we reached another milestone in the number of people worldwide now infected with covid-19. a quarter of those in the us u.s. alone. brazil's president accused of setting a bad example after announcing he tested negative. we're live in bogota, colombia, with that and more from latin america. and the standoff in portland as veterans form a human wall on the front lines of the ongoing protests. live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber.

16 million people worldwide have now been infected with covid-19. according to johns hopkins university, that's 1 million new cases in less than a week. even north korea is reporting its first suspected case. state media says it was someone who entered the country illegally from south korea in recent days, but the biggest drivers of the global pandemic remain the united states, india and brazil. for the fourth day in a row, brazil recorded more than 50,000 new infections. rio de janeiro canceled the annual new year's celebration on copacabana beach. in the united states, california leads the nation with nearly 450,000 confirmed cases. and in hard hit los angeles, the mayor warns another shutdown might be needed.

here's cnn's paul vercammen. >> reporter: here in los angeles county, they are testing fast and furiously, including here at the charles r. drew university of medicine and science. they moved people through in cars and on foot. and the numbers in l.a. county rising, this new batch shows that 3,628 new people have tested positive for covid-19, there have been 53 new deaths. now, we need to clarify that l.a. county was warning all along they suspected a spike in cases because there was a backlog in the system. they just hadn't counted all the cases due to a glitch. and the 10% positivity rate is also better news. but, there is still this sort of underlying thing that haunts people in the medical profession, and that's when some people talk about hoaxes or perhaps this is just the flu. well, let's talk to the dean of this university. >> we can stop this pandemic.

we can definitely slow it down. we can probably stop it by doing a better job of personal responsibility, and hygiene. washing your hands, using sanitizer, wearing your masks, social distancing, those things work. they absolutely work. and we just need everybody to do it. this is not a political issue. this is a health issue. and it is just something we all need to do. >> reporter: and the hospitalizations steady here in l.a. county, they're just above 2000. and mayor garcetti has threatened further shutdowns if these numbers do not improve. reporting from los angeles, i'm paul vercammen, now, back to you. >> now, of course, it is not just california, on the east coast many florida hospitals feared they will soon run out of beds and there is a critical shortage of nurses. cnn's rosa flores has the latest

from miami. >> reporter: florida governor ron desantis maintains the number of covid-19 cases in his state have stabilized. look, if you look at the numbers this past week, for at least four days, the number of cases hovered at or around 10,000. in the past two days they have exceeded 12,000. i asked an infectious disease expert for her take and she says it is too early to claim victory. she said, rosa, you got to look at the hospitalizations, you got to look at the number of icus being used and we did, across the state of florida, the number of hospitalizations increased by 79% in the past three weeks. this is according to state data. i'm in miami-dade county, the epicenter of this crisis in this state. it accounts for 25% of the now more than 400,000 cases in this state and icus now are operating at 137%. what that means is that there are more patients than there are

icu beds, what the county is doing is they're converting beds into icus. now we have to look at ventilator use. the use of ventilators has increased by 62% in the past two weeks. as for the positivity rate, in this county, it is at 19.7%, the goal for the county is not to exceed 10%. 14-day average right now is 19.4%. now this week we also learned that the state of florida has a shortage of nurses. we learned from the state that 51 hospitals from across the state have asked for help. they're asking the state of florida to deploy more than 2400 nurses. now, despite all these facts and figures, we also learned today in a tweet that florida is thinking about reopening bars. take a look at this. this is from the florida secretary of business and regulation, he tweeted, quote, next week, starting friday, i'm going to set meetings throughout florida with breweries and bars to discuss ideas on how to

reopen. we will come up with a safe, smart and step by step plan, based on input, science and relative facts on how to reopen as soon as possible. i'm not sure what relative facts are, but here are the relevant facts involving the state of florida right now, and the reopening. florida closed bars a month ago. that's when cases exceeded 9,000. well that record has been broken, it was broken two weeks ago when the state of florida in one day exceeded more than 15,000 cases. and the other important data point is to look at the positivity rate, because that indicates spread in the past two weeks, the state of florida has had a positivity rate ranging from 13 to 18%. rosa flores, cnn, miami. that brings up so many issues, so to discuss them, i'd like to speak to mark jet, professor at the london school

