He Everybody welcome back to another episode of the male perspective I am your host Lana Reed and today is another wonderful day I get to sit down with another amazing man of five Beta Sigma fraternity Incorporated today I have with me brother Carl Benson he is uh with Zeta new Sigma chapter out in
Minnesota and I am looking forward to spending some time with him today and learning more about him and his chap but first and foremost as I always do sir I take a quick moment to pause and say thank you to you for making time for me
Today time is a gift once we give it we cannot get it back so I truly appreciate you setting aside this time of your day to sit down and chat with little me so with that welcome welcome to the show thank you so much I appreciate the
Opportunity I was uh really excited it’s been a a hectic time of day but at the end of the day I was looking at my calendar and realized I get to end it with you so it works out really well oh I’m so I’m so blessed I’m so blessed
Thank you thank you and I was just noticing you are just Sigma out you’ve got your Lael shock shop shop sh anyways as I open up I always like to ask um how long have you been a sigma and where have you pledged right but by definition I’m
Technically a Neo I was initiated fall 2023 uh Z new Sigma chapter in Minnesota uh so really excited about that opportunity uh shortly thereafter I was actually elected president of the Zeta new Sigma chapter um so uh we’re really excited for some of the things we got
Going on but that is my story of coming across well that’s curious um you you you pledged and walk right into leadership um did that present any challenges learning curves learning opportunities I I I mean there’s always learning curves for sure I mean as as a sigma man it’s always something that
You’re learning all the time you’re constantly learning from the uh the veteran senior old guys U but at the same time I think from a business perspective uh my background is such that it made a lot of sense I knew a lot of the folks that were in the chapter um
They they somewhat knew me um and they sort of knew my capabilities and I think that there was an opportunity um simply because there were some folks that were you know the term was ending relatively quickly and they got to know me relatively quickly and it just worked
Out okay awesome awesome your your particular line was there a lot of brothers that came in or was it just you uh there’s only six of us there’s only six us our line was called Blue prophecy our line is called Blue prophecy um there’s a six of us and we were all
Pretty excited about that opportunity and it was a real tight-nit group um we were we met I I think a few of us knew one another um but independently but as a group we were all new to one another so it was kind of nice to sort of get to
Know everybody at the same time um we’re still close clearly and we’ll stay close throughout the rest of our lives truly truly awesome okay so let me ask you this because most of the time when you think about the D9 uh you’re more familiar with people pledging undergrad
You know but there there quite some few that will pledge later in life so for you personally what was it about this particular season in your life and five Beta Sigma that made it all happen at this particular time right so I like I turned 50 last year and I think that
Really what it was really what it was was uh 5B Sigma sort of fell in line with the things that I was already doing so I was really big in the community serving in my community in that way um sending kids to college or that higher education piece
Was also part of it and because I’m a I I have one brother but um I that Brotherhood was something I was sort of seeking out so between you know what we were looking at from our principles of 58 to Sigma it just made the most sense
Um I selfishly I always say I love blue um but so so there’s certain D and organizations kept me out but I mean uh because I love blue so much it just worked out really well the Stars a lot the stars align y it all fit it all fit
How many how many brothers are there about in the Minnesota signs so on on paper we have about 176 I’d like to believe that big okay yeah I think we’re we’re spread out pretty well though so I think what we’re really trying to do is get everybody a little more active bring
Everybody back into the fold I guess because we’re you know clearly when you have that many folks you kind of have them spread out some are active inactive um and whatnot but our goal obviously and my goal as president is is actually to bring everybody back so um active
Wise we’re probably close to 100 um but I think we’re still pretty good okay and your chapter um is Twin Cities right both correct it’s technically Minnesota so it’s a technically the state of Minnesota um Twin Cities is kind of where we’re all located at and I think
That from that perspective that’s where we uh we do we do most of our meetings and most of our things are in the Minneapolis and St Paul area okay and how how long how many years have you gentlemen been around uh since 1977 so it it’s been it’s been I laugh because I
Was born in 1972 but but but it’s great because a lot of the the older guys have taken me under their wing and it’s kind of nice to sort of hear that historical perspective of what happened in you know when they were founded here so we have our 40th
Anniversary coming up pretty soon okay the chapters all right so stepped in the leadership impressive so I’m going to Blink and look up and you’re going to be districts Regional something or another right we’re going to stick to where we are right now we’re pretty I’m pretty
