downing street night owl and potential star witness the, the su gray nor the police can question the bach her out to 0, westminster, and the bite and family as well kind. and you feel, in addition to the white house, 2 year old willow, the cat is making herself comfortable in the halls of the president's home. her 1st encounter with the biden's was when she jumped on stage while jill biden was campaigning and pennsylvania during the 2020 presidential elections. ah. so just a quick look at the main stories for you, hon. ukraine's president has urged the west not to stop panic over the likelihood of a russian invasion, which he said is damaging his country's economy. despite the huge build up of russian troops near ukraine, vladimir lansky said he does not consider the situation now any more tense than before. earlier brush and present, let him a push and said he doesn't want the situation to ask. late. blaming the u. s. and

nato, for these concerns. but if his part, nato sexual general is one that russian aggression could come as a cyber attack and tempted coo or sabotage was just our b of a business. we're grateful to the united states for their ongoing support for our sovereignty. but i am the president of ukraine and i'm based here and i think i know the details more than any other. we do understand what the risks are. it's important that the president should know the situation from me, not the intermediaries. we do not see a bigger escalation. yes, the truth numbers have gone up, but i was talking about the same thing and 2021. when there were drills in the russian federation, there was a big build up. we were supported by the u. s. europeans called on russia to pull back. i don't think the situation is more intense than that time and early 2021. there was no such coverage of ukraine at that time. a live the king of us who has been suspended by the west african block eco us after monday's coo but it stopped

short of new sanctions at least until representatives whole talks with the new military gentle on saturday. takeover has been condemned by regional leaders who fear mos destabilization in the country. aid groups are saying nearly 4 and 10 people in ethiopia take our region of suffering and extreme lack of food. the ones wild food program surveyed almost a 1000 families in the region and found at 3 quarters a using extreme coping strategies. like cutting the number of meals 8, it says no aid convoys been able to reach to grace's the middle of december. and at the u. n is urging the international community to increase the pressure on me and mars military gender over the campaign of violence against its own people. it says citizens of described a regime of torture, attacks, arbitrary arrests, sham trials and intimidation. those are the headlines this our, the stream is coming up next. ah

i i of them. yeah. okay, welcome to the bonus edition of the stream where i bring you some with a great conversations from our archives today. yes. have turned their extraordinary personal stories into life. lessons for i saw coming up the force, the katie became an award winning poet. the mom who walked away from her ph. d to become a publisher, south asian children's literature, and the writer, his encounters with mediocre white men in spy. it has laid his book. let's start with disability rights attorney hobbin gerber. the 1st deaf line, graduate of harvard law school. hobbin bought along her hearing translator to the

stream, the translator type what was happening in the studio into a keyboard. that information was sent wirelessly to hobbins braille computer. so she could read it. i'm response, the interview about her memoir was seamless. so my parents love and adore me. they also are a little protective, like many parents, and growing up, we struggled with the challenge of my parents wanting to keep me safe and protected . and me wanting to experience as much as the world as possible. i'm deaf blind, i have limited vision and hearing, and there are a lot of negative stereotypes about what people with disabilities can and can't do . and that's the heart of the arguments i've had with my parents growing up. there was a situation where i wanted to help build a school in molly,

west africa and my parents said, no, it's not save. and i told them you learn from africa. my data grew up in ethiopia. my mom grew up in this area. how can they tell me it's not safe? it was because they were feeling protective as parents. it hadn't nothing to do with africa. even if i was building a school in se montana, i'm sure they would have told me no, it's not me. so i tried, this is a story of advocacy. so my advocate it and i told them i know my abilities. i know what i can and can't do. and i can build a school. and they still said no. i was really frustrated. i'm sure lots of kids can relate to this of wanting to do something and your parents saying no. so i asked myself, how can i convince them they're not believing me,

even though i feel like an expert when it comes to my abilities. so i asked myself, who else can help convince them that i can do this? so we brought in the program manager. so take students to developing countries to help build schools. and she sat down at lunch with me and my parents, and they asked her how can hop and build a school, she can't see. how would that work? and the manager told them, i don't know, but we'll try. we'll find a way. it's ok if you don't know how to do something as long as you try to seek solutions, as long as they try to figure it out and make it work. and we did. i went to molly. i helped build a school and i literally 1000000 and building a school. we were shoveling making bricks, digging the latrine,

so that kids in this village. and molly, good could i get an education? the height of the program though, was about teaching high school students, that we can have an impact in the world. even if you have a disability, you still can have an impact in the world. when i came back home, my parents were more convinced, but only slightly. even now, even after graduating from law school, there is still no us and still rejected. tell a story, you use it as an illustration. you give some stats and you say, do better. this is how we can do better. i am showing a picture with our audience of you in juno in alaska ad iglesia. and that was a time when you were hoping to get us some a job. he was super qualified, really smart student, and you couldn't get a job and you share the statistic of about 70 percent of blind people never walk.

