captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> woodruff: good evening, i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight... extremism in america-- the director of the f.b.i. sounds the alarm on the growing threat of domestic terrorism. >> january 6th was not an isolated event. the problem of domestic terrorism has been metastasizing across the country for a long time now. >> woodruff: then, the court and the vote-- the supreme court hears challenges to voting laws in a key battleground state that could have a major impact on future elections nationwide. and, getting the vaccine-- india struggles to reach its ambitious inoculation goals amid widespread hesitancy and

misinformation. >> there is a misconception that herd immunity has already arrived. and then not only the worst is behind us, but the threat is completely vanishing. >> woodruff: all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: our u.s.-based customer service team is on hand to help. to learn more, go to consumercellular.tv

>> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: and individuals. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> woodruff: a dire warning and growing threat of extremism: f.b.i. director christopher wray faced lawmakers today,

reflecting on the capitol attack and as lisa desjardins reports, the growing challenge of domestic terrorism. >> desjardins: the day started with dramatic video of the january 6th attack itself, and the words of officers who were there. after watching, f.b.i. director chris wray's own words were unequivocal. >> i was appalled, like you at the violence and destruction that we saw that day. simple and it's behavior that we, the f.b.i., view as domestic terrorism. >> desjardins: repeatedly, the hearing focused on january 5th f.b.i. intelligence, warning of inteet chatter calling for war at the capitol. wray called the intelligence report uncorroborated but said his agents properly forwarded it within an hour. >> we did communicate that information in a timely fashion

to the capitol police and m.p.d. in, not one, not two, but three different ways. having said that, i do not consider what happenedn january 6 to be an acceptable result. and that's why we're looking so hard at figuring out how can the process be improved. >> desjardins: carrie cordero is a senior fellow at the center for a new american security. she doesn't see this as an intelligence failure. >> i think this was primarily a security failure. and then it's also possible that it was simply a lack of understanding on the part of the security personnel at the capitol of the severity of the threat that was coming at them. >> desjardins: the hearing comes as the f.b.i. continues to make near daily arrests related to the riot. so far more than 300 people with charges ranging from trespassing to conspiracy against the government. monday, federal prosecutors filed a revealing document: in the case against proud boy

leader ethan nordean, seen here with a meghone on january 6. this charges that he and other proud boys raised money and collected protective gear weeks ahead. on january 6th, prosecutors allege they used high-tech radios to communicate, and purposely dressed incognito, no proud-boy “colors” or clothing. this, prosecutors say, was to help with their plan to turn others in the crowd, who they called “normies” or “normiecon”" to join them in violent attack. wray said this is the rising threat-- extremists with splintered motives. >> and more the ideologies if you will that are motivating some of these violent extremists are less and less coherent, less and less linear, less and less easy to kind of pin down. >> desjardins: yet they are able to launch what he calls“ inspired” attacks, like on january 6th, turning large groups of people to violence. >> they don't have a formal membership in an organization. they don't have clear command

control and direction in the way that an al qaeda sleeper cell might have. and that that's much more challenging. >> desjardins: republicans sought to expand the conversation about domestic extremism, to talk of anarchist groups on the left, which wray indicated are being arrested more. >> we must call extremism wherever it happens, across the board, left or right, every time. >> desjardins: democrats sharply pushed back at the notion of multiple sides. >> do you have any evidence that the capitol attack was organized by quote fake trump protesters? >> we have not seen evidence of that at this stage certainly. >> desjardins: what wray does see is a spefic threat skyrocketing now. >> the number of arrests, for example of racially motivated violent extremists who are what you would categorize as white supremacists, last year was almost triple the number it was in my first year as director.

>> desjardins: wray said there is also a rise in militia extremism. again, cordero. >> he was absolutely sounding the alarm that the domestic violent extremist threat is substantial and it is on par, if not exceeds what we used to think about in terms of a foreign terrorist or international terrorist threat. >> desjardins: tomorrow, the hearings on the riot continue, with testimony from pentagon and national guard witnesses, as for the pbs newshour, i'm lisa desjardins. >> woodruff: in the day's other news, texas lifted its covid mask mandate, the biggest state yet to take that step. republican governor greg abbott also ended limits on indoor dining at restaurants. >> it is a reminder that individual safety is managed everyday as a matter of personal