Excited where I’m at right now so we’ll see we’ll see what happens in the future okay I’m watching I’m watching I’m watching so let me get into some of the community work that you are doing because um you know I’ve been around Sigma since undergrad and I know you
Guys are heavily vested in the community and your chapter is no different now one of the things that I saw you guys were involved in um and I think this is a nationwide initiative it’s bigger and better business so I saw on the Facebook page that you know us common folks have
An opportunity to come hang out with you guys I think it was first Wednesdays or something like that uh yeah it’s it’s first Wednesday but we call it blue Wednesday um so blue blue Wednesday is an opportunity that we’ve adopted a blackowned business called H Pento Jamaican Kitchen um they have four
Different locations within the Twin Cities we’ve aded the St Paul it’s a brand new St Paul location out on Wabasha um in Men in uh downtown St Paul and the beauty of it obviously is they they as an organization are also big in the community they are also connected to
Community so for us when we were looking for that blackowned business to sort of quote unquote adopt it just made the most sense it’s a new location they’re they’re passionate about what they do in the community as well and it just made us a perfect tie-in so when we wanted to
Do a monthly event monthly Gathering Blue Wednesday was kind of how we landed on it and everybody loves Jamaican food so it worked out really it worked out really well everybody Curry any day any day any day exactly so um the the bigger and better business initiative uh program um in the
Minnesota area is there some sort of way for a business to kind of get connected with you or is there a process yeah so so from a a bigger and better business it’s one of our national programs so and one of the key components of that we
Call is black spend or spending black dollars in Black uh communities and black uh businesses so part of the adopted business was that aspect of it but we also try to charge all of our members um and anyone in our community that we we want to sort of tie into
Black businesses and support black businesses because in Minnesota we know that we’re not a huge population of folks so if we can take our dollars and sort of put them back into blackowned businesses it works out really well um whether we focus on it on a blue
Wednesday or whether we just sort of take the initiative to our brothers and say hey in considering where you go out to eat or in considering where you maybe do some event planning or party planning or event spaces let’s see if we can sort of spend those dollars in in our black
Uh Community um so that was something that we’re really excited about when we start talking about black spend but we’re also looking at it from some of the Partnerships we have both with Macy’s and Men’s Warehouse where we’re able to bring our some of the boys that
We work with um and get them fitted for suits and learn how to tie a to and some of those type of things as well so from a business standpoint how do we connect not only the brothers that are in the chapter but with the folks that we’re
Serving and the and the boys that we serve as well awesome awesome let me backtrack um because you I was close about you said something Minnesota is not really a large population of us not really no um anywh shocking but true uh it’s kind of cold up here but it’s
Really a lot of transplants right so when you’re because with tons of Fortune 500 companies and a lot of black folks come through primarily for work or business and of course they bring their families with the challenge for us and what we always find is that from a even
Alumni chapter but also a Collegiate chapter is that most of the black folks are sort of spread out throughout the entire not only Twin Cities but in some cases the whole state so getting them tied together and then also saying to yourself you also have four other
Organizations if if they want to be fraternity um but most of them come in um in a fraternity I guess most of the men or maybe the women too come in in a in a fraternity or a sority and our goal obviously is to try to connect them try
To find out when they’re coming in help support them brothers that come in with their wives and families um and then sort of figure out a way to connect with them early um that’s the goal obviously but yeah I mean in Minnesota I I don’t even know the numbers anymore but at one
Point I think it was probably less than 12% or maybe was 12% um and that is kind of inclusive to college campuses you know that num got a lot of folks you know black folks in it and then of course there’s the families and then there’s clearly there’s a uh immigrant
Community as well um so it’s it’s just really depending upon how the the numbers shake out oh wow see now Prince had us all well me living under some sort of Illusion that we were just kind of all hanging out camp down there I mean I mean in certain areas certain
Areas you know if you’re head to First Avenue back in the day I mean it was it was a fun time and I think that that was um back with my in my old life kind of deal I I had I did have the opportunity
To to meet him and and I could honestly say from a music scene there is a little bit of that music uh uh Minneapolis sound kind of thing going to so you you find a lot of folks doing a lot of work in that space for sure okay okay yeah
