.... > . welcome to al jazeera america. i am del walters. these are the stories we are following for you: ladies and gentlemen, start your engines. millions hitting the malls and those big-box stores. defiance in egypt. protest orders demonstrating against a new law restricting public gathers. syria's children forced to work just to survive and missing out on their education. today is black friday, one of, if not the, biggest shopping day of the year.

millions of people are either shopping online or flock to go stores in search of those great buys. for some, the bargain hunting began right after thanksgiving dinner. some stores opening thursday night and are still open this afternoon. patricia sagba is live in bay shore, new york. how is the shopping going so far today? >> reporter: well, let me tell you, del, right now, i would say the foot traffic is pretty much the heaviest that it's been all day. we were here at the wee hours of this morning, afternoon 5:00 a.m. and there were very few people out. you can probably attribute that to gray thursday, stealing a lot of black friday's thunder. many stores were open at 8:00 o'clock last night. >> that's what really attracted the hard-core shoppers who really wanted to take advantage of those door-buster deals. at sears, for example, there were about 500 people online waiting for those doors to open at 8:00 p.m. last night. of course, wages are stagnant throughout much of the u.s. that, of course, has eroded the

spending power of the majority of american consumers. bargains are still a very, very big draw. and for shoppers who come armed with smartphones and tablets, there is an array of apps to help them target the best deal. >> let your smart foefrn be your guide. this year, shoppers may be browsing in stores but they are harnessing mobile apps to hunt for the best deal. popular ones like red laser, no more socks, and shopkick help shoppers compare prices, get gift ideas and find money-saving coupons. >> there is going to be an enormous surge in the role that apps play. >> retail analysts predict ecommerce sales will hit $80,000,000,000 and a lot of that shopping will be done on smartphones and tablets. >> a lot of the app developers are starting to figure outweigh to see create shopping experiences that are on par with and in a lot of indications better than what you get in the store. there is an opportunity to learn a lot more about the product, to watch little demo videos about

what the product does and how it works. >> surveys show smartphone owners have three to four shopping apps, according to one forecast, nearly half of black friday purchases will be made on mobile devices. >> we are seeing great growth in the internet business. we are seeing double-digit growth over the last 10 years >> reporter: a recent poll by consumer reports found that 56% of americans have no intention of setting foot inside a store during the black friday weekend. a lot of people want to avoid the crowds and shop from the comfort of their own homes. that's probably very good news for cyber monday. by the way, sales for cyber monday are expected to be 13% higher than last year. del? >> patricia, if i am one of those shoppers, how do i know i am getting a good deal versus something that might be cosmetic? >> reporter: well, you know, there is that big question there because a lot of rarelies put an initial high price on their items to protect their profit margins when they slap on that

deep discount. of course, nobody wants to be the person who ends up paying more than the next guy. this is really where price comparison websites and apps come into their own. >> patricia sagba joining us from westfield south shore mall. thank you very much. the day after thanksgiving starts the holiday season since the 19th century but the term "black friday" is 50 years old. first coined in philadelphia after large crowds from the army-football game, frustrating police. denny griswould wrote, traffic problems are an irksome problem and they referred to the post thanksgiving days and black friday and saturday. shop owners tried to change it to big friday but that didn't work. enter the marketing experts making sure that black friday took on a whole new meaning, referring to the shift in

profits from red to black when holiday sales surged. one group using black friday trying to draw attention to wal-mart. the organization called "our wal-mart" stars stages sittins calling for better working conditions. live at a wal-mart in lakeview section of chicago. what happened there today, andy? >> reporter: del, about 100 protesters showed up here to march outside the wal-mart here they carried signs, sang songs and chanted. eventually, about 10 of these protesters walked into the middle of the street and blocked traffic and eventually, police arrested those 10 protesters. this was a well-cory graphed protest out here. there were no violence of any sort. among those being arrested was a man who says he has worked at the wal-mart here for 11 months and in that time, only earned about $16,000. he said he was proud of what he did. >> like i said, i know i am

