on the other hand, it is here where the journey of much of the african-american experience began. and symbolically to be able to come back with my family, with michelle and our children, and see the portal through which the diaspora began, but also to be able to come back here in celebration with the people of ghana, of the extraordinary progress that we've made because of the courage of so many, black and white, to -- to abolish slavery and ultimately win civil rights for all people i think s is -- is a source of hope. it reminds us that as bad as history can be, it's also

possible to overcome. so, thanks, everybody. so, short comments there. the president talking about the experience he just went through with his family and comparing it to what he went through not too long ago when he was in germany at the buchenwald concentration camp, this port, going through some of the dungeons where africans were held for months before being shipped off to slavery, reminding him of buchenwald and reminding us all of mankind's capacity to do great evil. so comparing what he went through in ghana to some of the concentration cams that he saw not too long ago. also talking about, you know, as difficult and as painful as this place is what it symbolizes, it is still one of the places where, quite frankly, the african-american experience began. many african-americans are here, have a life here. know what they know, enjoying what they're enjoying in this country, enjoying what they're enjoying in this country, because their ancestors went through at places just like that.

he brought it all back. >> he brought it full circle from an evil like that there can be triumph and, indeed, not just for africans but for african-americans and americans in general, people around the world, he is the symbol of that triumph. the first african-american president to speak there in sub-saharan africa. we want to hand it over to our colleague, though, tom foreman right now who will continue our coverage right here in the "cnn newsroom." thanks, betty and t.j. we'll keep with the pictures right now because they are quite extraordinary when you think about it. we're seeing more of the official area right now. but a short while ago we were seeing pictures of many of the local citizens who had gathered to see this really historic moment. the president was talking about history, well, he's making it today for many of us as americans, of all races, we see an historic moment of an african-american president going back to africa. but also for many africans, they have seen american presidents

over the years, but not a tremendous number of them. africa as a continent has struggled with many issues and american presidents have not gone there in great numbers. although that has changed some in recent years, and certainly president obama is taking on the mantle, a very big work, that had been done in recent years of president george bush who did an enormous amount of work in africa, but presidents clinton and carter, through their private foundations have done a tremendous amount of work and that's being reflected in the crowds showing up there to see what america -- one of the great powers in the world -- might be able to do for the struggles. this is the picture we were talking about earlier where you can see more of the people who have gathered in the background there as these troops move out. this is a big, big event. as big as a presidential visit to any city in this country, it's much, much bigger, of course, when they go to some place like ghana where people are dealing with so many basic issues of life. and as the president pointed

out, ghana in many ways is a success story to many other african nations. so, there are models of progress here that he is wanting to stress, that he will want to move forward with this as we watch his progress today, visiting this nation over here. there we go. a little more movement of people coming out as the president prepares to move on, after those brief comments. we saw his family earlier as they toured around. this is the first visit to the sub-saharan region of the continent by a u.s. president. of african descent, president obama is in ghana right now. he's visiting cape coast castle, the dungeons of the 17th century fortress, bound for colonial america. earlier in the day the president spoke to the ghanaian parliament, as the only nation in africa with a growing economy. listen to what he had to say.

>> you have the ability to hold your people accountable. you can harness your energy and education to create new wealth and build new connections to the world. you can conquer disease and end conflict and make change from the bottom up. you can do that. yes, you can. because in this moment, history's on the move. but these things can only be done if all of you take responsibility for your future. and it won't be easy. it will take time and effort. there will be suffering and setbacks. but i can promise you this -- america will be with you every step of the way. as a partner, as a friend. >> that's a big, big promise to be making for the ghanaians there. you see the people gathered in this area waiting. the president had other things to do at this former slavery castle before he left, so we're not expect him to come out immediately and depart. he has other things to see and,

of course, he has his family with him there. i cannot begin to imagine the impact this must have on his young girls traveling with him and his wife as well. but certainly for those young girls, to see history in front of their eyes this way as african americans must be extraordinary. and, again, for all of the people there in ghana to see them, walking around with their father as president of the united states, hearing such extraordinary pledges. enormous impact. ghana was the first country to have its independence in sub-saharan africa in colonialism back in 1957. so, it's had a long history of moving forward and trying to make progress. but, it still faces very significant concerns. they have most of the people make a living there off agriculture. they struggle with various issues, as they do in much of africa. aids is a big issue here. malaria is a big issue here. president bush put a tremendous amount of money into aids research in africa. a lot of americans don't know that much about it. but president bush is very highly regarded in many parts of africa for his help to africa.

