the communities to come together with the police. but it's a two-way street. it's not just a one-way street here. this is just, you know, the police officers are the bad guys here. it's not. you know? it's that the people have got to also reach out to the police department, themselves. and that's, i think that's where we'll start to gain a lot more trust. >> we'll continue this. we're going to take a quick break. come back in just a moment to take it further down the road. l arthritis lasts 8 hours but aleve can last 12 hours. and aleve is proven to work better on pain than tylenol arthritis. so why am i still thinking about this? how are ya? good. aleve. proven better on pain.

but the comfort it provides is it's justimmeasurable.ece the america red cross brings hope and help to people in need every 8 minutes, every day. so this season give something that means something.

bring you up to date on other stories making news tonight. north korea is making new threats. the kumpb tcountry says it will after the white house, pentagon, the whole u.s. mainland but says it was not involved in a hack on sony. florida state university quarterback jameis winston cleared by a school panel. he was accused of violating the student conduct code over allegations that he sexually assaulted another student who years ago. muhammad ali is in the hospital with pneumonia. his spokesman says ali is expected to be out of the hospital soon. we'll have more coverage of the execution-style killing of two new york police department officers ahead and also coming up tonight at 7:30, cnn's spotlight on beverly johnson,

iconic former supermodel and most highly profiled accuser of comedian bill cosby. tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern, christiane aullemanpoa a mystery of some of the oldest stories ever told.

right now, a vigil for two

slain police officers is under way. officers on site there laying flowers, laying a wreath. the they're part of a whole collection of people all day long drawn to the site. the two officers were ambushed yesterday sitting in their patrol car. they were shot in the head because they wore a police uniform according to authorities. we're learning more about the officers. raphael ramos and his family. swro joining us, alexandra field, and nick valencia. let's begin with you. a ramos family member spoke publicly a short time ago. what did she ask people to do in the wake of officer ramos' death? >> she spoke brief comments, emotional ones. it was the aunt of raphael ramos shot and killed yesterday morning while sitting in his patrol car. i want to play for you what she had, or what her message was to

people who were listening. >> i would like to thank all those who have shared their sympathy and support for our beloved family member, raphael ramos who will always be loved and missed by many. i hope and pray that we can reflect on this tragic loss of lives that have occurred so that we can move forward and find an amicable path to a peaceful co-existence. we would like to extend our condolences to the liu family also. thank you. >> ramos leaves behind so many loving family members including two children. a son in college. and another 13-year-old who took to his social media page on facebook to give a message to his father, very heartfelt message. he said, "today i had to say bye to my father. he was there for me every day of my life. he was the best father i could ask for. it's horrible that someone gets

shot dead for being a police officer. everyone says they hate cops but they're the people you can call for help. i will always love you and will never forget you, rip, dad." we heard from ramos' family members. we haven't heard from wenjin liu's family members. we know little about him at this point other than he was a member of the force for 7 1/2 years and recently been married two years ago. so many police officers in new york, martin, grieving the loss of their colleagues. bill bratton giving a message to his force asking them all to stay safe. there are 15 other active threats against the police department that the nypd is taking very seriously right now. so many of the officers in uniform concerned about their own safety tonight after the shooting of their colleagues. martin? >> all right, nick, thank you very much for that. alexandra, you were out at the hospital last night where the slain officers were taken when there was hopes of trying to care for them. and then you also witnessed the aftermath today on the streets there. so tell us more about these officers and what you've learned and the feeling in the

department about them? >> reporter: martin, when we hear about the ugliness, the hideousness of the attack that happened yesterday, there have been a few images that i think will stay with all new yorkers and with people really all across the country. you saw those crowds of police officers who lined the avenue yesterday when the blanambulanc pulled out with the fallen colleagues in them. two of their colleagues were executed, two of their comrades. we're now seeing dozens of nypd officers who have come here to this corner. they want to take a moment today to pay tribute and each of them has taken a flower, we're starting to see them sort of pros process behind me, leave a flower, take a moment to remember in this spot where two of their fellow officers were gunned down in a random, brutal attack. executed for oano reason other than the job they had, the uniform they wore. this corner is supposed to be

separate from the politics. when we talk about what's going on between the union and mayor, this is a spot where people are coming to only focus on the lives that were lost here, martin. >> alexandra field, thank you for that. coming to us live from the point of where the vigil is ongoing. when a senseless tragedy takes place, families are often left struggling financially, especially where their children's future is concerned. that's also where an organization known as the silver shield foundation comes in co-founded by new york yankees owner si ee eer senibrenner. joining me on the telephone is casey, the chief operating officer of the foundation. and casey, your group is planning now to cover the education of the children of officer raphael ramos, do i have it right? >> correct. correct. we set money aside for children of police officers and firefighters killed in line of duty. and we have -- since our

