- For me, I've never felt more empowered in my life.
- Yeah.
- You know, to be able to call people out
and ask them to step it up.
You know, I think-- - Yeah.
- If you had asked me four months ago
if I would feel confident enough to ask somebody that,
it would have been a "No."
But now, it's like, "Listen, we are living in a movement
and I need you to do better."
- And a lot of people are forced to look inward
because there's nothing else to do.
You can only sit and stream Netflix for so long.
(laughing) - Right.
- [Laura] So, for people who don't know, you have a lovely fiancé
and she's a white woman.
And I'm curious to know, like,
how has it been for you guys navigating
during this time as like, an interracial couple?
- I mean, to be honest,
this is not a new conversation for us.
George Floyd and Breonna Taylor
and Tony McDade are not the first,
victims of police brutality.
You know, you had Philando Castile
and Alton Sterling a few years ago,
and Bridget and I were having these conversations then.
But we've been together for four years, you know?
And we've had those tough conversations of,
"Will your family accept me?
"Because if they don't, adios."
Like, I'm not dealing with it
and vice versa.
And I believe that if you're a Black person
and your white partner
kind of recoils at the thought of having tough conversations
or they pull a lot of whataboutisms
and "All Lives Matter" bull(beep).
Like, you have a big problem on your hands
because if they cannot accept your reality,
then I'm not sure where that's going.
You do your relationship a disservice
and you do yourself a disservice,
but she's giving me my time to be empowered in this moment
and to lift my voice.
And I can only encourage other people
in interracial relationships to do the same.
[Rahne] With everything that's going on in the world,
how do you think the world will view 'The Politician?'
- [Laura] Every decision we can make as a country
to better the world is on the forefront of everyone's mind.
And so-- - Yeah.
- I think having a show like 'The Politician,'
it's creating that inspiration, especially in young people.
I think young people--
- Yeah. - More than ever,
are waking up
and looking around and realizing
that we've inherited a broken system.
We've inherited a broken world,
and unfortunately like, we have to be the ones to fix it.
And I think what the show does beautifully is like,
really highlights the complexity
between the older generation and the younger generation,
and how-- - Yeah.
- We're asking more of everyone
and everyone needs to step up.
I just think that like, inspiring that
change is so exciting about this season,
you really get that.
And like, young people are speaking up,
young people are showing up,
and I think that's like,
what we're actually seeing
directly happen in our world right now.
- Absolutely.
Yeah. These kids are smart
and empowered, they are speaking out
and people are listening, that's the thing.
- [Laura] I'm curious to know how a character like Skye
has inspired you as a person?
- [Rahne] Oh well, you know, Skye,
especially season one, was definitely extremely vocal,
unapologetic, and absolutely did not care
about hurt feelings.
She was gonna speak truth,
that she was gonna speak it powerfully,
and you were gonna listen.
Rahne, at that time, was like, a little more meek.
I was very much more laid back
and I didn't feel confident enough to really speak out.
And taking a cue from Skye,
saying these real things I felt in this movement,
I have to say something.
There is no way as a Black, gay woman living in America
in this moment that I could sit by and not use my voice.
It would be a disservice to me.
I will look back on it
and think, "What the hell was I doing?"
It's a disservice to the people that look up to me.
Skye has made me not care about hurt feelings.
She's really
kind of--
(laughing)
Ingrained herself within me,
and right now I'm like,
"Well, what would Skye do in this moment?"
She'd be marching, which I've done.
You know, I did a small protest in my own community
because I felt like these people
are going about their daily lives,
picnicking and riding bikes, like everything's hunky dory.
So, I'm gonna write a sign
that says, "I'm your neighbor. My life matters."
And get some of my friends and we're going to stand out here
and we're gonna do it.
Rahne, a couple years ago,
would have just walked by
and been like, "Yay. Kudos. Support you."
Today's Rahne, thanks to Skye,
is out there,
and I thank her.
So--
- [Laura] Yeah, I fully cried when I saw that post
'cause it was just so powerful. - Aw, Laura.
- And knowing you
and like, you're such a beautiful soul.
Your energy is so gentle,
and I think to see you really
be completely unashamed of your power,
and to stand in it,
and to ask the world to look at you.
Like, it brought tears to my eyes, just like--
- Aw thanks, Laura. (laughing)
- It's so wonderful to ask, be able,
and feel encouraged to ask that of your friends.
