if you're a parent struggling with your child's remote learning or you're a teacher struggling on the other side of that screen you know what we're doing right now is not working and we are a nation that is grieving. grieving the loss of life the loss of jobs the loss of opportunities the loss of normalcy and yes the loss of certainty and while this virus touches us all we've got to be honest it is not an equal opportunity offender black latino and indigenous people are suffering and dying disproportionately and this is not a coincidence it is the effect of structural racism of inequities in education and technology health care and housing job security and transportation the

injustice in reproductive and maternal health care in the excessive use of force by police and in our broader criminal justice system this virus it has no eyes and yet it know exactly how we see each other and how we treat each other and let's be clear there is no back scene for racism we have got to do the work for george floyd for briana taylor for the lives of too many others to name for our children and for all of us we've got to do the work to fulfill that promise of equal justice under law. because here's the

thing none of us are free until all of us are free. so we're at an inflection point a constant chaos leaves us adrift the incompetence makes us feel afraid the callousness makes us feel alone it's a lot and here's the thing we can do better and deserve so much more we must elect a president who will bring something different something better and do the important work a president who will bring all of us together black white latino asian indigenous to achieve the future we collectively want

we must elect joe biden and i will tell you i knew joe as vice president i knew joe on the campaign trail and i 1st got to know joe as the father of my friend so joe's son beau and i served as attorneys general of our states delaware and california during the great recession he and i spoke on the phone nearly every day working together to win back billions of dollars for homeowners from the big banks that foreclosed on people's homes and boat i we would talk about his family how as a single father joe would spend 4 hours every day riding the train back and forth from wilmington to washington bo and hunter got to have breakfast every morning

with their dad they went to sleep every night with the sound of his voice reading bedtime stories. and while they endured an unspeakable loss those 2 little boys always knew that they were deeply unconditionally loved and what also moved me about joe is the work that he did as he was going back and forth this is the leader who wrote the violence against women act and enact it the assault weapons ban who as vice president implemented the recovery act which brought our country back from the great recession he championed the affordable care act protecting millions of americans with preexisting conditions who spent decades promoting american values and interests around the world

joe he believes we stand with our allies and stand up to our adversaries right now we have a president who turns our tragedies into political weapons joe will be a president who turns our challenges into purpose job bring us together to build an economy that doesn't leave anyone behind where a good paying job is the floor not the ceiling joe will bring us together to end this pandemic and make sure that we are prepared for the next one joe will bring us together to squarely face and dismantle racial injustice furthering the work of generations. joe and i believe that

we can build that beloved community one that is strong and decent just and kind one in which we can all see ourselves that's the vision that our parents and grandparents fought for the vision that made my own life possible the vision that makes the american promise for all its complexities and imperfections a promise worth fighting for. so make no mistake the road ahead is not easy we may stumble we may fall short but i pledge to you that we will act boldly and deal with our challenges honestly we will speak truth and we will act with the same faith in you that

we ask you to place in us we believe that our country all of us will stand together for a better future and we already are we see it in the doctors the nurses the home health care workers and front line workers who are risking their lives to save people they've never met we see it in the teachers and truck drivers the factory workers and farmers the postal workers and paul workers all putting their own safety on the line to help us get through this pandemic and we see it in so many of you who are working not just to get us through our current crisis but to somewhere better there's something happening all across our country. it's not about joe or me

it's about you and it's about us people of all ages and colors and creeds who are yes taking to the streets and also persuading our family members rallying our friends organizing our neighbors and getting out the vote and we have shown that when we vote we expand access to health care and expand access to the ballot box and ensure that more working families can make a decent living. and so inspired by a new generation you you are pushing us to realize the ideals of our nation pushing us to live the values we share

decency and fairness justice and love you are patriots who remind us that to love our country is to fight for the ideals of our country in this election we have a chance to change the course of history we're all in this by you me and joe together what an awesome responsibility what an awesome privilege so let's fight with conviction. let's fight with hope let's fight with confidence in ourselves and a commitment to each other to the america we know is possible

the america we love. in years from now this moment will have passed and our children and our grandchildren will look in our eyes and they're going to ask us where were you when the stakes were so high they will ask us what was it like and we will tell them we will tell them not just how we felt we will tell them what we did thank you god bless you and god bless the united states of america. well if you are joining us we were just hearing from that come on our harris there

