On May 28, 2023, a 14-year-old Black boy named Cyrus Carmack-Belton was shot in the back outside a Shell gas station in Columbia, South Carolina. Surveillance video showed he had not stolen anything. Witnesses described him running away in fear. He was chased more than 130 yards from the store by a 61-year-old store owner and his adult son before being shot once in the back. He died from that wound.

On June 1, 2026 — three years later — a jury acquitted Rick Chow of murder. Not guilty. The family's statement said: 'A jury watched our 14-year-old boy run away from two grown men on video. They knew one of them shot him in the back and they still said no one is to blame.'

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA sit with the full weight of this verdict — and name the pattern it belongs to. Trayvon Martin. Jordan Davis. Ahmaud Arbery. And now Cyrus. The data on Stand Your Ground laws and racial disparities. The psychology of racial threat perception. The role of the jury. What the civil lawsuit means. What the federal review means. And the hardest question of all — what do we do? What do we actually do? Because grief without action is just grief.

Keywords: Cyrus Carmack-Belton case, Rick Chow not guilty verdict, Stand Your Ground racial bias, Black victims self defense law, Trayvon Martin Ahmaud Arbery pattern, racial disparities criminal justice, Black children killed America, how to fight back justice system, Past Present Pushback podcast

SPECIFIC ACTIONS YOUR AUDIENCE CAN TAKE:

✊ SUPPORT THE CIVIL LAWSUIT — Follow updates on the Carmack-Belton family's civil case. If fundraising is organized by the family or their legal team, support it. Share updates on your platform.

✊ DEMAND FEDERAL REVIEW — Contact your U.S. House representative and Senators. Ask specifically what they are doing to support a DOJ federal civil rights investigation into this case. calls and letters to elected officials are documented.

✊ KNOW YOUR STATE'S STAND YOUR GROUND LAW — Find out if your state has one. Find out who your state legislators are. Organize in your community to pressure legislators to reform or repeal it. Use the documented research in this episode.

✊ SHOW UP FOR JURY DUTY — When the summons comes — go. Do not find a reason to get out of it. The people in those jury rooms are the people who didn't avoid it. Be in the room.

✊ VOTE IN EVERY LOCAL ELECTION — Especially district attorney, solicitor, and state legislative races. These are the people who determine whether cases like Cyrus's get a real prosecution.

✊ HAVE THE TALK WITH YOUR CHILDREN — If you have Black children — the conversation about how to survive encounters in spaces that will perceive them as threats cannot wait. Have it. Now.

• National Action Network — nationalactionnetwork.net (involved in the Carmack-Belton case)

• NAACP — naacp.org (Columbia chapter involved in case advocacy)

• ACLU Stand Your Ground resources — aclu.org

• Brady United — bradyunited.org (Stand Your Ground research and advocacy)

• Everytown for Gun Safety — everytown.org (Stand Your Ground data)

• Know Your Rights Camp — knowyourrightscamp.com (rights education for young people)

he enemy doesn't always come dressed like an enemy. Sometimes he comes dressed like your mother. Your brother. Your cousin. The family member who smiles at your face and speaks doubt over your life behind your back. The one whose addiction keeps pulling the whole family into chaos. The one who has never celebrated a single win you've had. The one whose words — spoken over you in childhood — you are still fighting to unhear as an adult.

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA go deep into one of the most spiritually and emotionally complex topics in the Black community — the devil's attacks through family members. Familiar spirits. Envy and jealousy. Toxic parents. Sibling sabotage. Word curses spoken over your life. Addiction being used as a weapon. Narcissistic and controlling family members. And the hardest question of all — how do you love people you share blood with while protecting the assignment God put on your life from the warfare they are unknowingly (or knowingly) carrying?

Keywords: devil attacks through family, spiritual warfare family members, familiar spirits Bible, toxic family members spiritual, jealousy in family spiritual warfare, word curses family, how to deal with toxic family Christians, protecting your peace from family, family sabotage spiritual, Past Present Pushback podcast

Most Americans think Memorial Day started with a general's order in 1868. The real story starts three years earlier — and it starts with Black people. On May 1, 1865 — less than a month after the Confederacy surrendered — freed Black men and women in Charleston, South Carolina organized what historians now recognize as the first Memorial Day in American history. They exhumed the bodies of 257 Union soldiers from a mass grave at a Confederate prison camp. They built a proper cemetery. They erected an archway with the words 'Martyrs of the Race Course.' And then 10,000 people — led by 2,800 Black schoolchildren carrying roses — marched, sang, and honored the men who had died so they could be free. Yale historian David Blight called it 'the Independence Day of a Second American Revolution.' Then white Charlestonians erased it from the record.

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA tell the full, unedited origin story of Memorial Day — from the Charleston racetrack in 1865, to General Logan's 1868 order, to how the holiday evolved, how its true origins were suppressed, and what it means that the people who invented this tradition to honor freedom were the same people the holiday's official history left out. This is the story they didn't teach you in school. And it deserves to be known.