of hygiene and tropical medicine. thank you for joining us. you heard that report there. here in the u.s. we seem to be living in two different worlds. in one world people are suggesting the covid crisis is so bad, we need to shut down and start over. and then the other world in which a governor in one of the hardest hit states feels comfortable with the idea of reopening bars. so i want to ask you, how is it possible to form a coherent public policy with such divergent views of the problem? >> well, i think it is very important for messages to be joined up between what in every country between government, public health officials, the media, scientists, for common public health messages to go to people to say this is the state we're in, this is what to expect, and these are the measures that we need everyone to take in order to control this epidemic. >> but people aren't accepting those measures in large part. i was driving to work here

through downtown atlanta, i can see, you know, late night restaurants with young people all over, you know, spilling out of doorways altogether as if they never heard of the coronavirus. nothing seems to convince many young people in particular. is this 18 to 49 age group the key to lowering the case count? and if so, how do you reach them? >> yeah, that's interesting, because this has been a relatively recent phenomenon in the u.s. and some other countries, where we see the decrease in the average age at which people get covid. and the early part of the epidemic was mostly older people. but one important message is that young people are not immune. the very most severe cases, the people who go to ventilators, the people who die are mostly older people. young people are just as susceptible. and getting mild and moderate disease, i think those are misnomers, because someone with so-called mild disease can be

knocked out in bed for two weeks, have debilitating symptom for many months. it is really unpleasant. and they also have the risk of transmitting it to other people, including their, you know, parents or grandparents who might be at risk of very severe disease. >> you speak of the risk of transmitting, we're hearing more and more about the so-called super spreaders, people with high viral loads that seem to infect, you know, everyone around them. what do we know about the biology of their infections? >> well, i think it might actually be more useful to think about super spreading events. most of the events we have seen have been linked to, for instance, someone attending a party and meeting lots of people or being in a dinner or, you know, well, south korea there is a case of someone who went from club to club in one night, and infected probably hundreds of people that way. so i think we know we're linked to those events where someone has contact with lots of

different people if an environment where it is very easy to transmit. >> now, we're hearing a lot about, you know, people who are skeptical about vaccines, and so on, but there is also another population that are skeptical about vaccines, they're not deniers, they're scientists. there have been several studies that found that antibody levels nose-dived two to three months after infection and that's led to, you know, some researchers with the conclusion that a vaccine isn't really worth pursuing and changed focus to -- focusing on treatments. what do you make of that argument? >> i don't think this is an either/or. we're going to need both in order to have any chance at all of, well, reducing the covid threat to something that is more manageable. we'll need vaccines to prevent this from spreading and treatments so that people who do get infected, especially if it is not a highly effective vaccine as might be possible, still -- we can still prevent them from getting the most

severe outcomes. i think we need to pursue both and that is what the world is doing at the moment. >> are you hopeful? >> well, we have seen some positive signs from trials of vaccines, but as you said, these are very early stages in the trials. all we can measure is the antibody responses, the immune system responses. we really haven't seen any data yet on whether these vaccines prevent people from getting infected in the first place. so we're going to have to wait a bit before we see those results. >> all right, patience is required. thank you so much, mark jet with the london school of hygiene and tropical medicine. we appreciate your time. >> you're welcome. the u.s. state of texas is dealing with crises on two fronts right now. hurricane hanna made landfall there several hours ago, packing strong winds and heavy rain along the gulf coast. so we'll have more on that in a moment. but texas health officials reported more than 8,000 new infections and nearly 17 0

deaths from the virus on saturday. cnn's ed lavandera spoke with doctors who said the pain and suffering inside covid units is unlike anything they have seen before. >> reporter: this is the daily routine for dr. federico vallejo, when he gets dressed, it looks like he's getting ready to be launched eed into anothe world. that's what it is like to work in the covid-19 unit. >> it is overwhelming, a tsunami of what we're seeing right now. >> reporter: coronavirus patients filled hospital where the doctor works, on most days he says he's treating about 70 different patients. four to five times more than he usually sees in a single day. >> i have never had to sign this many certificates that i've been signing the past couple of week. talking to the families has been very, very difficult. >> reporter: can you describe the suffering you've seen among the patients? >> they will have trouble with