the 1st black woman and the 1st woman of indian descent taking on the 3rd night of the democratic national convention after being nominated for vice president. prior to that we also heard from the former president barack obama speaking from the museum of the american revolution in philadelphia and we also heard from hillary clinton over the course of the night a historic night indeed let's speak to our correspondent alan fischer alan this was coming to harris's biggest audience yet to introduce herself to america when people think she did that. why is she used some of the lines that we've heard on the campaign trail but having said that they're not many people like me unlike you who would watch the campaign trail and would nor the lines from

the speech she did what she's often done and said that she is guided by the line that she used the 1st time she ever stood up in a courtroom former attorney general of california when she said i am coming for the people so that was telling she talked about joe biden as well but she said the country is now at an inflection point she attacked donald trump as we expect vice presidential candidates to do she said the country is grieving and that people normally had jobs been lost but lives had been lost as well and all of this happening she pointed out on donald trump's watch i think a line that will resonate is the fact that she talked about structural racism in the united states i can't think of a candid. it's addressed directly is common and of course she has got the back growing to be able to do that but the point she was making is that the corporate crisis is impacted people of color much much more and people who are in lower

income brackets much much more and she said the reason for that is structural racism in the united states so that was quite a bold line from some will certainly. certainly appeal to those on the progressive side of the democratic party it was difficult to follow barack obama difficult to follow such or an incredible speech from the former president but this is her job she has got to stand up there sell or self to the united states and sell her vision of america that she shares with the man who picked her for the job joe biden but you're right a moment of history democratic conventions are beginning on for more than 180 years this is the 1st time that a woman of color has stood up and exempted the nomination to be on the presidential ticket let's talk about former president barack obama's speech it was indeed powerful speech and surprisingly he possibly unleashing his most scathing attack

yet on donald trump. it was startling. that barack obama has talked about donald trump in the past without mentioning donald trump's name and we nor that he has been critical of some of the decisions coming out of the white house it's almost an unwritten rule it's certainly an unspoken convention that presidents don't former presidents don't attack the current occupier of the oval office that went completely the window in the last hour or so here was barack obama with his strongest condemnation of donald trump seeing that he thought he might rise to the level of the presidency but he has simply field to do that and he went on to list what he saw as donald trump's feelings a point he kept going back to again and again and again we're seeing that donald

trump had acted to enrich himself and others now some people are already seeing now as some sort of class war thing that you don't want trump is attacking then he's attacking donald trump for those of done well in this economy i think it was much more than that i think he was suggesting that donald trump has acted to benefit his own personal finances his own company and his own friends without mentioning things like the pardons that he has handed out and he also talked about what has been a big controversy here in the united states over the last week the problems with the postal service and whether or not mail in ballots will be sent and donald trump has talked about not giving the post office the below money that it needs to conduct the election properly and there's also what has been described as the traditional voter suppression where names disappeared off the voting lists particularly in swing states barack obama made a point that people have to get out and vote he said we don't want them to steal

the election from 4 years ago when i began my search for a vice president. i didn't know i'd end up finding a brother joe and i come from different places different generations but what i quickly came to admire about joe biden is his resilience born of too much struggle his empathy borne of too much grief joe's a man who learned early on to treat every person he meets with respect and dignity living by the words his parents taught him no one's better knew joe. well you're better than nobody. it's interesting that barack obama chose the museum of the american revolution to make his speech that's up in in philadelphia he said the reason he chose the not the tone was

set with that because he believes that the republic that was created in that moment with that movement is under threat from the current incumbent in the white house in 1600 pennsylvania avenue joe biden will make his speech on thursday he would need to introduce himself to the american public he's been around for more than 50 years what is interesting is that throughout the 1st 2 nights of the convention donald trump has not lived tweeted a tour he's almost ignored the democratic convention not when barack obama was speaking several times he tweeted out often in caps attacking barack obama attacking joe biden he was as they see on social media these days very much triggered by the speech that barack obama gave while kummel harness and her speech is certainly a moment of history i think most people will be talking in the next few hours and