inception which was 1982, so we've been doing it for 32 years and we specifically set it aside for college, it could be for tutoring, grad school, but it goes directly toward educational support. >> uh-huh. and how long does this go on for for an individual, for a child? >> some of the -- right, it can happen right now because he's -- one of his children is 18. and in college. and it happens immediately. they send us a bill and we send money to the school. and then the other child, as soon as he starts school or if he needs it for tutoring, it's available for tutoring as well. it's a difficult time. the tutoring is helpful to get them to where they want to be. >> absolutely. you're absolutely right. i think there's so many families that, of course, would love to do this but don't have the financial resolve. as far as george steinbrenner, the foundation, how did it all

come about? >> well, in 1982, my father, george fuchs and george steinbrenner were at a funeral for a police officer and the flag was being handed to the family and mr. steinbrenner said to my father, what happens when it comes time for college for these children? we need to help these children. and so he said we need to start a foundation, and he raised money and he'd give it away. this is how it started in '82. and it's been the -- the yankees helping us which are our biggest contributors, and then our donors who send in money and that's how it all started, and it's been -- we have over l00 children that we cover. >> wow. i was going to ask you that. how many -- >> we cover the nypd, the new york, connecticut, and new jersey state troopers. all police in connecticut, all police in long island. >> how does the foundation raise money? you mentioned, of course,

members of the team, but how else? >> well, we do -- it's all through pretty much personal contacts. as we all know, george steinbrenner was very generous man and he, you know, we were pretty much under the radar, and we don't have big fund-raisers. it's all through personal contacts, and you can go on the website, but it's not -- we basically do -- we have very generous board members. we have a wonderful board and they are all very generous. the yankees are very generous. through time, it's just been through personal contacts and then -- >> k.c., i'm sorry to interrupt you but there's a poignant moment going on in the vigil that we're monitoring and i want to bring that in as well. please bear with us. ♪ i'm going to let it shine

♪ >> unfortunately, you can hear that there are some audio issues, but there is a spontaneous hymn that has broken out there, and, again, you're watching a candlelight public vigil for the slain new york officers murdered yesterday afternoon. a rather nondescript street in brooklyn that now has become a gathering point for so many people all across new york, actually i suppose you could say in spirit all across the country as they mourn the tragic loss of these officers who were out there protecting their community and wearing the uniform of blue. k.c., i'm apologizing for cutting you off, but i think we'll listen a bit more to this. thank you very much for your help with your organization. ♪ i'm going to let it shine

♪ i'm going to let it shine ♪ oh lord ♪ i'm going to let it shine ♪ let it shine, let it shine, let it shine ♪ ♪ let it shine, let it shine, let it shine ♪ hallelujah. ♪ i'm going to let it shine all around us. ♪ i'm going to let it shine >> you can see that this is a gathering that is made up of all kinds of new yorkers and all kinds of people on what is actually the middle of the street right there.

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take you back again to the vigil that is taking place at the site where the two new york city police officers were slain yesterday afternoon. that is an intersection really, and if you expect that there is some big monument there or something, it isn't. there's a small memorial beginning to grow. that's the middle of the street you're looking at there in that community. you can see that there's a community shop there. it's hard to believe this nondescript place has now become a place that's remembered for such a horrific event that really triggered a national debate. there was one, but it's intensified. even before the two police officers were shot dead in brooklyn, new york's mayor bill de blasio was catching heat accused by some of adding fuel to some anti-police sentiment in the city. in the middle of this tragedy, the mayor has a serious image problem. and so i want to talk about this with our senior political analyst, david gergen, former adviser to four presidents, and

also martha, a pr specialist and ceo of demandworks.com. and david, let me go to you first. this divide, this separation, seems pretty serious at a time when this nation, or this city would like to see some unity. >> it is, absolutely, and it's a major challenge to the leadership of the mayor, mayor de blasio. here we sit in a kcity in the country that's the biggest by some distance. this terrible tension we have on racial lines about the police and african-americans. and we have a city that's bitterly divided as your other guests have said earlier. and i think it's -- what we really need is a mayor who steps up to the leadership challenge in the same way rudy giuliani stepped up on 9/11 and gave voice to the whole country and helped to unite us, we need this mayor who's distrusted by the police to build a bridge between the cops and the people who are

