>> seniors here are finding there's more than just one type of green that's providing joy and comfort during their golden years. hi everyone, i'm john siegenthalers al jazeera america. >> millions of immigrants find hope. >> i just hope for a better future for my kids. >> ferguson waits, local police tactics come under fire again. cosby scandal. the comedian back on stage bud the cancellations and allegations of sexual abuse are piling up.

>> large white pills in his hand and he says, take these. >> icon maker. a conversation with the legendary portrait photographer, annie liebovitz. >> we begin with the president's road trip to las vegas to promote his executive action on immigration. the move helping millions of people living in america illegally. but republicans putting up a fight. senior white house correspondent mike viqueria. >> try to get his way and push legislation through congress. the only difference now, through a stroke of a pen, and his executive actions, congress is cut out and angry but little they can do now. the tone of a celebration, the president going to del sol high school in las vegas, kicking off

his push for immigration reform, a rapturous crowd, warm welcome. what he would like to see happen what an executive order cannot do. >> while i support a path to citizenship and so do all these legislators here, this action doesn't grant citizenship or the right to stay permanently or receive the same benefits that citizens receive. only congress can do that. all we're saying is, we're not going to deport you and separate you from your kids. >> and john what can republicans do? how can they stop the president? how can leaders are stop the anger of the base? process on capitol hill so that bill the fun the government that comes due on december 11th, republicans can't get at it that way. nevertheless, speaker of the

house john boehner appeared before congress friday morning and vowed action. >> by this action the president has chosen to deliberately sabotage any chance of are enacting the bipartisan are have work he judge seeks. >> yet another lawsuit again the president just the day they unveiled their long awaited lawsuit against the president what they consider unlawful action in implementing the affordable care act. a string of governors say they will bring suit in federal courts to block what the spt trying to do. nevada a key state of growing hispanic population, students who have as a parent undocumented immigrant. >> mike viqueria at the white house.

i talked to cesar vargas, allowed to stay in the united states under the dream act. his mother, theresa galindo, joined him. >> yes, the announcement was a significant moment because after all so much work from so many people, i know that the most significant victor for me was having my mother. >> what did you say to your mother when the president spoke? >> she was smiling, she was so happy. but i think she has been so strong for all this time that even though she hant had any type of status she -- hasn't had any type of status she has been a role model for me. >> can you talk to me about when you came? >> she had four little children in mexico and took the brave decision like any mother. she tried to do the legal sway. it was a process that didn't

work, but she wanted to give us a better life. it was at night and we crossed the border it was so courageous for her to do that. >> could you ask her how she feels? >> she's happy because i don't have to be afraid being separated from my grand kids and children. >> ask her what she thinks of the work that you're doing for immigrants across this country. [ spanish ] >> she's very proud because i'm proud for other immigrants in our community and that's the way i came to this community is to see my sons grow. >> made a difference in your

life too, right? >> yes. >> so legality me just ask her if i can, what she thinks of the republican response today to what the president said? [ spanish ] >> i just came here, i came here to work not to take anything and i just came for a better future for my kids. >> i mean there are people who watched the president last night who don't agree with what he said. who don't think that people like you and your mother should stay here. how is it to hear that? >> you know, i think it's people don't understand this issue because they see it from washington. they see it very abstract. but when they connect with the community, when they're seeing their neighbors, best friends playing on on soccer teamsd,

thateams, wejust go there as ann would do, to remind them that we are part of this country that we are their neighbors and this is a country we all want to contribute to. >> what has your life been like, your mother's life been like since you came to this country? >> for me i think it's just been a -- just she has been an amazing inspiration. she has been always working. she has literally asked nothing from anyone from the government. for me she collected cans to recycle and sold them, to pay for my college when i was in school. when i was in law school she cooked for me, even though she didn't have to sew for me, her main concern was her children. that's why i wanted to do this fight for my mother. that's why the president needs odo more for so many other

families. >> i.t. emotional for you but i would assume very emotional for her as well. >> she's just such a strong woman, she's just a strong woman. i have seen her cry but it has always been steers of joy and yesterday she -- tears of joy and she was making sure that other mothers who didn't qualify knew it was there for them. she's amazingly strong. >> what does she want the nation to learn from what happened last night? [ spanish ] >> that she's happy. she's just happy that the president announced something that she could be with her

