♪ >> good evening. tonight, the war grinds on. attacks continue, despite pledges to de-escalate, as civilians displaced by the conflict grows. then, a controversial law, educators in florida face restrictions on what they can teach after the governor signs the measure critics call the don't say gay bill. and, how inconsistent data collection and reporting has masked the effect of the pandemic on native hawaiian and pacific islander communities. >> there was a lot of socioeconomic setbacks already, so when covid-19 hit, it

impacted everything we were experiencing. judy: all that and more on tonight's "pbs newshour." ♪ >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by. ♪ being -- moving our economy for 160 years, bsf, the engine that connects us. ♪ consumer cellular, bdo,

accountants and advisors. ♪ >> supporting entrepreneurs and their solutions to the world's most pressing problems. skoll foundation.org. >> supported by the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. more information online. and, with the ongoingupport of these institutions. ♪ this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.

judy: a day after russia said it would draw down troops, there has been no let up in the bombardment across ukraine. new strikes have rocked civilian areas in the north and south east. the u.s. says russia start to reposition fewer than 20% of its forces around the capital. officials cautioned that moscow is expected to redeploy those resources elsewhere. u.s. intelligence adjusts that putin's military and intelligence aids have misinformed him, adding to tension. we begin our coverage. correspondent: russia said it would scale back its offensive, but the destruction tells a different story. >> yesterday, russians publicly stated they are decreasing their offensive and activities in these directions. do we believe this? of course not. correspondent: the attacks

against key infrastructure continue. in a western city, three strikes hit a fuel storage facility. further south, heavy shelling continued in a southern, separatist-controlled city. >> i was sitting on the couch and the glass popped. i did not understand. correspondent: it happened as russia claimed it would refocus its campaign, but losses continue to amount, and today is antony blinken said president putin was being misled about the military performance. >> one of the achilles heel's of autocracies is you don't have people in the system to speak truth to power or have the ability to speak truth to power. and i think that is something we are seeing in russia. correspondent: u.s. and british officials think russia will divert more troops to the

donabs, but strikes will likely continue. >> it is sad. what will be the rules under which we are building the free world. correspondent: he was in anti-soviet human rights activists, arrested in the 1970's over charges of treason and espionage, sentenced to 13 years of forced labor, and after his release in 1986, he was allowed to move to israel unaware he became a politician. now he is an advocate and visiting washington for meetings with jewish leaders and lawmakers. he says that ukrainians tell him they are skeptical of talks, but want to sit down with putin. >> they are very suspicious that russians are only trying to gain the time because they found the military is not working. they want direct conversation between putin and zelinski because they believe all the

real, rational arguments are on their side, but does he really believe that what will solve the problem? they believe only that russian force has to be answered with force, and that's why they're begging us, appealing to the west, give us the weapons to fight. correspondent: they spoke today, including about the weapons the u.s. is already provided. the u.s. as they have had critical effects on th conflict. mr. biden pledged to give an additional $500 million in aid. diplomacy continued in turkey, but with little progress towards peace. ukraine submitted its request am including a pledge to renounce its bid to join nato if russia withdraws its troops in exchange for nato-style security guarantees, and a 15-year negotiation time on the status of crimea which russia annexed in 2014. a criminal and spokesperson said the list was a good start, but the path to peace remain long.

>> [speaking in foreign language] translator: this is a positive factor. so far, less say we cannot say anything very promising, any breakthroughs, there is still a lot of work to be done. correspondent: meanwhile, europe continues to reduce his dependence on russian energy. : an ounce new steps to cut off russian gas imports by the end of the year in which account for more than half of its supply. poland also said for maine people have estimated to have fled ukraine since the invasion began -- 4 million people have estimated to have fled ukraine since the invasion began. evacuees from one besieged city have taken shelter in a supermarket more than 120 miles away, temporarily transformed into a center for refugees. >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: [speaking foreign language] there is no city anymore paired they have bonded completely. correspondent: it is also now home to this young boy being treated for wounds sustained in the bombardment. he is crying out for his father.

