March 15, 2025

Veterans of Color: Navigating Faith, Service, and Identity in America with Gregory Henry

A powerful conversation unfolds as Gregory Henry joins D Allen Rose to explore the complex terrain of military moral injury — that profound emotional wound that occurs when service members face actions contradicting their deepest moral beliefs. Drawing from their Desert Storm experiences, they share raw memories that still resonate decades later: close calls with enemy combatants, witnessing civilian casualties, and confronting the human cost of war.

Their discussion delves into how Christian veterans reconcile faith commands against killing with military duty, revealing the unique spiritual dimension of military service for believers. Greg recounts haunting memories of injured children and burnt bodies that challenged his understanding of warfare beyond the sanitized Hollywood depictions. "When you hear a round," he reminds us, "it ain't like TV."

The conversation shifts to examine current political developments with veteran-focused perspective. They discuss the unprecedented federal workforce reductions affecting thousands of veterans and analyze proposed eliminations of departments like Education. Their insider perspective as federal employees adds urgency to their concerns about families suddenly facing unemployment after relocating for government service.

Perhaps most compelling is their examination of Black male representation in media and leadership positions. They reflect on the powerful impact President Obama's image had on younger generations and contrast it with the current scarcity of strong, positive Black male figures in mainstream media. This cultural examination connects directly to veteran identity, as both aspects speak to representation in American society.

Throughout their exchange runs a thread of resilience and practical wisdom: maintain personal peace, build multiple income streams, prepare for uncertainty, and nurture the next generation with confidence and cultural awareness. For veterans and civilians alike, their dialogue offers rare insight into how military experience shapes perspectives on faith, duty, representation, and American society at large.

#OperationDesertStorm #TrumpAdministration #BlackVeterans #VeteransofColor

Chapters

00:00 - Podcast Introduction & Welcome

01:00 - Military Moral Injury Defined

05:51 - Personal Combat Experiences & Lasting Impact

15:33 - Faith, Military Service & Moral Reconciliation

22:07 - The Trump Administration & Political Climate

39:46 - Department Eliminations & Mass Deportations

55:30 - Media Representation & Black Identity

01:38:07 - Final Thoughts on Federal Workers

Transcript

WEBVTT

00:00:07.288 --> 00:00:09.772
All right, brother Greg, you're back, I am back.

00:00:09.772 --> 00:00:12.615
You ready to go, ready to go?

00:00:12.615 --> 00:00:15.506
All right, let's jump into it.

00:00:16.201 --> 00:00:24.335
Urban Christian Veterans provides a safe place for Christian Veterans of Color to discuss the challenges you face in your daily lives.

00:00:24.335 --> 00:00:26.396
Being a person of color, to discuss the challenges you face in your daily lives.

00:00:26.396 --> 00:00:27.117
Being a person of color has its challenges.

00:00:27.117 --> 00:00:30.346
Being a Christian has its challenges.

00:00:30.346 --> 00:00:33.773
Being a veteran has its challenges.

00:00:33.773 --> 00:00:42.786
All of those factors being combined makes for a unique and sometimes difficult life experience that is seldom talked about in public forums.

00:00:42.786 --> 00:00:47.695
Thank you for tuning in to the Urban Christian Veterans Podcast.

00:00:47.695 --> 00:00:50.448
Here's your host, d Allen Rose.

00:00:51.420 --> 00:00:54.310
Thank you, erin, for that wonderful introduction.

00:00:54.310 --> 00:01:00.893
This is D Allen Rose and you are listening to the Urban Christian Veterans Podcast.

00:01:00.893 --> 00:01:07.173
So first topic that we want to discuss today military moral injury.

00:01:07.173 --> 00:01:08.765
Are you familiar with the term?

00:01:09.719 --> 00:01:10.740
Not too familiar with it.

00:01:10.781 --> 00:01:32.152
If you could just define it and then we could go from there and emotional distress, right, that occurs when military personnel are involved in or witness events that violate their deeply held moral beliefs.

00:01:32.152 --> 00:01:37.876
So it's, for instance, the whole thou shalt not kill, right.

00:01:37.876 --> 00:02:03.385
And then, as part of the military, you go in and you're put in a situation where you're either ordered to or you witness someone doing that, okay, and then it impacts you, um, afterwards, right, um, it could be either having to do it yourself, witnessing it, experiencing some form of you know something that goes against your moral beliefs as part of your military duty.

00:02:03.385 --> 00:02:08.234
So, and and then afterwards it just impacts and impacts you.

00:02:08.234 --> 00:02:11.590
It's an, it's an injury that stays with you after.

00:02:11.590 --> 00:02:15.610
So I guess the question is have you ever experienced anything like that?

00:02:18.221 --> 00:02:25.655
Well, during my two tours I didn't have to see initial combat.

00:02:25.655 --> 00:03:04.032
I think the closest I came was when we were moved out to our site initially and this is during Desert Shield, desert Storm, where the buildup was occurring around December, and I was on guard duty, and a vehicle approached and, as we've been trained, I approached the vehicle, had the driver exit the vehicle and he was questioned and we were drawn, I was locked and loaded and at that time I don't think we as military personnel had to deal with IEDs as they did subsequently afterwards, subsequently afterwards.

00:03:04.032 --> 00:03:17.003
But at that point in time I know if that gentleman had made a move, he would have caught a 5.56, without a doubt.

00:03:17.003 --> 00:03:17.324
Without a doubt.

00:03:17.324 --> 00:03:31.751
And it so happens that after we got them back into the vehicles and they exited off, not even 10 minutes later a infantry military police unit pulled up and asked us have you seen this vehicle with X individuals?

00:03:31.751 --> 00:03:32.652
They described them.

00:03:32.652 --> 00:03:34.045
It was like, yeah, they were right here.

00:03:34.045 --> 00:03:41.306
We questioned them and had them move off site and he said, yeah, we think they're gathering information and then they took off after him.

00:03:42.240 --> 00:03:46.271
Now I don't know whatever came of that, but it is what it is.

00:03:46.271 --> 00:04:13.669
But I think during that time, if, if I was brought forth to Actually let off rounds, then it would have been a hesitation, because then it's a case of, you know, protecting myself, protecting my fellow soldiers to the right and to the left of me, so I don't think it would have been any apprehension.

