cable or satellite provider. >> the house returns today at noon eastern for general speeches with legislative business at two. the week's agenda is expected to include reauthorization of the children's health insurance program and funding for faa programs. both of those are currently set to expire at the end of the month. the senate meets at four eastern. at 5:30 senators will vote on the confirmation of william emanuel to be a member of the national labor relations board. later this week it's possible we'll see debate and a vote on the graham-cassidy health care bill that would replace the affordable care act. as always, you can watch the house live on c-span and the senate live here on c-span2. the senate finance committee holds a hearing today on the latest republican plan to repeal the affordable care act.

two main sponsors of the measure -- senators lindsey graham and bill cassidy -- are scheduled to testify. live coverage begins at 2 p.m. eastern here on c-span2. a rally called a march for civility was held on the steps of the lincoln memorial in washington d.c. speakers from different backgrounds shared personal stories including michael brown sr. whose son was killed in ferguson, missouri. we also heard from law enforcement, activists and bobby seale, the co-founder of the black panther party. the event was organized by the free hugs project and the restore civility campaign. it's three hours. ♪ ♪ [cheers and applause]

>> please, welcome to the stage activist ken -- [inaudible] also hone known as the free hug. >> wow. it is so hot out here. thank you guys all for braving the heat and coming out here. i see many people still hiding in the corners and around the trees. please, gather in, we're going to get the program started today. p thank you all for being here and supporting this message of peace and civility and love and being able to come together. it's just a really amazing sight to be standing here and looking onto the washington monument and knowing behind me dr. martin

luther king delivered his famous i have a dream speech, and it's just such an amazing experience. i'm looking forward to a marching with you all. we've got some amazing speakers here today, people who represent so many different sides and ethnicities and backgrounds, and we're all being able to stand here in support of peace. i look out, i see people wearing the free hugs t-shirts and the restore civility shirts, and this message is really important to me, you know? i hope it's important to so many of you that are here and to people all around the world that are watching it live on c-span today. i think this is a really amazing experience.k so we'll get started with one of our first speakers. we've got former congressman jason altmeyer who literally wrote the book on how to conquer polarization in washington. during his three terms in the house, altmeyer was a bipartisan centrist known for working with both sides of the aisle, and in his new book he offers some advice on bringing civility back

to our nays' political dis-- our nation's political discourse. please welcome former congressman jason altmeyer. [applause] altmeir >> this is the perfect place to have this event. we are surrounded by some of america's most significant memorials that have to do with what we're talking about here today. right over there the black granite wall inscribed with 58,000 names, that wall symbolizes a time in this country when we were deeply divided, a time when it appeared america was coming apart at the seams, a time when violence occurred, a time when anger turned into violence, americans turned against one another. and it was at about that time that one of america's greatest

heroes gave one of america's greatest speeches right here at this memorial. and on that day 54 years ago, dr. martin luther king stood here and told america we have a long way to go to achieve the civility, to achieve of the peace, to achieve the unity and the equality that he knew was possible. and this spot, the lincoln memorial, represents the fact that this nation has in the past had times when we were even more divided than we appear to be today. the man memorializedded behind me -- memorialized behind me who looks down at us right now from his giant white chair, he presided over america at the time of our deepest division. and that's the backdrop for what we're talking about today. the march for civility. and what we're talking about today with this march is the

fact that regardless of our politics, we have to find a way to increase the level of civility in our public discourse. we have to find a way -- [applause]wa to reduce the partisanship. because no matter your politics, today partisans think that all the facts are on their side, that all the evidence supports their conclusion, that they know better than everybody else what's right. that their side is 100% right and the other side is 100% wrong. but maybe sometimes that's trueo but usually it's not. we have to work together. and one of the things i found in writing my book on political polarization is no matter how hard we try, it's nearly impossible to change the mind of a partisan on an issue to which they're committed. we all come from different

backgrounds, we all come from different points of view, we all have different opinions, we all have different life experiences that lead us to different conclusions. but it's how we express those differences of opinion that matters. it's how we articulate our disagreements.s. we all have a responsibility fov civility. we all have a responsibility to respect one another. and this event today is nonpartisan. we have people here of every possible political affiliation. and no matter what your politics, no matter what side of the aisle you're on, if you remember one thing i say today, make it this: the rules of civility also apply to you. civility applies to all of us; not just those with whom we disagree.

there's so much anger in the country today. there's things we'd like todon' change. but don't let an act of incivil incivility disgreat the goal you're -- discredit the goal you're trying to achieve. let each of us, in our own way, lead by example. let us set the tone of debate based upon our argument. let us set the tone of the debate by our actions, not just our words. win the debate based upon the merit of your idea, not the volume of your shout. channel your anger into making positive change. [applause] go forth in a spirit of unity, not division, because we really are all in this together. thank you for being here, and enjoy the march.la [cheers and applause]

