jazeera america [ ♪ ] >> thanks for joining us on "america tonight". i'm joie chen. a political leader determined to solve america's immigration problems with a simple solution. round up those that crossed into the county for work and a better life and send them back.

plans of donald trump ignited fury, what he is suggesting is not new. the notion of voluntary repatriation goes back decades to president hoover's administration, when hundreds of thousands were forced out. when critics say the mass deportation is too costly to happen. the truth of a matter is in an overlooked corner of history lays proof that it has. >> here at the edge of the wild horse desert at a whistle stop town on the line from houston to brownsville, generations of workers and families became american. they were the people who built kinksville texas. >> if it wasn't for the mexicans brought over... >> they were the lifeblood of the early days of this town.

>> it was their blood and suede and tears that built this town. >> among the sons of kingsville is flores, his parents coming a century ago, worked hard, bought a home and started a family. they thought they were doing okay, and they... >> they were part of america. >> yes. >> in the boom years of the 20th century, families like his were welcomed, even encouraged to come and work in places like kinksville. they came and brought the stories of their lives in song.

>> it is part of our history books, our mexican history books. >> it was the way to tell the story of the people. >> it was the way to tell the story. >> as the great depression set in, the story turned dark. >> in an all but forgotten chapter of history, the once welcomed migrants and the u.s. born children were forced out. here it was closing that on, and the country that they thought would be their utopia and their home. it was their country, they didn't want them there any more. >> the exodus through depression years is billed suggesting that these were voluntary repatriations. >> one of few historians that wrote about the period said the deportees were anything but willing to go. >> it's a story of betrayal of

mexican immigrants coming to the country, dedicating 15-20 years of their lives, being betrayed and expelled. >> here in east l.a. where the deportations began. on the edge, the oldest part of what is today the city of los angeles. >> this is the community that is at the center of that techate. >> exactly, right here, this area was the plas eato ring. >> it was late february 1931, amid fears foreigners were dominating the job market, and faced with a growing backlash against migrants. >> the government should see that american citizens are deployed before the aliens. >> the i m.s. rounded up

hundreds of terrified workers, warning them to go home. even though many were u.s. citizens. >> they were deported from their own country. >> from their own country. >> it was just the beginning. after the raid mass round ups were less common, but still the pressure grew. the pressure placed on the people, by government officials knocking on the door. the pressure from raids taking place in public places. the pressure telling workers you are better off in mexico. they force people to leave the country. >> entire communities were forced out. through intimidation or coercion. big employers warned mexican workers they'd be left without jobs, and local communities

upped the anxiety. in l.a. officials used welfare roles to identify canned gaits for the rebattery ailings. thi target and scapegoat mexican families, it is a defeat. a loss of a promise >> reporter: this is like a family home. >> just a few miles away. this woman was born and raised. >> i remember there was a tree growing there. the life ended. the family packed up a suitcase, and left the only home she knew.

we were living on relief. my dad said we have to work. we came from school we were told to go home. >> the united states. first you were not welcome in your home county, and then you weren't welcome in mexico. here i was a homeless person without a country. >> and it wasn't just the social rejection. >> the mexican government made promise of integrating them into society and failed at the promises. >> after a decade, as a stranger in a strange land america helped her come home to l.a., where she

married. had kids and never let them forget. >> i merge asking you, saying you were born in mexico. and she said oh, no. >> now a professor, christine was a college student when she read a passing reference to the repatriation. i thought wait a minute. this is bigger than my family. >> her mother urged her to collect survivor stories from survivors, who didn't think they had a story to tell. >> until recently, you couldn't find a sentence in a textbook. people involved, a great number did not understand the magnitude. the research was a unique

record, one that joined her family to the hidden mexicans in the united states. in this campaign season... i will build a great, great wall on the southern border. >> the story has never been more relevant. in kinksville texas, they recall the sadness that tore the family apart. >> if anyone doubts your commitment to the county, what would you say. >> i say yes, go to the park and read about the boys. >> he's a veteran from the u.s. marines, and the two holder brothers remembered as local heroes. >> your family lost two boys. >> they fought four america. >> they fought for north

america. >> time has a way of stealing history and breeding life into a nation's worst fears. you hear the idea. build a wall kick them out. i talk to people a lot who say donald trump may say that it will never happen. >> people forget easily. just because you think it will never happen, it does. history repeats itself. >> the state of california apologised for its role in deportations, but a wider effort to win acknowledgment of the injustice has yet to succeed. >> next year, a bitter chapter, death on a playground. the killing of tamir rice, cleveland's reaction and what activists consider a shocking

ban by the city against the boy's family. voices and a strain using them can place on a music muscle. a note about the cause and the cure later. >> hot on the "america tonight" website. arkansas's shocking law that leaves tennants at the mercy of landlords. you won't believe the conditions. aljazeera.com/"america tonight".

just one of the community versus police officer complex. the meaning about public service. the death of tamir rice on a cleveland playcrowned raised concerns. the anger rose when the city attempted to build something for the boy's family. it was taken off the table. "america tonight"s christopher putzel claims the tension remains beneath the surface. >> reporter: outside the justice center. protesters called out his name. 12-year-old tamir rice was shot dead by cleveland police officer

timothy roman in a park. seconds after he arrived on the scene, two reports of a man with a gun. >> once again, they got away with murder. >> the outrage over rice's death still burns. >> we will have equal protection under the law. >> dante is a community activist. >> we all must look deeply within ourselves and take an examination of our justice system in america. is the law applied fairly and justly to each and every person in our nation, it's inchum an actions taken by police officers. even though they are standard policies and laws and procedures. >> given this perfect storm of human area, mistakes and miscommunications by all involved that day.

the evidence didn't show. [ chanting ] the prosecutor's logic did not sway protesters who took to the streets. >> they killed a child because he looked like a person called in about. that could have been me or any person. they didn't investigate. they pulled up and shot him. >> what does it mean to you in 2015 a 12-year-old can be shot by an officer and not be indicted? >> it's despicable. i won't say he can't be intighted. you have to stay optimistic that there's a process in the system that looks at the event of that day and will see it for what it is. >> are you optimistic.