family. >> we appreciate you being on the program and bringing your mom this time. >> thank you so much. >> and it's great to see both of you. >> thank you so much for having both of us. >> the next step for undocumented immigrants is to navigate the court system. that could be the most difficult part of this system. immigration courts are dealing with a huge backlog of cases already but the white house wants to reduce waiting lines. jennifer london has that story. >> each of these files represents a child who crossed into the u.s. alone, facing deportation. one of them is 17-year-old jose from guatemala. he asked that we not use his last name or show his face. >> it was very tough for me leaving the family but i left the country because i wasn't safe. >> we first met jose in july. five months after his rifl arrie

found himself stuck in the backlog. each week his aunt would call immigration and hear this. >> the message is the same, with the help of an attorney the family the is trying a work around. they were seeking two things, guardianship and juvenile status. >> with this order signed by the judge it will give him an opportunity to petition to get legal status in the u.s. >> reporter: yet there are no guarantees. u.s. customs and immigration must still approve the order which would allow jose to seek permanent status. that could take up to two years. >> this is one case that is advancing in my case and i feel very happy of hearing there are possibilities of moving forward. >> jose's uncle is very encouraged, an imrament immigrant himself,.

>> like the rest of my kids, i see that's the only thing the country can offer us in life. >> jennifer london, credit al jazeeraljazeera, los angeles. (t) president's decision to delay coverage for a number of large companies. >> as i warned the president, you can't ask the elected representatives of the people to trust you to enforce the law, if you're constantly demonstrating that you can't be trusted to enforce the law. >> republicans say president obama and his staff should have you consulted congress on both. democrats say the lawsuit is a waste of taxpayer money. a report tonight of a longer american presence in the longest war in u.s. history. the new york times reports president obama has signed a secret order that keeps the military in afghanistan a year

longer than planned. according to the paper, the order allows american forces to carry out missions against the taliban, and other groups threatening americans and afghans. the decision to extend the mission reportedly came at the sninassistanceinsist answer ofe. pentagon. found no intelligence failure no delay in sending a cia rescue team and no missed opportunity for a military rescue. u.s. ambassador christopher stevensostevens a foreign servie officer and two cia contractors were killed. the attack happened in 2012 at u.s. diplomatic compound in libya. a critical weekend for iran. it has two days to prove the international community that

it's not building nuclear war heads or faces more sanctions. iranian officials have been meeting with diplomatic leaders in vienna trying to reach an agreement. secretary of state john kerry was set to leave but made an impromptu decision to stay and meet his iranian counterpart for the third time. now israel is adding pressure urging the u.s. not to give in to any iranian conditions. nick schifrin has more from jerusalem. >> john, good evening. all could come down to this weekend. officials here in israel and in the u.s. all agree that if iran were to decide to make a nuclear weapon it could do so in just a few months and so what's fundamentally on the table this weekend, trying to remove iran's ability to make that weapon or make it much harder in exchange for the removal of crippling economic sanctions. but making that deal is not going to be easy. for more than a decade iran's built a vast nuclear fracture.

fracture. are infrastructure. >> we will have addressed peacefully, diplomatically, one of the most dangerous threats to security. >> u.s. hopes to limit production at the arak heavy water are facility. monitors have enough access to know if iran secretly is creating a weapon. >> to facilitate lifting of an economic sanction it will have no better chance than between now and november 24th. >> if a deal gets made iran

would get a massive economic boost. removing sanctions would give iran access to $120 billion of foreign accounts, iranian students could study in the west. >> sanctions are the most important part of the problem. they are illegal in nature, they must be removed, they haven't reduced any type of result. >> that's where opponents pounce. >> the idea of getten an enrichment capability to the iranians given 30 years of lying deceit, american blood on their hands and recent tweets to annihilating iran is insane. >> to enable iran to maintain a nuclear state. >> israel wants the u.s. to eliminate iran's ability to

research and communicate request nuclear north korea. >> these loopholes are not totally closed. it's enables the iranians to bypass the agreement and to make the agreement meaningless in the future. >> despite the critics for 11 years the u.s. iran and eu have been negotiating. they know the details well but whether they can make a deal is unclear. >> chief u.s. are negotiator wendy sherman says, these things are like mushrooms, they grow better in the dark. significant gaps remain. presidenpresident obama's aids s about 50-50 that the two sides will come the a deal. what may happen is two sides can get far enough athey can announce some kind of sentence to the interim deal.

