Why This Election Matters: A Conversation with Alphonso David
Episodes You Might Also Like
Featured
Description
Elections shape the future of our democracy, and their impact on our lives is undeniable. As a Black woman, lawyer, leader, and mother, I see it not just as part of my brand but as my duty to bring essential conversations forward, especially as we approach this pivotal Election Day.
In this episode of Branding Room Only, I’m joined by Alphonso David, a trailblazing civil rights and economic justice leader, and the president and CEO of the Global Black Economic Forum. Alphonso’s work and his powerful message resonate deeply at this crucial time. We explore his remarkable career advocating for Black and marginalized communities and discuss the significant issues at stake in this election.
Chapters
1:58 - Alphonso’s definition of a personal brand, himself in a single sentence, two quotes he often goes back to, and his hype songs
5:54 - How a devastating childhood experience in Liberia shaped Alphonso’s brand and commitment to social justice
10:44 - Alphonso’s through line and career path leading up to becoming president of the Global Black Economic Forum
17:37 - The Fearless Fund court case and how it exposes ongoing systemic inequity in the U.S.
26:39 - The singular concept that should be at the forefront for Black or Black-adjacent people this election
32:54 - How the Forum’s work intercepts with priorities of greater equity and freedom for the Black community
36:01 - Why it’s important to think through the lens of community (and history) rather than through the lens of the self
41:19 - All the things Alphonso does for fun, what he will never compromise on, and the unique experience that he provides for others
Connect With Alphonso David
Alphonso David is the president and CEO of the Black Global Economic Forum. He has committed his life to actualizing a more just and equitable world. For more than two decades and with convictions motivated from experiences early in his childhood, he has helped to build and transform storied institutions and systems in the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors with an eye toward uplifting and improving the lives of marginalized communities.
Widely recognized as one of the nation’s foremost human rights and civil rights leaders, David’s leadership has advanced economic and social justice movements across the United States and globally. He’s a sought-after public speaker and commentator whose work has been highlighted by MSNBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, CNN, NPR, the Root, Essence, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Grio and others. Raised in Liberia, West Africa, he currently resides in New York City.
Alphonso David | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
Mentioned In Why This Election Matters: A Conversation with Alphonso David
Subscribe to The Branding Room Only on YouTube
Sponsor for this episode
This episode is brought to you by PGE Consulting Group LLC.
PGE Consulting Group LLC is dedicated to providing a practical hybrid of professional development training and diversity solutions. From speaking to consulting to programming and more, all services and resources are carefully tailored for each partner. Paula Edgar’s distinct expertise helps engage attendees and create lasting change for her clients.
To learn more about Paula and her services, go to www.paulaedgar.com or contact her at info@paulaedgar.com, and follow Paula Edgar and the PGE Consulting Group LLC on LinkedIn.
Transcript
Paula Edgar: Welcome to The Branding Room Only Podcast where we share career stories, strategies, and lessons learned on how industry leaders and influencers have built their personal brands. Now, let's get started with the show.
Hi everyone, it's Paula. I wanted to do a little intro to today's conversation with Alphonso David. This was one that I really wanted to have. Alphonso is a friend and leader in civil rights and economic justice, and as you'll hear more about, he's the president and CEO of the Global Economic Forum. As we approach this pivotal election, I wanted to have the conversation, not just because of Alphonso's work, it is vital, but because this message is so essential for all of us to hear.
This election impacts not only the Black community, but all of us, as we consider, essentially was writing on the future of our democracy. As a Black woman, lawyer, leader, and mother, bringing this conversation to you felt essential, and it is a part of my brand, and it's also part of my responsibility. Let's get into it. Let's get to The Branding Room.
Hi everybody, it's Paula Edgar, your host of Branding Room Only where we talk to leaders about their personal brands and their journeys. I am so excited for my guest today, Alphonso David. He is a civil rights attorney and president and CEO of the Global Black Economic Forum. With over two decades of experience across the public, private, and non-profit sectors, he is a fierce advocate for social and economic justice for marginalized communities worldwide. Alphonso, welcome to The Branding Room.