breathing and when it happens it is heart breaking. it is so difficult to watch them saying good-bye to their relatives by picking up the phone and saying i'm having more trouble. i don't know what's going to happen. i see nurses crying all the time. i see doctors breaking down all the time. then again that is what we do. >> reporter: south texas is the covid-19 hot spot inside the texas hot spot. health officials are warning that hospital bed and icu space are running out, nursing and doctor teams are stretched to the limit. do you feel when you walk into the covid units there is like a parallel universe? >> it is definitely a parallel universe. if they only knew what lurked behind the walls, if they only could have x-ray vision and see the pain and the suffering. >> reporter: dr. ivan melendez is based in mcallen, texas. he said the covid units are filled with the sound of

patients gasping for air, many needing ventilators and gut wrenching conversations. >> you have people telling you, you know, doc, please don't put me on that, and you struggle because you know that's what they need and finally they give up and say, go ahead, but, you know, you may be the last person i ever talk to. so please tell my family, tell my parents, tell my kids that i love them and that i fought hard. >> it is a necklace with his ashes. >> reporter: jessica ortiz said her twin brother fought the virus for two weeks. he work as a security guard at a jewelry store. >> it hurts. i was there for you. >> reporter: he died on july 3rd. >> he fought long and hard. we honor you. >> reporter: at the funeral, friends and family paid their respects through a plastic shield, over the casket, there was a fear his body still might be contagious.

>> he meant the world. i just wish it wasn't him. i wish i had him with me. because he didn't live his life yet. >> reporter: jessica is left with this last image of her brother, a screen recording of one of their last conversations. jubal ortiz waving good-bye. ed lavandera, texas. >> heart breaking. many of the communities in texas hit hard by the coronavirus are now in the path of hurricane hanna. this was the scene in port mansfield, texas, the first atlantic hurricane of the season knocked down trees and tore roofs from buildings. the governor issued disaster declarations for 32 counties after some areas were inundated with rain. people are gathering in storm shelters, but officials say the response to the hurricane has been complicated by the pandemic. cnn meteorologist derek van dam is tracking hurricane anhanna. we saw some strong pictures from

texas, is that the worst of it or the beginning? >> the worst of the storm has passed because it is no longer actually a hurricane. it is now a tropical storm. good morning, kim. good morning to our viewers. just listening to ed's video a moment ago talking about how texas and specifically southern texas is the hot spot for some of the coronavirus hospitalizations, and infection rates, now you put on top of that a landfall of a hurricane. that's a threat multiplier, having two crises on top of each other. the hurricane that made landfall took place yesterday at 5:00 p.m. local time, right along padre island, a barrier island in the southern tip of texas. wind speeds at landfall around 5:00 p.m. were around 90 miles per hour. the good news is as i already mentioned the storm is starting to dissipate it will rain itself out over the next 24 to 36 hours across southern texas and into northeastern mexico. in fact, the eyewall, the

remnants of the storm now moving across the united states and mexico border as we speak. the rio grande valley getting hit with hefty rainfall. but the good news is that the wind is starting to decrease. you can see some of our radar estimated at rainfall accumulations over a foot of rain within the past 18 hours with still another additional three to five inches of rain on top of what has already been experienced. so localized flooding, definitely a possibility. with any landfall and hurricane the potential for spinup tornadoes still exist in and around the brownsville and port mansfield region, south of corpus christi. the winds starting to peter out, but buckle up your seat belt. this season is not done yet. it is just starting to ramp up, kim. the national hurricane center has issued while what they call a five-day outlook, just east of the winward islands, the caribbean ocean, west africa, we're looking at a cluster of thunderstorms that has a high likelihood of becoming our next tropical system.

we'll wait and see. back to you, kim. >> a lot to keep your eye on there. thank you very much, derek van dam, appreciate it. protests are ramping up. in seattle they got out of hand. we'll have the latest en what the police are calling a riot. the protests began over racial injustice, but the director of portland's naacp warns their message is being co-opted. why he says the protests are becoming a spectacle. so what's going on?

