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WEBVTT SOLEDAD: LATELY, IT’S BEEN NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO SCROLL THROUGH FACEBOOK OR TWITTER AND NOT SEE A VIDEO THAT’S GONE VIRAL OF A PERSON OF COLOR BEING HARASSED FOR BEING A PERSON OF COLOR. IT SPAWNED ITS OWN HASHTAG, IN FACT, #LIVINGWHILEBLACK. A CVS STORE MANAGER NEAR CHICAGO CALLED POLICE ON A BLACK WOMAN HE THOUGHT WAS USING A FAKE COUPON AN APARTMENT MANAGER IN MEMPHIS CALLED 911 BECAUSE A BLACK MAN WAS WEARING SOCKS AT THE POOL. BUT, ARGUABLY, ONE OF THE MOST MEMORABLE VIDEOS SHOWED THE ARREST OF TWO BLACK MEN IN A PHILADELPHIA STARBUCKS AFTER THE MANAGER CALLED POLICE BECAUSE THE MEN DID NOT PLACE AN ORDER FAST ENOUGH. THEY WERE WAITING ON A FRIEND TO JOIN THEM. MICHELLE SAAHENE AND MELISSA DEPINO WERE IN STARBUCKS THAT DAY AND WATCHING THE TWO MEN GET ARRESTED. IT SPURRED THEM TO COME TOGETHER TO FORM AN ORGANIZATION CALLED FROM PRIVILEGE TO PROGRESS. IT’S NICE TO HAVE YOU BOTH WITH ME. SO, TAKE ME BACK. WHAT DID YOU SEE FIRST? I MEAN, YOU SEE THE COPS COME IN. IS THAT WHEN YOU FIRST NOTICED IT, OR DID YOU, MICHELLE, SORT OF -- WERE YOU AWARE OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING BEFORE THE COPS CAME INTO THE STARBUCKS IN PHILLY? MICHELLE: YES, I SAW THEM WALK IN AND I SAW THEM ASK TO USE THE BATHROOM. SOLEDAD: THE MEN. MICHELLE: THE MEN. AND SHE SAID, NO, IT’S FOR PAYING CUSTOMERS ONLY. NO BIG DEAL. AND SHE WALKED AWAY, AND I SAW HER MUMBLE SOMETHING TO HERSELF. AND THEN WITHIN ABOUT TEN MINUTES, THE COPS SHOWED UP AND SHE SAID, "THOSE TWO GENTLEMEN ARE REFUSING TO LEAVE. THEY WON’T PURCHASE ANYTHING." AND I WAS LIKE, OH, MY GOD, SHE’S LYING. I STARTED RECORDING ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. AND I’M SHAKING, I’M SWEATING BECAUSE I’M SEEING THIS DISCRIMINATION HAPPENING AND EVERYONE AROUND -- NO ONE IS PAYING ATTENTION. IT WAS REALLY FRUSTRATING. SOLEDAD: BUT, IN FACT, MELISSA WAS PAYING ATTENTION. MELISSA: I WAS. SOLEDAD: SO, TELL ME, YOU GUYS DIDN’T KNOW EACH OTHER. YOU ARE NOT CONNECTED. YOU WERE NOT SITTING TOGETHER. YOU WERE NOT HANGING OUT AT STARBUCKS TOGETHER. WHAT WERE YOU DOING AT THE STARBUCKS THAT DAY AND WHEN DID YOU SEE THE WHOLE THING UNFOLD? MELISSA: SO, I WAS, I WAS SITTING THERE AND I SAW TWO POLICE OFFICERS COME IN. AND THEN I HEARD MICHELLE’S VOICE BEHIND ME SAY, WHAT DID THEY DO? WHAT DID THEY DO? WHY ARE YOU ARRESTING THEM? THAT GOT MY ATTENTION. AND I JOINED IN WITH HER A STARTED SPEAKING UP THERE. AND THEN AT THAT POINT A COUPLE OF