Alphonso David: Thank you. Thank you so much for having me.
Paula Edgar: Of course. I'm excited to have this conversation. We have had the opportunity to know each other in lots of different ways, and I really wanted to make sure that my audience got to know you too. I start off the podcast asking the same question to everyone, which is, what does a personal brand mean to you? How do you define it?
Alphonso David: For me, a personal brand is what you do, what you accomplish, what distinguishes you from everyone else. A personal brand for me is not about a title. It's not about a job. It's really about what you do, what you accomplish, and what distinguishes you from anyone else on the globe.
Paula Edgar: I love that, that unique value opposition. Tell me, how would you describe yourself in three words or short phrases?
Alphonso David: Okay, three? Only three words?
Paula Edgar: Only three, either three words or three short phrases.
Alphonso David: Okay, I'm going to give you one sentence. Does that work?
Paula Edgar: Yeah, let's do it.
Alphonso David: Okay. Diplomatic, fearless warrior for liberation.
Paula Edgar: Oh, oh, I love that. Okay, okay.
Alphonso David: Because I'm both diplomatic, but fearless, and I'm a warrior, and my focus is on liberation.
Paula Edgar: I love that. Do you have a favorite quote or mantra?
Alphonso David: I have two that I often go back to. The first one is, “Your life will shrink or expand proportional to your courage.” The second for me is “Principles only mean something if we stick by them in inconvenient times.”
Paula Edgar: Yeah, that resonates.
Alphonso David: I go back to both of those because often in our lives, we are confronted with challenges, whether in our personal lives or professional lives, and we have to decide in those moments how we show up. If we show up through the lens of fear, it dictates one certain type of result. You show up through the lens of courage, it dictates a very different type of result.
Paula Edgar: Yes, I'm going to come back to that courage part. Do you have a hype song? For me, a hype song is two things. It's either the song that's playing when they're going to get full Alphonso David coming in, it's playing in your head, or if you're having a bad day and you need to get yourself back up there and it can be the same song or two different ones, what do you have?
Alphonso David: Oh, I'm being difficult here because I'm not giving you one song. Can I give you a few?
Paula Edgar: Yes, yes you can.
Alphonso David: I'm just going back to when I have to prepare for an oral argument in court, or I have to give a presentation that so much is weighing on that presentation, or if I'm facing some type of existential crisis or moment, there are a few things I'll listen to. One is God Will Take Care of You by Aretha Franklin. It's from that gospel album that she did that just grounds me. Another is Everything is Everything by Lauryn Hill. The last one would be In the Mix by Mixmasters, which is a dance song that I love.
Paula Edgar: Okay, so at the end of each year, I put together a playlist of all of the songs that my guests have. The playlist right now is wild. It's like trap music, hip-hop, gospel. But I love that because what inspires or gets us going, for me, it's always Prince. It just depends on what's in the discography. But my song, whenever I'm going to get on the stage, is Baby I'm a Star, over and over and over again.
So you were born in Maryland but you were raised in Liberia in a rough political time. Tell me what you think about those early experiences and how it might have shaped your brand and your commitment to social justice.
Alphonso David: Well, I think my personal childhood experience has really informed and continues to inform my worldview. I grew up in a democracy in Liberia. Unfortunately, like many other parts, or other parts, I should say not many, but other parts of the world, that democracy was challenged. We unfortunately suffer the consequences of that.
I come from a political family, if you will. My father was the mayor of Monrovia, which is the capital city of Liberia, and my uncle was the president of Liberia. In the early 1980s, Liberia went through a tumultuous time, and there was a military coup. My uncle was assassinated. My father was arrested and put in prison. We were placed under house arrest.
For me, going through that experience as a young child changed how I see the world and how I think about priorities. Initially, I was being rare to become a surgeon, a medical doctor. After the war, I completely shifted my interest. It shifted from medicine to the law. That was in large part because of the war and seeing how you could lose your freedom overnight, seeing how you could be persecuted because of your political beliefs, your alliances, or lack thereof with certain groups of people, how you could be persecuted because of your tribal affiliation.
