Brian Lehrer: Listeners now we'll open up the phones for a post Senator Booker call in. Democrats, now that there will be a democratic majority, if priority number one is racial justice, what's the legislation that begins to advance it.

We heard a take from the Senator at the end of that answer. (646) 435-7280. What's the answer for you? Or what else do you want the Democrats to do with this control of both houses of Congress and the Presidency? (646) 435-7280.

Again, and obviously they have to deal with the pandemic as an emergency, but longer term, if priority number one is racial justice is inequality in America, particularly racial inequality, what's the legislation that begins to advance it for you.

(646) 435-7280, (646) 435-7280 or any other way you want to react to anything from Senator Booker there, (646) 435-7280. I'll just say as an example, Roxane Gay wrote in her New York Times column today, "It's time for Democrats to use their power in the same way that Republicans have and legislate without worrying about how Republican voters or politicians will respond. Cancel student loan debt."

That's the first one she writes. "Pass another voting rights act that enfranchises as many Americans as possible. Create a true path to citizenship for undocumented Americans. Implement a $15 minimum hourly wage. Enact Medicare for all."

She writes, "Realistically only so much as possible with a slender majority in the Senate, but the opportunity to make the most of the next two years is there." That from Roxane Gay today, how about from you? If priority number one is racial justice, what's the legislation that begins to advance it or any other reaction you have to Senator Booker? (646) 435-728. To your calls right after this.

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Brian: Brian Lehrer on WNYC now to your calls on what your priority for a Democratic Congress with a Democratic president would be for racial justice or anything else, (646) 435-7280, or you can tweet at Brian Lehrer, a tweet that has come in already kind of backs up Roxanne Gay.

I think it came in before I even read that, but same first thing that Roxanne Gay put in her column, the first order of legislation writes this Norosa is student loan relief which will free up citizens to contribute to economic recovery with purchasing of homes, et cetera. How about for you tweet at Brian Lehrer and Justin in Alphabet city you're on WNYC. Thanks for calling in Justin.

Justin: Hi, Brian. Thanks for taking my call. I would like to say that I think the biggest factor in the increase in racial tensions during the Trump administration has been Russian cyber warfare and psychological warfare on the internet, particularly through Facebook and using bots on other sites too, like Twitter--

Brian: Well, let me jump in for a second, because that may be a contributor and I think a lot of our listeners know that they've been doing the kinds of things that you're referring to, but what about 401 years of American history?

Justin: Oh, I totally agree with you that they're just fanning the flame. The fire was already there. It's like Billy Joel said in his song. Putin has been fanning the flames of this fire and we have to realize that we are under attack right now by Russia and they have brainwashed 70 million people.

Trump has been colluding with them from the beginning, he never stopped and his deliberate sabotage of our response to the pandemic is also behest of Putin. They're colluding to do that to kill hundreds of thousands of us and [unintelligible 00:04:27] need to strike back ASAP.

Brian: Strike back against Putin's disinformation. Justin, thank you very much. Jawanza in Brooklyn, you're on WNYC. Hi Jawanza, thanks so much for calling.

Jawanza: Hi, Brian. I deeply appreciate it. I just wanted to quickly hop in and say that one, I want to say as a black person living in the United States of America, that what happened at the Capitol was deeply disturbing and that we need to respond with a fierce vengeance of passing progressive policy all across this country to respond to this kind of vitriolic sedition that happened in our nation's Capitol, because it only happened because of the ways in which conservative policy has led to the economic and social conditions that have created the conditions where someone like Donald Trump could be empowered and people could store them the Capitol.

Of course we did them with white supremacy and all of these things, but I want to say specifically what the Congress should do the 117th Congress is absolutely look at the BREATH Act, which is being pushed by the movement for black lives, 200 plus black led organizations across this country. The BREATH Act would do one-- It's responding to the Defund the-- It is what the Defund the Police demands are.

It's an omnibus bill package equivalent to that of the 1960s. Some revolutionary movement work that was happening to really improve the conditions for people all across this country, and namely black people, but all of us.

Divesting federal resources from policing and incarceration and ending criminal legal system harm, I'm sorry. Investing in new approaches to community safety and utilizing funding initiatives, allocating new money to build healthy, sustainable, and equitable communities for all people and accountable and enhancing self-determination of black communities and the bill is online. You can just look it up breatheact.org.

You'll find all that information about it. You can read the legislation and of course, we need to cancel student debt, we need to create the conditions for millennials and for generation Z to be able to participate in an economy that people are familiar with.

