.63	of what 

2016-06-23 19:21:41.621	happened after the civil 

2016-06-23 19:21:42.67	rights movement in the 60's. 

2016-06-23 19:21:43.701	And I couldn't think of any 

2016-06-23 19:21:45.708	white people, really, then or 

2016-06-23 19:21:48.794	now, who would speak as 

2016-06-23 19:21:50.883	truthfully, as candidly 

2016-06-23 19:21:52.921	and as 

2016-06-23 19:21:55.953	relentlessly openly as Margaret 

2016-06-23 19:21:55.954	Mead. 

2016-06-23 19:21:58.997	Both Mead and Baldwin were in 

2016-06-23 19:22:00.006	pursuit of not one individual 

2016-06-23 19:22:00.998	truth 

2016-06-23 19:22:02.039	but an American truth. 

2016-06-23 19:22:02.04	Okay. 

2016-06-23 19:22:05.077	So I thought, I gotta get Wilson 

2016-06-23 19:22:06.079	and 

2016-06-23 19:22:07.083	Brucesteen together. 

2016-06-23 19:22:12.178	Wilson has that fire of 

2016-06-23 19:22:13.213	Baldwin. 

2016-06-23 19:22:14.211	Brucesteen has the candor of 

2016-06-23 19:22:15.245	Mead. 

2016-06-23 19:22:16.252	Back in Washington. 

2016-06-23 19:22:18.291	I'm living in the home of a 

2016-06-23 19:22:19.29	Democrat and Republican. 

2016-06-23 19:22:20.304	Republican 

2016-06-23 19:22:20.305	congressman in the 

2016-06-23 19:22:20.305	kitchen. 

2016-06-23 19:22:22.344	There is a sticker that says the 

2016-06-23 19:22:25.462	road to hell is paved with 

2016-06-23 19:22:25.463	Republicans. 

2016-06-23 19:22:29.502	And then a magic marker was 

2016-06-23 19:22:30.541	written except 

2016-06-23 19:22:31.561	for AMO, being a 

2016-06-23 19:22:32.549	Republican congressman. 

2016-06-23 19:22:34.549	From the fourth floor of this 

2016-06-23 19:22:37.629	extraordinary 

2016-06-23 19:22:38.674	home, which 

2016-06-23 19:22:40.755	Priscilla learned during my 

2016-06-23 19:22:40.756	stay 

2016-06-23 19:22:42.794	had slaves and their owners 

2016-06-23 19:22:44.827	during the 19th century, from 

2016-06-23 19:22:45.834	the 

2016-06-23 19:22:46.835	fourth floor of this 

2016-06-23 19:22:48.922	extraordinary home, I called 

2016-06-23 19:22:49.959	August Wilson. 

2016-06-23 19:22:50.997	And I said, have 

2016-06-23 19:22:52.002	you and Robert 

2016-06-23 19:22:54.041	actually debated your ideas in 

2016-06-23 19:22:54.042	person? 

2016-06-23 19:22:55.081	No. Would you do 

2016-06-23 19:22:57.122	that, if I could 

2016-06-23 19:22:58.142	arrange it? 

2016-06-23 19:22:59.146	Yeah. If you'll moderate 

2016-06-23 19:23:00.177	it. 

2016-06-23 19:23:02.174	Then I called Robert, asked the 

2016-06-23 19:23:03.18	same question. 

2016-06-23 19:23:05.226	Got the same answer, 

2016-06-23 19:23:05.228	including, 

2016-06-23 19:23:08.295	yeah, if you'll moderate it. 

2016-06-23 19:23:09.347	For the purpose of history, let 

2016-06-23 19:23:10.329	me tell you 

2016-06-23 19:23:11.333	that my idea was to 

2016-06-23 19:23:14.371	have that conversation in a very 

2016-06-23 19:23:15.382	nice conference room at 

2016-06-23 19:23:15.383	New York 

2016-06-23 19:23:16.375	university. 

2016-06-23 19:23:18.422	Where I was in residence that 

2016-06-23 19:23:20.435	fall, on leave from Stanford. 

2016-06-23 19:23:21.432	That idea fell through. 

2016-06-23 19:23:23.481	I'll tell you off the record 

2016-06-23 19:23:25.502	sometimes why. 

2016-06-23 19:23:26.5	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:23:28.587	>> I needed a Plan B. 

2016-06-23 19:23:30.629	How could those 

2016-06-23 19:23:31.626	three monologues 

2016-06-23 19:23:34.721	go down as a debate in the 

2016-06-23 19:23:34.721	theatre? We know the 

2016-06-23 19:23:36.766	difference between 

2016-06-23 19:23:37.763	monologue and dialogue. 

2016-06-23 19:23:39.795	So I called John Sullivan, who 

2016-06-23 19:23:40.791	was 

2016-06-23 19:23:40.792	president of T.C.G. at the 

2016-06-23 19:23:41.85	time. 

2016-06-23 19:23:43.877	The debate, after all, had 

2016-06-23 19:23:45.971	started at a T.C.G. 

2016-06-23 19:23:45.972	conference. 

2016-06-23 19:23:47.014	He was very excited about this 

2016-06-23 19:23:47.015	idea. 

2016-06-23 19:23:49.042	He called me back, maybe about a 

2016-06-23 19:23:51.041	week later, and suggested we do 

2016-06-23 19:23:53.081	it at town hall. Town hall? 

2016-06-23 19:23:57.179	That seemed like a much bigger 

2016-06-23 19:23:59.208	event than I had in mind. 

2016-06-23 19:24:00.258	But if the staff 

2016-06-23 19:24:01.294	of T.C.G. felt 

2016-06-23 19:24:03.296	that that -- that the idea 

2016-06-23 19:24:04.332	warranted such attention, go for 

2016-06-23 19:24:06.382	it. 

2016-06-23 19:24:07.378	Set about researching. 

2016-06-23 19:24:10.423	Both men in a frenzy. 

2016-06-23 19:24:11.435	Somewhere close to the event, 

2016-06-23 19:24:13.456	someone told me to call the 

2016-06-23 19:24:14.458	person in charge of P.R. I 

2016-06-23 19:24:17.505	will note it was an outside 

2016-06-23 19:24:17.506	firm. 

2016-06-23 19:24:18.52	It wasn't T.C.G. A lot of 

2016-06-23 19:24:20.512	excitement on the other 

2016-06-23 19:24:21.514	end of the phone. 

2016-06-23 19:24:22.541	I was told that people were 

2016-06-23 19:24:25.625	already betting that Wilson 

2016-06-23 19:24:28.678	would take the fight! 

2016-06-23 19:24:28.679	[Laughter] >> Ringside! 

2016-06-23 19:24:31.721	Uh-oh. 

2016-06-23 19:24:34.752	The circus ensued. In 

2016-06-23 19:24:36.835	my introductory remarks, I 

2016-06-23 19:24:39.928	had alluded to that conversation 

2016-06-23 19:24:40.928	between James 

2016-06-23 19:24:42.955	Baldwin and 

2016-06-23 19:24:42.956	Margaret Mead. 

2016-06-23 19:24:46.002	But on that stage at town 

2016-06-23 19:24:46.003	hall, 

2016-06-23 19:24:48.038	neither gentlemen had much of an 

2016-06-23 19:24:49.048	appetite to engage in 

2016-06-23 19:24:50.086	conversation. During the 

2016-06-23 19:24:52.126	intermission, 

2016-06-23 19:24:54.18	staffers descended upon me as if 

2016-06-23 19:24:55.217	myself 

2016-06-23 19:24:56.219	were in a boxing ring, 

2016-06-23 19:24:58.253	about to be eaten alive, with 

2016-06-23 19:25:00.294	insistent notes to 

2016-06-23 19:25:00.295	help me "pick 

2016-06-23 19:25:02.331	it up" and make the event more 

2016-06-23 19:25:06.423	exciting. 

2016-06-23 19:25:07.427	As the timer indicated that the 

2016-06-23 19:25:10.505	end was coming, I asked each 

2016-06-23 19:25:11.545	gentleman if they had learned 

2016-06-23 19:25:13.549	anything from each other. 

2016-06-23 19:25:15.588	Robert said he had learned that 

2016-06-23 19:25:18.631	August Wilson was really a teddy 

2016-06-23 19:25:18.632	bear. Wilson responded that 

2016-06-23 19:25:21.726	he was, 

2016-06-23 19:25:23.798	make no mistake about it, a 

2016-06-23 19:25:25.832	lion. 

2016-06-23 19:25:26.85	Those brief last words are 

2016-06-23 19:25:30.934	reported in the New York times. 

2016-06-23 19:25:34.014	Lonnie, scholar, a legal 

2016-06-23 19:25:35.05	scholar, had come to town to see 

2016-06-23 19:25:38.137	the 

2016-06-23 19:25:38.138	event. 

2016-06-23 19:25:39.18	I met very few people in the 

2016-06-23 19:25:40.218	academy 

2016-06-23 19:25:41.229	who are as generous and 

2016-06-23 19:25:43.249	open as Lonnie. 

2016-06-23 19:25:44.253	She called me the next morning 

2016-06-23 19:25:45.294	and 

2016-06-23 19:25:46.308	she said, I want to help 

2016-06-23 19:25:46.309	you. 

2016-06-23 19:25:51.387	She said I really should have 

2016-06-23 19:25:54.506	assembled Robert and Wilson in a 

2016-06-23 19:25:55.548	room alone, 

2016-06-23 19:25:59.677	just like that 

2016-06-23 19:26:00.726	Mead-Baldwin conversation you 

2016-06-23 19:26:00.727	talked about. 

2016-06-23 19:26:04.792	What I could, what hope-aholic 

2016-06-23 19:26:05.796	me, hope was going 

2016-06-23 19:26:06.832	to be a deep 

2016-06-23 19:26:07.835	dive into different ideas about 

2016-06-23 19:26:09.136	art and theatre. 

2016-06-23 19:26:10.924	It was not even the boxing 

2016-06-23 19:26:10.925	match 

2016-06-23 19:26:11.933	people thought it would be. 

2016-06-23 19:26:13.971	I think the two gentlemen said 

2016-06-23 19:26:16.05	all they had to say in print. 

2016-06-23 19:26:16.051	In short, in my mind, the 

2016-06-23 19:26:20.178	on-stage debate between 

2016-06-23 19:26:32.54	Wilson 

2016-06-23 19:26:34.503	and Robert moderated by Smith 

2016-06-23 19:26:34.504	was a disaster. 

2016-06-23 19:26:34.505	Spectators. 

2016-06-23 19:26:34.505	Why would we as a community 

2016-06-23 19:26:35.503	allow 

2016-06-23 19:26:38.593	ourselves to be spectators 

2016-06-23 19:26:39.593	at that event? It has a 

2016-06-23 19:26:43.728	lot to do with how it 

2016-06-23 19:26:45.765	was presented to us. 

2016-06-23 19:26:46.794	Now, I want to talk to you a 

2016-06-23 19:26:48.839	little bit about spectators and 

2016-06-23 19:26:49.878	audiences. Some 

2016-06-23 19:26:51.934	of you are kind of young, 

2016-06-23 19:26:52.98	so I'm not going to assume that 

2016-06-23 19:26:54.011	you know about my work. 

