Firing of Briahna Joy Gray

Dismissed

Briahna Joy Gray has finally been fired by Nexstar Media Group, owners of The Hill's Rising a/k/a Rising, and I say BRAVO. Unfortunately, the Harvard graduate and former National Press Secretary for Bernie Sanders’ 2020 campaign, used that platform to disrespect one person too many. She is another young lady who is extremely intelligent, yet she lacks any semblance of empathy. She is misguided by the idea that words are weapons. Her American privilege gives her the freedom to fire shots at anyone who disagrees with her warped, blinded worldview so she can freely pledge allegiance to terrorists.

Gone with the wind

I want to deviate for a moment and share my thoughts about black women in American society in general. One of my favorite books and movies is “Gone with The Wind.” I know this work is controversial and shunned by some because of its romantic depiction of the ugliest part of American history. It's like Basquiat’s paintings, which at first glance might seem chaotic and ugly but hold deeper messages within. Similarly, “Gone with The Wind” presents a beautiful exterior, yet underneath lies the ugliness of slavery, war, death, and loss.

The novel, written by Margaret Mitchell in 1936 and brought to the big screen in 1939, features Scarlett O’Hara the main character, played by Vivien Leigh. It is a quasi-sentimental version of the struggles between whites and blacks that ultimately resulted in the Civil War and its aftermath of Reconstruction. I understand the movie has its challenges, of glorifying a time when whites oppressed blacks and presenting a skewed version of history that reinforced black stereotypes.

Mitchell’s book is fiction. However, amidst the ugliness of slavery, war, life, and death, it captures the historical reality of the complacency of whites who suddenly found themselves staring truth in the face with the Civil War. “Gone with the Wind” depicts the images of southern whites who fought to hold on to an idea and image of family, love, and luxury on the backs of a race of people they disregarded and abused.

It is true we should always remember the horrors of chattel slavery. The reality that millions of black women were raped, and men were beaten, hung, and murdered by white men and their wives. While it might be possible that not every individual experienced physical violence, the very act of slavery was inherently abusive and dehumanizing. What is also painfully obvious is that blacks understood their condition and chose to love and live despite the circumstances, often having to navigate their existence with resilience and strength even in the face of unimaginable adversity.

This is a long way to make this point about black women. There is a very specific reason why “Gone with the Wind” is one of my all-time favorites. It is because of the character of Mammy—played in the movie by Hattie McDaniel. She became the first black woman to receive an Academy Award for her portrayal of the maid to the O’Hara family. Perhaps to some, she played a caricature in the movie, but what can’t be denied is that McDaniel poured her talent and strength into the character, capturing the essence of the strength of black women.

Throughout “Gone with the Wind,” Mammy was the source of reason and the example of strength in the direst circumstances. She was the voice of wisdom as the O’Hara family lost all they had, she was the glue that kept the camp together through the Civil War and Reconstruction, and she was a constant hand that steadied the ship amidst death, chaos, and confusion.

Mammy was not just an image on screen; the symbol of strength she represents, although fictitious, can be seen throughout history. Many black women such as Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Fannie Lou Hamer, have embodied similar resilience and wisdom, providing stability and leadership during the most challenging times.

Unreasonable Voices

Not today. Although many black women like Briahna Joy Gray try to ride this storm and position themselves as voices of reason, they are nothing more than real life Caricatures themselves. Pretending to be oppressed and victimized. They are like bougie bots, devoid of empathy programmed for consumption of information to regurgitate one-sided talking points around the continued oppression of American blacks.

Instead of embodying strength and resilience, they cry systemic racism and oppression by a white colonial regime from the walls of Harvard. They speak as if they were stolen from their land and forced to work for a white man, as if they themselves were enslaved in big houses in Baldwin Hills or Uniondale. They sit in high places, pouring down the venom injected into their minds by elites — a squad of angry black women. Joy Reid, Whoopi Goldberg, Candace Owens, Sabrina Salvati, and Briahna Joy Gray are only a few examples of intelligent women who have been groomed to spout divisive narratives in ways that do not reflect the true spirit and potential of black women.

Black women have always had the magical-like power to steer our community back toward unity, truth, and strength, embodying the qualities that Mammy represented. However, today our young black leaders will harken to black women of the past and use their platforms to embrace systemic victimhood. This brings me back to my point.

Idealism and Rhetoric

Briahna Joy Gray is a beautiful young woman, who unfortunately is programmed. She thinks she’s woke but rather she is still living inside a box conditioned by the elite. She has been programmed to believe that some genie in the cloud is going to create this utopia where the world will be democratic and the earth free of pollutants—a world of Gucci and Louie Vuitton without a single sacrifice.

She strongly believes in this idyllic world. Focused on her works in pursuit of this false perception, she will tear down anyone who dares to enlighten her with the truth, using the weapons of her words and the cutting gaze of her eyes. It's quite impressive to listen to Brie when she goes on the offensive. She presents her facts confidently, regardless of how one-sided. She is well-versed in both cultural and political stories and will shove her one-sided viewpoints onto the face of her guests and co-host until they have no choice but to concede.

However, despite her brilliance, she can be very nasty. I understand that as black women, there are times when people push you to your limit, and you have to respond assertively. But it's not appropriate all the time, nor with everyone. When I think about Briahna, I believe she just doesn't know how to behave. She believes that freedom of speech includes insulting, disgracing, and humiliating others.

