Roland Martin Reports Daily Podcast

Alabama DMV Closings Limiting Access To Photo ID, Affects Ballot Via Voter ID Laws Alabama state officials’ decision to close 31 driver’s license offices in what is known as the “Black Belt” has raised the eyebrows of many, with some calling it an attempt to suppress the African-American vote through limiting access to state IDs and enforcing the state’s voter ID laws. State officials are calling the decision to close the DMVs a cost-cutting measure – not a Republican plot to suppress the Black vote in areas where African-Americans have strongly supported President Barack Obama. Congresswoman Terri Sewell (D-Birmingham) joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now to discuss the state’s move to close driver’s license offices and the implications this form of voter suppression may have on future elections. Read more... GOP Presidential Candidate Ben Carson Expresses Disappointment With #BlackLivesMatter, Says Movement Should Be “All-Encompassing” Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson joined Roland Martin on TV One’s NewsOne Now to share his views on the 2016 race for the White House, the Black Lives Matter movement, the GOP’s outreach to African-American voters and Donald Trump. Read more... Did A Rift Between The Obamas & Clintons Reveal A Democratic Party Divide? Journalist and author Joy Ann Reid recently spoke with NewsOne Now host Roland Martin about her new book, Fracture: Barack Obama, the Clintons, and the Racial Divide. The book explores a possible rift between the political families that may be affecting the Democratic party as a whole. Read more... NewsOne Now EXCLUSIVE: Rand Paul Talks 2016, Black Business, School Choice, Criminal Justice Reform, #BlackLivesMatter, & More Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now for an exclusive interview in which he discussed the 2016 campaign for the White House, his plan to bolster Black-owned businesses, Social Security, poverty, education, criminal justice reform, and Black Lives Matter. Read more... NewsOne Now Exclusive: Outgoing AG Eric Holder Talks Criminal Justice Reform, Smart On Crime [VIDEO] Outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder spoke with Roland Martin about criminal justice reform during a recent one-on-one interview for TV One’s NewsOne Now. During their discussion, Martin highlighted the fact that criminal justice issues surrounding sentencing and mandatory minimums have come into the forefront in the past six years since he and President Obama have been in office. Read more... Koch Brothers Investing In & Leading The Bipartisan Charge For Criminal Justice Reform The Koch Brothers are usually in opposition of progressive views and a Democratic agenda, but there is one issue that has the duo crossing party lines in an attempt to work with both Democrats and Republicans to achieve a common goal. Criminal justice reform is the issue that seems to have galvanized the Koch Brothers and members of the Democratic and Republican parties, who often times stand in staunch opposition to one another. Mark Holden, Koch Industries senior vice president and general counsel of Koch Industries, Inc., joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now to discuss the Koch Brothers and their focus on criminal justice reform.

In this edition of The Roland Martin Show Audio Podcast, Martin airs his 2011 Grambling State University commencement speech titled "Never Say Toby." Niya Kenny, the young lady who video taped the Assault At Spring Valley High incident still faces charges, a hefty fine and jail time for an alleged "disturbing schools" offense. Roland Martin challenges national women's groups, political groups and those who fight for social justice to stand in solidarity with Kenny and demand that all charges against he be dropped. For those interested in supporting Niya Kenny's legal fund please visit the GoFundMe page set up by Rutherford Law Firm, LLC, the law firm representing her. Do you remember the "affluenza" teen, Ethan Couch? He is currently on the run with his mother after violating the terms of his probation. Couch was sentenced to probation in 2013 for killing four people in a drunken-driving wreck. During his trial, lawyers argued he had been coddled by his wealthy parents into a sense of irresponsibility. All that and more in this edition of "The Roland Martin Show" Audio Podcast. Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.