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what you're seeing there, that's the aftermath of what police are calling a riot in seattle, washington. flames and smoke shooting up into the sky after intense clashes between protesters and police. now, at first people gathered peacefully to support black lives matter and their fellow protesters in portland, oregon, but police said things turned violent. on top of the fire, police say an explosive injured at least three officers, cars were attacked and by the end of the day, officers made at least 45 arrests. that was seattle. and down the highway in

portland, another late night as federal agents facing off with protesters. lucy cavanagh was out in the middle of it a short time ago. >> reporter: this night began with a very large, over a thousand crowd of peaceful demonstrator, people coming out to chant black lives matter, to chant say his name, george floyd, breonna taylor and the names of so many black americans who have been killed at the hands of the police. we then saw a repeat of some of the clashes that we saw yesterday evening. my crew and i had had to move away from the federal building, which is sort of back there and around the corner because it wasn't clear what actually sparked the confrontation. but we did see federal agents emerge from the building, behind the barrier they had erected. they started lobbying tear gas to try to disperse the crowd. some of the demonstrators threw fireworks over the fence at the federal agents and so this confrontation ensued. as this was happening, we saw this so-called wall of moms, the women in yellow t-shirts who

have been coming out nightly, linking arms to try to put their physical bodies between themselves and the federal agents to protect the protesterses. we also saw other demonstrators with leaf blowers trying to blow the tear gas back towards the federal agents away from the crowd. as it happens with these confrontations, protesters begin to move away from the federal building to get away from the tear gas. we caught a big whiff of it ourselves. i have to say, it is a very uncomfortable and unpleasant experience, it burns your eyes, your nose, your throat, everything starts to water. we saw some people actually nursing injuries, perhaps hit by some sort of shrapnel, wasn't clear what it was, but one person had some blood on his forehead, a demonstrator. but another thing we saw this evening, a very powerful image. another human wall, this time military veterans joining the movement to protect black lives matter.

they lined up in front of the federal building when things were still calm to try to put themselves between the federal officers and the demonstrators. we had a chance to speak to one, don thompson, a retired u.s. navy veteran, take a listen to what he had to say. >> we're all born here. this is our streets. that's our friends. that's on our property. take it down. it has been ruled illegal. take it down and leave our town. our police were doing a fine job and still doing a fine job. >> reporter: the focus here is racial equality. racial justice. but you see just how inflammatory the federal presence has been. it has now shifted in some ways, the focus to the federal presence on the ground and that enflamed tensions here. the president of the portland branch of the naacp wrote an op-ed about the protests, he warns the democrat station demonstrations are turning into a spectacle and being co-opted

by people with their own agenda. ed mundane spoke earlier with my colleague michael holmes. >> those protests were starked by a video of a death of a man we all know his name, we ask people to say his name, george floyd, at the hands of police. for the first few weeks we were chanting had his name at the rallies and holding up the black lives matter. now myself and the naacp denounced the involvement of federal law enforcement here in portland, it seems to be the feds who are being -- not state violence against black people and that has kind of turned this -- into the spectacle that we see. brazil's president has now tested negative for covid-19. health experts say he's been setting a bad example of behavior in a time when the virus is infecting tens of thousands of brazilians every day. that story just ahead. want to brain better?

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welcome back to our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. one of brazil's top infectious disease experts says president jair bolsonaro is setting, a, quote, bad example for the rest of the country. mr. bolsonaro who tested positive for coronavirus three times has had several interactions with people without wearing a mask. cnn's nick paton walsh has more. >> reporter: so much of the focus on coronavirus in brazil here over the past two weeks on one man, president jair bolsonaro, who many accuse of