2016-06-23 19:26:56.084	I've been traveling 

2016-06-23 19:26:56.085	around 

2016-06-23 19:26:57.096	America with a tape recorder. 

2016-06-23 19:26:59.14	My grandfather said, if you say 

2016-06-23 19:27:00.136	a 

2016-06-23 19:27:01.177	word often enough, it becomes 

2016-06-23 19:27:01.178	you. 

2016-06-23 19:27:04.255	So I've been trying to become 

2016-06-23 19:27:05.293	America, 

2016-06-23 19:27:05.294	word for word. 

2016-06-23 19:27:09.363	If there are any psychiatrists 

2016-06-23 19:27:10.385	in 

2016-06-23 19:27:11.384	this audience, would you 

2016-06-23 19:27:13.482	would probably say my search for 

2016-06-23 19:27:15.504	American character is a healing 

2016-06-23 19:27:17.518	strategy to help me from having 

2016-06-23 19:27:18.51	grown up in segregation. 

2016-06-23 19:27:20.55	Segregation hit me many 

2016-06-23 19:27:21.586	in a way that 

2016-06-23 19:27:24.649	caused me to question the degree 

2016-06-23 19:27:25.677	to 

2016-06-23 19:27:26.735	which survival required me to 

2016-06-23 19:27:28.732	lose my own imagination. 

2016-06-23 19:27:30.765	Martin, 

2016-06-23 19:27:33.807	I vow we can either have 

2016-06-23 19:27:35.838	I-it relationships in which 

2016-06-23 19:27:36.842	we 

2016-06-23 19:27:37.879	turn persons into things, or we 

2016-06-23 19:27:41.994	can have 

2016-06-23 19:27:42.983	I-THOU relationships, 

2016-06-23 19:27:45.008	where we struggle with what I 

2016-06-23 19:27:46.065	call that 

2016-06-23 19:27:47.096	inevitable broad jump 

2016-06-23 19:27:48.088	towards the other. 

2016-06-23 19:27:50.129	The tape recorder has given me 

2016-06-23 19:27:51.143	the 

2016-06-23 19:27:52.174	necessary distance to come 

2016-06-23 19:27:54.191	close to strangers. I 

2016-06-23 19:27:56.261	tape-record people usually 

2016-06-23 19:27:58.309	about controversial events and 

2016-06-23 19:28:00.391	principle on both sides of the 

2016-06-23 19:28:00.392	controversy. 

2016-06-23 19:28:02.432	But in reality, not always. 

2016-06-23 19:28:05.483	And then I learn what I have 

2016-06-23 19:28:05.484	recorded, word for word. 

2016-06-23 19:28:07.575	I try to put myself in other 

2016-06-23 19:28:10.599	people's shoes, the way -- I try 

2016-06-23 19:28:11.599	to put myself in other people's 

2016-06-23 19:28:13.637	words the way you might think 

2016-06-23 19:28:14.68	about putting yourself in other 

2016-06-23 19:28:15.723	people's 

2016-06-23 19:28:16.726	shoes, which should be 

2016-06-23 19:28:19.809	part of our art here in the 

2016-06-23 19:28:20.848	theatre. 

2016-06-23 19:28:23.929	So I'm writing a new play. 

2016-06-23 19:28:25.979	Called "notes from the 

2016-06-23 19:28:27.005	field, 

2016-06-23 19:28:28.011	doing time in education" and I 

2016-06-23 19:28:31.055	want to tell you about 

2016-06-23 19:28:31.056	something 

2016-06-23 19:28:33.128	that is maybe happening in your 

2016-06-23 19:28:35.182	towns and something that, you 

2016-06-23 19:28:36.24	know, Molly wrote to 

2016-06-23 19:28:36.241	me. 

2016-06-23 19:28:38.259	Molly, are you here yet, in the 

2016-06-23 19:28:39.271	arena? 

2016-06-23 19:28:40.298	Molly Smith? She 

2016-06-23 19:28:42.336	wrote to me and told me 

2016-06-23 19:28:45.38	about the activism in the air 

2016-06-23 19:28:47.399	and Teresa has just talked to us 

2016-06-23 19:28:47.399	about being radical. 

2016-06-23 19:28:48.429	This is an opportunity for 

2016-06-23 19:28:50.497	theatres to reach out 

2016-06-23 19:28:50.498	into 

2016-06-23 19:28:52.554	communities and have radical 

2016-06-23 19:28:53.554	acts. 

2016-06-23 19:28:54.555	So if you didn't know, the 

2016-06-23 19:28:55.561	United States department of 

2016-06-23 19:28:56.556	justice came up with some 

2016-06-23 19:28:58.592	statistics revealing that black, 

2016-06-23 19:29:00.649	brown and Native 

2016-06-23 19:29:00.65	American poor 

2016-06-23 19:29:02.725	children are disciplined more 

2016-06-23 19:29:03.725	harshly and expelled and 

2016-06-23 19:29:05.772	suspended from school much 

2016-06-23 19:29:05.773	more 

2016-06-23 19:29:07.764	frequently than their middle 

2016-06-23 19:29:09.804	class brothers and sisters. 

2016-06-23 19:29:10.841	These 

2016-06-23 19:29:11.884	often results in 

2016-06-23 19:29:13.929	residencies in juvenile hall. 

2016-06-23 19:29:15.981	As California chief 

2016-06-23 19:29:15.982	justice of 

2016-06-23 19:29:16.987	the supreme court says, if 

2016-06-23 19:29:19.049	you're not in school, you're in 

2016-06-23 19:29:20.05	trouble. So I've 

2016-06-23 19:29:23.094	been traveling at four 

2016-06-23 19:29:25.094	geographic areas, northern 

2016-06-23 19:29:26.132	California to 

2016-06-23 19:29:27.135	Stockton, a 

2016-06-23 19:29:27.136	bankrupt city. 

2016-06-23 19:29:31.232	Further up the coast, to 

2016-06-23 19:29:32.255	an 

2016-06-23 19:29:33.274	Indian reservation. 

2016-06-23 19:29:34.307	Charleston, along the corridor 

2016-06-23 19:29:35.342	of 

2016-06-23 19:29:36.391	shame, so-called because of 

2016-06-23 19:29:39.482	the state of their public 

2016-06-23 19:29:39.483	schools. I 

2016-06-23 19:29:44.562	have done 240 interviews. 

2016-06-23 19:29:45.558	Daniel, who 

2016-06-23 19:29:45.559	preinterviews people 

2016-06-23 19:29:47.597	for me, has done 50. 

2016-06-23 19:29:49.645	Sow it's a lot of people we've 

2016-06-23 19:29:49.646	talked to. And I 

2016-06-23 19:29:52.68	got very excited as we 

2016-06-23 19:29:53.731	did -- as I did these interviews 

2016-06-23 19:29:55.762	and met these people, that 

2016-06-23 19:29:55.763	we 

2016-06-23 19:29:57.839	just might be on the verge of a 

2016-06-23 19:30:01.982	new civil rights 

2016-06-23 19:30:02.99	movement! 

2016-06-23 19:30:06.016	Cheryl, who is the president of 

2016-06-23 19:30:07.047	the NAACP legal defense fund 

2016-06-23 19:30:09.102	says that where that civil 

2016-06-23 19:30:10.132	rights movement will happen, at 

2016-06-23 19:30:11.142	the 

2016-06-23 19:30:11.143	intersection of education 

2016-06-23 19:30:12.203	and law enforcement. 

2016-06-23 19:30:14.258	She calls for an investment in 

2016-06-23 19:30:15.306	education and a fairness in law 

2016-06-23 19:30:16.341	enforcement 

2016-06-23 19:30:17.346	that will be as 

2016-06-23 19:30:20.441	large and as grand as 

2016-06-23 19:30:21.485	the 

2016-06-23 19:30:23.511	interstate highway system. 

2016-06-23 19:30:23.512	Imagine that. 

2016-06-23 19:30:25.577	We as Americans know how 

2016-06-23 19:30:25.578	to make 

2016-06-23 19:30:26.591	big investments. 

2016-06-23 19:30:27.594	And I'm particular excited about 

2016-06-23 19:30:29.642	the possibility of a new civil 

2016-06-23 19:30:30.641	rights 

2016-06-23 19:30:31.64	movement, especially 

2016-06-23 19:30:33.732	because of John O'Neal's work 

2016-06-23 19:30:34.765	and the journal of the Free 

2016-06-23 19:30:35.807	Southern 

2016-06-23 19:30:36.841	Theatre. 

2016-06-23 19:30:38.849	I long to think of a way that 

2016-06-23 19:30:42.98	theatre could walk side by side. 

2016-06-23 19:30:44.982	So with the movement. 

2016-06-23 19:30:46.011	So I'm going to 

2016-06-23 19:30:46.011	give you a 

2016-06-23 19:30:48.048	little bit from that work that 

2016-06-23 19:30:51.1	is still in progress. 

2016-06-23 19:30:54.096	Because I want to propose to you 

2016-06-23 19:30:56.176	that we could and we do need 

2016-06-23 19:30:56.177	a 

2016-06-23 19:30:58.183	civil rights movement, right 

2016-06-23 19:31:01.256	now. 

2016-06-23 19:31:02.269	So first of all, how many of you 

2016-06-23 19:31:04.297	know about the story of Freddie 

2016-06-23 19:31:05.307	Gray? Applaud if 

2016-06-23 19:31:07.35	you do. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:31:12.481	>> So in my hometown, Baltimore, 

2016-06-23 19:31:13.486	Maryland, a young man named 

2016-06-23 19:31:15.507	Freddie Gray on a bike was 

2016-06-23 19:31:16.515	beaten by police. 

2016-06-23 19:31:17.562	You probably know that there had 

2016-06-23 19:31:20.6	been a series of 

2016-06-23 19:31:21.632	trials, and in 

2016-06-23 19:31:24.683	fact today officer Goodson, the 

2016-06-23 19:31:25.683	driver 

2016-06-23 19:31:27.754	of the van who had been 

2016-06-23 19:31:29.761	charged with involuntary 

2016-06-23 19:31:30.817	manslaughter, 

2016-06-23 19:31:31.807	misconduct in 

2016-06-23 19:31:35.856	office, was acquitted. 

2016-06-23 19:31:36.886	We're three trials in. 

2016-06-23 19:31:39.947	As I moved around my city, now 

2016-06-23 19:31:40.998	broken, frayed, 

2016-06-23 19:31:41.981	I met a young 

2016-06-23 19:31:44.013	man named Alan Bullock. 

2016-06-23 19:31:45.053	Last year you recall there were 

2016-06-23 19:31:46.09	riots in 

2016-06-23 19:31:47.095	Baltimore. 

2016-06-23 19:31:49.095	And, you know, we video but we 

2016-06-23 19:31:50.098	get videoed. And one 

2016-06-23 19:31:52.14	of the videos that was 

2016-06-23 19:31:54.23	taken by the press was of a 

2016-06-23 19:31:56.261	young man named Alan Bullock 

2016-06-23 19:31:58.303	tearing up a police car. 