PEOPLE WERE VIDEOING THE WHOLE INCIDENT. AND I SAID SOMEONE NEEDS TO SHARE THIS. WITHIN 24 HOURS IT WENT VIRAL. SOLEDAD: IT HAD GONE VIRAL. I REMEMBER RETWEETING THAT BECAUSE IT WAS SO CRAZY TO SEE. MELISSA: WELL, WHAT’S REALLY -- WHAT’S REALLY FUNNY IS WE TALKED ABOUT THE FACT THAT YOU WERE ONE OF THE VERY FIRST PEOPLE TO RETWEET IT THAT HAD A LOT OF FOLLOWERS AND IT SORT OF MADE IT GO VIRAL AND -- SOLEDAD: I CLEARLY SPEND TOO MUCH TIME ON TWITTER. BUT IN THIS CASE, IT WAS WORTH DOING. I HEARD FROM PEOPLE WHO I WOULD SHARE WITH SOMETHING LIKE, YEAH, BUT YOU’RE NOT SEEING WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE. THEY MUST HAVE DONE SOMETHING. NO ONE WOULD EVER JUST CALL THE COPS ON PEOPLE WHO ARE JUST SITTING THERE UNLESS THEY HAD DONE SOMETHING, RIGHT? AND, BY THE WAY, YOU HEAR THAT EVERY SINGLE INCIDENT THAT GETS, YOU KNOW, GOES VIRAL. YOU HEAR THAT AS WELL. MICHELLE: WE HEAR IT ALL THE TIME, AND I JUST WANT TO EMPHASIZE TO PEOPLE THAT THEY THINK THAT THEY DON’T SEE RACISM, BUT THEY DO. THEY JUST DON’T RECOGNIZE IT. AND SO, YOU HAVE TO EDUCATE YOURSELF IN ORDER TO KNOW WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE TODAY. SOLEDAD: TELL ME WHAT YOU’RE DOING. WHAT’S THE STRATEGY? WHAT’S THE PLAN TO GET PEOPLE? BECAUSE I’VE BEEN REPORTING ON RACE FOR A LONG TIME. EVERYBODY DOESN’T WANT TO TALK TO YOU ALL THE TIME, RIGHT? PEOPLE ROLL THEIR EYES. THEY’RE LIKE, OH, GOD, I’M A GOOD PERSON. COME ON, WE’RE ONLY TALKING ABOUT -- I’M NOT IN THE KKK. SO, ERGO, I’M NOT A RACIST, RIGHT? I MEAN, THAT’S A REALLY -- IT’S LIKE THE THIRD RAIL OF DINNER PARTY CONVERSATIONS TO TALK ABOUT RACE. IT REALLY IS. SO, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? MELISSA: YOU KNOW THAT QUOTE THAT "IT’S NOT ENOUGH TO BE NOT RACIST, YOU HAVE TO BE ANTI-RACIST." AND WE WANT WHITE PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND THAT THEY NEED TO BE PART OF THE SOLUTION AND WE WANT TO MOBILIZE THEM TO BE PART OF THE SOLUTION AND SPEAK UP. AND IF THEY’RE -- IF THEY’RE NOT, THEN THEY’RE PART OF THE PROBLEM. SO, WE’RE HOPING TO CREATE THIS CONVERSATION. SO, PLEASE FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA. SOLEDAD: WE WILL ABSOLUTELY PUSH THAT AS WELL. I WILL PUSH THAT, TOO. I GOT A LOT OF FOLLOWERS. SOME OF THEM ARE COMPLETELY CRAZY, BUT A LOT OF THEM ARE VERY GOOD AND INTERESTED IN LEARNING A LOT. MICHELLE AND MELISSA, THANKS SO MUCH FOR COMING IN AND TALKING ABOUT IT. GOOD LUCK WITH WHAT YOU’RE DOING. I THINK IT’S SO IMPORTANT AND IT’S A BIG, HEAVY LIFT. SO, APPRECIATE YOU FOR