the good news, his father survived and is receiving treatment elsewhere in the hospital. as negotiators talk and bombs fall but there will be many more families with tragedy. judy: and now to a city near the russian border in northeastern ukraine. it is maturity at the -- majority ethnic russian. now many people have fled the russian air strikes and artillery that have reduced this center of culture, learning, and industry to a shell of its former self. our special correspondent and a filmmaker have been in the city for more than a week. they sent us this report, and a warning, images and accounts in the story may be upsetting. >> as the war burns, northeastern parts of the city are in smoking ruin. building after building crushed

by shells, peppered by shrapnel, the district a wasteland. less than one mile from the frontline, the volunteers bring food to those who cannot leave. it is dangerous work. in this district, people fear what comes from above. the area has taken the brunt of russia's shelling. thousands have left. for those that stay, life is underground. >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: this is the vip ward. >> 14 people are hiding in this basement in fear. >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: sometimes the shelling becomes so hard that the building shakes. >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: we got so scared, even the basement started shaking. >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: did you see the totally destroyed building? >> despite being ethnically russian, he is on one side.

>> it is strange how the russians tried to protect russians in ukraine with shelling, bombs, and so on. better to do this in russia. before this for, i had no problems in ukraine, but now i have been living in the basement for a month. >> the endless booms fray nerves, but some still risk above ground, even after a near miss, it is his only source of electricity and heat. >> it was small here, right in time with bomb. he was smoking right there. >> are you not worried? it can happen again? >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: how can i explain? we just want to stay alive. >> what happened after that? wherdid you go?

>> [speaking in foreign lauage] translator: we will hold on as long as it takes. there is no other way out. >> russian shells have shown little discrimination between military targets and homes. as a result, hospitals have been swamped with civilian casualties. at least 117 children have died across ukraine since the beginning of the conflict. five-year-old vladimir was almost one of those. >> he was unconscious for several days. but, you see, his legs, his back is still not so good as we would like. >> vladimir was shot in the head by unknown assailants as his family drove away from their home. he was referred for emergency

treatment immediately after the attack. >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: he received a severe open injury with the penetration of fragments into the brained ♪ [speaking in foreign language] translator: [speaking in foreign language] translator: and was taken to the hospita in serious condition. eration for the first 10 days his condition was severe. >> in the course of his surgery, two titanium plates were used to reconstruct his skull. inside, his family appeared to be grieving. there were details of the case that he did not want to discuss in front of his son. he told us why. >> because my wife was killed. >> he is yet to learn that his mother died of gunshot wounds as they fled heavy bombardment in his home district. >> a b, i'd maybe, i don't know -- maybe, i don't know, maybe

500 meters from our home, and our car was shot at from automatic guns. this lit holes is what we see, but they also go through -- bullet holes is what we see, but they go through the car. >> it is unclear who shot his wife and son, perhaps nervous ukinian soldiers to perhaps russian infiltrators. who do you blame for what happened to your wife and son? >> i don't know. i don't know. but what i know for sure is my wife was killed and my son is injured. and it happens because of russians came to our land. >> the man has lost his wife,

his son severely injured, and now he must find a place to live and survive, a genuinely harrowing story of loss, one if not of hundreds and thousands now. to avoid a similar fate, two thirds of the population have fled. the trains continue to railroad ukraine's displaced population south and west and while the 4 million have crossed out of the country. this person has decided it is time to go. a village east of the city has been occupied and destroyed by russian forces. she has been hiding in the basement for a month without gas and electricity, or water. >> [speaking in foreign language] translator: i never thought this could happen to us. my father died on the front in world war ii. my grandfather also died there. our uncle also died in the war. we thought that we would live a happy life our childhood was pretty nice. we never ever thought that this

could happen in our lives. this is the biggest shock in our life. >> now in its second month, the exodus goes on, and until a peace settlement is reached, ukraine's shellshocked people will continue to pay the highest price of war. judy: very hard to watch. a note, our coverage of the war in ukraine is supported by the pulitzer center. ♪ stephanie: we will return to the full program after the headlines. bungee brown jackson picked up her for support from a republican senator -- ketanji brown jackson picked up her support from a republican senator who plays turks expensing qualifications and integrity, and she lamented how partisan the process has become.