now, there are people there who have many of the same policy issues with president bush's foreign policy that others do, but on that front, he's very highly regarded. and in that way, he's raised a very high bar for president obama. i think it's one of the reasons you're seeing this pledge from president obama to say that the united states will be worth -- will be withghana and other countries in africa to move forward, because the u.s. has started down a very significant road towards trying to help out places like ghana where democracy works, even they had a lot of difficulties over the years. suzanne malveaux is traveling with the president in ghana. suzanne, is there a sense, as you travel with the president, of being aware of this steady march of recent presidents to help africa more, that he needs to follow-up on that? >> well, sure. and one of the things that's interesting here, as i had the opportunity to actually travel with president clinton and bush when they came to accra, ghana, and the one thing that president clinton brought was really the

opportunity for trade, greater trade, for ghana and other african nations. when he was here, his trip unfortunately was marred very much by what was the news at the time, which was the monica lewinsky scandal back in '98, so much of the discussion around his trip to these african nations tended to -- tended to focus more on what was happening domestically with that particular problem. nevertheless, there were thousands and thousands of people who gathered in independence square, i remember, and had been waiting for hours and hours to see him under the hot sun. and people were passing out, and begging for bottles of water. and journalists were giving their bottles of water to people who had gathered to see him. when he finally emerged, there was such a push, a clamor, towards him and the barricade, that people were trapped, they were stuck. there was definitely a real

danger of people being trampled and stampeded. and we saw president clinton visibly angry, pushing the crowd back as the secret service tried to manage the situation. that really being the moment of his trip in ghana that -- that stood out among all of those moments. but he was a very popular figure. president bush was here. i covered his trip as well less than two years ago. and, again, the streets lined up with -- with people to see him. he spoke at a very public place, and thousands gathered to see him. he was very well received here. he contributed lots and lots of money to -- an extraordinary amount of money to help fight and combat disease, malaria, hiv/aids, $350 million over a 5-year plan. even named a road after president bush. and so he was very much welcomed here in ghana. i think what we see here with

president obama that makes it different is that you talk to the ghanaians and he's really someone that offers inspiration and is a figure that they have embraced as one of their own, as a son, a brother. you see the signs asking him and welcoming him to come home, and that's the connection that they feel with president obama. and i think because of that, he has been able to go a step further or two and has the credibility to do so in criticizing not the ghanaian people per se but africans outside of this country, who are -- are suffering because their governments are -- are not behaving well, whether it's corruption or bribery or war, that these are the kinds of issues, tough issues, that he's addressing in a very blunt and forthright manner to these -- to these other african leaders. and you get a sense here that people, at least on the ground

and who have been following him, appreciate that -- that message coming from someone like him, who they feel is really a part of the family. >> good point, suzanne. i really appreciate you bringing that up. we'll be checking in with you this afternoon, i'm sure. let's go right now to the streets of ghana, where we are standing by with a little bit more of reaction at the street level from these people. what can you tell us about this? >> well, tom, the speech was received very well here in ghana. of course, president obama had a lot of praise for the country. he pointed to its governors and its successes, and he really, the reason why he is here is to uplift ghana for as a country on the continent to look at ghana as an example, you know, kenyans are very disappointed that president obama did not go to the birthplace of his father. but what president obama has