responsibility rather than by government mandate. individual responsibility is a corollary to individual freedom. we can have both. >> woodruff: mississippi ended its own covid curbs today, including a mask mandate and business restrictions. president biden now says the nation should have enough vaccine for every adult american, by the end of may. his statement today was two months earlier than the previous estimate. the president also directed states to make a priority of vaccinating teachers. democrats in the u.s. senate insisted today they'll pass a covid relief bill totaling $1.9 trillion, even with no republican support. party leaders chuck schumer and mitch mcconnell spoke at separate events. >> we all know that job number

one is pass this bill. so we'll begin consideration of the american rescue plan as early as tomorrow and we'll have the votes we need to pass the bill. >> we'll be fighting this in every way that we can. it is my hope that at the end, senate republicans will unanimously oppose it just like house republicans did. >> woodruff: vice president harris would break the tie, if the 50-50 senate votes along party lines. the united states is imposing economic sanctions over alexei navalny's poisoning and jailing in russia. the opposition leader is now in a penal colony. today's announcement targeted russian officials and businesses. president vladimir putin was not on the list. in afghanistan, three media workers, all women, were shot dead today by unidentified gunmen. they were walking home from a radio/tv station in jalalabad where they dubbed programs into

afghan languages. women have increasingly become targets in afghanistan. hundreds of girls kidnapped from a boarding school in northern nigeria are free again. regional officials deny paying any ransom, but they say they did offer amnesty to the captors. the 279 girls packed into a government building today, awaiting medical checks. some told harrowing tales of their mass kidnapping last week. >> ( translated ): we were sleeping when suddenly we started hearing gun shots. everybody fled and there were just two of us left. the other girl is from my town. i told her 'get up!' but she said 'i swear i will not leave the bed'. by then, they were pointing guns at our heads. >> woodruff: the girls also told of being beaten and threaten. the gunmen have not been publicly identified. back in this country, at least 13 people died in a highway crash in rural southern

california. a tractor-trailer smashed into an s.u.v. carrying 25 pele near the mexican border. authorities said some of the victims may have been farmworkers. a third woman has now accused new york governor andrew cuomo of making unwanted advances. anna ruck told "the new york times" that cuomo asked to kiss her at a wedding in 2019, just after they met. two former staffers have claimed the governor sexually harassed them. gina raimondo won u.s. senate confirmation today as secretary of commerce. she is currently the governor of rhode island. and, on wall street, stocks gave back some of monday's big gains. the dow jones industrial average lost 144 points to close at 31,391. the nasdaq fell 230 points, and, the s&p 500 dropped 31 points.

and, six "dr. seuss" books will no longer be published, because of racist and insensitive imagery. they include: "and to think that i saw it on mulberry street," plus "if i ran the zoo," among others. dr. seuss enterprises said today the portrayals of africans and asians are "hurtful and wrong." the author, theodore geisel, died in 1991. still to come on the newshour: the supreme court hears challenges to voting laws that could have major implications on elections. lawmakers inoth parties push for monthly payments to parents through tax credits. india struggles with vaccination amid widespread hesitancy and misinformation. plus, much more.

>> woodruff: state legislatures across the country are trying to rewrite election laws after the contentious 2020 election. and as john yang reports, a supreme court case argued today will determine how courts will assess those new laws. >> we love trump! >> yang: last november, arizona was a battleground in the presidential race. >> count the legal votes! >> yang: its narrow backing of president biden was the first time the state had gone democratic in 24 years. today, it was again a battleground, as the supreme court heard a challenge to two arizona election laws. last year, a federal appeals court struck down both of them as violating the voting rights act by discriminating against minority voters. one provision throws out ballots cast in the wrong precinct.

>> or it's often been referred to as the right church, wrong pew. >> yang: tammy patrick of the nonpartisan democracy fund was an election official in arizona's maricopa county, the largest in the state. >> you'll have multiple precincts in a school gymnasium. if you get in the wrong line, you're not going to be on the rolls, you're going to get a different ballot than potentially the one that you would have received in your home precinct. >> yang: patrick found that in the 2012 election, a higher percentage of maricopa county voters affected by the law were hispanic. the other challenged law makes it a crime for anyone other than a family member or caregiver to deliver a voters' mail-in ballot. critics call the practice of campaign workers or community activists collecting ballots,“ ballot harvesting.” it was among the practices president trump railed against last year. >> there's such fraud and abuse and you know about harvesting where they harvest the ballots and they go and grab them and

