rights. there's nothing else athletes had to pay $1500. >> not even a hot chocolate? >> nothing. >> that's it for this edition of al jazeera america's international hour. >> thanks for watching. "america tonight" is next. have a great evening. on "america tonight.".. >> the only real successful way to control - when you have a predity wolf is to remove the wolf. >> the process is controversial. animals are trapped in snares. animal rights activists call it cruel. >> because you see a wolf doesn't mean you have to kill it. >> six months after michael

brown was shot and killed this is what is left after the city erupted to protests. >> how would you describe life in ferguson today? >> it's sad, very depressing. >> ou important is the upcoming election for ferguson. >> they can't help you in d.c. they have to help you in the local citial. >> good evening, i'm joie chen. it's taken six months for ferguson, missouri to transition from a little known community in st. louis to a hot bed of question. a short hand for battles over race rights and justice. we brought you toferguson at the start of the controversy, and followed through. our correspondent returned days ago to see what changed.

>> i can't take it any more. >> reporter: for more than 20 years this man has made his living here at the market now he wonders if his store or the city of ferguson can survive. his store has been attacked three times since the death of michael brown. >> they steel everything computers, surveillance they broke it. everything was broke. police released this video, hoping to identify the loading suspects that ransacked the store. >> do you think anything will come from that. >> i won't recover anything out of it. >> six months after michael brown was so the in kills. these are a stark reminder of the lingering open wounds here.

>> first of all, you do not tell me my function. >> in january, a public meeting aimed at establishing a civilian oversight board for the st. louis police department turned into a brawl. everybody is shouting nobody is listening. the best way to do it people should calm down and talk in a civilized manner. >> this man was at the meeting, protesting against police brutality. >> everyone wants me to be calm. >> on the night that news broke that officer wilson would not be indicted he was standing next to his mother. >> it's our son, a grown man

killed her son, he's not going to jam. >> i didn't know what to do she was crying. a lot cry. i never felt that type of vying. her sole was crying. >> how would you describe life in ferguson today? >> to be honest with you, man, it's sad. it's sad. very depressing. so many people were disappointed. so let down. >> are you disappointed are you let down? >> i mean my expectations for a lot of people are low. i'm disappointed in the sense that a lot of people take for granted how important it is. this is a chance to be something in life. to do something selfless for other people. to leave a legacy behind. snoop as for the-- as for the legacy of michael brown, some fear it will happen again. there are signs of protest.

[ chanting ] >> reporter: an ongoing department of justice investigation could change how much the ferguson police department interacts with the community it's sworn to protect and serve. >> i anticipate that they'll come in with some changes that we are going to have to make. some of them we are making. they have given us a heads up. we'll take what they say seriously, we'll act on it. >> reporter: this april, elections could change ferguson's political leadership. with around 21,000 people ferguson is about 70% black. the mayor, and five of six city council bemers are white. ferguson committee woman is helping candidates campaign for the um coming elections. she's been a prominent part of the most for change since the day michael brown died. >> a young man was shot in broad

daylight. it was barely noon and his body laid in the street. parents had to keep their children away from the window. the children couldn't go outside. this was traumatising a community. [ chanting ] >> reporter: vines was on the street when the grand jury decision came down. >> it was important to tell the world what was actually going on and how people are feeling. >> i did witness what occurred with the jirs things burning. i was right there. it was surreal to know that observing is on fire. i'm watching things push. i'm watching the pubic sorage light up and embers full from the stay.

unbelievable the damage. you would smell it in the air. >> how important is the election. >> in is about the council seats. people that never had an interest understand how important the seats are, and the possibility of city council regions. the st. louis region never really tackled the issues of poverty, education, lack of jobs, racism. racial profiling, police accountability the majority of yishes in the street. they can't help you in d.c. they have to help you in city ham. >> beneath the issues an anger leaving parts of the city in ruins. >> that's what happened. to be honest with you, no one cares until something burns

down. >> what would you sell the owner of a market whose business was ransacked. >> if you had a relatesship with the community. they sat back black day dayed. i don't care it's not my people. people don't care about justice. >> how does it make you feel. this is your neighbourhood, and they turned on you. >> still have good people in the neighbourhood. there's a lot coming in. they sympathise said. there are good people too. and that's why i just get going. what i don't understand is people say that they want change, i mean what kind of change do they want. you can change by violence. it has to be this. >> in a city divided, neighbour against neighbour, change is likely to take time. >> "america tonight" sara hoy, you were there six months ago,

what did you feel was different? >> well the one thing we noticed was that when you speak to people whether at a coffee shop or grabbing lunch, everyone had a moment or an anecdote to tell you about where they were the night michael brown died. for the most part it's business as usual. you feel the tension when people talk about the incident and the si. it wasn't just the shooting death. it was an incident setting everything off. underlying tensions feeling under the sfs. we herd -- under the surface. the committee woman said there were issues never dealt with they are there, people are upset and want thing. you talk about the feeling that is goes beyond that. we call ferguson a suburb of st.