It's really shaped my thinking on how we achieve equity, equality, and economic justice for marginalized communities, because we see this concept of factionalization, if you will, manifests itself all over the globe. There are so many direct and indirect collateral consequences of that.
One of them is our failure as people of color to really achieve true economic justice and freedom because we're often the ones that are being attacked, we're often the ones that are either we're living in countries where we're the racial minorities or we're in countries where a certain segment of our populations are being demoralized and stripped of the protections and rights that they deserve. For me, that's really what shaped my commitment to social and economic justice over the past several decades.
Paula Edgar: I mean, wow, I often ask my guests about their upbringing because I do think that how you grow up does shape you, the where, the how, the what, but that experience, and as you were talking, I was thinking about my own experience, my mother was one of the victims in 9/11, she was killed in the towers. The switch from sort of being like, “All right, I'm going to do whatever I'm going to do with the world,” then being truly saying, “I have to do and be something more,” I decided to go into the law after my mother was killed, it really catalyzed for me that number one, life is short. Number two, that there is much more for us as Black people.
One of the things that I have been committed to is making sure that people remember that there were people of color and Black people who were killed in 9/11 because much of the news did not portray that. As you were talking, I thought to myself, “There are so many folks who are catalyzed because of tragedy and because of the challenges they experienced.”
But when you just mentioned democracy, I thought to myself, “What a 360 you must be feeling in your upbringing and then where we are with the democracy that we are living in now and your role in it.” Tell us a little bit about your career path leading you up to being the president of the Black Economic Forum, what have you experienced and what brought you to where we are now?
Alphonso David: The throughline, and I'll walk you through my path, but the throughline has really been the quest for fairness and justice. I, of course, went to college, graduated from college, ran a company, a government contracting firm for a number of years. I went to law school, graduated from law school, received a federal clerkship, which is a huge privilege and an honor. Very, very few law students are able to secure a federal clerkship.
I clerked for the Honorable Clifford Scott Green, who was one of the first Black justices that was appointed in the Third Circuit. I clerked for him. Then I worked for a major law firm in Philadelphia called Blank Rome, where I did litigation, corporate transactions, and intellectual property litigation.
It was a fantastic experience because I got to hone my skills. I got to be in the courtroom and represent clients and do some of the not-so-glamorous discovery responses and requests that we sometimes have to do. I did that for a number of years. Then I had left the firm and accepted a position as a council for an addiction treatment center in California.
Fred Siegel at the time had reached out through some associates and they wanted to recruit me to run a company for them; an addiction treatment center that was really focused on providing some philanthropic support to communities that were impacted by addiction in Los Angeles. So I moved from the East Coast to the West Coast to run that company.
Then a few years later, there was a Supreme Court decision, Lawrence v. Texas, that shifted my focus back to the East Coast. That decision essentially decriminalized intimate conduct between two consenting adults who happen to be of the same sex. I took a role at a civil rights organization called Lambda Legal, and I litigated cases with Lambda for about three years, employment discrimination cases, health-related cases. I litigated the marriage case here in New York.
I then left the not-for-profit space and then went into government. I worked at the Division of Human Rights, which is the oldest human rights agency in the country, built in 1945. I worked with them in sort of revamping and revising their operations. Then I worked at the Attorney General's office as the Bureau Chief for Civil Rights and had a number of lawyers working with me, litigating cases all over the state of New York from housing to employment to public accommodations and seeing really the tapestry that is discrimination in a state. You have to see it all.
We brought pattern-or-practice cases against employers, against housing providers. I did that for a number of years. I was then recruited to work in the governor's office and I was the governor's chief policy advisor on civil rights and labor. I held that role for about four years.
I mean, there are so many things that I was able to work on during those four years that I'm extremely proud of, from helping to draft the marriage equality law in New York that ultimately resulted in the Supreme Court overturning the Defense of Marriage Act to working on criminal justice reform and working on the minimum wage legislation and paid family leave.