>> nick schifrin reporting. now to missouri, the federal government has sent dozens of additional officers to ferguson, missouri, nearly 100 fbi agents will help local agents prepare for potential unrest. the potential movement comes prior to the anticipated grand jury decision. john terret has the report from ferguson. >> supposed to tell people how they would be protected in the event of violence after the grand jury decision. in the end it concentrated on two evenings this week in ferguson. small protests outside the police headquarters in the town where the police are accused of getting heavy handed. daniel i.som is the director of public safety in missouri. he was asked by journalists how he would possibly justify police

using heavy handed tactics after the grand jury handing down their decision. here is what he had to say. >> what we've tried to do is establish lines of communication and that's what we've done. this morning we talked about how the interaction went between protesters and the police last night and we were able to dialogue about what the police response was and the reaction of the protesters. >> reporter: of course the grand jury has been meeting. on friday it was reported that that was their last meeting. no word officially on when the decision may be handed down. anthony gray is the attorney for the brown family. he also gave a news conference day and said that the people in ferguson are really frightened by what may happen here. >> there are members of our community that are on edge, they're anxious they're nervous they're scared. they range from the young to the

very old. people have expressed concerns about their medicine and being able to get to medicine. i mean by and large, let's just face it. the city is really in a panic at this point. in anticipation of this decision. >> reporter: and the attorney general eric holder getting into the act as well. in a video message ton department omessage on thedepar, don't let the situation get out of happened, don't do anything that might undermine that. john. >> john terret reporting. new york police are calling the shooting of an unarmed man an unfortunate accident. two officers were on patrol in a brooklyn housing project, one officer fired his weapon accidentally after he was startle in a are stairway.

took life of akai gurley. >> happened to be in the hallway as the officers were entering the hallway one floor up. the victim was not engaged in any type of criminal activity. >> coming up. bill cosby. and my conversation with famous photographer annie liebovitz. >> a remarkable quest that sparked imaginations and created history over 700 years ago, marco polo left venice to points unknown and mysterious relive this epic odyssey people encountered, discoveries made... and now... questions answered...

al jazeera america presents marco polo a very modern journey

>> well, mountains of snow fell on the buffalo area. now the area is braced for, get this, flooding. much of it could melt over the next few days and cause problems. meteorologist rebecca stevenson is here with that. rebecca. >> upper 30s on saturday. getting a little bit of light rain added into the mix as temperatures get into the upper 40s on sunday and monday, it's going to be in the upper 50s. overnight, the light rain hits. just an idea of the melt capacity here, erie, pennsylvania has this magnitude of snowfall, broke one in 1967 and we also had a record in

grand rapids, michigan set in 1885. broken in the month of november, of the amount of snow. >> everybody is worried about the amount of snow on the roofs their homes collapsing. >> most of these roofs are going to hold about 50 pounds per questionnaire foot of pressure on top of them. but we're seeing far more than that because that's an average of how much snow they expect to snow in two months. and they got this in just a matter of days. and now the temperatures track almost 40° warmer within three days. >> how much rain are they going to get? >> they're probably going to have half an inch to three quarters of an inch of rain on top of that snow. >> and this could be disastrous. >> this is just snow, lake effect snow here. >> has it stopped? >> it has tapered off. hasn't completely stopped. lake ontario is still under an

advisory, lake effect snow. >> that's a you hav a view of m, thank you rebecca we appreciate it. the white house is working to fight bullies. american and pacific islander bullying task force. make communities aware of more federal resources. hines ward is a spokesman for the program. he says he was bullied for the way he used to look. >> i have been called everything from bruce lee to jackie chan. i'm here today as a living proof that hard work does pay off. i'm the only korean american super bowl mvp, and i'm a proud

