♪ geoff: good evening. i'm geoff bennett. tonight on "pbs news weekend," ukrainian officials say they've won the battle for kyiv, but russia is repositioning its forces, already launching a new offensive in eastern ukraine. then, state lawmakers across the country are tightening voting rules. we take a look at how that could impact this year's midterm elections. and, a new documentary from the "pbs newshour" spotlights the struggles of many americans after being released from prison. >> there's so much more to this life than, you know, sitting in a cell. geoff: all that and more on tonight's "pbs news weekend." ♪

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this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. geoff: in ukraine, russian forces are preparing for a new phase of the war in the east and south. to oversee it, russian president vladimir putin is assigning the same general who previously led russia's punishing campaign in syria. and in kyiv, visiting western leaders have made new pledges for weapons. but the country's leaders say they need even more, and faster. special correspondent simon ostrovsky reports from kyiv. simon: in an eastern city, soldiers and volunteers wait for war. >> during world war ii, the biggest tank battle happened here and i think history will

repeat itself. there will be a lotf troops, it will be a fight. simon: some of their equipment is older than they are, but the soldiers make do. >> in our hands, everything works. we use everything we are given. simon: according to satellite images, russian tanks are moving to the sth and east. they will focus on the donbass region, parts of which are already controlled by pro-russia separatists. the ukrainian foreign minister -- >> ukraine won the battle for kyiv, now a battle is coming for donbass. simon: unable to capital -- to topple the capital city, russian troops left a trail of destruction. each day brings shocking new discoveries. >> they tortured them, threw them in the water. animals, beasts. no oth way to say it. simon: despite the barbarity,

president zelenskyy said he would continue to negotiate with russia and urged wes allies to speed up weapons deliveries. >> all of the equipment and weapons they have sent already, i think for some of this equipment it is too late. simon: and in vatican city, pope francis commemorated the start of holy week by calling for peace. >> christ is once more nailed to the cross in mothers who mourn the unjust deaths of husbands and sons. he is crucified in refugees who flee from bombs with children in their arms. lay down your arms and start an easter truce. geoff: and simon joins me now from kyiv. we heard in your report the ukrainian foreign affairs minister saying ukraine had won the battle of kyiv.

do residents there feel safe? simon: i think residents are still recovering from the shock because every day another shoe drops in terms of victims being found. people are trying to recover. ukrainian forces here were instrumental in defending kyiv and defeating the russian force that came in this direction from the north, they are being transferred to positions in that area. the ukrainian military is recalibrating and people living this region are having to come to terms with what happened here while the war continues. geoff: we heard accounts today of russian forces looting homes and stores and occupied parts of ukraine. what have you seen? simon: i have visited several towns where russian forces have been, and each one of them, except where the cities were ghting was too heavy to loot,

diluting was nearly iversal. we went to a little place that was the sitof fierce fighting, but most of the houses are tact from the outside. inside, you see what the russian soldiers did to property. some of the residents of was speaking to said they would back a truck up into the yard of many houses and unloaded anything in the house of any value, put it in the bac of the truck, and drove away. houses were completely ransacked. expensive audiovisual equipment was taken. everything down to the silverware was taken. a woman told us that they had taken even the clothes and underwear. her husband was wearing the only clothes he had left after the russian soldiers had gone

through their house and used it as a base for a couple of weeks. geoff: special correspondent in kyiv tonight. and a note, our coverage of ukraine is supported in part by the pulitzerenter. ♪ in today's headlines, french president emmanuel macron will again face far right leader marine le pen in that country's presidential runoff. her strong showing is a sign of the continuing appeal of nationalistic and xenophobic rhetoric in france. after polls closed today in the first round of voting, emmanuel macron maintained a slightly the runoff wil be april 24. political uncertainty in pakistan, after a dramatic no-confidence vote early sunday removed prime minister imran

khan from office. crowds flooded into the streets of islamabad following the decision. khan claims his ouster is part of a western conspiracy, and called on his suppters to protest. the interim prime minister will be selected by pakistan's parliament tomorrow. and a general election will take place later this year. khan is expected to run. and in mexico, voters are taking part in an unorthodox presidential recall, the first of its kind. mexican president andres manuel lopez obrador launched the recall himself, asking voters to decide whether he should be removed from office. critics say i's an effort to energize his supporters after a series of political scandals. present biden's chief medical officer, dr. anthony fauci, says the uptick in covid-19 cases across the country is no surprise as the u.s. eases its pandemic restrictions. he says americans are going to have to use their own judgment about what's safe going forward.