2016-06-23 19:32:02.433	Bail was 500,000 for him. 

2016-06-23 19:32:02.434	He did go to trial. 

2016-06-23 19:32:07.517	Got 12 years. 

2016-06-23 19:32:10.601	They took it down to six months. 

2016-06-23 19:32:12.635	But I want to share with you 

2016-06-23 19:32:14.688	first Alan Bullock, because I 

2016-06-23 19:32:16.745	think he's a 

2016-06-23 19:32:17.762	kind of a... 

2016-06-23 19:32:19.848	A stenographer of his community 

2016-06-23 19:32:20.887	and what 

2016-06-23 19:32:21.888	goes on for young kids 

2016-06-23 19:32:23.93	of color and police officers. 

2016-06-23 19:32:25.937	This is in his lawyer's 

2016-06-23 19:32:25.938	office. 

2016-06-23 19:32:26.98	This is Alan Bullock. 

2016-06-23 19:32:27.982	Now, by the way, one of the 

2016-06-23 19:32:31.06	things that was a part of 

2016-06-23 19:32:31.061	that 

2016-06-23 19:32:33.135	story about Freddie Gray is he 

2016-06-23 19:32:35.157	had made eye contact with the 

2016-06-23 19:32:36.142	police officers 

2016-06-23 19:32:36.143	and this is what 

2016-06-23 19:32:38.189	started the interaction. 

2016-06-23 19:32:41.266	Alan Bullock 

2016-06-23 19:32:42.267	called this. 

2016-06-23 19:32:43.27	Word for word, from my 

2016-06-23 19:32:45.308	interview. I 

2016-06-23 19:32:47.313	don't even look the police 

2016-06-23 19:32:48.311	wait to tell the truth. 

2016-06-23 19:32:50.351	It's not even me. 

2016-06-23 19:32:53.444	If they look at me, I shake my 

2016-06-23 19:32:53.445	head. If I look back, I'm 

2016-06-23 19:32:56.519	not gonna 

2016-06-23 19:32:58.596	lie to you, so I always do it. 

2016-06-23 19:32:59.599	You look at the police so hard 

2016-06-23 19:33:00.599	and so 

2016-06-23 19:33:01.637	straight, I see how he 

2016-06-23 19:33:03.739	was, Freddie Gray, in a way, 

2016-06-23 19:33:06.767	like around this neighborhood? 

2016-06-23 19:33:08.765	If the neighborhood police know 

2016-06-23 19:33:09.809	you in the neighborhood, they 

2016-06-23 19:33:10.809	don't 

2016-06-23 19:33:11.856	care about none of that. 

2016-06-23 19:33:13.932	They gonna do something to you. 

2016-06-23 19:33:14.942	I don't care what neighborhood 

2016-06-23 19:33:15.985	you be 

2016-06-23 19:33:18.056	in, a quiet neighborhood, 

2016-06-23 19:33:18.057	anything. 

2016-06-23 19:33:20.06	If they know you from being bad, 

2016-06-23 19:33:21.098	not even 

2016-06-23 19:33:23.135	being bad, being in an 

2016-06-23 19:33:25.144	area, hanging with somebody, 

2016-06-23 19:33:26.185	that they know 

2016-06-23 19:33:26.186	that's bad, 

2016-06-23 19:33:28.234	they're going to rash you. 

2016-06-23 19:33:30.267	And when they rash you -- why 

2016-06-23 19:33:31.307	you looking at me like 

2016-06-23 19:33:33.349	that! 

2016-06-23 19:33:34.388	They will ask you, why you 

2016-06-23 19:33:35.39	looking at me like that? 

2016-06-23 19:33:37.389	Pulling they stick, all that. 

2016-06-23 19:33:39.441	And I had the police ask me, why 

2016-06-23 19:33:40.488	am I walking in the street? 

2016-06-23 19:33:43.526	Why are you crossing the street? 

2016-06-23 19:33:45.561	What you mean why 

2016-06-23 19:33:45.562	am I crossing 

2016-06-23 19:33:47.599	the street? 

2016-06-23 19:33:48.602	They say, there's no need for 

2016-06-23 19:33:50.651	you to get out of 

2016-06-23 19:33:50.651	your car, come 

2016-06-23 19:33:51.64	talk to me. 

2016-06-23 19:33:54.686	They don't even say excuse me, 

2016-06-23 19:33:54.687	sir. Just ask 

2016-06-23 19:33:56.747	me why am I crossing 

2016-06-23 19:33:57.737	the street. 

2016-06-23 19:33:57.738	Not none of that. 

2016-06-23 19:34:02.846	So what are you -- ST! 

2016-06-23 19:34:02.848	Huh. 

2016-06-23 19:34:04.854	A whole lot of police out here, 

2016-06-23 19:34:05.895	just 

2016-06-23 19:34:06.899	phew, being police, being 

2016-06-23 19:34:07.897	what they do. Be smart. 

2016-06-23 19:34:12.022	Be smart. 

2016-06-23 19:34:13.064	That's all there is to it. 

2016-06-23 19:34:14.063	I don't know what you doing. 

2016-06-23 19:34:15.095	That's your hustle. 

2016-06-23 19:34:16.095	Got something on 

2016-06-23 19:34:16.096	you. 

2016-06-23 19:34:18.113	Don't even pay the police no 

2016-06-23 19:34:20.144	mind, don't even draw no 

2016-06-23 19:34:20.145	attention. But even if 

2016-06-23 19:34:22.237	you don't got 

2016-06-23 19:34:23.277	nothing on you, I still don't 

2016-06-23 19:34:26.31	expect you to draw no 

2016-06-23 19:34:26.311	attention 

2016-06-23 19:34:26.311	to the police. 

2016-06-23 19:34:28.36	They don't even care, even if 

2016-06-23 19:34:30.392	you don't got nothing on 

2016-06-23 19:34:30.393	you. 

2016-06-23 19:34:31.393	Why mug the police? 

2016-06-23 19:34:34.44	I don't pay the police no mind. 

2016-06-23 19:34:35.481	I 

2016-06-23 19:34:36.485	don't pay the police out here 

2016-06-23 19:34:36.486	no mind. 

2016-06-23 19:34:38.483	They mug me all day. 

2016-06-23 19:34:40.522	I don't care about 

2016-06-23 19:34:41.558	none of that. 

2016-06-23 19:34:42.562	Understand that I'm out here in 

2016-06-23 19:34:44.6	these streets. Four times I 

2016-06-23 19:34:46.658	think they beat me 

2016-06-23 19:34:47.681	like four times. 

2016-06-23 19:34:47.682	Four times. 

2016-06-23 19:34:50.736	I think I remember four times. 

2016-06-23 19:34:52.806	It's nothing you can do to 

2016-06-23 19:34:54.894	protect yourself from the 

2016-06-23 19:34:55.935	police, except 

2016-06-23 19:34:55.935	run your mouth. 

2016-06-23 19:34:57.987	And if you really run your 

2016-06-23 19:34:58.986	mouth, they're gonna do 

2016-06-23 19:35:00.023	something to you. And 

2016-06-23 19:35:02.058	then if they chase you and 

2016-06-23 19:35:04.064	they catch you and they can't 

2016-06-23 19:35:05.1	find nothing on you, oh, they 

2016-06-23 19:35:06.104	gonna 

2016-06-23 19:35:07.146	make it worse. 

2016-06-23 19:35:08.185	They gonna beat you straight 

2016-06-23 19:35:09.192	like that. 

2016-06-23 19:35:10.187	It don't matter. 

2016-06-23 19:35:11.232	It don't matter if they 

2016-06-23 19:35:11.233	black or 

2016-06-23 19:35:13.272	white, at this point. 

2016-06-23 19:35:15.346	This ain't no black or white 

2016-06-23 19:35:16.351	situation. 

2016-06-23 19:35:17.364	I ain't trying to hear that! 

2016-06-23 19:35:19.397	I seen plenty of black officer, 

2016-06-23 19:35:20.395	do it 

2016-06-23 19:35:20.396	to black people. 

2016-06-23 19:35:23.488	I seen plenty of white officers 

2016-06-23 19:35:23.489	do it. I seen them do it 

2016-06-23 19:35:25.524	together. 

2016-06-23 19:35:27.56	This ain't no racist thing. 

2016-06-23 19:35:28.571	It's a hate thing. 

2016-06-23 19:35:30.605	What's the point of 

2016-06-23 19:35:31.602	you beating 

2016-06-23 19:35:33.601	me, locking me up, if you can't 

2016-06-23 19:35:34.655	find nothing on me? 

2016-06-23 19:35:34.655	Why? Because I made you run? 

2016-06-23 19:35:37.736	Come on now. 

2016-06-23 19:35:39.773	You trained for that. 

2016-06-23 19:35:44.855	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:35:44.856	>> Police be just 

2016-06-23 19:35:45.911	hating, 

2016-06-23 19:35:46.9	hateful people. 

2016-06-23 19:35:48.937	They could see you have a couple 

2016-06-23 19:35:50.987	olives in your hand and 

2016-06-23 19:35:50.988	they 

2016-06-23 19:35:52.023	think you're doing wrong. 

2016-06-23 19:35:53.022	What is it with you? 

2016-06-23 19:35:54.022	I work! Yet you pull me over, 

2016-06-23 19:35:57.064	where is 

2016-06-23 19:35:58.107	this money come from? 

2016-06-23 19:36:00.154	Ain't got no right to ask me 

2016-06-23 19:36:01.148	where this money come 

2016-06-23 19:36:01.149	from. 

2016-06-23 19:36:02.188	Ain't got no warrant, no 

2016-06-23 19:36:02.189	nothing. 

2016-06-23 19:36:05.262	Put your hands on me, period, 

2016-06-23 19:36:09.317	but hey, they do it. 

2016-06-23 19:36:09.318	And I'm not gonna 

2016-06-23 19:36:11.358	stand up here 

2016-06-23 19:36:13.442	and fuss with you 'bout none of 

2016-06-23 19:36:14.49	that, because I know you the 

2016-06-23 19:36:16.517	police. 

2016-06-23 19:36:19.565	And you got a big stick. So... 

2016-06-23 19:36:23.649	So, hey. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:36:32.856	>> A lot of the people making a 

2016-06-23 19:36:35.941	difference in these communities, 

2016-06-23 19:36:37.989	saving lives, are doing so with 

2016-06-23 19:36:40.016	very little, very, very little 

2016-06-23 19:36:41.021	on 

2016-06-23 19:36:43.109	Indian reservations, in 

2016-06-23 19:36:44.103	Latino neighborhoods, black 

2016-06-23 19:36:44.104	neighborhoods. And many of 

2016-06-23 19:36:47.105	them, of the blacks 

2016-06-23 19:36:49.144	and Latinos are Christians. 

2016-06-23 19:36:51.183	Native Americans have their own 

2016-06-23 19:36:51.184	spirituality. 

2016-06-23 19:36:53.237	So a lot of times, among those 

2016-06-23 19:36:54.244	interviews, towards the end, I 

2016-06-23 19:36:56.269	would say to folks, well, 

2016-06-23 19:36:57.301	what 

2016-06-23 19:36:58.283	would Jesus think? 