her support gives jackson at least 51 votes without vice president harris having to break a tie. president joe biden got his second booster shot and sat for another dose of the pfizer vaccine at the white house. federal regulators approved a fourth shot for those 50 and older tuesday. the president, who is 79 m oppressed congress for additional spending to control the pandemic. he said, "this is not partisan, it is medicine. top republicans and democrats in the senate cap negotiating today on a pandemic funding bill. they are aiming at $15.6 billion, but have not agreed on how to pay for it. at a congressional hearing, a top health and human services department official warned a vaccine shortage if there is no agreement. >> we have enough to provide a boost to the population that was just authorized and recommended

by if da and cdc yesterday. -- fda and cdc yesterday. we do have concerns if we were to do a general population boost campaign in the fall. ephanie: republicans want to repurpose pandemic funds not spent, and democrats have opposed taking back money. today, the los angeles city council ended a mandate that businesses verify customers vaccination status. the cdc dropped a warning about taking cruises and said passengers can decide for themselves. in australia, storms touched off flooding for a second time in weeks, forcing thousas to flee , hitting new south wales, including two areas, one tourist destination, water submerged towns, some regions hit by a month of rainfall in less than six hours, locals could only watch as homes and businesses were destroyed. >> it is devastating.

i have had this store for 17 years. i put many years and a lot of love and hard work, so no matter if there is not insurance, i think it is my livelihood and has been my life for 17 years, so it is sad. stephanie: the storms have dropped 21 inches of rain on sydney, the wettest march ever. federal prosecutors in michigan rested their case against four men charged with plotting to kidnap governor whitmer. the judge rejected a defense motion for acquittal. the men were arrested in 2020 for allegedly planning to abduct thdemocratic governor, partly out of anger over covid restrictions. the nation's first state task force on reparations for slavery has decided to base eligibility on lineage. a california panel voted tuesday

to limit compensation to descendants of black people who were in the u.s. before the 20th century. it will be up to state lawmakers to authorize any funding for reparations. the academy of motion picture said today that will smith was asked to leave the oscars ceremony after he struck chris rock at the awards gala, but refused. the academy is conducting a disciplinary investigation. smith could face expulsion, suspension, or other sanctions. one of hollywood's best known actors is putting his career on hold due to brained ailment. bruce willis's family announced he has a disorder that interferes with understanding or expressing speech. he is 67. over four decades, he has starred in films including diehard, pulp fiction, and the six sins. still to come, we break down the details of a new plan in congress to increase taxes on billionaires. a professor and entrepreneur

prepares to head to space on the latest mission by blue origin. a florida school uses art displays from around the world to promote diversity and inclusion, plus more. ♪ >> this is pbs newshour west, from weta studios in washington and from our bureau at the walter cronkite school of jourlism at arizona state university. judy: president biden unveiled his budget proposal this week, including a wealth tax targeting the richest americans, aimed at addressing wealth inequality. democrats continue to return to the debate over tax fairness. we have a closer look. correspondent: as part of its budget, the administration has been making the case for a billionaire tax, including today and a budget committee.

assets would include unsold stock, something not ask now. those affected -- not taxed now. those affected could pay that over five years. now our guests joins us to go through this. help us understand this. let's say i have a successful company and somehow i get $100 million in stock. how would this proposal work? >> normally what would happen is you would not pay any taxes on that $100 million until you sold it, at which point you would pay a tax on the profit. the way it would work now is you would be taxed at the year and on the value of that stock.

you would pay that now, and when you did sell it, and you would not pay the tax at that point or pay the difference. >> this is a question about a small group of people with a lot of money. we have heard stories of jeff bezos, elon musk paying lower taxes than average americans, a lot lower. can you help us understand how large is this group of people affected and how much money could this potentially raise this kind of idea? >> it is a small number, about 1/10 of 1% of american taxpayers. in terms of the money, $350 billion over 10 years, so a small number of people. what is important to know is these folks often get low salaries, but a lot of other compensation, including stock, so the argument is not that they are paying a lower rate on the salary, which is what most people earn it is they are

paying a lower percentage on their overall compensation, and most people's compensation is in stock. >> this is basically how they ructure their well so they don't pay these taxes. what does this do? do we know? do we know about disparity in this country? >> two things. first, not only is it the way they are compensated, often folks with a lot of wealth and take out loans against their stock, and they can use that really as income, whereas they're not paying taxes on that stock. income inequality, it will do anything. it would make a billionaire less rich, but still extrrdinarily rich. it would provide hundreds of millions of dollars over the next decade to the federal government. >> what is the argument against this, especially those who are wealthy? some have said this could be a problem in terms of a sincentive. >> i don't believe this will be a disincentive. there is always a reason to make more money. you will have more money, not