>> awesome, thank you. so our next speaker, the way that i found out about him with a lot of the work that i've been doing on the front lines at riots and protests, i was tagged in a video that someone had posted online about this documentary on netflix titled "accidental courtesy." and because they had tagged me, i decided to watch the film. and i was so fascinated to see the work that this man was doing as a black blues player that somehow for the past 30 years has been spending so much of his life to cross over lines, to befriend members of the kkk tobe get them to give up their robes and renounce their membership in the kkk. and i was so fascinated by this guy, so right away after watching the video, i end up calling my agent, and i said, hey, have you heard of this guy named daryl davis, and he said, ken, i've been asking you for the past six months to meet up

with daryl davis. he's been trying to reach you, and he lives out in washington d.c. so after watching that documentary, i started calling him up and trying to figure out how we were going to get together, and we finally met for the first time last night, and he's here to speak. welcome up, daryl. [applause] >> thank you. well, good morning. it's a real honor and pleasure to be here. well, let me start by saying welcome, welcome to the march for civility. and i've been walking this march now for about 30 years doing what i do. and a few things that i have found is this: we spend a lot of time in echo chambers surrounding ourselves with othei people who agree with us. everything we say is reflected back to us, and it confirms our

beliefs. and we exclude those who may have differences of opinion with us. what we need to do is begin to invite people to our table who may disagree. as martin luther king said, he saw -- he had a dream that one day the sons of former slaves would sit down at the table ofs brotherhood with the sons of former slave other thans. -- slave owners. that's what we need to do. we need to come together. we spend a lot of time talking about each other or talking at each other. we don't spend enough time talking with each other and learning about the other side, learning what are their false myths, their fears. and they learn from us. that's what i've been doing. i've learned that while you are actively learning about someone else, at the same time you aree passively teaching them about

yourself. so you always want to be honest, you always want to be true, you always want to be civil because the most important thing that you want is a return visit with that person. regardless of who they are, how extreme they may be. because what you're doing is you're planting a seed, and you must nurture that seed. keep in mind you only have one opportunity to make a good first impression. you may have a second or third opportunity to make an impression but only one opportunity to make a good first impression.to and most people judge you based upon their first impression of you. so if they don't like you the first time around, they won't be willing to meet with you again. so i've been spending about 30 years meeting with neo-nazis, kkk members, white spectrumm keyses -- supremacists, black supremacists, etc. and most of the time i do get a return visit.

and as a result of these return visits over time, you find things that you have in common x. if you nurture those. commonalities, you begin to form a relationship. and as you form that relationship, the thing that you have in contrast such as skin color, religion, things like that given to matter less and less -- begin to matter less and less. and as you nurture that relationship, you begin to forge a friendship. and as a result, i've collected many robes and hoods and various neo-nazi and kkk paraphernalia over the years, and i even have some of these people going out on lecture tours with me speaking out against the evils of racism and discrimination. and they've aligned themselvese. with me and my embracing attitude. so what we need to do is we need to adopt an attitude of no longer can we say i'm not my

brother's keeper. let's say we are our brother's keeper, because we all areep brothers and sisters in this country. i [applause] thank you. the second most important thing that i've learned is this: giver your adversary a platform, allow them to express their views. you don't have to necessarily agree with them, and if you do, that's fine. if you don't, then you challenge them. but you do it politely and intelligently, not rudely or violently. and that way nine out of ten times they will reciprocate and allow you to air your views.ou you make sure you've done your homework so you have the facts, that you can present the facts in an intelligent and influential manner. because at the end of the day, you each have to think about what the other person said.er, and if somebody just sparks a little bit and they say, you know, she does have a point there, they're going to lean in

that direction. because nobody wants to be wrong.g. we always want to be right. and keep in mind when two enemies are talking, they're not fighting. they're talking. they might be getting a little loud and beating their fists on the table to drive home a pointt while they're disagreeing, but at least they're talking. it's when the talking ceases that the ground becomes fertile for violence. so let's keep the conversation going. thank you all and good luck. [cheers and applause] >> so to continue on with daryl davis' message about crossing over to different lines, many of you may have seen one of my most viral videos was as i was in the protests that were taking place in charlotte last year. and there was a really special moment that was used in a google commercial and a cadillac commercial where as i was walking by and trying to deescalate a lot of the tension

at this protest that was taking place, there's this giant police officer. and as i was walking by, he said, hey, bring it in, do i get one of those hugs? and in that moment i was really nervous because i had a group of protesters that were standing behind me that, you know, i was interacting with them, but i knew that in that moment they would see me as a traitor or a sellout because i crossed over to a different line, and i hugged this cop. and i knew i was going to face some criticism for it. and almost immediately people are picking up rocks and bottles to try to throw at me and challenge me to a fight all because i hugged this cop. and so i love hearing daryl's message about being able to cross over to different lines. and so that cop, actually, he reached out to me shortly after that interaction that happened there on the front lines, and we've become good friends ever since. and my buddy chris is here today. chris, come up. [cheers and applause] look how big this guy is.

i'm going to look really short in a second up here. you can stand right there, chris. no, i'm kidding. [laughter] come on up. [applause] share with them kind of what was going through your head, because a lot of people think that i just walked up to him and hugged him because i'm the free hugs guy.t i actually in that moment was kind of scared to hug him because he's in full riot gear, he's got his weapon with him, and he's just big. and he has a bunch of his cop buddies all standing next to him, and i didn't know what was going to happen especially because there's tear gas in the air, it was just a chaotic night, and i was shocked that h. actually asked for that hug in that moment. people thought it was me that initiated that, but it was actually him. tell them kind of what was going through your head in that moment. >> it's kind of weird -- >> here, let me lift that up. there we go. [laughter] all right.