And-- - Yeah.
- To say, "I can't be in this alone.
"I need your help."
And it's like, an honor to like, show up for people
and to say, "Yeah, I'm no longer going to just stand by
"and think that this is fine."
And-- - Exactly
- You shouldn't have to be doing this alone, you need help.
Everyone needs help.
- Everybody needs help.
- [Laura] Watching the season back,
was there anything that surprised you
or made you look at
the current state of politics in a different way?
- [Rahne] To be honest, not necessarily.
What I enjoy about 'The Politician'
are the twists and the turns,
and you don't know where people's loyalties lie,
the conniving situations that people find themselves in.
And I firmly believe the proof is in the pudding
of how tough and rough Washington is
when it comes to politics.
Seeing all these things that people are doing,
I'm like, this might be a satire,
but I'm fully sure that some things of this level,
maybe not quite as, "Oh my God," is happening.
So I'm like, "Yup.
"This is accurate."
(laughing)
For me anyway.
(laughing)
- [Laura] I don't know if this is like, maybe my view on politics,
but more so how we talk to people.
And I feel like we've gotten to a place where
things can get so polarized
and we are so quick to write people off. We are like,
"Oh, you have a completely different political view.
"I can't even engage with you."
And I understand that it is exhausting
and emotionally taxing to do so,
but what I loved about the fifth episode
was the mother-daughter dynamic.
And-- - Yeah.
- How, when love is involved,
it's easier to have that conversation,
and to say like,
you have to look at the world, not just how it affects you,
but how it affects everyone.
And basically, it just really inspired me to want to
engage in difficult conversations about politics,
because I feel like it's a very-- - Yeah.
It's a very exhausting and it's a very taboo subject,
and like, kind of-- - For sure.
- That family rule of like, "We don't talk about politics."
- We don't talk about politics, yeah.
- Yeah, and realizing that like, we need to get beyond that
if we're going to get anywhere.
- That's such a true sentiment.
Like, if you're not going to talk about it,
then were always gonna have--
- Yeah. - This divide.
And even if we agree to disagree,
at least we know your rationale.
- [Laura] One of my favorite moments in the entire show,
and also being in the room
and experiencing it over and over again,
was your speech on cultural appropriation.
I would love for you to speak on what it felt like for you
and how you approached that speech.
- Being able to speak
about cultural appropriation, which is another way
that white supremacy kind of just like, takes a hold.
It was a powerful moment for me,
not only that, to have to do it
in a room full of white people.
And not necessarily just speaking to the characters,
but I think those words could have been spoken to
the whole entire room.
Like, this is a performance, but it's also truth.
And understanding where that came from,
like, for me, it was just a moment of,
"I could tell these white people
"what this is all about.
"And nobody's gonna tell me to stop.
"Nobody's gonna tell me to be quiet."
I'm performing, but this is, in some instances,
it was me, it was Rahne, not necessarily Skye.
It was me being able to tell the world,
this is what this is and this is what this means,
and stealing our culture. You're stealing it.
You're not borrowing it, you're stealing it.
But, I just felt strong.
I felt that, as far as encouraging Payton
and the team to go out and register young Black voters,
that was so important
and so timely now,
because we're seeing a lot of issues with voter suppression,
especially within Black communities.
And so, to say that and to reiterate it
a few times throughout the season,
I felt was very important.
I'm glad that they had that in there.
So, I think, there's a lot to unpack in that moment
and in that scene,
and I'm so glad that I was able to do it.
I'm so glad that it was written
and I hope that people can take something away
from the fact that there is a thin line
between appreciation and appropriation.
- Yeah.
- And then we need to do better.
- [Laura] If we are so blessed to have a season three--
- Please, Lord, let us have a season three.
(laughing)
- What would be your hope for your character,
our characters, where would you like to see us go?
What would you like to see?
- I think I would love to learn more about
the ensemble characters. Us.
I would just like to know what drives them,
you know, a little bit more.
And why they are so loyal to Payton
and if they are truly loyal to Payton.
I think it will be an interesting turn if we find that,
everybody else also has their own ambition in this,
it's not just about supporting Payton.
I do think that there will be a White House situation,
and I think that McAfee and Skye will absolutely be there
in some capacity, whether that's,
you know, as comrades or enemies.
You know, I think it's going to be fascinating, hopefully.
- Gosh, we'd have so much fun with that.
- I know. A lot of fun.