Revenge Killing? Was Trey Reed Murdered Over Charlie Kirk's Death?

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No tears for black girls when
they disappear, No tears for

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black girls like they were never
here, but we remember will speak

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their names.
A 21 year old student was found

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hanging from a tree in
Cleveland, Ms. It's at a

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university called Delta State
University in Cleveland.

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They found him early in the
morning about 7:00 hanging from

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a tree.
They're saying at this point

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there's no foul play, but folks
are calling for investigations

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and I think they need to get to
the bottom.

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This guy's name is DeMar Trevion
Tre Reed.

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He's from Grenada, Ms. Everyone
they spoke to said he was a

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great guy.
He lit up a room and so why was

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he hanging from a tree?
What happened?

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That's what we need to know,
whether it's foul play or not.

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Forget all the Charlie Curry
situation right now.

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Let's go down to Mississippi.
The name Trayvon Reed needs to

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the ring all over the United
States right now.

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One that is my cousin 2 This is
the second incident that has

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occurred within the last five
years at this step campus.

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Delta State University has had a
run in with me and their

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policemen.
They tried to lock me up for no

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reason and it didn't succeed in
their favor.

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I went on a nine month probation
and that's it.

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This year, just today it was
reported that my cousin was

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found hanging from a tree and
they trying to rule it as a

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suicide.
Now I just got off the phone

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with one of my cousins.
She said she seen the reports

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and it said that he was beating
and bruised.

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He both his arms are broken and
he had a broken leg.

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I'm gonna let child.
I'm gonna let child do the math.

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Now this school has history for
being racist.

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Even going all the way back to
the 1980s situation that

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happened with sit in.
I love to refer to that

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situation because that was one
of the significant situations

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that happened with one of the
black revolts that happened at

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their school.
But still, I'm trying to be

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composed in this video and I'm
trying to keep it all together,

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but it's a lot of shit that
happens on that campus that

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don't nobody do shit about.
It was incidents before my

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incidents.
My big incident happened in that

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I reported that nobody did
nothing about.

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Somebody tried to report me for
a hate crime and they was the

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one being homophobic,
transphobic and being racist,

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and they was trying to lock me
up until I had multiple people

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come out and speak against him.
There was an incident that I

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reported that it was a group of
white students in a white truck

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while I was a freshman.
They yo, they, me and my friends

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are called us a bunch of
monkeys.

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Please do a deep 5 on this.
Please please please please do

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your research on this.
Do not let them sweep nothing

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else under the rug.
Enough is enough.

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It is 2025 and bullshit after
bullshit after bullshit is still

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getting fed to us.
Enough is enough.

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We got to wrap it up.
The morning mist clung to the

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Delta State University campus
like a shroud, thick and

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suffocating in the September
heat.

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At 7 O 5:00 AM on Monday,
September 15th, 2025, the

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silence was shattered by a
discovery that would echo

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through the corridors of justice
for months to come.

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A faculty member making their
routine walk across the central

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campus near the pickleball
courts found what would become

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one of Mississippi's most
controversial deaths in decades.

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Hanging from an ancient oak
tree, in full view of anyone

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passing through the heart of the
university was the lifeless body

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of Demartravian Trey Reed, 21
years old, Black, a first year

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student who had been on campus
for barely a month.

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His body swayed gently in the
morning breeze, a grotesque

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pendulum marking time in a state
where such scenes carried the

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weight of centuries of racial
terror.

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But this wasn't 1955.
This was 2025, in an America

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that claimed to have moved
beyond its darkest chapters yet.

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Here in Cleveland, Ms., a town
whose very name seemed to mock

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the promise of progress, another
young black man was found

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hanging from a tree.
The symbolism was impossible to

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ignore, the timing too
convenient to dismiss as mere

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coincidence.
Just five days earlier, on

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September 10th, Charlie Kirk had
been gunned down at Utah Valley

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University.
Kirk, the 31 year old founder of

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Turning Point USA, had spent his
career building a conservative

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youth movement that critics
argued was little more than a

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pipeline for white supremacist
ideology dressed in patriotic

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rhetoric.
His assassination had sent shock

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waves through the far right
ecosystem he had helped create,

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with his widow Erica Kirk
declaring that her tears would

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be battle cries, war terminology
that seemed to promise

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retaliation.
Within hours of Kirk's death,

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Turning Point USA reported
receiving over 13,000 new

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chapter requests.
The organization already boasted

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9000 college chapters and 4000
high school chapters.

