What Say U?

After five months away from the microphone, sisters Audrey and Melannie are back, catching up and returning to what matters most.

The world is chaotic. So much is happening at once that everything is out of focus, and kindness is getting lost in the noise. So the sisters go back to our shared roots. Beneath every difference, we are one human family, and that shared humanity is where kindness begins.

Audrey and Melannie unpack what humanity and kindness really mean, and why being friendly, generous, considerate, and caring, without expecting anything in return, can steady us when the world feels unsteady.

Chaos may pull us apart. Shared roots bring us home.

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Note: Sister Melannie is on the mic solo in this episode. Sister Audrey is on a wellness break.

The story continues — and what you are witnessing is relentless coverage of one of the most consequential accountability conversations happening in Washington State right now. Sit down and get comfortable, because today on What Say U?, we are going deeper.

We are back on the reparations study matter. Details are still unfolding, questions are still being asked, and we are not letting up. This is a real inquiry. Real analysis. Real social commentary on what is happening to sacred work in real time — and we will stay on it until we get real answers.

Today, Sister Melannie connects with Will Townsend and Deborah Oneal of the American Renewal 1870 Project. These are not people who arrived late to this fight. They were in Olympia. They testified. They pushed. And when Washington State made history by funding a reparations study, their fingerprints were on that win. Credit where credit is due — and today, we give it all around – and take some away from those that have been perpetratin’.

And, this episode doesn’t stop at the celebration. Because we have been doing our homework. We have been asking hard questions about who was selected to lead this sacred study, how they passed through the procurement process, and whether their qualifications meet the law’s requirements. The answers are not adding up. Folks are playin’ in our face. And we deserve better than that. The milk still ain’t clean.

“If the process that produced this study can be challenged at every step — the procurement, the scoring, the debrief rights — then the outcome of that study can be challenged too. All the way to the Supreme Court. This is not a drill. Sacred work requires a sacred process. And we are not going to let either one be stolen.” ~Peace Queen

Stay with us through the whole episode. A surprise voice joins the conversation before it’s over — and what they bring to the table changes the picture entirely.

American Renewal 1870 Project

Procurement Integrity Analysis (.pdf)

ESSB5167_Legislator_Briefing_Document (.pdf)

THE STUDY — TRUTH, POWER, AND ACCOUNTABILITYAI-VOICE-BETTER_FINAL – Frame.io

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You can put new curtains on the windows, light a candle, and set the table real nice — but if the milk ain’t clean, everything you pour it into is spoiled.

Washington State made history when it funded the Charles Mitchell and George Washington Bush Reparations Study — only the fourth statewide reparations study in the nation. Our communities organized. WENA — the Washington Equity Now Alliance — raised nearly half a million dollars in supplemental funding from Pierce County, King County, and beyond. Close to a million dollars in total support. That’s not government writing a check. That’s everyday people putting their faith, their money, and their ancestors’ names on the line.

So when the Department of Commerce ran the procurement process to select who would do this sacred work — the community expected excellence. Transparency. Integrity.

What they got was something else.

In this episode, sisters Melannie and  Audrey connect with Dr. Marcus Anthony Hunter — one of the nation’s leading reparations scholars and one of the unsuccessful bidders for the study. Dr. Hunter is the Scott Waugh Endowed Chair at UCLA, author of Radical Reparations: Healing the Soul of a Nation (HarperCollins/Amistad), the visionary who coined #BlackLivesMatter, inaugural Chair of UCLA’s African American Studies Department, two-term President of the Association of Black Sociologists, and the scholar who drafted Congresswoman Barbara Lee’s historic Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation Commission bill. His work has been featured on C-SPAN’s BookTV, MSNBC, BBC, NPR, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and the LA Times.

He submitted a proposal for Washington’s study. And then the system showed its hand.

His proposal was quarantined in the state’s email system as “malware” for 22 days while other bidders were being evaluated. When he was finally told he wasn’t selected, the state denied him the debriefing that Washington law guarantees every unsuccessful bidder. Denied him twice. He had to retain an attorney just to access a process the law says is his right.

