For me, first of all, I love people, I love ideas.

Suddenly in high school, I'm in a predominantly Jewish atmosphere. Jewish people were my gate to white America.

I am lucky: I have fantastic doctors and a fantastic dentist.

I think as a kid I always liked to listen to people. I loved hearing stories.

I think we can learn a lot about a person in the very moment that language fails them. In the very moment they they have to be more creative than they would have imagined in order to communicate. It's the very moment that they have to dig deeper than the surface to find words, and at the same time, it's a moment when they want to communicate very badly. They're digging deep and projecting out at the same time.

Racism has been for everyone like a horrible, tragic car crash, and we've all been heavily sedated from it. If we don't come into consciousness of this tragedy, there's going to be a violent awakening we don't want. The question is, can we wake up?

I think we need leadership that helps us remember that part of what we are about is caring about more than the person right next to us, but the folks across the way.