All right so let me get back to the so I I think I saw when I was roaming around of preparing today being nosy on um your seal your chapter sealed two other are your your advisors for two or three other under undergrad did I see that
Correctly uh your your our chapter is your chapter advis uh yeah so we we have a couple Collegiate chapters that are currently inactive um we’re trying to reactivate them uh pretty soon uh the P chapter for sure is uh on the University of Minnesota um and that that was
Actually founded by a number of the guys that are currently in Zeta new Sigma so we’re really focused on bringing that one back um and I think that that’s something that over the next year or so you’re going to see that come through as well and a lot of the young brothers
That we have on the University of Minnesota campus will be there okay all right all right all right last time last time I I was out in Minnesota I want to say it must been 20 years it was a visit to it was a visit to the great ball of
America it was it was is that place still around CU malls are closing it’s still there and it’s a lot larger probably since you’ve seen it in 20 years ago yeah they they’ve uh they’ve expanded uh twice I believe since since in 20 years so it’s a lot bigger and
It’s getting bigger again because they connected another hotel so I think that uh yeah it’s a large space and it’s now an event space too so a lot of events happen there um more so than they used to so they’ll bring a lot of bands in
High school bands will go in the Rotunda and do a lot of events there too so the Mall of America is that uh key tourist attraction if uh someone’s visiting okay so they’ve expanded their business model because malls are Ross America are are really kind of closing down it’s
Becoming like a ghost town in many places so good they they they redesign okay all right well let let me get back because um you know I was born in the South and I can carry on the conversation for a while so I can keep
You all day but let let me let me let me let me Focus let me Focus here back to the community service that your particular chapter is and and me being nosy and and roaming around your Facebook page I saw you you gentlemen were recently involved in a Community
Event with a lady uh I Believe by the name of Joanne Clark and then your brother actor Terrence Howard was there was what was that event about what was that all about well uh that was two different events in the same weekend but uh yeah so that’s the the beauty of it
That was from a sigma standpoint was fantastic Joan Clark is an iconic figure in the St Paul community and her husband uh Otis Clark is a sigma um so we are really excited for the opportunity to sort of not only celebrate her and the naming of the gymnasium at her their
High School um but I think that the the beauty of that was being able to bring a lot of the sigma Brothers there too who knew not only knew her and wanted to celebrate her but also knew uh of course brother Clark um Terence Howard who is
Also a brother um he was there for a m I can’t remember exactly the name of it but it was a movie real real real Revolution I think it was the name of it um and they were talking about how black actors are looking for how they sort of
Position themselves in the new Hollywood I guess where some sometimes you’re not necessarily getting paid the same amount as others and I think that he was there to sort of talk about some of the things that um how he saw it and how he saw those things we had the opportunity
Again to sort of sit down with him for a little bit and connect with him I think he’s the hope is we’re going to bring him back to town um on a little more permanent basis on some of the things that he’s looking at yeah abolutely so so there’s a an entertainment industry
In Minnesota there it’s a it’s yes and no I mean it’s more it’s more I wouldn’t say it’s huge but there there are a lot of folks who are in that acting space it’s a little more theater I guess here than it is sort of the Hollywood feel I
Know that a few different movies have come here and sort of film parts of things that they do but I wouldn’t say there’s a motion picture scene here so much but there is a lot of folks that are in that creative and entertainment space absolutely okay yeah and and and
Circle back to Joanne Clark the gymnasium she was an educator yes well she was not only an educator but she’s she was the one in my opinion I I kind of used her model myself and sort of modeled my she was big on getting kids into college right so in a community
Aspect both through her church and through herself um personally in the St Paul area um she was really the the leader in the space of sort of creating that not only HBCU College fairs but College fairs in general College and Career Fairs um because what she was
When she was roaming through back in the day and saw kids just Milling around she’s like why aren’t you in school and and if you don’t get back to school you’re not going to go to college and then she realized it needed to be an opportunity to sort of create space for
Kids who were kind of like are you going to go to school are you going to go to work or what does that look like but that also bring your parents in as well so where do your parents fit into this mix of making sure they’re pushing you
To do the same thing so for I’d like to say 50 years she’s been doing that work and I think that the the beauty of what she does um Joanne Clark is that she celebrated um throughout all T different types of Industries in the in the State
Um just last year we honored her at the 100 black men Twin Cities um she was one of our three iconic she won the service or leader Legacy award is what it was um for the work that she does in the state of Minnesota and the Twin City St Paul
