atlanta starting tonight. parts of the state could get as much as 8 inches of snow. the governor has already declared a tait of emergency. those are the headlines. "america tonight" with joie chen is up next. and check out our website, aljazeera.com. >> on "america tonight": not that again! a one-two punch of winter. east and west. and how georgia's leaders aim to prove they won't make the same mistake twice. >> we want to make sure that we aare as prepared as possible and can respond as soon as possible. >> anonymity trayvonot trayvon t another state that echoes the

defense, stand your ground. >> what did it say? >> i hate that music. >> after a season of plenty of surprises, why one of college football's off the defenders, chose to play a strong offense of what will be a true test of defense. and good evening. thanks for joining us. i'm joie chen. if it is any consolation to those bracing for another round of nasty weather, in many parts of the country it's probably going to be worse or at least as bad. with five more weeks of winter ahead, meteorologists, already know that as a national average, january will not be the coldest ever.

well, community leaders are just trying to stay ahead of the worst predictions and save themselves for more embarrassment. they haven't gotten over it yet. the southeast's largest city, atlanta, ground to a humiliating halt, commuters wrecked, stalls, tucked for -- stalled, tucked for as long as two hours. red faced officials tried to explain, and then claim it just wasn't their fault. a storm they somehow didn't see coming. but with meteorologists now warning of round two and even round three around the corner, the georgia governor still feeling heat from the bruising he took for missing every sign of trouble in the making tried to assure the state had learned its lesson. this time, a day ahead of the predicted storm declaring a state of emergency in 45

counties, this time, promising georgia is ahead of the game. >> well, we're not look back. we're looking forward. the next three days are looking challenging. we want to make sure that we're prepared as possible and can respond as quickly as possible. >> in atlanta, the mayor said the city would late at least until the morning to close schools and send city workers home. >> we're going to follow the weather tonight, through the tonight and then i'm going to make a specific ask of the system. between 7:00 and 9:00 a.m., we're going omake a public recommendation to the atlanta public school system on what they be should done. we're going to notify you what we are going to do with regard to our city employees. >> but many city residents are not going to com decide. >> i may be overracketting but just be ready. >> while georgia knows its

emergency plans are under the microscope, others are too. avalanches from the pacific northwest to utah. snow in seattle and ice in portland have led to advisories to stay indoors. california struggling with drought has had are mudslides. >> we have had 12 inches of rain so far. >> and what's next? al jazeera meteorologist kevin corriveau is tracking the weather. what is next? >> joie, we have a lot to talk about. a very similar situation what we're going to be seeing with the winter storm. today we'll see storm but i think it's going to be more of an ice situation for this area. and we're talking about ice. that means we're going to be seeing a lot more power lines down across the region. we mentioned atlanta just before, it's not just atlanta,

but into the carolinas that this storm will be pumping in, especially around the gulf coast and freezing across mississippi as well as alabama. you can see all the warnings extending from the carolinas all the way back towards texas so it's not just georgia. of course that's the big city that had the big failure but these other areas especially on the highways that it's going to be treacherous. on tuesday, it's we're talking about rain, freezing rain and sleet towards arkansas and the temperatures are coming down, atlanta 27°, birmingham is going to be 32, that is the morning we're going to be seeing the biggest problems. a lot of people are waiting on decisions. i would say no, don't go to work tomorrow, afternoon, and different don't go to work on -- are definitely don't go to work on wednesday. some places half an inch of ice, especially in the comploins.

that means d carolinas. the power lines are going to be down. a lot of people will be going without power for several days. temperature-wise can you see here wednesday the worst. back to you joie. >> thank you, kevin corriveau, from our al jazeera meteorological team. >> michael sam admit he is gay. reaction has been swift, everyone from the white house to sam's fellow students from the university of missouri are speaking out. >> i'm not afraid of who i am. i'm not afraid to tell the world who i am. i'm michael sam, a college graduate, african american and i'm gay. >> a personal and proud why admission from yur university of north carolina player michael