I'm a person that's 31 years old. I have incredible student loan debt. I am not going to be able, even though I have a really good salary at this point, I'm never going to be able to produce the kinds of stability for myself that I have seen in the past with the conditions that we're experiencing today.

I really believe that we have to have a Congress that is not afraid of the word socialism, that's not afraid the word progressivism, that it's not going to try to placate as Senator Cory Booker suggested to, across the aisle.

We cannot cross the aisle if crossing the aisle have to affirm that black lives don't matter. That's just the case. Honestly, I think I want to say also that's something that we don't think about ever at all in this country. We never talk about, we need to be talking about the climate crisis, of course and we need to be talking about nuclear disarmament. We should not have nuclear weapons.

There are so many things that we're not discussing that it should be discussed. The best thing I can say, the best way I can say, and I'll leave it here Brian is that we are digging in the soil when it comes to policy, when it comes to our culture, when we could be planting flowers on the moon.

White supremacy and capitalism, which needs white supremacy in the racialization of black people of other peoples to exploited economically, it creates a culture of annihilation, a culture of degradation, a culture that produces a framework of reality based on delusion that will never allow us to be able to build a society that where we can work together and cooperate.

I think that we have to have congressional leadership that's able to hold that complexity. That's not just on the federal level, but that's all across this country and all across the thing. I encourage people to look at the BREATHE Act, I encourage people to support grassroots based organizations, I encourage every single person to be critical of conservatism, because honestly, that is an old Relic of the past and we need to be trying to build a society that is going to push us ever more towards egalitarianism.

Brian: Jawanza, tell me one quick thing. Who's sponsoring the BREATHE Act in Congress. Do you happen to know?

Jawanza: I'm not sure who's sponsoring currently, but you can look it up on breatheact.org and the legislation is posted there.

Brian: Thank you. Call us again.

Jawanza: Will do.

Brian: This is WNYC FM HDN AM New York, by the way and WNJT FM 88.1, Trenton WNJP 88.5 Sussex, WNJY 89.3 Net Kong and WNJO 90.3 Times River. We are New York and New Jersey public radio. More of your calls on what you would like the new Democratic majority Congress to do for racial justice or anything, or your reactions to Senator Booker. Anthony in Queens, You're on WNYC. Hi Anthony.

Anthony: Yes. How are you Mr. Lehrer? It's always a pleasure hearing you and I listen to you everyday. I'm a sponsor of NPR, but I'd like to say something. We as a community, I'm a black [unintelligible 00:09:11] migrated from the islands back in the '70s and I had to reinvent myself so many times just to make equitable financial the basis of what other white counterparts are making. It's ridiculous.

We as black people have to always reinvent ourselves just to make a decent living to afford a home like everybody else. Secondly, the last gentleman said, he pretty much said everything, but one of my concern is that the policing has to change.

We all know the history of policing when it comes to African-Americans from back after reconstruction where it was formed. I don't need to go there, but if something has to be done, there has to be transparency where these laws that they have in place now, or they're trying to pass would say, you know what? Is there's a police officer who did something bad in New York City, let his record, follow him. Let it be transparent that he can not get another job in another civil service state or in another state where he can become a cop or a fire department.

No, it has to stop. We have to be able to see these people who have committed crimes against black people for no reason. That's one of the major problems with this society right now. For us to have equality in this society, something has to be done. We can--

Brian: Anthony, your line is breaking up but let me ask you a quick follow-up. How optimistic are you about this Congress being able to do some of the things-- I guess we've lost Anthony's line. Too bad. Anthony, thank you very much. We appreciate it. May and Trenton. You're on WNYC. Hi, May.

May: Hi. I was reading Night by Elie Wiesel last night and I wanted to paraphrase this quote. Can you hear me okay?

Brian: I can.

May: What I do know is that there is response and responsibility. When we speak of this era of evil and darkness, so close and yet so distant, responsibility is the keyword. What I think that needs to happen is we need to have a response to those Senators who tried to stop the procedure, and we need to have a response to what President Trump has done to this country and try to do to our government,

Brian: Mary, thank you very much. Daniel and Bay Ridge, you're on WNYC. Hi Daniel.

Daniel: Hi, good morning, Mr. Lehrer. Thank you for taking my call. I think that the first issue for racial justice for the new Congress needs to be eliminating all of the disabilities that come from an incredibly racist prosecutorial system.

We're talking about people that get disenfranchised for a crime that they committed at the age of 18. You're not the same person at the age of 40 and yet a felony conviction for life will keep you from getting certain kinds of government backed loans, kept people during this pandemic that has changed their lives and now own small businesses from getting emergency EIDL or paycheck protection loans, even though they're contributing members of their community.