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What were these people gearing
up for?

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The answer may have come in the
form of Trey Reed's lifeless

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body.
The family's last conversation

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with Trey painted a picture of a
young man excited about his

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future.
His mother had spoken to him on

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Friday, September 13th, just
three days before his death.

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He was enthusiastic about
attending Delta State

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University, looking forward to
his classes, embracing the

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college experience that so many
young people dream of.

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This wasn't a young man on the
edge of despair.

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This was someone with everything
to live for.

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Yet by Monday morning, he was
dead, hanging from a tree in the

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most public part of campus where
every student walking to class

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would see him.
The location was crucial, not

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some remote corner where someone
contemplating suicide might seek

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privacy, but the central campus
near the pickleball courts, a

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high traffic area where his body
would be discovered quickly and

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seen by many.
Delta State University Police

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Chief Michael Peeler was quick
to announce at a press

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conference that there was no
evidence of foul play.

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The Bolivar County Coroner's
Office released a statement

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claiming that a preliminary
examination showed Reed did not

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suffer any lacerations,
contusions, compound fractures,

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broken bones or injuries
consistent with an assault.

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But the family wasn't buying it.
Neither were civil rights

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advocates who understood the
historical context of Black

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bodies hanging from trees in
Mississippi.

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The NOLACP posted an image
declaring that a man was lynched

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yesterday, expressing skepticism
about the official narrative,

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the organization wrote
pointedly.

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Our people have not historically
hung themselves from trees.

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The family's response spoke
volumes about their suspicions.

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Within 24 hours, they had
retained civil rights attorney

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Ben Crump, the same lawyer who
had represented the families of

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George Floyd, Brianna Taylor and
countless other victims of

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racial violence.
Crump announced that he would

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lead a civil rights
investigation into Reed's death,

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working with multiple
organizations to conduct a

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thorough and transparent
investigation.

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Trey Reed was a young man full
of promise and warmth, deeply

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loved and respected by all who
knew him, Crump's statement

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read.
His family and the campus

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community deserve a full,
independent investigation to

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uncover the truth about what
happened.

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We cannot accept vague
conclusions when so many

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questions remain.
The family also demanded an

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independent autopsy, refusing to
accept the coroner's preliminary

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findings.
Attorney Vanessa J Jones,

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representing the Reed family,
made it clear they weren't

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satisfied with the official
narrative.

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We will seek answers
independently from Delta State

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University and from the
coroner's office.

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Jones declared.
Were there cameras?

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There should have been cameras
at the university that could

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easily enlighten us to what
happened in the early morning of

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September 15th, 2025.
The camera question was crucial

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In 2025.
Virtually every inch of a

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college campus is under
surveillance.

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If Reed had walked to that tree
alone and taken his own life,

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there would be video evidence.
If someone had forced him there,

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that too would be captured on
camera.

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The family's insistence on
seeing this footage suggested

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they believed it would tell a
different story than the one

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authorities were promoting.
But there were other troubling

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details emerging from the
investigation.

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Reports surfaced that Reed had
faced racial incidents on campus

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before his death.
Social media posts alleged that

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Reed had been locked up at Delta
State University and had faced

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racist violence, citing past
incidents of racial bias against

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him at the university.
These allegations painted a

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picture of a young man under
siege, targeted because of his

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race in an environment that
should have been safe.

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The family described Trey as
quiet, light, sweet and well

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mannered.
A young man who would give you

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the world if he could.
They had celebrated with him at

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Grenada Day in his hometown on
September 3rd, just 12 days

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before his death.
He was there, little quiet

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light, a beacon of hope and
promise in a family that had

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invested everything in his
education and future.

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The timing of Reed's death was
particularly suspicious.

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His body was discovered on the
same day Delta State University

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was supposed to celebrate its
100th anniversary.

