Civic Cipher

Send us a Text Message. In the first half of today's episode, we discuss the appropriate way to approach and celebrate Juneteenth...especially for non-Black people. We discuss the increased attention and celebrations of the newly founded federal holiday (as well as some examples of things that feel offensive). Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja C...

Send us a Text Message. In the second half of today's show, we finally broached the topic of reparations. We outline some of the less obvious 'whys' in terms of how it makes sense. We also take the time to perform another  thought experiment that helps you to understand how simply acknowledging that the harm of slavery can be beneficial.  Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow...

Send us a Text Message. In the first half of today's episode, we ponder how the insurrection on January 6, 2021 would be different if there were Black protesters or a Black president...and how things would have played out differently in terms of culpability of the former president. We make it a point to explain how the country has changed as a result of this and what the impact on marginalize...

Send us a Text Message. In the second half of today's show, we begin to address the real issue of the day which is guns. We talk about how the narrative is constantly being shifted away from the real solutions and that there are many distractions that pull folks away from key focal points of the topic of gun control. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ram...

Send us a Text Message. In the first half of today's episode, we discussed the several mass shooting incidents that took place over the past week and weekend. We use the time to establish the extent of gun violence in this country and to breathe life into some stories that didn't reach the same extent as the Uvalde and Buffalo shootings. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @...

Send us a Text Message. In the second half of today's show, we discuss a story where Q's son was almost kidnapped. He immediately called the police and got the full experience of exactly what could be done about his child's near-kidnapping. This prompted us to rethink the role of police in society and to ask whether or not they actually prevent crime and keep us safe.  Support the S...

Send us a Text Message. In the first half of today's episode, we discussed the articles that have since come out about the shooting in Uvalde Texas. We discussed how the police stood outside of the school while the children were being murdered. We use this as an opportunity to reexamine the myths surrounding policing in society and to rethink their role. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com...

Send us a Text Message. In the second half of the show, we detail some other shootings and try to make sense of the problem by discussing what can be done with guns. We also pay special attention to the fact that May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and dedicate the Way Black History Fact to it. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja...

Send us a Text Message. Today we are visited by Adonijah Taylor...a first grade graduate and our baby boy. We have a heavy conversation about school shootings and explain the world he lives in to him. We obviously spend a considerable amount of time discussing the tragedy in Uvalde, TX at Robb Elementary School. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja Cons...

Send us a Text Message. In the second half of the show, we discuss the motivation of the shooter, as well as some of the sources of the general White supremacist ideologies. We also grapple with the fact that the armed shooter was taken alive when that is often not the case for Black people who are themselves unarmed. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesj...

Send us a Text Message. We spend this week reflecting on last week's mass shooting in Buffalo, NY that left 10 dead in a predominantly African-American community. In the first half of the show, we say the names of the individuals who lost their lives and we review what happened during the shooting at the Top's Grocery Store.  Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher...

Send us a Text Message. Today, we spent both halves of the show discussing the video of the execution of Quadry Sanders at the hands of two Oklahoma police officers. This episode is dedicated to the last few moments of another unarmed Black man's life. We grapple with the fear and hurt that ripples through the country each time this happens and discuss things as they are. Support the Show. ww...

Send us a Text Message. The second part of the show has to do with some video arrests of Black children. We bring up important points on what life is like as a Black child. Furthermore, we discuss how America--especially the criminal justice system--interacts with Black youth and the traumas it creates. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja Consideration...

Send us a Text Message. This week, we start off by asking about the increase in officers in a few cities around the country failing to make any significant dent in crime...either preventing them or solving them. We ask some important questions to ensure that we are all thinking critically about public safety. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja Conside...

Send us a Text Message. The second part of the show deals with the discriminatory lending practices identified by civil rights attorney Ben Crump. Our Way Black History Fact is about how Charlie from The Chocolate Factory was originally Black and was later whitewashed from the pages of the story. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja Consideration for to...

Send us a Text Message. Forgive the Zoom audio this week...but we felt the show was important and wanted to record it despite the distance. In the first part of the show, we discuss how media companies manipulate data and other facts to establish and maintain a false narrative or an otherwise limited view of a given topic. The example we use this week is Fox News. Support the Show. www.civiccipher...

Send us a Text Message. The second part of the show deals with a story that doesn't surprise us...and wouldn't surprise many Black folks. We tell the story of Darryl Howard and how the criminal justice system got almost every point of his story wrong...and then failed to acknowledge it. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja Consideration for to...

Send us a Text Message. The first part of this week's show is dedicated to the Black Congolese refugee Patrick Lyoya who was shot in the back of the head by a Grand Rapids police officer. We take the time to examine the reasons why it may have happened, and offer some potential reasons how it got to the point of his death. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqwar...

Send us a Text Message. The second part of today's program deals with housing discrimination and the numerous challenges Black and Brown people face when seeking shelter. Our Way Black History Fact is dedicated to Ruby Bridges...a child that had to be escorted to school by U.S. Marshalls to desegregate a school in the deep south. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @...

Send us a Text Message. The first part of this week's show follows up with a few stories that we told in the past year. One is of a Karen that assaulted a 14-year-old Black child in a hotel lobby falsely believing that he had stolen her phone. The second is of officers in Buffalo, NY pushing an elderly man to the ground fracturing his skull, and the third is a story about a police tactic that...

Send us a Text Message. The second part of today's program peels back some of the layers from a viral video of a Black Ft. Lauderdale hotel clerk who called the police on one of his drunken guests...only to be arrested himself by the very police he thought would come to help. Our Way Black History Fact is about the Harlem Hellfighters...a story you don't want to miss! Support the Show. w...

Send us a Text Message. The first part of this week's show deals with the lack of charges brought against the officers responsible for killing Amir Locke. Locke was killed in a no-knock raid earlier this year, and many were hoping that his death would be answered for...we provide our reaction to his and other deaths from no-knock raids. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicC...

Send us a Text Message. The second part of today's 'Entertainment Episode' focuses on similar incidents of conflict in the Black community when it is on display for the world to see. We discuss rap beefs, viral fight videos, and even a bit more about Chris Rock and Will Smith. Our Way Black History Fact is dedicated to Hattie McDaniel...the first Black person to win an Oscar. Suppor...

Send us a Text Message. The first half of this week's 'Entertainment Episode' is dedicated to our reactions to the assault on Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars by Will Smith. We use this segment to explain the weight this moment has on Black people which we believe to be heavier than for non-Black people. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja...

Send us a Text Message. The second part of the show focuses on the passing of the CROWN Act by the House of Representatives. This bill protects traditionally Black hairstyles from discrimination...we discuss how important it is and what it means to us personally. Support the Show. www.civiccipher.com Follow us: @CivicCipher @iamqward @ramsesja Consideration for today's show was provided by: M...