going to get retaliated against tonight when i come in. it doesn't matter. i am 45 years old. like i said, if everyone else have a living wage in the chicago area, we need one, too. if we fight with ane from cta, chicago police department, when they needed their raises, they got the them. we stood with them. now, we would love for them to stand with us. hey, this is working. it's not for me. it's for my workers, my co-workers tonalities workers across the country. the protesters say for a company that earned $16,000,000,000, they can pay their workers more, more than the hourly federal wage. now, in response, wal-mart says that they pays comparable to other big-box stores. they say they offer general russian 401(k) and health benefits and they say their big selling point is that they allow workers to move up quickly in the company to better paying jobs. that is what they try to emphasize to these workers. we should point out, among the

protesters, the vast majority of them were union members, sympathetic to their cause. now, they say they are just protesting here as part of this to make sure that other companies around the country don't follow wal-mart's lead. but the wal-mart told us, a company spokeswoman said that they are here to stir up the pot and are paid to do these protests. so a little back and forth between the two sides. either way, del, wal-mart says it made record profits last thanksgiving day weekend when they opened up, thanksgiving shopping for the first time. they say they are doing it this year as well. so really, the bottom line here might be just the bottom line for wal-mart. as long as profits are going well, we don't expect a change. del? >> andy, i am curious briefly, did anybody mention those television commercials by wal-mart touting the success of the store and the happiness of their employees? >> reporter: they mocked them, del, in fact, talking about that they just said this is just a

typical company-speak talking, talking up what they do for their employees. the wal-mart spokeswoman shot back to me and said, look. our employees are overwhelmingly happy. those commercials speak for the vast majority of our employees. they say there is no retaliation. the protesters disagree with that. it goes back and forth back and forth. and like i said, it doesn't sound like wal-mart is going to budge any time soon. nor will the protesters? they have been ramping up these protests quite a bit over the last year, in particular, in the last month or so. 50 arrests in los angeles recently. there is probably no end in sight to these wal-mart protests. del ? >> tomorrow is the government's self-imposed deadline to fix healthcare.gov, the white house promising it would be problem free by november 30th. time and time again, the deadline have come and gone. there have been so many glitches, some are once again calling for the affordable care

act, itself to be scrapped. those exchanges had a rocky start when they opened back on october 1st, just 106,000 people signing up for coverage that month. the policies kicking in on january 1st, the administration now estimating 7 million people will sign up by the end of march. so that is when the enrollment period ends. china dispatched fighter jets to patrol the air defense zone over the east china sea, calling it a defensive measure after the u.s., japan and south korea defied the claim by flying planes through that zone. still ahead, the fate of 2 million syrian children living in refugee examples and a new route of clark between protesters in egypt.

>> watch the stream. >> watch the stream. >> and join the conversation >> and join the conversation online @ajamstream. online @ajamstream. determining using some sort of determining using some sort of subjective interpretation of subjective interpretation of their policy as to whether or their policy as to whether or not your particular report was not your particular report was actually abusive, because if it actually abusive, because if it doesn't contain language that doesn't contain language that specifically threatens you specifically threatens you directly or is targeted towards directly or is targeted towards you specifically, they may not you specifically, they may not consider it abuse. consider it abuse. they may consider it offensive. they may consider it offensive. and in that case they just and in that case they just recommend that you block that recommend that you block that person. person. >> i don't want to minimise >> i don't want to minimise this, because i mean, there's this, because i mean, there's some really horrible things that some really horrible things that are on are on line, and it's not - it's line, and it's not - it's not just twitter, what has not just twitter, what has happened through social media happened through social media