Keywords: Memorial Day origin history, who created Memorial Day, Black Americans Memorial Day 1865, Charleston South Carolina Memorial Day, freed slaves Memorial Day, David Blight Memorial Day, Decoration Day history, true origin Memorial Day, Memorial Day Black history, Past Present Pushback podcast

Every generation thinks they got discipline right. The generation before them thinks they went too soft. And the generation after them wonders why they turned out the way they did. The conversation about how to discipline a child — especially in Black families — has never been louder, more contested, or more personal. Old school said: the belt teaches respect. New research says: it teaches fear. The old way produced grit. The new way produces therapy bills. Or does it?

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA get into the real conversation about child discipline — old school versus today. The statistics behind what changed. Why it changed. What the four parenting styles actually produce in children long-term. Where the belt fits in the history of Black parenting. Why social media, CPS, and changing laws shifted the whole dynamic. And the honest question three men who were raised the old way have to answer: did it work? And what are we doing differently with our own children?

Keywords: Black family discipline 2024, old school parenting vs new age, corporal punishment Black families, how to discipline a child today, authoritative parenting research, belt discipline statistics, Black parenting styles, child discipline generational shift, spanking research 2024, Past Present Pushback podcast

The "Past Present Pushback" crew is back in the studio for an absolute heater of an episode. Today, we’re bridging the gap between sports, strategy, and legacy.

** NBA Conference Finals Breakdown:**The playoffs are down to the final four, and the studio is divided. XO is betting it all on Wembanyama and the Spurs, while AZ is riding with the consistency of the OKC Thunder. Meanwhile, CDA is forced to sit in the "casual corner" after his Celtics were knocked out in the first round. Who takes the series? Tune in for the debate.

** The Political Playbook: Redistricting & Suppression:**We move from the court to the ballot box. We’re dissecting the current state of gerrymandering and the new tactics being used to suppress votes nationwide. We break down the "illusion of helplessness" and, more importantly, the tactical blueprint for fighting back—starting with weaponizing your local, down-ballot elections.

** The Legacy Segment: The Head Start vs. The Grind:**Is it better to hand your children a financial safety net, or does that wealth strip away the "grit" required for them to survive in the real world? We debate the balance between providing financial leverage and forcing your kids to forge their own armor.

Join the conversation:Are you riding with the Spurs or the Thunder? How are you organizing in your local community? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!

Follow the show:Stay tuned for more high-level strategy, mindset, and "pushback" on the status quo. Subscribe, rate, and share the episode.

#NBAPlayoffs #Spurs #Thunder #Wembanyama #VotingRights #GenerationalWealth #FinancialLiteracy #PastPresentPushback #Strategy #Podcast

In October 1966, two young men named Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale sat down in Oakland, California and wrote a Ten Point Program. They wanted freedom. Full employment. Decent housing. Real education. An end to police brutality. And they meant every word. What they built from that document became the most feared organization in America — a revolutionary party that fed children breakfast before school, ran free health clinics, organized communities, and patrolled their own neighborhoods armed and ready to defend themselves from the police. The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense.

The U.S. government called them the greatest threat to America's internal security. J. Edgar Hoover's FBI launched a secret program called COINTELPRO specifically designed to destroy them. Fake letters. False arrests. Planted informants. Surveillance. And when that wasn't enough — assassination. Fred Hampton. 21 years old. Drugged by an FBI informant. Shot in his bed at 4:45 in the morning. In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA tell the full story — the founding, the programs, the government's war against them, and what we lost when the party was dismantled.

Keywords: Black Panther Party history, COINTELPRO Black Panthers, Fred Hampton assassination, Huey Newton Bobby Seale, Black Panther Party founding, Black Panther free breakfast program, FBI war on Black Panthers, J. Edgar Hoover Black messiah, Black power movement, Black Panther Party dismantled, Past Present Pushback podcast

RESOURCES

• 'Judas and the Black Messiah' (2021 film) — the Fred Hampton story

• 'The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution' (2015 documentary) — Stanley Nelson

• 'Black Against Empire' by Joshua Bloom & Waldo Martin — definitive history of the BPP

• National Archives — Black Panther Party documents — archives.gov

• NMAAHC Black Panther Party exhibit — nmaahc.si.edu

• Zinn Education Project — COINTELPRO teaching resources — zinnedproject.org

In 1889, a young Black woman named Emma Reynolds wanted to become a nurse. Every nursing school in Chicago turned her away because of her race. Her brother went to a Black surgeon named Dr. Daniel Hale Williams for help. And what happened next changed the history of American medicine forever.

