i was so excited because i know the team has been really looking forward to welcoming everyone inside. >> napa county moves to the orange tier meaning wineries can open tasting rooms, bowling alleys and movie theaters can expand. san francisco yellow expanding capacity and will people really flood in? thank you for joining us. i'm dan ashley. >> i'm kristen sze. let's begin with distance learning drama. an east bay parent said a letter he received threatening the boy's arrest for missing zoom class is over kill. the school administration said they have no choice given state guidelines around attendance. here is laura anthony. >> i mean, this is our fourth child in this school and out of the blue we get a letter. >> reporter: lafayette parent mark says he was stunned when the family received a letter threatening his seventh grade

son with arrest for missing exactly three 30-minute zoom sessions unexcused absences. >> he can become arrested. i said are you going to find me because he didn't get into his zoom class perfect every day? >> reporter: merick spends seven hours a day attending virtual school via zoom. the letter lists three periods he missed and says when a student is absent without a valid excuse, the student is considered truant according to california low and down below, he could be subject to arrest. the principal told us the letter is the result of new state guidelines this fall. senate bill 98 which requires districts to keep a closer eye on student attendance. reached by phone, stanley principal betsey be it's part of the state

requirements and as always, the schools have a reposponsibilityo ensure students are engaged and learning. he heard from other parents and writing to lawmakers urging a change in the law. >> obviously, we're in a pandemic and governor newsom is trying to manage it but if the state of california is going to arrest 12-year-old children for missing 90 minutes of school in ten months, that's ridiculous. >> reporter: california public school rely on daily attendance numbers for state and federal funding. in lafayette, laura anthony, abc 7 news. the today 's coronavirus headlines and there are many. marin catholic school suspended in person classes for two weeks after hearing concerns about a student party and sleepovers. the cdc today changed their definition of close contact. the new definition is someone who was within six feet of an infected individual for a total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period.

the number of cases in california increased from 3500 to 877,784 cases to this moment. now to those reopening plans. in the next few weeks, in san francisco, two big change begin. non-essential businesses can reopen at 25% capacity and restaurants expand to 50% capacity. stephanie sierra is live to explain both of these are welcome changes. >> from a business standpoint, san francisco has the highest vacancy rate it's seen in a decade. it raises the question how many companies will actually have employees come back to the office? in the heart of san francisco's financial district, it still sits quiet. just how quiet? more than 11 million square feet of office space currently sits vacant across the city. >> they have put space on the market because they just didn't know what their needs were going

to be after all this. >> reporter: robert is a senior researcher with real estate firm curbman and wakefield and explains the vacancy rate jumped from 9. 9%. the areas hardest hit are the financial district where each submarket went from single digit rates prepandemic to double those figures now. currently, the seat. how many do you expect to come back? >> i think the majority they may need more space social distancing. other industries don't have that luxury like restaurant owner tony marcel. he may not make it.

>> 50. >> reporter: in the meantime he'll have other concerns like enforcement. >> it's a mat equation based on the occupancy levels. >> reporter: an equation he's more than willing to do to keep customers safe and his business alive. >> we all want to take care of each other and it's new to everybody. we'll get through this together. >> reporter: as far as enforcement, the city has a community education response team made up of disaster service workers that are handling both inspections and complaints. now coming up tonight at 6:00, we'll have an update on how many businesses police have sited acro -- cited across the city for failing to compile with health orders. >> we look forward to that. thank you. we've made it easy for you to keep tabs on the rules and what's open where you live. this interactive reopening tracker is on abc7news.com.

today microsoft poufounder world health advocate bill gates opened up about the covid-19 crisis during a wide ranging discussion streamed from stanford university, gates talked about politics, missed opportunities and hope for the future. >> without using too much hindsight, where did we go wrong? >> the title of my ted talk we're not ready for the next pandemic. i wrote in the new england journal of medicine how to get anti virals or antibodies or high-scaled high-scal high-scaled molecular testing available. i've been pitching to leaders and the president and i was really talking about this topic. sadly, it got into do vaccines work at all? that's another discussion. we have a lot of vaccines underway. the ones that really count are the ones that will go through a gold standard regulator which would be the usdfd a or the

