DL + DL ANYTHING GOES: Don Lemon & D.L. Hughley UNFILTERED! Part 1

Don Lemon details his arrest on federal charges for reporting at a protest in a Minnesota church. He emphasizes that he was acting solely as a journalist, not an organizer, and highlights the shock and vulnerability of being incarcerated despite doing 'nothing wrong.' This experience solidified his commitment to independent journalism, viewing it as a fight for the First Amendment, which he considers the bedrock of democracy.

Lemon recounts being in Minnesota to report, following a protest group into a church, and then being targeted for arrest. He mentions his surprise at the charges and the subsequent media attention. He states, 'I am not a protester, but I am insistent on the First Amendment because that's the bedrock.'

Lemon argues that corporate media has been 'neutered' by wealthy oligarchs who control news organizations and bend to administrations for power and money. This control allows them to manipulate narratives and suppress truth. He positions independent journalists, like himself, as essential for providing unfiltered, real-time reporting that corporate media often sanitizes or avoids, directly showing events like police brutality.

Lemon states, 'corporate media has been neutered and now they're coming after independent folks like me.' He contrasts his seven-hour live stream from Minneapolis, showing 'images of them beating people up in real time,' with corporate media's tendency to 'get the story, they go back and they write it wherever... and then they come back and they do a live shot.'

Both Lemon and Hughley assert that political powers actively promote division among people (black, white, poor) to maintain their wealth and control. They argue that if these groups united, they would have more power than those currently in charge. They also criticize societal apathy, stating that many people are in denial about the true state of American democracy and the predictable consequences of their political choices.

Lemon states, 'they want us divided, because that division keeps them in power and it keeps them rich.' Hughley adds, 'How do you get to be surprised? Like you get to be surprised and it's we told you what would happen.'

The hosts challenge the notion of a 'white Jesus' and the intertwining of religion with nationalism, particularly in American churches. Hughley points out the hypocrisy of some Christians compared to the devoutness and generosity of a Muslim Uber driver. Lemon provocatively labels Jesus as an 'anchor baby' due to Mary and Joseph's migration to escape persecution, highlighting the irony of anti-immigrant sentiment within a Christian context.

Lemon states, 'the first thing I think that would get the this country to change is for them to realize that Jesus isn't white.' Hughley describes a Muslim Uber driver returning his bag and refusing a reward, contrasting it with how a 'Christian would have kept that goddamn money.' Lemon suggests, 'you could call Jesus an anchor baby.'