From Feb. 12, 2019:
RUSH EXCERPT:
LEMON: “What do you make of her answer, April?”
RYAN: “Good for her. You know, there is a lot to unpack here. Number one, what does black enough mean? Can someone give me a definition of what black enough is? I don’t want to go down the road of the stereotype when people say we are black. Number one, she’s a black woman, she’s a mixed race woman. When you see her, you see her blackness. But she’s also south Asian. Her mom is south Asian, and her dad is Jamaican.”
LEMON: “But April, let me — listen. More power to her and I think it is great. That should be enough. Listen, it is enough that she’s a black woman.”
RYAN: “They did the same thing — “
LEMON: “No, no, no, no. I think you’re not hearing what people are saying. People who are saying is she black enough, that’s bull. That’s B.S. But to want the distinction to say is she African-American, or is she black, whatever. There’s nothing wrong with that. There’s a difference between being African-American and being black. Latino people are people of color, but they’re not black. They’re brown people, okay?”
RYAN: “She is a woman of color, but she is a black woman. Her father is a black man from Jamaica.”
LEMON: “Okay, that’s fine. I agree with that. [crosstalk] No, no, no. But is she African-American, there’s a difference. No one is trying to take anything away from her. I think you’re falling into a trap with that. All she had to do was say, I’m black, but I’m not African-American. That’s it.”
RYAN “I’m not falling into a trap. Let me finish, hold on. When she goes down her lineage, many Africans landed in Jamaica and all these other Caribbean islands.”
LEMON: “Jamaica is not America.”
RYAN: “But she is a black woman. She was born here — “
LEMON: “Jamaica did not come out of Jim Crow. I’m just saying.”
RYAN: “Ted Cruz was born in Canada, his father was Cuban.”
LEMON: “You’re changing the subject. This has nothing to do with Ted Cruz.”