2016-06-23 19:36:59.31	They always had credible stuff 

2016-06-23 19:37:00.349	to say. But I 

2016-06-23 19:37:02.4	started thinking, what 

2016-06-23 19:37:03.434	would Baldwin think? 

2016-06-23 19:37:05.441	So we go back to a rap 

2016-06-23 19:37:05.441	on race. 

2016-06-23 19:37:06.487	Again, this is not an interview 

2016-06-23 19:37:08.537	that I took. 

2016-06-23 19:37:10.564	This is word for word 

2016-06-23 19:37:11.601	from a 

2016-06-23 19:37:13.651	section of a rap on race, 

2016-06-23 19:37:18.738	Margaret Mead and James Baldwin. 

2016-06-23 19:37:18.739	Ginsburg, said don't call a 

2016-06-23 19:37:20.771	cop 

2016-06-23 19:37:20.772	a pig. 

2016-06-23 19:37:22.811	Call him a friend. 

2016-06-23 19:37:23.811	Call him a friend. 

2016-06-23 19:37:24.867	Act like a friend. I know a 

2016-06-23 19:37:26.939	lot more about cops 

2016-06-23 19:37:27.937	than that. 

2016-06-23 19:37:30.954	And I don't care how well a 

2016-06-23 19:37:30.955	cop 

2016-06-23 19:37:30.956	is educated. 

2016-06-23 19:37:34.036	I know what their role is in my 

2016-06-23 19:37:34.037	life. 

2016-06-23 19:37:36.068	And I will not accept it. 

2016-06-23 19:37:38.112	I don't like being a subject 

2016-06-23 19:37:38.113	nation. I do not like being 

2016-06-23 19:37:42.235	corralled. 

2016-06-23 19:37:44.243	And if I have to turn into a 

2016-06-23 19:37:46.287	monster, trying to change it, 

2016-06-23 19:37:47.287	that is a risk that my soul will 

2016-06-23 19:37:48.283	have to take. I'm not being 

2016-06-23 19:37:51.316	objective. 

2016-06-23 19:37:51.317	Objective. 

2016-06-23 19:37:55.353	We're talking about time, 

2016-06-23 19:37:56.359	present, time 

2016-06-23 19:37:56.36	past. 

2016-06-23 19:37:57.405	Talking about history being 

2016-06-23 19:37:58.441	present. 

2016-06-23 19:38:00.488	According to the west, 

2016-06-23 19:38:00.488	I have no 

2016-06-23 19:38:02.536	history. I have had to rest my 

2016-06-23 19:38:05.608	identity 

2016-06-23 19:38:08.687	out of the west. 

2016-06-23 19:38:10.736	We did, on that 

2016-06-23 19:38:11.787	famous day in 

2016-06-23 19:38:13.82	Washington, when Martin Luther 

2016-06-23 19:38:15.863	King gave the "I have a 

2016-06-23 19:38:15.864	dream," 

2016-06-23 19:38:16.903	I was there. 

2016-06-23 19:38:18.938	Do you know the answer we got? 

2016-06-23 19:38:20.994	Two weeks later, 10 days later? 

2016-06-23 19:38:23.071	Do you know the answer we got 

2016-06-23 19:38:25.108	out of that enormous petition? 

2016-06-23 19:38:26.146	Do you know the answer? 

2016-06-23 19:38:30.239	The republic gave us? 

2016-06-23 19:38:31.296	My phone rang 

2016-06-23 19:38:31.297	one Sunday morning 

2016-06-23 19:38:33.317	and a court worker was telling 

2016-06-23 19:38:36.401	me she could barely talk. 

2016-06-23 19:38:38.399	Four black girls had been bombed 

2016-06-23 19:38:40.486	into eternity in 

2016-06-23 19:38:40.487	a Sunday school 

2016-06-23 19:38:41.493	in Birmingham. 

2016-06-23 19:38:43.562	That was the answer the republic 

2016-06-23 19:38:44.614	gave us. We are the republic. 

2016-06-23 19:38:48.693	Includes you, includes me too. 

2016-06-23 19:38:49.741	Includes me too. We're 

2016-06-23 19:38:50.799	responsible. 

2016-06-23 19:38:51.788	I'm responsible. 

2016-06-23 19:38:54.853	I didn't stop -- try to stop it. 

2016-06-23 19:38:55.851	Doesn't 

2016-06-23 19:38:57.897	matter what one tries. 

2016-06-23 19:38:59.907	God knows, you know, I'm not the 

2016-06-23 19:39:00.944	least interested in 

2016-06-23 19:39:00.945	carrying on 

2016-06-23 19:39:01.945	the nightmare. 

2016-06-23 19:39:03.945	But if I pretend that it did not 

2016-06-23 19:39:07.063	happen, that I was not 

2016-06-23 19:39:08.068	there, 

2016-06-23 19:39:10.103	then -- then -- then I cannot 

2016-06-23 19:39:10.104	live. I 

2016-06-23 19:39:16.241	It was really terrible, really 

2016-06-23 19:39:17.247	terrible, the burnings, 

2016-06-23 19:39:18.249	bombings, bad enough. 

2016-06-23 19:39:22.322	But what's really terrible is 

2016-06-23 19:39:22.323	to 

2016-06-23 19:39:24.404	face the fact that you cannot 

2016-06-23 19:39:25.443	trust your 

2016-06-23 19:39:25.444	countryman. 

2016-06-23 19:39:26.498	You cannot trust them, because 

2016-06-23 19:39:29.537	the assumptions by which they 

2016-06-23 19:39:30.565	live are 

2016-06-23 19:39:30.566	antithetical to any 

2016-06-23 19:39:32.577	hope that you may have to live. 

2016-06-23 19:39:35.652	And the terrible omen 

2016-06-23 19:39:35.653	, when you 

2016-06-23 19:39:37.688	see an American flag on is 

2016-06-23 19:39:39.738	somebody's car -- on somebody's 

2016-06-23 19:39:40.786	car, and realize 

2016-06-23 19:39:40.787	that's your 

2016-06-23 19:39:42.819	enemy, you, his countryman, you, 

2016-06-23 19:39:44.857	his brother, in principle it's 

2016-06-23 19:39:45.858	your flag 

2016-06-23 19:39:47.906	too. But it is like that. 

2016-06-23 19:39:53.041	That's what I mean by history 

2016-06-23 19:39:57.148	being present. 

2016-06-23 19:40:00.286	I'm not talking about going 

2016-06-23 19:40:00.286	back. Nobody 

2016-06-23 19:40:02.314	can, any way. 

2016-06-23 19:40:03.316	We're responsible. 

2016-06-23 19:40:05.354	I don't mean we have a bill to 

2016-06-23 19:40:06.361	pay back. 

2016-06-23 19:40:06.362	But if I have offended you, if 

2016-06-23 19:40:10.44	I 

2016-06-23 19:40:12.449	come to you and say I'm sorry, 

2016-06-23 19:40:14.541	and if I don't do that, I cannot 

2016-06-23 19:40:15.568	live. 

2016-06-23 19:40:16.565	If I've offended you, I have to 

2016-06-23 19:40:20.647	come to you and say I'm sorry. 

2016-06-23 19:40:21.663	Please forgive me. 

2016-06-23 19:40:25.694	And if I can't do that, then I 

2016-06-23 19:40:29.816	cut off from all -- cut myself 

2016-06-23 19:40:30.859	off 

2016-06-23 19:40:31.856	from all life, all air. 

2016-06-23 19:40:33.872	Luckily, I'm not 15, because if 

2016-06-23 19:40:36.949	I were, how in 

2016-06-23 19:40:40.066	the world would I achieve 

2016-06-23 19:40:42.069	any respect for human 

2016-06-23 19:40:46.147	life or any sense of history? 

2016-06-23 19:40:48.2	And history is a concept that 

2016-06-23 19:40:50.239	exists in almost nobody's mind. 

2016-06-23 19:40:51.243	I'm trying to 

2016-06-23 19:40:52.243	say this. 

2016-06-23 19:40:55.358	That if I were young, I would 

2016-06-23 19:40:56.368	find myself with no 

2016-06-23 19:40:57.364	models and 

2016-06-23 19:40:59.463	that's a very crucial situation, 

2016-06-23 19:41:00.488	because 

2016-06-23 19:41:01.535	what we've done, our 

2016-06-23 19:41:03.55	generation, the world we've 

2016-06-23 19:41:05.569	created, if I were 

2016-06-23 19:41:06.571	15, I would 

2016-06-23 19:41:07.607	feel hopeless too. 

2016-06-23 19:41:09.609	So what we've got to try to 

2016-06-23 19:41:10.614	face, what I'm 

2016-06-23 19:41:11.65	trying to get at 

2016-06-23 19:41:13.691	is -- I read a little book when 

2016-06-23 19:41:16.703	I was in Istanbul. 

2016-06-23 19:41:18.747	Called "the way it's supposed to 

2016-06-23 19:41:20.818	be" and it was poetry and 

2016-06-23 19:41:20.819	things 

2016-06-23 19:41:22.864	written by little black 

2016-06-23 19:41:24.9	children, Mexican, Puerto Rican, 

2016-06-23 19:41:25.957	land of the free, home 

2016-06-23 19:41:25.958	of the 

2016-06-23 19:41:26.988	brave. 

2016-06-23 19:41:28.989	And the teacher had made a 

2016-06-23 19:41:30.999	compilation of all the poems 

2016-06-23 19:41:33.041	these kids wrote and he 

2016-06-23 19:41:34.053	respected them. 

2016-06-23 19:41:36.116	And he dealt with them as if 

2016-06-23 19:41:39.199	they were -- as if in fact all 

2016-06-23 19:41:41.239	children, as if in fact all 

2016-06-23 19:41:43.295	kinds of human beings are some 

2016-06-23 19:41:44.32	kind of a miracle. 

2016-06-23 19:41:45.364	And something wonderful 

2016-06-23 19:41:45.365	happened. Ha ha! 

2016-06-23 19:41:48.443	One boy wrote a poem. 

2016-06-23 19:41:48.444	Ha! 

2016-06-23 19:41:49.441	16 years old. 

2016-06-23 19:41:51.448	He was in prison. 

2016-06-23 19:41:51.45	It ended, four 

2016-06-23 19:41:56.541	lines. 

2016-06-23 19:41:58.569	I will never forget. Walk 

2016-06-23 19:42:02.61	on water. Walk on a leaf. 

2016-06-23 19:42:06.693	Hardest of all 

2016-06-23 19:42:15.821	is walk in grief. 

2016-06-23 19:42:17.898	Very tiny book, only 30 pages 

2016-06-23 19:42:19.952	long. So 

2016-06-23 19:42:23.034	what I'm trying to get at is 

2016-06-23 19:42:26.075	I hope this tremendous 

2016-06-23 19:42:27.113	national, 

2016-06-23 19:42:30.193	moral, global waste, the 

2016-06-23 19:42:31.202	question 

2016-06-23 19:42:33.244	is, how can it be 

2016-06-23 19:42:33.245	arrested? 

