The old saying, “out of sight, is out of mind,” defines how most people discuss race relations in America. If you are white, you only pay attention to white issues. If you are Black, you only pay attention to Black issues. The complications that come from this approach mean that people typically only care about issues that impact them directly.
Tony Franklin’s life changed when George Floyd was killed.
“Watching that murder happen on TV changed me emotionally,” Franklin said. “I remember growing up in Michigan where I had my first racial awakening. My mother explained to me and my brother that we were going to be judged by our skin color rather than the content of our character.”
Franklin understood growing up that he would have to work twice as hard as whites to fulfill his dreams. He was taught to never mention race — taught to never use race as an excuse to not do something.
Franklin climbed the corporate ladder and reached the executive level in advertising knowing that on most occasions he would be the only person of color in the room. But the George Floyd murder changed him. It moved him in a way where he knew he had to do something.
“When my wife and I had to sit down with our kids to try to explain what happened to Floyd was when I knew I had to do something different,” Franklin explained. “I was sitting there having the same conversation with my kids that my mom had with me when I was ten years old. I knew I had to do something different than never mentioning race.”
Franklin had an awakening. He wrote a Facebook article about his experiences, and it got an incredible response. He got a great response from his friends and from his boss. Franklin worked for Warner Media and the CEO asked him to conduct a forum where any employee could share their experiences on racism to discuss how they felt. It was an open session in a safe space where anyone could ask questions, where they could explain how they felt.
Mostly white people joined the forum. The common theme between them was they didn’t know what was going on. White people are like anybody else. If the problem is not immediately in front of them, they will not pay attention to it.
That forum led to many more discussions within the company until Franklin started being asked to create something where people outside the company could listen in and comment. Thus, A Black Executive podcast was born.
Today, A Black Executive, is produced weekly and is published on several platforms and shared on social media all over the world. Franklin’s guests have included Fortune 100 CEOs and local guests who have a story to tell.
Describing the show, Franklin said, “Race is a difficult thing to discuss, so I knew that the podcast had to lead with, ‘creating a safe place to talk. On the show, we talk about some serious topics. But because we also create a safe environment for people to be honest, the show is thriving and growing monthly.”
Franklin mentions on the show that no one will be attacked for speaking their opinion. He wants people to feel comfortable if they come on the show. He reminds people to not get offended if they listen to the show or if they come on the show. He wants everyone to be able to be heard. That way, he gets the best out of his guests, and the listener gets an amazing show filled with topics that resonate.
In the beginning, it took a few sessions for people to really open up to speaking their minds. In today’s cancel culture, comments can kill a career. So, speaking on a safe, but publicly recorded show didn’t always produce the best conversations.
However, show after show, guest after guest, people started to trust the process. They started to believe that Franklin had their best interests at heart, so people started to speak their minds and A Black Executive really started to become the go-to place if you have something to say.
“I had to be the guinea pig in the beginning, so I told all kinds of stories about how we grew up,” Franklin explained. “After people heard me being open and honest, they started to open up. Boom! We were off to the races.”
Slowly, but surely, Franklin’s roster of guests has gotten better and better; the topics they discuss, deeper and deeper. Today, the podcast reaches thousands and thousands of people. Franklin has secured partnerships with other media outlets and sponsors and is looking forward to more programs in 2024.
Creating a safe space to talk sounds simple. For Franklin, creating a safe place to talk took four years, a ton of work, and the joy of knowing that he was doing his part to bring awareness of racism to thousands of people all over.