protesting. and to help us find a way that we can settle this peacefully, not in the streets, not with shootings. >> martha? you're the expert sort of on this. what advice would you give the mayor? how should his administration, the mayor, himself, handle this right now in the upcoming days? >> i think the mayor first of all needs to be quiet and keep a very low profile through the funerals for these fallen officers. >> does he attend? >> yeah, i think he needs to attend. i think after that, he needs to come forward and have the same meeting with police that he had with protesters last week and begin to reach out into the institutions inside of the government in new york to build the same bridges and understand what their issues are and be clear that he's having those conversations. and i think if he can find a way to navigate both sides of the fence, so to speak, if he can start to find a way to navigate and be seen as bringing together

the disparate interests and the disparate agendas, if he can be seen to navigate through that, he'll emerge on the other side of it with a stronger position as a leader. >> david, you, you know, sort of outlined what needed to be done and martha has sort of talked if she should have his ear, what would you say to the mayor if you had his ear? >> martha had good advice. should he attend the funerals? the head of the police union, patrick lynch basically said keep him out of our funerals. >> it seems an obvious thing -- there are some feelings he should not. >> they need to negotiate that quietly behind the scenes that he will appear. it's important he not be seen as shunning this. what he could do in the meantime is call patrick lynch and say, look, i met with last week, with the people protesting, the leaders of the protest movement. when the funerals are done, and dust clears a bit, let's sit down, you bring a group of people, let's have a serious

conversation for an hour, hour and a half, let me hear how we can begin to bridge this. i also think this, he has a huge asset in police commissioner bratton. if he didn't have bratton now, he'd be in deep trouble. >> why do you say that? >> bratton is regarded as the best police chief in the country and came in with rudy giuliani when murder rates in new york were extraordinarily high. 2 2r 2,200 murders in 1991 and now we're down to 300 murders. they got that started under bill bratton. police chief for boston, police chief for new york twice, police chief of los angeles. he's respected by cops. he's a cops chief. he's had a hard time, frankly, because it's sensitive with de blasio, but i'd wrap myself in bill bratton and have him everywhere. >> there have been some who suggested, martha, former new

york police members, that the may wror should make a public apology to the police department. what do you think? >> well, i think that's an interesting line -- >> i thought it was interesting too, but i don't know if it's actually going do be done. >> i'm not sure it's going to be done. i think there are actions he can take that prove he can reach out to the police and he can embrace them and their agenda and his relationship with them. i mean, david makes an excellent point that he should wrap himself around commissioner bratton. i think if he can be seen as taking effective and progressive steps to start a different kind of dialogue with the police, that's not based on stereotypes, you know, he came into office basically opposing most of the status quo in new york. >> true. >> aggressively. he built some of that popularity among the voting population based on stereotypes that are actually un -- difficult stereotypes -- >> they may not be working too well now. >> exactly, they may not be

working well now. i think what was a strength in the election is now potentially a weakness for him in governing, a weakness for his brand. the expectation is that he will be against the status quo. that the power of the police is something that has to be controlled and needs to be checked and constantly surveyed. and i think that he's got to move forward in a way in his dialogue particularly with the police -- >> okay. i'm only going to interrupt you because we have to make a break. david, hold that thought. martha, please. you're both going to be here. i'm martin savidge in new york. we'll continue in just a minute.

you don't think much about it... you never dwell on how it was made... it's just a blanket after all... but when everything else has been lost, the comfort it provides is immeasurable. the america red cross brings hope and help to people in need every 8 minutes, every day. so this season give something that means something. support us at redcross.org

you're in the cnn newsroom. i'm martin savidge. it's going to be with you. let's take you to the scene

that's taken place where the two officers in new york city were slain yesterday. this is a vigil that is happening,000 a now. and prayers are being said in support of the officers, in support of law enforcement, and the decision makers of this community, and it's important even in our discussions now to keep in mind the focus needs to be on the loss of those two officers and thaeir memories an families as we discuss larger events around it pertaining to the relationship in new york and the rift with the police department. this, by the way, is in brooklyn where all of this is happening. let me bring back now david gergen, martha pease. david, i interrupted you as we sort of went to break there to continue what you would tell the mayor, you've got to try to get beyond this because it's essential for the city to heal. >> first of all, martin, let me say thank you to you. you're bringing a calm voice to this which i think is really helpful.