said he wants to do, through this trip, is really just have the spotlight and the focus on successes of the continent and ghana is one of them. so, he had a lot of praises for ghana as a country, but a lot of criticism for other countries on the continent. he spoke about patronage and he spoke about corruption being some of those things that have derailed progress on the continent. and he basically, his main message, is about responsibility. he's told africans that africa's future is up to you, and, yes, you can. so, many people received the speech very, very well. but, you know, it's up to their leaders whether they were listening, whether they will follow-up on some of the things that president obama has said. we'll have to wait and see if there is any kind of shift on the continent. of course, change always takes very long, especially here in africa. >> let me ask you about something. there was a survey done very recently by

worldpublicopinion.org which found in the rest of the world, much as it is in the united states, the president, president obama, is hugely popular personally, but that there are still questions about what his actual programs will be. beyond the inspiration, what will he actually do that will put these words into action. is that true of the african nations you have visited there? is there this sense of we like him a great deal, but we need to see the proof in the pudding? >> reporter: well, you know, when it comes to africa, tom, as you look at this speech that president obama made to the parliament of ghana that really addressing the whole continent, he diagnosed the continent well. he spoke about the issues that the people on the streets after obama's speech when i spoke to the people on the streets, these are their concerns. and he didn't only criticize, he came up with measures, opportunities, ways that africa can get itself out of the situation that it's in.

so, here on the african continent, they get -- there's a sense that president obama, because of his own personal history, he understands the continent well. and, you know, in the past, other western leaders have pointed to some of the weaknesses, but they've just been brushed off, especially by those who want to hold on to power by all means power, brushed off as racist or colonizers or, you know, that they are patronizing the continent. but with president obama, because of his personal history and his nature, it has taken very seriously from a man who has the credibility to say and to criticize these things that he sees happening on the continent. >> and one last question, what will these countries come back with now, the leadership of the countries that he's criticized will no doubt respond by saying to america, fine, we're willing to address it. this is what you need to do to help us to fulfill your promise. what are those things be? what are they going to ask for?

>> reporter: well, i mean, president obama did speak about mutual responsibility. he said that the rich nations have a responsibility to help uplift africa. but he said that america has a responsibility to those countries that show that they are responsible. and isolate those who are not responsible. so, he spoke about consequences. and that gives something, you know, people of africans, leaders of africa to think about. will president obama engage with countries that he believes do not have good governance? we'll have to wait to see. the pudding -- we'll have to wait and see what president obama, the outcome of all these things that he spoke about to the parliament today, really, if they resonate with the leaders, and if he follows up on any of these issues. so, that's what the people on the streets of ghana are

thinking about now, looking at right now, is what measures is he going to take if african leaders resist reform and resist -- continue to resist reform and democracy. >> wait and see, of course, very much, thanks very much. we appreciate your insights in to all of this. we will see what happens. it's early in the process. the president's trip has put the world's focus on this small country, particularly today. our josh levs is here to tell us more about ghana -- >> yeah. >> -- and why the president selected it. josh, there are obvious places that for personal reasons he might have gone instead, but he picked ghana. why? >> it's very interesting, tom, what he did today watching earlier and the event today, the president chose one little dot on this world to send a message to the world and particularly to the entire continent of africa. what i want to do for you all right now is basically showing you that dot. i want to show you a little bit about ghana and then we'll talk about the facts that make it make so much sense as a place for him to put out the message. zooming in on ghana, sub-saharan

and over to west africa there. these are the two places to know about. cape coast is the location you've been seeing, the location of the slave site that we've been hearing and hearing so much about and that's accra where the president had been and having meetings. that is ghana in a nutshell. now, let me give you some facts about the country that can help you understand why it's so significant for today. first of all, when you look at the population, 24 million. check out the next one which shows you religious breakdown. very interesting here, more than two-thirds of the country is christian. it's also 16% muslim. that is a substantial muslim population. and that is part of the president's reach-out around the world. keep that in mind. in his trip to africa as well, reaching out to muslims who make up a large portion of africa in general. all right, check out this next one. the poverty line, 29% of the population in ghana is below the poverty line. now, by our standards in the u.s. or in the industrialized world that is massive. by african standards, it is not. i looked at where it ranks on something called the human