I then, after four years of doing that work, ended up becoming the chief counsel to the governor of New York, I became the first Black man to serve in that role. I did that for another four years. I ended up spending 12 years in government. Then left and ran the Human Rights Campaign for about two years. I also became the first Black person to run that organization and then left and now I run the Global Black Economic Forum.
If you look at that trajectory from running a government contracting firm before law school to now running the Global Black Economic Forum, for me, the throughline is how do we advance equity, how do we advance social justice, how do we advance economic opportunity for marginalized communities. Because the law has been utilized for decades to oppress marginalized groups. It's been manipulated to make us less than a full person under the Constitution. It's been manipulated to justify separate but equal.
How do we work with the law? How do we utilize the law to advance policies and regulations and statutes and litigation that supports marginalized communities? That's really how I think about my career, that all of those jobs are really focused on the same thing; they just happen to have different titles.
Paula Edgar: You say that but I think when you just laid that out, I met you several times in that trajectory but the two things that I remember were when you were counsel to the governor and we honored you for the Black Bar when I was president. Point of privilege because it's my podcast, I'll never forget that I had been in the hospital right before the gala where you were honored and you were sitting next to me as an honoree and I kept wanting to get up and you kept being like, “Sit down, sit down, sit down.”
My husband so appreciate, because he's on the other side of me being like, “Sit down, sit down,” so appreciate, he still mentions it that you were here as an honoree but you were caring for me and I appreciate that and I love to tell people when they have made an impact on me. It reminded me that I don't have to do everything which is important, but number two, that you're there and you're about to be honored with glory and you were thinking about me and I appreciate that.
The second one was during the pandemic. We did a podcast, well, a video like we're doing now for the Black Bar and it was with Jason who is one of my mentees from law school and he was working with you at the time. I just remember how much fun we had during the conversation. Anyway, I'll get back on my path now. I just wanted to reflect on that because I can.
Alphonso David: This is your show.
Paula Edgar: It is, it is, the Branding Room Only is my room. One of the things you didn't mention just now in your long list of impact and roles that you've had is that you were counsel to the Fearless Fund. In that role, you have had to navigate some of the challenges—and I'll say that lightly—of the backlash and attacks that have been levied towards anything that's trying to provide equity to communities that have been marginalized, and in this case, to the Fearless Fund which provides grants to Black women entrepreneurs.
Can you talk a little bit about the case, the challenges, and what you would advise other people who are facing this current backlash, which is right now robust, I'll say that?
Alphonso David: Sure, so for folks who may not know, the Fearless Fund is a venture capital firm as well as a charitable organization. It was started about five or six years ago. A Black woman who was seeking funding for her business ventures kept on facing challenges and obstacle after obstacle after obstacle to obtain funding. For folks who may not know, the construct for venture capitalism is if I own a business and I would like to grow that business, I go out and I seek investors.
Those investors will invest in my company in exchange for, in some cases, equity. They may get up as a percent or five percent of my company in exchange for their investment. That is the tool that many people use to grow and really scale their business ventures.
She was looking for some help to scale her firm and her business ideas and kept on facing obstacle after obstacle. So she created the Fearless Fund, working with others, but really created the Fearless Fund in the charitable organization associated with it, to address this problem. It's a pretty significant problem. $288 billion every year is allocated through the venture capital space. Of the $288 billion with a B that's allocated every year, less than 1% goes to all Black people, and 0.036% goes to Black women.
Paula Edgar: Wow.
Alphonso David: That's a huge disparity. Her goal was to create a company and a charitable organization to try to address that problem and had been very successful for about five years. Then on a fateful day in August of last year, 2023, they were served with a federal complaint that suggested that one of their programs—because they had multiple programs and they still do—but one of their programs provided grants to Black women.