>> in that moment we had, it was going since tuesday night, and i got three hours of sleep. we were in the city we were bruised, beaten and trying to help the citizens just take the city back. when we finally got a break, i saw ken walking with his free hugs shirt, and i recognized him from his video and his work, and i always wanted to meet him. i just yelled out where's my free hug? and he looked at me with this puzzled look of, seriously? [laughter] i got that hug this big -- i gotta hug this big guy? he smells, he probably has all this gas all over him. so he came over, and he gave me a hug, and we started talking.io and it opened those communication bonds between protesters, police, him and they're more willing to listen to him because i'm sitting there in riot gear, and i look a little scary.ng they're listening to him, they were understanding, and it brought peace for that moment in our city, and it really helped

out. there's just an amazing friendship that bonded over it. i saw him on facebook for about a month trying to get a comment in there, and we finally just met up, started talking, and we started organizing different community events and trying to build these bridges between police and the community so that we can all work together, we can stay strong. we stand together, we fall apart at the end of the day. >> absolutely. [cheers and applause]at what a lot of people don't realize sometimes is that in those moments, these unlikely friendships can be created. and i really see him as a true friend of mine. many people don't know when is was in charlottesville just a few weeks ago and i was standing in that alley when the car came through and it mowed down the 19 people that were there in the alley, i made three phone calls. one was to my wife, the other was to my friend duane to let him know that i was okay, and you guys are going to hear from him in a little bit.t.

but the third call that i made was to my friend chris, because i needed someone that was in law enforcement and knew what was going on and could give me some advice as i was standing there shocked and distraught. i had never seen anything like that, you know, to watch a car plow down 19 people right in front of me. before he even went into cop mode on the phone, he first wanted to make sure that i was okay and just really wanted to check up on me. and then he started giving meed advice on what next steps i should take.e. and so i appreciate the friendship that has come out of that moment, and i think so many times we look at the color of people's skin or we look at the uniforms that they're wearing, and we say, oh, i probably can't find a friend in that person.. chris is actually a very real friend of mine, and we've traveled around to some colleges together x we've spoken -- and we've spoken to some of the young people about this message of unity and being able to come together, and we're going to do a whole bunch more of that, by the way.

he just got promoted to sergeant -- [cheers and applause] >> two weeks ago. >> two weeks ago. >> they're still velcro on. [laughter] >> right. just knowing that, you know, now he should be able to have a little bit more free time to be able to spend with me as i travel around to colleges, and we really show students that there doesn't need to be division between us, you know? and we're seeing so much of that right now between the black and brown community versus law enforcement. we're brothers. there's no need for all of this division and tension and the conflicts that are going on around the country. [applause] we really need to be able to come together, and this is a symbol of that. so thank you, chris, i appreciate you, man. [cheers and applause] >> so our next speaker coming up, when i started this march, i had originally called it the peace march because i thought, well, i think that's the message that we really need to spread in this country. and duane, my adviser, he

started having me travel around and i met a bunch of his friends. and in meeting them, they suggested you don't call it peace, you call it civility. we need to take it back to the foundation of people treating each other with respect. at the time, i wasn't sure what that word meant, so i started doing some research and i found out right here in washington,t d.c. there's actually a national institute for civility. and i started doing some research on them and reached out to them to see if they would join us for this march, and we ended up getting their president here. dr. kellan, come on up. [applause] so i would love for you to be able to share with them a little bit about the work that you guys do with the national institute for civility. but either way i still owe you a hug this morning, right? >> thank you so much, ken. how about another round of applause for chris and ken? [applause]he

>> thank you. >> ken used the phrase unlikely friendships, and i'm going to come back to that phrase as i talk. but both what we heard from daryl, what we heard from chris and ken is about the real extremes in our society where words have already turned into violence. i'm going to back up and talk about how we've come to a place in our society where it isn't just the extremes that have to come back together again and learn to listen, it's all of us. it's ordinary people living their daily lives. this has gotten so bad in our country that you now practically every day see a cartoon someplace. our favorite at the national institute is this one. it shows civil discourse on a gurney on the way to the emergency room. at the national institute, after the presidential election and during the presidential electiou

of 2016 we literally got thousands of e-mails and social media messages from people in red states, blue states, purple states, all of them really distraught, frustrated, ashamed, angry about how we are speakingn to each other and how we are treating other. we got thousands of e-mails saying i don't want to go home for thanksgiving, how am i going to talk to uncle john? we got thousands of e-mails from workplaces saying that our best product innovation teams can't talk to each other after this election. political historians tell us that this year is the first time since the reconstruction and jim crow laws that we've seen the following reality. this is ten months after our presidential election, and yet americans who voted for

president trump -- or i could say americans who voted for hillary, either way, it's happening both directions. we, the people, are still vilifying, demonizing and hating each other. if we do that, if we do that as a people in our homes, in our towns, in our neighborhoods, there's no hope of us ever holding a people accountable at the other end of this mall for being civil to each other. this is now like a virus in our country. democracy has always been a conversation.sa the quality of that conversation is what matters. most of us have come to a place, and social media has really exacerbated this, the anonymity, that we're all broadcasters. we all want our message out. but do we really know how to

listen to understand?what w so that's what we're doing at the national institute for civil discourse.er we've created a set of tools to revive civility person by person by person. we do it with tools that are one-on-one conversations, small group dialogues, large scale conversations and a texting platform. try to remember this if you can. when you go home or this afternoon or while you're on the march text 89800 and type civility into the message line. it will take you to a back-endhr script that actually walks you d through how to have a conversation with someone very different than yourself.f. so i want to go back to unlikely friendships. i highly recommend go to youtube, type in unlikely friendships, donna and bob.