they go to people's houses and they say sign here no. >> yang: in fact, election experts say there is little evidence that the practice leads to fraud. in arizona, most voters cast mail-in ballots, but many native americans and ranch workers don't have mail delivery services at their homes. >> needing to go into town in order to mail your ballot can be a problem, but if you can give it to your neighbor across the street or the next hogan in monument valley to take in for you, that's incredibly helpful. >> yang: today's telephone oral arguments turned on what standard the court should apply to determine whether election laws discriminate. the laws' supporters say the only question should be whether they limit minority voters opportunities to cast a ballot. chief justice john roberts pressed arizona republican party attorney michael carvin. >> is it maximizing participation or equalizing it? in other words, that only comes up when you have disparate

results and why should there be disparate results if you can avoid them? >> because it would eliminate all valuable anti-fraud concerns implicated in the ban on ballot harvesting. the question is not what's wrong with it, the question is why a system that imposes no unfairness on the group should nonetheless be changed because they find a different method of voting more convenient? >> yang: opponents say the question is whether the laws result in lower minority voter participation. justice samuel alito asked whether that was too broad. >> what concerns me is that your position is going to make every voting rule vulnerable to attack people who are poor, and less well educated, on balance probably will find it more difficult to comply with just about every voting rule than do people who are more affluent and

have the benefit of more education. >> yang: the court's decision could affect more than just the arizona laws. it's the first case since the court struck down a key provision of the voting rights act in 2013. >> the supreme court is looking to give guidance to the lower courts. >> yang: marcia coyle is chief washington correspondent for the "national law journal." >> section two of the voting rights act is sort of the last tool standing. the supreme court could make it easier to challenge laws that are potentially discriminatory. it could make it harder or it could make somewhere in between. it was really hard to tell today. >> yang: state legislatures are working on new election laws that could be challenged in court. tammy patrick of the democracy fund: >> at this point in time, we really can look at any state in the nation and find examples either in the courtroom or in the state house where election reforms and policies are being taken into consideration.

>> yang: and arizona republican party attorney michael carvin bluntly answered justice amy coney barrett's question about what's at stake. >> what's the interest of the arizona r.n.c. here in keeping, say, the out of precinct voter ballot disqualification rules on the books? >> because it puts us at a competitive disadvantage relative to democrats. politics is a zero sum game. >> yang: the high urt's decision is expected by summer. for the pbs newshour, i'm john yang >> woodruff: the senate is trying to pass a $1.9 trillion package for covid and economic- related relief. one key section provides assistance to families with children by expanding tax credits. many families could receive a $3,000 tax credit per child

between the ages of six and 17 years old. parents with children younger than six could g $3600 a year, or about $300 a month. in a moment, yamiche alcindor looks at the details. but first let's hear from parents who say they are looking for help. >> my name is kirin smith and i'm in baltimore, maryland. i have three kids. they are eight, six and five. >> my name is joseph curry. i have two kids ages six charissa and ages two casten. we lived in west palm beach, florida. >> my name is melissa cunningham. i live in portland, maine, and i have one son, travis. he's 10 years old. >> we were getting by a little bit able to put a couple of dollars away, not a lot, but a couple. and this devastated us >> i am a single parent, and so i'm the primary caregiver in the home. so i had to decide actually to leave my job and to consult.

so my household income has been cut in half. it was already not where i would have wanted it to be. >> prior to the pandemic, i would work usually days and my son could go to an after school wreck and then i could go to work. and once the pandemic hit, those, you know, supports kind of went away. so now i've beenrying to manageorking overnight and having a family member come over once a week and watch him while i'm at work. so that's been very challenging. >> the biggest needs now for the family is obviously to rent. the car needs tires. the kids grow out of their clothes, unemployment without the extra that you get, we'd be probably homeless. >> i have three kids and finding places that can take all three kids that i can afford is extremely difficult and given we looked at the y.m.c.a. and they have great programs in our area, but that program is upwards of $200 per child per week, which is just out of our

range. >> i get some stuff for the six year old. and she's grateful. even if it's a dollar coloring book, she lights up like a light bulb, which is the coolest thing in. but i know she knows know she asked for a soccer ball the other day and i couldn't buy it for her. >> $350 check is not going to pay for a lot, but it could very well pay for an electric and water bill, you know. and so... ani think that's what most people are focused on right now. like this is not money that's going to go for shopping. this is money that's going to catch you up on bills. >> if you don't have family or friends that are well off to help and stuff your. i mean, i'm living proof you're done, you're literally just surviving. so that bill with a three hundred or whatever they're going to do for the kids. yeah, that would help immensely. immensely. it's a good start, is what it is for families.