State Of Emergency Declared In Ferguson NewsOne Now guest host Mo Ivory talks with NewsOne correspondent Tim Lampley, State Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal and Gary Gunter, VP/General Manager of Radio One St. Louis (WHHL­FM & WFUN­FM) about the conditions on the ground in Ferguson. Coping With The Impact Of Police Violence & Unexplained Death On Black Mental Health Clayola Brown, President of the A. Philip Randolph Institute for racial equality, spoke with NewsOne Now guest host Mo Ivory about the impact police brutality, police violence, and instances of unexplained Black death is having on the African-American community. Ivory alluded to the angst that many in the Black community are feeling as a result of the police shooting deaths and death in custody cases involving African-American men and women, saying, “It takes a mental toll. Parents are worried about their children, people are nervous when they see a police car.” “What should Black people do with their stress behind all that is going on in this country?” Brown said. “People must be able to talk openly and clearly about what they’re feeling, what they’re thinking, and to look for some sort of resolution.” On The Rise: Anthony Brown Talks About “Everyday Jesus,” His New Album With Group TherAPy Gospel singer Anthony Brown stopped by NewsOne Now to talk about his new album, Everyday Jesus. Brown told guest host Mo Ivory that his sophomore album with Group TherAPy,”zeros in on our need to have something great, positive, wonderful in our world.”All that and more in this edition of the NewsOne Now Audio Podcast Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.

One year after Michael Brown was killed by Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson, NewsOne Now questions what has changed in the 365 days since the St. Louis suburb was upended and eventually left smoldering after protests and clashes with militarized police set the city ablaze. Missouri State Senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal and activist Tef Poe spoke with NewsOne Nowguest host Jeff Johnson and the Straight Talk Panel Monday morning about what has and what has not changed since Brown’s murder. “Legislatively, not much has changed. We are still being oppressed every single day and there are people who are in the rank-and-file who think that having court reform is the simple answer for the hurt and the pain and frustration that the people experience every single day — it’s a cover-up,” said Chappelle-Nadal. The State Senator expressed optimism regarding the interim chief of police, Andre Anderson, but also is skeptical of his impact on the city of Ferguson, saying, “Just because he is African-American, does not mean that he is going to be the asset that we need on the ground.” Chappelle-Nadal added, “We have seen African-American police officers chokehold other African-Americans, so we really have to look at his actions.” Tef Poe, an activist and founder of Hands Up United, expressed his displeasure with the current political system and explained that just because people are not voting in local elections in Ferguson, does not mean they are not politicized. “In most cases, especially in impoverished communities such as the one like Ferguson, there is a conscious decision to not partake in the system that produces the same exact results whether you vote or not.” Poe later said, “In this community, not voting represents a will to show self-reliance — to say, ‘you know what, why are we constantly going to these people?’ We can vote our eyes out and the president is still going to tear-gas us or still co-sign our tear-gassing or still call the protesters looters or whatever.” “So at this point we’ve chosen to invest in ourselves. We don’t really care about the national narrative of ‘these young people aren’t busy doing this and doing that,'” said Poe. GOP Debate Fallout: Is Donald Trump Imploding? Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump captured most of the headlines following the first GOP debate last Friday…for all the wrong reasons. Some of his comments during and post-debate about Fox News host Megyn Kelly outraged many. NewsOne Now guest host Jeff Johnson and the Straight Talk Panel discussed the fallout resulting from Trump’s bombastic behavior, questioning if his campaign has come off the rails and if he is doing more harm than good for the Republican Party. NewsOne panelist Elroy Sailor, a supporter of Sen. Rand Paul, said one of the sentiments he heard consistently from a couple of debate viewing events was that “folks did not feel we needed a comedian running for office.” While other voters “thought that he (Donald Trump) was speaking to a certain segment of the Republican voters with some of his issues on immigration, some of his issues (were) politicians not being able to deal with some of the real world problems,” Sailor said. “You’ve got some of the right messages on policy issues, but you probably have the wrong messenger, because he’s been a little over exaggerated or a lot over exaggerated — way over exaggerated on issues that are not relevant to the American people.” Though Trump is still leading in the polls, guest host Jeff Johnson asked Ed Lee, Senior Director of Debate at Emory University, “Are these polls indicative of the ability to be able to speak to policy, or are these polls an issue of ‘can you say the right provocative thing that makes people excited about how much you hate President Obama?'” “I think the polls have more to do with flash than substance — that they’re more to do with an indication of one’s ability to sell a message,” Lee replied.