sam. a team that has been beaten down by a bullying are scandal in miami, to current and former players who suffered traumatic brain injuries. this could be a stereotype breaker. sam's students liken the sec defensive player to jackie probz. jackie robinson. >> maybe he's going to be the trend setter that's going oto be the first homosexual why player. >> great for the world. >> president obama tweeting congratulations on leading the way. that's reel sportsmanship. >> the first lady: you're an inspiration to all of us. we couldn't be prouder of your courage, both on and off the field. >> nba player, jason collins,

called sam a great young man who showed tremendous courage and leadership. with his statement sha sat nigh, sam's statement became the standard of toughness and sexuality. >> it shouldn't matter. if i work hard and make plays, that's all that should matter. can he help us win games? can he make plays? that's all that should matter. >> an nfl veteran agrees. >> allow him into our team, into our lives and i think everyone will be okay with him. >> he is projected to be a mid round draft pick. will teams pass because he could be a locker room distraction or maybe not receive the respect of his teammates? his agents say it's about time

for one of the major leagues to have an openly gay player on the field. >> when michael sam came out he got a phone call from wade davis, a former nfl player who came out as gay years after he made. wade, we appreciate you joining us but before we start our interview, i want to talk and play a clip of you. you wrote a letter to athletes, other athletes who are considering coming out. let's listen: >> dear young athletes. it is 6:40 a.m. i am sitting at my computer figuring out what to write to you and i'm afraid. i'm afraid that my words won't be powerful enough. i'm afraid that everything that's in my heart won't find its way out, i fear the unknown, i fear that all my insecurities and weaknesses will be seen by everyone and i will be deemed by less than. but not today. i will no longer allow my voice,

my message to be shrouded in fear. >> what do you want the message to be wade? >> i think there's nothing to stop you except fear, right? i think what michael sam has done has transcended fear. he's walked straight through it. he's walked fear in the face and said, i'm better than you. i think if we really think about what michael sam has done, he's done something that, an nfl scout, an nfl player, all of us should admire and want to be like. imagine someone who stood up in front of the world and said, this is me. i'm going to be as negative as possible but i'm going to be as courageous and vubled as possible. i -- vulnerable as possible. i want someone like that as a

brother as a friend and definitely as a team mate. >> we talked about teammates and how they are going to receive them. i have to point out, we heard the president, the first lady responding to his announcement. in all of that i don't hear nfl management. i don't hear owners coming out and defending his announcement. why? >> well, actually you did. the giants owners and also, the owner of the patriots, robert kraft, he spoke out on his behalf. i think what you're finding is that people just really don't care. all that they care about is, can he play? and he's proven that time after time, over his five years at missouri. i think that we have to start reimagining what the nfl is. you know, that these are players who have existed in spaces with people of different races, different religions, different

classes and they've made it work, right? i'm not saying it's cotton candy and lolly pops but these people are used to a difference. and what you're going ofind is if michael sam can be the same player he is in sec then he'll be no other player in the nfl locker room. >> what do you think from the draft, coming out of this, is his stature in any way going to rise or fall on this announcement? >> i think his stature will rise and fall based on his performance at the combine. i think he's proven that but he has to show it during his individual workouts and at the combine. if he does that, he'll have no problem. >> is there a risk, though, of some distraction? i mean after all, we'v we've sen some stories about, whenever

michael sam takes the field? >> what sam has done he's been smart enough to do it so early, that teams can get ahead of it. they can have conversations with their veterans you know. by the time he does get drafted the teams have done all the due diligence to make sure this isn't an issue. i think also a team will allow sam to have one interview to address its and then he'll be done with it. so he can focus on what he does best and that's play football. >> well, we will see what happens with him. wade days of from the we can project, thank you for coming on the program. >> thank you for having me on. >> after the break. stand your ground, over loud lod music.