00:04:13.669 --> 00:04:29.978
And he actually was decorated for rescuing quite a few individuals because his moral code did not allow him to kill individuals.

00:04:29.978 --> 00:04:36.273
And I wish, I wish I could recall his name, but there was a movie made of this gentleman, and how.

00:04:36.699 --> 00:04:42.204
Yeah, I saw that movie, I think, with me.

00:04:42.204 --> 00:05:10.988
As far as engaging in combat, it wouldn't have hurt my moral code, but doing something outside of an initial engagement so, in other words, if we would have went through we swept the area and say there were little kids right there, I wouldn't have just, you know, you see, in movies they would have just killed off innocent people like that, doing something like that.

00:05:10.988 --> 00:05:22.827
Or you see guys come through and maybe raping women or or something, um, you know, sinister as such, involved in anything like that.

00:05:22.827 --> 00:05:42.790
But I think if it was something that happened outside of the initial combat, it'll affect you, because right now people are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, ptsd, and having to deal with things.

00:05:43.321 --> 00:05:46.050
I still remember things from being over there.

00:05:46.050 --> 00:05:54.560
There was a young Kuwaiti girl, I remember, who had been evacuated to one of our combat mass hospital who had been stabbed by Iraqi soldier.

00:05:54.560 --> 00:06:07.338
Now she received treatment at the point of where she was and then where I was, the mass hospital was the main mass hospital and where I was, the MASH hospital was the main MASH hospital.

00:06:07.338 --> 00:06:12.752
So if you had severe traumas or very serious surgeries before they could evacuate you to Lawn Stool, they would bring you there.

00:06:13.360 --> 00:06:33.822
So you had a lot of the serious trauma incidents occurring and being brought back there so so let me so you, so this was you, said this girl, she received these injuries.

00:06:33.822 --> 00:06:39.052
Um, like, I'm assuming, first you see the injuries and then questions come how did this happen?

00:06:39.052 --> 00:06:44.848
You know that kind of thing like, describe that, like, how does that process work?

00:06:45.168 --> 00:06:51.360
Well, we ended up there at the hospital because it was almost like a humanitarian thing.

00:06:51.360 --> 00:07:09.466
This was toward the end, when we had really we had switched from Desert Shield to Storm, which was a big sweep of all the forces going in, and we were told, our command was told that there was some children up there and just to go and lift their spirits.

00:07:09.466 --> 00:07:11.591
You know, they bring them candy, that type of thing.

00:07:11.591 --> 00:07:14.206
I was giving them out candy because they didn't need candy.

00:07:14.206 --> 00:07:18.747
I would give them regular food, but it was.

00:07:18.747 --> 00:07:24.428
It was to go there and lift, lift their spirits and for whatever reason this young girl took to me.

00:07:24.428 --> 00:07:29.767
She wasn't interacting with anybody else, but she interacted with me for whatever reason.

00:07:29.767 --> 00:07:38.913
And I remember the first time I see her I still see her she was laying on the bed and very quiet For her age.

00:07:38.913 --> 00:07:52.973
From what they said her age was, she was very small in stature, okay, very small in stature compared to a healthy child that you would see in the United States or Europe or you know anywhere.

00:07:52.973 --> 00:08:00.425
And I remember the scar that came down her abdomen.

00:08:00.425 --> 00:08:04.011
This is from you know, I guess, where they went in for surgery and everything.

00:08:04.011 --> 00:08:16.654
I remember seeing the scar right there, yeah, so yeah, it was, and she wasn't the only one I saw.

00:08:16.800 --> 00:08:26.334
I saw on my way up north I saw a body that was hit by one of our tank rounds where they were just burned.

00:08:26.334 --> 00:08:32.731
And at that time you know if, if, if, there was any type of GPS.

00:08:32.731 --> 00:08:39.222
You know it was like your special ops guys who had it, delta seals, you know Rangers, they had it.

00:08:39.222 --> 00:08:44.322
And you know, in the desert it's flat, there's nothing there, so you don't have any reference.

00:08:44.322 --> 00:08:53.687
So when you, if you were going on a trip or something, you had to get back before it got dark because you hadn't had no reference there.

00:08:53.687 --> 00:09:08.027
So I remember we were going, we were making a run to Hafer Abaddon and, uh, I remember coming through the city because they were bringing prisoners back in that area and that's where they were staging prisoners.

00:09:08.027 --> 00:09:25.908
And we were going through the city, going past Alphabarn, going to King Khalid Military City, kkmc, and they had brought this truck back and the body was still in it and me and my partner we jumped out to look at it.

00:09:25.908 --> 00:09:31.873
I had taken a picture when we were on the way back, but not going up.

00:09:31.873 --> 00:09:39.514
I think we were just stunned just to see just a black burnt body.

00:09:39.514 --> 00:09:43.951
It's almost like it was frozen and we knew we had to go.

00:09:43.951 --> 00:09:46.639
So we just looked at it and just kept it moving.

00:09:47.261 --> 00:09:53.904
And you know those things stick with you and you think about Is it worth it?

00:09:53.904 --> 00:10:00.974
You know all this killing and is it really necessary?

00:10:00.974 --> 00:10:05.404
Necessary?

00:10:05.404 --> 00:10:16.171
I think it's so glamorized here on television, whether you're watching Full Metal Jacket or Saving Private Ryan or whatever the show is.

00:10:16.171 --> 00:10:27.926
And I tell people, when you hear around, it ain't like TV, right, right.

00:10:27.926 --> 00:10:38.152
If a grenade lands about 20 feet from you, you catching something, it ain't no falling down and getting back up and keep running.

00:10:38.152 --> 00:10:40.969
And no, that ain't reality.

00:10:40.969 --> 00:10:43.067
That's not reality.

00:10:43.067 --> 00:10:44.221
And I realized that.

00:10:44.221 --> 00:10:45.263
I remember the first time.

00:10:45.263 --> 00:10:52.014
You remember when we went through basic training and you had to go through the portion where you had to throw the grenade.

00:10:53.020 --> 00:11:04.005
Oh man, I remember when we were in the cover bunker and the person was downrange throwing a grenade, it was kicking sand hitting the top of that bunker.

00:11:04.005 --> 00:11:09.644
So that stuff you see on TV it's not reality.

00:11:09.644 --> 00:11:12.929
It's not reality, not at all.