louis. it's at the edge there, almost part and parcel. st. louis is one of few cities seeing an upswing in homicide and the police chief in st. louis said in part it's blamed on the ferguson effect. what does that mean? >> what he's saying is because of the incident in ferguson we were unable to attend the crime in our own area. when you look at the homicide rate homicides in st. louis consistent change that much. in august there was 14. in september 16th. then you go back to january, 14, february there was 5. to blame everything in st. louis. they say it just isn't the case. >> "america tonight"s sara hoy next - fast-forward reaching the finishing line. >> if we have 100 people watching a dog race that's

considered a lot of people. it could put on end to the races. even track owners want to stop. wednesday on "america tonight" digital b.f.f.s helping to break the silence. >> "america tonight"s christopher putzel with a technology that could be a break through for kids living with autism and hot stealing home - an investigation as to why thousands of florida condo owners are forced out of their homes, even though they have done nothing wrong. find it at aljazeera.com/americatonight.

fast-forward to what might be a long run. something that animal activists say is inhumane and want to stop it. there are unlikely allies sheila macvicar visited florida, one of seven states where dog races are still legal. >> if we have 100 people watching a dog race that would be considered a lot of people. >> this man and his family own

the race track and poker room a business started by this man's grandfather. he heard the crit six watched the decline of the sport. >> why do it? >> poker business is profitable and the state of florida law mandates that we run the dogs to keep the poker room open. we are obliged to run a business losing $2.5 million a year. >> $2.5 million a year. >> just at this track. >> reporter: a law meaning to keep dog breeders in business mandated that track owners run money losing races if they want to run poker room. >> the poker law says you have to run 90% of races you did in '96. 20 years ago it was packed. the world has changed

drastically. >> at this tram. 3200 races each one a money loser, each one harming dogs. the state senator, a posterior, ran her own investigation into how the dogs are treated. >> is it true that the dogs are kept in small ken else? is it -- ken else is it true that they are kept in vans not air conditioned? is it true they are confined for many hours during the day. the answer is it's true. the people of florida - once they find ot what really goes on behind the tracks behind the light, behind the excitement. once they see what is going on they'll say enough this, is not who we are as a people. >> so now the people of florida and everywhere else can see what does go on. fast-forward to an "america tonight" tv exclusive - the a s.p.c.a. are giving us a first

national report on greyhound racing. it's extensive. chronically more than 900 deaths, 1200 injuries - 13 years in the making. and it could be evidence that helps to end the races. next dash - howells of protest, the return of the wolf to minnesota wild and how it's gone to being endangered. >> we took the woof and tack it from being endangered into a sale item. >> adam may on ways to help the born wild live free. purchase purchase

only on al jazeera america.

whose afraid of the big bad wolf? farmers in the virginian states they fear the comeback on their communicatees, their boast hope of protection is lawmakers in congress. on the trail of the great grey wolf in minnesota. it is "america tonight"s adam may. s >> reporter: how many head of livestock do you think you have lost to wolves? >> that we have lost is over two dozen. >> more than two dozen. >> yes. >> reporter: miles is a cattleman. his grandparents never worried about wolf attacks. today it is a common fear. >> you are in the middle of it. we are in the middle of prime wolf habitat. >> reporter: they see your

cattle as lunch. wolves were on the endangered species list and delisted in 2011. the hunters, con fined to the strex wilderness -- extreme wilderness have spread across the region. >> how big of a problem is this. >> there's nothing worse than going out to check your cows and finding one still alive, but half eaten. >> it's a practice. they want to make sure they - they are strong and fit enough to take down an animal. they take down the animal. they are done. >> each lost calf is worth $800. he gets some compensation from the government. the distress caused to other calves after wolf attacks has lasting effects. >> what have you done to try to protect your farm from wolves?

>> we have done numerous things. we went out. we have got a loud bang machine to scrar them -- scare them. wolves are intelligent. once they learn it's a scaristic tick they are back in the herd. >> the only successful way to trolley a wolf is to remove the wolf. the% of silling wolves is controversial. animals are trapped in snares and can suffer alive for showers. animal rites activists call it cruel. minnesota re-instated a trapping and sunting even after the 2011 delisting. since then more than 900 swefls have been killed. >> we took the wolf from being an endangered species that was protected. that people were tught to understand, and many fell in love with.

we made it into a sale out 'em. >> marine is underer of a group, and they lobby to protect animals. >> it's vital. it's not the same without a wolf. if a wolf represents wilderness. if you go to another state and they don't have the top apex predator, and that is the wolf. when you lose that you lose something, it's a magestic animal. the effort to save wolves has taken an unexpected and controversial turn. in december a federal judge stopped the wolf hunt after a lawsuit filed by mann mall rights activists charging the wolf population was being mismanaged by the state. wolves in the great lakes are on the endangered spees lis list. >> for all practical purpose,

that ruling was riddage u louse -- ridiculous. this professor examined it for years. has the wolf population been managed well or mismanaged? >> they've been managed very well. >> it's not what a federal judge ruled. >> that's true. i think she didn't understand what goes on here. >> they argue that the population is thriving and says there's 13,000 wolves across america. >> there's not a danger. there's enough wolves so they are not endangered. we are not going to lose the wolves. >> he says request we know how many wolves there are. they are doing radio collaring. >> they have statistical videoed u.

they count wolves in a small area that is good wolf habitat and extrapolate it to areas that may be wolf habitat. they do statistical tricks. >> to see for ourselves, we went out with a researcher tracking the wolf population through an aerial survey. the government says they do the surveys frequently taking wolf population density into of course and says there are 2500 wolves in minnesota. >> we see it right there. is it right there. there's a cluster down low. more than the goal of 1,000 - numbers they have not seen since the 1970s. >> were you mismanaging the wolves? >> it was substantiate with a plan that was developed through a public process and the state laws. >> reporter: dan stark is in charge of wolves for the

minister department of natural sources. >> both ends are on the extreme ends. we are not killing enough or too men. we are management middle trying to manage that and maintain a strong wolf population that is doing well. >> stark's agency is in the hot seat over allegations it's putting special interests above animals, "america tonight" obtained an eternal email send to dan stark. >> it says i have come to the conclusion we owe it to our clients, hunters and trappers secondary clients, to establish an opportunity. hunters and trappers are the primary client of the department of natural resources. what about the wolves where do they fit in? >> i think the email is not - does not reflect the perspective of the agency and the goal of having wolves.

>> is the dnr looking out for the wolves or the hunter or trappers. >> we implement the season based on the knowledge and information, that there's a population out there that is healthy enough and not going to be affected by hunting and travelling. >> we are referring to the hybrids. >> activists face criticism. it is based on a down-town minnesota skyscraper more than 100 miles away from the wolf problems. >> how much time have you spent around wolves. >> i have not spent that much time. one was in yellowstone, overseas wolf tracks and snow in northern minnesota. >> for most people, the only glimpse of the wild hunters is in captivity. the beautiful animals didn't

seem very threatening. the founder says looks are deceiving. >> what would happen if we were to stop wolf killing in the country. >> we have wolves all over. >> then they'd be eating dogs and cats. the live stop everywhere. it's called fear-mongering. >> when is it appropriate to kill a wolf? >> i think if you have problems where wolves are acting odd, that is appropriate, just because you see a wolf doesn't mean you have to kill it. >> reporter: what about protecting livestock. >> we need to use more nonlethal weapons. >> miles and his wife say the nonlethal methods don't work and keeping wolves endangered puts them in danger.

>> if they stay listed do you - what do you think the practical impact would be for you? >> it would be devastating. if they are listed numbers will continue to grow. >> the government surveys show wolves are pushing south. closer to the minnesota suburbs. although sightings are rare. not likely the children chapter in the uneasy relationship between humans and the magestic animal. >> and that is "america tonight". tell us what you think at aljazeera.com/americatonight. talk to us on twitter and facebook. come back more. "america tonight" tomorrow.

the fighting intensifies in ukraine, and civilians are running for their lives. [ gunfire ] the increase in finals comes as president obama mulls arming the ukranian army. has diplomacy run its course? i look at what ratcheting up the arms race in ukraine will do. americans are more connected to the internet than before from the fridges to their cars and fitness bracelets. are