certainly into the news shows here in the united states on thursday about that startling speech from president former president barack obama and his criticisms of current president donald trump. our correspondent there in washington d.c. many thanks let's get to stephanie brown james the co-founder of the collective an organization working to address representation of african americans in public office many thanks for joining us so what was your reaction to. come along harris's each there was it what you expected what you had in mind. i would say it doesn't was what i expected i'll tell you that her speech to me was completely. in line with the theme tonight a more perfect union and i thought that it was a perfect follow up to president barack obama's speech where they really laid out

both the past present and future of this country in terms of the many challenges that have faced this country kamel here as he has been able to place herself in a lineage from her from her her time as a as a child of immigrants in as a black woman as an indian woman in america she was able to center herself in some of the struggles that people face people of color face in this country but also she was able to pivot and talk about a brighter future and so i thought that she was spot on tonight not too many surprises from her this evening but i thought that she was able to present herself in a way that has voter is interested in learning more. do you think she made enough cross cultural origin story which former president barack obama did so well. well i think she's been laying that story out for almost a year now on the campaign trail and so i think there's only now for her the challenge

is introducing ourselves to voters that. don't know the family hear a story and so that's something else you will have to continue to do i think tonight what she needed to do was to be very clear that she is a black woman in america yes she is an indian american woman but we know there are black women are often considered the backbone of the democratic party i call you roll call of black women leaders like shirley chisholm in mary mccarthy she was able to center black women specifically through her speech tonight that was huge i can tell you right now that in her also saying that there is not racism in america was a big line so i think that she was able to do things that she needed to do to speak to the base of voters democrats need to show up to vote in november what is the challenge for her now as we go forward before november because we still have many of the restrictions that the corona virus outbreak will put on those

campaigning will she be able to reach the people that she so clearly needs to get on board the democratic ticket. well tomorrow night's team is america's promise where i can envision there is going to be a lot of conversation about the play and the by that here is take it has i think that come what harris has to now go out and talk about what it is or they want to do to move the country forward why they are the party why they are going to get there americans can believe in you can have trusted you can have hope in 2 really we've heard so many of the things that they go down down john has done wrong and what he has done wrong to move the country forward to figure out this is our plans to move to move the country where it needs to be in so she's going to have to have difficult conversations i think the 1st thing she should do is get a contingency of black men hispanic man or men of color to talk to them about her

previous record as a prosecutor as a d.a. as attorney general i think that in roles into the male communities of color is going to be important for her in for this campaign and so i think that there should be a quick thing that she does post the convention stephanie brown james many thanks for speaking to us here on al-jazeera thank you well as we were saying come on harris has made history by accepting the democratic nomination for vice president she represents the complexities of race and gender in the united states she's the 4th woman to appear on the major parties election ticket and she's the 1st woman of color. reports. when former vice president joe biden announced the person who wanted to take his old job the campaign made it clear that they saw senator kemal

harris's ferreted as a major strength my mother and father they came from opposite sides of the world to arrive in america. one from india and the other from jamaica that makes her the 1st woman of color on a major party's presidential ticket and the 1st of asian descent and it didn't look at this fight for her it has we're not used to seeing black women in these roles she is a 10 black woman elected to the u.s. senate we have never seen a black woman on the court even before her selection her race was a target for the trump family the president's son don jr retreated and then deleted an argument that she isn't african-american because her father is jamaican political analysts doubt that will have an impact i think that it's important or people to drown out that kind of noise i think once you have. young african-american experience in this country you're an african-american you know her

parents her all that was generated when she was an african-american much like rock obama's father was african reason african american but her selection and ancestry could help the campaign in a new way asian americans are the fastest growing racial or ethnic group in the electorate accounting for 5 percent of people eligible to vote. trump could have been trying to reach those voters over the years he has made a big deal of his relationship with the indian prime minister but some activists don't think that will sway many voters of asian descent there are people who came here would recently or in the past whose predominant singular focus is how is the u.s. behavior towards india is their prism. and everyone or has. very few of those who born and brought up here a 2nd 2nd generation feel that way quite frankly as the nominee she now receives protection from the secret service she's reportedly picked

a very appropriate whole sign they will now refer to her simply as a pioneer. al-jazeera. as we've been saying former u.s. president barack obama has delivered a stinging rebuke of his successor on day 3 of the democratic national convention let's take a listen to what he said just a little bad. i have sat in the oval office with both of the men who are running for president. i never expected that my successor would embrace my vision or continue my policies i did hope for the sake of our country that donald trump might show some interest in taking the job seriously that he might come to feel the weight of the office and discover some reverence for the democracy that had been placed in his care but he never did

for close to 4 years now he has shown no interest in putting in the work no interest in finding common ground no interest in using the awesome power of his office to help anyone but himself and his friends no interest in treating the presidency as anything but one more reality show that he can use to get the attention he craves. let's bring in michael blake from washington he is the democratic national committee vice chairman and served as a senior aide in the obama white house many thanks for speaking to us here on al jazeera so you must have been listening in to those speeches what did you make of tonight's event well it was really going incredibly well scoring a night. and when you. when you think about. carmel erik's who's now opening up. for so many communities.