The argument that was posited in the complaint was that by providing grants to Black women, the Fearless Fund was violating federal law. So you ask, well, what is that federal law that they were apparently violating? Well, the argument was that section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act, which was passed in 1866, to allow Black people to enter into contracts--
Paula Edgar: Post-civil war.
Alphonso David: Just so we can remember, during the civil war, we were considered property, we couldn't enter into contracts, we couldn't own property, couldn't get an education. Post-civil war, this statute is passed that says, “Hey, we are going to allow Black people to enter into contracts in the same way white people can enter into contracts.”
What happened with the Fearless Fund is they're using that statute to argue that by providing grants to Black women to address this ongoing systemic inequity, it violates 1981 of the Civil Rights Act. So we took on the case, created a legal team, if you will, that included Gibson Dunn serving as our lead counsel and others came to the table from Danielle Conley to Ben Crump and we were collectively to defend the Fearless Fund in federal court and we were successful.
In the district court, we argued successfully that the grant was being issued by charitable organization and charitable organizations have a First Amendment right to issue grants consistent with their missions. That is not a secret and that has been happening for decades, from the Ford Foundation to Open Society, from smaller, not-for-profit organizations to mid-size organizations, and the Fearless Fund should be treated no different than every other charitable organization out there.
The court agreed that charitable organizations have a First Amendment right to issue grants consistent with their mission. The court also concluded that the plaintiffs were unlikely to succeed on the merits of the case. Well, they filed an emergency appeal that ultimately ended up before a three-judge panel before the Eleventh Circuit. Two of the three judges concluded that the district court was wrong.
First, the court concluded that the plaintiffs had standing to file the lawsuit. Now, for the non-lawyers, why is that important? It's important because in our case, the plaintiffs were anonymous. We still don't know who they are. We don't know if they're real. We don't know if they have legitimate businesses. But the court in the Eleventh Circuit concluded that they had standing to sue, and that should strike a chord in everyone.
Whether you run a business or charitable organization, because what that means is in the Eleventh Circuit, someone could file a lawsuit to close down your business or your program, and you may not even know who they are. They would get the right, or they may have the ability to actually shut down that program or your business.
That is not the law, because the Second Circuit has disagreed with that. The Second Circuit, of course, is in New York for the parts of the Northeast. But the Eleventh Circuit has disagreed and concluded, in our case, that they had the right to file the lawsuit and also concluded that they were likely to succeed on the merits.
We ultimately had a decision to make whether we would litigate the case in that circuit or we would settle the case in such a way that it would have limited impact. That's what we did. We settled the case so that it is limited only to that one program that was ending anyway.
It does not apply in any way to the Fearless Fund’s grants, current or future grants, current or future programs, current or future investments, current or future mentoring programs, and doesn't apply to how they operate. For us, that is a huge win for the Fearless Fund, but also a huge win for anyone who cares about equity.
Because the goal of our opponents is to essentially strip race from every single statute, regulation, and policy in this country because they believe that we live in a race-neutral country, which is obviously obscene. We don't. They don't deny that there is a huge disparity in funding. Why? Because the data is the data, $288 million, less than 1% of Black people.
Paula Edgar: Billion, with the B.
Alphonso David: With the B. There is a disparity. They can't deny the disparity. Yet they are looking to strip those who are disadvantaged from the ability to engage in self-help, which to me is an anathema to this concept of free enterprise. Those who have considered themselves ultra-conservative say, “We have to embrace free enterprise in a capitalist country.”
Well, if that's the case, you are then restricting free enterprise for those who are oppressed. That's essentially what the Fearless Fund represents. That's why we fought so hard against that principle and why we believe the result in this case, not only protects the Fearless Fund moving forward, but it also protects anyone who is looking to continue to advance marginalized communities in this country.
Paula Edgar: It's really why I wanted to have you explain what has happened and where we are right now because I do think there's a lot of misinformation around exactly what everything means. But this is perfect lead into the next question because there's so much misinformation, disinformation, and wrong information that is happening everywhere but in particular in our country.