00:11:12.929 --> 00:11:22.822
But to answer the question, the stuff does stay with you and you're going to have to just temper whatever goes on in the course of war, whether you're going to do it or not.

00:11:22.822 --> 00:11:47.106
If you sign up especially if you're in a combat arms type of MOS, which is a job function and we're all trained to fight but more than likely, if you're 11, Bravo or any of the 11 series, you're going to, more than likely, see combat action and you're going to have to come to grips with.

00:11:47.106 --> 00:11:50.894
You know, will I be able to engage?

00:11:50.894 --> 00:11:52.903
How will I act?

00:11:52.903 --> 00:11:56.572
And I think no one can answer that question until it actually happens.

00:11:58.301 --> 00:12:33.899
But I believe if it would have come to that point, I would have engaged because Because obviously I wasn't on the walk, I am right now, but even if I was, you're still going to have to come to grips of whether you're going to engage and I think even people back then, whether it was World War I, II, Korea, Vietnam to Korea, Vietnam, who were on that walk and had made a profession of faith, who were there in combat and, more than likely, killed people.

00:12:33.899 --> 00:12:36.928
That's something they would have to rectify.

00:12:36.928 --> 00:12:43.648
You know the Bible talks about David and Saul when they asked you know, have you heard about the thousands that Saul has killed?

00:12:43.648 --> 00:12:47.250
And then have you heard of the 10,000 that David has killed?

00:12:47.759 --> 00:13:10.866
So something has to be coming to grips with yeah, I was going to ask you, like you know, how you personally reconcile something like that that one and then two, how do you, how do you, I guess, advise someone else that may be dealing with that?

00:13:10.886 --> 00:13:38.850
that whole moral injury, um, situation, Um before this this started, you asked me if I was going through my VA process and I was and I just recently had a PTSD C&P exam and the psychiatrist she was talking to me and she said you really need to go and talk to somebody.

00:13:38.850 --> 00:13:51.517
When we came in, you and I came in around the same time, there was a perception of the health of the VA that it was subpar.

00:13:51.517 --> 00:14:04.163
Now, over the years, it has definitely gotten better, but there's still.

00:14:04.163 --> 00:14:04.746
It's a matter of who you get.

00:14:04.746 --> 00:14:06.340
To some extent you might get somebody who's great.

00:14:06.340 --> 00:14:10.591
You might get somebody who's just trying to pass the time and hit a checkbox.

00:14:10.591 --> 00:14:13.989
It's all on who you get.

00:14:13.989 --> 00:14:26.241
And that question was asked to me and I said I just talked to my military compadres because they understand my military compadres, because they understand.

00:14:26.241 --> 00:14:37.071
Maybe sometime down the road I will make a an effort to go and actually talk to somebody, but that's that's how I deal with it.

00:14:37.071 --> 00:14:43.176
I'll talk to some old army buddies, yeah, yeah, and that's how I reconcile with that.

00:14:44.277 --> 00:14:44.496
Okay.

00:14:44.496 --> 00:14:57.432
So as far as if someone came to you and said you know, I did this thing while I was in and it's bothering me, maybe it's guilt, you know.

00:14:57.432 --> 00:15:06.918
Whatever the case may be, what advice would you have for them?

00:15:37.532 --> 00:15:50.097
Well, first off, I probably try to take them to scripture and try to findit information from people that I know who have gone and talked to them and see if you can gain that same type of results.

00:15:50.097 --> 00:16:09.966
Yeah, I think it's not that I'm against you talking to somebody, because in the last probably 10 years the term of mental health has been a big issue, especially with African-Americans.

00:16:09.966 --> 00:16:12.894
I think it's a big thing.

00:16:12.894 --> 00:16:23.984
There's a brother out of Detroit named Jason Wilson and he wrote a book called Cry Like a man and I would recommend that every brother read that book.

00:16:23.984 --> 00:16:25.326
It's a very powerful book.

00:16:25.326 --> 00:16:26.208
It's a quick read.

00:16:26.208 --> 00:16:33.666
When I read that book I hadn't read a book in I don't know how many years and I finished that book in a day and a half Very quick read.

00:16:34.773 --> 00:16:42.028
Yeah, I'm glad you recommended it to me, man, when you did last time I did read it.

00:16:42.028 --> 00:16:45.227
I recommend it as well.

00:16:45.227 --> 00:16:47.405
It's a great book.

00:16:50.322 --> 00:17:22.849
There's a lot of things we as brothers we deal with whether it's from your childhood and how you grew up and the traumas of parents and possibly grandparents which is passed down, and I think sometimes you may need to have those conversations to break a cycle so that the next generation doesn't have to deal with some of the things that they deal with.

00:17:24.512 --> 00:17:28.342
Okay, okay, okay.

00:17:28.342 --> 00:17:43.619
Well, as you go through your VA, I guess journey trying to get your, trying to get you know, achieve the goal there, which is, you know, the compensation you deserve, correct.

00:17:43.619 --> 00:18:06.256
One of the things you, if you haven't already experienced is and this is just an observation, it's a little bit off topic, but I find that the VA treatment for us is what I would call culturally tone deaf.

00:18:06.256 --> 00:18:20.226
It does not accommodate or account for what you just said, Things that we grew up with, we experienced or have been or have learned culturally.

00:18:20.981 --> 00:18:25.505
And let me add to that, the medical community in general.

00:18:25.505 --> 00:18:32.405
I would ask that, and when I say that I'm speaking from experience, okay, okay.

00:18:32.405 --> 00:18:38.468
So yeah, I would agree 100% with your statement about the VA.

00:18:38.468 --> 00:18:48.040
Yes, most definitely, but I think the medical facility community in general Right, yeah, but I think the medical facility community in general, right, yeah, no, you're absolutely right.

00:18:48.060 --> 00:19:02.936
And in terms of you know the topic of moral injury, specifically military moral injury, again, the VA recognizes it.

00:19:02.936 --> 00:19:06.189
The VA recognizes that it is an issue.

00:19:06.189 --> 00:19:23.211
The treatment, however, is one I think, just from experience, does not accommodate our culture and in fact, again, you know you have yet to go.

00:19:23.211 --> 00:19:32.852
I don't want to taint your view, but as you go through it you may notice, like I personally, here in Atlanta, I went through the trauma recovery program.

00:19:32.852 --> 00:19:39.932
Okay, personally, again, I don't want to knock it, but I thought it did more harm than good.

