>> pafr hello and welcome to kqed newsroom. coming up on the program, an indepth look at humboldt county's efforts to regulate the cannibis industry and why rules could serve as a model for the counties. the legalization of recreational marijuana for adults. first political activism in sports. colin kaepernick took a stand choosing not to stand for the national anthem before a game. prot test against police brutality sparked widespread criticism with many plasting him as unpatriotic. as he holds his ground, there

has been a growing show of support. other pro athletes joined in their own protests. kaepernick's stand is being compared to activism by other athletes including mohamed ali's protest and the vietnam war and the sa lewd at the other olympics. the politics and government's scott schaefer is here with more. >> athletes and political activism has a lot to discuss. joining me now is sports columnist, ann killian. also with the reporter, the senior vice president. welcome to all of you. this story, this issue has really exposed fault lines. politics, patriotism and sports

and race of course. what is your take on how it began. >> it's how it began on social mead why and athletes and people who may otherwise not be keeping track of this as much as they are have their things in their face all the time. they are retweeting them and concerned about them and they want to know what they can do. colin kaepernick took a stand and it's really interesting that it's him because he was not a guy to engage at any level for many years and now he has become this articulate interesting spokesperson and he started a national conversation. >> i want to come back to him in a second. what's your take on how this moment fits in. the colin kaepernick moment and how it fits in with the larger political dialogue that we are having.

and the national dialogue in the context of that presidential race of what we are as a nation. are we inclusive and do we accept and are we trying to change the wrongs in the history of racism set in place. what is the role of protest and those questions about the democracy and community are the context in which his motive is more powerful. when you said look, it is surprising that he is taking this action, i don't think most athletes have felt until now that they could take an action like and feel okay about the repercussions because they were connected to something larger. >> he started quiet and he was sitting on the bench. >> two preceding here. >> nobody noticed and finally it was the third time he did it. >> what has he done. he has grown and what has he done to facilitate the

conversation with the team and others who have been critical of him? >> i think he has spoken to his teammates and i talked to several of his teammates and they had a deeper conversation than they would. they seemed to be supporting him and their body language and everything. >> he lost the job. >> i think he looks more comfortable and he had alienated his team meats and he is a polarizing personality. >> a strange messenger. >> it was interesting on a small level to see his evolution and to see a kid who was adopted by white parents and raised in turlock, a very conservative area. it's an incredibly famous athlete and gets ripped a lot for being a hip hop quarterback and not north coming and does

not act like a traditional leader and all of a sudden he kind of blossomed. i object to people who are calling him out and saying it's selfish and he had no integrity. he was not doing it when he was a starter. >> there is a young man's political and intellectual evolution that we are watching. >> as you wrote in the chronicle, and how the whole team took a need to tell us what's happening there. >> for the entire team at mission high school, and during the national anthem. obviously inspired by what colin kaepernick did. what is significant and unique was the entire team took it. it's all races and ethnicities. >> is it organic and spontaneous? >> it sounds pretty organic and

it began on the bus ride over to between a few players and over to the game. 348d before the game. we are raising the racial injustice in america. >> this generation of millennials are behind. >> they are less afraid. there is no sacred for them. the same attitude that gets them in the face of the presidential candidate you saw in the last few months will say we are going to make this statement bold. in 2015, a report showed the military paid more than $50 million to have military display and professional games.

>> they are recruiting to make what was essentially a fort the center of americana, but a statement about who we are. those are not sacred anymore. >> i don't think we can under estimate the social media in the discussion. i think that has empowered the generation to have a voice and to speak out to say what's important and make it part of the national conversation instead of letting the mainstream media or whatever else dictate. >> it's not personal for the players. they said it meant a lot for them to see colin kaepernick stand up for a cause. >> it has been simmering. obviously the whole issue of police treatment of people of color and an unarmed black man and others as well. it began in some ways in the public consciousness with trayvon martin. it has gone on in new york. >> on and on and on and on.

i think people like colin kaepernick, that's what he said. he said i'm tired of trayvon martin. it's a constant borage. >> the level of awareness with police shootings is at an all time high. it's not controversial to say that this happened. it happens. so the fact that the movement is larger, i thought it was interesting and i was moved by a post on the niners nation blog by a veteran who is a fifth generation vet who said don't speak on my behalf that what he is doing is anti-american. i come from a long line including african-american who is fought in world war ii and came back without rights. it was a civil rights movement that helped secure that. it was a innance response. >> also this week in addition that, we have seen it wasn't just this week, but the ncaa

pulled games from north carolina and the all-star game because of the so-called transgender bathroom law, how is that different and sillular? >> it's very similar. people understand the power of sports and there is also for cynical reasons and why you do things with the financial impact. if the ncaa can take a stand, why can't colin kaepernick. if they can file a lawsuit for equal pay, why can't an athlete speak about police shootings. they have a platform and i for one, i want to watch sports and i want it to be fun and be the away time. tell jackie robinson. speaking of mohamed ali and social media. i remember when i first saw colin kaepernick, we have the generation and if you take event

of offense to that, look at what he is inspiring and it's a couple weeks in. >> lebron and other nba players at the espy awards. that's different. it was a little more or less controversial. >> it was more script and less controversial guys. >> espn. >> and like i said before, colin is a lightning rod of a personality. it seemed odd for him to be the one doing it. >> just to pick a name, seth curry. >> he said he admired his courage. he doesn't have to do it in order to provide support. >> he was in the bay area to see the way the community is reacting. >> i think the fact that curry was even saying that kaepernick will donate a million dollars.

