Grits and Eggs Podcast - Episode 81: "All Eyes On D.C."
Host: Deante’ Kyle
Date: August 19, 2025
Overview
Episode 81 of the Grits and Eggs Podcast turns a laser focus on the escalating police and federal crackdown in Washington D.C., unraveling the lived experience of marginalized communities under new vagrancy laws and an intensifying police state. Host Deante’ Kyle, joined by his co-host and various guests, dives deep into the intersection of policy, policing, systemic racism, youth criminalization, and grassroots resistance through firsthand testimonies from people on the ground in D.C.
The episode’s tone is raw, urgent, and unfiltered, blending humor and insight as Deante’ balances his signature "Dirty South" perspective with real-time reporting and guest expertise. He forgoes speculation from afar, opting instead to dial up organizers and residents who relay what's really happening on D.C.'s streets.
Key Discussion Points and Insights
1. Recent Developments in D.C. (Martial Law, National Guard, Police Presence)
- Timestamps: [21:14], [31:22], [32:33], [51:53], [75:03]
- Trump administration enacts "vagrancy laws" reminiscent of the late 1800s—deploying the National Guard and federal agents in D.C. despite record-low crime rates in Black-majority cities.
- Heavy-handed police and federal presence is felt primarily in Black and immigrant/Latino neighborhoods.
- Aggressive removal of homeless encampments, with personal belongings bulldozed and thrown out.
- Transitional police/federal authorities are shipped in from outside D.C., lacking familiarity with local Black communities and increasing profiling.
Quote:
“Trump is basically enacting vagrancy laws like it’s 1890...with evidence that crime statistically is plummeting...especially in these major Black cities...the prison industrial complex is suffering. And as crime plummets nationally, they’re going to criminalize Black skin.”
— Deante’ Kyle [21:14]
2. Community Voices: Live Calls from D.C.
- Timestamps: [31:22] – [50:26], [50:51] – [73:47], [74:20] – [89:43], [89:54] – [124:54]
- Nina Rivera, longtime D.C. activist, details the surge of law enforcement in “militarized gear” and intimidation tactics, especially among agencies like CSOSA not normally engaged in such capacity.
- Stress on how “stoop culture” and Black communal practices are now criminalized under the guise of public safety.
- Afeni (Facts and Fire), organizer recently brutalized and arrested by Metro Transit police, describes excessive force, cop-watching, and the growing criminalization of youth for minor infractions like fare evasion.
- Both guests highlight solidarity across D.C.’s Black and immigrant residents and the necessity of organizing against militarized state repression.
- Neighborhood Alki (Block) and Imani B., residents and local activists, reinforce that preexisting conditions, lack of resources for youth, and government neglect primed D.C. for such federal intervention.
Quote:
“I've seen the DEA stroll through the nearest park...15 of them...it’s very show timing because they're just there to be intimidating and then dip. They're not called, there's nothing really to look for.”
— Nina Rivera [38:00]
Quote:
“Cop watching is not usually something you get arrested for...But because of the over-militarization of the police force...this situation escalated a lot quicker...I called them a couple bitches and hoes because they are bitches and hoes...it’s your First Amendment right!”
— Afeni [53:41]
Quote:
“They're going down the tents, taking them down, bulldozing, dump[ing] people's belongings...friends, educators, showing videos of their students in the neighborhoods, getting harassed...”
— Neighborhood Alki (Block) [75:03]
3. Roots and Impact of Policing and Surveillance
- Timestamps: [21:14], [99:01], [101:08]
- Crime drops due to increased youth resources, not increased policing.
- Surveillance state creates an illusion of more crime due to viral social media videos, when in reality, violence and crime are at historic lows.
- State and federal agencies rely on dehumanizing narratives about Black and Brown communities to justify increased militarization.
Quote:
“The reason why there are pages dedicated to showing Black people committing crimes...is to reinforce the negative stereotype about us being inherently violent. But the numbers say different.”
— Deante’ Kyle [22:47]
4. Prison Industrial Complex & Fascist Policy Agenda
- Timestamps: [21:14], [46:17], [61:55], [63:46]
- The motive behind ramped-up law enforcement is seen as a twofold attack: keep private prisons full and serve as a distraction from political scandals.
- Out-of-work Black women (the most educated group by race/gender) face systemic job discrimination as AI ramps up, painting a bleak future under Project 2025 and Heritage Foundation influence.
Quote:
“The Heritage Foundation is at the helm of Project 2025...the roots are in the KKK...what we’re witnessing is the Confederacy rising again.”
— Nina Rivera [46:17]
Quote:
“They’re trying to make an example out of every single one of these kids that they take a picture of and put on the Internet...crime is lower than it has been in 30 years in D.C.”
— Afeni [59:55]
5. Targeting Black Youth, Immigrants, and The Poor
- Timestamps: [40:41], [42:36], [75:03], [94:44], [103:49]
- Crackdown on fare evasion and curfews targets children who rely on public transit for school, with transit police using excessive violence against Black youth.
- Immigrant workers, especially delivery riders, are profiled, detained, and harassed.
- Homeless individuals are robbed of property and dignity in sweeps.