poverty index, it's not that low. gha ghana's economy relatively speaking is good as african nations go. and i'll show you one more thing here, because i want everyone to understand this. even though it's relatively good, the economy is very heavily dependent on international assistance. so, even pragmatically, economically, having the president of the united states come to ghana, that in and of itself can get the world focusing on ghana, can get more trade for ghana, can get tourists to come into ghana, that is a huge portion of their economy. they rely on that. so, that's the backdrop. that's the place we're talking about. now, why ghana? the president himself gave us a little sense of that. let's take a look at what he said -- >> part of the reason we're traveling to ghana because you've got there a functioning democracy. a president who's serious about reducing corruption. and you've seen significant economic growth. >> and that was the president just yesterday in italy following the g-8. so, tom, what we're seeing here is a president choosing that place and saying, okay, i'm

going to send a message to africa and to the world. and i'll tell you, there are some african leaders who will find this very important, very significant. i once heard the man who was played by don cheadle in "hotel rwanda" he said so many people pay attention to the problems in africa, the poverty in africa, hey, let's send money and charity work, all those things are important, but until the world can pressure african nations to do something about corruption, about fixing up the economy and setting up governments, there will not be successful economies for people. that's why it's so significant today, tom, that he chose to go to ghana, highlight what he sees as good about it and give in some ways a tough message. >> nice key points, josh, as we check in throughout the day. cnn's anderson cooper is in ghana, too, and he's sitting down with an interview with the president as we speak at the cape coast castle. we'll have excerpts throughout the afternoon. you don't want to miss those and, again, tomorrow morning on "state of the union" with john

king. and you can see anderson's entire interview with president obama monday evening on "anderson cooper 360" at 10:00 p.m. eastern only on cnn. it's a terrific show every night and this will be really a special occasion to hear what he has to say from the president sitting in ghana. when we come back in a moment or two, a true nightmare for families that have lost loved ones. acres and acres of graveyards with no graves. we'll have the latest coming up from that site in illinois. a cemetery, an investigation, and a lot of controversy.

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well, devastated relatives are now being banned from visiting their loved ones' grave sites. that's because the illinois cemetery where these graves were dug up and allegedly resold is now officially a crime scene. it's the latest development, reporter cheryl jackson is there. cheryl, what can you tell us about this? >> reporter: well, tom, you're right, people are upset. grief has turned to anger for a lot of people who can't go inside to see if the graves of their loved ones are safe. now, on thursday there were hundreds of people here. and they were able to walk through the graveyard and check to see if their families' tombstones were there. they're not able to do that today, because as some of the family members were walking through, they actually found human bones and remains. and so now police have sectioned off two sections where they believe there are human remains and the whole cemetery has

become a crime scene. there is an area that is called baby land, where infants and babies were buried. there's no evidence to show that it existed, no tombstones to even prove there was a baby land there. today we were able to go to the back of the cemetery where there were piles of debris and police say were human bones and debris, and human remains inside the debris and also just children's tombstones tossed off to the side. today police are not going to be able to give these people much information. they're telling them leave your name and your phone number, and within five days, we'll get back in touch with you. we talked to one woman whose entire family is buried here. >> i know they're in there, but are they a pile of bones? they was living people and we grieved for them and we loved them, and we wanted them to have a peaceful, restful life after they died. and i think that's the service that the cemetery should provide for the families. and when you dig them up, again, it's like you reliving them,

you're bringing back, the spirits are coming back, and it's just such a grievance process all over again. >> reporter: now, today they are actually exhuming a body that was buried a few months ago. one of the family members noticed that the body, that the casket did not go down very far, so they were worried the body was buried on top of another body. that's another thing the police are worried about, they do believe there are some graves that have more than one casket inside them. you know, african-american civil rights leader -- i mean, civil rights icon, emmett till was buried here. his grave was undisturbed, but in 2005 when they exhumed his body, they put him a different casket, the casket he was originally buried in was supposed to be preserved for a museum that, too, was found in an old shed, dilapidated and full of rodents. the scene is bad and it grows worse every hour and we're just waiting to hear about the exhumed bodies to see if there is one underneath. >> cheryl, there seem to be so