putting statements out that frankly exacerbated brazil's pandemic. early saturday morning, he put out a twitter post saying that he had tested negative for coronavirus after three tests over the past two weeks that said he indeed had the virus. in that tweet photograph he was seen brandishing as he has done over the past weeks what seemed to be a packet of hydroxychloroquine. and that is something doctors say is useless fighting the coronavirus, may even be harmful, but he still has been advocating for it. possibly even still in that post as well. afterwards, it seems he went on his motorcycle to visit a repair shop where he talked to fellow motorcyclists seen briefly not wearing a mask, he was wearing a visor and a motorcycle helmet at the same time that may have made that difficult. but he also talked -- familiar talking point about how the damage to the lockdown does to stop the virus mustn't outweigh the damage the virus does itself. and in fact said contradicting

earlier statements he had a fever, he said he wouldn't even have known he had a virus unless he had a positive test. startling comments to hear from a man who later went on twitter to talk about freedom of speech case in the country here, a distraction from the terrifying numbers being seen in the country every day. over the past three days, every day we have seen over 50,000 new cases. 51,000 in 24 hours reported, that ended on saturday. and that, according to one study, that was government funded, they cut the funding just this week. those numbers may only be a sixth of the full picture here because, again, to get a test you have to have bad symptoms here in brazil. it is bad in the south. still for all of these increasingly bad number, the positivity of jair bolsonaro many say exacerbating the problem and many fear potentially his relatively light symptoms and now positive/negative diagnosis coming through this with good

health it seems may in fact encourage him to continue to play down the damage this virus is doing to brazil. nick paton walsh, cnn, sao paulo. other latin american countries like mexico, peru, and chile have become major centers of the pandemic. so for the latest from the region, stephano poziban is in bogota, colombia. it seems worse where you are in bogota. we're hearing reports of healthcare collapse where hospitals can't treat any more patients, some officials dispute those claims. what can you tell us? >> yes, exactly, kim. colombia is going through its darkest hour, its most critical time seems to beginning of the pandemic. let's remember that the government declared a health emergency here in colombia as early as in mid-march.

it has been almost five months that we have been preparing for these moments. that's why perhaps authorities are confident that even though bogota, the capital, where i'm at is the main hot spot in the country with more than 30% of cases, the system has been prepared and will hold at these critical moments. icu units rate is well over 90%. that means that indeed in some hospitals in bogota there are not enough beds for the patients. but at the same time authorities are trying to strike a positive note and to avoid panic to spread through colombia and saying we're not in as bad a situation perhaps as other countries in the region such as brazil, kim. >> let's turn to the rest of latin america then, as you say, brazil, mexico, of course, the largest hot spots. but what other countries are you most worried about? >> yes, peru is definitely a

critical situation -- in a critical situation. especially because peru has already had a surge earlier in the year. may and june. and now it is a second wave and especially in rural areas of peru resources are running thin. let's remember the complex difficulties, logistical difficulties that many latin american countries have to overcome in order to deal with -- with covid-19. transports in the region is not as smooth as in the west, in europe or the united states. it is harder to reach countries when most of the flights are canceled here in colombia, for example, there are no flights at the moment in peru, the same situation for positive picture, perhaps for the south. chile and argentina seem somehow to be on the way out of the area

with covid-19. >> a little good news then, thank you so much, stefano, appreciate it. u.s. military commanders are now trying to contain a disturbing outbreak of covid-19 among military members in japan. >> reporter: hundreds lined up at this community center in okinawa to be tested for the coronavirus, all of them work inside the two u.s. marine corps bases hit hardest by covid-19. he tells me he's scared that so many servicemen are testing positive. by the time he hands over his saliva sample, the parking lot is full of worried people just like him. there are more cases inside the ranks of the u.s. military in

okinawa than there have been on the whole island during the course of the pandemic. local residents say they want the bases locked down. they fear servicemen arriving from the mainland where virus is raging could spread the virus further. >> the rotation of personnel and is a tremendous concern for us here at camp hansen and the marine corps at okinawa writ large. we have stringent measures in place. anytime someone lands on okinawa via military chartered aircraft, they're taken to a residence where they spend two weeks in isolation, they're checked up on and isolated to prevent the potential spread of covid from the united states. >> reporter: it is a short drive from futenma air base.

