Black woman calls 'Rush Limbaugh Show' with message for her community: America, police, white people are not our problem, ‘We are our problem!’



A black woman called into the "Rush Limbaugh Show" Thursday to deliver a passionate message to fellow black Americans, urging them to disavow the victim mentality that blames white people, systemic racism, and police for all the problems in the black community.

What did she say?

The caller, who identified herself as Joyce from Houston, began the segment by commenting on the conclusion of the Derek Chauvin trial. She said that while she believed Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, should be held responsible for his role in George Floyd's death, she was convinced he could not get a fair trial.

On Tuesday, a 12-person jury in Minneapolis pronounced Chauvin guilty of murder and manslaughter for his actions, which included kneeling on Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes despite Floyd's complaints of "I can't breathe."

Joyce didn't stay on the subject of the trial for very long, however, but instead quickly transitioned into a plea to the black community to stop blaming others for the problems that routinely plague black Americans.

"I am so sick and tired of this 'systemic racism,'" Joyce exclaimed. "There are no organized conspiracies to keep blacks down. There are pockets of bigotry for sure. But they're not powerful enough to keep you down if you have some get-up-and-go about yourself.

"And I hear this constantly. I live in the most dangerous neighborhood in Houston, the sixth in the nation, and we constantly talk about racism. 'Who is keeping us down?'" she continued. "I get so tired of telling my people, 'The old rich white Republicans [are] not our problem. We are our problem' — and until we face the fact that we are our own worst enemies, nothing is gonna change!"

Joyce then lamented the number of black Americans in her community who have been assaulted and murdered, but who have not received any attention from politicians or the media. But everyone knows Floyd's name, she said, taking a dig at Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

"Ask my congresswoman, Sheila Jackson Lee," if she knows their names, Joyce suggested, then claiming that Lee would not be able to recite their names.

"But I tell you one thing, she sure know about Floyd," she said.

(Joyce's comments begin at the 1:03:44 mark in the widget posted below.)

What else?

Joyce then challenged the notion that America is fundamentally racist and an inherently dangerous place for people of color.

"I have traveled out of this country several times and I want to say to the blacks [that are] listening that you're so angry and you come up with this fake racism and every scene. That's not our problem. There's no better place for us, and you're gonna sit here and allow people to use you as pawns to mess up what's best for you today," she said. "There is no better place for us, and I am tired of you blaming someone else.

"In our community, one of the main reasons that these young people are getting shot and killed, [is] because they didn't have — and especially these young black men — they didn't have no dads in the home," she argued.

Joyce then recalled something she often heard from fellow black Americans during former President Barack Obama's time in the Oval Office.

"When Obama was in the White House, all in my community just, 'Oh, we are so blessed! We have a black man in the White House,'" she remembered. "I said, 'We need to a black man in the black house!'" referring to fatherless black kids.

Instead of being taught to respect authority by their fathers, too many young black kids are taught from a young age to hate the police, she argued.

"There are few bad policemen, but basically the policeman is out there to do a job to protect us," Joyce said. "And I get so tired of, 'Oh, they arrest more blacks than they do whites.' Well, hell, we do more crime! So what are they gonna do, just let us go?"

"We have got to change," she concluded.

Derek Chauvin being kept in solitary confinement for 23 hours per day at max security prison



Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin was moved to the state's highest-security prison, where he is in solitary confinement for 23 hours out of the day.

A jury pronounced Chauvin guilty Tuesday on all counts in George Floyd's death in May after roughly 10 hours of deliberation.

What are the details?

According to a Wednesday Forbes report, Chauvin was transported to the Minnesota Correctional Facility-Oak Park Heights following the verdict and was immediately moved to an isolated wing of the prison.

The outlet reported that Chauvin will be alone in his cell — which contains a bench, mattress pad, shower, and toilet-sink combination — 23 out of 24 hours per day. Chauvin will be permitted to exercise during the hour he is allowed out of his cell.

"The isolated cells, which hold around 41 inmates, are closely monitored by prison guards, who are expected to check on prisoners 'at least' every 30 minutes," Forbes added. "[I]nmates are also monitored by a mental health professional if they are in the cells for more than 30 days."

The prison, which is about 25 miles east of Minneapolis, is considered "one of the safest for high-risk offenders as the prison has never had an escape, and only one homicide," the outlet reported.

In a statement to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Minnesota Department of Corrections spokesperson Sarah Fitzgerald said, "Administrative segregation is used when someone's presence in the general population is a safety concern."

What else?

Chauvin will remain at the maximum-security facility at least until sentencing, which is set to take place in June.

The jury — which consisted of five men and seven women — unanimously pronounced Chauvin guilty on all three charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter on Tuesday afternoon. The charges carry penalties of up to 40 years, 25 years, and 10 years in prison, respectively.

Chauvin's defense team is expected to appeal the convictions.

BREAKING: Jury pronounces former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all charges in George Floyd killing



After roughly ten hours of deliberation, a 12-person jury considering charges of murder and manslaughter against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has delivered its long-awaited verdict.

What are the details?

Tuesday afternoon, the jury of five men and seven women unanimously pronounced Chauvin guilty on all three charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter.

Following the proceedings, Chauvin was immediately taken into police custody. He now awaits sentencing from Judge Peter A. Cahill for each of the charges, which carry penalties of up to 40 years, 25 years, and 10 years in prison, respectively.

The actual sentencing, however, will likely be much lower since Chauvin has no prior convictions. Minnesota's sentencing guidelines recommend 12 years in prison for each murder charge and four years for a manslaughter charge. The prosecution is expected, however, to ask for sentencing enhancements.

What's the background?

While performing an arrest, Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes to restrain him while Floyd, suspected of using a counterfeit bill, begged for the officer to release him from the hold.

Floyd, who later died, was heard repeatedly saying in video of the incident, "Please, I can't breathe."

Of immense import during the trial was Floyd's manner of death. Dr. Andrew Baker, the chief medical examiner who performed an autopsy on Floyd officially determined his cause of death to be "cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression."

But in the report, Baker added that significant conditions included "fentanyl intoxication" and "recent methamphetamine use," in addition to "Arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease."

What else?

News of the Floyd's death spread rapidly on social media last May and the incident immediately became a lighting rod for outrage over racial injustice and police brutality, sparking violent protests and riots across the country and around the world.

Floyd's death also reignited the Black Lives Matter movement in America and has prompted activists to call for a reckoning over alleged systemic racial oppression in the country.

The defense team is expected to appeal the convictions.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.