european regulator. they want that blessing before they say this is quite safe. >> what will be critically important once a vaccine is shown to be safe and is available is getting people to use it. >> i mean, after all the epidemic, the boundary between what's the regulator and politicians has been broken. my hope is population that will be willing to take the vaccine very early on by the transmission blocking and benefit that the vaccine brings. >> will that also help to combat the misinformation and conspiracy theories that have been particularly prominent during this pandemic? >> you know, by demonizing dr. fauci or myself, the two most prominently mentioned in some of

these inaccurate theories, it could drive people to not wear masks as much or not be willing to seek out the vaccine. now, we have to offset that by being creative about the truthful message, you know, the heroes who invent the vaccine and facts how the safety trials have been done, you know, so we're going to have to push ourselves on that. >> gates said he also believes the platforms now in place for a vaccine testing and drug development could evolve to become even more efficient in future pandemics. a major announcement this afternoon from pg&e regarding the upcoming power shut offs. a short time ago the utility downgraded the impact. it says about 4200 customers in four counties could have their power cut due to the high fire danger over the next couple of days. solano county was removed from the list. in all, about 52,000 customers across 18 california counties

could be affected. and of course, it depends on the weather. the wind and the heat and humi humidi humidity. let's go to drew tee uma with a look what to expect. >> yeah, dan, in a matter of hours, the next red flag warning will begin at 10:00 p.m. tonight for the north bay mountains, the east bay hills. at 1:00 a.m. early tomorrow morning, it will begin for the santa cruz mountains soft again, we're watching offshore winds develop out of the north, northeast and we could see frequent gusts over 35 miles per hour. winds right now, once that goes into effected and expect strong gust tomorrow morning. so 7:00 a.m., you can see the winds are gusty during the day and another burst of offshore winds early friday morning. we'll take a much closer look at the humidity, how dry it will

get and another potential offshore wind event this weekend with the full accuweather forecast in a few minutes, kristen. >> drew, thank you. taxpayers will pay $30 million to fix san francisco's leaning ma leillennium tower. the overall settlement comes to $100 million. the money will pay for 52 piles to be drilled into the bedrock to sure up the structure leaning over by 14 inches. millions more will go to the condo owners whose property values plummeted. >> there was questions whether the foundation was properly installed, whether it should have gone to the landfill or bedro bedrock. there was questions about the chance bay center, was it too big and maybe a $30 million we got off lightly. >> you can read his columns in the chronicle on sundays and wednesdays. the final phase of the $309

million improve the project is underway in san francisco with crews focussing on beautiful and improvements. it began in 2015 and is expected to wrap up late next year. a lot more to come, major change of faith. pope francis endorses same-sex unions. what that means for the church. our america living while block. today we examine the income gap between black and white families and making movies, hollywood is a hundred-year comet... did i miss it? but you can't sleep through my breakfast. because it's served all day, every day! thanks, jack. try my $4.99 french toast sticks jumbo breakfast platter. part of my all day, everyday breakfast.

tv: this is the greatest play i've ever seen! what'd i miss? but you can't sleep through my breakfast. because it's served all day, every day! thanks, jack. try my $4.99 french toast sticks jumbo breakfast platter. part of my all day, everyday breakfast.

>> a surprise today for the pope. remarks are a break from official church teaching. these comments came in a new document. abc 7 news chris nguyen has reaction. >> reporter: tonight the catholic community is reacting to become the first pontiff to endorse same-sex unions in an interview. professor julie rubio of the santa clara university school of theology says while the pope's comments are significant, they're not that surprising. >> throughout the seven years he's been pope, he has used language that is more inclusive, more welcoming of gay and

lesbian persons. >> reporter: in the documentary, the pope says in spanish quote homosexual people have a right to be in a family, are children of god and have a right to a family. we have to create a civil union law that way they are legally covered. father james martin, editor at large at "america magazine" said it's a monumental statement since the pope serves as a ledder of millions of catholics worldwide. >> he says how catholics see things and the world sees things and it's one of his many ways of reaching out to the lgbtq community. >> reporter: catholic community members we spoke to were glad to hear about the potential shift in stance at the highest levels of the church. >> it's great to be able to hear someone acknowledge and affirm that you are present and that you are seen and that your identities do matter. >> reporter: while civil unions are different from marriages, some are hopeful this is simply the start of more changes to come. >> being able to have a marriage