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Instead of Centennial
festivities, the campus was

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plunged into mourning and chaos.
Classes were canceled.

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Events were postponed.
The symbolism was unmistakable,

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a young black man's death
overshadowing what should have

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been a day of institutional
pride.

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Mississippi has always been
Ground Zero for America's racial

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violence.
Between 1877 and 1950, the state

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recorded 581 lynchings, the
highest number in the nation.

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These weren't random acts of
violence, but calculated tools

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of terror designed to enforce
Jim Crow laws and keep Black

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communities in constant fear.
Lynching suppressed voting, land

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ownership, economic independence
and political participation.

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They were public spectacles,
often attended by hundreds of

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white spectators who posed for
photographs with the victims

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bodies as if they were at a
County Fair.

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Cleveland, Ms. sits in the heart
of the Delta, a region where

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cotton fields once stretched to
the horizon, worked by enslaved

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hands and later by sharecroppers
trapped in cycles of debt and

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violence.
The town's history is steeped in

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the kind of racial terror that
made Mississippi synonymous with

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American apartheid.
Delta State University itself

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was founded in 1925 as Delta
State Teachers College, during

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the height of the Jim Crow era,
when separate and unequal was

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the law of the land.
The university has its own

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troubled history with race.
In March 1969, black students

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staged protests demanding equal
treatment and representation.

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The demonstrations were met with
resistance from both the

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administration and local law
enforcement, reflecting the

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broader struggle for civil
rights that was tearing the

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South apart.
Even today, students and faculty

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report incidents of racial bias,
creating an atmosphere where

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young Black men like Trey Reed
might feel isolated and

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vulnerable.
The connection to Charlie Kirk's

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death couldn't be ignored.
Kirk had spent his career

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promoting ideas that many
scholars identified as white

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supremacist ideology wrapped in
patriotic language.

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He had denied the existence of
systemic racism, called white

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privilege a racist idea, and
vilified critical race theory as

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dangerous indoctrination.
His organization, Turning Point

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USA, had been flagged by the
Anti Defamation League as a vast

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platform for extremists and far
right conspiracy theorists.

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Kirk's movement had also courted
figures openly tied to the far

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right.
Political Research Associates

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documented cases where TPUSA
chapters hosted or aligned with

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Nick Fuentes and his white
nationalist followers.

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The repeated associations
revealed how far Kirk was

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willing to go in pursuit of
influence, creating a network of

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radicalized young people across
American College campuses.

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Now Kirk was dead, killed by a
22 year old gunman named Tyler

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Robinson at a Turning Point USA
event.

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The motive remained unclear, but
the impact was immediate.

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Far right figures and elected
officials called for vengeance.

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The rhetoric was inflammatory,
designed to stoke anger and

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resentment among Kirk's
followers.

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And then, just five days later,
Trey Reed was found hanging from

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a tree in Mississippi.
The investigation that followed

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was marked by the same patterns
that had characterized lynching

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cases for over a century.
Authorities were quick to

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dismiss the possibility of foul
play.

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The coroner's preliminary
examination was rushed and

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00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:27,880
superficial.
Key evidence, like surveillance

233
00:14:27,880 --> 00:14:31,040
footage, was not immediately
released to the family or the

234
00:14:31,040 --> 00:14:33,960
public.
The victim was subtly blamed for

235
00:14:33,960 --> 00:14:37,160
his own death, portrayed as
someone who had chosen to end

236
00:14:37,160 --> 00:14:39,840
his life rather than someone who
may have been murdered.

237
00:14:40,480 --> 00:14:43,400
But the Reed family refused to
accept this narrative.

238
00:14:44,160 --> 00:14:47,600
They hired Ben Crump, one of the
most prominent civil rights

239
00:14:47,600 --> 00:14:50,960
attorneys in America.
They demanded an independent

240
00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:53,960
autopsy.
They called for transparency and

241
00:14:53,960 --> 00:14:57,120
accountability.
They insisted that their son's

242
00:14:57,120 --> 00:14:59,920
death be investigated as
thoroughly as any other

243
00:14:59,920 --> 00:15:04,120
suspicious death, not dismissed
because of his race or the

244
00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:06,680
uncomfortable historical
parallels it evoked.