commission member. rock icon peter gabriel knows the problem of bullying all too well. he spoke to ali velshi. >> i was probably seven, eight, they took all my clothes off and mucked around and these are people that i thought were my friends. so it was shocking on a number of ways, you know. it was -- wasn't too bad at school, there was a school i went to later which was worse. but it was still a traumatic event for me. and when i try and sit with people who have been tortured or watched their loved ones blown up, i know i don't have anything in my experience really to compare to that. but i've got you know just a little hint of something when the world isn't what you expected and it's not going for you. >> and it was a combination of the world not what you expected

it to be, and some shame and some sense that people won't maybe believe it? >> yeah, i guess, and i think that was one of the things that astounded me, with human rights world when i first encountered it. >> you can watch the rest of ali's interview with peter gabriel tomorrow at 5 eastern, 2:00 pacific. after 40 years behind bars. plus a war of words over the game of scrabble.

>> this is al jazeera america. i'm john siegenthaler. coming up more allegations against bill cosby and a show of support. plus changing history. the texas state board of education just approved new school books despite criticism of the contents. annie liebovitz talks about her career and you might be surprised how she describes it

it.tonight in florida, comedian ibm cosby took the stage to a standing ovation. many in the audience say they don't believe the sexual assault allegations against him but cosby's shows have been cancelled in six states as more women come forward accusing him of rape. courtney keely reports. >> as the allegations grow bill cosby sticking with the routine. >> you find yourself -- >> the comedian performed in the bahamas last night, his first performance since the sex scandal surfaced. and from the small audience he received a standing ovation. he might hope that the charges go away, but they are building. >> she met the comedian the

1976. >> he had two large white pills in his hand and he said take these and he gave me the water under gave me the pills. >> cosby's lawyer martin singer has represented hollywood heavy weights like charlie sheen. >> a little more than a week ago cosby was asked about the growing controversy during an interview, with the associated press. >> no no, we don't answer that. >> the entertainer told the rolledder he had been told he wouldn't be asked by the scandal. >> if you think you are serious, it won't appear anywhere. >> some decades old which critics say have been largely underreported. one critic said he tried to warn

about cosby's conduct in 2007. tv land scrapped its cosby show marathon. courtney keely al jazeera al ja. >> ariva martin. welcome. >> hi john. >> what do these accusations have? >> not very many. primarily because these accusations sore old. every state in this country has statutes of limitations, time periods in which civil lawsuits can be filed and also prosecutors are bound by statutes of limitations. even charges for serious crimes such as rape. although these accusations seem to be building i'm not so sure that in the court of law mr. cosby is ever going to have to respond. >> as i understand it, there are

states that don't have statutes of limitations for the crime of rape. but can you talk about why these statutes were put into place to begin with? >> you're correct john as it relates to states. states vary, all over the board in which prosecutors have the time to prosecute the crime of rape. stuchts of limitations are there. as facts get old, as people's memories fade, it is difficult to prove a case. cases brought to trial, where there are fresh memories, where facts can be proven poop lot of states that don't have statutes rely heavily on dna evidence. as it relates to mr. cosby there's no chance of there being any dna evidence. these cases happened very long ago. and none of these women from what we're hearing ever went to the police or to the hospital and had a rape kit or any type of dna analysis performed with

respect to their allegations. >> what about a civil case? >> same thing with respect to a civil case. you can file a civil case for rape for sexual assault, any kind of assault, but again you are going to run into that statute of limitations problem john. you are looking at two to four years and as we know many of these case he are decades old. bill cosby is going to respond and most of these cases are being played out in the court of public opinion. >> other than the case it's bill cosby? >> it's unique because for the time being we are hearing so many women coming forward. not that this woman was raped or sexually assaulted but she was acting with bill cosby and he touched her in an inappropriate way. the claims are very broad, run

the gamut from touching to rape. none of these statements have seemingly much to gain from coming forward. that is something we have to talk about, rape is traumatizing, for these women to come forward and talk about it you know we have to give pause and think about the courage that that takes. >> how different is a case when the accused is a public figure like bill cosby? >> i think as bill cosby's lawyer has said, we're starting to see piling on. he says some of these claims are absurd and these women are jumping on the band wagon. when you have a high profile figure like bill cosby there are people who are opportunistic who want to take advantage of this to have their 15 minutes of fame. put i don't think that in the case of rape or sexual assault or the women that are coming forth that we're seeing people

