Welcome, welcome, welcome. This is the Straction Pieces Podcast episode 450 and it's a bonus Friday episode and it's a really important one.

I've titled it accountability in activism because that's kind of the topic.

My guess this week is the amazing Lisa Simpson, the mother of Richard Risher who was shot and killed by LAPD officers at the age of 18.

And that murder was one of the things that really pushed the Black Lives Matter movement to the levels that we've seen it to grow to.

And you may have seen in the news, I mean we recorded this a few weeks back but since we recorded this we recorded about a month ago now but since recording.

There's been articles in all the major news outlets like the Guardian all over the place about the facts or questions over how the founders of Black Lives Matter, the organisation, have been spending the money.

And there's been big question marks over that with like eight million dollar mansions being bought and stuff like that. And Lisa is someone who's been rallying against this for some time now because as you'll hear as we speak she feels that she's been very much mistreated that her son's death has been exploited.

And man is it a delicate subject particularly for a white male in England, you know, I'm so detached from it but that doesn't mean you have to sit these discussions out or these fights out.

And I had Patrice Colours, one of the people who are in a coming into question in all of this on the podcast when Black Lives Matter were blowing up and doing amazing things I want to highlight that this is a nuanced situation.

There's been amazing things done but Black Lives Matter, the movement I still have very much support the sentiment obviously I support but the movement I support but maybe some areas of the organisation need further scrutiny and as said I felt if nothing else I gave Patrice Colours a platform I need to give voices like Lisa Simpson a platform who aren't getting book deals aren't getting Netflix deals aren't getting on TV all the time.

I want TV all the time to tell their story as an independent podcast and an independent platform.

Yeah, I kind of felt responsibility to hand this platform over to people who are feeling that they've had injustices done against them.

I want to give thanks to Thunderbird Gerard for hooking this up for introducing me to Miss Simpson and arranging this conversation.

I want to give you some energy in advance we had to do this over zoom the in-room recording didn't work so the quality isn't as usual standard but it maintains you know thankfully we had a good signal and Miss Simpson's passion comes across comfortably.

I needed to ride that appropriately you know because I want to one pick this fuck the podcast podcast aside I want to kind of figure this all out in my head because as we discuss in this there's people I would consider enemies of what I believe in who will be wanting Black Lives Matter pulled down drag to the ground.

I kind of accusations of them being a violent dangerous movement. I don't stand with those accusations. I think violence is often understandable sometimes necessary always a last choice but not necessarily not on the list.

Anyway, I'm getting into this too much now I want you to I want Lisa to tell her story and I want to know what you guys think I guess or at least I want you to listen to what Lisa has to say yeah it's a big big subject so let's just get into it and then we'll have a little outro and kind of think at the end.

Yeah this is episode 450 of the distraction pieces podcast with Lisa Simpson demanding accountability in activism.

Right I'm joined today by Lisa Simpson how are you today?

Okay, how are you today? I'm good I'm good it's been a weird few years for everyone right have you been holding up in these in these more than unusual times.

I'm trying to hold up is just so much going on. It's so much going on so you know I'm trying to keep a level here there's so much going on with my son of case. Yeah I'm trying to keep a level here there's people some of these some weird people.

Well let's talk about all that because I want to discuss your your issues that you've had with the black lives matter organization specifically as well with a previous guest on this podcast Patrice Colours but to get there I guess I need you to kind of lead us on your journey a little bit so.

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