>> i think that the toll on parents, it's like you feel like you're failing at everything. i think that's how you feel. it's like you're not 100% at work. you're not 100% with the kids. your house is a mess. your bills are what you know, god help you. and it's just like it's too much. >> it's very difficult for me to know that i can't provide for my kids like i should or take them to disney world or take them on any trip. and because of the pandemic, that's probably not going to happen for a long, long time. and that dwells on me. >> we need healthy, functioning parents to raise healthy functioning children. and so we're dealing with an epidemic that's creating a massive amount of stress. it's creating financial insecurity, and those things all have a lasting effect. so i think we need to start this conversation so that we can

begin to mitigate some of the issues and move toward better outcomes for all american families. >> alcindor: the new bill, passed by democrats in the house last week, is aimed at reducing child poverty. the current tax credit to help parents is capped at $2,000 a year. this bill would expand that credit by $1,000 or more. it would also distribute the money on a monthly basis. it phases out at higher income limits and the expansion only lasts for a year. senator mitt romney is proposing his own plan. his idea would make new tax credits permanent and even larger, up to $4,200 a year for children under six. let's focus on all of this mor with elaine maag of the urban institute, who focuses on these issues. thanks so much for being here, elaine. tell us what is the state of childhood poverty in the united states? how has the pandemic impacted that? >> so it's not good. the urban institute estimates in '21, there are 14% of children living in poverty. that's roughly 1 in every 7

children or 10 million total. this is a change from epandemic where the poverty rate was about 11% and it's actually been trending down so the pandemic not only increased poverty but it reversed that trend. >> increasing in poverty during this critical time, what impact do you think president biden's plan could have on childhood poverty and especially when we look at black and brown children, communities of color who often face disproportione levels of poverty? >> the way the child tax credit is structured right now, the very lowest income families don't get the full benefit. in fact, if you don't work, you get benefit, if you earn less than $2,500, you get no benefit. you have to earn quite a bit of money. your tax refund is capped at $1,400 per child instead of $2,000 per child. the biden proposal would extend the full value of the credit to families with children even if they're low income.

what that means is we could cut that number of children in poverty in half. >> what then do you see is the critical differences between the biden/harris plan and the plan put out by senator mitt romney? >> so the critical difference is one has support and one does not. so in practical terms, we have a child tax credit now, 90% of families already receive it. so the irs is already in touch with all o these families. ssa on the other hand which would administer the romney plan is not in contact with families with children regularly so there'd be much higher start-up costs for that sort of plan. long-term, a child allowance makes a lot of sense but if you're trying to deliver benefits quickly, the irs has an advantage. >> you just said "long-term," it might make sense but i wonder if you could talk about the political using that term and the process of a long-term tax credit when we think of the critics of some of the -- of some of these proposals, some of them saying they want to see a

work requirement with senator marco rubio of florida being one of the critics. what do you make of that? >> it's not clear to me that i a pure child allowance has long-term feasibility but it is true once you stick something in the tax system, it could be hard to remove. so if the democrats are able to put this fully refundable child tax credit into law now, it does seem likely that benefits would extend in additional years. >> you said that you might not think that it's feasible, i wonder also as we think about the impact that this could have on again black and brown children and the racial aspect, you talk a little bit more about what the long-term process is as the wealth gap is growing and growing? >> right, so one of the real problems with the way the current tax credit is structured is that it's tied to work and we know that there's a historical legacy of black and brown families facing higher unemployment.

that's particularly true now in this pandemic, so we absolutely, if we want to reduce that gap, we need to focus on policies that will deliver benefits to all children, not just those children who have, um, families who are working enough hours to get the full benefits. >> thank you so much. critical issues to talk about. elaine magg of the urban institute. >> thank you. >> woodruff: as countries across the globe scramble for covid-19 vaccines, india has access to millions of doses, with plans to vaccinate 300 million people by august. but vaccine hesitancy and skepticism are hampering efforts, with the country reaching just 14 million people since the drive began a month and a half ago.

from delhi, special correspondent neha poonia reports. >> reporter: india, home to 1.3 billion people, has been devastated by covid 19. more than 11 million cases, 150,000 dead. the government says the actual outbreak might be much larger, reporting that one in five people or nearly 280 million indians could have already had covid 19. it's the world's second worst hit country behind the united states. in january, india launched the world's largest immunization drive. but not everyone thinks it's worth a shot. >> dad, take whatever is available. >> reporter: for the dutta family in delhi, most evenings are now spent convincing 59- year-old sanjoy that he should get vaccinated. but mr. dutta is adamantly against it. >> the people surrounding me should get vaccinated and i'll defer my vaccination till the last moment till i'm pretty sure