who just want to get some media or be in the press.i thin press. i think we have to take seriously the allegations made by these women. >> how often does that happen? >> that women don't come forward because of shame humiliation and fear of retaliation. one of these things is that these women said for the most part they were young impressionable, very, very impressed with mr. cosby, some of them were trying to make it in the entertainment business and they thought that he could ruin their careers if they came forth with the allegations of rape or sexual assault. >> good to see you ariva. have a good weekend,. >> thanks john. >> men who spent 40 years behind bars were exonerated today. ricky jackson was wrongly convicted of murder in 1975. he's the longest held u.s.

prisoner to be exonerated. 60-year-old willie bridgeman was also convicted of the killing. both men spoke today. >> the happiness to be released, the bitterness is long over, i'm the end of that road i didn't hold that too long anyway. >> words can't express how i feel right now. just glad to be out, glad to be a free man. >> the two men were sent to prison based on the testimony of a 13-year-old boy. that witness that boy recanted his testimony saying investigators coerced him into lying. now to michigan. a farmers market is at the center of a controversy. the market blocks one of the few streets that connects detroit to its neighbor, grosse point park, critics say it's a barrier that divides the haves and the have

nots. bisi onile-ere has the story. >> the contrast is stark. on one side of the border abandoned homes, burnt out structures, a predominantly black city plagued by bankruptcy and crime. across the street, a thriving suburb. mostly white middle to upper class community with man cured lawns. the border between detroit and grosse point par is invisible. but to many the fences and borders erected by the suburbs over the years, evoke charges of racism. today there is a new barricade that is opening up old wounds. >> it is disgusting. i do not approve of it.. >> long time detroiter dorothy roach and her daughter normally travel there, but the road is now blocked. this last spring grosse point park laid down concrete closing

off the intersection. a farmers market went up. >> i'm very disturbed about this. i think it sends a very clear message, very clear. stay out. stay out. >> now when you reach this intersection you have to hang a left into this gravel parking lot. and then hang a right. and take another right. and then, go through this round about, before crossing over. >> i think it's you know blatant. it is. it's a racial issue and it's offensive to me someone that lives in the park. >> but not everyone is offended. this grosss point park hardware store has been in randy's family for decades. >> if that's what you want to believe, i guess i can't change your mind. i look at it and say grosse

point is trying to do something positive for this area. >> reporter: but some question whether the suburb had the power to block off the intersection in the first place. grosse point never discussed this issue with detroit until complaints starting pouring in. we spoke to the city manager on the phone. >> if we had 25 vacant homes on the border, this wouldn't have been discussed anyway. >> opening the road back up, in return detroit will demolish more than 20 blighted properties near the border. grosse point park says they're still waiting for detroit to get the ball rolling. >> i feel comfortable because i am confident enough to be comfortable. but the constant looking at this all around me, i don't have to put up with this.

this is ridiculous. >> a tale of two cities in a divide that will take time to heal even after the wall comes down. bisi onile-ere, al jazeera, detroit. students in text will get new hifort and social studies textbooks next year. books that have come under fire from the left and the right. the fight over the ideology forced publishers to make some changes. roxana saberi has more on what messages made the grade. >> next fall more than 5 million public school students across texas will get new history and social studies textbooks, for the first time in more than a decade. the conservative board of education set new regulations four years ago ago. after spending weeks listening to complaints from both the right and the left. >> we want to make sure that we have the correct information in the textbooks. >> liberal critics said some books emphasized ideology and

christianity. >> the textbooks would assume this the students and the instructors are themselves christians. >> they want to deemphasize the role of slavery in american history. that's just impossible. >> but some conservatives also criticize parts of the new books. >> our government free market system seems to be belil belittd not emphasized. >> they agreed to make some changes but refused others. citing what it called public concern one publisher agreed to remove part of this sixth grade lesson. it teaches that ice in antarctica may be shrinking because of global warming. and aliens landing on earth, saying, this planet is great, we qualify for affirmative action.

the publisher also turned down requests to change a passage reading, the roots of democratic government date back to biblical figures such as moses. some teachers say they'll just have to work harder to give students a more balanced perspective. >> any teacher will dial with whatever textbook that's put in their hands. primary sources that are going to be locked into what might be a bad textbook. >> texas is one of the largest buyers of books and those books are often marketed to other states. what's printed in texas could end up in other states too. john. >> roxana saberi, thank you. how do you spell champion? not as easy as you might think. the best 100 scrabble players are competing for ultimate title. phil la ve lafl la vel knows.