i'm an iowan by birth. donna redwing runs one iowa which is the strongest gay advocates rights organization in the state of iowa. she to honor a friend of hers when passed away and was always dealing with people's reconciliation, she invited bob vander platts whose views could never, never come to any kind of agreement on what they feel and believe about gayness. donna invited bob to lunch. they go to lunch. they actually meet each other as human beings. and in that process, form the same kind of bond that ken and chris talked about of a real friendship across profound differences. i'm going to ask you to do something right here, right nowp

as becoming one of the people who takes the next step to revive, restore civility. right here think in your own head who is someone -- it may be in your family, it may be at your workplace, it may be someone that you know voted differently than you do, but think of a person where there's a risk/reward ratio if you did what donna did or if you did what chris did who asked for his free hug, donna who says come to lunch with me. really in your mind's eye pick that person right here, right now. and when you're ready, invite that person to have a conversation with you. the critical thing to remember when you have that conversation, you're not trying to convinceed that person that she shouldn't have voted for trump or that he shouldn't have voted for hillary. what you're trying to do is just

like daryl said, learn enough about that person's life experience to understand why they make the choices they made. we've now created a huge divide. people who are more on the left really think the trump supporters aren't normal people. we've gone that far in our understanding, our lack of understanding of each other. and vice versa. so do exactly what you can do on a one-on-one basis. .. that conversation with that unlikely person you just picked in your own mind. all of our channels ask you to tools ask you to pledge to be a civil citizen yourself, how you can organize small community events to bring this in a large moment across our country. the mantra that should come out

to me the monitor that should come out of today's experience together is it our time. it's our job to change this march into a movement. we will never get back to social norms of civility and respect if we don't create a real movement of we the people to be ourselves and demand it ourselves. i will leave you with a quote from president obama. we all have likes and dislikes of people who are different than we are, but what is important is to, in fact, how we treat each other. not whether we like each other but how we treat each other. and finally margaret mead, a real icon in our culture. don't ever forget, probably for most famous quote, never doubt

that a small group of committed wetizens can change the world. indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. we can do this. thank you. [applause] >> thank yo u, thank you, thank you. to continue with now this message of unlikely friendships, i would love to talk about the man who made a lot of this happen. i think a lot of people think that it was all me, and it's really not. to be able to have met such a friend, he traveled to speak at his company, and you seen the logos in some of these places here. i know he is quite a crew here as well. and dwayne clark is just a phenomenal man. i did know what to expect what a

week to go and speak at his company, but the culture that he had at the company just how much everyone loved each other and respected each other. i thought they had been wearing free hug shirts before you got because everyone was hugging each other and loving on another. hug in getting to meet him when i traveled, i'm thinking he's a reit ceo. know how they are. but this guy was different. that first night after speaking at his conference he asked me to go to dinner with he and hisas f wife.. i went to hang out with him. it was the first time i ever cruised in a rolls-royce by the way. this guys car collection is insane. to know that myself growing up in and out of homeless shelters and on section eight and the way my family struggled i never could have imagined that type of a lifestyle where i hop in his lamborghini one day. i hop in his roles raise one day

to seize waitlisted you would never think a person like you and myself would have this genuine friendship. the way he calls me regularly,a his wife warned me in the beginning we became friends. she said he's pretty intense and is going to call you all the time. just accept it. i'm still working on that because it really does.al he calls me a bunch of times and often i'm in the middle of things. but really to be able to make this happen as many of you guysa can see this stuff costs to be able to produce. he teamed up with a bunch of his friends and coworkers and people that he felt really would connect with this message and it got them all to rally behind it and supported and that so we're able to make a lot of this happen financially and so he will come up and it just gets n much i love you and i respect you for everything you've done help me out. thank you. [cheers and applause] >> hello, civility ambassadors.

[applause] it's hot as habeas of year. if tomorrow wasn't promised what would would you do today? what would you spend today thinking about. how would you treat your fellow man? what would your legacy to thisih world be? that's right, your legacy. we are not here just marking time. our actions are significant. what would we do? what would we say? how would we treat one another. it all matters. i want to share with you what i know and what i believe, some which i learned at at a young age, some of which is a wor worn progress. uncle to tell you about three things that cannot hel only hels be more civil to each other, but can help us be more successful in life. and hopefully it will help you answer the question i just asked. those three things are about

opportunity. they are about teamwork. they are about empathy and they are about respect. but before i tell you about those three things i think we can all agree that civility is e pretty simple concept. and when exercised its what most of us learned when we were in kindergarten. that's right, when we were in kindergarten. don't be selfish. share everything. the kind to others whenever possible, and it's always possible. think before you speak. keep your hands to yourself. don't hate anyone. put things back where you found them. clean up your own mess. don't take things that are not yours. say you are sorry when you hurt somebody.shr s wash your hands before you eat. and the important ones that my wife reminds me of, put the seat down and flash.

these are not rocket science. but we should not devalue the au little things that each of us can do because they at up to big things. these little things can change how we make a person feel about themselves. anyone who is ever read and aesop fable about the little mouse and the lion will remember the moral of kindness the line showed by the little mouse by setting him free when he could've eaten the mouse alive.t and how that kindness was unexpectedly repaid by the line to the little mouse, or excuse me, by the little mouse to thehe lion when he set the lion free from the ensnared hunters met. no act of kindness no matter how small is ever wasted. and speaking of which, the first thing want to talk about is opportunity and how not to waste it.