2016-06-23 19:42:34.302	Enormous question. 

2016-06-23 19:42:36.303	You and I, we've 

2016-06-23 19:42:36.304	become whatever 

2016-06-23 19:42:37.326	we've become. 

2016-06-23 19:42:38.321	The curtain will come down 

2016-06-23 19:42:39.37	eventually. 

2016-06-23 19:42:40.407	But what should we do about the 

2016-06-23 19:42:42.504	children? 

2016-06-23 19:42:45.576	We are responsible. And 

2016-06-23 19:42:50.608	responsible for the future 

2016-06-23 19:42:51.609	of this 

2016-06-23 19:42:54.698	world. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:43:03.909	>> And, you know, I don't think 

2016-06-23 19:43:04.906	that guilt helps us. I hope 

2016-06-23 19:43:09.038	that the Wilson, you 

2016-06-23 19:43:11.074	know, extraordinary 

2016-06-23 19:43:13.108	essay didn't 

2016-06-23 19:43:16.192	just fill some of us 

2016-06-23 19:43:18.195	with guilt. 

2016-06-23 19:43:21.292	Because guilt is not active. 

2016-06-23 19:43:22.318	So, you know, Baldwin is asking 

2016-06-23 19:43:25.399	for an apology. 

2016-06-23 19:43:26.408	You've been bringing 

2016-06-23 19:43:27.406	up the name 

2016-06-23 19:43:28.445	of John Lewis. 

2016-06-23 19:43:29.497	I'm talking about the civil 

2016-06-23 19:43:29.498	rights movement. 

2016-06-23 19:43:31.577	I think the last thing I want 

2016-06-23 19:43:31.578	to 

2016-06-23 19:43:32.577	do for you is look at something 

2016-06-23 19:43:34.62	about that last civil rights 

2016-06-23 19:43:36.667	movement and action 

2016-06-23 19:43:37.704	that has 

2016-06-23 19:43:37.705	happened as a result. 

2016-06-23 19:43:40.754	And I want to 

2016-06-23 19:43:41.749	thank Derek 

2016-06-23 19:43:43.742	Goldman and Cynthia Schneider 

2016-06-23 19:43:45.821	for helping me when 

2016-06-23 19:43:45.822	I was 

2016-06-23 19:43:48.868	working on this at Georgetown. 

2016-06-23 19:43:49.868	John Lewis. This is called 

2016-06-23 19:43:54.039	"brother." On 

2016-06-23 19:44:01.159	our way, on this trip, 

2016-06-23 19:44:01.16	that 

2016-06-23 19:44:05.294	we've been taking for the past 

2016-06-23 19:44:06.323	13 

2016-06-23 19:44:08.404	years, members of Congress, 

2016-06-23 19:44:10.503	I've been going back every year 

2016-06-23 19:44:12.541	since 196 

2016-06-23 19:44:13.551	To commemorate 

2016-06-23 19:44:18.66	the anniversary 

2016-06-23 19:44:20.701	of bloody Sunday 

2016-06-23 19:44:21.747	that took place 

2016-06-23 19:44:25.824	on March 7, 1965. 

2016-06-23 19:44:27.863	But we usually stop in 

2016-06-23 19:44:28.866	Birmingham for a day. 

2016-06-23 19:44:30.868	And then we 

2016-06-23 19:44:31.908	go to Montgomery for 

2016-06-23 19:44:32.907	a day. And then we go 

2016-06-23 19:44:38.044	to Selma. But on this trip, to 

2016-06-23 19:44:42.174	Montgomery, 

2016-06-23 19:44:44.202	we stop at first Baptist church, 

2016-06-23 19:44:46.245	which is the church 

2016-06-23 19:44:47.242	that was pastored by the 

2016-06-23 19:44:53.323	reverend 

2016-06-23 19:44:58.446	Abernathy, same church where I 

2016-06-23 19:44:58.447	met Dr. Martin Luther 

2016-06-23 19:45:01.538	King, 

2016-06-23 19:45:03.546	reverend Abernathy in the spring 

2016-06-23 19:45:05.578	of 1958. Young police 

2016-06-23 19:45:06.613	officers, the 

2016-06-23 19:45:08.626	chief, came to the church to 

2016-06-23 19:45:10.658	speak on behalf of the mayor, 

2016-06-23 19:45:11.656	who 

2016-06-23 19:45:11.657	was not available. 

2016-06-23 19:45:14.703	And he gave a very moving 

2016-06-23 19:45:14.704	speech. The church 

2016-06-23 19:45:16.792	was full, black, 

2016-06-23 19:45:18.801	white, Latino, members of 

2016-06-23 19:45:20.826	Congress, staffers, children, 

2016-06-23 19:45:23.868	family members, children and 

2016-06-23 19:45:23.869	grandchildren. And he 

2016-06-23 19:45:28.951	said, what happened in 

2016-06-23 19:45:30.996	Montgomery 52 

2016-06-23 19:45:32.045	years ago, during 

2016-06-23 19:45:34.111	the freedom ride, when you 

2016-06-23 19:45:38.249	arrived, was not right. 

2016-06-23 19:45:40.328	He said the police department 

2016-06-23 19:45:43.369	didn't show 

2016-06-23 19:45:43.37	up. They allowed an angry mob 

2016-06-23 19:45:46.447	to 

2016-06-23 19:45:47.453	come and beat you. And he said 

2016-06-23 19:45:52.542	congressman, I'm 

2016-06-23 19:45:53.542	sorry for what happened. 

2016-06-23 19:45:53.543	I want to apologize. 

2016-06-23 19:45:55.551	This is not the Montgomery that 

2016-06-23 19:45:55.552	we want Montgomery to be. This 

2016-06-23 19:45:57.582	is not the police 

2016-06-23 19:45:58.579	department I want to be the 

2016-06-23 19:46:00.618	chief on. Before 

2016-06-23 19:46:02.698	any officers are hired, 

2016-06-23 19:46:04.708	he said, they go through 

2016-06-23 19:46:04.709	training. They 

2016-06-23 19:46:06.791	have to study the life of 

2016-06-23 19:46:06.791	Rosa parks. 

2016-06-23 19:46:09.869	They have to study the life of 

2016-06-23 19:46:09.87	Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 

2016-06-23 19:46:10.881	They 

2016-06-23 19:46:13.95	have to know the historic 

2016-06-23 19:46:15.004	sites of the movement, what 

2016-06-23 19:46:17.047	happened in 

2016-06-23 19:46:17.048	Birmingham and what 

2016-06-23 19:46:18.053	happened in Montgomery and what 

2016-06-23 19:46:21.086	happened in Selma. 

2016-06-23 19:46:24.161	He said, I want you to forgive 

2016-06-23 19:46:25.207	us. He 

2016-06-23 19:46:29.327	said, to show the respect 

2016-06-23 19:46:31.329	that I 

2016-06-23 19:46:34.365	have for you and the 

2016-06-23 19:46:36.405	movement, I want 

2016-06-23 19:46:38.413	to take off my 

2016-06-23 19:46:40.457	badge and give it to you. 

2016-06-23 19:46:41.492	The church 

2016-06-23 19:46:42.497	was so quiet. 

2016-06-23 19:46:44.555	No one said a word. 

2016-06-23 19:46:46.614	And I stood 

2016-06-23 19:46:48.619	up to accept the 

2016-06-23 19:46:49.654	badge. And I started crying. 

2016-06-23 19:46:53.697	Everybody in the church started 

2016-06-23 19:46:53.698	crying. It was not 

2016-06-23 19:46:56.71	a dry eye in the 

2016-06-23 19:46:56.711	church. I said, 

2016-06-23 19:47:06.958	officer, chief... 

2016-06-23 19:47:06.959	I cannot accept your badge. 

2016-06-23 19:47:13.083	I am not 

2016-06-23 19:47:19.251	worthy to accept your 

2016-06-23 19:47:19.252	badge. Don't you need it? 

2016-06-23 19:47:24.37	He said, congressman, I could 

2016-06-23 19:47:25.406	get another one. I want you to 

2016-06-23 19:47:28.45	have my badge! 

2016-06-23 19:47:29.501	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:47:30.546	>> And I took it. And I'm 

2016-06-23 19:47:33.581	never, ever gonna forget 

2016-06-23 19:47:33.582	it. 

2016-06-23 19:47:35.666	And I'm gonna hold on to it 

2016-06-23 19:47:36.719	forever. 

2016-06-23 19:47:39.749	But he hugged me, and I hugged 

2016-06-23 19:47:39.75	him. I 

2016-06-23 19:47:41.831	cried some more. 

2016-06-23 19:47:42.833	You had Democrats and 

2016-06-23 19:47:43.868	Republicans in the church, 

2016-06-23 19:47:46.954	crying. 

2016-06-23 19:47:49.002	Young, black officer. 

2016-06-23 19:47:50.049	Young, black deputy assistant, 

2016-06-23 19:47:51.076	sitting 

2016-06-23 19:47:51.077	down. 

2016-06-23 19:47:53.08	He cried so much, like a baby 

2016-06-23 19:47:54.127	really, couldn't even stand. 

2016-06-23 19:47:56.159	It was the first time that 

2016-06-23 19:47:56.16	any 

2016-06-23 19:47:58.172	police chief in any city that I 

2016-06-23 19:48:01.206	visited or where I was arrested 

2016-06-23 19:48:03.294	in the 60's ever apologized or 

2016-06-23 19:48:06.328	where I was beaten. 

2016-06-23 19:48:07.336	The moment of grace. 

2016-06-23 19:48:10.412	It's a moment of reconciliation. 

2016-06-23 19:48:11.411	And the 

2016-06-23 19:48:12.453	chief was very young. 

2016-06-23 19:48:15.544	He wasn't even born 52 years 

2016-06-23 19:48:15.544	ago. But he 

2016-06-23 19:48:17.548	was apologizing, asking 

2016-06-23 19:48:21.618	to be forgiven, on behalf of his 

2016-06-23 19:48:22.621	associates, his colleagues of 

2016-06-23 19:48:23.623	the past. 

2016-06-23 19:48:28.701	It was a moment of grace. 

2016-06-23 19:48:30.75	It mean that the suffering and 

2016-06-23 19:48:31.742	pain that 

2016-06-23 19:48:33.805	so many people has 

2016-06-23 19:48:35.88	suffered, have been redeemed. 

2016-06-23 19:48:36.873	But for this young 

2016-06-23 19:48:37.913	man to come 

2016-06-23 19:48:39.918	up, he hugged me. 

2016-06-23 19:48:43.001	And it felt so... 

2016-06-23 19:48:46.05	Liberating and so freeing. 

2016-06-23 19:48:47.053	And -- and at the same 

2016-06-23 19:48:47.055	time, I 

2016-06-23 19:48:49.096	feet like, you know, I am not 

2016-06-23 19:48:51.16	worthy. 

2016-06-23 19:48:53.161	It's an amazing grace, you know 

2016-06-23 19:48:55.207	the line in there? To save a 

2016-06-23 19:48:57.256	wretch like me. 