many complaints. i know authorities say they'ving receiving thousands of questions about what's happened there. how can they possibly begin to sort through all of the potential evidence and potential problems out there in any kind of short time to turn this back over to the families? >> reporter: police are saying that there's going to be worldwide forensic people here. it's going to take weeks, possibly months. forensic experts are saying some of the bones will be in small fragments. a lot of the people here may not have had dental records, so they're probably likely going to need dna from live relatives in order to be able to identify the bodies. it's a big mess, no doubt. >> do they really have any faith that they will ultimately be able to truly sort all of this out, because this is looking an awful lot in effect like a mass grave has been created, and sorting out everything that's happened in that, it seems it would be virtually impossible. >> reporter: it does seem to be virtually impossible and i think most of the people here do believe that it is going to be impossible. police haven't said that, but it

seems that there has to be someone who falls through the cracks. >> very interesting stuff. cheryl jackson, she's in alsip, illinois on the south side. hattiesburg, mississippi, is in mourning today for nfl quarterback steve mcnair. you're looking at live pictures right now from mcnair's memorial service at university of southern mississippi. thousands friends and fans of the slain former baltimore ravens player are paying their respects. several ravens players are there. the married mcnair was shot and killed last weekend by his girlfriend according to police, before she turned the gun on r herse herself. our larry smith filed this report moments ago. >> reporter: they are going to begin the funeral services for steve mcnair inside green coliseum on the campus of southern miss. mcnair started alcorn state the historically black college several hours away. but he is very well known, his

son is a high school football star. they'll remember more the accomplishments of the 36-year-old's career. the only super bowl in the tennessee titans history a decade ago and the nfl's most valuable player award that he won. steve mcnair will be buried in mt. olive, mississippi, about three hours away. the program said to be 90 minutes, many former nfl stars and players and coaches are inside to remember the life of steve mcnair. larry smith larry smith, hattiesburg, mississippi. a wonderful player and a tragic end to his story. washington is gearing up for a constitutional right of sorts or at least increasingly so in recent years. sonia sotomayor. it's time to play the classic senate reality show, supreme court survivor, and it's not going to be easy.

seems like we've been warming up to this for months and it really hasn't been that long. confirmation hearings begin monday morning for supreme court nominee sonia sotomayor. you will see live coverage and analysis when you watch cnn and the best political team on television. before monday rolls around, however, we thought it would be a good idea to reintroduce the judge. here's cnn senior political

correspondent, candy crowley. >> those principles -- >> reporter: the first hispanic supreme court nominee tapped by the first african-american president, history picks history. >> that i am an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences. >> reporter: sonia sotomayor's experience began in a housing project in the south bronx, where dreams can be big, but possibilities can seem small. >> to find out that, you know, somebody's actually made it out here is exciting. >> reporter: she was a first-generation american, the daughter of puerto rican immigrants, a father with a third-grade education who worked in a factory. a mother who worked as a nurse. sotomayor read nancy drew and wanted to be a homicide detective, but she was diagnosed with diabetes when she was 8 and told that meant she could not be a cop. a year after the diagnosis, her father died. left alone to raise two children, sotomayor's mother

worked six days a week. >> i have often said that i am all i am because of her. ♪ >> reporter: if police work was out, she found an alternative, watching "perry mason." >> i'm sorry, your honor, i have no further questions. >> reporter: sonia sotomayor wanted to be a lawyer. she excelled in school, valedictorian in high school on a scholarship to princeton, she graduated summa cum laude and phi beta kappa. and then yale law followed by a fearsome career. prosecutor, corporate late gator, appointed by president george h.w. bush to the u.s. district court in new york, its youngest member. then in 1998, the first latina appointed to the u.s. court of appeals for the second circuit. jenny rivera is a former law clerk. >> she has very high expectations of herself and everyone around her, but she is very caring. she's funny. >> reporter: sotomayor often stops by her local bakery for