we all want and like opportunity. but sometimes we are so busy on our iphones and ipads we forget the perfect opportunity.e we miss the opportunity, the immediate opportunity before us, and that's the opportunity to treat the people all around us,e the people who we encounter and engage every day with kindness rather than disregard and hatred. look around you. look around you right now. look at the people that are standing next to you. say hello to them. make friends. don't waste this opportunity today. i grew up dirt poor in the little town called lewiston,, idaho.ve i got my first job when i was seven. i know that sounds a bit silly but it's true. my mom was a cook in a café. my 15 year old sister was waitress. i was the dishwasher in a small rural airport café. i would stand on a milk crate so

i could reach this big silver lever on the dish machine. but i love the work. i love the opportunity. i have worked every year since that time. work was never just work. it was the opportunity that its provided me and continues to provide me to experience so many different people from so many different walks of life. only different cultures, so many different stories that they have told me. i've never pass up an opportunity to learn and observe from other people. it's made me richer and a better person. i used to watch how my sister smiled as she waited on customers who sometimes neveroo even looked at her. her feet may have been aching and she may not have always been in a smiling mood, but she smiled nonetheless. i saw how my mom lovingly assembled meals that she prepared for them for people shf didn't even know, and how she always respected them and respected her employees, even when she was busy and had a stressful day.

my mom believe in seizing that moment and being a servant too others but she believed in kindness no matter what she was doing. and all this help me grow and sheep as a person and help me develop my core values that have guided me in life, in business and in working with people. never, never pass up the opportunity to treat someone with kindness. the second figure what to mention is teamwork, that very few things happen business or your successful in business without a great team. it takes a team. doesn't lessen my mother taught me. my mother was a british war veteran who married an abusive man, my father. she left a country in gre great hopes for promises of america. she divorced my father just as her oldest son was entering college but that didn't deter her. with little job skills and barely knowing how to drive because my controlling father forbid her from getting a drive drivers license, she took a job

as a salad girl making salads in a nightclub for $1.4 $1.45 a no. she put all -- an hour. [applause] all f >> i want to hug you really quick. >> she put all four kids to college. it was an example of determination and grit. and effectively all came together, no matter what your race, religion, your sexual preference of whether you're left-handed and right-handed, wo can do it. we can restore civility and a country and it would be the act of one person, a little village. it will take us all working towards a common goal. all the teamwork and being on the same team. each of us as an ambassador.hini the last and third thing is empathy and respect. as the baby of my family and a much younger sibling, as the time came for me to go to school around my sophomore year in high

school, around my 16th birthday my mother came to me and said we have no money. like a smartass kid i thoughtlessly replied so what's new? she quickly became serious and openeopen the small part of our fridge and lamented on how she spent her check on rent, utility deposits and school supplies. she opened the dim fridge they cast a shadow on an onion, somer condensed milk, and two sticks of butter. i will borrow some potatoes from work and make some potato soup, she said.id ste well, if you're going to steal, steal some steaks, i said. and with that came a slap across my little fat face. if that slap wasn't a clear enough sign about her anger and hurt tone, she said, we do not steal. we have never stolen. you will never steal.

we will borrow these potatoes and we will pay them back withm, interest. so at 4 a.m. the next day, we snuck into her place of work, we borrowed eight pounds of potatoes. we came home and we made potato soup together. we list off that suit for 13 days. and during the night, my mother would talk to me about the success that i would have in this country because of the opportunities i had, because of the people that we have in this country. that is if i applied myself and were kind to all people, no matter what race, the matter what the police were, that i would be successful. and yes, we pay those potatoes back with interest 14 days later. and after i started my company,

we created the potato soup foundation which has helped hundreds of people in times of need. [applause]f me 40 that pain, although it lives inside of me 40 years later, has taught me the empathy for others. i have walked in their shoes. i know how it feels. a famous rock band by the name of you to recently told the students at georgetown university not far from here, choose your enemies carefully.g make them something worthwhile. incivility is our enemy. incivility divides us. we may disagree on various issues and matters, but we can be courteous and respectful in doing so. we can dislike ideas, but we

cannot dislike each other. we may always be able, we all we should be able to walk in the shoes of another, but we can be symbolic to the struggles andce. challenges our neighbors and our peers face. and if we all work together, if we all come together, this common goal as a team, our success will be exponential. so in closing i ask you again, if tomorrow wasn't promised, how will you spend today? how will you treat your fellow man? what will your legacy to civility be? what did your mother teach you about civility? god bless you. [cheers and applause] >> wow thank you, dwayne. thank you. so our next speaker as so many

of you are probably familiar with them. i know every time i log onto instagram and different social media accounts, there's this, i see in arkansas and is always out there and is interacting with the students. you can tell he works in some pretty underserved neighborhoods and you just see his love and his passion for the people that are in that community as he serves. and it is getting a lot of notoriety as being one of america's favorite community police officers forges his passion and the things that he does in the community. i'm honored.this guy unit, i start this guy for a few much to cut getting out of. i was tracking him a social media and i've seen that he had shared one of my videos and they said this is a perfect opportunity to reach out to him and get him here, and he finally obliged and easy. welcome officer tommy norman.