2016-06-23 19:49:00.331	In a sense, it says, we all are 

2016-06-23 19:49:02.374	falling short. 

2016-06-23 19:49:02.375	We all just trying to make it. 

2016-06-23 19:49:07.454	We all searching. 

2016-06-23 19:49:10.491	Like Dr. King say, we're out to 

2016-06-23 19:49:11.497	redeem the soul of 

2016-06-23 19:49:11.498	America. 

2016-06-23 19:49:13.55	We first have to redeem 

2016-06-23 19:49:13.551	ourselves. 

2016-06-23 19:49:16.662	But this message, this act 

2016-06-23 19:49:17.673	of 

2016-06-23 19:49:19.709	grace, of the badge, says to me, 

2016-06-23 19:49:21.746	hold on. 

2016-06-23 19:49:24.8	Never give up. Never give 

2016-06-23 19:49:26.842	in. 

2016-06-23 19:49:28.912	Never lose faith. 

2016-06-23 19:49:31.964	Keep the faith. 

2016-06-23 19:49:35.077	Even in a city like Montgomery, 

2016-06-23 19:49:36.083	whew, I 

2016-06-23 19:49:39.201	said, it take raw 

2016-06-23 19:49:40.207	courage to go, to go with the 

2016-06-23 19:49:41.208	spirit, 

2016-06-23 19:49:42.27	to go with his soul, to 

2016-06-23 19:49:43.251	go with his heart. 

2016-06-23 19:49:46.345	He's a very -- he's 

2016-06-23 19:49:49.381	a very, very 

2016-06-23 19:49:49.382	interesting... Oh. 

2016-06-23 19:49:54.455	Man. I think about calling up, 

2016-06-23 19:49:56.462	saying 

2016-06-23 19:49:58.502	hello to him, how you doing? 

2016-06-23 19:50:00.55	Only time something like this 

2016-06-23 19:50:01.554	happened before 

2016-06-23 19:50:04.628	was a member of 

2016-06-23 19:50:05.662	the Klan. In rock 

2016-06-23 19:50:07.703	hill, south Carolina, 

2016-06-23 19:50:10.71	who beat me in my seat, on May 

2016-06-23 19:50:11.75	9, 196 

2016-06-23 19:50:15.806	He came here in office. His 

2016-06-23 19:50:17.837	son had been encouraging his 

2016-06-23 19:50:19.842	father to seek out the people he 

2016-06-23 19:50:21.876	had wronged. 

2016-06-23 19:50:25.998	He came into the office. 

2016-06-23 19:50:26.999	February 

2016-06-23 19:50:30.123	'09. He said... 

2016-06-23 19:50:35.166	Mr. Lewis... 

2016-06-23 19:50:39.214	I'm... 

2016-06-23 19:50:47.334	I'm one of the people 

2016-06-23 19:50:53.507	who beat you on May 9, 196 

2016-06-23 19:50:59.662	I want to apologize. 

2016-06-23 19:51:12.96	Will you forgive me? 

2016-06-23 19:51:14.016	I said, I forgive you. 

2016-06-23 19:51:15.046	Accept your apology. He heard 

2016-06-23 19:51:18.08	me. 

2016-06-23 19:51:19.086	His son heard me. He started 

2016-06-23 19:51:21.122	crying. 

2016-06-23 19:51:23.173	His son started crying. 

2016-06-23 19:51:25.215	And I seen that guy four times 

2016-06-23 19:51:26.259	since 

2016-06-23 19:51:26.26	that time. 

2016-06-23 19:51:30.301	He called me brother. 

2016-06-23 19:51:31.31	I call him 

2016-06-23 19:51:33.58	brother. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 19:51:48.608	>> Ground. 

2016-06-23 19:51:50.661	Ground, as Wilson's speech is 

2016-06-23 19:51:51.669	now called. 

2016-06-23 19:51:51.67	Ground. 

2016-06-23 19:51:53.713	The ground on which I stand. 

2016-06-23 19:51:56.751	I see it referred to sometimes 

2016-06-23 19:52:00.801	as the ground on which we stand. 

2016-06-23 19:52:01.803	August Wilson was a 

2016-06-23 19:52:02.846	race man, as 

2016-06-23 19:52:04.876	we blacks who fight for the race 

2016-06-23 19:52:04.876	are called. He proudly carried 

2016-06-23 19:52:07.919	the 

2016-06-23 19:52:08.922	blood-stained banner of black 

2016-06-23 19:52:08.922	struggle. 

2016-06-23 19:52:11.961	From the point of view of his 

2016-06-23 19:52:15.096	eye, some of you were moved. 

2016-06-23 19:52:16.099	Others motivated. 

2016-06-23 19:52:17.136	Others outraged. 

2016-06-23 19:52:19.18	Others frightened. 

2016-06-23 19:52:20.206	Others perplexed. 

2016-06-23 19:52:21.214	Others full of guilt. 

2016-06-23 19:52:24.255	In 1996, and today, when you 

2016-06-23 19:52:26.303	heard 

2016-06-23 19:52:28.353	Mr. Wilson's magnificent 

2016-06-23 19:52:31.384	voice, you stood in relationship 

2016-06-23 19:52:33.468	to August Wilson's ground. 

2016-06-23 19:52:36.502	Those of you who were moved, 

2016-06-23 19:52:37.548	are 

2016-06-23 19:52:38.55	moved, must move. 

2016-06-23 19:52:40.599	Like I said, Molly Smith and 

2016-06-23 19:52:41.634	others 

2016-06-23 19:52:43.644	were on the hill today. 

2016-06-23 19:52:44.668	Congressman sat in. 

2016-06-23 19:52:46.71	Many of you, 

2016-06-23 19:52:47.748	I spoke, more than 

2016-06-23 19:52:49.755	in 1996, are ready to be active 

2016-06-23 19:52:51.802	and activists 

2016-06-23 19:52:53.859	with your art. So action, a 

2016-06-23 19:52:57.999	movement, calls for 

2016-06-23 19:53:00.004	many movers, shakers and 

2016-06-23 19:53:01.056	seekers. All that 

2016-06-23 19:53:05.103	we can attract. 

2016-06-23 19:53:06.127	Our ground seems 

2016-06-23 19:53:08.165	to me to be 

2016-06-23 19:53:10.249	very complex. We all 

2016-06-23 19:53:12.301	meet here with different 

2016-06-23 19:53:13.346	histories. 

2016-06-23 19:53:17.38	Different banners of struggle. 

2016-06-23 19:53:19.46	We meet at different junctures 

2016-06-23 19:53:20.465	in our histories. We are 

2016-06-23 19:53:24.598	a map with some 

2016-06-23 19:53:25.614	intersecting points and many 

2016-06-23 19:53:26.629	straying 

2016-06-23 19:53:27.674	lines in search of a 

2016-06-23 19:53:28.716	connection. Most of us want 

2016-06-23 19:53:32.803	to board the 

2016-06-23 19:53:36.924	train towards progress, equity, 

2016-06-23 19:53:37.92	self-fulfillment, helping 

2016-06-23 19:53:40.005	fulfill the lives of others, 

2016-06-23 19:53:41.05	towards protecting all living 

2016-06-23 19:53:42.097	things 

2016-06-23 19:53:44.127	and towards love. 

2016-06-23 19:53:46.164	I have now visited 

2016-06-23 19:53:47.17	the island in 

2016-06-23 19:53:47.171	Senegal. 

2016-06-23 19:53:49.221	The holding pens where many 

2016-06-23 19:53:51.304	Africans were held before 

2016-06-23 19:53:52.353	putting on slave ships and sent 

2016-06-23 19:53:54.38	to this country. 

2016-06-23 19:53:57.422	But before my forefathers got 

2016-06-23 19:53:58.461	here, Native Americans were on 

2016-06-23 19:54:01.507	this ground. 

2016-06-23 19:54:03.555	Many of them too were trance 

2016-06-23 19:54:06.632	board from -- transported from 

2016-06-23 19:54:08.677	their homelands to other places. 

2016-06-23 19:54:09.725	The trail of tears, a national 

2016-06-23 19:54:09.726	disgrace. Some right now live 

2016-06-23 19:54:12.723	on fractured 

2016-06-23 19:54:14.755	lands, among fractured lives and 

2016-06-23 19:54:15.805	disrupted joys. Sometimes in 

2016-06-23 19:54:16.811	beautiful 

2016-06-23 19:54:19.85	surroundings, sometimes not. 

2016-06-23 19:54:21.877	Their youth statistics tell us a 

2016-06-23 19:54:24.963	epidemic of suicide, despair and 

2016-06-23 19:54:25.963	depression. I was welcomed to 

2016-06-23 19:54:28.005	the river in 

2016-06-23 19:54:28.006	northern California. 

2016-06-23 19:54:30.062	I found myself saturated by 

2016-06-23 19:54:31.101	their 

2016-06-23 19:54:32.102	history, their dances, 

2016-06-23 19:54:34.13	their modern struggle against 

2016-06-23 19:54:36.167	poverty, drug addiction, 

2016-06-23 19:54:36.168	alcoholism. 

2016-06-23 19:54:38.248	We share the ground with those 

2016-06-23 19:54:40.262	who believe California is 

2016-06-23 19:54:40.263	Mexico. Those who came 

2016-06-23 19:54:42.305	in a variety of 

2016-06-23 19:54:45.377	migrations from Asia, a variety 

2016-06-23 19:54:46.426	of 

2016-06-23 19:54:47.429	migrations from Europe, 

2016-06-23 19:54:48.424	throughout American history, 

2016-06-23 19:54:51.548	running from 

2016-06-23 19:54:51.549	genocides or 

2016-06-23 19:54:53.556	poverty or dogmas. 

2016-06-23 19:54:56.605	We would not have imagined 

2016-06-23 19:54:57.63	the 

2016-06-23 19:54:58.633	profound otherness of the ground 

2016-06-23 19:55:00.684	on which Muslims stand. 

2016-06-23 19:55:01.726	We would 

2016-06-23 19:55:02.711	not have imagined that 

2016-06-23 19:55:04.715	20 years ago. Gender and 

2016-06-23 19:55:07.761	sexuality are in a 

2016-06-23 19:55:08.797	great seismic shift than they 

2016-06-23 19:55:09.853	were then. Our ground 

2016-06-23 19:55:12.882	is complex also 

2016-06-23 19:55:20.096	because 20 years have passed. 

2016-06-23 19:55:20.097	Wilson-Brucesteen was 

2016-06-23 19:55:21.138	before 

2016-06-23 19:55:27.219	9/11, the I phone, Google maps, 

2016-06-23 19:55:29.271	Pandora, soul cycle, high school 

2016-06-23 19:55:30.303	students primarily Latino, 

2016-06-23 19:55:31.304	staging 

2016-06-23 19:55:32.302	walkouts in Los Angeles, 

2016-06-23 19:55:34.309	Houston and other cities, 

2016-06-23 19:55:35.353	boycotting schools and 

2016-06-23 19:55:36.354	businesses in support 

2016-06-23 19:55:36.355	of 

2016-06-23 19:55:41.428	immigration rights and equality. 

2016-06-23 19:55:44.465	Blackish. 