245
00:15:07,440 --> 00:15:10,320
The family's response was
crucial because it broke the

246
00:15:10,320 --> 00:15:13,720
cycle of silence and acceptance
that had allowed lynching to

247
00:15:13,720 --> 00:15:18,040
flourish for so long.
In the past, Black families

248
00:15:18,040 --> 00:15:20,800
often had no recourse when their
loved ones were killed.

249
00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:24,680
They couldn't hire attorneys,
couldn't demand investigations,

250
00:15:24,920 --> 00:15:26,880
couldn't challenge official
narratives.

251
00:15:27,400 --> 00:15:30,200
They were forced to accept
whatever explanation authorities

252
00:15:30,200 --> 00:15:33,720
provided, no matter how
implausible or incomplete.

253
00:15:34,560 --> 00:15:36,920
But in 2025, things were
different.

254
00:15:37,640 --> 00:15:41,680
The Reed family had resources,
connections and a platform to

255
00:15:41,680 --> 00:15:44,760
demand justice.
They had allies in the civil

256
00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:48,280
rights community who understood
the historical significance of

257
00:15:48,280 --> 00:15:51,200
their son's death.
They had media attention that

258
00:15:51,200 --> 00:15:54,000
made it impossible for
authorities to simply sweep the

259
00:15:54,000 --> 00:15:57,560
case under the rug.
The broader context made the

260
00:15:57,560 --> 00:16:02,880
situation even more ominous.
Mississippi in 2025 was still

261
00:16:02,880 --> 00:16:06,480
Mississippi, a state where
Confederate monuments dotted the

262
00:16:06,480 --> 00:16:09,800
landscape, where voter
suppression tactics continued to

263
00:16:09,800 --> 00:16:13,120
disenfranchise Black
communities, where economic

264
00:16:13,120 --> 00:16:15,960
inequality fell largely along
racial lines.

265
00:16:16,720 --> 00:16:20,040
The Delta region, in particular,
remained one of the poorest

266
00:16:20,040 --> 00:16:23,640
areas in America, with Black
residents bearing the brunt of

267
00:16:23,640 --> 00:16:26,760
decades of discriminatory
policies and practices.

268
00:16:27,480 --> 00:16:30,640
Delta State University, despite
its claims of progress and

269
00:16:30,640 --> 00:16:34,160
inclusion, existed within this
broader context of racial

270
00:16:34,160 --> 00:16:38,120
tension and inequality.
The university's student body

271
00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:42,160
was predominantly white, it's
faculty and administration even

272
00:16:42,160 --> 00:16:45,160
more so.
Black students often reported

273
00:16:45,160 --> 00:16:48,960
feeling isolated and unwelcome,
struggling to find their place

274
00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:51,880
in an institution that had been
built to exclude them.

275
00:16:52,920 --> 00:16:57,520
Into this environment came Trey
Reed, a young black man from

276
00:16:57,520 --> 00:17:01,320
Grenada, Mississippi, excited
about his college experience and

277
00:17:01,320 --> 00:17:04,720
his future.
Within a month, he was dead,

278
00:17:05,119 --> 00:17:07,640
hanging from a tree in the
center of campus.

279
00:17:08,440 --> 00:17:12,760
The official explanation,
Suicide, seemed to ignore

280
00:17:12,760 --> 00:17:16,200
everything we know about the
historical and contemporary

281
00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:19,040
realities of racial violence in
Mississippi.

282
00:17:20,160 --> 00:17:22,440
Yet the challenges remained
enormous.

283
00:17:23,119 --> 00:17:26,800
Mississippi's criminal justice
system had a long history of

284
00:17:26,800 --> 00:17:29,120
failing to prosecute racial
violence.