just as much as before, but the real argument is philosophical, which is historically in america , we have tax income when it is recognize and you've actually gotten cash in your accounts. this would be a different way of doing things them and then for certain people, a small number, there could be some serious complications, for example, if you have that $100 million on december 31 in stock and you pay taxes today, what if in two years your company has gone broke or that stock is only were $10 million when you sell it, you have paid a ton of taxes on something else. there are ways to deal with that, but it would be very complicated. >> if there is a giant economic downturn, for example. another thing about this is that it is creative. they agreed this is a creative way of getting at this idea but is this constitutional? can governments tax this way? >> that is a christian p the white house things it is. the argument would be -- that

is the question. the white house thinks it is. he argued would be this. the bigger -- the argument would be this. the bigger issue is joe manson will not suprt this and democrats in the white house need every senate democratic do that. >> let's talk about the political dynamics paired this is an idea not that long ago that was an outlier, not many people, even depressed, were talking about this, and it really has momentum, and it has remained over congress, so why do you think that is? what are the political and economic and cultural dynamics that have this idea has come around the capitol hill again? >> you are right. bernie sanders, senator warren, and then someone post something similar last fall, ultimate because politically, tax the rich is a good message because

most people are not rich in taxa rich is good and it is true that the very wealthiest americans do not pay as a percentage as much of their wealth or as much of their income as do ordinary americans. they do have money to spare. it is a good political message. it is a good political message to use on the campaign trail when you don't think you really have a good chance of getting it passed. >> it is verynlikely that i or my cat will make $100 million, but for the sake of those watching this, what is the future? where do you think this issue is headed? is this something that will continue to be a part of the conversation? why? >> it will be a part of the conversation because i do not believe this will be passed with senator joe manchin say no and having to get through the courts. this will be an issue as long as we have the uber wealthy in this country. >> a fairy and interesting

conversation -- a fairy important in -- a very important and interesting conversation. thank you. ♪ judy: a controversial new law went into effect in for this week, the don't say gay bill. it forbids instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity for kindergarten through third grade. our correspondent has more. correspondent: governor desantis said the law is necessary to protect the rights of parents to discussions around sexual orientation and gender identity. here is the governor signing the bill into law monday. >> i don't care what corporate media outlets say or what hollywood says up. i don't care what big corporations say. here i stand. i am not backing down. [applause]

and so in florida, we will make sure that parents can send their kids to school to get an education, not indoctrination. [applause] >> that's right. correspondent: those who oppose it say it does not protect parents, only harms children. this is the florida senates first openly gay member. >> in my heart, i do not believe any of you, my colleagues, many of whom i have known for years, i believe that we all want to do right. it seems as if politics, we have gone down a road to where we are scared to just step out, to make sure we are not hurting people. correspondent: for more on both sides of this law, a state

government reporter from the miami herald. thank you for being with us. this has been short-handed, mostly by opponents, as the don't say gay law. help us out. what does the law say and what does it do? >> sure. this is a concise bill, a seven-page bill, but it has divided people across the country because there are different perceptions about what this bill would do. what it actually says is it regulates school lessons on gender identity and sexual orientation from kindergarten to third grade, or in higher grades , if they are not age-appropriate, according to state standards that will be written and clarified by the florida department of education by next june. the department of education is led by someone who the governor will appoint or the governor will appoint, whoever gets that,

in november, and so, this bill has been very divisive because a lot of people think that because it is so broadly written and a lot has to be clarified and defined, it could target specifically those students and how teachers and trusted adults in classrooms communicate about certain topics. correspondent: there are provisions about dangerous situations. what are those? >> there are provisions that put an emphasis on how schools need to notify parents about services that are change for their students in terms of things impacting mental health for anything that could potentially be emotional distress, going through sexual orientation or gender identity confusion, and

so, this bill, what it says is schools cannot implement procedures that would prevent the notification to parents about what the student is going through, and this is seen by many parents as a win who are concerned that may be schools are taking more of a control by giving different student and not the parent, and parents would be allowed to sc through the school district because they were not notified enough about what services have change for their students. correspondent: you say some parents like that, but in general, what our parents and teachers saying about the law overall? >> there is concern because of how these provisions and how much needs to be clarified as to what the standards will be and what would be considered age-appropriate by the state. a lot of lgbt kids are concerned this could potentially lead to