Specifically and uh so there’s never a time that you’ll see uh See Her sitting down even at this point she’s still she’s still going after it so we’re really excited to sort of support her in any she’s doing as well great great we can only aspire to be like her agre
Agreed Agreed 100% let me let me switch reels a little bit and and and uh talk about a project that you’ve got going on because as I mentioned before we got started I was so excited to see it anytime I see somebody else doing some of the work something similar to the
Work that I’m doing I get excited but you currently are involved in a podcast you’re co- co-host of a podcast changing the narrative explain uh that project and how it came to be yeah so uh myself and uh Dr Warren who’s a friend of mine of course but he was
Also a member of The 100 black men Twin Cities we sat we were sitting around one day and we thought um what could we do I’ve always wanted to be in the podcast space but I’ve never really understood it um I just like to talk a lot um and
Then then there was and he was in that podcast space he’s an educator as well in a college professor and wanted to get back into it so we were both sitting around thinking about what we could do and what were kind of important issues right now that we should sort of focus
On being in Minnesota of course A lot of it had to do with some of the systemic race uh racism challenges that we have but specifically around black men and some of the challenges that black men have just quite honestly navigating the city um so what we really wanted to do
Is sort of figure out what that looked like and and talk to you know not necessarily the the mayors of cities or the CEOs and whatnot but just talk to regular guys about how they experience um being black in Minnesota being black in America and how we can go about
Changing that narrative and what we really wanted to do was sort of create the podcast to create space in a platform but realistically our goal is to get an audience of white folks we want folks to sort of understand like these are the people you see um wandering around the city working with
You next door volunteering in your communities um teachers in your schools um and not necessarily Let The Narrative of what you see on television a lot and a lot of times you see that you know either sports or or trouble right you’re either in trouble or you’re in sports
You’re in entertainment and that’s kind of your picture of black men and quite honestly we’re doing a number of different things we’re not only Educators we’re CEOs and we’re we’re running nonprofits we’re sort of in the community in a number of different ways uh church folks parents and fathers and
All those things and I think that that’s really what that we wanted to highlight but then we want to show that was something that not only us the two of us being there but make sure that we bring in folks all the time to do it so Sunday
Nights we we uh record them uh we do it via Zoom much like this and then we sort of then push it into our the social media channels and whatnot awesome awesome so um my my mentor had told me many many years ago and it’s always
Stuck with me that uh the negative is always louder than the positive so we have we have to put much more effort into putting these positive messages out yeah absolutely so um I I heard that you say you push it out on your social media but is it available on other platforms
As well yeah so wherever you listen to podcast so we’re on all of them so whether it’s Spotify uh Apple of course Google um so and then I think we’re actually we’re filming them more on YouTube now too right now it’s going through Dr Gabriel’s YouTube channel but
You can type in changing the narrative and it’ll pop up um but I think that the the beauty of it is we want to sort of get to the point where we’re seasoned enough if you will to do the kind of uh in-person two mics and a guest kind of
Mic kind of thing that’s you know it’s kind of a goal but right now we’re sort of we we’re finding some traction with the zoom meetings but I think ultimately that’s kind of the have that video component is something that we’re really sort of striving for we’re still young
Though We’re Young podcasters so we’re figuring it out young but Mighty young but Mighty yeah there you go there you go there well let me ask you this then because you mentioned the in person so um when it comes to guest are you only looking for people in the Minnesota or
Men in the Minnesota area or will that expand anybody yeah it’s it’s expanded now so a lot of uh Dr Gabriel’s from the Alabama area so a lot of folks are coming from the south um so we have lot of his friends and connections and also
Folks that uh he’s may have worked with in the past um I grew up on an Air Force Base um in the in North Dakota Air Force bre okay okay yeah yeah so m not North Dakota I grew up on an Air Force Base there and moved to Minneapolis as an
Adult uh moved to Chicago as well so we’re grabbing folks from wherever we’ve been and and a lot of them you know a few folks are from Minnesota um a few folks are part of different organizations we’re part of but quite honestly most of the folks right now are
The you know from other areas outside of the state of Minnesota okay okay your co-host is he D9 or no he is not we’re I’m trying to I’ll try to get them in but keep I’m sure I’m sure a number of folks would try but I I’m I’m closest to