with the same rights, the same rituals that your siblings went through and i feel that now or within time, you know, i will be able to have that wedding. >> reporter: in san jose, chris nguyen, abc 7 news. voters rejected the expansion of rent control but there is a new effort this year with proposition 21. abc 7 news anchor liz kreutz explains what it's all about. >> voters rejected the expansion of rent control on residential property two years ago but this year, proposition 21 has a powerful ally, the pandemic. whenever covid-19 moratoriums on rent increases expire, advocates fear there will be a title wave of evictions two. years ago, 59% of voters rejected michael weinstein's prop 10 to adopt rent controls on any type of housing. activist weinstein of the health care foundation is back with the ballot initiative, which is a

kinder, glenentler reform to a state law enacted in 1995 that put limits on municipal rent control ordnances and capping units built after 1995. prop 21 allows local governments to establish rent control on residential properties over 15 years old and excepts single family homes owned by people with no more than two properties. proponents say it will keep families in their homes. some say it will create a housing freeze by eliminating homeowner productitection and b providing no protection for renters. voters like it but worry about backlash from landlords. the final presidential debate between president trump and joe biden is tomorrow night starting at 6:00 here on abc 7. all right. be sure to tune into that. let's turn our attention to the

weather forecast. critical weather we need to focus on. >> that's right, drew. >> kristen and dan, we'll see the next red flag warning go into effect later on tonight and we're tracking what could be a stronger offshore wind event over the weekend. so non-the le so nonetheless, the fire danger remains high. let's show you this wednesday afternoon sue trtower, san fran and the east bay hills is an area we're watching closely tonight for those gusty winds developing. temperatures micro climate in full effect right now at 67 in the city but it's autumn warmth. the north bay basking in 80s and 90s. 88 fremont, 86 that current temperature in san jose. so we will track those winds increasing overnight tonight and that will create that red flag warning that begins at 10:00 p.m. for the north bay mountains and east bay hills and begins a little later for the santa cruz

mountains at 1:00 a.m. early tomorrow morning but non-the less, north, northeasterly winds again developing. we've been through this time and time again this season. gusting higher than 35 miles per hour at times so we have low humidity, we have dry fuels. we'll be very is that start. we've shown you this many times over the fire season. it takes into account not only the gusty winds but also how low the humidity is and also how warm it is. you do notice first thing tomorrow morning at 8:00 a.m. as the sun gets up here and we have gusty winds, we'll find high if not pockets of very high fire danger especially in the north bay and parts of the east bay around mt. diablo. the fire does lesson towards thursday afternoon but a dry day. look at humidity levels. tomorrow morning going to wake up perhaps feel the dry air on

your skin with those relative humidity levels in the teens in many spots creating the higher fire danger. overnight tonight we'll watch the winds ramp up in the hill s after about 10:00 p.m. a lot of spots holding in the mid 50s overnight tonight. then we will watch thursday for those breezy conditions right around sunrise to taper as we head into the afternoon. slightly cooler tomorrow but still nonetheless, it's a warm autumn afternoon with 74 in the city. 82 san jose, 84 the high. here is the accuweather seven-day forecast. gusty hills, high fire danger tomorrow and red flag warning. it's breezy in the morning. then winds back off in the afternoon. then saturday it's calm and sunny but sunday, monday, dan and kristen, we could see stronger offshore winds develop and fine tune those details but know another red flag warning will be issued to finish out the weekend. >> thanks very much, drew.

appreciate it. the bay area's newest park next to the bay bridge. we'll give you a look just ahead. movie making returns to san francisco. how they're shooting an action flick with pandemic protocols in

women with metastatic we breast cancer.rs. our time... ...for more time... ...has come. living longer is possible- and proven in postmenopausal women taking kisqali plus fulvestrant. in a clinical trial, kisqali plus fulvestrant helped women live longer with hr+, her2- metastatic breast cancer. and it significantly delayed disease progression. kisqali can cause lung problems or an abnormal heartbeat, which can lead to death. it can cause serious skin reactions, liver problems, and low white blood cell counts that may result in severe infections.