00:19:39.932 --> 00:19:41.878
Okay, but I thought it did more harm than good.

00:19:43.500 --> 00:20:19.785
Okay, because you know just to and this is not about me, but since we're talking about it, I'll just say very quickly that my experience was that there were several times when the facilitator, who I assume mental health professional to what degree, I don't know psychiatrist, psychologist, counselor, don't know would be leading a session and say you know they give you these scenarios and ask you how you would respond.

00:20:19.785 --> 00:20:22.809
How do you think you should respond in this situation?

00:20:22.809 --> 00:20:25.433
What do you think should happen?

00:20:25.433 --> 00:20:26.640
How should you feel?

00:20:26.640 --> 00:20:38.102
And time and time again, those of us in the room, who looked like me, who looked like us, seemed to be getting the answers wrong.

00:20:38.102 --> 00:20:41.886
And after a while, you know how it is.

00:20:41.886 --> 00:20:57.494
You start looking around the room like really you know, you make that eye contact like you know, like nah, and then finally someone spoke up and said, no, not where we grew up, not where I grew up, you know, kind of thing.

00:20:57.494 --> 00:21:02.790
That's not how we think of that or respond to that or what have you.

00:21:03.412 --> 00:21:06.125
And so yeah, there are cultural differences.

00:21:07.388 --> 00:21:17.994
Right, but the suggested way of thinking that came to us leaned towards a culture that was not ours.

00:21:17.994 --> 00:21:25.151
Yeah, and I don't know what happens in other classes or sessions or what have you, but the one we were in.

00:21:25.151 --> 00:21:38.873
Someone spoke up, and so it just makes me think about the thousands of soldiers or veterans that go through that and that are just forced to accept this is your treatment.

00:21:38.873 --> 00:21:41.365
This is how you ought to think about this.

00:21:41.365 --> 00:21:43.250
Have a nice day.

00:21:43.250 --> 00:21:45.166
You made it through, you know?

00:21:45.166 --> 00:21:48.726
Yeah, and so, anyway, I just thought I would toss that out.

00:21:48.726 --> 00:21:56.224
Yeah, man, it's just something to think about so you may recognize that as you move forward in your, in your, in your journey.

00:21:56.224 --> 00:21:59.689
So, okay, so uh.

00:21:59.689 --> 00:22:00.569
The next topic.

00:22:00.569 --> 00:22:06.576
Next topic current events, man, current events.

00:22:06.576 --> 00:22:23.690
So, current event right now the new Trump administration I say new because he's not even been there but a few weeks yes, is dominating the news cycles.

00:22:23.690 --> 00:22:41.606
Trump is dominating the news cycles, but even before we get to Trump and the administration in your, opinion.

00:22:41.626 --> 00:22:43.492
How do you think Biden will be remembered before we slide into the new administration?

00:22:43.492 --> 00:22:45.136
As the saying goes, history will tell.

00:22:45.136 --> 00:23:03.911
I, at this point in time, with all of the years of government service he's had, whether you agree with everything he did or disagreed.

00:23:03.911 --> 00:23:59.587
Whether you agree with everything he did or disagreed, I think the lasting impression right now is that a elderly man whose facilities had waned and, for the good of the party, refused to step aside earlier, because I remember having this and this is not anything on anyone's age, because my father-in-law, god willing, will turn 95 on the 11th and you know he has some health issues right now, hearing whatever, but the mind, his mind is still sharp.

00:23:59.587 --> 00:24:02.728
Okay, it's still sharp.

00:24:02.728 --> 00:24:05.567
I've talked with all the people.

00:24:05.567 --> 00:24:08.507
My mom is 79.

00:24:08.507 --> 00:24:09.429
My uncle's 80.

00:24:09.429 --> 00:24:10.772
They're sharp.

00:24:10.772 --> 00:24:13.750
My mom will go out and walk three and a half four miles.

00:24:13.750 --> 00:24:15.325
Mine's still sharp.

00:24:18.221 --> 00:24:35.355
So I think currently it would be a elderly man whose facilities had decreased and should have more than likely stepped away prior to when he did.

00:24:35.355 --> 00:24:47.494
And I remember when he was elected, me and my sons maybe jokingly said I hope he makes it to inauguration.

00:24:47.494 --> 00:24:53.089
And this was back then right, cause we didn't know what, what.

00:24:53.089 --> 00:24:55.621
What happens if you know someone who's been elected.

00:24:55.621 --> 00:25:11.458
If you don't make it to the inauguration and we we joked about it, but we saw that you could look at him His facilities started to wane, right.

00:25:11.458 --> 00:25:14.588
So that's where I think it stands now.

00:25:14.588 --> 00:25:22.147
It may change in the future, but I think that's where it stands right now, right now.

00:25:22.167 --> 00:25:39.645
So moving forward to the current administration and everything that's happening, do you think Biden will catch some of the blame?

00:25:41.086 --> 00:25:42.348
I'm a person.

00:25:42.348 --> 00:25:46.994
I blame everyone on Capitol Hill and let me explain to you where I'm going with this.

00:25:46.994 --> 00:25:53.371
And I've been saying this this is not Monday, monday morning quarterback If I was to bring my, my family up in here.

00:25:53.371 --> 00:25:56.148
I've been talking about this for a long time.

00:25:56.148 --> 00:26:09.751
There's only two people I give a pass to, to that young girl on the under the Trump administration who came forward I forget her name and her friend who came to back her.

00:26:09.751 --> 00:26:15.692
She was the first one who came out, 22-year-old, and gave her testimony what she saw.

00:26:15.692 --> 00:26:17.942
Okay, her and her friend.

00:26:17.942 --> 00:26:20.089
Those are the only two people I give a pass to.

00:26:20.089 --> 00:26:27.260
I'm glad Liz Cheney and everybody else on that committee came forward and they did what was right, ok.

00:26:27.260 --> 00:26:31.320
I mean, you know, obviously you should do what was right, ok.

00:26:32.021 --> 00:26:32.323
OK.

00:26:32.343 --> 00:26:36.853
But Everyone knew what it was.

00:26:36.853 --> 00:26:43.990
Ok, whether you're a Democrat or Republican, I look at things from a different eye.

00:26:43.990 --> 00:26:48.381
I pick things out.

00:26:48.381 --> 00:26:49.324
I look at your history.