Black Author/Musician Befriends & Converts KKK Members Author/musician Daryl Davis, a Black man, shares how he converts active KKK members in this exclusive interview with NewsOne Now host Roland Martin. Davis' book Klan-destine Relationships, details how he came to befriend members of the infamous racial hate group and turn them from away from hatred. How The Color Of Christ Was Used To Enforce White Supremacy In America & Around The Globe Author Author Edward J. Blum joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now to discuss his new book, The Color of Christ: The Son of God and the Saga of Race in America and how images of a white Jesus was used in America as well as around the world to enforce white supremacy. Entrepreneur Mahisha Dellinger Breaks Through In The Black Hair Care Biz To Huge Success A crazy boss led Mahisha Dellinger to start CURLS a  natural hair care line for women of color. Her success in the Black hair care industry did not come without challenges. Amazingly, the industry is controlled by people of other ethnicities who have almost shut African Americans out of the business. Dellinger chronicled her journey from corporate America to becoming a successful entrepreneur in her book, Against All Odds: From The Projects to the Penthouse. All that and more in this edition of the NewsOne Now Audio Podcast Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.  

In this edition of The Roland Martin Show, guest host Michael Imhotep President of The African History Network and host of The Michael Imhotep Show talks with Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. about his efforts to diversify the Silicone Valley workforce. Imhotep also breaks down the latest developments in the fight for the Voting Rights act and conducts an in-depth review of the first GOP presidential debate. All that and more in this edition of "The Roland Martin Show" Audio Podcast. Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.

In this edition of The Roland Martin Show, guest host Michael Imhotep President of The African History Network and host of The Michael Imhotep Show discusses the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act. Imhotep also talks with Amefika Geuka and Marcus Jackson about One Million Conscious Black Voters & Contributors and how to play the game of politics to win. All that and more in this edition of "The Roland Martin Show" Audio Podcast. Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.

On The 50 Year Anniversary Of The Voting Rights Act, We Are Still Fighting For Our Right To Vote Roland Martin, Jasmyn Richardson, Advancement Project Attorney for Voter Protection Program and Nicole Austin-Hillery, Director & Counsel Brennan Center discussed where we stand in our fight to preserve our right to vote. NewsOne Now GOP Presidential Debate Preview: Will It Change The Game? The 2016 presidential campaign is about to kick into high gear. Thursday night in Cleveland, Ohio, Fox News will air the first Republican presidential candidate debates. The primetime debate at 9 pm ET/ 8 pm CT will feature the top ten candidates who want to capture the party’s nomination and vie for the White House in 2016. It will follow a 5 pm ET/ 4 pm CT undercard debate of GOP contenders who didn’t make the cut for the primetime airing. SEE ALSO: Black Clergy, Dems Vow To Restore Voting Rights Act On 50th Anniversary; & GOP Debate Lineup F​ormer RNC spokesperson, Cherylyn Harley LeBon, Assistant Editor at The Washington Post David Swerdlick, AFL-CIO Civil, Human and Women’s Rights Department Program Coordinator Tiffany Loftin and political commentator Lenny McAllister joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now to break down the upcoming primetime debate. All that and more in this edition of the NewsOne Now Audio Podcast Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.

In this edition of The Roland Martin Show, Martin talks with the author of Becoming Belafonte: Black Artist, Public Radical, Judith E. Smith. It has been one year since the police shooting death of John Crawford and justice has yet to be served. Martin breaks down the case and discusses the latest details in the Sam DuBose and Sandra Bland cases. All that and more in this edition of "The Roland Martin Show" Audio Podcast. Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.

Family Of Sandra Bland Files Lawsuit Against Texas State Trooper, Waller County Officials Bland family attorney, Cannon Lambert joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now to discuss the federal lawsuit filed against Texas State Trooper Brian Encinia and Waller County Officials. Eva Marcille Dishes On Series Premiere Of TV One’s “Born Again Virgin” TV One’s new sitcom Born Again Virgin chronicles the ups and downs of dating for a newly celibate single woman played by actress Danielle Nicolet and her friends – who are not necessarily trying to follow in her footsteps. Eva Marcille, who plays Tara in the new series, joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now to discuss the season premiere of Born Again Virgin and her role as the “ride or die, have-to-have girlfriend.”   All that and more in this edition of the NewsOne Now Audio Podcast Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.  