tell your doctor right away if you have new or worsening symptoms, including breathing problems, cough, chest pain, a change in your heartbeat, dizziness, yellowing of the skin or eyes, dark urine, tiredness, loss of appetite, abdomen pain, bleeding, bruising, fever, chills, or other symptoms of an infection, a severe or worsening rash, are or plan to become pregnant, or breastfeeding. avoid grapefruit during treatment. ask your doctor about living longer with kisqali. the economy is part of the focus in building a better bay area. how do wild care chases and a ripped in half bus achieve that? this is not a twist to 2020 but

a movie being shot in san francisco. j.r. stone spoke with excited fans. >> reporter: hollywood is here and buses are smashing into parked show cars. want the a closer view? look at this one. same street, smaller bus ripped apart in the middle swerving all over the place on bush street in san francisco. all fake for a marvel productions hollywood blockbuster movie. >> the director was just like on tv, had his megaphone. he was yelling action. >> reporter: did you not hear that part? let's have these cars go in reverse for another take, something that did actually happen. lights, camera, take it away directo director. insiders say the movie is currently being filmed in san francisco under strict covid-19 protocols including social distancing and mask requirements. tuesday that roaring bus could be seen sitting in front of a

movie garbage truck in fisherman's warf. >> they had a motorcycle filming. they had the drone. they had a car in front leading it with a camera on it. i actually wonder if they will blow it up or something. i don't know. [ laughter ] >> fingers crossed. >> i'm glass they are making movies again. i'm glad they are bringing money to the city, you know. desperately needs it. >> reporter: it certainly could use the excitement. looks like the parked show cars outside the chocolate could be next with sparks, collisions and more. in hollywood -- i mean, san francisco, j.r. stone, abc 7 news. >> so cool. >> yes. and the movie starring and the star of "kim's convenience" is slated for release july 2021. disney is the parent company of abc 7. this is the first marvel film

with an asian super hero star. a lot of excitement around it. >> a lot of excitement and great to see them shooting here in the city and amazing how they pull off the incredible scenes in the middle of a city. fun to watch. a new shoreline park is open right next to one of the bay area's best known landmarks. today officials celebrated the judge john sooter regional shoreline at the eastern touchdown of the bay bridge. the park includes a massive 600 foot long by 40-foot wide public observation pier built atop six remaining piles. there is also a 24,000 square foot train maintenance building from the 1930s quite the project. celebrating the 150th anniversary. the wheel features 36 fully enclosed climate controlled government shutdo gondala and sweeping views of

the city. reservations are required and you must wear a mask and practice social distancing. like the london eye. >> can't wait. just ahead on part three of "our america, living while black." the income gap between black and white familie

we live in the mountains so i like to walk. i'm really busy in my life; i'm always doing something. i'm not a person that's going to sit too long. in the morning, i wake up and the first thing i do is go to my art studio. a couple came up and handed me a brochure on prevagen. i've been taking prevagen for about four years. i feel a little bit brighter and my mind just feels sharper. i would recommend it to anyone. it absolutely works. prevagen. healthier brain. better life.

imagine making $26,000 less a year because of the color of your skin. many black families in america don't have to imagine it, they are living it. in the third installment in "our america living while black," we take a closer look at the disparity between black and white families.

in the bay area that income gap is significantly more than $26,000. the median household income for a black family in san francisco is $59,083. for a non-hispanic white family, it's a $67,000 difference. but that's only part of the problem. there are those working to break this oppressive pattern. >> a lot of space for mischief. so you have to be on your feet and think. you know what i mean? you have to be ahead. students' heads are always busy. when you think you have down time, you don't. my name is germane mohammed. i'm a security supervisor at the school, thornton township high school. >> he's one of these children that have a purpose, personality and have a necessary prophone innocent we need to fix a problem somewhere.

so my job to them is to be what they don't have. >> this is the door we come in. they off the bus for the lunch period and walk down. hot spot in the morning. nobody makes enough money. i do not feel like i make enough money. >> many black americans are doing the best they can but the system is stacked against them. today, blacks have 60% of the income of whites and 5% of the wealth. in other words, almost no financial cushion against a rainy day to start a business, send a kid to school or move and much of that economic disparity exists because of decades of systematic racism to build wealth. while it helped lift americans out of poverty, african americans were repeatedly denied acess and farm and domestic workers largely black professions were excluded from the deal. the g.i. bill gave servicemen

affordable education and created wealth, ka lcollateral and nest eggs, an engine powering families into the middle and upper class but black gis were refused acceptance and shutout of the home loans. freeways were purposely designed to be walls and city transport limited keeping blacks and whites further apart and when blacks could get mort ragages t faced red lining. banks refusing to underwrite homes outside of segregated neighborhoods forcing blacks to say seg rated in low value housing. some communities continue to fel the effects where germane and his wife and five children that have the second highest rate of violent crimes in chicago. >> there is a little worry and fear. i like this neighborhood but sometimes there is kind of violence around here so pretty much after 5:00, i won't go out