of the side effects. whatever benefits it will offer against the virus vs the side effects itself that needs to be debated. >> reporter: his son aditya, a covid 19 doctor who was vaccinated on day one of india's rollout, has been trying to change his father's mind for weeks. >> reporter: the government and vaccine makers says the deaths aren't linked to the vaccine and that they are safe. nevertheless, those reports have made some people doubt the shot's safety it didn't help when last month, the duttas lost a close relative to covid-19, they say after he got his first dose of a vaccine in the u.s. aditya says his parents realise that some people can sometimes have adverse reactions to vaccines, but this is one of many factors making his father uncomfortable. >> probably this is what contributes to my dad being

hesitant. i hope that by the time his turn comes around, he changes his mind. or i can force him in some way. >> reporter: but beyond living room discussions, vaccine hesitancy is a real problem across the country. since india started administering the second vaccine dose two weeks ago, half of e frontline workers and nearly 40% of healthcare workers have not shown up. despite not reaching all essential workers, india says stting this week it will target 270 million senior citizens and those at risk. this vaccination center in delhi is ready to give 400 people shots everyday. but authorities say, on most days they see half that number. frontline sanitation worker sadhna says she too had to battle resistance at home to get her first shot. she's labored through the pandemic to keep delhi's streets clean, and is now eligible to get the vaccine free of cost. poor, urban neighbourhoods like this one, where sadhna lives, have been easy targets for the virus. despite the very real threat of

covid-19, her family is unsure about the benefits of the vaccine. and sadhna returns home to anxious questions. >> how did it go? >> it was fine, like any other injection. i feel okay so far. >> reporter: a mother of two young boys, sadhna says she spent days trying to convince her own mother that the vaccine is safe. >> ( translated ): my mother didn't want me to get vaccinated at all. many people had told her people can die after getting the shot or that i could get really sick and would have to be hospitalized. >> reporter: indians can't choose which vaccine they'll get. this center's using covishield, the oxford astrazeneca shot, developed in the u.k. bulk produced by the serum institute of india, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, there are millions of these tiny vials at india's disposal. other centers have deployed covaxin, a locally made vaccine, which was given emergency approval without efficacy data. prime minister modi has

repeatedly defended this decision and on monday, chose to get vaccinated with covaxin instead of the oxford- astrazeneca shot. >> ( translated ): scientists approved the vaccines after being sure of their impact don't pay heed to rumors and propaganda. >> reporter: experts claim the hasty approval and lack of transparency about vaccine efficacy is fuelling hesitancy, and they say daily cases falling to less than 15,000 has also led to a false sense of complacency. >> there is a misconception that herd immunity has already arrived. and then not only the worst is behind us, but the threat is completely vanishing. >> reporter: india's managed to reach just over 4% of the targeted 300 million indians so far, with better turnout at rural centers than urban ones. sanjay bhaskar lives with 11 family members in a salt mining village on the outskirts of mumbai. a sanitation worker in the police department, sanjay says he's happy to be the first in

his village to get the jab, even if it means travelling a great distance to get to the closest vaccination center. >> ( translated ): once i take the vaccine, i don't have to worry anymore. i can travel again safely. i won't have to accidentally worry about infecting my family. i want to go back to having a normal life. >> reporter: while two thirds of the population lives in rural india, it's in crowded cities where public health experts say the virus is still the biggest threat, where social distancing norms are no longer being strictly followed. and with cases surging again in some regions, experts are calling r a faster roll-out of the vaccines. india's in a unique position because of its massive pharmaceutical industry. before covid 19, 60% of the world's vaccines were made here. and now, it's not only been able to manufacture enough to meet its own requirements but has also exported millions of vaccines to more than 20

countries in latin america, africa, the middle east and south east asia. the government says as a responsible ally, india wants to help the world fight covid 19, even as it fights to vaccinate its own population. back in his village, sanjay says the government should now let anyone who's willing to take the vaccine, get a shot. sanjay says he and his entire family would be more than willing to lead the way. for the pbs newshour, i'm neha poonia in delhi. >> woodruff: american civil rights activist, presidential confidant and corporate pioneer, vernon jordan has died. a family statement said he passed monday night in atlanta. for decades, jordan was a leading advocate for black americans and a mentor to those who came after him. >> good morning, rankin chapel.