285
00:17:30,120 --> 00:17:34,320
Even when cases went to trial,
all white juries often refused

286
00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:37,120
to convict white defendants
accused of killing black

287
00:17:37,120 --> 00:17:40,320
victims.
The culture of impunity that had

288
00:17:40,320 --> 00:17:43,640
protected lynchers for
generations was still alive and

289
00:17:43,640 --> 00:17:48,160
well in many parts of the state.
Moreover, the connection to

290
00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:51,240
Charlie Kirk's death added
another layer of complexity to

291
00:17:51,240 --> 00:17:54,360
the case.
If Reed's death was indeed

292
00:17:54,360 --> 00:17:57,920
retaliation for Kirk's
assassination, it represented a

293
00:17:57,920 --> 00:18:02,000
new form of racial terrorism,
one that used contemporary

294
00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:06,680
political grievances to justify
age-old patterns of violence.

295
00:18:07,720 --> 00:18:11,600
The far right ecosystem that
Kirk had helped create was vast

296
00:18:11,840 --> 00:18:15,440
and decentralized, making it
difficult to trace specific

297
00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:18,880
connections between his death
and subsequent acts of violence.

298
00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:22,280
But the timing was too
convenient to ignore.

299
00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:26,040
Kirk's assassination had sent
shock waves through the white

300
00:18:26,040 --> 00:18:28,920
supremacist movement he had
helped mainstream.

301
00:18:29,960 --> 00:18:33,160
His followers were angry,
looking for someone to blame,

302
00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:37,080
someone to punish.
The rhetoric from far right

303
00:18:37,080 --> 00:18:40,480
leaders in the days following
Kirk's death had been explicitly

304
00:18:40,480 --> 00:18:44,520
violent, calling for vengeance
and retribution against their

305
00:18:44,520 --> 00:18:48,400
perceived enemies.
In this context, a young black

306
00:18:48,400 --> 00:18:50,880
college student like Trey Reed
would have been seen as a

307
00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:55,200
perfect target, vulnerable,
isolated, and symbolically

308
00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:58,080
significant.
His death would send a message

309
00:18:58,080 --> 00:19:01,920
to other Black students, other
civil rights advocates, other

310
00:19:01,920 --> 00:19:05,040
people who might challenge white
supremacist ideology.

311
00:19:05,760 --> 00:19:08,200
It would show that the movement
Kirk had built was still

312
00:19:08,200 --> 00:19:12,440
dangerous, still capable of
deadly violence even after its

313
00:19:12,440 --> 00:19:15,840
leader's death.
The investigation into Reed's

314
00:19:15,840 --> 00:19:19,320
death would ultimately determine
whether this theory held water.

315
00:19:20,080 --> 00:19:21,840
But the early signs were
troubling.

316
00:19:22,760 --> 00:19:25,520
Authorities seemed more
interested in closing the case

317
00:19:25,520 --> 00:19:28,280
quickly than in conducting A
thorough investigation.

318
00:19:29,480 --> 00:19:32,000
The coroner's preliminary
findings were released within

319
00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:35,200
hours before a proper autopsy
could be conducted.

320
00:19:35,920 --> 00:19:39,560
The university's response was
focused on damage control rather

321
00:19:39,560 --> 00:19:42,880
than truth seeking.
These patterns were all too

322
00:19:42,880 --> 00:19:45,960
familiar to anyone who had
studied the history of lynching

323
00:19:45,960 --> 00:19:49,280
in America.
The rush to judgement, the

324
00:19:49,280 --> 00:19:53,760
dismissal of family concerns.
The refusal to consider racial

325
00:19:53,760 --> 00:19:56,480
motives.
The protection of institutional

326
00:19:56,480 --> 00:19:58,920
reputations over individual
justice.

327
00:20:00,320 --> 00:20:04,400
It was as if nothing had changed
since the 1950s, despite all the

328
00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:06,440
progress that had supposedly
been made.

329
00:20:07,400 --> 00:20:11,280
But perhaps that was the point.
Perhaps Reed's death was meant

330
00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:14,400
to remind Black Americans that
their safety and security were

331
00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:17,680
still conditional, still
dependent on white approval and

332
00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:20,400
tolerance.
Perhaps it was meant to show

333
00:20:20,400 --> 00:20:22,520
that the gains of the civil
rights movement could be

334
00:20:22,520 --> 00:20:26,800
reversed, that the promise of
equality was still just that, a

335
00:20:26,800 --> 00:20:30,720
promise, not a reality.
If so, the message was being