>> prosecution has now restits case, echoes of the trayvon martin case. stand your ground case, killing a teenag teenager over loud mus. "america tonight"'s sarah hoy has the story. >> what i should have done is put the car in reverse. whatever, it was flight or fight. >> michael dunn, first degree murder and three counts of attemptmurder in the november 2012 shooting sparked which an argument over loud music. gunn and his fiancee stopped for gasoline in jacksonville, florida where the victim and his three friends were parked in an

suv. >> what did he say? >> "i hate that thug music." >> his girlfriend testified that while she was inside the convenience store, an argument began in the parking lot. after davis told dunn and his friends to turn down the music. the argument escalated and shots were fired. >> and i heard pop pop pop. >> dunn's fiancee gave a cheerful account of what happened next. >> oh my god somebody's chuting. chuting -- shooting. >> dunn told her to get back in. >> as you got back into the patterning side of the car did you see a firearm at that point in time? >> yes, michael was putting it into the glove box. >> he shot with his .9 miller meter land gun killing davis. >> michael dunn are pointed a

semi oomen automatic pistol, dit call the police, went to his hotel with his girlfriend and called a pizza delivery man and order he pizza. he took his little dog for a walk outside the hotel. turned on a movie. and made himself a bill, tall rum and coke. and not long after, an emergency doctor at shandz hospital pronounced jordan davis dead. that defendant put his head on his hotel pillow and went to sleep. >> i shot four times. >> dunn, who has pleaded not guilty, admits shooting davis but claims it was self-defense because he feared for his life and thought davis had a gun.

>> you're going to hear, bang bang bang, bang bang bang bang. that's what -- and that's as mr. davis was getting out of the car to try to kill or hurt with a deadly weapon, michael dunn. they backed up behind him, right behind mr. dunn's car. mr. dunn puts his gun out the window with his door open and as they drive away, doesn't want fire back. because now they've got a perfect shot at the back of mr. dunn's head. and he puts two bullets low into the car. and as you can see, the bullets go up. and you'll hear it. bang bang bang. quick. no long pause. >> with a white defendant and a black victim, the trial has generated national attention, because of the parallels with the trayvon martin case. martin, a black 17-year-old, was shot and killed by george zimmerman who is white, in early

2012, during a dispute in sanford, florida. zimmerman was acquitted. following verdict, president barack obama surprised many by commenting from the white house on the case that captivated the country. >> when trayvon martin was first shot i said, "this could have been my son." another way of saying that is, trayvon martin could have been me, 35 years ago. >> today, it was another father who took the stand to talk about the loss of his son. mountain case of michael -- in the case of michael dunn, police say no gun was found in dunn's vehicle. >> at any time did you see anyone take a weapon of any kind out of that car? >> no, sir. >> but the defense argues the teens had a time to dispose of a weapon. and are davis ha.

>> if this was a predesigned p preimmediatpremeditated murder,d someone of the intent and maliciousness to convict someone of that charge, he comes home. he doesn't go to an airport. >> the jury is sequestered throughout this trial which is expected to last another week. if convicted, dunn faces life in prison. >> trayvon martin, jordan davis are two of at least 26 children and teens who decide in florida strgstand your ground cases. judge sarah hoy is covering this case. >> is michael dunn going to take the stand? and if you know with the zimmerman trial, george zimmerman did not take the stand and that was something athat

took a lot of people by surprise and others dit not. it is something to think about, do you take the stand in your defense? we don't know if that is going to happen. >> the other comparison that is going to have to be made is the emotionally response that trayvon martin's case drew. you remember you were there, after trayvon martin's case was in trial, it was as though a crowd was on the scene every single minute. >> you are absolutely right. there are mmps, there were people -- there were march, it had recommend planned of o.j. simpson trial. people were talking about it at their homes, the barber shop, wherever it was. it often seems like the general public was defeated, trayvon martin was a disappointment,

president obama addressed the nation about this, what is going to ham on this? >> the stand your ground law was passed in florida almost ten years ago. of the 237 cases, 217 resolved, almost 70% of the accused have gone free. robin smock is with us tonight. you know, when you talk about that, 70% of the defendants going free, and a lot of indications, at least evidence that there may be some racial component to it as well. >> absolutely. i mean, that is the biggest problem with stand your ground. there's racial bias inherent with that law. when it comes to the victim we see disparities in how those killings are labeled justified.