>> what this wouldn't give for a set of letters like that. 200 big brains from the scrabble championships. >> i'm from poland,. >> i'm from kenya,. >> i'm from south africa. >> there's no better place to be than london right now. abdalla's from pakistan, a 14-year-old with big dreams. >> i will be number 1 one day. >> so you have ambitions. >> big ones. >> and that is where he is aiming. the main stage. the big tournament. it's hungry work. this is an old game with a modern approach. each move unscrutinized by computers poop hobby enjoye. a hobby enjoyed around the

world. >> people who love scrabble and are absolutely horrible at it. this is the bane, the rule book, this says what words you can and cannot use. traditionally slang has been banned from this. i say traditionally, because 5,000 slang words have just been added. words you will hear in everyday words. words like hashtag, chillax, and selfie. for those that are a bit more traditional it means they've got to start learning all over again. >> some people can be a purist about the language and not want to add in the word like selfie arselfiefor example. >> that is word quinsie, ever hear it?

probably not but it so give you 401 points if placed correctly. the definition, a shelter made out by hollowing out a settle of snow. >> the vocabulary, should be a good match. >> i'm brilliant. >> okay, so that's a lie. sometimes it's good to have a plan b up your sleeve. >> what's going on here? oops. >> literally, only of course if you don't get caught. phil lavelle, london. with some very brainy people. >> rchgz tha thanksgiving, doord nerd wallet, the cost of a thanksgiving dinner, honolulu expect to pay $76 and the priciest meal in the country is in hilo, hawaii at $80.

here is a picture of niagra falls. an image captured by the camera of annie liebovitz. the photographer built her reputation on famous portraits of people. but in her latest book, called pilgrimage. i asked her about the new direction her work has taken. >> i just love all this stuff. >> at the new york historical society a personal tour by annie liebovitz through a gallery of her extraordinary photographs. and the stories behind them. she took this image of poet henry david thoreau's bed. >> you can see thoreau's bed, the cane bed. >> you can. this bed is actually in the concord museum. i'm the last person to know anything about thoreau. i really didn't i didn't quite, i thought thoreau slept on the

ground on nails or something. but when i saw this bed which was in the cabin at walden pond, it is a very sophisticated insert from a chinese sofa bed. it's a very sophisticated piece of furniture. >> this is the big fold out in the book and obviously it must have been -- why? >> it was sort of like a little joke or a laugh for myself to have a fold out of thoreau's bed. you know? >> from museums to magazines, liebovitz is an artist with a camera. she was rolling stone's chief photographer and decades later remains a superstar. her most recent work, capturing amy adams and tim burton in the most recent edition of vogue. historic items like the hat abraham lincoln wore when he was assassinated.

marion anderson who sung on the steps of the lincoln memorial. >> it had sweat under the arms and obviously at an auction. she made -- i learned all of this afterwards -- she made her own concert clothes and this is such a strange dress because this is very light weight material and then there's this heavy, heavy like felt piece, red. >> liebovitz walked me through the gallery with these 70 photos from her pilgrimage in it. >> it last a little bit of salon style and hung low for children and it's like you're on a trip in a car looking out a window. and it has such a great, a great feel. it looks really cool. >> and there's more of my conversation with annie liebovitz coming up. >> my day-to-day work doesn't

necessarily nourish me. you know i wish it could. >> she explains why, after the break.