In 1891, Dr. Williams opened Provident Hospital — the first Black-owned and operated hospital in the United States, with an integrated staff and a nursing school that trained Black women when no one else would. Two years later, inside those same walls, he performed one of the first successful cardiac surgeries in medical history — on a Black man with a stab wound to the heart — without X-rays, without antibiotics, without blood transfusion. And the world almost missed it entirely.

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA tell the full story. The founding. The heart surgery. The decades of survival against financial pressure, segregation, and institutional neglect. The painful closure in 1987. And the reopening in 1993 that gave the South Side its hospital back. This is Black excellence before it had a name. And it deserves to be known.

Keywords: Provident Hospital Chicago history, Daniel Hale Williams open heart surgery, first Black hospital United States, Emma Reynolds nursing school, Black medical history, Chicago South Side hospital, Black doctors history, Provident Hospital 1891, Black excellence history, Past Present Pushback podcast

• Provident Hospital Chicago — cookcountyhhs.org/provident

• National Museum of African American History & Culture — nmaahc.si.edu

• International Museum of Surgical Science (Chicago) — imss.org — includes Provident Hospital exhibit

• WTTW Chicago 'DuSable to Obama' — Provident Hospital documentary segment — wttw.com

In the summer of 1919 — just months after World War I ended — more than 38 American cities erupted in coordinated white mob violence against Black communities. At least 97 Black people were lynched. Hundreds were massacred. Thousands were forced from their homes. And not one perpetrator was ever held accountable. This period has a name — Red Summer. And most Americans have never heard of it.

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA go deep into one of the most important and most suppressed chapters in American history. We cover what caused it, what happened city by city, how Black veterans and civilians fought back, what the government did and didn't do, why this was erased from the history books, and what Red Summer tells us about America right now. This is not comfortable. It is not supposed to be. This is history that every Black American deserves to know.

Keywords: Red Summer 1919, Chicago race riot 1919, Elaine Arkansas massacre, Washington DC race riot 1919, Black history massacres, James Weldon Johnson Red Summer, Black veterans World War I, Great Migration racial violence, suppressed Black history, Past Present Pushback podcast

Most people know Mother's Day as flowers, brunch, and greeting cards. But the real story of Mother's Day is one of the most fascinating and heartbreaking origin stories in American history. The woman who created it — Anna Jarvis — never married, never had children, spent her entire personal fortune fighting to cancel it, and died alone and penniless in a sanitarium in 1948. And here's the part that will stop you cold: a portion of her medical bills were reportedly paid by the greeting card and floral industries she had spent her life fighting against.

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA go deep on the real origin of Mother's Day — from its roots in the Civil War to Julia Ward Howe's peace proclamation, to Anna Jarvis's fight to honor her mother, to the commercial machine that turned a personal holy day into a $35 billion retail event. And then we talk about what Mother's Day means in the Black community — where we've always celebrated more than just biological mothers, and where the holiday hits different because the women it honors carried more than most.

Keywords: Mother's Day history, Anna Jarvis Mother's Day, who created Mother's Day, Mother's Day commercialization, Hallmark holidays, Mother's Day Black community, Julia Ward Howe, origin of Mother's Day, Past Present Pushback podcast, Black mothers history

From the jazz clubs of the 1940s to the streaming era of today — Black music has produced some of the greatest voices, producers, and performers this world has ever heard. And we have watched too many of them die too young. Billie Holiday. Ray Charles. Jimi Hendrix. Rick James. Whitney Houston. Prince. Mac Miller. Juice WRLD. DMX. The list keeps growing. And the question nobody is asking loud enough is — why?

In this episode of Past Present Pushback, XO, AZ, and CDA go deep into the history of Black musicians and drug addiction. We talk about where it started, what the industry knew and chose to ignore, why drug use got glamorized in our music, what these artists were running from, who made it out and how, and what we are still losing right now in this generation. This is not a lecture. This is a real conversation between three men who love Black music and are tired of watching it bury its own.

Topics covered: Black music and drug addiction history | Music industry exploitation and enablement | Jazz era heroin epidemic | Hip hop and the glorification of drug culture | Fentanyl and the new generation of artists | Whitney Houston, Prince, DMX recovery and loss | What the industry owes artists | How to recognize addiction in someone you love | Resources for help

Keywords: Black musicians drug addiction, Whitney Houston addiction, Prince fentanyl death, Mac Miller overdose, Juice WRLD death, DMX addiction recovery, hip hop drug culture, music industry exploitation, Black artists mental health, jazz heroin epidemic, drug addiction Black community, Past Present Pushback podcast

• SAMHSA National Helpline — 1-800-662-4357 (free, confidential, 24/7)

• Crisis Text Line — Text HOME to 741741

• MusiCares (for music industry workers) — grammy.com/musicares | 1-800-687-4227

• Black Line (mental health crisis line for Black community) — 1-800-604-5841

• Therapy for Black Men — therapyforblackmen.org

• Narcotics Anonymous — na.org