it is a serious problem. >> where does the law move in the racial disparity? evidence that both black defendants, white defendants, perpetrators, how does it break down? >> it seems like it breaks down when we look at the victim. in case wrest the victim is black, we often find when stand your ground is invoked, that's when those killings are labeled justified. that's just tragic. we see that rampant in so many places within the law. >> we have seen so many reports on this. some statistics when an older white man shoots a younger black man, the courts furn find it justifiable about half the time, pay% when it's reversed. what does it tells us about the use of the law? >> it tells us that there's no need for it. when it comes to stand your ground there is no evidence that it improves public safety. the behavior of a victim is

caught up in this racial bias and when we're looked at what is perceived as a threat, it matters what the race of the victim is. >> sarah do you see this played out in how people respond to these cases. >> what did he do and who was there person? in these studies 17% of the time if it's the white shooter it's justified and 1% i believe if it was the opposite. so my question then becomes, so what message does that send. >> the message that it sends is that we don't value black and brown bodies. what it sends is that when it comes to who is the -- when these laws are applied, what it says to us is that it matters what race the victim is. it matters who's pech perpetuatg these crimes. it's so tragic. jordan davis would have been 19 years old on february the 16th and now his parents are forced

to sit in the courtroom. what i'm hopeful of is we'll take a look at this and see the need to repeal these stand your ground laws. >> how easy is it to change the books? >> it's not that easy but if we mobilize, stand your ground laws exist in about 31 states. if we have critical mass -- >> and engage in that conversation. we appreciate both of you talking to us, sarah and athena. thanks very much. now on another case making headlines, this one involves a very familiar theme in plns politics. that would be power and corruption. tense trial of the former new orleans mayor ray nagin after the joors g jurors go home aftes of testimony.

charges ranging from conspiracy to money laundering. evidence shows that nagin sought and accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of bribes during his first two terms as mayor. crimes continued and flourished during the catastrophic flooding of new orleans as he handed out lucrative city contracts. prosecution over two dozen witnesses. in his testimony last week nagin insisted that he bribed no one and prosecutors misinterpreted evidence. if convicted nagin could be sentenced to at least 20 years under federal guidelines. how did ray nagin reach such a situation? joining us to talk about louisiana why politicians, clancy dubose. talk about ray nagin, 21 different counts but what is it that really stands out here?

>> wow, there is a lot that stands out about ray nagin. this is a man who rode almost a tidal wave of popularity. he was, quote, a business plawn, getting elected as a mayor for the first time when there's no incumbent in the race. even though plit cli he was -- politically he didn't even like politics, he didn't enjoy politics. whenever he hit a brick wall, he would say, oh that's just politics. people ate it up then katrina hit. >> and he gaifne gained such not after that. >> he called the president out, that's the highlight of ray

nagin's career. when he went on a radio signal that has a pretty large signal, the shout heard around the world, he said, mr. president, get your a ass down here. from that moment on, he went downhill. what happened was katrina was the first real crisis that ray nagin faced as mayor. before that he had pretty much smooth sailing. people, the average voter didn't really see ray nagin's problems or his shortcomings. after katrina when we needed a leader like we never had before the mayor's shortcomings really came to the fore and even then, the people who liked him used to excuse his ineptitude and said at least he's honest. and now they can't even say that. >> that would make this even businesser surprise. >> yes. this is a plan who came into office, pointing a finger at his

predecessor who was never indicted of anything, accusing him of being a corrupt mayor who ran a corrupt administration and now ray nagin is the first mayor in the history of new orleans to stand trial on corruption acharges. >> and the charges, some of them really go directly to the family of ray nagin. this is something that's gotten a lot of attention. what he did to support his family in business. >> well, this is a guy who was head of the local cable franchise. he was probably pulling down three to $400,000 a year. when he was elected mayor he was making less than $150,000 a year. that was a big come down for him. he flew what the salary was. he and his sons formed a granite countertop company and part of the allegations against him was that he shook down home depot

and accepted free granite from one of the alleged bribe-payers. this is a guy whose training was accounting and he had all different numbers for this. it just didn't hold up. >> there's a lot going on in this case, quite interesting to look at. but your thought having watched all this and knowing all that you do about new orleans and its politics and judicial system as well, is he going to uranium? >> i -- to jail? >> i think it's a strong possibility. the government put on a very good case. i don't think the defense put all the holes in it. i'm not saying he is going -- i'm saying he's not going to get convicted of all the trials but i'd be shopped if he didn't get convicted on some of them. >> thanks for being with us. >> thank you, joie. >> when we return, the question still on tap: is my water safe to drink? west virginia's water worries

linger.