Meanwhile, the winning bidder — a DEI consulting firm — was awarded the contract to do work that requires expertise in reparations research, historical accounting, intergenerational economic harm, genealogy, and public policy analysis. The community asked questions. Filed public records requests. And invited the winning firm on this very show. Their general counsel said they’d love to come. That was six weeks ago. Silence ever since.

The milk ain’t clean.

This episode is not about who won or lost a contract. Dr. Hunter is not here as a sore loser — he’s here as a witness. This is first-source, insider testimony about how the state administered a process that the community invested in, that the legislature authorized, and that our ancestors are owed.

In this conversation you’ll hear:

Reparations are policy, process, and praxis. If the process ain’t right, the outcome can’t be trusted. And trust, once broken, has to be earned back in public.

This one is for the record. For the archive. For Charles Mitchell and George Washington Bush. For Mother Viola Fletcher. For every descendant who is counting on this study to tell the truth.

To Truclusion – the successful bidder: the invitation is still open. Come tell your story. Show yourself. This IS community. And community is waiting…please.

What Say U?

LINKS & REFERENCES

Previous Episode-Listen for Context

“When the System Shows Its Hand: Sacred Work, Shady Process”

https://whatsayupodcast.com/when-the-system-shows-its-hand-sacred-work-shady-process/

About Our Guest

Dr. Marcus Anthony Hunter — marcusanthonyhunter.com

Radical Reparations: Healing the Soul of a Nation — HarperCollins/Amistad (2024)

UCLA Department of Sociology — soc.ucla.edu

Dr. Hunter’s Op-Ed in the AFRO: “When Equity is Performed, Not Practiced”

When equity is performed, not practiced

Washington Equity NOW Alliance

https://waequitynow.org/

Washington State Reparations Study

WA Dept. of Commerce — Reparative Study for Washington Descendants — https://www.commerce.wa.gov/community-initiatives/reparations-study/

Community Action

Petition: Stand for Integrity & Justice in Washington’s Reparations Process — https://www.thefactsnewspaper.com/post/stand-for-integrity-justice-in-washington-s-reparations-process-sign-the-petition

More Context & Receipts

Department of Commerce: https://www.commerce.wa.gov/community-initiatives/reparations-study/

Department of Commerce: https://www.commerce.wa.gov/reparations-study-update-january-2026/

Seattle Medium: “Community Questions Firm Named As Apparent Successful Bidder”

https://seattlemedium.com/truclusion-consulting-firm-controversy/

Community Debate of the selection of Truclusion as apparent successful bidder: https://seattlemedium.com/reparations-legislation-community-concerns/

South Seattle Emerald: “Washington Will Spend $300K to Study Reparations” https://southseattleemerald.org/news/2025/06/07/washington-will-spend-300k-to-study-reparations-multiracial-solidarity-made-it-possible

Attachment

Department Commerce email naming Reparation Study scorers (.pdf)

This episode of What Say U? is a whole experience — rich, spirited, and full of that unmistakable energy that happens when three Black women sit down together with purpose. The Sisters welcome Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland for a conversation that is equal parts truth‑telling, celebration, and community care. It is a reminder that Black history is not just something we study — it’s something we live, honor, and pass forward.

Congresswoman Strickland introduces Melannie and Audrey to the Black History Month Essay Contest, an invitation for students in Washington State’s 10th Congressional District to lift up the stories of Black Washingtonians — the veterans, educators, entrepreneurs, and civic leaders whose contributions shaped the region long before many people and systems were willing to acknowledge them.

Throughout the episode, you’ll hear:

Information about the contest

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In this episode, the Sisters talk with Ria J Johnson-Covington of the Lakewood African American Police Accountability Committee (LAAPAC) about community safety, accountability, and building stronger relationships between Lakewood’s African American community and the Lakewood Police Department.

LAAPAC Meetings

Connect With LAAPAC

Related City Committees

Channel 253

Channel 253 membership

Okay family, pull up a chair because we need to talk. Washington State recently became the third state in America to fund a reparations study for African Americans, and it should be a moment to celebrate. The Legislature allocated $300,000 in seed funding, and the Washington Equity Now Alliance — a community-based organization doing the real work — raised another $450,000 to ensure this sacred study is done right. Governor Ferguson signed the law that spells out who’s qualified to lead the study: a PhD focused on reparations, peer-reviewed publications, expertise in calculating uncompensated slave labor, and lived experience. So far, so good, right?