2016-06-23 19:55:45.464	Shonda rhymes. Mainstreaming 

2016-06-23 19:55:47.517	of the Ted 

2016-06-23 19:55:47.518	conference. 

2016-06-23 19:55:49.55	The proliferation of places and 

2016-06-23 19:55:51.554	journals that gather free 

2016-06-23 19:55:52.555	content and charge a lot of 

2016-06-23 19:55:53.565	money for you to go. 

2016-06-23 19:55:54.604	A sitting United States 

2016-06-23 19:55:56.67	president who visited 

2016-06-23 19:55:57.669	the first 

2016-06-23 19:55:59.714	sitting United States president 

2016-06-23 19:56:01.72	that visited a 

2016-06-23 19:56:02.754	federal 

2016-06-23 19:56:02.755	penitentiary. 

2016-06-23 19:56:03.759	Obama. 

2016-06-23 19:56:04.816	The first United States 

2016-06-23 19:56:06.858	president visited 

2016-06-23 19:56:06.859	an Indian 

2016-06-23 19:56:07.887	reservation. 

2016-06-23 19:56:08.918	Obama. 

2016-06-23 19:56:10.965	Jeremy Lin became the first 

2016-06-23 19:56:11.961	American-born 

2016-06-23 19:56:12.969	NBA player to be 

2016-06-23 19:56:17.111	of Chinese-Taiwanese 

2016-06-23 19:56:17.112	descent. 

2016-06-23 19:56:19.131	The minute men project took it 

2016-06-23 19:56:20.18	upon themselves to sit down at 

2016-06-23 19:56:22.221	the 

2016-06-23 19:56:22.222	Mexican-American border in 

2016-06-23 19:56:23.261	their version of a neighborhood 

2016-06-23 19:56:25.307	watch to keep people from 

2016-06-23 19:56:26.355	crossing the 

2016-06-23 19:56:26.356	border. 

2016-06-23 19:56:28.352	The west wing television show. 

2016-06-23 19:56:30.382	Reality television. The term 

2016-06-23 19:56:33.427	"white privilege" moved 

2016-06-23 19:56:36.504	from primary academic circles 

2016-06-23 19:56:36.505	to 

2016-06-23 19:56:39.555	mainstream parlance. 

2016-06-23 19:56:40.603	Rashes of violence reached the 

2016-06-23 19:56:41.629	peak 

2016-06-23 19:56:42.633	that is sweeping us right 

2016-06-23 19:56:43.638	now. 

2016-06-23 19:56:44.672	Orlando, which happened just shy 

2016-06-23 19:56:45.675	of one year of the memorial of 

2016-06-23 19:56:46.674	the 

2016-06-23 19:56:49.718	massacre at mother Emmanuel 

2016-06-23 19:56:51.759	AME church in 

2016-06-23 19:56:51.76	Charleston. 

2016-06-23 19:56:52.767	First black president. 

2016-06-23 19:56:53.803	Expectation of a potential first 

2016-06-23 19:56:57.881	woman president. 

2016-06-23 19:56:58.886	Katelyn Jenner. 

2016-06-23 19:56:59.887	Black lives matter. 

2016-06-23 19:57:01.935	Donald Trump. 

2016-06-23 19:57:01.936	Okay. 

2016-06-23 19:57:05.015	And you can start that -- I'm 

2016-06-23 19:57:06.057	mentioning it for the second 

2016-06-23 19:57:06.057	time. Hamilton. 

2016-06-23 19:57:09.101	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 19:57:11.132	>> Imagine a conversation 

2016-06-23 19:57:13.178	with 

2016-06-23 19:57:16.254	Manuel, Miranda, Wilson and 

2016-06-23 19:57:16.255	Brucesteen. 

2016-06-23 19:57:21.381	What would they think of a black 

2016-06-23 19:57:22.386	man playing Aaron Burr? 

2016-06-23 19:57:25.429	I have for you, in conclusion, a 

2016-06-23 19:57:26.437	modest 

2016-06-23 19:57:27.47	proposal. 

2016-06-23 19:57:29.51	Theatres are convening places. 

2016-06-23 19:57:30.572	Theatres need them. Our 

2016-06-23 19:57:32.609	country needs them. 

2016-06-23 19:57:34.636	The world needs them. 

2016-06-23 19:57:37.711	But some communities, as we 

2016-06-23 19:57:39.73	know, and obviously T.C.G. 

2016-06-23 19:57:41.766	knows, in the way that they 

2016-06-23 19:57:41.766	have 

2016-06-23 19:57:42.762	characterized this gathering, 

2016-06-23 19:57:45.848	some communities do not have 

2016-06-23 19:57:47.855	these 

2016-06-23 19:57:47.856	experiences or these 

2016-06-23 19:57:49.888	facilities in their schools or 

2016-06-23 19:57:51.931	inside buildings of 

2016-06-23 19:57:52.969	theatres. 

2016-06-23 19:57:54.011	Many of us in this room are 

2016-06-23 19:57:57.111	concerned and even horrified 

2016-06-23 19:57:59.142	about the growing gap between 

2016-06-23 19:58:01.222	rich and poor in this country. 

2016-06-23 19:58:04.305	Many of us want to do something 

2016-06-23 19:58:06.36	about inequality. 

2016-06-23 19:58:07.378	But let's look at ourselves. 

2016-06-23 19:58:09.421	Let's look at the American 

2016-06-23 19:58:09.422	theatre. The divas 

2016-06-23 19:58:13.465	institute of art 

2016-06-23 19:58:13.466	management, University of 

2016-06-23 19:58:15.507	Maryland, released a report. 

2016-06-23 19:58:16.508	Some say it's controversial but 

2016-06-23 19:58:17.507	I found some very valuable 

2016-06-23 19:58:19.522	information that I did not have. 

2016-06-23 19:58:20.514	Here's some statistics. The 

2016-06-23 19:58:22.609	highest reported 

2016-06-23 19:58:23.604	compensation for leaders in 

2016-06-23 19:58:28.682	mainstream theatre is $6 

2016-06-23 19:58:29.721	The median 

2016-06-23 19:58:34.854	is $388,812. The lowest paid 

2016-06-23 19:58:40.935	is $316 

2016-06-23 19:58:44.01	The highest reported 

2016-06-23 19:58:46.06	compensation for a Latino 

2016-06-23 19:58:47.102	theatre 

2016-06-23 19:58:50.132	is $88,539. The 

2016-06-23 19:58:55.185	median is $51,298. The 

2016-06-23 19:58:59.223	lowest is $9,97 

2016-06-23 19:59:00.258	The highest 

2016-06-23 19:59:03.362	compensation in an 

2016-06-23 19:59:05.387	African-American theatre is 

2016-06-23 19:59:05.388	$110,000. The median is $6 

2016-06-23 19:59:09.472	And the lowest 

2016-06-23 19:59:15.553	is $29,408. 

2016-06-23 19:59:16.552	There was one black 

2016-06-23 19:59:17.563	theatre when 

2016-06-23 19:59:20.611	Wilson spoke, and lord, I know 

2016-06-23 19:59:21.631	here there are 

2016-06-23 19:59:21.632	none. 

2016-06-23 19:59:23.693	What shall we do about our 

2016-06-23 19:59:24.723	problematic statistics? Who is 

2016-06-23 19:59:27.765	welcome in leadership 

2016-06-23 19:59:28.801	roles? 

2016-06-23 19:59:30.81	What kinds of theatres are 

2016-06-23 19:59:32.894	welcome in communities? 

2016-06-23 19:59:32.895	There's a study on gender 

2016-06-23 19:59:37.008	parity 

2016-06-23 19:59:39.115	that is being presented. 

2016-06-23 19:59:41.182	Breakdown of 

2016-06-23 19:59:41.183	leadership. 

2016-06-23 19:59:44.262	Artistic leaders, 54 white men. 

2016-06-23 19:59:47.352	Five men of 

2016-06-23 19:59:47.353	color. 

2016-06-23 19:59:48.358	14 white women. 

2016-06-23 19:59:51.423	One woman of color. 

2016-06-23 19:59:54.511	Executive leaders. 

2016-06-23 19:59:55.507	46 white men. No men 

2016-06-23 19:59:58.601	of color. 

2016-06-23 19:59:59.606	28 white women. 

2016-06-23 20:00:01.609	No women of color. 

2016-06-23 20:00:05.715	The good news is that they have 

2016-06-23 20:00:06.716	acknowledged that this is a 

2016-06-23 20:00:07.732	major problem and has launched 

2016-06-23 20:00:12.805	an initiative to address it. 

2016-06-23 20:00:14.856	Our situation needs a different 

2016-06-23 20:00:16.86	and new economics. 

2016-06-23 20:00:18.889	How can we say in our mission 

2016-06-23 20:00:20.934	statements and our grant 

2016-06-23 20:00:21.925	applications that 

2016-06-23 20:00:23.97	we support and 

2016-06-23 20:00:25.976	perpetuate the best in humans? 

2016-06-23 20:00:27.021	And still live with 

2016-06-23 20:00:29.104	this kind of 

2016-06-23 20:00:31.106	inequality in our art form? 

2016-06-23 20:00:36.126	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 20:00:40.268	>> We can 

2016-06-23 20:00:42.307	no longer assume that 

2016-06-23 20:00:43.313	people are willing to starve to 

2016-06-23 20:00:44.363	be in the theatre. 

2016-06-23 20:00:47.356	We lose them to other 

2016-06-23 20:00:47.357	professions. 

2016-06-23 20:00:50.426	In the entertainment tri. We 

2016-06-23 20:00:52.467	lose -- entertainment 

2016-06-23 20:00:53.481	industry. 

2016-06-23 20:00:54.511	We lose talent. 

2016-06-23 20:00:55.518	Equity needs to do better by 

2016-06-23 20:00:57.604	actor 

2016-06-23 20:01:00.677	s and everybody else. 

2016-06-23 20:01:01.68	Teresa calls for 

2016-06-23 20:01:01.681	a radical 

2016-06-23 20:01:02.72	theatre. 

2016-06-23 20:01:04.766	Perhaps we should combine our 

2016-06-23 20:01:04.766	forces. 

2016-06-23 20:01:05.766	Here's my dream. Invest in 

2016-06-23 20:01:07.861	some large facilities 

2016-06-23 20:01:09.908	in which diverse groups of 

2016-06-23 20:01:11.932	people with diverse missions can 

2016-06-23 20:01:12.936	share administrative costs, 

2016-06-23 20:01:14.978	share the rent, share the 

2016-06-23 20:01:15.976	responsibility, for making a 

2016-06-23 20:01:17.013	healthy 

2016-06-23 20:01:18.064	endowment. 

2016-06-23 20:01:20.136	Share the development plan, 

2016-06-23 20:01:22.185	share and 

2016-06-23 20:01:23.234	crisscross audiences. 

2016-06-23 20:01:25.273	By diversity -- I think those 

2016-06-23 20:01:26.31	who call 

2016-06-23 20:01:26.31	themselves white 

2016-06-23 20:01:28.364	privileged should come too. 