>> now a snatch shot of stories making headlines on "america tonight." u.s. missionary kenneth bae is getting lard to come by. u.s. official was planning to talk about bae's potential release. this is the second time north korea has cancelled with the state department. , whether or not to launch a drone strike on an american al qaeda suspect but the obama administration's new strict policy on are drones to the military not to the cia. >> chris christie administration and the justice department met to issue subpoenas, one of the

documents in question the governor's helicopter logs to determine whether he flew over fort lee during the lain closures. one saga we have been reporting on extensively on "america tonight," the chemical spill in west virginia which prevented people from use that state from using their tap water. burning questions like, is the water absolutely safe to drink now and why are some residents still reporting a chemical odor? "america tonight"'s correspondent lori jane gliha files this report. >> i already spend most of my time worrying and planning and trying to make sure that we're creating a safe, warm, wonderful home for this baby. and not knowing, it's the not

knowing. it's absolutely excruciating. >> sarah lundgren is not drinking water from the tap. not washing dishes in the sink and not bringing water into her west virginia home. >> you say it's safe but can you prove it to me? it seems like everything has changed. we're going ohave to move right after the baby's born because i can't -- i wouldn't be able to live with myself. if anything, any adverse effects would happen to him. >> one month after freedom industries spilled 10,000 gallons of chemicals into the elk river, sarah and her husband kirk are still scared of the water. >> so how many of these do you guys have in your house? >> right now, we have two four 5'6" seven eight one upstairs. >> on the day of the spill

january 9th a then eight months pregnant sarah took a shower in the water. >> i had a rash on my chest, never realizing it was because of the chem. then we went out to eat. we ate food with it. i probably drank two glass he of it, until the restaurant just unexpectedly shut down. >> the government gave the all clear to use the waters, saying the chemicals mchm had fallen below the acceptable threshold set by the cdc. water showed little or no evidence of the contamination. but then recommended pregnant women like sarah, drink bottled water. sarah said, she took no chances.

>> if it's not safe for pregnant women, it's not safe for babies, elderly, sick people, a huge portion of people. and that's just using common sense. >> although state and federal officials continue to tell people the water ban is lifted a federal congressional hearing in west virginia monday morning revealed many of those same officials refused to call the water safe when questioned by congressional leaders like senator and former governor joe manchin. >> is the water safe? would you use the water with your children and grandchildren? >> i consider the toxicology that exist this chemical is so little and so -- the chemical is so little it started it's very hard to say whether it is safe. >> west virginia state health officer dr. letitia tierney said she drank if the water but when asked if she would call it safe, she stopped short.

>> that's in a way a difficult ethnic say because everyone has a different definition of safe. i believe the water based on the standards we have is usable for every purpose including bathing cooking. >> nobody would use that word right? >> appropriate for use i think it's -- >> a way to pass blame. because nobody knows. we do not know if it's safe. >> just straight up ahead there. >> for sarah and kirk uncertainty is not an option when it comes to the birth of their new baby boy. >> you have to spend three months working on this room and you're going to be just moving right out. >> yeah, yeah, he play not get to sleep in his baby room. >> the couple spent months and planned to live years in this house now just days from his birth they're looking for a new

place to live, a new place to watch their son grow without fear. >> this is exactly where we wanted to be. and this came along and pretty much bulldozed our dream. >> and joie a lot of people echo this same sentiment. this is a place they wanted to live, wanted to stay for years but this leak ruined it. i was curious about this licorice odor that people said was linked to the chemical. particularly at the lundgren louse. that was something the head of the water company addressed today, he said they could still smell it, but it doesn't mean it's not safe. his company is doing whatever they can do to try oeliminate this odor. >> and a lot of folks lori jane, are wondering why the president didn't take immediate steps to shut down the system. did he answer that question gm. >> yes, he said? >> yes, he said that's the

number one question he's been asked over the last couple of weeks, why he didn't shut down the water company. he says that's not something that just maps. you can't just turn it off and on. he stands by his decision, he says what if we had shut it down, what would lap if there was a fire and there wouldn't be any sprin sprinklers it would he taken more than a month to get all the water service on to all of the different customers. that's why he stands by his decision. >> lori jane gliha in charleston, west virginia. >> in your testimony today you the talk about the need for urgency and urgent action at the same time we are hearing from our correspondent who we're layering from our water company president, who would defend not taking immediate action to shut off the water system. is that the kind of urgency you