NewsOne Now Audio Podcast: Randall Kerrick Trial Begins The trial of former Charlotte Mecklenburg police officer Randall Kerrick has begun. Kerrick is charged with manslaughter for shooting Jonathan Ferrell, 24, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Ferr...

What Impact Will #BlackLivesMatter Have On The 2016 Presidential Race? We’ve seen the impact that a group of #BlackLivesMatter activists had on Netroots Nation during the presidential forum a few weeks ago. Now that 10 GOP presidential candidates are preparing to take the stage for their first debate on August 6, 2015, the question arises — what impact will the #BlackLivesMatter movement have on the Republican primary contest, and what impact will the movement have on the 2016 presidential race as a whole? Roland Martin; former RNC Chair Michael Steele; Jamira Burley, Senior Campaigner for Gun Violence and Criminal Justice; and Douglass Sloan, Co-Founder, National Capitol Strategy Group, discussed how the movement that seems to have galvanized a new generation of civil rights activists will impact who wins the highest office in the land. Burley explained that young activists across the nation are “holding elected officials and some non-elected officials accountable during this presidential election by saying, ‘You have to talk about my issues and you have to talk about it to a point where it’s talking about policy and sustainable change.'” Steele responded to Burley’s remarks, “The #BlackLivesMatter piece is not a dominant or even preeminent theme or concern right now in GOP politics.” “Remember ultimately what we are talking about here, we’re talking about securing the Republican nomination … So I’ve got to go to the constituencies that are going to have a hand in securing that nomination,” he said. Ray Tensing Indicted For Murder, Lied On Police Report & Wants His Job Back UC police officer Ray Tensing was indicted for the murder of Sam DuBose. Upon review of the police report he filed in the shooting it was discovered the document is full of falsehoods. Roland Martin and the NewsOne Now panel discuss the latest details in the Sam DuBose case. Fit!Live!Win! The Benefits Of Pole Fitness Explained Michaela Jones, pole fitness instructor and manager of The P Spot Fitness Studio, joined Roland Martin on NewsOne Now for this week’s installment of Fit!Live!Win! to explain how pole dancing can not only be fun, but help you stay fit. Jones, who has been “on the pole” for 10 years, explained the idea behind this unique workout. “If you can find an enjoyable, beneficial approach to fitness, then the person is going to do it for a long term,” she said. “You can run on a treadmill, you can take a walk, you can work out with dumbbells and barbells, but that stuff is painstaking on the mind. When it’s cold outside and you’re tired, you’re not going to get up and get motivated to go lift a dumbbell or a barbell.” “However, every girl wants to swing on the pole,” she said jokingly. According to Jones, a Georgetown graduate, participants in her 45-minute pole fitness class burn between 400 – 600 calories per class. She also touted the challenging nature of the exercise/dance routine saying, “The fitness of it is being able to maintain your own body weight on this vertical structure.” “I even have personal trainers that come in that are used to doing traditional push-ups and pull-ups, but they cannot mount the pole — why? It’s a total different requirement of muscles,” she said. Activists Demand DOJ Intervention In #SandraBland Case, Take Stand For Black Women Targeted By Cops Pastor Jamal Bryant and a group of activists from around the country protested outside of the offices of the Department of Justice on Monday, demanding direct intervention in the Sandra Bland case. “We’re asking Loretta Lynch take over the case,” Bryant told Roland Martin, host of NewsOne Now. “Over the last two weeks, six African-American women have died in police custody, and so while we realize Black men have already been targeted in mass incarceration — it looks like the next in line seems to be Black women,” he said. “Today we’ve assembled from literally all over the eastern seaboard to take a stand,

Rae Lewis-Thornton joined Roland Martin on "The Roland Martin Show" to discuss Black AIDS Day 2015 and the importance of testing and early treatment of the virus that causes HIV/AIDS. Rae Lewis-Thornton is an Emmy Award winning AIDS Activist. She rose to national acclaim when she told her story of living with HIV/AIDS in a cover story to Essence Magazine. In the past 22 years, she has traveled worldwide in an unending crusade in the fight against HIV/AIDS.  During the Roland Martin Show, Thornton stressed the importance of early detection and continuing treatment once diagnosed with the deadly virus. Police around the country are going on asset seizure "shopping sprees" and creating shopping lists of items that they want. The laws allow police to confiscate cars, money and other items without ever charging anyone with a crime. Lauren Victoria Burke spoke with Martin during "The Roland Martin Show" to discuss this insane practice of cops taking your stuff and forcing you to prove where it come from before you get it back. What African American stories would you like to see on the big or small screen told from the lens of the Black Experience? Martin takes your calls on this topic and more in this edition of "The Roland Martin Show" on the Empowerment Radio Network.

