12/13/2023 0 Comments Maya shankar and jimmy liThis is the first time I ever heard a Black man play piano like Jerry Lee Lewis." And I told him, I said, "Well, Jerry Lee got it from the same place I did, from Black Blues and Boogie Woogie piano players." "Oh, no, no, no, no. And he says, "Man, I sure like your piano playing. And it was this gentleman, maybe 15, 18 years older than me, and he's all excited. Now, I don't know anybody in this place, so I'm turning around to see who's touching me. So we took a break after the first set, and I was walking across the dance floor to go sit with the band mates when somebody approached me from behind and put their arm around my shoulder. And when you go somewhere where you're not welcome, and alcohol is being served, sometimes it is not made for a good combination, especially when you're outnumbered. And I say that not meaning that Black people could not go in, but meaning that they did not go in by their own choice because they were not welcome there. The Silver Dollar Lounge at the time was an all-white lounge. But one night, his life took an unexpected turn when he was playing a show at a bar called "The Silver Dollar Lounge." This is "A Slight Change of Plans."ĭaryl didn't set out to change anyone's mind. On the show, I'll have intimate conversations with people who've navigated extraordinary change, and hopefully their stories will get us to think differently about change in our own lives. As a cognitive scientist, I've always been fascinated by how we change our minds and why we change our minds. Convincing someone else to change their mind, their view of reality is one of the most elusive, coveted types of change, which is why Daryl's story feels so improbable. Since that car ride 30 years ago, Daryl Davis has gone on to convince dozens of people to leave the Ku Klux Klan. But within five months, this guy quit the Ku Klux Klan. And then he, a moment later, he changed the subject. And I could tell that the gears in his head were spinning super fast, probably burning a hole in there. I rattled off "Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Henry Lee Lucas, John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy, David Berkowitz, Son of Sam, Albert DeSalvo, the Boston Strangler."Īnd I said, "Son, you are a serial killer." And he said, "Daryl, I've never killed anybody." I said, "Your gene is latent hasn't come out yet." He said, "Well, that's stupid." And I said, "Well, duh, it is stupid." And he got very, very quiet. Name me three Black serial killers." He thought about it. It's not true," I said to him, I said, "White people have a gene within them that make them serial killers." And he said, "Why would you say that?" I said, "Well, face it. Rather than attack and just say, "It's not true. And he's sitting next to me with all smug and secure like, "You see? You have nothing to say." And I thought about it for a moment. He's driving in his car with a member of the Ku Klux Klan. How do you explain that?" This man did not hesitate. I have never done a drive-by or a carjacking. And I said, "Look, I'm as Black as anybody you've ever seen. And he made the mention that Black people are born with a gene that makes them violent. I'm driving, and this Klansman was sitting in my passenger seat, and we got on the topic of crime.
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