and the anonymity of the net is and the anonymity of the net is that you see websites, that you see websites, hate-filled websites hate-filled websites targetting targetting all sorts of groups, popping up. all sorts of groups, popping up. there has been a huge number of there has been a huge number of those that exist as well. those that exist as well. >> every weeknight >> every weeknight on al jazeera america on al jazeera america change the way you look change the way you look at news at 9 pm with an encore at news at 9 pm with an encore at midnight, go deeper on the at midnight, go deeper on the nations top stories with nations top stories with america tonight america tonight >> a fresh take on the >> a fresh take on the stories that connect to you... stories that connect to you... >> investigative journalism >> investigative journalism that's engaging, that's engaging, powerful, powerful, thought provoking... thought provoking... >> there's nothing >> there's nothing but hopelessness... but hopelessness... >> it's either kill or >> it's either kill or be killed... be killed... >> america tonight, right after >> america tonight, right after live news at 8 and 11 eastern. live news at 8 and 11 eastern. >> welcome to al jazeera america >> welcome to al jazeera america i'm john seigenthaler, i'm john seigenthaler, and here's a look at the headlines... and here's a look at the headlines... >> al jazeera america, >> al jazeera america, there's more to it. there's more to it. more confrontations in egypt over the country's new protest laws. he job description security forces firing tear gas and water

can options at demonstrators in cairo, alexandra and geeza. the law bans gathers of 10 or more people without government permission. they say the law is needed to obtain order. hode hoda, what type of numbers are we talking about protesting today? >> reporter: well, there were several protests, not only in the places you mentioned but across the country as well. typically protesters numbers are in the hundreds. it's been at the same level, i would say, for the past few weeks. now, as you said, they were protesting the new law, and under the new law, they should have submitted a notice about three days ago at least to alert authorities over the intentions and, also, to tell them in detail what exactly are they protesting about? what slogans they will be chanting or what banners they will be holding. that did not happen. now, the minister of interior

says it has gone through the process spelled out by this new protest law, which allows security forces to use water canon and tear gas but only after verbally warning the protesters that they need to evacuate the premises. the minister of interior says that they went through that process. if the protesters hadn't gone after the tear gas, then the security forces could have escalated and used birdshot which actually happened in some areas but not in all of the protests. but now, the streets are more calm. there are some skirmishes in some areas on the outskirts of cairo. >> hoda, what about anger in the so-called "women in white" who demonstrated at the pro-morsi rally? is that drawing more anger or support? >> reporter: well, it is drawing anger and quite, i would say, there is also a level of shock among many e job descriptions and i would say

that this time, it's across t board whether it's morsi reporters or those who called for his removal. the picture of these girls looking so young, dress flued white that cage that is usually reserved for criminals and getting such a harsh sentence is something many people had a disbelief in, actually, some of the people were saying the media disunderstood the criminal sentence for all of the girls was 11 years and one month. but the reality is that each one of them got 11 years and one month for different crimes, for destruction of public property, blocking roads and protesting illegally on the streets. now, the interim president has indicated that once the justice process is over, well, he will be willing to pardon these girls, but we are not there yet. i am afraid these girls will have to wait. the stage we are now is that the lawyer has put forward an e an appeal to the appeals court. they are not set for the hearing

yet, but if the sentence is upheld in the appeals court, the lawyer has to go to the other court so it will take up to a year according to what he says. freedom for these girls is not going to come any time soon? >> hoda abdel-hamid joining us. many of those girls just children. more than 2 million syrian children are refugees and a grim picture about their future. they say when they flee to bordering kuntz trees, they can't go to school and are sometimes forced to work just to survive. more from zeina hoder with those children. >> allya is 11 years old. she faced the war in syria facing a new danger in lebanon. her school is safe. but like her, many of these refugees also have to work once classes are over. [applause.] >> a man in a car with a syrian plate number approached me. he looked scary, and he asked to buy some flowers.

as i was handing him the flowers, he grabbed my arm. i ran inside the supermarket. he waited and then followed us. we ran away. >> because of that, allya no longer works on the streets but her 9-year-old brother, mohammed, has no choice. their mother is a cleaner, but her salary just isn't enough for them to survive. so, every afternoon, mohammed sells flowers on the streets of beirut. more and more children are being forced to work. >> as families resources become more completed, children are sent out to work. some in very difficult circumstances and unsafe conditions. you can see the problem in almost every street corner in lebanon. these children live a difficult and dangerous life. they are vulnerable to an exploitation and abuse and many of them are worn down emotionally. these children are traumatized from what they saw in syria. they are scared to reveal their identities, even though it has billion been almost a year since they fled the violence.

