Emmanuel Acho has now had 9 different conversations on his YouTube channel “Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man.” He started the channel because he wanted to create a “safe place to have the uncomfortable conversations about race.”

Especially after George Floyd’s death and the Black Lives Matter movement, Acho felt it was important to sit down and have these difficult yet important conversations. 

Acho has talked to a variety of different people. His very first conversation was with Matthew McConaughey. He also sat down with Chip and Joanna Gaines along with all of their children.

In Acho’s most recent video, he sat down with police officers from the Petaluma Police Department. Before starting the conversation, he talked to the camera and explained that “so much of the dissension in the world, so much of the dissension in America is based around the interaction between police officers, white police officers, and black people.”

Then the camera moved out to reveal the police officers that were joining him for the discussion. He mentioned that not only was he joined by the Petaluma Police Department but also a live audience. This is the first conversation that included an audience in the studio.

The audience wasn’t made up of random individuals. The audience members also included police officers, one of whom took part in the conversation.

Throughout the conversation, Acho asked difficult questions, like if the officers approach a situation differently when they are responding to a report of a black suspect as opposed to a white suspect.

The officers made the conversation uncomfortable for Acho as well, asking him difficult yet important questions like if he reacts differently when approached by a white police officer as opposed to a black police officer and why.

The conversation is eye-opening no matter your race. As Acho points out, “You can’t fix a problem you don’t know exists. I’m letting you know it exists.” Watch Acho’s conversation with the white police officers in the video below.

In the comments, multiple viewers have expressed that they would like to see more conversations like this between Acho and the police. One comment reads, “I feel like this conversation, in particular, needs to be extended into more episodes. The conversation between officers and a black man brought a bit of healing to my mind and to my soul. To see this conversation be had was moving. But what really touched me was to see a little bit of transparency between both parties(Emmanuel and the police). The way you both allowed for this to be an open safe space.”

Another viewer wrote, “Please keep having THIS particular conversation.”

What did you learn from this “uncomfortable conversation”? Do you think Acho should do more conversations like this with white police officers? What questions would you want him to ask?