so this idea of being a person with disabilities and not being able to work how you working to change that that's a good question. so when i was in college, i really wanted a summer job, just like lots of other college students. and one of my friends told me, i know a place where there are lots of summer jobs, alaska. and he was arrayed, there's a lot to tourism industry in juneau, alaska, and lots of summer jobs because of the tourism industry. employers would see my resume and get excited and invite me to interviewers i was valedictorian in high school, really good grades and polish lots and volunteer experiences. and still, employers didn't want to hire me able ism assumptions that i was incompetent. i

would not be able to do the job. i applied to all kinds of jobs, dishwashing, shelving gift shops, folding laundry and hotel. these are tactile activities. they don't require a site, but they still assumed i couldn't do it and they wouldn't hire me. that taught me that introduced me into employment discrimination and in me and me realised working hardest, not enough. we also need employers to get rid of abel ism stump, assuming that people with disabilities are incompetent. and then to lee that summer, i found a one employer who was inclusive. she hired me to be a front desk clerk at a small gym in juneau, alaska. the lay responsibility is included, managing the cash register, the machines and the jam cleaning the changing rooms. she didn't care whether used

site or non visual technique, as long as i got the job done. lots of people with disabilities have alternative techniques and alternative techniques are equal in value to mean stream techniques . employers need to know that one day a woman came to the front desk of the gym and she said a treadmill isn't working. i followed her to the treadmills, and i pressed the on button. nothing happened. i tried the other buttons on the machine, nothing happened. so i thought the machine from top to bottom, and on the bottom, i felt a switch. i flicked the switch and the machine were to light. the lady size. only goodness, i didn't see that switch. i told her i didn't see it either with the very funny and determined disability rights advocate, holden gob. there are some string guests who are simply unforgettable. like the

poet and play. right. lemme say. lemme grew up in the north of england in foster care and institutions. his story is traumatic and lem doesn't hope back. he unleashed the warners, in his memoir, my name is y, and right here on the screen for the 1st sort of the 1st 16 years of my life, i thought my name was norman, and i had, i left the car system at 18 years of age with no family and no witnesses. i was a living and had been forced to live as a lie. i had my mother and family stolen from me. i was imprisoned as a child. i was institutionalized. i was a dragged through a foster home of people who hated me as a baby, a learn to hate me. and then i was left alone 18 years to survive the rest of my life with no family. so i spent 30 years trying to get to the

documents, which were witness to the things that had happened me to me because otherwise i would sound like some crazy guy banging on about some strange thing that happened in his childhood. no, i was imprisoned. i had my mother stolen from me and my family and even my name. i didn't even know my name till i was 16 and a half. so getting these files and seeing, seeing what they did to me over 18 years, showed me the evidence that i needed to tank the entire government in england to court so that they could pay for what they had done to me. and i also spent my adult life searching for the family that had been stolen from me. that's one story. but this book, firstly, i took the government to court when i found, when i got all of the files in 2015,

i had the evidence of what they done to me. and then i could write the book and, and remember my life has been public record. hundreds of people writing comments about me decide making decisions about me imprisoning me even as a child. so, so to me, the memoir is not a expose a of myself. it is showing you what is already public record. i have a right to my past. i have a right to my childhood, and i have a right to my future and my presence as well. and that's really what my book is about. realized i am a black man. i said to myself, i am a black man. i am not colorblind. i am a black man, i am not sure he white. i am not a nigger, a coon, a wog. i am a black man. i changed,

seemingly overnight from the cheeky chappie. the happy go lucky joker into a threat and it hurt me. how could identifying who i am be a threat to people? i couldn't unsee the shopkeeper flew shred from the neck or woods at the sight of me. or the store detectives following me in the shops at the bus stops. i couldn't on see the woman clutching her handbag as i stood waiting for the bus. i couldn't on see that no one would sit next to me on the bose. i couldn't on see men glaring at me. i couldn't on see people in cows craning their necks to stare at me. i couldn't on see the people from the tops of the buzz is pointing at me and laughing at me. i couldn't on see them hacking up flem and spitting me from the bulls. i couldn't on see the police watching me or the police cow slowing down deliberately as they passed. i couldn't on see the cars accelerating as i crossed the road

slam thing. so i found myself powerful men, howard reading your work is poetic and beautiful, even as you're telling harrowing tales and stories about what happened to you. i want to share what your word means to some people. this is tony mason on twitter, who says just finished, my name is why it is superbly written, harrowing thought provoking and shocking read how wonderful to see the kid that went through all of this as he is today. but put that to one side for a moment because earlier you mentioned that you're not alone in this in a way you mentioned some documentaries to talk about the system of adoption. and one of them was featured on al jazeera as witness. it's called a girl in return. we haven't really my mom. we have a video coming from the director who's a friend of yours, katrina pierre. and here's what she told to stream. i think the biggest surprise to me doing my work with these to fill my done about adoption is with the 1st one.