>> translator: from experience, we feel the servicemen are in the end always protected by the status of forces agreement. they do not follow japanese laws, nor do they work within our system. that is the biggest reason we do not fully trust each other. >> reporter: this hotel symbolizes the latest mistrust. the military has rented it out to find space for personnel rotating out en masse at this time of year. with more than half of the land are ataken up by u.s. bases, many resent having to give away more and risk being exposed to a virus they had under control until july. japan has depended on the u.s. for its security ever since it lost world war ii. and half of all of the u.s. military bases in japan are located on the island of okinawa. the air base is one of them, has long, long been controversial with plans to relocate it over decades. and residentes say they bear an outsized burden and want the

bases located somewhere else. they want more information than just the number of cases. with infections among servicemen rising in the u.s. and around the world, their pleas this time may resonate far beyond its shores. okinawa, japan. a week of memorials is now under way for a towering american civil rights figure. how the country is honoring the life and legacy of john lewis next. and one of u.s. cities in a heated debate over reparations for the descendants of slaves. we'll have the details of that after the break. this year, the alzheimer's association walk to end alzheimer's is everywhere.

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at no additional cost. no strings attached. america is saying its farewells to the late civil rights icon and congressman john lewis. from alabama to georgia and washington, d.c., he's being honored with memorials in the places he impacted most. martin savidge has the details.

>> reporter: today was the first of what will be many days of good-byes for civil rights icon and congressman john lewis. it began in his hometown and it started with his own family. troy, alabama, is a rural community, not that far away from montgomery, alabama, the capital. it is where john lewis grew up, in a segregated jim crow south at the time. but a lot has changed in his life since then. and has changed in alabama. so in that community they gathered today as family and those who knew him to remember the boy from troy, a nickname that the reverend martin luther king jr. gave to john lewis when they met in 1958. it was a nickname that he was always very proud of. this memorial was special not just because it was the first and not just because it would be his last time going home, it was also special because it was very personal, hafive of his family brothers, brother and sister,

all spoke, not about the icon we know from history, not about the powerful congressman, but the boy named robert, that's what they called him, his middle name, and personal stories only they could tell. here was his brother grant lewis telling one of them. >> when john was first sworn into congress, i think i got my year right in 1986, i was there. and during this swearing in ceremony, right before the swearing in ceremony, he looked up, he knew where i was sitting, and he looked up and he gave me the thumbs up, and i gave him the thumbs up back. so after the event was over, we were together, and i asked him, i said, john, what were you thinking when you gave me the thumbs up? he said i was thinking this was a long way from the cotton fields of alabama. >> reporter: after the service there was a public viewing and then john lewis was transported

to selma, alabama, another historic milestone in his life and the life of civil rights in america. inside the chapel, the same church where he and dr. king had worked together to organize the famous marches from selma, alabama, to montgomery, including the first, march 7th, 1965, that led to bloody sunday that almost led to the death of john lewis after several protesters were beaten by the alabama state police, who descend on them. for john lewis, this is a trip going back over his life. and in every one of those places where he stops people come to pay their respects and remember the man who changes not only their lives, but a nation. martin savidge, cnn, selma, alabama. the civil rights fight to which the late u.s. representative john lewis dedicated his life is far from being resolved. before his passing earlier this month, lewis was still marching

with black lives matter protester, demanding an end to police brutality. the latest movement you'll remember was sparked by the death of george floyd under the knee of a minnesota police officer in may. but his death is one of many and in a way these recent protests across the u.s. and the world are a continuation of the struggle for racial equality that the u.s. faces the legacy of slavery, jim crow and what many argue is the systemic disenfranchisement of black people in this country. now, one controversial aspect of that reckoning is the debate over reparations or proposed payments to the descendants of slaves. cnn's abby phillip explains how asheville, north carolina, is re-examining the arguments. >> reporter: tucked away in the blue ridge region of north carolina, asheville is a liberal oasis. >> asheville is by far the bluest dot west of charlotte.