are talking about, the steps that would reassure the country? >> i can talk about two concerns, the community has questions that are not being answered and there is a need to -- our investigation, what we are looking is how can we america -- make the public, in which this information could be developed and they could have it. there is a toxic substance control act that supposedly organized the testing of these chemicals. there are tens of thousands of chemicals that are not tested at all. this is one of them. this is only -- has a very, very small study, and they are basing all the evaluations and public health in one study that is not decide to give us information and chronic effects. >> you know you talk about the community having so many questions, i mean the bottom-line question even today we heard the bottom-line

question is, is my water safe to drink? can these folks feel comfortable using it? >> well, the answer is, you know, there is not scientific data that could answer the question. there is not scientific data that could tell you, below this level is safe, you know. what we have is what is called a screening level, that if it reach this level you have to start taking samples. but the type of the studies that we have is, cannot gif us the information of what are -- cannot give us the information of what are the levels. >> cannot? cannot be answered? >> you need to run a study. this is a scientific question, you know, and you have to find out through toxicological studies. >> but the folks who are living in this community today have to deal with today, not studies that will be done over an extended period of time much less financed and approved and

all this. >> they are feeling so at risk? and yet is there more carefully monitoring for yet what kind of reactions there are, what reports doctors are getting. we've heard this from doctors at the scene that they're concerned about this. they are recording more data but they are not seeing an opportunity to report it up the line. >> well, you know this is a national problem. ss it's a national problem -- it is a national problem. that communities and states don't have information about what chemicals are in commerce. you know? the rules that are -- been trying to be established is that the chemical companies that introduce these chemicals in commerce are the responsible parties that should have the toxicology data and being able to say what levels will produce what effects. that has not happened in tens of thousands of chemicals. >> and we should point out not

just in west virginia, not just in this case. >> that is exactly true. >> but all over. dr. renee morasa, we appreciate your insight here. ahead on "america tonight." in faithful fashion. the modest models gracing new york runways this season.

>> al jazeera's investigative unit has tonights exclusive report... >> from coast to coast... >> people selling fresh water for fracking... >> stories that have impact... >> we lost lives... >> that make a difference... >> senator, we were hoping we could ask you some questions about your legal problems... >> that open your world... >> it can be very dangerous... >> i hear gunshots... >> the bullet came right there through the widdow... >> it absolutely is a crisis... >> real reporting... >> this...is what we do... >> america tonight, only on al jazeera america.

>> yeah, if you call that sort of thing, it's fashion week in new york city, and the catwalk is full of young women with the look but as al jazeera's morgan radford found, there is another type of photo beauty making the way into the fashion industry. >> assassin upta basks in the moment. showing some fears fashion. inner conflict, how to reconcile a passion for modeling and her face, islam. it all started out of a need to help muslim models getting some exposure. clearing some misconception along the way. >> it will hopefully change some

of the misconception of muslim women in general. >> a seemingly impossible dream became a reality. >> came to me and asked me would i be interested in modeling for her. i said fc because that will be my chance to be covered and still find my role in the world. >> for fashion ann nahari and the fashion world took notice. >> you don't see that every day for america on the new york run ways, why not? yes. i think it would be a great way to expose and show and share with everyone. because i think sometimes, we -- not to say that we have tunnel vision but we get very used to the habits and the way we do things and it's very nice to embrace something new and different. >> according to bloomberg the fashion industry is worth $96

billion globally, that's something the agency is banking on. for jasmine, modesty wasn't always fashionable. prior to embracing islam, she followed the skin is in mantra. >> i believed it was okay to walk around half naked before i realized i would become a follower of islam i wanted to be more modest in my attire. and had no intent to be a muslim but had intention to dress more modestly, irregardless. open my eyes to the beauty of being modest. >> for these ladies being beautiful and covered up is all in a day's work. >> that's got the look. al jazeera's morgan radford reporting. ahead, beatle plain ya? you say it launched a revolution? we'll see.

here in washington, d.c, stand by.