mercy, mercy was definitely when i found out that 90 percent approximately 90 percent of all the options in the world, they are not really often. they do have a living mother and father, but they are not able to take care of them. and would my work on girl in return? i was very, very shocked to see how much your culture and your mother tongue, how important that is for you when you were formed as a person that i mean one could say that it kind of runs in your blood and you need, if you exclude that from a person you create a big trauma from this person. and i would like to hear them talk about how he experience that whole cultural thing or the lack of it in his upbringing. so them what your thoughts on that. but keep in mind, as we're doing the show where we're going out, live on youtube,

and there are so many people in the comment sank. he's ethiopian, he is habersham, i know him to talk to mike about who i been to t because people recognize you whether you are the young child or not. no. i am now known to my people. okay. like i am known to my people in ethiopia and i am, i'm blessed by being part of a community of ethiopians in ethiopia. and throughout the world. you know, my father was a pilot for ethiopian airlines. my mom works for the u. n. in new york. i've sisters and brothers all over the world but but, but the true family is of people who stop me in the street in addis ababa in new york in washington dc, especially washington dc. in nairobi all all over the world. who are ethiopians, who can look at me and say it's you, lemon. they say lemon. my name in am harric lemon. it means the question why. and it reminds me most of all this that and it's,

this is the most important thing about my entire life. and finding my family and of ethiopia in general, and put of me it's that i am not defined by my scars books by the incredible ability to heal. so when i meet ethiopians i, i, i am helium. and so it's a joyous occasion. my story may seem sad to you, but i always followed the lights. i always followed what i believe to be the truth even when isolated and having nobody to support me. a great son of infidel pierre lemon. sissy. it's oma lou. oh, let planned on becoming a writer until she says she was forced into it some issues with just too important for her to ignore, like racism, and massaging. last january,

we spoke about the latest work mediocre, the dangerous legacy of white male america. the inspiration for this or the sooner by some a frustration, but a particular moment. and the moment was, you know, trying to be in a retreat with other women. and this was a time to relax, to focus on a craft. it was a tree, you know, group that was really developed because women so rarely get a chance to focus on their work. and all we could really talk about and what we needed to talk about were these men, these white men that were impacting our route and their careers so heavily and in it as people get. so i was just, you know, why is this happening? what is me home this? you know, i kept seeing the story unfold in front of the path that led to where we were in that particular time where we are today. and i wanted other people to see it so that we could start looking at the patterns and looking at society as a whole, instead of treating each individual bad actor like an individual. and so part of

the systemic problems. and so i wanted to really show that story to people so they can see a new she began as you really inspiring a lot of conversations job. i know, i know you're used to this is by rick derrick. how long is it going to take before things ever changed as it seems? america has always had this issue. what are the main things that will lead to change? you asked this question all the time? really, i think it's really important to recognize that part of why we haven't been able to make progress. so these couple of things will happen. one is that we have, you know, almost exclusively framed discussions on race, around personal feelings and personal adam, us who are a racist, if you walk around actively hating people of color, right? you are texas, if you walk around with actively hating women and then if not, you are a good person part of the switch. but what we're actually talking about our system . we're talking about systems built to advantage from populations over other

systems built to wait for labor of members of our population and to give people a sense of comfort with that exploitation oppression. and we are told to look at, you know, personal relationships only because people make money of the system and empower for me. i don't want to looking at it so that when we do in systems right, when we start to make political change, systemic change, what we see is an immediate, violate backlash like we saw this last week, right? because people are so afraid, it's some changes. we have to recognize it's dying that we have it then addressing and making the sort of change in our systems. because we've been told time and time again. it's not possible and that's where the problem live, or we have been punished viciously for any progress we make in that area. and so it is model that we look at that and recognize that this is where i work life and we have to push through. we have never ending up from these systems were built by people. they are not immovable,

but we are told that they are and we are led to believe that they are so that we don't do the work. but we are powerful if we come together and actually start engaging systems to really push for change we can created. and that if we can create it, there wouldn't be such a violent backlash towards our comforts because people see that change coming. and they are afraid of it. when you work on a book like this, there is a toll when you talk about racism, white supremacy and hate, and people who don't like you talking about that, make it very, very clear. can you share not part of your what do you mind? yeah. you know, i think that anyone who, especially if you are a person of color, honestly if you are a black woman, we, when you threaten the system, the system comes back for you and people who are investing system come for you. and absolutely my experience, while it might seem extreme, if you're not doing this work, is not unfamiliar to many black people who have been fighting for liberation and

for change in this country. and so, you know, we have been threatened, we've had, you know, officers brought to our home when we were swatted, we have had to move from our home due to regular harassment and threats in our home . they says a regular occurrence and it's, i'm not alone. and if you look at history, and even if you look at proposal, you'll see time and time generation after generation, the way in which people are made to take chris speaking around these systems. but i think it's also important to note that this comes for people everyday people who aren't writing about why, who have missy everyday people of color, who do something, anything that inconveniences the power structure of improving uses whiteness in this country. you are often madness of violence back. why should we see this in plenty of our new stories where, you know, black people can't have a barbecue or lemonade without, when calling the police on them?