>> i'm very optimistic. >> why? >> because i believe in place. >> reporter: many held out hope for an indictment after a ruling in june. the municipal court was pressed to weigh the evidence. and a judge found probable cause that a crime was committed. one of those was joseph. part of the officer's decision to shoot 12-year-old tamir rice was he looked big for his age. it's sad children are not seen as children. there has been study after study that shows, you know black children, black boys, are looked at as adults after the age of so. you are kids are not allowed to be kids, they are forced to grow up and make adult decisions. now they are kids. >> reporter: he works with a group called the new

abolitionist association, organising protests aimed at changing how black and latino men are freed by the criminal justice system. >> if you understand the conditions in america, in a lot of cases, especially faster cases. the white officers are not going to see black boys as children. if we are forced to look through justice in their eyes, they will never see a child, and the sild will end up dead. >> in other places where there's white boys in similar situations, they see a child. >> have you talked about what happened. >> we did a school this summer, and a lot of young folks were asked to do pictures of how they felt about tamir rice, all these things happening in this country. one of the pictures i will never get out of my head is a child

who had a black body with blood drawn in crayon, and a stick figure of a man in blue with a police at, with a gun. >> the death of tamir rice, and the imprint of others left an impact on the youth. the kids i talked to, they want change, they have that intuitive understanding that something needs to change. they need the guidance or the vision to know where to direct it. >> they have gone flow this incident. they are strategising to make sure is keeps cap ebb. >> the decision not to indict the fer, where does it go from here. >> as a community of activists, people that want to see justice, we have to commit ourselves to

struggle in this country to get it done. it's the only way it got down in this country. >> dt outrageous christoph burns beneath the surface. cleveland's mayor had to issue an apology after the city filed suite against the family, trying to collect $500 billed in balance fees. official say it was procedure to follow the suit. >> next year the sound of strain. catching the high notes and the suffering for it in some of broadway's biggest shows. and more trouble for a high flyer friday on "america tonight". "america tonight" and the latest troubles facing the controversial f-35 fighter jets and what it may mean to the presidential race. that's friday on "america

tonight".v

headed into a holiday weekend, who is up for a show. some of the hottest tickets on broadway for the moment, for the musicals. hamilton, king and i. they thrill audiences for the big voices. if you think about it. modern music is braced with loud numbers, it turns out those shows come with risks for the

performers. people are vulnerable to injuries that are career ending. [ ♪ ] . >> we started doing theatre in third grade. i went to pursue theatre. >> i was going from a small town where i was known for my ability, everyone knew i would make it to new york city, where it was scary and everyone was talented. >> when kimberley townsend moved from manhattan to new jersey to pursue the show business dream,

ads were stacked against her. >> i'm going to have to work hard. i may not make it. it's terrifying. >> townsend suffered a vocal injury. one that is common among singers. >> i will be forcing my voice, losing my voice. i would be anxious. that's the first time i felt i would be able to do it. [ sings ] potential for injury exists in every genre of music. >> reporter: david is a renown vocal instructor. >> on stage in wicked, in brooklyn, in the heights. the show is written where the female voice has to go higher. >> reporter: voice injury plagued adele and others who have gone under the knife. now a new wave of broadway

musicals is pushing performers to the edge of their vocal rangers. until recently they were lyric sopranos like lorry jones in oklahoma. [ singing ] but in the past decade big-time belters came into favour, the notes are higher, requiring more vocal left. >> broadway singing breaks down into two categories. >> sopranos, lofting julie andrews sound. >> and the contemporary like patty la bell. so what do you do when you have to get way above that. in wicked there's an f.

in brooklyn, an a flat. there's gs that women have to sing as if they were speaking. you have to increase air pressure, that is pushing on the vocal folds. and they have to resist more. it's like going to the gym and trying to pick up £300. you'll sprain something. these are really high-level vocal athletes. >> the these doctors treat some renowned performers. >> to expect to perform as that level day in, day out. eight shows a week is ridiculous. this is a young musical theatre performer, successful. you can see there's irregularities along the edge.

we would expect this. >> they conducted the first study of vocal health and broadway singers. the results 25% of performers had a diagnosed injury. >> one sa nodule. a bump forming in the vocal cords. they are common in adult women. >> nodules don't happen overnight, but months to years out of beating the heck out of your vocal cords. >> reporter: kimberley is working through her injury, exercising her voice for hours each day. >> three hours every day for sure, and sometimes more. i do vocal range working warm-ups. she sings scales and practices

songs that strengthen the muscles weakened by her injuries. she'll make a full recovering, doctors say it could take years before she's as good as new. i know i have the talent. it's raw. it needs to be refined again. >> singers like kimberley townsend are putting it all an the line. >> she counts great. that's "america tonight". tell us who you think. you can talk to us on twitter or facebook and come whack. we'll have more of "america tonight" tomorrow.

diplomatic break through. >> we have agreed to implement a nation wade cessation of hostilities, to begin in a target of one week's time a promise to halt the violence in syria, why it's not called a ceasefire. >> n.a.t.o. will help counter