336
00:20:30,720 --> 00:20:34,160
received loud and clear.
Black students across the

337
00:20:34,160 --> 00:20:38,040
country were expressing fear and
anxiety about their safety on

338
00:20:38,040 --> 00:20:41,880
predominantly white campuses.
Parents were questioning whether

339
00:20:41,880 --> 00:20:45,080
to send their children to
schools in states with histories

340
00:20:45,080 --> 00:20:48,400
of racial violence.
Civil rights organizations were

341
00:20:48,400 --> 00:20:51,440
mobilizing to demand better
protection for black students

342
00:20:51,760 --> 00:20:54,960
and more thorough investigations
of suspicious deaths.

343
00:20:55,400 --> 00:20:58,360
The Reed case had become a test
of America's commitment to

344
00:20:58,360 --> 00:21:01,160
racial justice in the 21st
century.

345
00:21:01,840 --> 00:21:04,480
Would authorities conduct a
thorough, transparent

346
00:21:04,480 --> 00:21:07,680
investigation?
Would they consider all possible

347
00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:12,240
motives, including racial ones?
Would they hold accountable

348
00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:15,000
anyone who might have been
responsible for Reed's death?

349
00:21:15,680 --> 00:21:18,400
Or would they follow the
historical pattern of dismissing

350
00:21:18,400 --> 00:21:22,280
black deaths as unimportant, of
protecting white institutions

351
00:21:22,280 --> 00:21:26,000
and individuals from scrutiny,
of allowing racial violence to

352
00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:30,080
continue with impunity?
The answers to these questions

353
00:21:30,160 --> 00:21:33,400
would determine not just the
fate of Trey Reed's case, but

354
00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:36,320
the broader trajectory of race
relations in America.

355
00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:39,720
If his death was indeed
connected to Charlie Kirk's

356
00:21:39,720 --> 00:21:43,040
assassination, it would
represent a new chapter in the

357
00:21:43,040 --> 00:21:46,840
long history of American racial
terrorism, one that used

358
00:21:46,840 --> 00:21:50,680
contemporary political movements
to justify ancient hatreds.

359
00:21:51,560 --> 00:21:55,200
But if the investigation was
conducted properly, if the truth

360
00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:59,360
was uncovered and justice was
served, it might also represent

361
00:21:59,360 --> 00:22:03,240
a turning point, a moment when
America finally broke free from

362
00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:06,600
the cycles of violence and
impunity that had defined its

363
00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:10,760
racial history for so long.
The tree where Trey Reed died

364
00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:14,240
still stands in the center of
Delta State University's campus.

365
00:22:14,960 --> 00:22:19,160
Students walk past it every day,
some pausing to leave flowers or

366
00:22:19,160 --> 00:22:22,240
say a prayer.
It has become an unofficial

367
00:22:22,240 --> 00:22:27,040
memorial, a reminder of a young
life cut short and questions

368
00:22:27,040 --> 00:22:32,240
that remain unanswered.
But it is also something more, a

369
00:22:32,240 --> 00:22:36,480
symbol of America's unfinished
business with race, a testament

370
00:22:36,480 --> 00:22:40,200
to the work that still needs to
be done to create a truly just

371
00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:44,040
and equal society.
Trey Reed's death may have been

372
00:22:44,040 --> 00:22:47,480
intended to spread fear and
division, but it has also

373
00:22:47,480 --> 00:22:51,320
sparked a movement for truth and
accountability that refuses to

374
00:22:51,320 --> 00:22:54,560
be silenced.
His family's fight for justice

375
00:22:54,560 --> 00:22:57,400
has become more than just a
search for answers about their

376
00:22:57,400 --> 00:23:00,640
son's death.
It has become a battle for the

377
00:23:00,640 --> 00:23:04,720
soul of America itself, a test
of whether this country can

378
00:23:04,720 --> 00:23:08,280
finally confront its history of
racial violence and move beyond

379
00:23:08,280 --> 00:23:10,440
it.
Their courage in demanding

380
00:23:10,440 --> 00:23:14,960
answers, in refusing to accept
easy explanations, in insisting

381
00:23:14,960 --> 00:23:18,600
that Black lives matter as much
as any others, represents the