outing students, for example, or there is concern that may be teachers might not know much about the situation at home and could be facing abuse, abandonment, or neglect because of the information disclosed to a parent, and there are protections in the bill that say schools do not need to disclose information that could lead to the harm of a child, but you know, not everyone knows absolutely everything that is going on, that that is something that some teachers have expressed concern with, saying this could potentially be a chilling effect as to what, the discretion they might have, so a lot of it remains to be seen. correspondent: some corporations, a lot of the regulations have yet to be written, some big corporations have sort of spoken out against this, as has the white house but the big corporations, how much of an impact, or that have any

effect? >> we are seeing disney, a very powerful corporation, disney world, but it has a lot of influence in the state. it has historically had a lot of influence over laws in the state in just the political arena, and we are seeing a lot of pushback from disney, saying just on monday that this should never have been a law passed, signed into law, and it will do all they can do to support efforts to repeal this, and our governor has very much doubled down against disney and said that the corporation is a woke disney and they have crossed the line by trying to get involved in what the state does and what policies it should have, so i think we will be seeing a pretty high-profile and ongoing clash

between such a giant like disney and the republican governor ron desantis, who is definitely ambitious, a governor who might be looking at a potential 2024 run for the white house. correspondent: thank you very much. >> thank you. ♪ judy: as covid-19 swept across the united states, it became clear the virus disproportionally affected racial and ethnic groups, but the outsize impact on one community, native hawaiians and pacific islanders, has been largely hidden because of inconsistent data collection and reporting. this story is part of our series, race matters. stephanie: as he walks among the gravestones, he remembers the many in his community lost in the last two years to covid-19.

>> this guy right here, we are from the same island, same family, so that is his lady right here. stephanie: fellow countryman from the marshall islands laid to rest in arkansas, more than 6000 miles away from their homeland. a group of more than 1200 small islands about halfway between hawaii and australia. he is springdale's consul general for the marshall islands and represents the estimated 20,000 who live in northwest arkansas, the largest enclave in the continental u.s. >> july two years ago, we had a person dying every day, 33 deaths that month. every morning i would get up and somebody else would die. stephanie: despite making up less than 4% of the population, in the first two months of the pandemic, 38% of all covid-19 deaths were those from the

marshall islands. >> it is like the canary in the coal mine. stephanie: she says arkansas is not alone. others from the pacific region, native hawaiians and pacific islanders, faced similar disparities across the u.s.. >> was the data first came out about covid cases and deaths by race and ethnicity, i was shocked. stephanie: in 14 of 27 states with available data, native hawaiians and pacific islanders have the highest death rate from covid-19 compared with any other racial or ethnic groups. >> other states did not have data on native hawaiians and pacific islanders. stephanie: they were grouped into asians? >> either in the asian category or they were grouped in another category, or they did not show up at all. stephanie: grouping them together in a broad category of

asians, a much larger population, hides their uniquely high rates. in california, the covid death rate for asian and pacific islanders in 2020 was 75 per 100,000, but when the data for the two groups were separated, the rate for native hawaiian and pacific islanders alone jumped to wonder 23 per 100,000, the highest in the state, while they're great for asians remain roughly the same. >> it is too easy to be hidden in the numbers. it is an invisibility, and really learning about how to meet the needs of the communities that were most affected. stephanie: the more specific the data, she says, the clear picture of specific challenges and resources needed in the diverse communities. >> there was a question today at the session -- stephanie: she runs the arkansas coalition, a nonprofit based in springdale. >> there was a lot of

socioeconomic setbacks already, even prior to covid-19, so when covid-19 hit, it magnified everything else that we were experiencing. stephanie: the majority of working age people in northwest arkansas work at poultry plants. at the start of the pandemic, they were especially vulnerable to covid-19, because they had to keep working in crowded conditions, and many also live in crowded housing. during the pandemic machine herself open her home to several family members due to another pandemic impact. those who lost their work hours and could not make rent. you went from having your household, which i understand is four children and your husband to how many people? >> quite a bit. in our culture, you don't let people become homeless. the only one who has but is