that's part of something that the people came up with. they wanted to see action behind it. >> you talked about the coach. it was a little surprise and i saw the whole team taking a knee. where is that going? >> they plan on the entire season. what's funny is that the coach beforehand was think iing mayber two, but they see the entire time. he is so surprised, he doesn't know what to do. i want to stand for my team. >> the niners won their first game and there has been talk about tearing at the fabric of the team. one of the former quarterback. >> the analyst. >> does it change if the team goes into a tail spin. they are going to carolina this weekend. >> people want to blame if there

is unity if they go in seven. i would think that would be silly. it will be because they are losing. they were before the win and they were raising support before that. they are all happy this week. we will see what happens. >> how many young people are aware of the third stanza in the national anthem anyway with the disinvestment in civics education. this is an opportunity to go back to the bare bones, the roots and say what does this mean? >> for them, there is this idea that maybe some people may think it's anti-american, but not at all. >> plus halloween is coming up and they have the wigs they are seeing. the colin kaepernick wig. it's an interesting story. amy allison and ann killian, thank you.

>> thanks. >> this november, california voters will decide whether to legalize the recreational use of marijuana. people from around the world have been rushing to humboldt county in northern california to grow marijuana which is straining local watersheds. the county is the largest producer of pot and trying to regulate the cultivation of cannibis and pilot a program to keep it out of the black market. it could be a model for other cities and counties. we go to humboldt in the first part of the series, cannibis at a cross roads. >> nearly 300 miles north of san francisco, redwoods reach to the sky. the buzz of saw mills and splash of fishing nets were once the counts of a booming economy. today there is another industry in humboldt county that is thriving and driving a demand for goods and services. >> the toll will be $3,023.99

after tax. >> from leave trimming to water storage services and specialty soil, marijuana or cannibis as it is also known is big business here. >> humboldt county is by far and away the largest production zone of high quality cannibis in the world. >> for the first time in nearly 50 years, it is coming out of the shadows by an experiment that allows people to legally grow cannibis for profit. >> i believe that instead of complaining about the smell of cannibis, the people will realize that's the smell of cultivating local prosperity. >> patrick murphy is the coowner of emerald family farms. >> it is environmentally and economically sustainable. >> the first time is when i was

16 years old. i have been cultivating cannibis ever since. >> farmers like this are required to register with the county so they can get permits to grow cannibis as they would other crops. limit apply depending on how the crop is sgroen whether it is new or existing cultivation. >> the limit is 10,000 square feet or about a quarter of an acre. >> existing operations we allowed up to one acre in size if they meet requirements. >> steve lazar is the planner in eureka and helped right the new rules as the green rush has been taking off in the forested hills. >> we are looking at a photograph from 2006 and they show a forested area, but by 2015, this area is now host to 20 to 30 different cultivation operations. here we can see green house

construction, water storage. one could easily estimate there is over 10,000 cultivation sites at this point. >> people from all over the world are rushing to cultivate cannibis, but the lure is straining local watersheds and threatening endangered salmon. >> this is probably the biggest issue facing the recovery of our salmon. you put the money into restoring fish and i go out and i see a million dollars in habitat damage. >> scott bauer is a scientific with the approximately department of fish and wildlife. >> typically on the activity we see illegal road grading and bulldozers and pushing dirt into streams. people diverting water and taking most of the water out. >> bauer and his team not only find growers, but get permits to legally take water from rivers

and streams. >> we would like them to get the permit to divert water. we condition them to say you can't have water in the summertime. you need to take water in the winter time and store it for use later. >> good morning. >> how are you doing? >> fantastic. my back is hurting a little. >> cannibis has been legal to use for medical purposes since 1996. >> it has a great look and a great smell. >> patients can grow and supply it to dispensaries so long as they didn't profit from it. all that will change in 2018 when california will begin issuing licenses for commercial medical cannibis activities. until then, counties and cities are trying to regulate the cannibis industry at the local level. >> we can call a spade a spade. profit is part of being a farmer whether you are growing cannibis or tomatoes. >> maybe so, but it's illegal to grow or sell cannibis.