I think the first thing that needs to be done is take criminal histories and convert them into credit reports every seven years. If you haven't committed-- The only thing that stays on your criminal history should be a violent crime or a sex crime.

Everything else after seven years after released from incarceration should fall off just like it doesn't every other first-world country. We need to stop creating second and third and last class citizens in our country, because it keeps people from being banked, it keeps people from changing their lives, it keeps people from being contributing members of society. That's my opinion as a person,

Brian: Michael, is there any legislation to that effect? By the way, we looked it up and the sponsor of the BREATHE Act that the caller Jawanza brought up is a local member. It's Yvette Clark from Brooklyn. Just passing that fact along. Is there this idea of not holding people accountable as they move into middle age for the things that they did as a young person, is that in legislation anywhere that you're aware of.

Daniel: My name is Daniel and one of the squad members in the last congressional session--

Brian: I said Michael. I'm sorry. Go ahead.

Daniel: It's okay. They introduced a bill that does something similar, but here's the issue that we've been taught. You just said that doesn't hold someone accountable. Well, a person is held accountable. They do their time, they pay restitution, they do their time, they do their probation. That is that person being held to account. The debt is paid.

After the debt is paid, we have disenfranchised them in most States in this country, we keep them unbanked, we keep them from getting government subsidized loans. Why should the decision a person makes at the age of 18 to steal a candy bar or to commit a non-violent felony, be with them at the age of 40.

You yourself, sir are not the same person as you were at 18. Should you be held to account for this rest of your life for that one thing? When the debt is paid, the debt is paid.

Brian: Daniel, thank you very much. We appreciate that. One from Twitter listener writes, single national standards for voting eligibility. Your right to vote should not change just because you move to a different state. Once you can vote, you can change policies, reform justice system and police distribute aid equitably.

Single national standards for voting eligibility suggests listener Jesse. I called Daniel Michael by accident. It's because half my brain is looking ahead to who the next callers are going to be. The next one is Michael in Ramsey, New Jersey. You're own WNYC Michael. Thank you for calling in.

Michael: Hi, Brian. Thank you so much for taking my call. I've been listening to the last call. It was very interesting pieces that they've made about specific legislation. What I think needs to happen Brian, is more than specific legislation that tells people how they have to behave and what they have to do, I think our Congress and our Senate, they need to pass legislation together, legislation that does something for everyone.

I'm not saying that it has to be specific for racial equality or things like that, but Democrats and Republicans, white people, African-Americans Hispanics, Latinos, all different ethnic groups in the Congress, they have to pass legislation together to show this country that they are working together and set an example of how to work together and put someone's skills and characteristics and personality traits before what they look like and what their ethnicity is.

To me, the one unifying piece of legislation that that can be done with is something in terms of the environment. It's going to require a lot of compromise on both sides, but I think more than passing, like I said, a specific law or bill that says this is what has to happen, I think they need to set an example for everyone and says, "Look, regardless of what it is that we're working on, we're working together."

I think that's what needs to have happen so that instead of it always being a Democrat or a minority Senator bringing forth these bills that it's brought with a Caucasian or a Conservative. That's the only way I think that government can have a real effect on the way that our society acts and thinks.

Brian: Thank you very much from Twitter listener Christine writes-- Oh, posting actually, as Christine is wearing a mask and writes, most racial-- Says yes to Roxane Gay and Cory Booker. Most racial justice is universally supported and damn those Republican politicians who don't like it.

Listener to Anna writes, I want a forceful push to make Democratic policies and ideas possible and as a result, a more equitable society. Pass HR-1. Next one says I feel like a great first date question is from memory, can you repeat the Brian Lehrer call-in number? Hey, wait. No, that's there, but I guess that doesn't further racial justice.

Listener David writes, further to call her Daniel's points. People who want to keep convicts disenfranchised, want to prevent them from re-entering participation in society. That is, they want people who've been in trouble to stay in trouble and disadvantaged. Don't want society to improve.

All right. That's today's little piece of the conversation on what might happen when the Democrats control the Senate. Of course, they have to seat those two Senators from Georgia first, so they don't have it yet and they have to inaugurate Joe Biden in 12 days, but obviously, we are going to be continuing to take your ideas and continuing to have members of our local congressional delegation, a lot to be accountable to you, but also just to hear your ideas, to get your input here on this show. Obviously, more to come along those lines. Much more to come in 2021.

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