smooth and well. >> walk through all the main sites of pilgrims through mecca with a 360-degree view. more details on the website, any time of day. f . pope francis meets the president and the faithful in washington, d.c. his message calling for more work to cure the world's ills. they pardon journalists. the convictions of seven remain in place. celebrating the life of an americ american liege legend -- legend.

live from new york city. pope francis is spending time in quiet reflection, at this hour, and resting up during what has been a very busy day in washington. history was made at the catholic leader was welcomed on the south lawn of the white house, a few hours ago, with a 21-gun salute and a marching band. this is his first trip to the u.s. and met with the president in the oval office and was greeted by thousands during a parade, where he kissed several babies in the crowd. mike is live at the white house. mike, quite a whirlwind day for the pope, who mixed in politics with his message? >> reporter: he touched on many

political hot-button topics, immigration, climate change. the president and pope francis, really heating on those themes and dove tailing together something they share in common. the common areas of concern, for both president obama and pope francis, it has been a whirlwind day. he conducted a mass for u.s. bishops, not far from the white house and talked about some of the themes he has been hitting on over the course of his papacy, the need to think about the poor and the needy, those who are less fortunate. he came back to immigration as well. he says that immigrants will make the united states stronger, it will make the catholic church stronger. this will be a controversial topic. he tends to talk about it, quite

repeatedly. >> as the son of an immigrant family, i'm happy to be a geest in this country, which was lastly built by such families. [applause] . >> mike, the president met with the pope in the oval office. any idea what they talked about? >> reporter: we haven't had a read-out yet. we expect a briefing at any moment. i want to add a couple of other things here, randall, the pope did breach the sex abuse scandal and to help and support victims and make sure that such a thing, and the cover-up hnever happene again. what he did not do is say he was going to hold anybody responsible, make any further

comments on that. let's talk about that parade, a very brief parade around the white house ground around constitution avenue where a young girl was plucked from the crowd. we understand it was by vatican officials, brought to pope francis. one of the young ladies was bearing a gift, a remarkable scene. it was a security concern from the secret service. it was a scene that really evokes this papacy and what we know of pope francis and unassuming pope. >> thank you. >> as mike mentioned, there is a reason they call francis the people's pope. thousands more gathered around saint matthews cathedral.

>>reporter: we're here along constitution avenue, which was one of the main fairs where the pope's procession came through this morning. thousands of people came out here, coming in as early as 4 am, when the entrances opened for them to line the streets, here, to catch a glimpse of the pope. the security was tight. they were wandered and secret service was there, as well as the national guard out here. people waited patiently, for hours on end, to get a little glimpse of pope francis. some lucky people in the crowd got to touch the pope. a young girl got a hug from the pope. the crowd was very, very patient. they waited and just as quickly as the pope came by, they exited

as well. well, as we know, several days of major events in store for the pope. one of the biggest, today, from a religious point of view, liby is joining where it will take place. this particular one is controversial. >> reporter: it is, randall. there's a lot that the catholic church is celebrating today. he was born more than 300 years ago, in spain, but came to present-day california, what was new spain, as a franciscan missionary and established nine of the 21 spanish missions. he will be the first hispanic-american saint, which is a big deal coming from the first latin american pope, to be giving this mass today. the controversial aspect is the

way the missions worked. he converted more than 6,000 indigenous people, his mission, hundreds of thousands over time. while the indigenous people were not forced to convert, once they did, they were kept on the mission and not allowed to go back to their homes. some were even beaten or flogged when they left. that is why some native american groups are concerned about this and have protested his choice for this. as i mentioned, he is seen as a leading symbol of the missionary movement that has brought catholicism to the united states. more than 1/3 of catholics are hispanic. >> the people gathering behind you seems to be about 1,000. >> reporter: 25,000 will be here. ten thousand more will be standing. we will see a real mix of