One of the reasons why I really wanted to have a conversation with you is to think about how to counter that. In particular, I would say a majority of my listeners are Black or Black-adjacent, meaning that they have Black people in their lives, which would be everybody. But I want to hear what your thoughts are, as our election is looming next week. What should be at the forefront for Black people for this election?
Alphonso David: Freedom. It's as simple as freedom. For me, this election is about our ability to be free. It's not a hyperbolic response. Very real. We don't have economic freedom currently. We don't have the ability to reach the level of success collectively as a class and as a group that we should in this country.
That is because they have been barrier after barrier after barrier that has been created for decades. It has been intentional. It is not a coincidence that the majority of folks in the C-suite are not people of color and are not women. It is not a coincidence that the majority of people who are serving on major boards around the country are not women and are not people of color.
So either you're going to argue that women and people of color are not as smart, not as ambitious, not as driven, not as accomplished, or you're going to recognize that this disparity exists and we have to do something about it. This election is about our ability to break down those walls that have been enshrined in our statutes and our regulations and in our institutions.
If we don't continue the path forward, we will actually lose the ability to engage. I know this is not a political podcast, but I'll just say one of the candidates has said that if people vote for him, they don't have to vote again. Because I went through an experience living in a country that shifted from a democracy to a dictatorship, I understand what those words mean and I believe him.
If you believe that, “Well it could never happen in the United States of America,” think again. The United States Supreme Court just issued a ruling that concluded that Donald Trump is immune from criminal prosecution for acts that takes place when he is president.
Think about what that means. Think about what that means as it relates to marginalized communities in this country. If the president of the United States is immune to acts that take place when that person is president, essentially, they can target any community to be free of criminal prosecution because they're doing it under the guise of the presidency.
This election is hugely important for us as marginalized communities, for us as Black people, and for women who have now been stripped of their right to bodily integrity, I know we hear it every four years, but this is the most consequential election, certainly in my lifetime, where we have an opportunity to either turn the page or go backward.
Paula Edgar: Yeah. It's sobering to think that we're actually, even in conversation about this, that it's even a possibility. I recently went to an event at the Museum of the City of New York where they currently have an exhibit about Shirley Chisholm. The conversation was about from Chisholm to Harris, the state of Black women in politics.
Dr. Jelani Cobb and there were two other historians and educators who were on the panel were talking about the challenge that I found because, again, one of the reasons why I wanted to have this podcast is because I wanted to make sure that folks got to understand how important I think branding is and to give people visibility, etc., but it's also for me to talk about who I am and why things are important to me. Me being Black is a very big part of who I am and so is being a woman and so is being a leader. There's a feeling of disbelief that we are even looking at this as an equal or close to equal challenge.
When folks are now talking about DEI and saying that DEI is bad, insert whatever word you want to use here. Then I think about this on this literal scale where we're looking at someone who is unqualified versus somebody who is uber-qualified being looked at similarly and much of the reason has to do with money and race.
I used to often laugh and say I'm not political, I’m paulitical, but this is really and truly wild. I say that because I don't know what else to say, but I wanted to make sure we touched upon that because I do want to make sure that folks hear and understand that while this is not a political podcast, it is my podcast and my identity and the identities that I have are important to who I am and how I show up.
That's it, that's in a nutshell. I want to pull back a little bit because I want to know in specific, how does the work that you do with the Global Black Economic Forum intercept with the priorities we just talked about? In terms of thinking about our freedom, liberation, and equity, how does the work that you do specifically help the Black community in those ways?
Alphonso David: Well, at the Global Black Economic Forum, we're focused on advancing economic opportunity and economic justice for members of the Black diaspora and other marginalized communities. We're doing that because economic justice is the cornerstone of freedom.
You can pass legislation that prohibits discrimination. But if the doors are still closed, if you're really being denied opportunities because remember the 1964 Civil Rights Act was passed decades ago and yet we still suffer wide-ranging disparities in industry after industry.
So yes, we're technically free. The 13th Amendment was passed and prohibits slavery, but we're still running with the shackles of slavery because we're not able to run freely. So we have to break off those shackles so we can actually run freely and run at a speed that no one can imagine.