sturgeon toast, bread sticks and a couple of decaf. neighbors say they talk with her about the building's leaky roof, and she's big on holidays. >> she does make quite an effort at halloween, and puts us all to shame at christmas with her lights on the balcony. >> thank you again, sir. >> reporter: it's a long way from the projects of the south bronx to the east room of the white house. but not quite as long as it seemed yesterday. candy crowley, cnn, washington. you know, candy's profile there first aired back in may. we're going to hear so much more about this. but that first came on when president obama announced his nominee there, so it's an interesting moment in time that we'll hear a lot about. cnn live as judge sonia sotomayor is considered for the supreme court. we'll bring you analysis that you just won't find anywhere else and i think it's going to be a very interesting look at her past and her ideas and what a lot of politicians in this

country think about them. diving into the deep end of another controversy. a private swim club responds to charges of racism after turning away some inner city kids. - ( truck engine rumbling ) - hey, wait wait wait wait wait wait, one more thing, one more thing! one more thing. all right. thanks. ( oboe/piano music playing ) announcer: why throw away your money? switch to sprint.

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it's a midpast the half-hour mark, and happening now -- president obama is wrapping up the final stop of his weeklong diplomatic mission. the president is giving credit to the western african nation of ghana as a model of democracy for the rest of the country to copy -- or the continent to copy, i should say. he's set to depart for the united states in just a few hours. and mississippi is mourning the death of former college and nfl football star, steve "air" mcnair. the retired quarterback died in an apparent murder-suicide last weekend in nashville, tennessee. people -- or police there believe mcnair's 20-year-old girlfriend shot him to death before turning the gun on herself. you know, over in suburban philadelphia, another

controversy is swirling around a private swim club. you may have heard about this, after it retracted pool privileges to a group of predominantly african-american kids. cnn's susan candiotti has the latest on accusations of racism. >> reporter: kids whose parents belong to valley club were back in the water and having summer fun one day after controversy kept them away. and youngsters who got to use that same pool for only a day got an apology from the swim club, but no invitation to return. >> it's just really unfortunate, and we apologize deeply. we regret deeply that this had to happen. >> reporter: here's what happened. a day care center catering to mainly black and hispanic, paid to use the pool once a week for an hour and a half. but after one visit, the check was returned and summer swim trips canceled. >> we severely underestimated the number of children and our capacity to handle these groups. we were not prepared for it.

that's the only reason. it was a safety issue and that's the only reason, the children we felt it was not safe for them to be here. >> reporter: the day care center calls that a lie. it claims the club pulled the plug because of racist complaints from some white members. >> the children came running down the hill, saying, miss wright, miss wright, those people up there are saying what are those black kids doing in the pool. >> it's just kind of, like, sad, like, white people are still thinking like -- thinking like this, when i felt like these days was over. >> if someone said that, i don't know. i didn't hear it. people are going to say things, but it's not our -- one person saying it is not the position of the club or the board. certainly not how we raise our children. >> reporter: the club flatly denies it discriminates and says two other day care centers were also canceled after one visit. >> it's just unfortunate that this had to turn into such a firestorm, because this has been totally misrepresented in terms of our club and how welcoming we are. >> he doesn't deserve this.

he is a kind, tolerant person. that -- that would to anything for anyone, and teaches our children -- teaches me -- you know, that everything can be resolved with conversation. >> susan is joining us now from huntington valley, susan, are things getting any calmer poolside? >> reporter: well, tom, i'm not sure whether conversation at this point will be able to solve this controversy. anything is possible, of course. at this hour, a small group of people has gathered outside the club, which is open for its members. and their guests as well. this is a group of people, but very small at this point. they've tried to ask the community to come up and show what -- how they feel about this. i can tell you that there's a sign at the outside of the pool that says "understaffed, not racism." joining us now is alethea wright, who is the director of the day care center you've been hearing so much about. alethea, everyone got to hear some of the comments of mr.