Them right now so I think I can get him awesome okay always recruiting I’m always recruiting that’s that’s right well well let me ask you to kind of expound on the messaging of your podcast there is a uh let me see here because we have to be politically
Correct in today’s world here um there is a messaging there’s a constant messaging here in the United States of if you pull yourself up by your bootstraps and apply yourself you will be on equal playing field with everybody else and you Mr Benson are clearly an example of that you’re educated you’re a
Professional man uh my question is here in 2024 when you walk into professional spaces as a black man do you feel um you are treated on equal playing field as others or uh I will say yes and no depending upon if if they know me on the
Front end right so that the how I get in their rooms is generally through connections and relationships so from that perspective absolutely if I’m just a random you know making cold calls trying to talk to folks and then they do like quote unquote a LinkedIn search or
Whatever that looks like and it’s like okay I don’t know what this guy’s about um they may or may not call me back but what I what I see more so as young people um the challenges young people have um in that space and navigating that space because it’s really not about
Um what I’ve done you know I’m not over my career is not over I guess if you will but I’m really at that point where I’m really trying to position uh College age students who are coming out into the workforce and making sure they don’t suffer from some of those challenges you
Speak of because I think ultimately that’s going to be where we sort of see that change right now I I mean it’s subtle I like I like to believe that you know racism is always going to be there um some places it’s more overt sometimes it’s more subtle um and I think in
Minnesota it’s kind of like you know you know the phrase Minnesota nice no one wants to rock the boat kind of deal and you just don’t want to sort of cause any problems um whereas maybe in the South or some other places um you may see some
Things a little more just in your face and they may say you know something just like I’m just not going to do this because you are that um and I think that that’s something that you don’t necessarily see here so much um but at the same time it’s really clicky right
So I mean like anywhere you hire people you know you hire people you’re comfortable with you hire people that um are recommended and if your network doesn’t include black folks then you’re clearly not going to be part of those conversations so bigger contracts or big bigger opportunities or rfps or anything
That comes across often times black folks have to sort of jump through more Hoops just to find out about them um whether they’re qualified or not or whether they have the the infrastructure to do the job is another conversation but I think ultimately just to have an opportunity to apply and have an
Opportunity to know about it takes understanding where your network is and making sure you’re able to bring folks in so I never try to come in alone no matter what I do um if I’m taking a job consulting or otherwise most of the people that I work with will be black um
Whether it’s a graphic designer or web designer whether it’s sort of someone in that uh leadership teaching or coaching or um panel discussions whatever that looks like I just intentionally focus on that and and part of it is truly just to give them a platform as well right I can
Sit back in the background and do what I do um but it allows these younger folks who are starting their businesses or starting their lives are starting doing what they’re doing to sort of be elevated and that’s kind of my uh my goal right now passion right now well we
Can see why Z the new Sigma pck you as their President we can see that all right I was a little perplexed there I said he just pledged and walked in but as the interview unfolds it is clearly apparent clearly apparent and you know some of the stuff you mentioned um I I
Think that’s the beauty of being a part of the D9 organization is that you have people that are willing to bring you in you know and give you that exposure and all of that stuff so well let me let me wrap up things here uh and bring it back to Z the new
Sigma um because you appear to be I I I got the whole low down but you appear to be a a more than equipped leader so Zeta new Sigma has what on the plate for 2024 we just finished the first so I’m pretty sure you’ve got a plan for the gentlemen
That they have to follow so right well we’re we’re we are excited about some of the opportunities of clearly uh CLE cell Foundation is kind of key to us right now so we’re really partnering with them uh not only on a blood drive that we’re doing but some of those rare disease uh
Pushes and fundraisers that they’re doing March of Dimes March for babies is also coming up in May that’s going to be really exciting because that’s something that we always like to sort of not only get behind from a fundraising standpoint but a lot of the Brothers come out for
That it’s all it’s at the Mall of America so we can get a lot a lot we we compete in fundraising with all the other D9 so it’s always a good time as well um we actually have our our Greek week coming up this summer and that sort
Of Falls in line with juneth as well so we’re really excited for the next few months and some of the things that we’re get getting after um as we roll into obviously gift giving and the holiday seasons and you know we talk about Thanksgiving and you know turkeys and