>> woodruff: vernon jordan speaks at howard university, reflecting on a life that took him from civil rights lawyer to corporate america to presidential confidante. >> it is tempting to believe that our problems are particular, and that our situation is unprecedented. i come to say to you this morning we have been here before. but our journey also teaches us that endurance is not enough. listen, we do not sing, "we shall endure," we sing "we shall overcome". >> woodruff: jordan's own journey began in a segregated public housing project in atlanta, and, from there, to depauw university in indiana, the only black student in his class. then, to howard law school, where he was captivated by civil

rights lawyers, who practiced arguments in the school's mock and upon graduation, back to atlanta. >> i came home out of some sense of mission, feeling that i come back south, i can do something about the problem. >> woodruff: in 1961, jordan was part of the legal team that helped desegregate the university of georgia. he escorted the school's first two black students, charlayne hunter and hamilton holmes, past a hostile crowd on their first day. >> vernon was very serious and very determined. he was focused. he was focused on his mission. >> woodruff: jordan also worked on voter registration drives across the south, before assuming leadership of the united negro college fund. in 1971, he moved to the national urban league, where he served as president for 10 years. >> democracy, justice and equality are not reserved for

white people only, but must be shared by all people. >> woodruff: his advocacy made him a target, and in 1980, he survived an assassination attempt in fort wayne, indiana. the next year, he moveto a prominent washington law firm. the move was questioned by some critics, but it proved groundbreaking. >> we're all looking this way for the revolution, and vernon is over here in corporate america, making the revolution. >> woodruff: jordan served on the boards of fortune-500 companies, and mentored younger african-americans. but he also stayed involved in national politics, and was especially close to president bill clinton as an informal adviser. >> i never saw him turn down an opportunity to try and help a young person who needed help, including to give good advice. >> woodruff: during the clinton impeachment, jordan denied allegations that he helped monica lewinsky find a job, to buy her silence about her affair with the president.

in later years, he remained active in corporate and political life, and a confidant of president clinton and president barack obama. to further explore vernon jordan's legacy from civil rights to politics to business: charlayne hunter-gault is a newshour special correspondent. and as you heard, vernon jordan escorted her 60 years ago when she desegregated the university of georgia. and ursula burns is a senior adviser at teneo, a consulting firm. she previously served as the c.e.o. of xerox. welcome to you, both. charlayne hunter-gault, you have known vernon jordon for so many decades. you both made history together. give us a glimpse of him when you first met him. >> ha-ha. well, it's funny because i laugh

because he treated me like a little kid. you know, he wasn't that much older than me, but he was a very serious, you know, legal assistant to donald hollowell and constance motley, the lead lawyers in our case, and i just remember that he was focused. he was the youngest lawyer involved in the case but they used to send him down to georgia, the location of the university, every day to try and find, um, someone who had applied to the university of georgia at the same time i had and had the same credentials and yet got in and i didn't. and they went, he and a bunch of assistants went through thousands of documents. he finally was the one who found the critical document. >> woodruff: he did make the transition. of course, he went onto be very involved in voting rights and

the civil rights movement and then he made the transition to the private sector. he had a presence about him that could make him basically fit in in any setting. how do you explain that? >> he was so comfortable in who he was. he was so consistent, so confident, so just comfortable in his own skin and in his own faith that he literally floated into places and he presented vernon jordan and it was always the same. in a suit, in slacks and a polo shirt, literally, he was always the same. he was like a big oak tree that put himself around you. i met him in the corporate space. i was thinking about it, he was not to me a corporate person. he was not a political person. he was not a legal person or a finance person. he was all of them. and i saw him operate in all of

those spheres without a break and form whatsoever. he was unbelievably consistent, and just unbelievably strong. >> woodruff: and he was seen, charlayne, in the black community as somebody who enormously successful, had done what he had done as we mentioned from voting rights, for civil rights, um, and stood out, um, as a symbol. >> well, you know, i would encourage people to read his book, "vernon can read," because he goes into great detail about how he developed that armor, and it was his mom, his mother who was just this wonderful person who helped to mold him and tell him that even though he lived in a segregated society that tried to make him and other people who look like him feel unequal that

he was not, that he was rst-class, and she guided him even when they worked for white people, even when they waited on white people. she insisted he was somebody. she taught him that you stand on the shoulders of giants. and it was those lessons that he passed along that ursula just talked about to the younger generation and those who he worked with, you stand on the shoulders of giants and you could become a giant if you believe in yourself. >> woodruff: pick up on what charlayne said, ursula, if you would. as a mentor to so many, how did he do that? what was his message? >> he was consistent and clear that to wh much is given, much is expected. and he guided my life. literally, every important moment in my life, my daughter's birth, um, important moments in