[applause] you, ke >> thank you, ken. it's a big honor to be here and thank you also to your wife sabrina. congratulations on the upcoming new additions to the family. give him a big hand. [applause]y to be i really don't feel worthy to be appear. when ken contacted me, back in office or my days officers and friday and is it everything to convince my sake to let me off today. it worked out bu but i have to y back on tonight because dutyea calls in the morning. it's a big honor to be here with my beautiful girlfriend, roslyn was a big supporter. can you raise your hand? [applause] she's a big supporter, and i've met a lot of great people in my short time here. when i think about peace,

growing up in north little rock, arkansas, family of nine.k, i'm actually a twin, with the youngest pick my mom always taught us to love each other and to love others, even if that meant we had to do without. i followed that motto my entire life. i always want to be a police officer, was in love with police officers. they were heroes to me and still are. i never thought i would be a police officer. in december 1997 i tested to be a police officer back home in north little rock, arkansas. i kept passing the written test, the physical julie tepco the background. past every step was to pass to be a police officer in my career begin june 15, 1998. so working on my 20th year. i remember that early on in myr, career as a police officer, i always wanted to go intorh neighborhoods with open arms control of people because that's what my mom always taught her

dying kids. as you know, mom knows best. i was a little reluctant at first because i always thought all police officers did wascket write tickets and make a respite i did no police officers can hug people and can love people and can get out of police cars and really form relationships. so i tried it and i wasn't sure if it was working. fast-forward to 2001, my ship had just ended at two p.m. a gentleman in little rock which is right across river from north little rock and is our capitalal city in arkansas, you want to meet with me. didn't tell me what he wanted. so i go and any within. he said he guessed asian off the interstate, and he wanted to confess to a murder. he had actually killed a man and a homeless camp with a two by four.tl and so i called little rock police. they come over, get out of the police cars and a look at me and asked me how did you find this guy? i told the officers can i didn't find him, he found me. so they put him in handcuffs,

very peaceful arrest. they put him in back of the patrol car. and before the drive off with him i asked the gentleman, why me?, why a police officer you've never even met, police officer that works for another police agency, why did you choose me? [background sounds] just my luck, a plane flies over when i speak. but he told me that word on the street that there was a police officer in a neighboring city that he could surrender to with dignity and respect. so the wasn't really a transformation for me was more of a confirmation that as a police officer your badge should have a heartbeat and not an ego. [applause] but as my career furthered, i i wanted to do more than a police office. when my shift ended at 2:00, i

wanted more. so i went home, took my uniform off and put on the same cause that the committee was wearing and what right back at the i do it today. it's such a humbling experience to be a police officer. not just police officer, because yo it's not a badge that makes you but it's the heart that is behind the badge that makes you. and so when you talk about we the people, you talk about you, me, us, they, them, everyone. it's not just police officers that have to make a difference. it's not just ken and dwayne and aegis and the free hugs project. ken is an amazing person. he actually gives better hugs than me. i don't know if i wouldn't staro charging for those hugs. anyway, i just want to share with you in closing, on my flight here i listen to a song by john legend. and the song is if you are out there. some of the words that really

stood out to me was, if you hear the message, if you hear this message wherever you stand, i'm calling every woman, every man. we are the generation. affoon't afford to wait. that's what dwayne talked about. the future started yesterday.da we all already late. and so my job as a police officer, when i go back to work tomorrow morning, it's parking my police car, it's getting out, sitting up front porches and it's finding the forgotten. you have to find the forgotten in your community. the people that most of society would turn their backs on, we had to go find those people, form relationships, build trust and build respect. so my challenge to you is when these cameras are often welcome back home, are you going to make a difference? are you going to stay committed? i think it's really, really huge is staying committed. so thank you so much for having me here.

it really, really, really means a lot. looking forward to the march and promoting peace. thank you, ken for bringing dwayne. i really appreciate it. [cheers and applause] >> so for our next speaker, to introducing i'm going to bring up two of my top buddies i met when i was on the front lines in charlotte -- >> more like a bodyguard. >> more like my bodyguards. it's such an amazing experiencee to have met these guys on the front lines of a wry it that was taking place in charlotte. then last night as we were coming back from dinner with dwayne and we head back to the hotel, and we pulled up and we had seen michael brown senior sitting in the lobby of the hotel. and knowing that the passing of his son, so much of the attention that it happened in

ferguson around that time, just seeing the connection between here i am writing up with these police officers that he met onse the front lines of a riot and knowing that rides had taken place out there, and seeing him sit there really touched my heart. my wife had let me know, it really hit her as well. so to see these two gentlemen hop out of the car and go and greet him, and even as i was leaving, the fact that they all just sat down in the lobby of the hotel and talked amongst each other. it was giving me goosebumps as i was leaving and kissing wow, look what this has done. that is the ability. that's and that's love. i found up for my brother-in-law later on, he said i showed up at the hotel way longer after you left and it was still just sitting out there talking as human beings. so i would like to welcome up michael brennan senior was here today it looks like people are already stopping him for photos back there. come on up, mike.

[applause] to know him, to buy the we're all in this thing together. again just at sight of seeing all three of these guys just hang out in the lobby just talking as human beings despite everything that is happen and what we've seen in the news and what we've seen in the media. and we still go past that are able to spread love and see eaca other as human beings.bumps it gives me goosebumps last night and it gives me goosebumps right now to see these guys like this. it's crazy. it's that civil discourse gets us to be able to have moments like this where the uniform doesn't matter, the color of our skin doesn't matter and reducing into each other's hearts and that's what they saw last night as they had that dialogue. so please welcome again michael brown. [applause] >> this is one of my daughters. [applause] >> i'd like to say peace and blessings.

i will first like to thank the families back at home in the streets of st. louis for their kindness, dedication, and determination. today is the seventh of civil disobedience. no justice, no pride. our country is in a state of emergency to saint black lives matter, to say all lies matter because the united we stand divided we fall. as we all come together to the table in peace, humility or justice and equal. it is best to work with the martin luther king of this era or deal with the malcolm x of this era. we must respect for ourselves and others.