the house. gunshots happen around that time anyway. i try to come out within the afternoon. no, i do not wear headphones because i like to be aware of my surroundings, i try to have no distractions so if i have loud music in my ear, i won't be able to tell if there say gunshot or something outside. so it's basically just awareness type of issue. i won't describe it as a bad feeling or good feeling. it's a necessary feeling you need to survive. i feel like it hasn't hindered me to where i can't go to college or something like that. >> black communities are not violent. they're victims of violence. what you have is hurt people hurting people. the issue again is equatable access and opportunity. what opportunity do i have to earn income and african

americans are finding that systematic and blocks and blocks of emptiness. where is the investment? >> i'm home. >> there is no such thing in my world of let's go outside, which will be very easy for me and very helpful. i have to go out there with them. i have to watch and make sure that they are okay. somebody might, you know, come by with a gun and shooting looking for somebody else and you just kind of get caught in the cross fire. ♪ ♪ >> i never say to myself let's move out of chicago. i'm tired of this. because i'm not ready >> a nice car, brand-new leather

jacket. we need red. i emphasize to the children. you can have a bmw but ain't no gas, ain't going nowhere. i jump in this hoopty and it's rolling. rolling is more important. seeing the hurting pain of my mother and other folks, can't be that person. >> dinner time. watch out for that fortnight, man. >> it's fortnight. >> my wife and i know it's our duty and job and obligation to be better people. every day because they're still becoming people so the people they encounter with the most is us somewhere along the line, let's take responsibility. >> why not give them the best of ourselves when we can while their young? >> paying for this food, amen. >> the way i feel about my income is that whenever i need more, i get more. i can sleep at night and we can

eat and i can still be a resource for my children. >> yes, it hard. yes, it's tiring. yes, it takes a lot of thought and energy and thought. can't be a part time parent. >> almost getting ready to go to college. i guess we can start packing. [ laughter ] >> they are dedicated parents. next, growing up homeless and sleeping on trains. the one question that helped a university professor break the cycle of poverty. we made usaa insurance for members like martin. an air force veteran made of doing what's right, not what's easy. so when a hailstorm hit, usaa reached out before he could even inspect the damage. that's how you do it right. usaa insurance is made just the way martin's family needs it - with hassle-free claims, he got paid before his neighbor even got started. because doing right by our members, that's what's right.

usaa. what you're made of, we're made for. usaa

. more black families lift at or below the poverty level. the rate for americans is about 10%. according to the u.s. census, 17% of black families are at or below the pav poverty level. it's better in san francisco. what does it take to break the cycle of poverty. a professor who grew up homeless says one question changesd his life. >> what a social worker asked me was i going to college, i said absolutely not. i'm homeless. and i said that black and brown people don't go to college.

and he told me sure they do. if you continue doing what you're doing as a homeless individual, you will some day go to college and i sure >> antwon lavelle is describing what psychologists refer to as learned helplessness. when an individual experiences repeated trama or failure as a result of thing they don't control, they no longer feel something is possible. when the black community experiences higher levels of poverty, housing and education and years of racial discrimination it's not surprising when some experience a loss of hope. >> my mother was in and out of the work force on public assistance and i remember she received about $64 every two weeks and i don't know how but we made it. >> we lived with a bunch of family members and the last family member said you can't stay here anymore. we stayed with a friend before we had to go sleep on the number three train. i was never scared. my mother and i would get on the

train and sleep in the corner in the evening and wake up in the morning the beginning on rush hour. i would go to school during the day. i was a student at brooklyn college academy. we had teachers that found out i was homeless and made sure i was okay. i would eat at school. i would have tutoring and then meet my mother at the train station at a certain time in the evening. i would find newspapers and the current events section is the section i enjoyed reading and that's the first time i remember seeing a place in the bronx where homeless families could go. i asked her could we go to this location to find housing and she said absolutely not. that's where homeless people are. makes sense there a sigma around homeless shelters in new york that they're dangerous. she looked at me and said are you ready? >> opi remember opening the doo of the apartment and running in with excitement.