coming open up no doors of any communities you know we think about president barack obama where they are working with him demonstrating what truly just looks like all of this was conveying that we have to watch for the country to move forward in a positive manner and while we celebrate tonight as we should we recognize that there is a very clear choice. communities or devastation and there are a trump presidency so it was incredibly but filling to see and listening tonight do you think coming to her as did enough in her speech tonight to win over those who perhaps don't know enough about her or listening to her for the 1st time

on this sort of platform did she manage to sell herself. across the nation. she's prepared. to make an american bio so there's incredible find that we have you know she is that all levels of government and i'm in a school but when the state level the federal level she's ready for the moment and we understand that very clearly when you heard her say that there is no back racism that speaking truth to power. when she speaks about how her mother raised her and my aunt great at the opportunity it's raining today. so anyone that's wondering around the country or around the world that are kind of about heritage ready to be vice president because the fundamental question is if they have to become president are they ready and that answer is yes and so she showed you why you should be fine in her trajectory and her passion for preparation why you should know that she is

right across to you that she is ready to service life rather than it was incredibly exciting and selling and i think about her and the family from iowa tony and others she's right. former president barack obama nation possibly his most scathing attack yet about there's a lot of feeling that to him isn't that mean he was speaking not just on the hoff biden but for his legacy. well of course you know i had the honor of working for president obama for 6 years in the white house and most campaigns and what we see is one person in president obama vice president biden who were covered the economy ensure that there was access to health care address minority women business issues and you have someone in donald trump who is a racist sexist xeno form a demagogue trying to destroy the legacy of our country and so it was making it

very clear an election is about choice and contrasts and here is the choice for everyone do we continue down a path where people are literally dying because of donald trump and my plans or do we decide to move forward with a clear vision with the by the merest agenda so president obama was very clear we cannot wait we cannot sit on the sidelines we have to be engaged we have to be there to do everything for the bioterror secure to with michael blake really good to talk to you speaking to us there from washington the democratic national committee vice chairman he also served as a senior aide in the obama white house. still ahead on al-jazeera addressing the forced recruitment of children into conflicts colombia i think to try to you know to help come to terms with the past. extreme hate highway ins and like bring

strikes california faces extraordinary conditions forcing hundreds of wildfires. hello a state of emergency has been declared full california with regards to the extreme hates and the fire risk here we have got some salads it's a north america some showers that are just around the rockies and some other havey right into the southeastern corner in fact we have reports of a tornado in florida recently the showers extend up towards the mid atlantic states further north as generates riled up towards new england east and posit canada for now the be a few showers just making the way towards quebec as we go on into friday shows there into central parts of canada about oh but around scotch water we got some wet weather coming in sewer b.c.

just making its way down into the pacific northwest but no sort of any meaningful rainfall there across the west coast of the u.s. if the truth be known the heat continues we'll see temperatures phoenix still getting up into the low to mid forty's over the coming days you can just see the bottom of the screen there that is hurricane genevieve that's just to the west of baja california down into the carriage last the clutch of storms that's going to push in very heavy right up towards jamaica as we go on through thursday may well develop into a tropical system something to watch out for may want to sunshine and showers across the islands. but. all coverage of africa is what i'm most proud of every time i travel a bad way to exceed still west africa people stop me and tell me how much they appreciate our country and our focus is not just on their suffering but also on the more appealing and inspiring stories people trust algeria to tell them what's

happening in their communities in kiev and on buying came down from africa and i couldn't be more proud to be automated. the over the air. here watching al-jazeera mind our top stories this hour the us democratic party has formally nominated senator come alive horace for vice president it makes her the 1st woman of color on a major party ticket paris told democrats' convention that donald trump's leadership has cost lives.