All the stuff that we do there but we really want to make sure that we’re a part of this election year as well bringing not only black men out to vote but bringing black folks out to vote and you know whether whatever side you’re on doesn’t really matter to me as long as
You’re registered to vote um and get out and do that so we’re going to be really pushing that throughout the year as well okay awesome awesome you you just fin we just finished having uh prelims out there okay yep yep yep I think the candidates are set if if I’m being honest
We’re we know who it’s going to be now now it’s just time to go to the polls and po that’s all we can say folks just go go to the PO that’s all we can say politically correct right yeah just just and and and you mentioned um I I
Want to Circle back uh because I think it’s important you mentioned one of the reasons that kind of brought you into this um is is your work with scholarships and young people your chapter do you have the sigma Beta Sigma Beta Club Sigma we’re chartering it this
Year so we actually did not have one official we’ve been working with students uh we adopted a a school as well so St Louis Park Middle School uh We’ve adopted them as well as our as our location for what will be our Sigma Beta Club and running those programming and
The beauty of that Pro programming as well is we have a lot of Educators um in our chapter um so it’s kind of nice to be in a school where the kids know each other but then also have some black teachers coming in if you will to sort
Of help them navigate that and having black boys learn in all the different areas not only from the financial literacy to stem and some of the mathematics that we do um it’s just a good opportunity and having black men teach that is something we’re really excited about oh okay that’s great you
Know I don’t know what it and this is unofficial research here but I don’t know what it is about five beted Sigma but I you guys are more Educators than any of the other D I don’t I don’t know what it is I just I think we all fall
Under the service umbrella I think all the D9 fall under service umbrella but I think how you serve is just you know I think from a educational standpoint a lot of guys want to go back and get their not only get their masters but you get into to the doctors and all those
Type of things and it’s just the beauty of serving and serving in a different way and you realize that education is one of those things that’ll catapult folks further uh quicker if you will than anything else that’s great that’s great and you know and and having these conversations with these young folks
Today a lot of them are not seeing the benefit in education but I I just I don’t I don’t know what the future will we we’re working working on that obviously I think that from uh we are really focused on getting the black boys and not that I we we really want our
Black ladies to be there too but for from a sigma standpoint Sigma Beta Club standpoint we need our black boys going to college yes um so we want to make sure that we’re giving them those opportunities to do that um and nothing against trade schools or anything else
We we want all those things but education is going to be the key to all of it yes indeed yes indeed trade schools are wonderful but as we see with this changing World Ai and whatever you know yep some skill sets for well let let me let me my random question so I
Get you on your way you said I am the finish of the conclusion of your day so let me get your own is it no it’s not supposed to be first Wednesday so oh that’s to’s here uh what superpower would you want to have that’s an easy one I would want
To be invisible um I I invisibility is something that as a kid I said trying to figure out how I how I could uh become invisible just so for a number of different reasons one was just so I could see what Christmas presents were being wrapped but then but as I grew up
I realized I could be in rooms and have understand what people thought about me kind of deal and sort of navigate how I do that um I never really thought of it from a crime standpoint but Robin Banks might be a little easier if you’re invisible uh so invisibility is one of
Those things that uh easy question easy answer for me awesome so you could see what who would think anything negative about you why would you you never know Mr Benson no no well sir if we are ever in the Minnesota area give us the website and
All that stuff how do we connect with you gentlemen andang with you guys everywhere is going to be at Minnesota Sigma so if you’re looking on LinkedIn Facebook uh Twitter Instagram it’s going to be uh Instagram is zns 1977 everything else is going to be Minnesota sigas also uh please look into our
Podcast changing the narrative podcast on all your platforms there and then finally from 100 black men Twin Cities we’re doing some great things as well so 100 bmtc is also something to hashtag in there at you can find us at too we’re excited okay I love it I love it I love
Especially my fellow uh Air Force military brat you know I really I rarely run into one of us it’s a very special unique a world we experience so absolutely but anyways I thank you for your time I thank you for uh the wonderful work that you’re doing the example that you’re setting you’re
Changing the narrative and I appreciate that and um just give my love to the rest of the guys and cool to everybody thank you so much for your time and thank you for reaching out I appreciate you oh thank you that is all for this week’s episode of the mail perspective
I’m your host Lana Reed and I will see everybody next time get
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