>> we were in a bus, and there was a checkpoint. we saw someone kill everyone right in front of us. i saw the way they all died. >> those images are still clear in their their minds. and social workers say there are many other children who are not getting the help they need. they also face risks here in lebanon. >> they are traumatized from the violence in syria and in l lebanon. some face sexual abuse in crowded areas where refugees stay. >> just by talking to these children, you realize how the war has impacted their lives. >> the war won't stop because people are killing each other and people will take revenge. if one man loses a brother, he will later kill the one responsible. >> at the age of 10, this boy has an adult understanding of his country's tragedy. "i am disturbed and frustrated," he says. he is among those the united nations called "a generation who

is in danger of becoming lasting tragedies of an appalling war." beirut. >> well, weather is pretty quiet this weekend but we are looking at a big change in temperatures. it will feel cold out there. there is no rain or snow, but what's left behind is cold air. the wind has died down. that will lead to a cold night tonight, especially across the northeast. right now, it's barely above -- not quite up to freezing in chicago, just up to 38 in new york. but getting a little warmer here across the condusouthern plains really the pacific northwest. quiet with the radar plus the clouds. you wouldn't normally see big storms we could talk about but nothing here it's all clear. just a few light snow showers around the great lakes. high pressure is in control of the weather here across the northeast directly under that, you have the light wind as this low moved out, the high moved in, the windy weather,

thanksgiving. than things are coming down -- calming down a little bit. high pressure in control through the nooecht. a cold night there. pretty cold across the ernesto, but things will start to warm up a built. you can see these temperatures climbing a little today and even more tomorrow and saturday. the warm weather returns from the southern plains just east of the rockies there all the way up to the dakotas. a big rebound in temperatures is expected. a storm we will be talking about is in the pacific northwest, coming into canada saturday and sunday. we will see moisture return in the form of rain and even snow in the higher elevations there across washington, oregon and montana. now, the temperatures by tomorrow morning, down into the teens. in fact, almost, single digits hitting 9 in montreal when you wake um tomorrow morning. the wind chills aren't a factor but the temperatures drop as the skies are clear and we have a light breeze. here comes the warm up if you call 40 degrees warmer in philadelphia and new york.

a little rebound. it gets quite a bit warmer sunday and monday with a few more clouds. the lows are back above freezing and the highs, just below 50 degrees. del? >> thank you very much. more and more of our women in uniform are coming back from battles unable afford simple things like food and clothing. jim holeey introduces us to a woman in colorado who has found a way to help. >> reporter: sometimes, even the strongest need a little help. >> oh, wow. >> an army private's salary which starts at $18,000 a year doesn't go far. >> do you need dishes or... >> so these two soldiers are come to ranya kelly's warehouse armed with a shopping list of stuff they can't afford. >> they just don't have enough money to go around. you've got an e-4 or a private that has a couple of kids and then things are expensive. >> it's the only civilian nonprofit of its kind in the entire country that operates on an army post. kelly started it in 1991, when

she was astonished to see soldiers hereturning from war heading into poverty. >> this is our schoolroom with back parks and school supplies and things for the kids. >> all of this is donated from companies throughout colorado and the united states. >> all of this. >> this redistribution center outside of denver is where the warehouse collects it's donation. >> we have a lot of meat product and that type of stuff we purchase and then hand out to our families. we give a month's worth of food. >> her voltunteers are vietnam vets who know all too well what it's like to come home with a broken spirit. >> every day we do this, we find more and more guys that are in need of help, you know. >> it's going to get worse because they are coming back. >> with donations flooding in $2.8 million last year alone, it's hard to keep up with the exploding demand. >> we started off with about this many the first year, you know, the first six months we were here and its grown to almost double. >> the warriors' warehouse is

only open to struggle ling state side soldiers who make less than $30,000 a year. kelly hasn't forgotten those far away on the front lines. there is absolutely no space left in this room. this place is monday with over 1700 gift boxes doaneated from a local church. all of these will be packed up, shipped out to troops serving overseas to get to them by the december holidays. >> i am passionate enough to make sure that these guys that have given us freedom that we give it back to them. they are americans. and they are my heroes. >> so, as americans prepare to show their gratitude this holiday season, these servicemen and women can say thanks to ranya and others who serve in this massive mission at home. >> we appreciate it. thank you jim hooley, colorado springs.