00:26:49.324 --> 00:26:54.385
So let me break down the history, the things that were done.

00:26:54.385 --> 00:27:16.191
As far as whether it's renting, we know about the Central Park Five he had with the fee for service schools that he did the his bankruptcy.

00:27:16.191 --> 00:27:27.711
I think he's had six and right now, if I want to go out and get a loan, I feel, because of where my credit is, I can go to any financial institution and get a loan.

00:27:28.011 --> 00:27:35.940
If I wanted to that's within my means he could not get a loan from any US financial institution.

00:27:35.940 --> 00:27:36.840
Let me say that again.

00:27:36.840 --> 00:27:37.922
Here's a suppose.

00:27:37.922 --> 00:28:02.380
A billionaire at that time, maybe a high multimillionaire could not receive maybe a high multimillionaire could not receive any financial backing from any US institution, and the institution that finally gave him back was Deutsche Bank, which has been riddled with penalties for the last 10, 15 years.

00:28:02.380 --> 00:28:13.681
So you have that.

00:28:13.681 --> 00:28:17.376
If you recall, when he was elected the first time, there was about, I believe, 20 individuals that when the security clearance background checks, came back.

00:28:17.376 --> 00:28:18.119
It came back with a hard no.

00:28:21.299 --> 00:28:21.560
A hard no.

00:28:21.560 --> 00:28:23.588
And you and I, because where we went to school, we both had security clearance.

00:28:23.588 --> 00:28:30.310
I've had a security clearance more of my life than I have not, and that's from secret all the way up to top secret with identifiers after that.

00:28:30.310 --> 00:28:35.132
Ok, so I've had, I've held, a security clearance more of my life than I have not.

00:28:35.132 --> 00:28:40.905
So that, and then I look at the people around them.

00:28:40.905 --> 00:28:43.608
How many people got convicted of something?

00:28:43.608 --> 00:28:46.332
People around him?

00:28:46.332 --> 00:28:53.000
How many people got convicted of something, of something and had to be pardoned?

00:28:55.480 --> 00:28:56.840
You look at whether it was what they say white collar crimes.

00:28:56.840 --> 00:28:57.201
There were crimes.

00:28:57.201 --> 00:29:02.503
The people around him that he's bringing into office or on a Supreme Court.

00:29:02.503 --> 00:29:09.767
There's sexual discrepancies around these people.

00:29:09.767 --> 00:29:36.336
You as a father, if your child you find is hanging with a person who has sexual discrepancies, other people that are getting in trouble, getting pulled over by the police and this, and that you're going to step in as a father and say, no, I don't want you around these folks.

00:29:36.336 --> 00:29:49.259
So I'm looking at all these things going on and it brings that saying birds of a feather flock together.

00:30:02.900 --> 00:30:07.809
You know, and there was a quote by Nikita Khrushchev, I think the late 50s, who said we will take down the US without firing one shot.

00:30:07.809 --> 00:30:17.680
And there was a KGB agent back in, I think, 84 who defected and he said we are going through what is called ideological subversion.

00:30:17.680 --> 00:30:42.528
And part of that first step is that, even though the information out there you can find and find the facts about it, you can lie and put disinformation out there and people they're not going to believe it, they're going to believe the disinformation.

00:30:42.528 --> 00:30:53.565
And that first step of that ideological subversion, that's something you go and read about it ideological subversion, Okay, and what it is.

00:30:53.565 --> 00:30:56.267
And I think that's matter of fact.

00:30:56.267 --> 00:30:58.384
We're past this stage, we're into the next stage.

00:30:59.560 --> 00:31:12.561
Because if you watch the debate, if he came on the TV and I'm debating, I'm saying hey, they're eating cats and dogs and there's no evidence of that.

00:31:12.561 --> 00:31:15.290
Everybody's saying it's not happening.

00:31:15.290 --> 00:31:17.104
Hey, they're eating cats and dogs.

00:31:17.104 --> 00:31:21.366
And people are like, yeah, he said it, they're eating cats and dogs.

00:31:21.366 --> 00:31:27.404
Hey, he says the moon is made of cheese, it really is.

00:31:27.404 --> 00:31:34.244
And people are like, well, he said the moon is made of cheese and if he said it, it is.

00:31:37.082 --> 00:31:43.776
So my thing, with all of this number one, control what you can control.

00:31:43.776 --> 00:31:47.702
With all of this number one, control what you can control.

00:31:47.702 --> 00:31:57.051
There's a saying the eye is a window to the soul, and it's almost based on scripture, but it's not really stated that way.

00:31:57.051 --> 00:31:59.693
It's like the light of the body is the eye.

00:31:59.693 --> 00:32:03.297
That's the first part of that verse the light of the body is the eye.

00:32:03.297 --> 00:32:08.261
So whatever you're bringing in in that's affecting you.

00:32:08.261 --> 00:32:10.365
I heard this brother on social media.

00:32:10.365 --> 00:32:28.594
He says your five senses affect you, whether it's what you're bringing through your eyes, your smell, your hearing, what you're listening to, the music that you're listening to, the things that you are online looking at, all of that affects you.

00:32:28.594 --> 00:32:41.994
So you have to temper that, Not saying be unaware of what's going on, but you have to temper the foolishness and control what you can control.

00:32:41.994 --> 00:32:46.471
This is a perfect example.

00:32:46.619 --> 00:32:51.612
I heard a brother say you should have different streams of income always coming in.

00:32:51.612 --> 00:33:15.031
And I do not as not to the point where I would be very comfortable, and I'm working on that be very comfortable and I'm working on that, but this is a perfect reminder that you know we should be talking to our kids hey, as you move through this world, make sure you have in different streams of income.

00:33:15.031 --> 00:33:16.135
You might have your, your regular job.

00:33:16.135 --> 00:33:18.622
But hey, get some real estate, get some rental properties.

00:33:18.622 --> 00:33:22.326
Um, do some trading in the stock market.

00:33:22.326 --> 00:33:28.455
Always have different things going, because this is ridiculous.

00:33:28.455 --> 00:33:33.932
I could tell you right now the public, you're not getting the whole story.

00:33:33.932 --> 00:33:39.151
It is far worse than what is being put out.

00:33:39.151 --> 00:33:43.087
It's far worse than what's being put out.

00:33:43.087 --> 00:33:52.471
Yeah, a wrathful man stirs up strife During the buildup even to the election.

