Latest / Breaking The Meta / Tortured by State Police, Now Running for Senate | Dakarai Larriett

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Tortured by State Police, Now Running for Senate | Dakarai Larriett · Breaking The Meta

• Breaking The Meta: Welcome Breaking the Meta. name is Mike Winslet. Today we are sitting down with Dakari Lariat, who is running for the U.S. Senate in the state of Alabama. Hello, sir. How are you doing today? Dakarai Larriett: Hello, doing great. Thanks for having me today, Mike. Breaking The Meta: Absolutely. ⁓ So I mentioned it right before we started. I was looking up how to pronounce your name. And one of the things that came up was that the background of your name, your name means happiness and joy. So my question is, have you always been that way since you were born? Like, did your parents know that? Because just in the Dakarai Larriett: Right, right. Breaking The Meta: Just a very short time I have met you, you seem like a very happy person. Dakarai Larriett: Yeah. Well, you know, it's funny. Most of my campaign videos show me like laughing or smiling and it's just, yeah, it's who I am. So, but I actually, I did the research later. I think my mom just picked the name out of a baby book, but I actually, I had to research it for a class project and I was like, did you know this is what my name meant? My mom's like, no, I thought it sounded cool. Right. Breaking The Meta: Well, they, so, you know, it's one of those things where it sounded cool, but somehow they just knew. She should have just gone with that. She should have just said, yes, that is exactly why I picked that name. ⁓ So to start off, ⁓ let's just hear a little bit more about you, just some of your background. Dakarai Larriett: Right. Yeah, well born and raised Alabama and Birmingham is home. And my dad was in the army. My mom is a teacher. She's been a teacher my whole life and just grew up all over the country and Germany came back to Alabama, graduated from university of Alabama, couldn't find work in the state. And that led me to New York city. And I built a career there in corporate supply chain, earned my MBA, started my businesses and got into public service. So I've been in public service for 20 years. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Which I will say, Dakarai Larriett: from addressing homelessness issues to addressing harm reduction, public health, and then came back to Alabama, got involved in my community, and became an HOA president my first election. And my real reason for running, frankly, was a wrongful arrest in 2024 that just showed me how broken these systems are and the need to change the laws federally. Breaking The Meta: most people would consider running for any office at this point kind of a little crazy. So thank you very much for being willing to do it because that is it. You're a stronger man than I am. I'll just sit here and interview amazing people like you. So as you've walked around Alabama and talked to to all the different people as as you're campaigning, what are the what are the pain points? What are the things that most people in Alabama Dakarai Larriett: But it's fair. Breaking The Meta: are saying that they need help with. Dakarai Larriett: Yes, it's been, gosh, thousands of miles, thousands of people I've spoken to. There are kitchen table issues and that's not surprising because we just haven't taken care of our people here for a generation. So it's education, healthcare, and economic opportunity. And that's ultimately how we built this campaign is investing in Alabamians through those three areas so that we can all excel. Breaking The Meta: Mm-hmm. Yeah. I'm assuming that Alabama is suffering, is hurting from things like the ACA subsidy removal and the SNAP benefit changes that started at the beginning of this year. Dakarai Larriett: for sure. So one out of f depend upon Medicaid, somet rely upon snap or food sta state. And it's very unfo and we're going to see mor closing as a result of th bill and we're going to s on our budget. So it's go Breaking The Meta: Yeah. One of the other things that I found that oftentimes is an issue with a lot of people, actually would argue it's one of the reasons Donald Trump got elected, even though I don't think he follows it, is this idea of accountability. or the lack thereof with our representatives. mean, he often says, tries to argue he is the most transparent president, et cetera, et cetera, which we know isn't true, but it's still an issue. And I think it's a reason why people gravitated towards that is they don't feel there is accountability with our representatives. So my question is, what does accountability mean to you? And what does it look like ⁓ as a representative of an entire state? Dakarai Larriett: It means being present. So I really want to model my office after Terry Sewell. So she represents the seventh congressional district that is Birmingham, Selma, parts of the black belt. And she's in the community. She's having town halls. She's fighting for us. And she also spends a lot of time explaining why did I vote this way? Because some of these bills are really difficult. If you think about Breaking The Meta: Mm. Dakarai Larriett: the one big beautiful bill, thousand pages. Of course, there's some things you agree with, some things you don't. So a lot of people don't understand the complexity of these bills, which by the way, can be read right on the government website. So she does a lot of explaining, which is something I think that you have to do. It's a communication role. Breaking The Meta: Yep. Yeah. And how. So to you, does that look like not just explaining, but even things like town halls, because I know a lot of a lot of representatives right now. avoid doing those like the plague. Dakarai Larriett: Yeah, it's really scary that we have some representatives that haven't had town halls in years and that is not representing people. And gosh, I would even support legislation to mandate some minimum interaction with your constituents. Now, good luck getting that passed through this Congress, but it's really about accountability. It's about transparency being available. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. No. No. So Alabama is at least historically a very red state. What has been your experience, especially with everything that's been going on this year since this current administration went into office with the tariffs and all the affordability problems, the ACA subsidies, the things that Dakarai Larriett: to folks, not the mega donors, not the corporations, not the lobbyists. Thank Breaking The Meta: that a lot of people in your state, as you said, take part in. Has there been, have you noticed a different kind of interaction, especially with people that may consider themselves conservative or Republican, that there may not have been a little over a year ago? Dakarai Larriett: It's brewing and what I'm hearing what other candidates. continue to see and hear on the trail is that folks are starting to rethink their decisions. And what I always tell people is you have permission to vote for the most qualified candidate on November 3rd. You don't have to change your party affiliation. You have that power. And sadly, in our state, we're one of six where you can still do straight ticket voting. So a lot of our education as we get closer to November is going to be around you choose. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Dakarai Larriett: the most qualified candidate. Don't choose an R or a D. And ⁓ that's how Senator Jones won this very seat in 2017. Republicans said, I cannot vote for a pedophile. And what do we have right now sitting in the White House? Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Speaking of the Epstein files that aren't, ⁓ seem to be a massive stain on this country, especially when you consider what other countries are doing with ⁓ their leaders that turn out to be in those files. ⁓ How do you see your position as senator going forward in working on something that is obviously a problem, whereas we've got millions of documents with probably thousands of people who took part in some way, shape or form, but are not being held to account for that reality for what they've done in there. Dakarai Larriett: I have a lot of questions. These files were sitting in FBI, DLJ for decades. So. Breaking The Meta: Mm-hmm. Dakarai Larriett: what happened there. And when I think about the people who need to be brought back to testify, I want to hear from FBI directors. I want to hear from former AGs. And Pam Bondi's stunt just last week was horrific. And a voter mentioned something really interesting to me. Not only does she have accountability in the last year, but also as AG of Florida. We don't talk about that enough. Breaking The Meta: Yes, it was. Yep. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Dakarai Larriett: Mar-a-Lago, right? Epstein had a home in Florida. These activities were happening under her nose for, gosh, her last two jobs. So there are a lot of people that have a lot of questions to answer. And that's what we can do when we finally get control. So when we talk to folks in the community, I say it's like a funnel, it's like a marketing funnel. I came from a consumer goods marketing background. Breaking The Meta: Yep. Yeah. I think one of the other... Dakarai Larriett: We've got to tell people one, there's an election, two, this is the date, three, this is what the role does, and this is what we can do for you if we win. So many folks are just not really familiar with the process. They think the Democrats are asleep. The Democrats don't have power to subpoena right now. They can't lead these matters. They have to find allies that are willing to go against Trump. And there aren't that many right now in the Republican party. Breaking The Meta: things that comes up, at least in my mind a lot is as a country, we've gotten very focused on the identity politics of the thing, where we only care about whatever letter is sitting right next to your name. And one of the reasons I asked what it was like when you were going around and talking to people is I think as much as I dislike this administration in pretty much every way, and form at this moment, I think one thing that they've done is potentially start opening the door to this idea in a lot of people's minds that maybe we need to stop paying attention to specifically a letter next to the name and actually start listening to the people that are speaking and care more about what they actually want to do and what they're saying instead of just that they're a Democrat or a Republican. do you see Dakarai Larriett: Yes. Thank Breaking The Meta: a world moving forward where we can have a government that is not just like right now there's a feeling by a lot of us that we just need to get Democrats in office so we can get things done. But my question is like moving forward is that even really a viable option because no one really wants one party even to control everything that assumes a lot of issues. There have been a lot of issues over Dakarai Larriett: All right. Okay. Breaking The Meta: the centuries across the world with one group or one party controlling everything. So how do you see us moving forward in that respect where we've got differences of opinion but need to find a way to work together as a country? Dakarai Larriett: I always say my background is in business. I'm not a career politician, two decades in corporate America. I never walked into a room and asked, who did you vote for before I agreed to work with someone? And I worked in factories and very conservative parts of this country. So Breaking The Meta: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Dakarai Larriett: I would love it to be about folks resumes and their track records. also not what have you done? What do you say you're going to do? ⁓ Who are you? That's what I want these elections to be about. And that's what I'm calling for people to do in November here in Alabama. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. One of the other things that I think is ⁓ something that we need to discuss, especially for your position as a senator, ⁓ since World War II, America has been kind of at the head of the table in when it comes to foreign affairs in every way, or form. In one year, this administration has summarily destroyed that or at least started the dominoes falling on that. How do you see this country moving forward in regards to our foreign relations, knowing that we've lost the trust of a lot of some of our closest allies because of things like tariffs and what we said about NATO and the UN and leaving the WHO and leaving the Paris climate agreement and stuff we've said about Greenland and all of that stuff? Dakarai Larriett: Yeah. I think. that these things can be repaired. And I just think back to the first couple of months of the Obama administration, I believe that ⁓ Secretary Clinton was put on a plane to like 150 countries. So these things can be repaired, they will be repaired, and progress does not come in a linear format. This is definitely a backtrack year, couple of years. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Dakarai Larriett: frankly, in our history. But I think it's a good framework for which that we can rebuild and reassert the image that we want on the national stage and is attracting so many great candidates. So here in Alabama, every single federal office has a candidate for the first time in, gosh, maybe almost eight years. Really exciting. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Yeah. And that is that's happening in a lot of states right now, which is which in my mind just shows me how many people in this country see how important it is right now. Places that have never had a Democrat, let alone running. it's it's so it's it's pretty amazing. ⁓ Let's do a little bit of future casting. So so November 3rd comes along and you win. Congratulations. Dakarai Larriett: Okay. Thanks. Breaking The Meta: January comes along and you were sworn in as Senator of the great state of Alabama. What are the first one or two things that you do? Dakarai Larriett: Just like we mentioned, establishing relationships. So I was just up in DC in December. I made a point of stopping by both of the Republican senators offices introducing myself. And at the end of the day, we've got to work for the people of Alabama. So I will be, it'll be like first day of school. You got to get to know where the bathrooms number one. Breaking The Meta: ⁓ That was the most important. That's definitely the most important. Dakarai Larriett: Bill relationships, advocate for the right committees that allow me to serve the people of Alabama. So I have a few in mind that I think are especially important. Department of Agriculture, we're an agricultural state. Armed services, obviously we have Huntsville, Space Force, and all of these entities in North Alabama. And intelligence, think would be incredibly important. Breaking The Meta: What if you could if you were given a magic wand and we're told ⁓ I could change the way something is done in the US government, what what would you change? Dakarai Larriett: Thank Hmm. That's great. That's great. Well, if I could change one thing, I want to take the money out of our political process. And I think that that is the root of so many challenges. And I would really model it after something that we see in many municipalities where there is a cap on spending for elections. Breaking The Meta: I know I threw a broad one at you, but... Yeah. Yeah. Dakarai Larriett: And besides like a few flyers and some very basic expenses, I would make that cap very low. And I was telling some voters last night, this is what I think the election should be about. Coming out to communities, selling yourself to 20 people in a room, going through your resume and answering their questions, not who can take out the Super Bowl ad and who can get the dark money. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Yeah, I would even add to that, ⁓ because I think that's great. of taking taking money out of politics is definitely a big thing for me. ⁓ One of the reasons that I'm doing what I'm doing here is to increase the visibility of those people that aren't taking PAC money, that don't have millions of dollars behind them. Setting something in place where everyone who is running gets equal visibility across the state. So it ends up being more about what they stand for and not how much money they can raise. Yes, correct. Dakarai Larriett: Right, right. And basically playing to the gatekeepers. Breaking The Meta: which is definitely the issue that we've dealt with. ⁓ So if for everyone that has been listening this far, heard everything that we've talked about, what are one or two things that no matter what you would want to make sure that they know about you and your campaign? Dakarai Larriett: I want them to know that I am a fighter and that I'm fighting a whole state right now for justice for my wrongful arrest. So believe me, when I go to Washington and have that office, I will be fighting for you on a national stage in those areas that matter, education, healthcare, and our economy. And it is so critical that we start those investments now. It takes a generation to see many of these outcomes. Breaking The Meta: Hmm Dakarai Larriett: I always give the example of my family. My grandfather attended a three-room school in Prattville, Alabama, but he invested in my mom, she invested in me, my dad invested in me, and now I'm running for United States Senate. That took 40 years. So we've got to start now and we've got to get someone who knows what the fight is, knows the urgency, and is willing to do the work. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. You mentioned it and my brain was so focused on making sure we went in the direction we were going that I forgot to bring it up. Are you willing to talk about the situation of your wrongful arrest and what happened in all that? Dakarai Larriett: ⁓ I'm happy to. Absolutely. Yeah. So it's been about two years now. And as mentioned, I was in the state of Michigan and I was a resident of Alabama at the time, apprehended by the state police, tortured, driver's license confiscated, humiliated. And the troopers actually attempted to plant drugs in my vehicle. And sadly, as we've seen with ⁓ the matters in Minnesota and in California, Breaking The Meta: Hmm. Yep. Dakarai Larriett: The government is covering up the situation and the judicial body, frankly, is running interference on justice. And that is why I've started to author legislation. One piece that I'm really proud of is called the Motorist Bill of Rights. And what that does is it provides protection for us as citizens when we interact law enforcement, ensures that we have transparency and Breaking The Meta: and Dakarai Larriett: I think the biggest piece is the body and dash cam. So we as the public spend about $800 per device, but we never get that information in a timely, clear manner. We have to go through four year requests, spend hundreds of dollars. And then when you get back is edited and redacted. So my bill proposes that that information is uploaded to a neutral third party cloud that allows your defender, your public defender, your attorney to grab that whole law enforcement accountable. Breaking The Meta: No. No. Dakarai Larriett: And that keeps all of us safe. Breaking The Meta: Sometimes this every every one of these conversations that I have makes me realize how much how many conversations we really need to have as a society. Hard conversations that there aren't always easy answers to that will be uncomfortable at times. But we've I think we've spent so much time with our with our head in the sand or just thinking that we were somehow better than we really were that it's gotten to a point where we just Dakarai Larriett: Yeah. Breaking The Meta: We can't just sit back and say, ⁓ you know, it'll get better. No, we've got to step up and we've got to do something about it. ⁓ For anyone that wants to learn more about you, wants to ⁓ volunteer or support you in any way, where can they find you? Dakarai Larriett: So check me out at DakariLyriat.com and there's a big get involved button at the top and there's also a big donate button at the top. So we're looking for people who can phone bank. You can do that from anywhere in the nation. Donations, we can accept those from anyone in the nation as long as they are American citizen or permanent resident even. Breaking The Meta: to. Dakarai Larriett: And this fuels the campaign. So we just started our billboards. We just started our commercials that cost a lot of money, but that is frankly how our system works today. And I'm committed to taking the money out of the process, but I got to get there first. I can't do anything from the outside. Breaking The Meta: No. No. Dakari, thank you so much for sitting down with us and giving us a chance to talk to you about what you hope to do for the state of Alabama. Dakarai Larriett: Thank you so much for having me today, Breaking The Meta: Yeah. And for everyone who listened this far, thank you so very much. Please consider hitting all those buttons down below. Like, subscribe, share. It helps make it possible for me to keep doing what I'm doing, which is interviewing amazing people like Dakari who are trying to fix problems that we've been talking about in this country for decades. They want to fix money in politics. They want to break the status quo. They want to fix problems that are just blatant and obvious. And in order to do that, they need to be able to get an office. And in order to do that, they need things like name recognition. They need things like visibility. So please watch, share this. If you know anyone in Alabama, please share this video. If you know anyone in any of the other states, share it in other states. This is how conversation happens too, because if you don't know what's going on around the world, you don't, or the country at least, you don't know what's going. There's no way we can actually come together. and become this society that I think we really need to become. And for those of you that are new to Breaking the Meta, just so you know, this podcast is all about having hard conversations when necessary, fighting to break the status quo and the idea that all people, no matter your race, religion, gender, or identity, get rights, respect, dignity, and safety. Dakar, thanks you again for sitting down with us and for everyone else. We'll see you next time on Breaking the Meta. Bye, guys.