and whatever we do we must takeo responsibility for our own actions. then change will. and you -- thank you. [applause] will. >> awesome. t i want to go into talking more about civility.iction and when i saw the dictionary definition of what civility is, it felt like it was not enough. i kind of road and some of my own bullet points of what i feel civility is and i like to share that with you all. civility is our ability to be kind, empathetic and courteous to one another. it enables us to disagree without disrespecting each other. civility is knowing that

justice, it's not just for us but it's for anyone that is being treated unfairly. a person shouldn't have to look like you in order for you to defend them when they are being treated unjustly. civility make sure that women are given equal rights and treated with respect. we were all carried by women. they literally gave birth to this nation. it means they can do just that anything a man can do and things that we are not capable of. so how dare -- [applause] how dare us not give women their pay and equal rights and better treatment and respect? it's so important. the civil, it means knowing when to lower our voice in order to listen to each other with empathy and understanding. civility sets great examples our children to follow and encourages them to embracera diversity and work towards

becoming a more inclusive society. it really bothers me sometimes when i'm watching the news and saw recently there was a fewe months ago i think in july, and it was a politician who body slammed a reporter. unlike our kids are watching these things, so how can we send our kids to school and tell them to keep their hands to themselves when they are seeing politicians body slamming people that are asking them for interviews? we had to set better examples for the young people that are coming up behind us. [applause] >> thank you. civility is it just defined by how we treat each other, but it's also in that we treat our environment. recently we've experienced hurricanes, earthquakes, fires and floods.rt and it's time for us to startara making changes to increase our chances of survival. we only have one planet. we don't have a follow-up from you we can just rush to after we messed things up here. we're starting to see the

effects of that now with so many of these, we're hitting record highs in temperatures. it's hot now. seeing the hurricanes that are taking place just one after another in recent weeks. we've never seen anything like this before.pe so whether people deny that climate change is real or not, we do know that something ised happening and will need to be aware that and we need to be more concerned about the wayay that we treat this environment. [applause] >> thank you. civility gives us the passion to create jobs and opportunities to help immigrants, refugees, and people in need. rather than just leaving them to struggle or be forced back to countries where they fledersecui persecution. it gives every person in this country a fair shot at life and the pursuit of happiness if they are willing to work for it. civility is knowing that war should only be used as a last resort and not a primary way to resolve conflicts.

we shouldn't -- thank you. we should continually be on the brink of world war iii when we haven't even get experienced world peace one. that is so important.ant. [applause]like civility prevents incidents like the faq attack that took placech in charlottesville a few weeks ago. the shooting of the five police officers in dallas last year, the massacre at pulse nightclub in orlando. each of these terrorist represent a different race, a different ethnicity, yet they all shared similar hate in their heart and we must teach americac to love again.mp so important that we do that. one of my most viral videos a year ago, or two years ago, was as i traveled around and i have titled it make america love licking her i was shocked to see that video had gone viral because often feel like this message of love in this message of unity that many times people

are not willing to accept it., people feel like they need to choose sides with so many of these issues that are taking place.la we see that even with the crowd today. it's like if i had picked a specific cause that represented one side or another, i feel like the crowds would be all the way to the back towards the washington monument. but you tell people to come together and stand together as human beings, and so few people come out to support that message. we are backwards. it's not okay. we need to really be able to celebrate togetherness and unity and love. i appreciate so many of you guys who are out here today to support that message. it's sad we become the minority that there are few of usno fighting for that rather than the polarizing messaging that is being sent out today and people seem so comfortable to just attach to one side or anotherr and feel like they need to hold true to that.ha so this message of togethernesst -- thank you -- the message of togetherness is so important. so to continue, thank you.

[applause] thank you. civility stand here amongst such a diverse group of people as we celebrate unity. in this crowd and the people sitting on the stage, we are black, white, brown, native american, christian, muslim, gay, straight, young, old, police officers, activists,usica artists, musicians, and we are all able to stand here and sit on the stage together supporting love and equality. this is what unity looks like. this is what democracy looks like. this is what the people united look like. the more that we stand together --use] [applause] the more that we stand together like this, we can't be divided and we really need to grow in numbers, especially around this message of love and unity. so lastly, civility is knowing that when we see many of these o

acts of hate and we know that hate can be very loud, it's important our love gets louder. thank you. [cheers and applause] >> wili'm going to introduce jih today from the peace sanctuary and he's a reason why so many of these flags are here today. he's going to lead us out on the march and we're going to take these flags with us as we march the perimeter together and then will come back and will haver additional speakers as we close out our program. so jim, i'll let you take over and kind of let us know how you want to -- >> you got it. sipplause] thank you so very much, my sisters and brothers. as ken just mention my name is jim dugan. i'm here from an organizationce

called the world peace for society. we are not religious, political. we are just pro-peace. if you see right up here, these polls, there are 240,000 of 40,000 of them around the plant. they all say make peace prevail on earth in different languages. they are just a reminder for us. you can take it in your heart if the religious configure the religious. but you will start seeing them if you've never been exposed to what we're going to do is now some physical action leading up to the march that really is going to show our unity. you guys know we all have brothers and sisters, cousins,es uncles and aunts that have different political views. when you look at it we are really, we have so much more in common and that goes across the whole planet. what we're going to do as little calling response. so friends, americans, countrymen, lend me your voices. we're going to take a tour

around the u.s., a tour of unity. [applause] and we're going to go on the spirit of may peace prevail on earth but will give it to make peace prevail in every state in the nation.this i this is sally, my daughter, and if you guys are ready, ready to be loud and filled with love and filled with unity -- >> alabama. >> may peace prevail in alabama. [applause] >> alaska. >> eight piece event and alaska. >> american samoa. >> they are a territory. we love you guys that we are thinking you. may peace prevail in american samoa. [applause] >> arizona. >> may peace prevail in arizona. >> arkansas. >> may peace prevail in arkansas. [applause] >> california.