duesler and his wife. they said, this was not a racism issue. this was about overcrowding and safety. is that acceptable to you? >> no. because it's not a safety issue. there were 55 children present. it's 110,000-gallon pool. and they are two separate pools. there's a one-foot pool and there's a 110,000-gallon pool for swimmers. >> well, they are saying that there weren't enough lifeguards and it was too crowded. >> i have an e-mail stating that his ratio is 25 swimmers to 1 lifeguard. he had three to four lifeguards on staff that day, and i personally had eight staff members from creative steps, incorporated. >> reporter: do you accept his apology? >> at this point, because it's not connected with the facts, which is the truth, i will accept his apology when he takes a stand and tells the truth. >> reporter: mrs. wright, thank

you very much for joining us. the pennsylvania human rights commission is investigating this, so this will be going on for quite a while, tom. back to you. >> susan, thanks so much. a difficult situation for all the folks there to sort through, i'm sure. from tehran to washington. the calls for change in the islamic republic of iran are also growing this weekend. more demonstrations against iran's disputed election and the government's violent crackdown are slated again today in our nation's capital. cnn's reza sayah recently back from iran is now in d.c. reza, what are you seeing there? >> reporter: yeah, tom, over the past couple of weeks we've seen more pro-democracy rallies outside of iran than we've seen inside and that's because protesters are free to hold rallies outside of iran. the latest one taking place in washington, d.c., today. let's take a look at some pictures. this rally started about an hour ago. not a huge gathering. hundreds of people, but it is growing. it started at the reflecting pool, and it's working its way up here to lafayette park in front of the white house, where

they'll have some speakers and some music. there's some americans part of this rally, but most of them are iranians, part of the iranian diasporo who left iran because they haven't been happy with the conditions there. they wanted more social and political freedoms and they've been concerned about the post-election turmoil and really inspired by the uprising there. joining right now is mrs. sona sonsanny, part of the freedom movement. you helped to organize this. you are thousands of miles away from what's going on in iran. what can you do from this far away? >> as you know, in last month more than 200 people have been killed. thousands arrested, injured, severely beaten. so, we all belong, american women, human rights organization, iranian communities, supportive members of congress, senators, we all coming here to have and be voice

of neda and also voice of all the people that cannot their voice be heard inside of iran. >> reporter: unfortunately, we don't have much time. so, i appreciate your thoughts. that number of killed, obviously disputed. the government only says 20, some people part of this rally want the international community to cut off all diplomatic and economic ties. tom, that's the debate that you'll be hearing for the weeks and months to come. >> thanks, reza, thank you for keep us up to date on all this. neda, of course, the young woman that died in all the difficulties over there. if you are planning a trip to another country, canada, soon, there are some new travel guidelines that you need to know about. here's cnn's richelle carey with this week's "on the go." >> reporter: crossing the border between the u.s. and canada is not as easy as it used to be. the new law requires travelers entering or leaving either country to present a valid passport or another approved travel document. >> there is a nexus card and

enhanced driver's licenses by a number of states. >> reporter: officials say the policy helps the process go faster and more efficiently. travelers without those documents will be handled accordingly. >> they will be assisted by the customs and border protection officers, who will do what they can to expeditiously confirm their identity and their citizenship and to get them through as quickly as possible. >> reporter: if you need a passport in a hurry, visit a passport agency, and they may grant you one within 24 to 48 hours. >> we are going to open up seven new public counters between now and the end of 2010. and the big ones are going to be in san diego and atlanta. which are two areas that have been underserved for a long time. when i was told i had diabetes,

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graves dug up and allegedly resold, the king of pop's future proceeds, we turn to our legal guys as we always do.