382
00:23:18,600 --> 00:23:23,000
best of what America can be.
The investigation continues, the

383
00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:26,240
questions remain.
And somewhere in the shadows of

384
00:23:26,240 --> 00:23:29,960
American politics, the forces
that may have killed Trey Reed

385
00:23:29,960 --> 00:23:32,880
are still at work, still
spreading their poison through

386
00:23:32,880 --> 00:23:36,600
college campuses and online
forums, still recruiting young

387
00:23:36,600 --> 00:23:40,160
people to their cause of hate.
But they face something they

388
00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:44,760
haven't encountered before, A
family that won't be silenced, a

389
00:23:44,760 --> 00:23:47,960
community that won't be
intimidated, and a nation that

390
00:23:47,960 --> 00:23:51,120
is finally beginning to
understand that the price of

391
00:23:51,120 --> 00:23:53,960
freedom is eternal vigilance
against those who would use

392
00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:55,800
violence to maintain their
power.

393
00:23:56,560 --> 00:24:00,920
Trey Reed's story is not over.
His death may have silenced his

394
00:24:00,920 --> 00:24:04,840
voice, but it has amplified the
voices of those who demand

395
00:24:04,840 --> 00:24:08,960
justice, who refused to accept
that young black men should die

396
00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:12,640
simply for existing, for
pursuing their dreams, for

397
00:24:12,640 --> 00:24:14,800
believing in the promise of
America.

398
00:24:15,760 --> 00:24:20,200
In that sense, his legacy may be
more powerful than his life, a

399
00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:24,200
catalyst for change, a call to
action, a reminder that the

400
00:24:24,200 --> 00:24:27,440
fight for racial justice is far
from finished.

401
00:24:28,640 --> 00:24:31,880
The tree where he died stands as
a monument not just to his

402
00:24:31,880 --> 00:24:35,360
death, but to the ongoing
struggle for equality and

403
00:24:35,360 --> 00:24:40,360
justice in America.
The investigation continues, the

404
00:24:40,360 --> 00:24:44,720
truth awaits, and America
watches to see whether it will

405
00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:48,600
finally live up to its highest
ideals or continue to be haunted

406
00:24:48,600 --> 00:24:50,880
by the ghosts of its darkest
chapters.

407
00:24:52,320 --> 00:24:55,280
Thank you for listening to this
episode of No Tears for Black

408
00:24:55,280 --> 00:24:58,640
Girls.
If you enjoyed today's story,

409
00:24:59,160 --> 00:25:01,800
please show your support by
hitting that like button,

410
00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:06,040
leaving a comment, or giving us
a five star rating and review.

411
00:25:06,520 --> 00:25:09,320
It really helps us reach more
listeners who need to hear these

412
00:25:09,320 --> 00:25:13,040
important stories.
Coming up next, we have an

413
00:25:13,040 --> 00:25:16,560
exclusive track from our
upcoming No Tears for Black

414
00:25:16,560 --> 00:25:21,120
Girls music compilation,
Conspiracy by Fly Money.

415
00:25:21,960 --> 00:25:25,160
This song connects directly to
the themes we've been exploring

416
00:25:25,160 --> 00:25:28,160
today.
Until next time, remember to

417
00:25:28,160 --> 00:25:30,600
stay loved, stay blessed, and
stay safe.

418
00:25:31,560 --> 00:25:33,120
We'll see you in the next
episode.

419
00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:48,360
This is Samantha Paul.
Yeah, they say black excellence

420
00:25:48,360 --> 00:25:51,680
always come at a cost.
Moments in the spotlight just

421
00:25:51,680 --> 00:25:54,360
before they get lost.
Heard it in the whisper, seen it

422
00:25:54,360 --> 00:25:56,680
in the news.
Fame ain't protection, it's a

423
00:25:56,680 --> 00:25:57,920
target.
Win or lose.

424
00:25:58,040 --> 00:26:01,000
Before you judge a story better
study who's narrating.

425
00:26:01,360 --> 00:26:04,360
People that hit their hands and
the traps they create in history

426
00:26:04,360 --> 00:26:06,880
repeats.
Legends falls, some never rise.