00:33:53.339 --> 00:34:05.766
I think you had an individual who was very he felt he was highly slighted by the public.

00:34:05.766 --> 00:34:16.916
You know, started from the previous administration where he was impeached twice and then everyone bringing charges against him and getting him convicted.

00:34:16.916 --> 00:34:26.010
And I give him this one thing he said what he was going to do and he's doing it.

00:34:26.010 --> 00:34:30.110
A lot of people did not believe him.

00:34:30.110 --> 00:34:46.177
But when you get an individual who can be petty, who can be vengeful, who wants to get his get back, this is what you have.

00:34:46.177 --> 00:34:52.697
This is what you have when you slight someone.

00:34:52.697 --> 00:35:13.606
Sometimes, especially when you a person who is very prideful and feel that they're always the center of attention when they walk into a room and you can cut at them and you can get people to laugh at them.

00:35:13.606 --> 00:35:19.554
Yeah, they're going to want to get their get back and he's getting his get back.

00:35:19.693 --> 00:35:26.298
It's a perfect example of almost like Blitzkrieg, lightning war.

00:35:26.298 --> 00:35:49.302
You get hit with everything from each direction, or think about it of a great boxing match and you walk in there and say you walk into the ring with Mike Tyson at his height and he has you on the ropes and you know your corner is yelling counter, counter, cover up, counter, counter.

00:35:49.302 --> 00:35:52.335
But you're just getting it, he's just giving it to you.

00:35:52.335 --> 00:35:53.876
Ain't nothing you can do about it?

00:35:53.876 --> 00:35:55.054
That's what we're in right now.

00:35:55.054 --> 00:36:00.420
We're against the ropes, we're trying to cover up, but we're taking shots left and right.

00:36:01.530 --> 00:36:03.074
So what do you say, man, about?

00:36:03.074 --> 00:36:05.278
I mean everything you just said, right?

00:36:05.278 --> 00:36:12.643
What do you say to the diehards that just are like, I'm with them?

00:36:14.050 --> 00:36:14.311
Oh, okay.

00:36:14.311 --> 00:36:29.278
Well, in any organization you're going to have shortcomings of individuals or people we used to call in the military people who like to sham OK, they like to get over.

00:36:29.278 --> 00:36:31.210
In any organization.

00:36:31.210 --> 00:36:38.224
I could go to any organization, university, wherever and you're going to find that in every organization.

00:36:38.224 --> 00:36:43.331
But for the most part most government workers they do what they're supposed to do.

00:36:43.331 --> 00:36:46.458
For the most part, they do what they're supposed to do.

00:36:47.400 --> 00:36:58.579
What you need to be looking at are those individuals over those committees, that's, over those agencies, because the people know what the work has to be done.

00:36:58.579 --> 00:37:14.998
But anytime you have a change in administration, they're going to bring in their ideology and then you have to switch and the worker bees we just doing what we're instructed to do, because this is the vision of the new administration, this is the direction we have to move into.

00:37:14.998 --> 00:37:22.829
So for the people who are saying yeah, we need to do that, of course we need to streamline things.

00:37:22.829 --> 00:37:25.097
That's always that's in any business.

00:37:25.097 --> 00:37:28.920
You can always find ways to better what you're doing.

00:37:28.920 --> 00:37:38.625
So that aspect of it is not incorrect, but the way that you're going about it is very much incorrect.

00:37:39.346 --> 00:38:00.840
Okay, so a lot of people they might say that because they're not getting affected yet, but stand by because your mom or your grandma or somebody, if they start messing with social security or some type of aid or something, then you might get affected then.

00:38:00.840 --> 00:38:02.523
So be careful.

00:38:02.523 --> 00:38:10.382
Be careful when who you perceive as your enemy is down and you start to laugh at them.

00:38:10.382 --> 00:38:14.418
Let's God see that and turn that on you.

00:38:14.980 --> 00:38:31.840
Be very careful so the, I guess the move to end all of the um, all of the, the government dei programs and any references to them.

00:38:31.860 --> 00:38:32.501
what are your thoughts on that?

00:38:32.501 --> 00:38:33.786
It ain't affecting us.

00:38:33.786 --> 00:38:35.371
And when I say us, you know what I mean.

00:38:35.371 --> 00:38:41.344
I'm talking the people, because we could go back to affirmative action.

00:38:41.344 --> 00:38:46.661
And the studies show this number one white female.

00:38:46.661 --> 00:39:07.443
Then you have Latino white males, people with disabilities, the LGBTQ community and then there's us.

00:39:07.443 --> 00:39:17.438
But I think when DEI yeah, depending on the list, I've heard from fifth to seventh, but we're definitely not at the top.

00:39:17.438 --> 00:39:33.963
So, even to affirmative action again the people who actually benefited more were white females, because females are a minority and these are programs geared toward minorities, not black folks, just black folks.

00:39:33.963 --> 00:39:39.443
And I think when everybody says DEI, the first image is black people.

00:39:39.443 --> 00:39:40.853
I'll give you an example.

00:39:41.516 --> 00:39:53.731
If you're familiar with the last few years, the Asian community brought lawsuits because they felt that not enough of them were getting into the Ivy League schools.

00:39:53.731 --> 00:40:07.766
But I saw a report I think Yale, harvard, and I believe the other one was Princeton where the black acceptance rate for the past year was just about the same.

00:40:07.766 --> 00:40:15.324
I think Yale was probably 0.2% lower, but the other schools was just about the same.

00:40:15.324 --> 00:40:20.429
The acceptance rate for the Asians had actually dropped.

00:40:20.429 --> 00:40:22.293
The acceptance rate for the Asians had actually dropped.

00:40:22.293 --> 00:40:35.112
So instead of I think the report said, instead of going against affirmative action, it shouldn't have been affirmative action because there were, there was legacy people whose parents or grandparents had gone to the school and they gave them up to come into school.

00:40:35.112 --> 00:40:41.293
That was the higher percentage of people actually come getting into the school because of that legacy benefit.

00:40:42.715 --> 00:40:51.650
But with, I think with us you look back at our history we going to keep doing what we need to do.

00:40:51.650 --> 00:41:00.219
We always feel we have to do twice as much, three times as much to get some type of benefit, the same benefit.

00:41:00.219 --> 00:41:05.697
We're going to constantly do what we need to do, so we're not going to stop.