Quote:
“Our kids don’t have a school bus system...they ride Metro buses and Metro trains...If ICE comes to the school, we got parents pulling up. This is real.”
— Imani B. [94:44]
Quote:
“Vagrancy laws...just being outside makes you subject to being guilty of something...Criminalization of Black people has always been prevalent.”
— Deante’ Kyle [101:08]
6. Grassroots Resistance and Survival Advice
- Timestamps: [44:02], [68:03], [70:34], [116:12], [123:39]
- Organizers stress the importance of direct action, real-life engagement, knowing your rights, and building mutual aid.
- Digital activism is not enough; door-to-door, real-world connections are vital.
- Stockpiling essentials, learning basic survival and medical skills recommended given the escalation.
- Emphasis on Pan-African solidarity, cross-racial organizing, and breaking away from binary politics.
Quote:
“Find out how you’re going to get outside and get on those doors. Because a lot of people don’t do not understand what is coming...Digital is NOT enough.”
— Afeni [70:34]
Quote:
“The time to start doing those things is now. We’re gonna have to protect ourselves and each other collectively and put all these differences to the side.”
— Deante’ Kyle [127:20]
7. Intersectional Politics, Black Radical Tradition, and Intra-Community Critique
- Timestamps: [109:03], [110:17], [116:26], [119:48]
- Guests and host sharply critique both Democrats and Republicans, and stress the need to organize beyond the ballot box.
- Internal debates on “respectability politics," calling out horizontal violence, and the dangers of divisive online rhetoric.
- Alliances with other marginalized communities are necessary, but must not ignore foundational anti-Black oppression.
Quote:
“These people have got you splitting ties with your family members, but they’re all sitting at the same table together at Jeff Bezos’ wedding!”
— Deante’ Kyle [117:40]
Quote:
“If you fuck with what Black people got going on...you gonna free your folks, too. There’s no way around it.”
— Imani B. [118:00]
8. Practical Advice: Survival, Organizing, and Self-Care
- Prioritize real-world action in the community.
- Protect yourself, remain vigilant, speak to your neighbors, and support grassroots organizations.
- For personal struggles, recognize when to focus on self-healing versus trying to save others.
- Ongoing calls to avoid gambling apps/vice—especially those aggressively marketed to vulnerable Black communities. Support mental health, seek help for addiction, and avoid predatory platforms.
Notable Quotes & Timestamps
-
“If you are a police officer, if you are a part of the National Guard, if you are an ICE agent, you are a fucking Nazi. Period, point blank.”
— Deante’ Kyle [27:58] -
“They just want everything to be quiet and unseen…the only people that want everything to be quiet and unseen are liars and people doing dirty shit when can’t nobody see it.”
— Deante’ Kyle [36:07] -
"Anybody can do this work. We should all start seeing ourselves as organizers in training."
— Afeni [68:07] -
“Wherever you find poverty, you find crime. And if we don’t start tackling from the top with the people hoarding the resources, we’re always going to continue to point the finger at each other.”
— Imani B. [97:44] -
"Our ancestors have been through things like this during Jim Crow...all those things that make us different won’t matter when you go outside...they’re gonna see your skin and that’s gonna be the verdict."
— Deante’ Kyle [127:20]
Memorable Moments
- Deante’s extended monologues on the historical context linking the War on Drugs, mass incarceration, and today’s policing ([21:14], [22:47]).
- Live call-in from Afeni, moments after a high-profile arrest; her fiery retelling mixes humor (“I called them a couple bitches and hoes...it’s your First Amendment right!” [55:13]) with chilling details of police brutality.
- The ongoing inside jokes and rapport—e.g., repeated warnings not to “lick the boot” or “take the gambling app bag,” and recurring “Kumbay coffee shop” bits for comic relief.
- Raw expressions of intra-Black Diaspora tensions, contrasted with calls for Pan-African unity.
- Real-time practical organizing advice—stock up on staples, know your rights, direct action over digital posturing, and connect with neighbors.
Action Items & Calls to Action
- DC residents: Stay safe, know your rights, talk to your neighbors, look out for each other, and connect with local grassroots organizations mentioned by Afeni and others.
- All listeners:
- Be skeptical of crime narrative hype—look at the data, not the dog whistles.
- Resist divides along political, ethnic, or class lines—build solidarity and coalition.
- Delete gambling apps, seek help for addiction, prioritize self-care, and avoid predatory platforms.
- Grassroots donations and support: Consider Patreon and other forms of mutual aid.
Final Takeaway
Episode 81 is a vital, honest chronicle of how quickly familiar American patterns—militarized policing, racialized law enforcement, and capitalism’s desire for bodies and order—return to the surface in moments of crisis. Most importantly, the episode is a call for community, resilience, and grounding in both history and present-day struggle.
“You fighting a losing game with these [feds]...the only way we’re gonna be able to enact any change or protect ourselves is if we protect each other collectively and put all this bullshit to the side.”
— Deante’ Kyle [127:20]
[For more perspectives on D.C., organizing contacts, and to support the podcast community, see links and resources referenced throughout the episode.]