wall street closing in less than an hour because of the holidays. it appears we could be looking at another record. the dow is up 50 points the. the dow and s and p set to set another all-time high, wal-ma. wal-mart taking a look at the black friday sales as is wall street. wal-mart reporting more than 10 million cash register transactions on thanksgiving night between 6:00 and 10:00. it says 4 markos moulitsas people went to its website. macy's say people lining up before it opened at 8:00 o'clock last night. it was the first time the chain has offered thanksgiving shopping. target also reporting it set a record for online traffic. the white house christmas tree arriving this morning, the 18 and a half foot tree loaded on board a wagon pulled by clydesdales. michelle obama and the daughters came out tosty thetree. it will go on display in the east wing of the white house. it comes from lehigh

pennsylvania, a farm there. >> music that celebrates extreme drug violence. ♪ >> a new documentary shedding light on what is called nar co music.

power power of the people until we restore of the people until we restore our freedoms

welcome back to al jazeera america p . i am del waterers. stores across the country filled with shoppers searching for great deals. some of the stories opening doors on thanksgiving night and are still open at this hour. china says it sent fighter planes into what it calls the defense zone over a group of islands in the east china sea. state media reporting they were investigating flights by the u.s. and japanese military. china and japan claim to control those items. continued protests in egypt. police firing tear gas and water canons at demonstrate orders

fighting back against the new law that restricts public gat r gatherings. for years, drug he related violence in mexico has been the thing of movies and t.v. shows. there is another lesser known side of the mechanxican drug culture. music that celebrates the violence, the danger and the people. kate fill patrick has more >> reporter: manuchine guns, dr, blood. thousands of online videos celebrating mexican make sured music that glorify drug lords and culture. >> we have them in this section right here. this is the most popular right now. >> even here in new york's largely latino neighborhood of east harlem, nar co music sells. the genre has exploded over the last fewer years along with the violence in mexico.

more than 100,000 people have been murdered there since 2008, according to mexico's national institute for statistics. as the numbers become more grew some with bodies decapitated, dismedical director, riddled with bull et cetera, so does the entertainment. nar co culture is booming as shown in the new documentary nar co cultura. >> these kids see these drug wars, this drug war and these kingpins running around. to them, they are the new robb and hood, the starts. they have alluded the system of the u.s. and mexico. >> charles schwartz has documented the explosion of violence in juarez where more than 3600 people were killed in 2010 alone. making it the murder capitol of the world at the time.

now, he is turning a critical eyes on nar co culture. >> i don't embrace it. i think it's the cancer of mexico and to some degree a cancer of the u.s. if we want to change what these kids thing, we have to change reality. the music has been banned in mexico and made it more popular. >> popularity that stretches to the u.s. >> commander is one of the most popular right now and we have la renandez and a whole bunch that have been playing narco and it's very popular, very mexican, something you want to dance right away. >> in spite of the ban on playing narco coridos, youtube videos rack up 20 million apiece. as long as the drug war continues, charles schwartz says the music will keep up with the

brutality, kate kilpatrick, al jazeera new york. >> t"the stream" is next. >> hi, i'm lisa fletcher and >> hi, i'm lisa fletcher and you're in the stream. you're in the stream. the fight over washington's the fight over washington's football team heats up. football team heats up. our digital our digital producer wajahat ali producer wajahat ali is bringing in the online is bringing in the online opinions. opinions. >> do not mess with them when it >> do not mess with them when it comes to this topic, check out comes to this topic, check out my facebook page. my facebook page. we have the record number of we have the record number of comments, 230.