00:41:05.697 --> 00:41:14.302
So, whether you take this program away or that program away, if you're responsible, you're going to still teach your children about black history.

00:41:14.302 --> 00:41:32.480
Anytime our boys was coming up and they had to do a report, we always picked some person in black history for them to do the report on, so that if they were one of a few in the class, they were educating the students on this history.

00:41:32.480 --> 00:41:36.938
And I ain't talking, it wasn't just Martin or Banneker or anything.

00:41:36.938 --> 00:41:42.771
We picked somebody that you would not even really hear about for them to do a report on.

00:41:43.755 --> 00:41:44.036
You know.

00:41:44.036 --> 00:41:55.724
I think that's awesome and I think, in addition, one of the questions I have is why is it that you know in terms of history?

00:41:55.724 --> 00:42:03.583
Why do people from our community hold these ivy league schools in such high regard?

00:42:03.583 --> 00:42:05.233
Like, what is the?

00:42:05.233 --> 00:42:11.672
What is the draw to an ivy league school, specifically from an historical perspective?

00:42:11.672 --> 00:42:21.860
Because if you know how they started, yeah, my question is would you still be clamoring to get into this school knowing how it started?

00:42:22.302 --> 00:42:23.210
it's conditioning.

00:42:23.210 --> 00:42:37.914
Uh, think about the, the ugly doll test that comes up about every 20 years and the results are still the same.

00:42:37.914 --> 00:42:40.559
It's conditioning it.

00:42:40.559 --> 00:42:41.722
It's what's put out there.

00:42:41.722 --> 00:42:44.958
Light is right, black is bad.

00:42:45.110 --> 00:42:52.969
You know it's all conditioning, it's opening up doors.

00:42:52.969 --> 00:43:03.023
I could tell you my boys never wanted for anything but the connections they've made through their schools.

00:43:03.023 --> 00:43:05.846
My youngest went to Southern Cal, my oldest went to Vanderbilt.

00:43:05.846 --> 00:43:09.818
Those connections I couldn't give them.

00:43:09.818 --> 00:43:16.876
Okay, and opportunities.

00:43:16.936 --> 00:43:34.182
And when I say opportunities, opportunities in business and networking because young people realize once you get into school and yes, you have your degree and everything and you start to move up, then it becomes it's not about what you know, it's who you know, it's those relationships, it's those connections.

00:43:34.182 --> 00:43:38.974
And some of those schools hold high connections.

00:43:38.974 --> 00:43:48.025
If you're moving into the business world, like, say, if you're in investment banking, consulting, then those schools they have the connections to help you move up.

00:43:48.025 --> 00:44:10.880
So it's to answer your question, it's all about conditioning, not saying you can't go to a Morehouse or a Howard University, hu, you know, or Hampton or FAMU or Grambling or Jackson State, that you can't make it out of there, because there's a lot of people who've gone through those schools.

00:44:10.880 --> 00:44:15.181
One of Donovan's friends, he went to school with the SCs.

00:44:15.181 --> 00:44:19.481
Father went to Morehouse and he owns his own private equity firm.

00:44:19.481 --> 00:44:22.389
Father went to Morehouse and he owns his own private equity firm.

00:44:22.389 --> 00:44:25.014
So it's not saying you can't do it.

00:44:25.014 --> 00:44:44.423
But I think we probably feel that if we can go through those schools and you know that resume comes across someone's desk and they see the Harvard or Yale or or Penn you know it's going to be an easier move to get going.

00:44:45.431 --> 00:45:26.762
But I'm at the point where I think if these folks continue to double down and triple down and I thought we were going to actually see it Let me preface what I'm about to say with this I think we all it has been proven in society and business that when you get people from different facets of life, different cultures, and you bring them together, that you create an environment, a company that will excel exceedingly more if you do that.

00:45:26.762 --> 00:45:43.398
But with that said, my brother-in-law many years ago said to me that the ending of segregation hurt black people and I was like and at that time I was like man, what are you talking about?

00:45:43.398 --> 00:45:44.480
You don't know what you're talking about.

00:45:44.480 --> 00:45:45.449
Come on, man, what are you talking about?

00:45:46.329 --> 00:46:11.963
But in my years of living now and studying and understanding what his main point was, to summarize it, it was like when we had to go to each other if, brother Rose, if you were a tailor and I needed something tailored, I will come to you.

00:46:11.963 --> 00:46:16.775
That's building your business and I will always come to you.

00:46:16.775 --> 00:46:30.782
If I was a mechanic and you needed your car fix and I had to come here, then you'll build me and we're recirculating those dollars within our community.

00:46:31.864 --> 00:46:32.045
Right.

00:46:32.210 --> 00:46:33.632
And it was making us strong.

00:46:33.632 --> 00:46:46.083
We all know about Tulsa, Oklahoma, but there was more than Tulsa, Right, but there was more than Tulsa where there were many cities of black folk who were striving.

00:46:46.083 --> 00:46:48.731
And you remember when?

00:46:48.731 --> 00:46:58.407
I've always had this thought from the late 70s, late 70s, going all the way into early 2000s.

00:46:58.407 --> 00:46:59.036
I'll use this example all the way into early 2000s.

00:47:01.960 --> 00:47:24.603
I'll use this example the University of Miami has placed the most players into the NFL because a lot of the talent pool was coming from that dividing line which Schellenberger took from Orlando going to Tampa south, and those guys they recruited heavily to go to the University of Miami.

00:47:24.603 --> 00:47:45.289
Now think what if all of that talent had gone to, say, Grambling or Southern or Howard University or Hampton or Alabama State, Pick your HBCU.

00:47:45.289 --> 00:48:01.204
Imagine if that talent was either concentrated at one of those schools or distributed amongst the schools where those HBCUs because usually the primary white institutions they're earning between 20 to $50 million a year because of athletics.

00:48:01.204 --> 00:48:18.001
So instead of in in these national championship games, instead of seeing the Alabamas and the Georges and whoever, then you would have been seeing some of these other schools and I don't know.

00:48:18.090 --> 00:48:25.418
Well, I think, though, what so wouldn't that same argument be made that you made a minute ago regarding the connections?

00:48:25.989 --> 00:48:26.592
Yeah, I.

00:48:26.592 --> 00:48:33.478
But you see, I think what happens at HBCUs we don't have the resources.