>> may peace prevail in california. [applause] >> colorado. peace p >> may peace prevail in colorado. >> connecticut. >> may peace prevail in my home state of connecticut. [applause] >> delaware. >> may peace prevail in delaware. >> district of columbia. >> guess what we are?dist may peace prevail in the district of columbia. [applause]n flor >> florida. >> may peace prevail in florida. [applause]. >> georgia. >> feel free to say this with me. you know what's coming. may peace prevail in georgia. [applause] >> guam. >> may peace prevail in guam. >> hawaii. >> may peace prevail in hawaii.. >> idaho. >> may peace prevail in idaho. >> illinois. >> may peace prevail in illino illinois.n >> indiana.

>> indiana. >> iowa. >> may peace prevail in iowa. >> kansas. >> may peace prevail in kansas. >> kentucky. >> may peace prevail in kentucky. >> louisiana. >> may peace prevail in louisiana. >> main. >> may peace prevail in maine. >> maryland. >> maryland. >> massachusetts. >> may peace prevail in pea massachusetts. mic >> michigan. peace >> michigan.inneso >> minnesota. >> may peace prevail invail i minnesota. >> mississippi. >> may peace prevail in>> misso mississippi.il in >> missouri. >> may peace prevail in misery. >> montana.ta >> may peace prevail in montanaa >> nebraska.

>> may peace prevail in nebraska. >> nevada.ew ham >> may peace prevail in nevada. >> new hampshire. >> may peace prevail in neww hampshire. >> new jersey. >> if you guys would -- i'm sorry. if you guys would give me one favor so it can be heard across the pond. let's get one real loud may peace prevail in earth together. one, two, three -- may peace prevail in earth. >> back to new jersey. >> may peace prevail in new >>rsey.. >> new mexico. >> may peace prevail in new mexico. >> new york. >> may peace prevail in new yo york. >> north carolina. p >> may peace prevail in north carolina. >> north dakota. >> may peace prevail in north dakota.a >> northern mariana island. >> may peace prevail in northern mariana islands. >> ohio. >> may peace prevail in ohio.

>> oklahoma. >> may peace prevail in oklahoma. >> oregon. >> may peace prevail in oregon. >> pennsylvania. >> may peace prevail in pennsylvania. >> puerto rico. >> yes, thank you, guys. we all know what they're going through. we love you. you guys are americans down there.s thank you. >> rhode island. >> may peace prevail in rhode island. south >> south carolina. >> may peace prevail in south carolina. >> south dakota. >> may peace prevail in south dakota. >> tennessee. >> may peace prevail in tennessee. >> texas. >> may peace prevail in texas. >> united states virgin islands. >> another one that just got a a little wet and windy. may peace prevail in the united states virgin islands. >> utah. >> may peace prevail in utah. pl

>> vermont. >> may peace prevail in vermont. >> virginia. >> may peace prevail in>> virginia.n >> washington. >> may peace prevail in washington. >> west virginia.va >> may peace prevail in west>> virginia. >> wisconsin. >> may peace prevail in wisconsin. >> wyoming. >> may peace prevail in wyoming. >> now we will do something really special. i believe we have right to the indigenous unity flag pick it was created to give respect and show unity with ourselves with all our beautiful indigenous men and women, lgbt, everybody in the indigenous communities that we really need to give all the loving to him and they are way part of this country. if we remember our history. so how about may peace prevail in the indigenous nation.

[applause] >> all right there and we're going to end with one, where we are all, the really shows the unity, i'm looking for the red, white and blue. the united states of america.f may peace prevail in the united states of america. [applause] all right. let's one more time, if we can really, really loud because we're not the only people on this planet. can we get a really loud make peace prevail on earth? one, two, three.ace pr may peace prevail in on us. i love you all. we all love you all. i thank all the speakers you that it given their light with her moniker he's going to mexico. we love you, mexico. these people that are speaking onstage and given their life to unity and peace and trying to make things better. i am so honored.

we are so honored to be herem. with all of that. we are going to do the march. ken will lead us off. we are here taking a march if you folks onstage would grab a flag and take it out for the walk with us, and we are really psyched you folks argue. once again, thank you for walking on this planet with me. i love you all very much. we love you all very much. plant a piece ball and make peace prevail on earth. [applause] >> give it up again for jim and all its energy. i love it, man. [applause] >> so we're going to all grab some flags here, and we're going to head out on the march. the most important thing that i was able to remember was part of this march is that dialogue, it's civility, it's being able

to walk together and talk together. we're not going to be doing too many chants and things as he walked. instead we're going to talk to each other. we are going to take pictures, we're going to give hugs with going to be able to embrace one another. are you guys okay with that? that's what we're going to do. we are going to continue this message of love and unity. you guys grab some flags. we will all be joined you guys to capture their some people on the state you guys want to take pictures with as we go out on this thing. feel free to make -- thanks, guys. >> and you guys know because were all about respect in all of our hearts here or you wouldn't be here. these flags represent our brothers and sisters in all of our states who we truly love.ul please show respect. don't let the flags hit the ground. when you guys come back feelth free just put them back in the stand. once again, you folks rock. may peace prevail on earth.

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