2016-06-23 20:01:29.384	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 20:01:31.447	>> And I don't think that the 

2016-06-23 20:01:33.477	work has to all be about social 

2016-06-23 20:01:33.478	justice. 

2016-06-23 20:01:34.518	I would like to see that. 

2016-06-23 20:01:36.517	I'd like to 

2016-06-23 20:01:38.561	see such a theatre 

2016-06-23 20:01:39.605	dedicated to activism. 

2016-06-23 20:01:41.61	But I'm not a snob. 

2016-06-23 20:01:44.682	I'm not an elitist about popular 

2016-06-23 20:01:44.683	entertainment. 

2016-06-23 20:01:46.769	I myself just played hawk 

2016-06-23 20:01:48.81	woman's past life on D.C.'s 

2016-06-23 20:01:49.855	legends of tomorrow. 

2016-06-23 20:01:53.888	[Laughter] 

2016-06-23 20:01:55.928	>> Artistic experimentation. 

2016-06-23 20:01:57.97	Artistic innovation 

2016-06-23 20:01:57.97	in this 

2016-06-23 20:02:02.017	theatre that I see, economic 

2016-06-23 20:02:03.056	innovation. 

2016-06-23 20:02:04.059	Leadership innovation. 

2016-06-23 20:02:05.074	Developing skills for new 

2016-06-23 20:02:06.065	leaders and new artists would be 

2016-06-23 20:02:07.106	just 

2016-06-23 20:02:08.111	great! 

2016-06-23 20:02:10.142	Revealing more about the grounds 

2016-06-23 20:02:11.154	on which we each 

2016-06-23 20:02:13.182	and all stand. 

2016-06-23 20:02:14.235	We find ourselves in the midst 

2016-06-23 20:02:16.226	of an economic security 

2016-06-23 20:02:16.227	and 

2016-06-23 20:02:17.239	moral crisis. 

2016-06-23 20:02:19.27	In the arts, we cannot save the 

2016-06-23 20:02:19.271	world. 

2016-06-23 20:02:21.313	We cannot teach reading and 

2016-06-23 20:02:21.314	math 

2016-06-23 20:02:22.358	through dance or drama. 

2016-06-23 20:02:26.392	But we can prick and 

2016-06-23 20:02:26.393	instigate 

2016-06-23 20:02:29.48	the growth of a public moral 

2016-06-23 20:02:29.481	imagination. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 20:02:35.612	>> Develop, develop a 

2016-06-23 20:02:38.646	spirit of 

2016-06-23 20:02:41.697	hospitality, of radical 

2016-06-23 20:02:41.699	hospitality. 

2016-06-23 20:02:44.768	The best definition, let us say 

2016-06-23 20:02:46.811	yes to who or what turns 

2016-06-23 20:02:46.812	up 

2016-06-23 20:02:49.898	before any determination, before 

2016-06-23 20:02:51.984	any anticipation, before 

2016-06-23 20:02:53.013	any 

2016-06-23 20:02:54.012	identification, whether or not 

2016-06-23 20:02:56.022	it has to do with a foreigner, 

2016-06-23 20:02:57.063	an 

2016-06-23 20:02:58.111	immigrant, an invited guest 

2016-06-23 20:03:01.235	or an unexpected 

2016-06-23 20:03:01.236	visitor, 

2016-06-23 20:03:03.276	whether or not the new arrival 

2016-06-23 20:03:05.316	is the citizen of another 

2016-06-23 20:03:06.358	country, 

2016-06-23 20:03:10.479	a human, animal or divine 

2016-06-23 20:03:13.52	creature, a living or 

2016-06-23 20:03:15.52	dead thing, male or female. 

2016-06-23 20:03:17.601	Develop 

2016-06-23 20:03:20.681	a radical hospitality towards 

2016-06-23 20:03:24.692	one another. 

2016-06-23 20:03:27.764	Towards all of us in 

2016-06-23 20:03:27.765	our 

2016-06-23 20:03:29.811	wonderful profession. 

2016-06-23 20:03:31.904	Toward the global 

2016-06-23 20:03:33.93	public on 

2016-06-23 20:03:34.931	whose ground we stand. 

2016-06-23 20:03:35.982	Thank you. [Applause] 

2016-06-23 20:04:25.065	>> Thank you. Thank you, Anna, 

2016-06-23 20:04:27.109	so much. Wow! 

2016-06-23 20:04:33.227	The rap on race, your experience 

2016-06-23 20:04:35.268	in the post ground on which I 

2016-06-23 20:04:36.309	stand 

2016-06-23 20:04:36.31	conversation, sharing some 

2016-06-23 20:04:40.359	of your recent profound work and 

2016-06-23 20:04:41.362	thought on 

2016-06-23 20:04:41.363	inequality in our 

2016-06-23 20:04:43.389	country and theatre community. 

2016-06-23 20:04:45.404	And you also reminded us again 

2016-06-23 20:04:46.43	about the importance of 

2016-06-23 20:04:47.442	this 

2016-06-23 20:04:48.481	multi-generational room that 

2016-06-23 20:04:50.48	we're in, that John O'Neal was 

2016-06-23 20:04:51.53	such 

2016-06-23 20:04:52.566	a big influence in your 

2016-06-23 20:04:52.566	life and work. 

2016-06-23 20:04:54.622	And you know you have influenced 

2016-06-23 20:04:57.685	so many people here. 

2016-06-23 20:04:58.688	And also, just showing us what 

2016-06-23 20:04:59.735	it means to be responsible for 

2016-06-23 20:05:00.765	the future of the world. It's 

2016-06-23 20:05:02.822	a great thing to take 

2016-06-23 20:05:04.866	forward as we go through this 

2016-06-23 20:05:04.866	conference. 

2016-06-23 20:05:06.899	And we're gonna have 

2016-06-23 20:05:07.906	a great 

2016-06-23 20:05:08.938	opportunity, right this minute, 

2016-06-23 20:05:12.016	to go and celebrate together at 

2016-06-23 20:05:13.024	arena stage. 

2016-06-23 20:05:14.057	And that will be a great 

2016-06-23 20:05:15.066	opportunity to reflect on some 

2016-06-23 20:05:17.112	of what we just heard. 

2016-06-23 20:05:19.143	So I'm going to give you some 

2016-06-23 20:05:20.155	details about that. First, I 

2016-06-23 20:05:21.181	have just something to 

2016-06-23 20:05:26.268	get you thinking about a future 

2016-06-23 20:05:26.27	plenary session. 

2016-06-23 20:05:28.311	We have Samantha powers speaking 

2016-06-23 20:05:31.316	here on Saturday at our 

2016-06-23 20:05:32.356	closing 

2016-06-23 20:05:34.416	plenary, with Oscar Eustis. 

2016-06-23 20:05:36.482	And we know that they 

2016-06-23 20:05:36.482	would like 

2016-06-23 20:05:38.565	to have some advance questions 

2016-06-23 20:05:38.566	for that session. 

2016-06-23 20:05:40.676	If you have some questions you'd 

2016-06-23 20:05:41.692	like 

2016-06-23 20:05:42.731	to have them address, they 

2016-06-23 20:05:44.773	must be submitted by Friday at 

2016-06-23 20:05:45.83	12 noon. So think about that. 

2016-06-23 20:05:49.942	I also want to invite you, 

2016-06-23 20:05:52.02	when 

2016-06-23 20:05:54.064	we get to the party -- we have a 

2016-06-23 20:05:56.158	number of grantees and young 

2016-06-23 20:05:57.185	leaders here, 

2016-06-23 20:05:57.186	who I think it's 

2016-06-23 20:05:59.193	very important for you to meet 

2016-06-23 20:06:01.234	and specifically I'm going to 

2016-06-23 20:06:02.274	reference the spotlight on 

2016-06-23 20:06:03.31	program. 

2016-06-23 20:06:05.362	And right now, if we could 

2016-06-23 20:06:06.406	have -- do we have lights up? 

2016-06-23 20:06:08.441	I would like the spotlight on 

2016-06-23 20:06:09.44	participants, from rising 

2016-06-23 20:06:11.484	leaders of color, the 

2016-06-23 20:06:12.522	fox 

2016-06-23 20:06:15.661	fellowship and leader programs 

2016-06-23 20:06:15.662	to stand. If 

2016-06-23 20:06:17.69	you are able. 

2016-06-23 20:06:19.738	If not, raise your hands. 

2016-06-23 20:06:26.163	[Applause] 

2016-06-23 20:06:40.118	>> There's one more person that 

2016-06-23 20:06:41.116	I especially encourage you to 

2016-06-23 20:06:42.16	talk to at the 

2016-06-23 20:06:42.161	party. 

2016-06-23 20:06:43.187	Someone that we already miss 

2016-06-23 20:06:44.199	very much. 

2016-06-23 20:06:45.228	He's a great leader. A 

2016-06-23 20:06:48.267	trusted partner and a dear 

2016-06-23 20:06:48.268	friend. 

2016-06-23 20:06:50.317	Kevin E. Moore. He left T.C.G. 

2016-06-23 20:06:52.364	to join actors 

2016-06-23 20:06:53.408	theatre of Louisville just a 

2016-06-23 20:06:54.442	month or so ago. 

2016-06-23 20:06:56.482	He's going to continue to make 

2016-06-23 20:06:56.483	a 

2016-06-23 20:06:58.521	very huge impact on our field 

2016-06-23 20:07:00.524	and on every life his great 

2016-06-23 20:07:01.564	heart 

2016-06-23 20:07:01.565	touches. 

2016-06-23 20:07:03.565	Yes! [Applause] 

2016-06-23 20:07:09.663	>> We also understand 

2016-06-23 20:07:11.686	that he 

2016-06-23 20:07:16.772	and artistic Les waters 

2016-06-23 20:07:17.772	are 

2016-06-23 20:07:18.82	engaged in a serious battle of 

2016-06-23 20:07:19.866	the beards. 

2016-06-23 20:07:21.912	If you know Kevin and Les, that 

2016-06-23 20:07:22.94	will make sense for you. 

2016-06-23 20:07:23.98	But Kevin, for everything you've 

2016-06-23 20:07:25.028	given T.C.G. and the field, 

2016-06-23 20:07:26.059	thank you from the bottom of our 

2016-06-23 20:07:28.109	hearts! 

2016-06-23 20:07:29.157	This should really be a toast. 

2016-06-23 20:07:30.194	So let's get to the party. 

2016-06-23 20:07:31.237	You can take 

2016-06-23 20:07:32.235	the K street exit 

2016-06-23 20:07:33.278	by the gift shop for buses that 

2016-06-23 20:07:36.321	will be running on loop 

2016-06-23 20:07:36.322	from 

2016-06-23 20:07:37.364	here to arena stage. 

2016-06-23 20:07:38.413	That will be happening the rest 

2016-06-23 20:07:38.413	of the night. 

2016-06-23 20:07:41.445	Or you can just use a cab 

2016-06-23 20:07:41.446	or 

2016-06-23 20:07:41.446	uber. 

2016-06-23 20:07:42.483	With that, thank you very much 

2016-06-23 20:07:43.483	for being here! 

2016-06-23 20:07:45.568	And let's go party! [Applause]