00:48:33.478 --> 00:48:55.661
When my boys were going to school, I remember touring Alabama because obviously at that time we were living in Alabama and their dorms that were, let's say, five years old looked way better than some of the dorms if you went to HBCU, I mean, and they still looked new.

00:48:55.661 --> 00:49:07.362
The alumni I think she was from General Dynamics, I, she was from General Dynamics, I believe it was General Dynamics or Lockheed, I can't remember she had given the school like $15 million.

00:49:07.362 --> 00:49:13.240
Hbcus aren't getting money in like that.

00:49:14.811 --> 00:49:22.018
If you go on the university and I'm not picking on Alabama, I'm just using an example If you go onto that campus, it's a beautiful campus.

00:49:22.018 --> 00:49:26.860
If you go into any of the facilities, it's awesome.

00:49:26.860 --> 00:49:42.512
Well, with services, finances bring services and I try to point this out to my sons I would be driving around and we'll go through a more affluent neighborhood.

00:49:42.512 --> 00:49:47.954
I said look what you see here, look at the walk paths, look at the shops that you have.

00:49:47.954 --> 00:50:11.164
When you go into certain stores, look, look what you have Cash, those quick cash places, liquor stores, fast food joints, you know, because they don't have the resources to come forth.

00:50:11.164 --> 00:50:18.047
I noticed during COVID I'm online and people saying man, we ain't getting stuff.

00:50:18.047 --> 00:50:19.728
And I walked in this store.

00:50:21.510 --> 00:50:43.592
I don't know if y'all have this store called Sprouts, it's like a farmer's market thing, and you know the regular grocery stores, you walked in, their shelves were bare, I was like man, I was coming from Costco, my Costco run, because I was the only one going out during that time getting stuff and I stepped in Sprouts man, do you know when?

00:50:43.592 --> 00:50:44.677
I walked in that door.

00:50:45.358 --> 00:50:46.141
I looked to the back.

00:50:46.141 --> 00:50:56.202
All the greens and the vegetables, everything was loaded up, all the shelves were packed, because it's in a place called Colleyville, texas, right now.

00:50:56.202 --> 00:50:58.230
So Colleyville, it has money.

00:50:58.230 --> 00:51:03.320
It's South Lake, colleyville, grapevine, you know, these places have money.

00:51:04.530 --> 00:51:15.240
So I walked in I said look at this here I'll say this A lot of people complain about egg prices because I believe I'm in a red state.

00:51:15.240 --> 00:51:23.317
I walk into the Brookshires, yeah, the prices are a little elevated, but I guarantee you I ain't been paying no prices that I've seen on TV.

00:51:23.317 --> 00:51:24.217
That's for sure.

00:51:24.217 --> 00:51:27.784
That is for sure.

00:51:29.929 --> 00:51:31.052
Sprouts look sprouts.

00:51:31.052 --> 00:51:33.197
Even smells different when you walk through it.

00:51:33.197 --> 00:51:34.722
Man it smells fresh.

00:51:37.769 --> 00:51:39.431
It's totally different, man, so I tried to explain them.

00:51:39.431 --> 00:51:50.795
Hey, when you have, when you're at a financial level, you get different type of services, and this is what you're seeing right now.

00:51:50.795 --> 00:52:03.260
Just about everybody in this cabinet are billionaires, except for, I think, three individuals and a lot of the things going on.

00:52:03.260 --> 00:52:13.818
They're going to appease to their base, which is that class of people.

00:52:13.818 --> 00:52:15.855
We're not in the same class.

00:52:17.559 --> 00:52:44.364
So the Elon and his chainsaw right like just just cutting and firing all these federal employees, like I saw some stat today, um 30 percent of all federal employees are veterans and so in the last six weeks he's fired more veterans than anyone in history, any president previously in history.

00:52:44.364 --> 00:52:46.637
So what are your thoughts on that?

00:52:49.251 --> 00:52:50.056
You better be careful.

00:52:50.056 --> 00:52:54.918
It might get uncomfortable for him to walk around now.

00:52:54.918 --> 00:53:19.181
But I'm kidding, but I'm really not kidding Because a lot of these we've been at war since Deadest Shield, deadest Storm Guys have done multiple tours in Afghanistan, iraq and veterans count on their benefits more than likely, they count on their jobs to support.

00:53:19.181 --> 00:53:25.016
And you might get guys who you know, who might be walking a tightrope.

00:53:25.016 --> 00:53:54.121
And I'm not trying to bring any disparage or anything on anybody, but be careful because you got guys who are very experienced in combat who are on a bubble and it's a shame man.

00:53:54.121 --> 00:53:59.733
Most veterans they come in here they're trying to do their work, they're trying to live.

00:53:59.733 --> 00:54:03.931
They're trying to do their work, they're trying to live, man, they're trying to live Now.

00:54:03.971 --> 00:54:13.425
Think about that's already been done Now the pending 80,000 from the VA by August or something.

00:54:16.916 --> 00:54:17.980
That's a lot of people, man.

00:54:17.980 --> 00:54:19.550
That's a lot of people, man.

00:54:19.550 --> 00:54:38.820
And I know veterans complain about certain services as far as, especially on the benefit side, and if you cut that and you're already having issues, you're creating a kettle that's about to blow.

00:54:38.820 --> 00:54:43.418
A lot of the firings may be not hearing.

00:54:43.418 --> 00:54:44.795
Some people had to be brought back.

00:54:44.795 --> 00:54:57.021
There was a lady who had to be brought back, a high-ranking person over I forget the agency, but a judge ruled she had to be brought back.

00:54:57.021 --> 00:55:01.237
The nuclear regulatory agency.

00:55:01.237 --> 00:55:06.478
You saw folks who were removed and had to be brought back.

00:55:06.478 --> 00:55:17.376
So there's no particular rhyme or reason how they're doing this.

00:55:17.376 --> 00:55:31.780
It's just like, well, I don't know, let's remove all these people because there's been no information put out there that shows okay, this is why we release all these people.

00:55:31.780 --> 00:55:33.695
Here's the cost savings.

00:55:35.519 --> 00:55:36.952
None of that has been done.

00:55:38.717 --> 00:55:40.411

Veterans of Color: Navigating Faith, Service, and Identity in America with Gregory Henry

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Veterans of Color: Navigating Faith, Service, and Identity in America with Gregory Henry