But here’s where it gets messy. The Department of Commerce is creating its own procurement rules, and its decisions are now preventing the community from securing qualified consultants for this work. Somehow, an “apparent successful bidder” has been named – a company called Truclusion that doesn’t appear to meet ANY of the legal requirements got through the procurement process — while the nation’s leading reparations scholar, an UCLA endowed chair and Howard University department head who literally wrote a BOOK on Reparations, was denied due process on a technicality when he asked for his legal right to a debriefing. How is the state this incompetent with something this important?

Sisters Audrey and Melannie sit down with Attorney Jesse Wineberry Sr. — former five-term state legislator, first Black House Majority Whip in Washington’s history, and Chair of WENA — to break it down, shed light on the matter, and invite the community to take action. Somethin’ ought to be said. What say YOU?

Washington Equity NOW Alliance

Reparative Study for Washington Descendants – Washington State Department of Commerce

Truclusion Website (Apparent Successful Bidder)

Dr. Marcus Anthony Hunter

Review of City-Level Reparations across the United States (.PDF)

Dept. of Commerce WENA Community Partner Designation (REPARATIONS STUDY) (.PDF)

WASHINGTON REPARATIONS STUDY BUDGET (.PDF)

The Department of Commerce has denied Dr. Marcus Anthony Hunter his legal right to a debrief in accordance with Washington State Law RCW 39.26.170(2). He now must incur legal costs to challenge this injustice. It’s not about the “contract” anymore – it’s about the “principle” of the matter and the blatant disrespect of “Black Excellence.”

Please support Dr. Hunter in this fight. This work is SACRED and COLLECTIVE.

Donate here

Department of Commerce – Public Records Request

CUT & PASTE THIS TEXT INTO YOUR EMAIL

PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST

Pursuant to RCW 42.56, I request all records in any format—including emails, texts, memos, notes, meeting minutes, and other documents—related to COMMERCE RFP 26-33740-001 (Charles Mitchell and George Washington Bush Reparations Study), managed by Michelle Griffin, Department of Commerce:

1. Bidder Evaluation and Selection

2. Deadline Extension

3. Delegation of Authority

4. Conflict of Interest Documentation

CONTACT:

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

THE GOVERNOR’S OFFICE

Are you retired, laid off, or simply in transition? This episode is for YOU. The sisters dive into a dynamic and heartfelt conversation about creating a fulfilling life after work—on your terms.

Discover how to embrace this new chapter with purpose, passion, and joy. From volunteering to lifelong learning, we explore ways to stay engaged, connected, and inspired.

Highlights in this episode:

Opportunities for Seniors to Explore:

Suggestions for things to try:

Guest: Marguerite Martin, Entrepreneur, Social Influencer, and alumna of the American Leadership Forum Tacoma/Pierce County Senior Fellows Program with Melannie

In this honest and brave conversation, Melannie, Audrey, and Marguerite explore a moment from a leadership workshop where Marguerite unintentionally made racially hurtful comments toward Black men in the group—and Melannie checked her. Together they unpack:

This episode is less about blame and more about seeing, learning, and staying the course.

After some time away from the mic, sisters Audrey and Melannie return with a powerful episode that’s part personal journey, part revolutionary challenge.

Personal Updates & Testimony The sisters catch up on their life journeys since the last recording one year ago, with Audrey sharing a moving testimony about her sobriety journey.

The sisters explore how words carry power and trigger automatic emotional responses. They propose flipping the script on the word TRUMP – a word that dominates our cultural conversation – by returning to its original meaning – to surpass or overcome – what if every time you heard the word “TRUMP,” instead of triggering political division or anxiety, it became your cue to choose kindness? The concept: Let kindness trump hate. Let compassion trump cruelty.

The sisters draw from their own comeback journeys to demonstrate that kindness isn’t weakness – it’s revolutionary.

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This is a very special episode as sisters Audrey and Melannie celebrate their mother Alean’s 85th solar return. In the heartwarming and insightful conversation, Mom Alean joins her daughters in the studio to discuss her favorite topic: politics among many things. The discussion is candid, fun and touches on various aspects of life, as Mom Alean shares the wisdom she’s gathered over the years and her hopes for the future.