>> these people have decided that today they will be arrested >> i know that i'm being surveilled >> people are not getting the care that they need >> this is a crime against humanity >> hands up! >> don't shoot! >> hands up! >> don't shoot! >> what do we want? justice! >> when do we want it? >> now! >> they are running towards base... >>...explosions going off we're not quite sure... >> fault lines al jazeera america's emmy winning, investigative, documentary, series... >> cold temperatures in place for one more chilly night in places around the great lakes. but as we get into the day on saturday, the warmer air continues to work its way up to the north. it is bringing some early morning freezing drizzle and spots of ice around places like minnesota, wisconsin to michigan, we're concerned about

icy roadways icy sidewalks. concerned about weather in texas, and heavy storms are expected to break out, heavy rain and wind gusts. potential for tornadoes to break out into the south. we're twhachg in addition to wan to freezing drizzle and rain. flood watch in place for the eastern portion of lake erie as that warmer air comes in and warmer rain coming in sunday and monday. heaviest flood threat on monday and tuesday, where we'll see the temperatures cranking up near 70 on monday. warmer weather and wind gusts coming in with that rainfall, going to make for a lot of snow melting very quickly. al jazeera america news continues. i

>> when you think of photographer annie liebovitz, eleanor roosevelt and henry david thoreau may not come to mind but they feature prominently in her book a book called pilgrimage. i talked to her about this

project. >> thank you, we appreciate it. the cover of the book, the picture of niagra falls, the story behind had a, how did it happen? >> i took the children up to niagra falls to see it and they were mesmerized. his face was very long so i walked up to where they were and stood behind them and literally took the picture over their head. >> everyone takes swamg fro somy from the photo, like the couch -- >> the yi yin-yang, elvis presls couch, its shakes you up a little bit. how could i not -- eleanor roosevelt was great to learn about. she wanted everyone to be able to shoot a gun and she was a rock star you know in her day. the heart target was something i

found later in a private collection but it was just so poignant and met for cal for me. >> emily dickinson, the intricacy of the dress, you see how it's made and you get a feeling for -- >> that is so not my kind of photograph. i mean, that kind of close-up, you know national geographic something i don't know what it is. most people know that emily dickinson wore a white dress. but you have no idea that the dress was so complicated. >> i look at the skeleton of a pigeon studied by charles darwin and i think why? >> no one really knows or takes in that darwin studied pigeons very seriously. after he got back from the galapagos. i just love the way the skeleton was in a little box and numbered. with his handwriting. >> and the lincoln's hat, the one he wore when he was

assassinated. >> that's right, it had the black band for his child dying, todd dying. >> eleanor roosevelt. and valkill. >> i didn't quite get that. she had a sleeping porch. i went back three times trying to get that sleeping porch and i couldn't quite get it. the best i did was her bedroom going out to the sleeping porch. her family had to drag her in, it would be like 10° out or 0 out and she was sleeping out on that sleeping porch. >> the pictures about georgia oh keefe were powerful for you as well when you visited her home. >> i never had georgia oh keefe on my list. i felt like it would almost be too much of a stereotypical idea. i went out to abakue and walked into her studio and i was just

so moved. and you know it was just that whole idea of you don't know what you think you know. >> i mean i think a lot of people feel like they know you through your art. >> i've been doing this a long time, like 45 years. i love the body of my work, my day-to-day work doesn't necessarily nourish me. i wish it could. i have to take a photograph on demand, you know, more or less. i wanted to be drawn in. i wanted to be taken in. i wanted something to seduce me. >> for someone who has looked at it all those years, thank you, and thank you for bringing it to us and we look forward to the next body of work that you continue on. thank you so much. >> thank you very much, john. thank you. >> that's our broadcast for this friday night. we thank you for watching. i'm john siegenthaler.

al jazeera america presents is coming up next. we'll see you next week.

>> i'm ali velshi, the news has become this thing where you talk to experts about people, and al jazeera has really tried to talk to people, about their stories. we are not meant to be your first choice for entertainment. we are ment to be your first choice for the news. >> next on al jazeera america presents... >> the catholic church of the 21st century is a global financial power. the pope might just be one of the biggest landloards in the world. the church is now spending heavily on political lobbyists. >> 21% of the dioceses told us that they never audit their parishes. we found that 85% of the dioceses had experienced an embezzlement in recent years, many more than one.