my career, my husband's illness, my husband's eventual death, every single thing in my life from the time that i met him was vernon was there. every important moment. one of the things i was thinking about is how do you do that? how do you be so complete a friend? the way that you do it is you are prent. he was present. he was serious about friendship. he was serious about providing me and people like me shoulders to stand on. he was serious about having the expectations that i do the same thing. my life outside of my mother and my husband is he's the most important person in my life. he did it so gracefully and so seamlessly that i wonder -- i keep wondering how do you do this? how do you do this so well and

seamlessly? i try my best to emulate him because he's the perfect example of a friend. >> he did it by faith. that's how he did everything that ursula just described, and that's how i am keeping my sadness and my sorrow in check, because, you know, i think that vernon -- i have heard him preach enough from various pulpits on various occasions about the great camp meeting and the promised land, and i really do believe that he is a happy campner the great camp meeting -- camper in the great camp meeting. >> woodruff: ursula, finally, if there was a legacy, what was the legacy? >> total and complete giving of oneself to other people. literally without hesitation. if he grabbed onto you -- and he did it to a lot of people -- you were his. you were his. and he took care of you. he assured -- he gave you

assurance to keep pushing forward, and as charlayne said, he believed therwas better to come. he was probably the best friend i've ever had in my life. he's just so amazing. i'll miss him. >> woodruff: he was a friend to so many, so many people. wonderful human being. ursula burns and charlayne hunter-gault, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> woodruff: and we'll be back shortly with a call for how poetry can ease isolation. but first, take a moment to hear from your local pbs station. it's a chance to offer your support, which helps keep programs like ours on the air. >> woodruff: now, paul solman's examination of the challenge

older americans face in the workforce and what still motivates them. this encore look is part of our older workers series "unfinished business." >> i wanna be pulled, tucked and lifted 'til i can't move my face. >> reporter: “take my nose, please”, about comedians undergoing plastic surgery debuted when the film's first- time producer, joan krone, was 89. >> everybody just laughed. they patted me on the head like joan is in her 80s and she's making her first movie. i just was proud of being able to accomplish something at that age that people didn't expect it and they still don't expect it. >> reporter: ...didn't expect“ take my nose,” her first film. didn't expect her next film about botox didn't at almost 93. >> luckily, i don't have anything that's life threatening a the moment. i suppose just my age is life threatening. >> reporter: life itself is life threatening. >> right, but, you know, if i

just dwell on that, that, you know, that's a waste of time. >> reporter: americans are living longer. as of last year, us life expectancy was up to 79 from 71 in 1970; 53 in 1920. no wonder many so-called “older workers” are still at it, says researcher nari rhee. >> we've seen a steady increase in the share of older adults who are still working. in fact, right now, before the pandemic, about 13% of seniors age 70 and older were working. >> reporter: joan kron created the plastic surgery beat at allure magazine in her 60s and maintained it for 25 years, had a face lift early on. >> there's one thing that i that is plastic surgery because there is so much discrimination against the way that you look if you're old, if you look like somebody's grandmother, they really don't want you around. >> reporter: but, if you work long enough... >> now they kind of think i'm kind of cute. i'm a cute little old lady.

>> reporter: kron's still going because she loves her work. but she doesn't nd the financial benefits either. >> the longer people work, they contribute additionally to their social security benefits. >> reporter: and working longer isn't just an economic benefit for the individual, says maestas. >> there is more capacity to work than is currently being tapped by the u.s. labor market. as older workers who are very experienced and knowledgeable retired from the labor force, we lose that productive capacity at a time when we actually need more productive capacity given the demographics in the country. >> reporter: virtual lessons are new but 80-year-old cecilia wyatt has been teaching piano for 62 years. >> retirement never comes into my mind. i love music, i love people of all ages, and i love teaching. >> reporter: if you love what you do, it's easy to play on. but wyatt believes work keeps her sharp.