But we don't achieve freedom generally without the ability to engage in free enterprise. Again, going back to the Fearless Fund. That's why all of this work is so important. Let's not forget that yes, we are making progress, I don't want to suggest that we are where we were in 1964.
We are making progress. But let's also recognize that we're also going backward. When Martin Luther King gave his speech on the March on Washington, the wealth gap, not the wage gap, but the wealth gap, meaning how many assets you have that you can pass on to your children or to your descendants, the wealth gap was eight to one between white people and Black people.
Today, the wealth gap is 12 to one. Maybe we're talking about increases in wages, which is incredibly important, but we also have to talk about the ability to ascertain generational wealth, which makes a huge difference in actually ascertaining freedom.
That is the cornerstone of what we're doing at the Global Black Economic Forum. All of these priorities that we often talk about addressing health disparities, being able to control our bodies, or being able to invest in the way that we would like to invest are incredibly important and are all interconnected. Social economic justice are interconnected and they actually lead to freedom.
Paula Edgar: That's a lot. One of the things that I want to think about often when I'm talking to leaders is how you manage all of that a lot as a leader. I used to ask the question, “What keeps you up at night?” Then I kept getting some answers while I was like, “Well, that's a lie. It's keeping me up at night now.” How are you navigating all of that as a leader? I don't even know what the actual question is. I'm just thinking that's a lot of weight. How do you shoulder that?
Alphonso David: I remember every time I feel that I'm getting to the edge of feeling overwhelmed, I think about our ancestors. It never fails. The reason I do that is because doing the comparative analysis is very sobering. Understanding that people died for my ability to even have a conversation, just to have the conversation.
There was a point in time when I would be killed just for engaging in a debate. When I put it in perspective, the weight that's on my shoulders, I see not only as a privilege, but a responsibility because this is their legacy. We are standing on their shoulders.
We have to think about this work through the lens of the community as opposed to through the lens of the self. Our political system now has moved closer and closer and closer towards the self. It's rare that people talk about who they're voting for through the lens of the community. They're often talking about what this means for them.
As I think about my work and what keeps the fuel in the car is the community. If this is about self-glory, it's not fulfilling, it's not rewarding. In some cases, it's kind of intuitive. But this work has to be about the community. It also has to be about the sacrifices that our ancestors made for us to be able to fight for change.
Paula Edgar: Thank you for that. It was a much-needed reminder. It just is. I was looking at something the other day online and a woman was speaking about her childhood the first time she was able to vote, that essentially there was a poll tax.
Alphonso David: I saw that.
Paula Edgar: Right. It was either that they had to pay that money or they wouldn't eat. They have to choose between voting and exercising their rights or eating. When I hear people talk about not voting or voting differently than the community might need—I'll say that—it is frustrating because it just reminds me of your point about how these things can go astray.
I love history, I studied anthropology, and I studied what cultures do. This is pivotal for us to be reflective that we have to take care of each other. I would have hoped, I thought that when we had COVID, that that would be like, “Oh, my gosh, now we realize just how interdependent we are on each other.” In fact, I think it made us much more divided because you could see even during COVID people were like, “I'm not going to wear this mask because I don't like how it feels.” As opposed to, “I want to take care of the people who need me to wear the mask.”
I'll leave that piece with just saying that if there's anybody who's listening and I hope not, who is even anticipating not voting as an option, I encourage you to think about our community, I mean, our joint collective community and what we need from each other to thrive. Whatever you decide your community is, we all as a collective community are going to be impacted by whatever we decide to do individually when we're voting. Please vote.
Alphonso David: Remember for folks who are thinking about this, this is just not about the presidency. With the many, many, many rules that are up for election this year from the Senate, and the House, in some cases, please make sure that you understand and appreciate that when you vote, you're voting for your local counsel, you're voting for your district attorney, you're voting for the attorney general, and in some cases, people who directly affect your life, and the life of your community.