considered a big house, i did not have a choice good i had to take them in. stephanie: she said when many in her community quarantined, their pay was reduced. >> that caused them not to be able to keep up with their bills, including rent. stephanie: did you see an uptick in the clients who needed services during the pandemic? >> yes, our numbers jumped three times. that is why we came up with ok, the idea of beginning our own food pantry, because food was one of the forefront issues we were seeing. stephanie: her organization help to provide rental assistance and made deliveries to quarantined families. on top of economic factors, native hawaiians and pacific islanders have disproportionally high rates of chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and asthma all linked to an increased risk of symptoms from covid-19. >> over 90% of those who passed

away had underlying disease. stephanie: the consul general says high rates of cancer in the community increase the risk. >> they slowly, silently die, and then. stephanie: you marshall islands were the site of u.s. nuclear weapons testing between 1946 and 1958, and she tidies have shown nuclear fallout has been correlated with higher rates of certain cancers among those from the marshall islands, another systemic barrier is health care. >> prior to the pandemic, our people did not have access to good health care. people kind of sat on their health, even though they were sick. they would not visit doctors. stephanie: she says many did not treat their conditions because they were uninsured. medicaid was only extended to those from the marshall islands who have a special immigration status in the u.s. in december

2020. she could see the pain that covid was causing in her community, but until they worked with the team at ucla, they did not have the data to prove it. >> i think it was vital and important because that information really told the story. stephanie: having her numbers about case and death rates enabled the organization to apply for and receive resources. on the date the consul and opened its new offices, her staff distributed frozen food. and worked alongside a local clinic to provide flu and covid-19 vaccinations, as well as information in their language. >> the community, it's good to have good news once in a while. stephanie: experts believe the impact of covid on other native hawaiian and pacific islander communities remains on tally. ♪

in springdale, arkansas, many are cautiously optimistic with increased vaccinations on the knowledge that the data tells their pandemic story. ♪ judy: american astronaut return to earth today from the international space station with two cosmonauts. he was in space for 355 straight days, longer than any american yet. life on the space station has been the center of attention because of u.s.-russian attention, but tomorrow, the focus will return to private efforts, blue origin will launch its latest human flight in the morning. the plans have been hailed and sometimes derided as simply fostering space tourism for the

uber wealthy. the launch includes a business professor and entrepreneur who is about to make history himself. our science correspondent has the story. correspondent: he is a man on a mission. a professor of entrepreneurship, one of six passengers on the blue origin travel adventure. he applied on the website several times to take part in the launch. >> copy, paste, click, and a dozen times, may be more, and finally, three months ago, i actually heard from them and they said you are on the next launch if you want to be and i was like, yes, i am in. correspondent: a lifelong dream coming true. >> i went to college and i became an entrepreneur.

i just wanted to sell enough so i could go to space. correspondent: his itch led him to start a travel business, allowing him to see the world. now he plans to become the only person in history to have traveled to all 193 countries and beyond. the new shepard rocket, which he will ride in, travels just past the line, the boundary between earth's atmosphere and outer space. he will not say how much he is paying, and blue origin is tightlipped as well, but in 2018, reuters reported seats open to the public would sell for around $200,000. >> my parents were public school teachers. i am not one of these people going to space. this is my hard-earned money. this has been a lifelong goal for me. >> 2, 1. correspondent: this is the

fourth passenger flight for blue origin. william shatner caught a free ride, becoming the oldest person ever to go to space. these sub-orbital hops may be short visits to the edge of space, but jeff bezos's thinking bid and sees them as an early step towards colonizing space. he is a believer. >> the dream is still alive. push through the boundaries. and, make it happen. i am an entrepreneurship professor and those of the lessons i want to take back to my classroom. correspondent: who prepare, he has felt weightlessness and more gravity. he is only allowed to bring a three-pound bag. he will bring sunflower seeds to plant when he gets home, and stickers. >> this is for my students.

my professor went to space and all i got was this lousy sticker. correspondent: like any astronaut, he aims to push the envelope. >> north carolina, two icons, michael jordan, dean smith, get the coaches to sign this, permission to get this, because it has that. correspondent: the ride will last 11 minutes. he says he will not waste a second. >> i plan on looking out that window and taking in the curvature of the earth, the big, beautiful blue ball cold earth, the blackness of the universe, and then here is what will be fun, i am going to flip over and look at it upside down. that is my plan. ♪ >> there we go. the main parachutes. ♪