The Great Debater

I listened to the debate on Dissident Dialogues with Konstantin Kisin, when he moderated as pro-Palestinians supporters, Briahna Joy Gray (The Hill “Rising”) and Jake Klein (The Black Sheep) debated Israeli supporters, Eli Lake (The Free Press) and Michael Moynihan (The Firth Column). The most I can say is that the perception and vibes Bri gave off were exemplary of the angry, black women stereotype. With proud arrogance she defended Hamas and this idea that the Palestinians want to live in a free democratic society. It is simply naive. Her denial of what actually happened on Oct. 7 is downright disturbing, and her refusal to acknowledge the way women are treated in Islamic nations today is deafening.

She had all her facts and talking points together on a stage of all white men, as she represented a new generation of black women—the sort that is smart and bold enough to get on a stage and hold their own. Brie used the stage to show her support for a terrorist organization that is anti-American, anti-democracy, and anti-women—with the pride of an educated black woman.

This debate didn’t go well for Brie.The audience, the panel and the moderators seemed to be against Brie, not just because of her outspoken support of Hamas but because from the moment she sat down she was hostile, snide and downright disrespectful.

Since the debate, she has gone on her podcast, Bad Faith, to blame the crowd and double down on her views that Israel is racist and Zionist, oppressing Palestinians and stealing their land, thereby justifying the events of Oct. 7.

It has been reported that Brie later said, during the debate, the people were disrespectful and Islamophobic, she expressed a hope that someone would “blow up the building” where the debate took place. After the debate, she also accused the audience of being anti-Arab, viewing their behavior through a historical lens and comparing what has been happening in Gaza to American slavery. With one broad swop Brie paints the plight of an oppressed people ignoring the reality the Palestinians have always had more freedoms than any black slave had during the days of slavery. There is no comparison between people who were held in chains and forced to build a Land for a nation of oppressors and what has happened in Gaza. They are in no way the same.

Briahna was fired by Nexstar after a recent interview she and her co-host, Robby Soave, the libertarian senior editor of Reason, and Brie’s co-host on the “Rising.” Now to be clear I don’t believe Brie was fired because of this interview. Oh contra, I think there were already issues with her team members. She was not just fired because of the interview, she was fired because that was the straw the broke the camels back. Her behavior that day was appalling. On June 4, Rising, interviewed Yarden Gonen, the sister of Israeli hostage, Romi Gonen. I watched the interview and I remember thinking how cold and cruel and straight callous Brie had been. She lacked any sense of empathy and simple kindness to her guest. Here you have a woman whose sister is being held hostage by Hamas, trying to explain how she had been feeling since Oct. 7, and Brie flipped the script and started talking about the starving Palestinians who are not receiving AID because of Israel.

What made this interview even more appalling was the way Brie rolled her eyes, and popped her teeth with annoyance, as the Yarden Gonen spoke about her fears for her sister safety especially because of the rapes reported after Oct. 7. Brie snapped with annoyance almost belittling the woman for the feelings she has for her sister. And as Yarden attempt to explain how Hamas were known for abusing women, Brie cut her off.

Now if you are on your own platform and want to tell off a sister of one of the hostages for agonizing over the circumstances and having no power to control the fight—that is one thing. But I suppose when you behave in that way on a platform you do not own your fate is in the hands of your employer.

As I watched this young lady, I thought about my own three granddaughters and wondered about her home training. Sitting with a posture of rigid freedom, Brie refused to muster a single sign of empathy for Ms. Gonen. Although Brie might consider herself a Good Samaritan, she clearly misunderstands who the true Good Samaritan is. Bound by her own abstract sense of justice, she will never show mercy. I would be so proud to see one of my granddaughters facilitating such an interview, but not from that side.

DahTruth

Well, after months of listening to Brie spin one sided narrative of the Palestinians 75-year plight with Israel, I suppose Nexstar and its board decided enough with the rhetoric that supports the indefensible. They cut Brie off with an email. Brie took to X to let the world know that she had been fired, but instead of blaming her own behavior and self-righteousness, she decides to tell the world Nexstar fired her because she does not support Israel.

To be clear, it appears Briahna has burned many bridges. Bernie Sanders doesn’t even claim her, and she is so mean she will destroy her co-host Robby if he even dares to share an opinion that is anti-Brie.

This behavior is not a representation of the leading black figures of older generations. This is the new generation of privileged black women without an axe to grind but are happy to invent one in exchange for a platform.

Many young people in their late 30s and early 40s believe that are in a position to right what has been wronged because they are smart and understand history. As if they know better because reading about history is more real than lived experience. They believe that America is an oppressive regime that needs to be toppled, despite valuing the freedoms of speech, choice, and the pursuit of life, liberty, and justice they enjoy every single day.

This behavior impacts how black women in corporate America and in general are being judged by their leaders. This isn’t about race, yet they make it about race. Briahna was not fired for her outspoken stance on Israel; those things just added fuel to the fire that had already been burning. She was already nasty, and Nexstar were putting up with it, but she became downright vicious.

Briahna Joy Gray represents a segment of young black women who believe in disrespect and confrontation rather than respect and reason. We need to move away from this divisive behavior and remember the qualities that Mammy embodied—strength, wisdom, and resilience. These are the traits that will truly uplift…