427
00:26:07,440 --> 00:26:09,880
Open up your eyes, see the truth
behind the lies.

428
00:26:10,240 --> 00:26:12,800
Lights, camera action but was
really on the screen.

429
00:26:13,240 --> 00:26:15,640
They sold the streams then
twisted up the scene.

430
00:26:16,000 --> 00:26:18,400
Diddy in the news, rumors start
to swirl.

431
00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:22,120
Cows in the cell now is justice
or is it just the world names in

432
00:26:22,120 --> 00:26:24,120
the headlines?
But who's pulling strings?

433
00:26:24,200 --> 00:26:27,520
Who profits from the stories
when the cage burst sings pop

434
00:26:27,560 --> 00:26:30,800
gone Biggie gone Nipsey in the
streets ledge is dropping.

435
00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:32,560
All we get is hashtags and
tweets.

436
00:26:32,760 --> 00:26:35,280
Another king falls and they
chalk into the game.

437
00:26:35,280 --> 00:26:37,760
But if you dig a little deeper,
only black come and get the

438
00:26:37,760 --> 00:26:39,600
blame.
Success is a crime.

439
00:26:39,600 --> 00:26:42,360
Eddie Griffin wasn't lying.
If you make it out the mud,

440
00:26:42,360 --> 00:26:44,720
they'll drag you back trying.
It's a conspiracy.

441
00:26:45,400 --> 00:26:47,960
They want us in chains.
Build you up.

442
00:26:48,040 --> 00:26:50,120
Then they tear down your name.
Crime.

443
00:26:50,120 --> 00:26:52,200
Smother blood.
Pick your stain.

444
00:26:52,800 --> 00:26:55,120
Famous in black.
They running that game.

445
00:26:55,480 --> 00:26:57,240
Hollywood lights put the
shadows.

446
00:26:57,240 --> 00:27:00,480
The truth try to leave clean.
But they after your roots.

447
00:27:00,840 --> 00:27:02,880
They don't want to see a king
reign free.

448
00:27:03,280 --> 00:27:07,240
It's a conspiracy.
Yeah, it's a conspiracy.

449
00:27:10,720 --> 00:27:13,920
Yeah, yeah.
Look, power in the pen, but it's

450
00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:16,440
poison in the deal.
See your brother make a million

451
00:27:16,440 --> 00:27:17,840
now.
They coming for his will.

452
00:27:18,080 --> 00:27:20,720
They question every move, every
friend that you choose.

453
00:27:20,720 --> 00:27:22,960
Plan a scandal in the news.
Now watch the world get

454
00:27:22,960 --> 00:27:25,280
confused.
From Malcolm to Cosby, from

455
00:27:25,320 --> 00:27:28,840
Cosby to Gay, from Michael to
Chris, they all fade the same

456
00:27:28,840 --> 00:27:30,920
way.
Is it just mistakes or a

457
00:27:30,960 --> 00:27:33,040
pattern?
In the fall, every time a Black

458
00:27:33,040 --> 00:27:36,440
Star rise, they want to see him
crawl from Oscar to Celt Block.

459
00:27:36,680 --> 00:27:38,440
Grant me the grave.
It's a cycle.

460
00:27:38,440 --> 00:27:40,640
It's a trap.
Are you not entertained?

461
00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:43,240
Check the playbook.
Who wrote these lines?

462
00:27:43,240 --> 00:27:45,760
The bigger the spotlight, the
deeper it finds.

463
00:27:46,040 --> 00:27:48,920
It's a conspiracy.
They want us to change.

464
00:27:49,760 --> 00:27:51,840
Build you up.
Then they tear down your name.

465
00:27:52,240 --> 00:27:53,240
Crime.
Smart of blood.

466
00:27:53,720 --> 00:27:56,080
Pick your stain.
Famous in black.

467
00:27:56,120 --> 00:27:59,640
Dave running that game.
Hollywood lights for the shadows

468
00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:02,920
of truth try to leave clean, but
they after your roots.

469
00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:05,360
They don't want to see a king
reign free.

470
00:28:05,760 --> 00:28:09,640
It's a conspiracy.
Yeah, it's a conspiracy.