judy: and now, sarasota, florida, where large-scale artworks are being used to teach students about diversity, inclusion, and mental health at a time when there is growing controversy in florida and school district close the country over how and whether to teach about racism in america. our special correspondent went to see how was exhib encourages inclusion. it is part of her ongoing series , looking at solutions to racism , and our arts and culture series, candace. >> i think they make these paintings so they can encourage us to be ourselves. correspondent: the students come by the busloads to the park, a popular tourist attraction featuring dramatic views of the harbor, boats, and restaurants. >> you can be strong and

confident and still cry. correspondent: students learn about race, mental health, gender, and disability. all depicted on 50 billboard-sized images created by students and artists from all over the world. it is the work of embracing our differences, a local nonprofit, which in its 19 years has reached over 475,000 students with this annual exhibition that includes art from over 120 countries. this year's theme, enriching lives through diversity and inclusion, illustrates the concerns that many students, including issues of equality. anxiety. the influence of social media. and the aftermath the pandemic. year after year, high school students lead elementary school

students through the works, asking what they see. >> what have you learned from this exhibit? raise your hand. how many of you loved it? raise your hand. correspondent: the executive director told me about the exhibition's announcer: timely themes and what it is like to have students back at the exhibit after two years. >> it has been amazing to have the students in person and able to interact with one another in such a different way than on the computer screen. so it has been positive in so many ways. there have been some challenges. correspondent: like what? >> some students have more difficulty expressing themselves. they have been in isolation, on zoom, or told not to interact with others who they don't know, but fortunately, the majority are excited to be able to express themselves and to connect with one another. correspondent: tell me about

feeling. how does it feel? >> mental health issues has been something discussed much more in recent years than it ever was, and especially over the past two years. students and adults have been able to recognize how important it is for us to be open about her mental health struggles. >> mental health is one, but you see a lot having to do diversity, inclusion. how different is that attitudes these days than say when you first started this? >> i would say that today feels more divided than it has in the past. these last two years especially, tensions have been higher. we have had more pushback in certain ways or parents more resistant to students participating in the program. correspondent: what do you mean? >> some parents are saying we

are indoctrinating children or this work is indoctrination, and what we are trying to explain to them is our programs are really student-driven. at the exhibit, we train them to use visual thinking strategies, so they are asking students questions, not telling them about the artwork and what to believe, but asking the students what they see in the work. correspondent: you have gotten calls and criticisms from some parents who did not like what you're doing. >> yes, because we are an optional program. the parent does have to sign a permission slip, so because of that, it help, whereas if the parent doesn't want that, they have that opportunity not to, and that is what we explained to the parent, and then we try to explain what we are doing with the work. correspondent: do you hear from young people when they come

here, that's not what i heard from my parents? >> when students are here, we do not hear the negativity from them. students look at the artwork and they are able to have these open and honest conversations and a lot of times they are inspired by the artwork and seeing that it comes from kids as young as them, all over the world is a they are able to connect with it in personal ways. correspondent: what keeps you going year after year? >> year after year, when we hear from the teachers and from the students what actually occurred at the field trip, how it made him feel after, how they spoke to someone us differently after that experience, that is what keeps us going. that is what gives us hope that the future and our youth will make it a better place for all of us, eventually. correspondent: how much change have you seen? >> we have seen so much change, especially with the younger students, where we seehe change, classroom,

school, and it feels more inclusive. correspondent: what are you hoping these students would do in terms of the toxic atmosphere we have in this country now when it comes to race? are you hoping that these students themselves can make a difference? >> absolutely. correspondent: really? they are young. >> we get to see them growing up from younger students to high school students, who then lead the students around on the tours, and we see the change they made and how much they plan on being activists for human rights and social justice, and that is what we are really helpful. correspondent: thank you so much , embracing our differences seen so much like what we need in this country, and the world, right now. thank you for doing what you do. >> thank you so much. judy: online right now, president biden's 2023 budget proposal asks congress to devote more money to improving health care access.

right now, as covid funding runs out, uninsured americans could be on the hook for the cost of the pandemic essentials, like tests and vaccines. you can read more on our website . that is the newshour tonight. join us online and again here tomorrow evening. from all of us, thank you p replaced a safety and we will see you soon. -- thank you. please stay safe. we will see you soon. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy.] >> major funding for the pbs wshour has been provided by. ♪ >> the rules of business are being reinvented with a more flexible workforce. by embracing innovation and looking at current opportunities and ahead to future ones. >> people who know no bdo --

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