It's been a really tough day, today, and a tough few days for us here at CNN, so the truth is that we're all heartbroken because we lost our leader here. We lost a man who was the backbone, the glue and the spirit of this company, the man who I personally credit with change in my life, the man who believed in me when nobody else did. He is the reason that you have a gay, Black man with two hours of primetime, a show with my name on it, the only anchor of color in primetime on cable news, think about that. You want to talk about diversity? Here it is.

Don Lemon

You know, there are ways not to perform oral sex if you didn't wa... by Don Lemon

You know, there are ways not to perform oral sex if you didn't want to do it.

You weigh how much you should criticize the President because hes... by Don Lemon

You weigh how much you should criticize the President because hes black.

black president should

There's a degree of deception in silence. by Don Lemon

There's a degree of deception in silence.

degrees deception silence

I was born gay just as I was born black. by Don Lemon

I was born gay just as I was born black.

born-gay black gay

When you are the first of anything, there is a bigger responsibil... by Don Lemon

When you are the first of anything, there is a bigger responsibility put on you.

bigger responsibility firsts

I think there's always a lesson you can learn from any situation. by Don Lemon

I think there's always a lesson you can learn from any situation.

situation lessons thinking

Regret is not an apology. I regret that I ran the stop sign, right, but, yeah, I'm not sorry for what I speaking. I regret that because I got a ticket. You can regret things and still not be sorry for them.

apology regret sorry

Everything in Louisiana is about layers. There are layers of race, layers of class, layers of survival, layers of death, and layers of rebirth. To live with these layers is to be a true Louisianian. This state has a depth that is simultaneously beyond words and yet as natural as breathing. How can a place be both other-worldly and completely pedestrian is beyond me; however, Louisiana manages to do it. Louisiana is spooky that way.

breathing race class

Some people are saying, Justin Bieber is racist. Is he? I dont kn... by Don Lemon

Some people are saying, Justin Bieber is racist. Is he? I dont know.

justin racist people

The best way not to encounter Americas health care system is not... by Don Lemon

The best way not to encounter Americas health care system is not to have to encounter it.

encounters care way

Im just going to be honest. Megyn is 47 years old. She is our age, there has never been a time in that -- in her 47 years -- that blackface has been acceptable. I wonder how much diversity she has on her staff. I dont know; Im not there. But I would imagine theres not a lot because people would have informed her. This is what people of the larger culture dont understand about racism and about privilege.

Lets talk about his imaginary Latin-American migrant conspiracy, this is part of a long history of him making things up about the caravan and the border crisis.

latest-headlines

Washington is an absolute pressure cooker right now. by Don Lemon

Washington is an absolute pressure cooker right now.

The president says the GOP is going to be the party of health care, then why is his Justice Department saying the Affordable Care Act should be struck down? The president has said again and again that he wanted to protect pre-existing conditions. Is this yet another lie from the president?

This is an America that can be deeply unfair, where hard work doesnt necessarily pay off, where if you have money, you can buy anything because just about everything is for sale, including integrity for sale, a whole lot of people have real good reason to believe the system is rigged against them. Listen, this is what Donald Trump tapped into. And in a lot of ways, guess what? He was right.

We are all safe. And we thank the Coast Guard and law enforcement... by Don Lemon

We are all safe. And we thank the Coast Guard and law enforcement for stopping this in time.

You can talk to me. by Don Lemon

You can talk to me.

I think it’s heading into November and I think the president realizes his base, this is something that animates his base and he’s going to continue on with it, if the president cares about Americans' First Amendment rights, and his own First Amendment rights, and the rights of his people who support him, then he should care about the First Amendment rights of those people who have chosen to kneel during the national anthem.

Amen, April. More of that in the briefing room, April. Following up and getting an answer. I absolutely applaud you.

Real patriotism is understanding what the Constitution means for all Americans and abiding by the Constitution, not doing some false presentation that you pretend to be a patriot while other people are around you, going to the concession stands, getting beer or fights in the stands or talking to each other with their baseball caps on. That is not real patriotism. Real patriotism is understanding that all of us are created equal and we have the choice to stand, kneel or sit or even attend a football game if we choose to.