right. these violent leper cautions are waiting for all of us. no matter what we do, if we ever challenge the system or even in the best selling new york times or for jo. my allude finally, the importance of representation in books. when st. guess sol judge, oh, she was starting her family. she could find stories that she liked, the also represented her culture to read to her little girl. so what if you do about it? soldier set up a publishing house. so the journey to creating virus baby's really started on my own journey to motherhood. i was pregnant with my daughter and i was having the library, the baby shower as you do in the age of interest. and i really wanted to put books on our bookshelf that reflected my own culture, my history, my heritage. and what i found out there was really problematic, you know, there were books out there, but some of them were developmentally inappropriate. some of them were culturally

an accurate or worse culturally insensitive. and i couldn't believe that in this day and age. my daughter wasn't going to see herself on the cover of the book, so it took leaving my ph. d program and a $1000.00 a start up capital. but that's how barth babies was launched. we have a tweet here that is perfect for you because this is, ivan actually says there are enough platform that allow people of color to write stories in their own way. publishing houses expect writers to write in a manner that they want. not that the writers want, he who has the money has the power to dictate what he wants, and i'll add and she as well. but talk to us about what this tweet makes you feel. and this was some of the thinking behind why you started it. yeah, i think i truly wanted to create a platform where south asian, the south asian experience could be seen and heard and created. and that's why it ended up being a publishing house. you know, i tried writing a book and you know, maybe one day there will be a book that i write. but for some reason it wasn't what was going to happen. and so

instead i decided to launch a publishing house because i really just how important it was to give a platform to others and to give a platform to this entire community. so to you saying that you couldn't find the right books for the family that you are starting. i'm just scooting through some of the books in your publishing house we have finding on coming out next may. bad meaning is powerful. always angelie sala in the sky. have an alt seal, it series as well. can you tell us one story that that shows what to be culturally sensitive to be culturally aware actually means ah, that's a really, really great question. and i think each one of our books does a really phenomenal job of sharing that south asian experience. because we recognize that the south asian experience isn't unified. it's multi dimensional. you know, you have south asians who are muslims, who are new, who are christian,

who are seek and we want to share all of that. i think there are a lot of books in our platform that do that really, really well left. celebrate the volley is one of our sort of perennial favorites that really shares how well use a multi face holiday. and that's a story that's not often too old in mainstream media. also, i think super satya said the day is a really phenomenal story because like right there on the cover, you have this multicultural family. you know, you have a dad wearing his turban, you have his daughter who proudly speak with her long, long hair on the cover. and it's really just an opportunity for those of us who have so many different backgrounds who have all those different intersections to see ourselves. and that's a show for today. thanks for watching the. ringback ah,

the 35th meeting of the african union will see heads of states discuss coven 19 in the conflict in ethiopia, with climate change, but keener fatso and other west african, who's high on the agenda? can they deliver a unified response to the regions mounting challenges? special coverage on al jazeera medication is the beacon that lights the future of any society, but for those who live in abandoned places, getting an education takes inspiration and determination to, to live in the remote areas. don't have electricity, tv, or computers. to short films show how a love of learning finds a way a j select on al jazeera dictatorships to

democracies. activists to corporations, control of the message is crucial. oil companies have become very good at recognizing ways to phrase what they want to hear. we care about the environment you do to, you should buy our oil cleared for public opinion or profit. once you make people afraid, you can use that to justify stripping away basic civil liberties. listening post examined the vested interest behind the content you consume on al jazeera, accounting, the cost of rough style for the year of the full run is there is sentiment in stock market here to say the prices are 10 year high, where the cost of coping become even more affordable and nigerian petroleum minister on reforming the nations oil sector counseling. cough on al jazeera. ah, al jazeera went

ah, hello, i'm marianne m i z. and i'm going to quit. look at the main stories now. ukraine's president has urged the west not to panic over the likelihood of a russian invasion, which he said is damaging his country's economy. despite the huge build up for russian troops, new ukraine, ramirez lansky said he does not consider the situation now. any more tense than before. earlier the russian president vladimir putin said he doesn't want the situation to escalate any further. blaming the u. s. in nato. these concerns for his bond nato secretary general warm the russian aggression could come in different forms like.