#Ferguson Cops Testing New Non-Lethal Weapon Six months after the murder of 18-year-old Michael Brown, Ferguson police are testing a less-lethal gun attachment in an effort to prevent unwanted shooting deaths. The attachment being used by Ferguson police officers is manufactured by Alternative Ballistics is a one-time use device that is supposed to knock a suspect down, not kill them with one caveat. The manufacturer can no guarantee that the person shot by one of the projectiles will not be killed. Currently there are five Ferguson police officers testing the device on the streets. Once the trial period is over, the city will make a decision whether or not the entire police department will be equipped with the less-lethal attachment. On Friday “NewsOne Now” guest host, Mo Ivory and the Straight Talk panel discussed the use of the so-called less-lethal gun attachment being used on the streets of Ferguson on a trial basis. “NewsOne Now” panelist Ray Baker shared his view on the device and the use of excessive force by law enforcement officers. “Ferguson Police Department is ready and willing to engage citizens as if they’re in combat. As long as the police department has this idea that they’re in combat, it’s going to be problematic no matter what the device is.” Baker continued, “The attachment itself seems to be a very poor idea as a way to conduct police activity.” Baker agreed with critics of the device and also pointed out a critical flaw in this approach to less-lethal force saying, “To take the time to put the attachment on to the front of the gun is going to be problematic. He later stated, if a police officer is not in a life or death situation where they want to subdue someone, “they probably should not be using their gun in that situation anyway.” Dartmouth College To Launch 10 Week #BlackLivesMatter Course #BlackLivesMatter grew from a hashtag to a movement and is now a college course at Dartmouth College. Starting in the spring, the Ivy League college will launch a 10 week, 10 professor #BlackLivesMatter class examining race, violence and inequality throughout history as well as through the prism of Ferguson and similar events.  On Friday, “NewsOne Now” guest host Mo Ivory, Republican Strategist Staci Johnson, Political / Lifestyle Blogger, Dru Ealons and Ray Baker of Ray Baker Media discussed the significance of the storied Ivy League institution offering the class and if it should be instituted on college campuses around the nation. Baker told Ivory there is no need for Howard University and other HBCU’s to institute a #BlackLivesMatter course because their “entire function is #BlackLivesMatter.” He later added, “Some may want to celebrate the #BlackLivesMatter course at Dartmouth, I’m disappointed that it is happening now. In that course they are going to talk about redlining, housing discrimination — how that’s lead to the prison industrial complex. If Dartmouth is supposed to be among the premiere universities in our nation and the prison industrial complex is ruining large swaths of our nation, why are they just now talking about this?” Ivory said, “Every time something is done in our country or around our educational system that is marked as an improvement for African Americans we can say ‘it happened too late, it should have happened before.’” She continued these courses should be a part of American Education. “Police brutality did not start with Ferguson … #BlackLivesMatter did not just happen when that (shooting death of Michael Brown) happened in Ferguson.” All that and more in this edition of the NewsOne Now Audio Podcast.

Charlie Sifford, The Jackie Robinson Of Golf,  Dies At 92 We pay tribute to Charlie Sifford, the first Black golfer on PGA Tour. Sifford recently had suffered a stroke, died Tuesday night at the age of 92. This past November, President Obama presented Sifford with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award during a White House ceremony. In 2004 Sifford became the first black inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Vaccination Debate Flares Up Across The Nation The political debate over mandated vaccinations was renewed this week in the wake of a multi-state measles outbreak. A spike in measles cases across the country has President Obama, lawmakers and potential 2016 candidates weighing in on the vaccine controversy. Roland Martin talks with Dr. Jen Caudle about the vaccination debate and the importance of having your children vaccinated. Plus, Martin takes your calls on whether to vaccinate or not. Subscribe to  “The Roland Martin Show” Audio Podcast on iTunes.