i remember the staff member with us. he looked in amazement because why would a child be so excited to run into a shelter apartment? it was something that was my own. i hadn't had a place that i could call my own and close the door and this is the first time my mother and i would be able to close the door to a safe space. my mother is in her 70s. that mother's guilt will always be present for her but i told her, i appreciate everything else. she didn't have the money to give me or economic security but she gave me a lot more. she gave me love and value and something i use every day to be successful. >> the joy of simply having a safe space to call your own. coming up next, some call it the black beverly hills. this family calls it home. how they are building a future for the next generation while respecting the past.

but i can't say i expected this. because it was easy. to fight these fires, we need funding - plain and simple. for this crisis, and for the next one. prop 15 closes tax loopholes so rich corporations pay their fair share of taxes. so firefighters like me, have what we need to do the job, and to do it right. the big corporations want to keep their tax loopholes. it's what they do. well, i do what i do. if you'ld like to help, join me and vote yes on prop 15.

joint pain, swelling, temy psoriasis. cosentyx works on all of this. cosentyx can help you look and feel better by treating the multiple symptoms of psoriatic arthritis. don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx. before starting, get checked for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor about an infection or symptoms, if your inflammatory bowel disease symptoms develop or worsen, or if you've had a vaccine, or plan to. serious allergic reactions may occur. watch me! get real relief with cosentyx.

in the season fran metro area, only about 35% of black families own homes compared to 42% across the u.s. but many black homeowners are paying the price of racial bias. a 2018 brookings report found homes of similar quality in

neighborhoods with similar am amenities are worth 23% less in majority black neighborhoods compared to those with few or no black residentresidents. some call the black beverly hills, the burnett family is working to build a future for the next generation. ♪ ♪ >> some people call this area the black beverly hills. i'm pretty sure it was someone african american that labeled it. these are wonderful homes with great views. everyone here works hard to be here. this is a lively neighborhood. we play our music loud and barbecue and have huge gatherings and when people of other colors move here, you need to know that. this is the community. come on, time for dinner. >> initially i grew up in south central los angeles in the middle of l.a. and we knew there were more fluent black people

that lived in the baldwin hills area so as kids, we always wanted to be there. >> what's the secret ingredient? >> the secret ingredient to these rib eyes is a barbecue sauce. >> my mother tries to be better to make steps to be the best i can be. doesn't apologize for your level of accomplishment. that would be one of the most important things you should celebrate. with madison, i'm clear to her, my background and her background, starting points is different and i want for her to understand she has a leg up and that her responsibilities having tat leg up is to be a little more successful than some would say that i am. the major question always is what's the name of the game? it's options. when we chose to live here, it's

because there is a lawyer. there is a doctor. there is a pharmacist. they're all here and she can begin to understand these people and then begin to select the option and those are just awesome possibilities. >> i'm very proud of my dad and mom. when i go back with him and see the area he grew up, it just looks like a neighborhood to me. >> there was an incident last year at madison's school. a rabbi came to speak to the children and talking about compton and said nothing good comes out of compton. madison said that's where my dad grew up. >> the houses are smaller but it's just a neighborhood and people shouldn't look at it as anything other than that. >> it's kind of like you never let. th this is my house. i lived here until age 4 until my mother passed, ten, 12 people in a 400 square foot house at

once and everyone wanted better. >> how is it going? >> how are you doing? >> how have you been doing? >> doing good. >> i knew he was going to be good. i did. i knew that, uh-huh. he was a hard worker. very hard worker. uh-huh. he got it from his mother, though. he got it from his mother. she was a hard worker. ♪ ♪ >> growing up in our neighborhood, it was about being with the group. the group was your protection and savior, the group was your ability to move through the community without being bothered. i have an antenna that is always up looking for what is truth in my environment. with madison, hers because of her head start, if you will, she doesn't have the antenna. we always talk about e.q.u. w k

walking into a m radiroom, look around, knowing what is going on. i want her to be safe. being safe is knowing there are different measures of communication and not all verbal. >> she knows sometimes racism is hidden. it's not always right in your face. and she pointed that out to me sometimes. >> when i describe where i grew up or where i live to new friends or somebody that will come over to my house, i always have to tell them i live in baldwin hills. where is that? if you know the culver city steps, it's the hill next to that. i have to describe it in that way. if i say south l.a., oh, >> in terms of current times, if you look at what was going on when we were kids 17, 18, 19, being stopped by the police just in general, i don't see it much different then to now when i go to work and i see the cop car, i still wonder what their intention is. there is a lot of work to do. there should be better. one of my colleagues who is a

dentist in my building after the george floyd thing and all the things he saw on television, he comes to me one day in mid work and says i've been watching this stuff and it's so horrible. i wonder if there is something specific you would think that you could tell me that i could do to be better now that my eyes are open. the most important thing i got out of that, if everybody has the opportunity to look earnestly what is happening over a great number of years, we can make progress. it's a matter of do you want to take the time and are you going to open your heart to actually look at it, find out what truth is and what truth has been foreve forever? >> well said. coming up tomorrow on "our america living while black" the descendants of slaves building on their family's legacies from a black farmer to a black owned

construction farm between projects. how the black families are honoring and carrying on their heritage. i just add a spoonful to my marinades...llon? ...to stir frys... ...sauces... just whisk it in... ...brush it on ...sauté it. it adds a "cooked all day taste" ...that doesn't take all day. better than bouillon. don't just make it. make it better because when i get home, we like to play crocodile on the floor. promist max's pad removes over 99% of bacteria, with just water. better cleaning with less waste. o-cedar. it feels great to feel at home.

they all endorse yes on prop 25. to end unfair, unjust, discriminatory money bail. governor gavin newsom and van jones. they're voting yes on 25. the western center on law and poverty. the dolores huerta foundation. californians for safety and justice. and the california democratic party. they all agree that the size of your wallet shouldn't determine whether or not you're in jail. so, vote yes on prop 25.

now to samuel getacho, the 2019 youth poet laureate sat down with activist kat brooks

from the -- to talk about politics and act advise sxm how people who want to make a change can get involved. >> my name is samuel getacho. i'm a spoken word poet and act frist oakland. i'm honored to speak to kat brooks, executive director of the justice team's network about her work, this unique historical moment and how we can move forward. >> hi, samuel. it's so nice to meet you. >> it's really nice to meet you too. i'm great. i've been looking forward to this all day. >> where do you think the disconnect is between the politics that we claim to have, the politics that we're seeing as having nationwide, and the actual praf those realities in our city? >> i think the politics of oakland sit in the hearts and the souls of the people. it sits in the hearts and the souls of the people who take the streets and who do the art and who make culture here and do protests here, who are living in the legacy of the black panther party. we are i think the most

progressive city in the country but because of who is in the streets and is holding those who sit in office accountable. >> we have to stay engaged. people have to pay closer attention. where do you think is the best outlet for, again, the average oakland citizen who's new to these things to get engaged? >> what makes your heart sing? if you're not doing it in a way that makes your heart sing it's not going to be sustainable. if you can't find a home in a 8,364,425 progressive organizations in the bay area start your own. >> how much faith do you have the resurgence of this will have lasting effects and will actually create the change that we need? >> i'm very clear that without oscar grant there was no ferguson. without ferguson there was no black lives matter. without black lives matter there's not this moment now. this is when we build alternative models for response to the crisis. is it going to fix it all? absolutely not. will it make a little bit better or maybe there will be one less natasha xhk kenna, one less miles hall, one less steven

taylor? yes. yes. it makes a difference. >> i love what she said. find out what makes your heart sing. for more of samuel's conversation with kat brooks, go to abc7news.com. and on friday calls to defund the police are getting louder. what will it take to change policing in the black community? we've compiled a list of vetted resources and organizations to help you navigate issues like wealth disparity and policing along with the other issues we've covered this week. go to abc7news.com/ouramerica and click on resources. all right. we want to thank you so much for joining us for this special report on our america, living while black. coming up tomorrow, using the heritage of the past to build a better future for black families. but that is it for now. abc 7 news at 5:00 is coming up next. so stay with us.

next at 5:00, on edge again in napa county. a fire season that never seems to end as a second red flag warning brings worry over new power shutoffs. now one resident says he's had it. people in sonoma are also frustrated. they live in the only bay area county stuck in the strictest reopening tier and they are tired of it. dramatic rescue on i-80. a woman trapped inside the burning vehicle and the police officer who raced to save her. and the pope charts a new course for same-sex couples. he's now calling for civil unions, saying everyone has a right to a family. >> announcer: building a better bay area. for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. winds are blowing, the grass is dry, and the fire department is on alert. all of this as residents prepare to have to have their power possibly turned off, testing their nerves once again. good evening. i'm ama daetz. >> and i'm dan ashley. thank you for joining us. late today