Paula Edgar: Absolutely. Absolutely. Yes. The judges' piece is important. You're more likely to interact with the judge than you are with the president. Just keep it real. Okay. That was a lot, that was heavy. Now I want to talk about fun stuff. What do you do for fun? Please tell me it's a lot of things because that was a lot.
Alphonso David: It's a lot of things. I love music. I love live music. Jazz is one of my favorites. Soul, R&B, pop, classical, all of it. I love live music. As often as I can get out to listen to live music, I do. I love film. When we grew up, we didn't have a lot of movies that we were able to see in Liberia, but when we came to the US, I fell in love with film.
I watch a lot of international films as well. That brings me a lot of comfort. I also work out a lot. I work out every day. I do vinyasa yoga in a heated room. I do calisthenics. I do Ray Training, rock climbing, and tennis. I'm very active. That is, for me, a channel where I'm able to relieve stress. But it also is a way where I'm able to connect with my body in a way that when you're working all the time, you don't get a chance to do.
I also like to read lots of James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, two of my favorites. Reading and film sort of do similar things for me. They provide a window into someone else's perspective and life experience and viewpoint. What has been really extraordinary to me about those two—I don't want to call it genres—but those two spheres, if you will, is you're able to learn something new about how you react and how you process information. That's why I love to read. That's why I love film. They feed my soul. They challenge me to think about the world in different ways. They challenge my perspectives as well.
Paula Edgar: Yes, and allow you to get away.
Alphonso David: Yeah. Then, finally, I love to cook.
Paula Edgar: Oh, okay.
Alphonso David: I love to cook. My dad was very, very clear on this one when we were growing up that all of his kids had to learn how to cook, not just the girls.
Paula Edgar: Yes, yes, good. Now I know that if I'm hungry. I’m coming over. As we wind down, there are two questions that I ask everybody on the podcast and one is this, what is your stand by your brand? What is the authentic aspect of your personal brand that you will never compromise on?
Alphonso David: Integrity.
Paula Edgar: Love that. Branding Room Only is a play on the term standing room only because I'm clever. So I ask everyone this, what is your magic? What is something that folks would be in a room, standing room only to experience about you?
Alphonso David: I have this unique ability to create effective teams. I can assess skill sets, understand what is complementary and what isn't, and put together really effective teams. I also have special skills when it comes to strategy, legal and policy analysis, writing, and public speaking.
Those things I recognize are, I don't want to say easy, but they come more natural to me. I play multiple chess in my head when I think about legal strategy or policy analysis. I know that that is not common. I would say those would be some of the few things.
Paula Edgar: I love that. I want to thank you deeply for taking some time out to speak with me and kiki a little bit, as opposed to cry, with my people. How can people find out more about you and the work that you do?
Alphonso David: I'm on, I think all of the platforms, they can go to alphonsodavid.com, which is a website that has a lot of background about me. Or you can go and find me on LinkedIn or IG or Facebook, and it's at Alphonso David. You can also get more information at the Global Black Economic Forum, which is gbef.com.
Paula Edgar: Perfect. Thank you for joining me. Everybody, listen. Please tell a friend to tell a friend, and share it with that friend, you know the one I am talking about, who needs to hear it, and tell them to share it with their father-in-law who needs to hear it too. That being said, I will see you next time in the Branding Room Only. Always stand by your brand. Talk to y'all soon. Bye.
Wow. Wasn't that a powerful conversation today with Alphonso? The conversation touched on his remarkable career, his leadership and so many of the critical issues that are at stake in this election. For me, I really want you to remember, this conversation wasn't just a timely one, it was a personal one; a conversation to reflect on my identity as a Black woman, a lawyer, and a mother. That's why it's so important for me to bring these conversations to you as my listeners.
If today's conversation resonated, please share it with a friend, a colleague, or a family member, and encourage them to do the same. I want us all to understand what's writing on this election for ourselves, for our communities, and for our future. As always, thank you for joining me in the Branding Room, and stand by your brand. See you next time.