>> you're always thinking, relationships that keeps the mind going but the inner joy of music making, i think, is exactly at the heart of what keeps us alive and going. >> reporter: but not just in music. working longer in general can be good for your health, says professor maestas. >> this can arise from having purpose, from having social engagements, interactions in the workplace, there's even research that shows people who have particular kinds of work tasks like work tasks that involve creativity, have variation, that they derive cognitive benefits. >> reporter: most in pianist wyatt's circle have not continued on the job. >> they've worked in jobs where retirement was most likely mandatory, and i think it's made a difference in their lives and

it's not for the better. >> reporter: how has it been for the worse? >> i know people who feel depressed. i think working is such a part of a productive adult. so i think when that's taken away, suddenly you feel a bit useless. >> reporter: financial analyst may lee began working for the state of california in 1943. what technology did you use when you were working with numbers? >> i used the old chinese abacus >> reporter: an abacus. >> and then from there i went to the comptometer and then went to the ten key adding machines. and then we got calculators and we had electric adding machines. and then we went into computer. >> reporter: lee, now 100, officially retired in 1990 when her pension became higher than her salary, but returned soon after. she's paid part-time but has volunteered some 31,000 additional hours. >> i enjoy working.

and some time i just, um, do algebra equation, trying to figure out what's the best. >> reporter: you do algebra problems at home for fun? >> yeah, just for fun. >> reporter: and so, as this series ends, the lessons? pick long-lived parents, do what you love and can master. take on challenges. but remember, says professor maestas, that's impossible for many of us. >> not everybody is healthy enough to work longer and not everybody can work longer and not everyone likes their job enough. we would say you should work longer. >> reporter: but for those, like producer joan kron, who have the knack and drive... >> there are so many benefits that i have for my age, and that's wisdom, connections, a very good memory. patience and because i'm a widow, i don't have a husband that says, stop working, dear, let's go away for the weekend. >> reporter: moreover, says may lee, you appreciate what really matters. >> you make people happy. you're happy.

volunteer to do something good, money isn't everything. happiness is more important. >> reporter: whether you find it in doing equations or tickling the ivories. >> my own children say, mom, you've never worked. well, that's true. i've never missed a year of teaching, but i don't consider that work. it's play. it's pleasure. >> reporter: for the pbs newshour, this is older worker paul solman, younger than cecelia wyatt, born the year after may lee started her job. >> woodruff: for many, it's a time of isolation and even not knowing how to feel. but, poet tess taylor shares her humble opinion, that turning to verse can provide solace. her recent book of poems is "rift zone," and this essay is

part of our arts and culture series, canvas. >> sharing breath with people outside our immediate family is a big no-no these days, and as a result, a lot of us are lonely. i mean, what meaningful human activity doesn't require sharing breath-offering a hug, sinng in a church choir, laughing with a friend, seeing a play? try spending some time each day with a poem. don't worry too much about what anything means, at first: instead, just try to feel. the poem speaking inside you. i have a friend whsays that encountering a poem is like being detained by a really interesting party guest. inaugurates a fascinating conversation inside your head. here's here's gwendolyn brooks's poe“" my dreams my works must wait till after hell”: i hold my honey and i store my bread in little jars and cabinets of my will i label clearly and each latch and lid

i bid be firm till i return from hell i am very hungry. i am incomplete. who is speaking here? what kind of narrator is this? the charged rhymes signal someone whose life has been contained and detained too long, and i also feel the poem give voice to my own pent up feelings. i feel differently companioned by elizabeth bishop's poem "at the fish houses" which begins... although it is a cold evening "although it is a cold evening, down by one of the fishhouses an old man sits netting, his net, in the gloaming almost invisible, a dark purple-brown, and his shuttle worn and polished." this poem has the cadence of a slow, neighborly storytelling. speaking the poem, i feel my own breath grow even, tipping gently, just like the sea at dusk. the poem helps me slow down, become more deliberate.

herein lies the magic of a poem: yes, another person wrote it, but when you jump inside the poem's rhythms and syncopations, you become the poem's instrument. in a time when we're cut off from other people, poems allow us this conversational intimacy: we inhabit them, they inhabit us, and in the process we can feel larger, more awake, more social, more whole. >> woodruff: thank you, tess taylor. and a news update before we go, president biden has accepted nira tanden's request to withdraw the nomination to leave the office of management and budget. in a statement, biden said he looked forward to having her serve in his administration in a different role. and that's the newshour for tonight. i'm judy woodruff. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you, please stay

safe, and see you soon. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> carnegie corporation of new york. supporting innovations in edation, democratic engagement, and the advancement of international peace and security. at carnegie.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

hello, everyone, and welcome to "amanpour & cpany." here's what's coming up. pro democracy demonstrators brave the streets again in myanmar, after security forces open fire in the deadliest day since last month's coup. we ask the u.s. special envoy how the international community can end the blood shed and defend human rights. then, the white house slammed for not punishing the saudi crown prince himself for the murder of jamal khashoggi. what will the u.s. do to hold him accountable? i talk to "the new york times" ben hubbard, author of "m, the rise to power of mohammed bin salman." plus -- >> i'm a little speechless. i just never expd