>> every cannibis cultivator lives in fear of law enforcement. having their children taken away and having financial ruin. >> 2300 people have come forward to register with the new program, but according to the local sheriff, only a fraction of the county's pot goes to patients. >> i lds say 95% of the marijuana and possibly higher is actually going to the black market. >> the sheriff targets the biggest and most damaging marijuana grows. >> the evidence is found in a marijuana grow that has been seized by the sheriff's office. these are processed marijuana in one-pound bags. we have the typical farms that are eased. the assault weapons and the rifles, this is what they use to protect the marijuana. >> some growers can now protect

the plants with permits instead of bullets. >> they help us determine the good from the bad. we served about 30 search warrants. there is one farm that go through the process. they got the paperwork in order and end up walking away. >> it may get easier to keep the county's cannibis out of the black market under humboldt's new track and trace program, each farmer gets a set of stamps bearing codes that are unique. a bag of cannibis is sealed with a stamp and it moves through the supply chain. >> we can check the proof of origin with the mobile application. >> a patient at a california

dispensary will be able to confirm that a product was able to see the lab test results. from farmers to dispensary owners, people are taking part in this pilot program, but as one fear subsides, another grows for the future of the community built around cannibis. >> i believe that ten years from now, it will be legalized and will be grown all over the west coast and i believe the price per pound will be so low that the industry will be out. >> the fear is that the people that were a part of this that started this movement will not have a place in the future and it will only happen if we can not take part and stand up and make our voices heard in the heart and soul of the cannibis industry. >> the focus on marijuana is shifting from medicine to recreation in california as voters prepare to cast their ballots. if it's approved, california would be the fifth state to

legalize recreational marijuana use or washington and alaska. the measure reflects the recommendations of a blue ribbon commission and the government reporter katie orr has a closer look. hi,icate. what are the key provisions of prop 64? >> prop 64 imposes a 15% excise tax on all marijuana sold in california and impose a tax on marijuana grown in california. in addition that, there would be sales tax and local taxes to allow adults over 21 to buy a small amount of marijuana for recreational use. >> are there limits on the grow side? >> you would apply for different permits. people would be able to grow six plants within their own home. and like i said, you can apply for different permits.

microbusinesses, small, medium. there is a large permit, but that is on hold for years with the idea they are giving smaller growers a chance to get a foothold before they let bigger companies get involved. >> the corporate interest might take over. >> one of the main arguments are making? why do we need this? >> they are saying that it's happening already. we do have a medicinal system for marijuana here in california. it is pretty widely known. this is happening and they bring it out into the open and regulate it and tax it. let's make it safer for people and basically stop pretending that it doesn't exist. >> some proponents are avoiding and trying to steer clear. >> there are concerns on the opposition side about kids and are we going to expose kids to

this or will kids eat a marijuana-tainted gummy bear or something like that. that is one of the issues raised a lot. law enforcement issues. could we see a spike in crime and the influence and concerns along the crimes. it doesn't really set any limits for driving under the influence. there is a limit for alcohol, but nothing under this pressure. how is that all going to be worked out? >> that's true. they don't look at the specific limit. they give about $15 million to the chp for them to develop protocols for testing for dui. the problem is it's not like alcohol and it's not easy to test it. there are reliable ways to test

it. >> how big is the pot industry and what are the revenues for california if this passes? >> the legislative analyst office predict fist it passes, eventually, but not right away the state could get up to a billion in revenue. >> that's a lot of money. >> it's huge. a lot would be dedicated for the purposes for the first few years. >> when you add in sales tax, it could add into economies. >> this came up that would have made recreational more than legal. polls are showing prop 64 is ahead. what has changed since then? >> i think probably the biggest thing that has changed is people's attitudes. no state legalized recreation

marijuana. since then it's just become more accepted. we do have this medicinal system that is a part of people's lives. i think that is probably one of the biggest things that has changed. this proposition differs from the one in 2010 in that it mandates the tax and gives local governments more oversight than on the previous measure. >> it gives employers in that they can ban smoking in their companies that they choose to. >> right, right. >> what are has been the extreme in colorado and washington? >> as far as i can tell, people say it's up in the air. it has been two years and people say that really is just not long enough to know what the long-term effects will be. they bought in a lot of money. no doubt it brings in a lot of revenue for the state.

there have been mixed crime impacts on one hand crime goes down in terms of po tegz, but concern about dui and things of that nature. >> prop 64 is leading all kinds of people to get involved. we are seeing the lobbyists and people are focused on cannibis and start up founders getting into the act. is this california's next gold rush or green rush as some are putting it? >> it could be. that's from being around the capital. it's a more legitimate industry. we are seeing bills and lobbyists spring up around marijuana. one lobbyist who said it's his job to make sure it's not sexy anymore. he wants it like any other issue. if this passes, i think that will probably be the way that it goes. >> it is one of the most closely watched measures.

thank you so much. >> we will have more coverage of cannibis at the cross roads. thanks so much for watching. for more news coverage, go to kqed news.org.

captioning sponsored by wnet >> stewart: on this edition for sunday september 18, 2016: counter-terrorism officials look for clues about the explosive set off in a garbage dumpster in manhattan last night... a man stabs eight people inside a minnesota mall...and now isis claims him as a soldier of the islamic state. and, in our signature segment: new technology to help doctors identify when someone may be suicidal. >> it predicts better than a person's own report of whether they're going to make a suicide attempt. it predicts better than clinician's reports. >> stewart: next on "p.b.s. newshour weekend." >> pbs newshour weekend is made possible by: bernard and irene schwartz. judy and josh weston. the cheryl and philip milstein