>> finally from us tonight, ladies and gentlemen, the beatles. ed sullivan's introduction of the fab four, launched beatle mania in america.

the band played its first live concert in this country. now that historic gig are getting an encore here in washington, d.c. >> the room was packed. and there wasn't much noise, until the beatles took the stage. >> and on that cold, february night, with 8,000 screaming fans gathered here, the washington coliseum became sacred ground. mike mitchell was a freelance photographer just trying to stay focused. as the beatles took the stage, to absolute mayhem. >> the screaming was so loud and so constant, that you know, i talked to people who were ten rows back and they couldn't hear the lyrics. note i want to hold your. >> -- hand snoatsd. >> just 18 at the time, barrel older than the high school kids in the crowd, mitchell knew it

was a once-in-a-lifetime moment. >> i was kind of panicky because i didn't have a flash. i just jumped into action and wind he med my railway through e crowd and got up close and personal with all of them. after i'd gotten on the stage behind them someone turned lights behind me and it was a godsend because it was too dark to get pictures without the lights. >> after that, mitchell was horrified seeing how the magazine editors used his pictures. >> these adults didn't get it. they used a mast head that said "fad" instead of "mad" a little

bugs crawling all over the page. and it mort fight me. hurt me deeply. >> so he packaged up the envelope of negatives and moved on. >> i remember spelling b-e-e---l-e-s, because i wasn't a good speller. >> hitting its low in the 1990s -- >> this is when the building took a turn for the worst. it was sold to a waste management exr company and took out most of the seating and used it as a trash transfer station. >> my work started in 2003 when we put our are out our list of most endangered places for washington and this building was included on it. because the waste management company was looking to demolish the building.

>> across the street, naomi's memories, she remembers the beatles, too. >> at that time, the tickets were two, three and $4. >> she was one of the very few african americans who saw the show that night. >> it was exciting. i didn't look at it as a black and white thing. i just looked at it as entertainment coming here. >> the coliseum she says has long been a tent pole of the neighborhood. hosting icons like plal co malc, joe fraser. bob dylan. >> you see it decaying and falling apart. >> even after 50 years, diehard fans still visit the coliseum just to pay tribute. >> jan and holly come every year. they write their name out front,

so they have a great tradition every year but this will be the last opportunity to do that. >> that's because a developer is planning to fill the coliseum with offices and shops but the shell of the building and its flame will remain intact. >> i was really happy about that. i was really happy about that, that they was going to keep the name coliseum. >> and mike mitchell's memories are getting another look, too. pulling the negatives out of storage some years ago, mitchell spent a thousand hours removing the dust and grime of once again, the magic of that night. >> they were clas class collabof two different photographers. the 18-year-old who took them and the 60-year-old who realized them. >> a small windfall, thoapg reboot his career and to relive the night that started it all.

>> i actually did feel swept up by the music. it got into you, you know, it got into you. the world was different the next morning. >> think of all that could have been lost. that's it for us here on "america tonight." we'll have more of "america tonight," tomorrow. >> >> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm john seigenthaler in new york and here are the top stories. the white house announced it's giving medium-sized businesses

with less than 100 workers will get an extra year to provide coverage. >> controversy over drones and u.s. security. the u.s. government trying to decide if a drone strike should be used to kill an american citizen expected of being an al-qaeda member. it may not be possible. >> people in charleston west virginia say the water is not right. congressional panel met together on the spill site. tanks at freedom industries were not necessarily in compliance with the standards. state of georgia bracing for another winter storm. ice and snow hitting the sit. some parts could get as much as 8 inches of snow. zoo keepers in denmark receiving death threats after killing a healthy giraffe. staff youthan aced a giraffe. those are the headlines, i'm

john seigenthaler, see you back here 11 eastern pacific. then, the n.f.l. could have an openly gay player. we'll talk to a gay rights advocate and former player chris kluwe. "consider this" with antonio mora is next. >> a man who could be the n.f.l.'s first openly gay player facing a big backlash for coming out. also, why did a zoo kill and cut up a giraffe in front of kids is this an outraged jack hannah joins us. >> making genocidal killers face their crimes by reliving them in an oscar-nominated film. >> and the high price of fashion - how models are abused by their industry. >> hello, i'm antonor