♪ >> reporter: but even here, this summer has been different. >> the demonstrations in the wake of george floyd's murder really were different. the momentum is like nothing we have ever felt before. >> reporter: black lives matter signs are unmistakable in storefronts across the city. in the heart of downtown. so what is this? >> this is a confederate monument and it looks this way because we decided to shroud it until a task force decides exactly what we want to do with it, remove it or repurpose it. >> reporter: recently the city council of this predominantly white city pledged to tackle its dark past, passing a resolution promising to work toward reparations, but not without controversy. >> we're not responsible for what happened 200 years ago. i find this wrong in so many ways. and i strongly oppose it. the black people are not the only race that have been enslaved in america and around the world. >> reporter: but it is not just slavery which the city

apologized for when it passed the resolution. it is something far more recent. >> before urban renewal was implemented, all down the street were homeowners. >> reporter: urban renewal, which many black americans called urban removal, played out in asheville, in cities across the country in the 1950s and '60s. >> the red are the areas that were acquisitioned by housing authorities, those are properties and homes and businesses that were taken and sold, hovwever you want to put it. >> reporter: they would have been owned by -- >> blacks, african-americans, yes. >> reporter: houses were acquired by the city, marked to be demolished or renovated. >> i can remember as a young girl seeing everyone dragging furniture. as i describe it, it was like a wagon trail, people were

carrying chairs. it was a community breakdown. >> reporter: black residents were moved out and into public housing, told they would be able to return but for many that promise was never kept. today, nearly 60% of people who live in low income public housing in asheville are black. though black people make up just 12% of the city's population. a legacy of urban renewal and discriminatory policies like red lining. >> what we see now is a result -- this is public housing. what could have been still home owners up and down livingston street. >> reporter: the reparation resolution is vague, but they hope they can create programs that will help balance house and equity and build generational wealth that was stripped from black residents during urban renewal and decades before it. as for cash payments -- >> the language in the resolution did not directly speak to cash payments, but it

did not exclude that as an option. >> reporter: that's the part that has made reparations a flashpoint in washington. >> i don't think reparations for something that happened 150 years ago for whom none of us currently living are responsible is a good idea. >> reporter: yet cities like asheville, evanston, illinois, and providence, rhode island, are facing the controversy head on. >> as white people, we wake up every day and benefit from the systems that exist that keep people of color at an economic and educational and health disadvantage, and give us a straighter track in the world. our world in this country is built for white people. >> reporter: the issue of reparations is by no means settled. but what asheville does could hold some lessons for national lawmakers looking for ways to address systemic inequality and not just through cash payments, also through long-term programs aimed at addressing the economic and social well-being of black americans. abby phillip, cnn, washington.

well, nobody and i mean nobody have the gift of gab quite like regis philbin. the topl lpopular tv host has d. every time we pre-rinse

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tributes are pouring in for one of the greatest hosts in the history of american television. regis philbin died friday night of natural causes, he left a legacy as a talk show host and game show host and comic sidekick. long time co-host kathie lee gifford posted this poignant message on instagram saying, quote, there are no words to fully express the love i have for my precious friend regis. i simile adore him and every day with him was a gift. we spent 15 years together, bantering and bickering and laughing ourselves silly. cnn media analyst bill carter spoke to wolf blitzer about how regis philbin touched american audiences. >> more than anything, the guy was authentic. that was a real guy, you know. if a guy had this explosive enthusiasm, which he did, and it wasn't real, people would sort of repel backwards from it. but they went for it because he

was real. everything about him was genuine. nothing was scripted, it was always spontaneous. and i think people just felt this guy is a guy i know and i really like. >> friends and colleagues of regis philbin have been speaking to cnn. here's how his former co-host joan lunden remembered him. >> people would stop him, he was loveable. he was this loveable guy that was approachable. he wanted to be approachable. he never, ever didn't have enough time for someone. >> regis philbin, beloved fixture of american television, was 88 years old. well, that wraps this hour of "cnn newsroom." i'm kim brunhuber. i'll be back in a moment with more news. want to brain better?

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there are now more than 16 million cases of coronavirus around the world, we'll look at how hot spots are driving up that massive number. but south korea thinks they have a way to safely let spectators back into sporting events. we're live in seoul. and we remember the beloved american tv personality regis philbin, who died at 88. live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, welcome to you, our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber.