o leave. breaking overnight, thousands take to the streets of cuba in rare protests over hunger, pandemic restrictions and the lack of covid vaccinations covid vaccine maker pfizer is expected to make a case for emergency use of a third shot to ward off the contagious delta variant. this morning we will hear from some of the astronauts aboard sir richard branson's virgin galactic that soared into orbit. and this isn't your parents' marijuana. the new potent pot that is sending teens to the e.r. and worse. plus a weekend of fantastic sports including the exciting euro 2020 soccer championships

and history at center court in wimbledon. a busy start to this monday july 12th "early today" starts right now good monday morning. i'm phillip mena >> glad you're with us i'm frances rivera thousands of cubans are screaming for freedom in the biggest anti-government protest in decades demonstrations erupted all over the island as cubans reached their breaking point they've been enduring an ongoing xlik crisis and are frustrated with the rolling blackouts, lack of of food and now vaccine shortages. over the weekend the island set a grim record, surpassing 6,000 covid cases in just 24 hours in a nationally televised speech president miguel kanell pointed finger at the u.s. claiming trade sanctions have created economic misery in the communist-run country. and those rallying cries were heard in florida from orlando to tampa to miami, hundreds of cuban americans swarmed the streets in solidarity the pharmaceutical company pfizer is expected to make the

case to u.s. officials this week that a third vaccine shot is needed to ward off the contagious delta variant and one country announced plans to do just that. nbc's kathy park has more on the story. >> reporter: hey, phillip. good morning to you. we certainly have come a long way in the fight against the coronavirus. but cases are going back up all across the country, even slightly here in new york city meanwhile, health on fishlz are warning that the delta variant is tightening its grip a national debate over the covid-19 booster shot. pharmaceutical giant pfizer will meet with top u.s. health officials about the benefits of a booster. the "washington post" reporting the meeting will happen in days. as pfizer's research suggests a third dose can offer more protection against the highly contagious delta variant but the cdc and fda say americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time. >> that doesn't mean that we're not very, very actively following and gathering all of

this information to see if and when we might need it and if and when we do we'll have everything in place to do it. >> reporter: why is there a debate over the third dose >> the debate is because there's a question about when we need a third dose but we have studies which the cdc and the fda can cite that show that even eight to twelve months out for clinical trial participants that they're still maintaining antibodies and that they have immunity >> reporter: with infections going back up in israel the health minister announced plans to offer pfizer's third dose to adults with weak immune systems. but a decision hasn't been made for the general public in the u.s. coronavirus cases are climbing more than two dozen states the dominant strain fueling outbreaks in arkansas, missouri, nevada, and texas. >> we're going to overwhelm the health care system here in arkansas within the next 14 days >> reporter: the u.s. surgeon general stressing the risks of going unvaccinated

>> we're seeing now the vast majority, more than 99%, are in unvaccinated population. >> reporter: the deadly surge largely driven by the delta variant. health experts warn that a winter surge is a possibility with more people moving indoors during the winter months vaccine levels at that time will determine the severity of some of these outbreaks phillip? >> all right, kathy, thanks. the nra is under fire from the senate majority leader this morning. chuck schumer is calling on the justice department to investigate the national rifle association for bankruptcy fraud. the senate's top democrat accused the gun rights group of abusing the system when it sought bankruptcy protection in the wake of a new york lawsuit seeking to put it out of business >> at the same time they're saying they're bankrupt they're spending millions of dollars in ads to stop universal background

checks that demands an investigation by the justice department we all know the nra is morally bankrupt, but they are not financially bankrupt that's the problem here. >> the justice department declined comment, and an nra legal counsel accused schumer of promoting a false narrative. virgin galactic just took one big leap forward in the space race billionaire sir richard branson flying with a full crew to the edge of space where they spent a few minutes suspended in zero gravity on a rocket they hope will soon carry private passengers >> for more on this historic flight we're joined by nbc's cal perry. >> reporter: frances, it was a near flawless flight besides that 90-minute delay that we saw in the morning that was due to high winds and bringing out eve now, eve is that large plane that carries the smaller one that actually of course went to that outer edge of space, named after richard branson's mother, who passed away recently but as i said, a flawless flight for the vehicle, which is

exactly what richard branson and virgin galactic needed this is of course basically an advertisement. he is trying to raise awareness and business for what is currently priced at a $250,000 ticket that will get you to the outer edge of space. all attention is of course going to turn to jeff bezos. he flies in just eight days. that will be a different launch, a vertical launch on a rocket. but again, the goal is the same, to open a new chapter in space tourism. >> new frontier. cal, thank you right after that virgin galactic flight landed our own kate snow got a chance to talk to two of the crew members about just what it was like. >> reporter: colin and sarisha, welcome back to earth. >> thank you i have to say that i kind of wish i was still up there, but so glad to be here >> reporter: i guess the most obvious question is what was it like >> i was trying to think about a bet yerp word than incredible but that's the only word that can come to my mind right now. everything, you know, the weightlessness is what we all talk about

seeing the view of earth, it was so, i don't know, life changing. but also the boost, the rocket motor kicking in the whole trip to space and back has just been amazing. >> the best i can come up with so far is just staggering and mind-blowing, and it's going to take me a while but that's with me forever now it was just amazing. >> is it something emotional that happens >> yeah, absolutely. i mean, i have been dreaming of going to space since i was young. and it's literally a dream come true >> you're some of the lucky few so far how do you answer that criticism that this is just a joyride for rich people? >> well, so as virgin galactic builds up its fleet, this is our ride to space today but we've got two more spaceships to manufacture and we plan to increase that fleet. we hope the cost will come down. >> can you see a day where more people will havee reasons i joid virgin galactic, i have wanted to be an astronaut i didn't -- i wasn't able to go in the traditional nasa route.

and i took a very unconventional way to go to space, and i do believe that a lot of people are going to be able to experience it and that's the hope and that's why we're here >> i would add for me this is really all about trying to inspire the next generation and kids and anybody else out there who's ever dreamed of going to space. >> thank you so much for spending some time with us >> thank you so much, kate >> you got it. thank you. >> tharnks to kate snow for sharing that conversation. now to breaking news a third person with ties to the united states has been arrested in the killing of haiti's president. haiti's police chief suggested that a man who had traveled from florida named christian emmanuel sanon was plotting to assume the presidency sanon is accused of taking a private plane to haiti and contact a security firm to recruit people to carry out the assassination. and the initial mission was given to the assailants was to protect sanon. according to haitian officials, 26 colombians were also involved in the attack. 18 have been arrested, three

were killed, and five are still on the run meanwhile, in surfside the death toll continues to grow 90 people are now confirmed dead and 31 are unaccounted for some of the international rescue teams have already started departing. yesterday the mayor of miami honored the israeli team with medals and a key to the city they were given a hero's farewell by members of the community and victims' families. so far more than 14 million pounds of concrete have been hauled away from the site, but officials say that teams investigating the collapse will sift through nearly 40 million pounds of debris to determine what caused the disaster western wildfires continue to rage as extreme heat blankets the region, with temperatures reaching 130 degrees in death valley and in arizona two firefighters were killed in a plane crash officials say the accident happened while they were conducting reconnaissance over the cedar basin fire near the prescott national forest meanwhile, california's largest wildfire has consumed more than 20,000 and more acres destroyed

around 20 homes. the blaze called the beckwourth complex, has now expanded into nevada forcing evacuations in washoe county. >> nbc meteorologist janessa webb is watching that dangerous heat in the west for us. janessa, good morning to you >> hi. good morning good morning, everyone yes, the heat continues to build for the pacific northwest. it is starting to sag more into the desert southwest so we're seeing a little shift in the heat right now. 19 million people currently impacted by heat warnings and heat advisories. and they stay in place until tuesday afternoon. then a little bit of relief. that puts a smile on my face this high pressure will start to sag more into the texas area and then the heat starts to build across that section of the country. so palm springs today 111 degrees. we're about 10 degrees above average. so these temperatures are trying to cool down denver today hig a0s,

lower 90s for the midwest. some pretty rowdy storms for the northeast. we'll talk about that coming up. >> i think you experienced some of them already coming in. >> got a taste >> thank you, janessa. plenty more ahead including the major changes coming to legal pot laws meant to protect kids from dangerously potent levels of thc. it was a nail-biting weekend for sports fans out there. we've got all your highlights straight ahead on this monday edition of "early today. edition of "early today. blueprin showing up, saying “hello! fancy a nice chat?” then we talk like two old friends about sticky buns and all the savings you could get by bundling your home and car insurance. but here's the real secret. eye contact.

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fouls and close calls. italy got their chance at a kick too but did not make it. pressure culminated in the second half after leonardo benucci pounced on a rebound here and he scored for italy, tying things up for them that would even the score. the match ended with an extraordinary penalty kick tiebreaker this is always crazy here. it always comes down to this the english players were brought on just before this to take the shot it all came down to saka stopped by italy's goalie. italy walks away with a 3-2 win. just a very, very entertaining for a sunday night >> and emotional too watching all those faces tears from both sides. novak djokovic pulled off a wimbledon final win. his victory secured him a 20th grand slam title, tying roger federer and rafael nadal for the most ever for men. he's now won all three grand slam tournaments this year if he wins the u.s. open in september, he'll be the first to win all four in more than 30

years. on saturday the top-ranked women's player, ashley barty, beat karolina pliskova in three sets, becoming the first australian woman to win wimbledon since 1980 >> and all that's happening in london over the weekend. exciting over there. still to come on "early today," a warning for parents out there. there's a new more powerful cannabis that is sending teenagers to the e.r plus some lucky filmmakers are getting access to some world-class trainingere hat nbc news those details ahead. m down. i can't calm down. the walls are closing in. i'm freaking out! ugh, relax yellow. just take a deep breath. (muffled) let's not do that again. at last, m&m's mix. super emma just about sleeps in her cape. but when we realized she was battling sensitive skin, we switched to tide hygienic clean free. it's gentle on her skin, and out cleans our old free detergent. tide hygienic clean free. hypoallergenic and safe for sensitive skin. brushing only reaches 25% of your mouth. listerine® cleans virtually 100%.

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now to the first in a week-long series on nbc news called "the red, white and green. we're exploring the health and economic impacts of america's cannabis industry, starting in colorado the first state to legally sell recreational marijuana in a new effort to keep kids safe, they are making some major changes. steve patterson has more steve, good morning. >> reporter: hey, frances. you know, for about a decade or so we've heard the virtues of medical marijuana, what it's done for people. certainly nobody is disputing that but there is a dark side specifically when it comes to this high potency thc. these products that are something like 90% thc teenagers and kids are getting their hands on them and it's causing a lot of problems. specifically in denver that state says they were the leaders in legalization and now they want to be the leaders in regulation as well here's what officials told us. colorado teenagers will brown and jasmine block are united by

the all too common bond of addiction. >> my life is falling apart around me. >> i started using it just to feel like i could function >> reporter: the pair now sober, both say they got hooked on high-potency form of marijuana extract. it's sold as edibles or oils, known as wax or shatter, that contain as much as 90% of the psychoactive thc, the chemical that gets you high compare that to the hippie high you may have grown up with that pot had between about 2% to 5% thc while millions do benefit from medical marijuana, in some cases researchers have linked these new, more powerful concentrates to physical dependence, psychosis, and anxiety >> when these patients come in and they have like repeated vomiting or acute psychosis, they tell us it's super hard to stop, which says to me it's addictive. >> reporter: how do you know that these are directly thc reactions? >> so we track it by urine drug screens. and that tells us thc.

>> reporter: the rising cases like these are such a cause for concern that colorado's governor just signed a new law to track and limit the purchase of high-potency pot right now in that state anyone 18 or older with an easy to get medical marijuana card with k. buy 40 grams of concentrate today. when the law kicks in next year, that drops to two grams a day for anyone aged 18 to 20 and just eight grams a day for anyone over 21 digital tracking will monitor daily sales, and those marijuana cards will be tougher to get the hope is the new regulations will also cut down on how much drugs get illegally resold to kids the state's multibillion-dollar marijuana industry group agrees there should be regulations but that limiting potency teeters too close to prohibition >> cannabis in colorado both on the medical side and the adult use side is very, very popular people are going to make what people want to buy >> he will never recover >> reporter: for state representative julie amabeli

getting this law passed was deeply personal. >> my son started smoking pot when he was in the eighth grade, and when he was a freshman in college he had his first psychotic break. >> reporter: her son was diagnosed with schizophrenia, a condition she believes may have been caused by or at least exacerbated by his years of long daily marijuana use. >> i know that being high makes his psychosis worse. >> reporter: but with new regulations on the way for other families like hers there's hope. and as more states legalize marijuana it's a move that could set a precedent for the rest of the nation and just an update on those teenagers we spoke to, will and jasmine both say they're doing great. both say that they are sober and both say that they've never been better. they also both wanted to share their story because they thought it was so important to try to prevent other teens from experiencing some of the things that they did. they also as part of that spoke on the house floor to try to push that legislation forward. frances, back to you >> important perspective steve, thank you >> sure is up next, janessa is back with us

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nbc news studios and the nbc u academy have launched a new program awarding documentarians who identify as women, lgbtq plus, communities of color and people with disabilities or showcase stories that highlight them, offering them access to world-class training from our own nbc news team. our issa gutierrez has more. >> reporter: these faces are the future of filmmaking, a diverse group of directors and producers with their own unique stories to share. >> i think now's the time when the country, media is kind of

looking toward more voices >> reporter: zack manuel and henry are the duo behind blood thicker one of seven documentaries selected for the inaugural original voices fellowship, a collaboratio academy helping to level the playing field in production, offering $45,000 grants to a diverse group of filmmakers and providing resources and mentorships from leading journalists right here at our historic news organization >> not only getting that financial support but also having mentorship and feeling like there's really a community that you can go to throughout this year that is crucial. >> reporter: the crew producing la flaca opened up about the obstacles they face as women in the film industry. >> essentially already starting from the point of of view of being female filmmakers and not just filmmakers.

almost already puts us in a niche category you know, we often hear oh, this story is really interesting, we like it, but it's too niche. to be given the support like this one is a huge leap of faith from nbc it does push the creative process forward in very new and exploratory ways, to know that we have that support without conditions >> reporter: reed davenport and keith wilson are the team behind the film "i didn't see you there. davenport is a director with a disability and shot the film largely from his wheelchair. he hopes the program creates more opportunities for filmmakers like him. >> it absolutely opens the door for people with more disabilities >> it's exciting as a filmmaker to be in a program with other filmmakers telling other sort of original stories that don't often get told so it's nice to be in that cohort and working together with nbc to

create these films that so often don't get supported or told. >> wow what an opportunity from right here within our own halls. now, if you're looking to further your journalistic training, you can access master classes from our nbc new

breaking overnight, a third person with ties to the united states has been arrested in connection with the assassination of haiti's president. hotel arsenal seized officials arrest four on gun charges in downtown denver at a hotel there near the sitof the major league baseball all-star game 128 degrees in death valley. one example of life-threatening heat across the west as scorching temperatures are fueling out-of-control wildfires. a straw poll held at the conservative political action conference revealed that 70% would vote for forme