avery friedman is a law professor in cleveland, ohio. hi. >> hi. >> richard leyland, a new york attorney and law professor is joining us as well. richard, let me turn to you, on the grave-digging story, the allegations that the graves were dug up and then resold. what rights do these families have, and how do they assert them in the chaos that seems to be going on right now? >> i think they will try to work with the cemetery, because i think primarily they want to know if their deceased are there. the remains are there, are the graves intact. if they're not, they're going to have to do dna testing. some of the people did not have teeth. it's going to be very, very difficult. the members that were involved, i think there are four now, are facing federal crimes for dismemberment of bodies. facing 6 to 30 years in prison for each count per person. >> and there's no indication, richard, that they have a whole lot of money. so, avery, what do these people go after if they want restitution for the suffering and trying to get all the tests done, what do they go after?

>> the grave digger four have no money. what this is about, tom, the insurance that will cover the directors and the cemetery itself, i think you're looking at a class action on behalf of all the families, whose -- who have been affected by this exhumation of the bodies. it is a very serious matter, and it will be a very expensive undertaking. among other things, this insurance will have to pay not only for the development of the case, but in the event it is what it appears to be, there is an enormous payout on the other end of this case. >> do they have a real chance of getting that, avery? >> i think so. >> because after all, you know what the company's going to say. >> well, you know, the director will say, we didn't know anything about it. >> exactly. >> well, the truth is, after 300 bodies, tom, somebody's got to know what's going on. so, my hunch is, the standard of knew or should have known is going to come in to play in a civil action, probably a class action. >> richard, let's turn to the swimming pool story that we're hearing about right now. it doesn't seem yet what really happened.

there do seem to be indications of things, but we're early in the process. is there legal action in the works here or is this more something people have to work out? >> well, based on the last interview that we saw, where she said she's not going to accept any kind of comments from the president, except from the witness stand at trial, i think there's a federal civil rights litigation that's pending that's being drawn up right now. and for $1,950, this club will face themselves a major hurd. this president we just saw spoke earlier in the week in front of a local philadelphia television station and said it looked like the complexion and atmosphere changed. they play those in front of the jury and this case, alleging discrimination and civil rights violations, this club is in big trouble. >> avery, one last question real quickly here. michael jackson's big money, there seems to be a big struggle going on right now as people look at the potential future of his name rights compared to the debt he was saddled with. who is going to get stuck with what? because the creditors obvious would like to get the money.

i'm sure others would like to say, no, no, no, it's new income. it has nothing to do with the debt. who wins? >> a lot of people that will get, those that will able to get paid are the secured contracts, but for many people promised compensation, $400 million in debt, someone's going to get paid, probably the banks. >> tom, they will open neverland. it will be bigger than graceland. everybody is going to get paid. >> i don't know. >> your state will make a lot of money here. >> i don't know if anyone always gets paid because they fight and fight for every dollar. >> right. >> avery and richard, thank you as always. to launch or not to launch, nasa has made a decision on the next shuttle mission. es than anywhere else. which means cities have to get smarter. new york has smart crime fighting. paris has smart healthcare. smart traffic systems in brisbane keep traffic moving. galway has smart water. smart meters in dallas, houston... and a smart grid in copenhagen keep energy flowing. smart ideas are happening... all over the world. i want to bring them all together in your city.

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the space shuttle was supposed to go up tonight, but now it's a no-go. nasa wants to take a closer look at what damage may have been caused by lightning strikes near the launchpad. there were strong storms out there yesterday. they say they'll try to get the shuttle "endeavour" in the air

tomorrow. the shuttle was actually supposed to go up at first last month, but potentially dangerous hydrogen leaks caused a series of delays out there. stay with cnn throughout the day for the latest-breaking news. we'll be back with live coverage of president obama's historic departure from ghana in about 45 minutes. 4 times the number... of pills compared to aleve. choose aleve and you could start taking fewer pills. just 2 aleve have the strength... to relieve arthritis pain all day.