cultures here, a true blend. the beginning of the service with start with american music and local members of the archdiocese. as the pope leads the mass, a lot will be in spanish, some will be in latin. of course, spanish -- the language the pope is comfortable with -- it is symbolic as we brings this first hispanic-american symbol into sainthood. the reading will be in a native american language to honor native americans. 100 women are in the nation's capital about immigration. they walked there from pennsylvania. jonathan has their story. >> reporter: in front of the basilica, where pope francis

will do the ceremony, activists urge more help for the country's struggling immigrants. over the past week, 100 women have walked 100 miles. arriving in washington, d.c., as the pope, to echo his message of tolerance for america's undocumented workers. >> we have the right to live in this country with dignity, with our families like every other single human being. >> reporter: the pope has backed migrant rights across the world and is expected to urge congress to pass immigration reform in the u.s. she desperately needs this, as one of the 11 million who came here illegally. >> i don't have the resources to go to college. i haven't finished my bachelors degree, that doesn't mean i'm going to stop and that's why i'm out here. >> reporter: that passion kept

her marching for seven straight days. women bound with common stories. she came to the u.s. illegally, as a child and build a family. her husband was arrested and released, but could be deported. >> my hope, my faith in god, never, ever lose this. >> reporter: it's this hope as they push now to see their holiness with their body's weary, but their faith strong. the pope's very busy schedule continues tomorrow. we will speak to congress. at 11:15, he tours a meals program. tomorrow afternoon, he departs joint base andrews in maryland and heads to new york city.

we'll have continuing coverage here. we'll have more of today's top stories when we come back.

. al jazeera journalists have been pardoned. they were granted a pardon by

egypt's president, along with dozens of other prisoners. none of the other journalists have been pardoned. victoria has more. >> reporter: freedom at least. the pardon by the president is the end of a long ordeal, which began when they were arrested in december 2013, along with al jazeera correspondent. among the charges, aiding the now banned muslim brotherhood. then, last january, the court threw out their convictions and ordered a retrial. >> just living day by day. i don't hope anything, i don't expect anything. >> reporter: in february, he was deported to his native australia. they were released on bail later that month. they were unable to leave egypt

and were still service a kind of sentence. it inspired a global campaign of susport. >> the issue of the al jazeera journalists in egypt, we have been cleared pubicically and privately they should be returned. >> reporter: the returned was supposed to give them a second opportunity to clear their names and justice was denied. >> it's outrageous and devastating. my heart is with the family. >> reporter: the arrest and detention damaged egypt's reputation abroad. they have closed this case without threatening the independence of egypt's judiciary. there are other al jazeera staff who were convicted at the original trials. al jazeera says that it will continue tofight for their

cases. sue is one of the journalists sentence in egypt. she spoke with our colleagues in london. we asked her about the difficulty. >> very risky going to the countries that's have extradition treaties, they have agreements of handing over somebody convicted of terrorism. the list is very difficult because even someone like greece has an extradition treaty with egypt. he was convicted in egypt. so, when it becomes an issue in europe, the wider area, where they are very friendly with

egyptian government, those countries are just as difficult to visit. you know, nobody wants to end up in egyptian prison. >> about the seven journalists, we urge them to quash their cases. the school board in seattle is expected to decide whether to put an end to suspend elementsry students. studies show black students are disproportionate. >> reporter: no kindergartner should be suspended from school. >> african american children and african american males are suspended at a rate four times higher than their white

counterparts and it has been a situation where people knew about it and kind of rang their hands and said, but there's nothing we can do. it's because they're poor or because their family's aren't involved. they're making excuses for a lack of action, as an institution, or as a school or as a school system. >> reporter: so what's the alternative for school suspensions? we'll head to one school with a unique model. we'll have more coming up tonight. nearly 600 elementary school students were suspended last year, including 61 kindergartners. some people are trying to keep released prisoners from landing back in jail. they believe counseling is better than arresting repeat offenders. >> i was homeless because of my addiction. i was strung out on heroin and i

also smoked crack. i also did prostitution. all that mattered was feeding my addiction. >> reporter: when 32-year-old misty moved from alaska to washington state, this was not the life she envisioned herself. >> i went to the track, where we go to meet dates and then i got picked up by an undercover. >> reporter: misty was hauled into a police stage. >> a sergeant told me about lead. >> law if forcement assisted diversion. it gives officers a pivotal choice, to either arrest a non-violent law breaker or put them in contact with a counselor to get mental health care, food and housing.

santa fe, new mexico, police chief knows first-hand that arresting criminals and putting them in jail is what police are trained to do. >> i want to do things that will reduce crimes in santa fe. >> reporter: they conduct a seminar to convince officers that keeping some low-level offenders out of jail is the best way to detour future crimes. >> people will do anything to get high, so how does jail scare somebody like that? >> reporter: stopping the revolving door of arrests is the main point of lead. according to a recent study by the university of -- university of washington, lead people were 61% less likely to be rearrested. we find out how it gets determined who makes it into lead and who doesn't.

he gets a call of a possible robbery near the mall. the suspects who were apprehended admit to being heroin users. >> i think it was a robbery and an assault on a household member, they declined the lead program. >> we got a call from a girl who wants to get into the lead program. >> how long have you been using? >> about five years. >> reporter: if she's lucky, she'll end up like misty. she has been drug-free for two years and is back home in alaska. >> i actually want to start a lead program in alaska. other people can get inspiration from my story because i know that i was the worst of the worst and if i can change, anybody can. one of the greatest baseball catchers ever has died, he was

90 years old. he made his mark on and off the field. john has a look on the life of a legend. >> reporter: he only stood 5-foot-7, he was a baseball giant. he changed the way we spoke. his life comes to an end 69 years, to the day, of this major league debut. he was a legend on the diamond. >> won 10 world series. >> reporter: he became an icon because of the things he said. his name was lawrence peter bara, but the world knew him as yoggi. he was one of the greatest catchers, three-time league most valuable player and a 1 # 5-time all star. >> he does a tremendous job.

>> reporter: this image of him, jumping into larson's arms is one of america's most iconic sports photos. the only thing more famous? his colorful way of words, the future ain't what it used to be and two phrases that remain part of the american lexicon, it's not over until it's over. >> . >> i don't know what i say to myself, i don't make them up. >> reporter: claiming the cartoon character, yogi bear was offensive offensive. their riff would last 14 years until this.

>> i hope you can accept my apologize. >> reporter: a triumpant return in 1999, to yankee stadium. >> let's welcome home number 8, yogi, bara number 8. >> reporter: new york loved him. he would lead both the yankees and the mets as a manager. before i toss it back, here's three more for you. a nickel ain't worth a dime anymore. 90% of this game is half-mental. finaly, i never said most of the things i said. he will be truly missed. back to you. president obama called him an american original, a hall of famer and humbled veteran. we'll be right back.

. pharmaceuticals will lower the cost for drugs in response to outrage over a big increase. they faced a back-lash this week. the cost of a pill went from $13.50 to $750, a 500% increase. they have yet to announce what the new price will be.

it's a little easier today to sing happy birthday. a federal judge has thrown out a copyright issue that has the use. >> reporter: one of the most recognizable songs is now in the public domain. a federal judge ruled they no longer hold a valid copyright. they brought in $2 million from films, tv shows and production. they sued the company, claiming the copyright was invalid because a similar song existed long before happy birthday was registered. the origins are traced back to an 1893 song, an early version discovered by a librarian.

>> it was very exciting to open a folder full of materials that were hidden away in a filing cabinet and find the -- a manuscript for good morning to you song ♪ [music] . >> reporter: that song eventually evolved into happy birthday and say they only hold rights to in melody and piano arrangement. for the first time, scientists are returning to a way to protect the world's projects. they are going to open a doom's day vault that stores almost 900,000 seed samples. syria is asking for some of its seed contributions back to replace those damaged in the

civil war there. . this is al jazeera. hello, i'm lauren taylor, live from london. jailed al jazeera journalists are pardoned in egypt. >> this whole nightmare is over. we can live like normal people and go home and enjoy my life. martin wintercorn resigns a