dr. fauci: this will not be eradicated or eliminated. what will happen is we will see each individual will have to make their calculation of the amount of risk they want to take in going to indoor dinners and functions. geoff: fci noted, however, that if there's an uptick in hospitalizations, the u.s. may need to "revert back" to masking indoors. and, tv personality dr. mehmet oz, who is running for u.s. senate in pennsylvania, gained a critical endorsement lt night from former esident donald trump. mr. trump: dr. oz. great guy, good man. he's a good man. harvard educated, tremendous, tremendous career. off: a number of trump allies are backing a different gop candidate, david mccormick. the first candidate trump endorsed in the race, sean parnell, dropped out amid domestic abuse allegations. still to come on "pbs news weekend" -- a new documentary from the "newshour" team looks at the problems facing the formerly incarcerated. and, what it means to feel seen

in movies, tv and music. we hear from students about the importance of representation in media. ♪ >> this is pbs news weekend from weta studios in washington, home of the pbs newshour, weeknights on pbs. geoff: late last month, arizona's republican governor signed a bill requiring proof of citizenship to vote in presidential elections. voting rights advocates say it could make it harder for some 200,000 arizonans to cast their ballots. it's the latest move in a coorindated effort by republican lawmakers nationwide to tighten voting rules ahead of e 2022 midterm elections. this past week i spoke with jessica huseman, the editorial director of votebeat, about these changes. jessica huseman, thanks for joining us. so, arizona governor doug ducey, as you know, he signed legislation to expand u.s. citizenship voting requiments

in his state. it's a measure that critics warn will jeopardize the voter registrations of thousands of arizona residents. but this requirement, as i understand it, h been on the books since 2004. and then back in 2013, the supreme court said it was not permissible in federal elections. so help us understand the motivation behind this law and whether or not it's constitutional. jessica: sure, of course. there are a couple of states that have attempted to do this, kansas and georgia are the other two, alabama also has floated around the edges of this in the past. universally it has been ruled by federal courts to be unconstitutional and specifically to violate the nvra, which is the voter registration act that dictates how people can register for elections across the country. federal law says that you must be able to use the federal form in order to register for federal elections. the federal form does not require documentary proof of citizenship. and so courts have repeatedly ruled that any barriers or requirements that go beyond that

form are not permissible in federal elections. and so after arizona instituted this in 2004, they were doing it through both state and federal elections in 2003, the supreme court again said that that was not permissible. and so they split federal and state registration from each other. and so you don't have to present documentary proof of citizenship in arizona to register for federal elections. you do for the state, and arizona is essentially knowingly bucking federal law and previous court precedent in order to pass this law. geoff: all right. so that's arizona. walk us through some of the other biggest latest moves by states to change voting laws ahead of this year's primaries. jessica: you know, you've seen a lot of it. i think that one of the big things that is happeningn the last couple of weeks is that several states have made moves to ban private grants to election administrators. so election administrators are either banned outright or

entirely restricted from accepting private money to administer elections. and on one hand, that's not a terrible idea. i mean, we don't necessarily want the richest people in america calling the shots in how we dictate our elections or administer them. but i do think that states are not coming forward with funding on their own. so in 2020, mark zuckerberg donated almost $350 million, which election administrators relied on almost exclusively to pull off an election during a pandemic. now that states have banned those private donations, they have not also increased their own funding. so i'm talking to election administrators across the country who are really at a loss as to what they're supposed to do if they can't get prate funding and the federal government and the state and local governments are not putting up the money themselves. they're just left with fewer dollars. geoff: i was just going to ask you if this is a role for congress to play. we know that voting legislation, voting rights legislation on the federal level has basically

stalled. but could congress have a more of a role in funding local elections? jessica: yeah, absolutely. you know, last year, the local election administrators were convinced that they were going to get $10 billion over 10 years in the budget that was passed last summer. they did not get that. nancy pelosi, as we reported, pulled that at the very last minute. that number has resurfaced again in president biden's proposed budget. he has again proposed $10 billion over 10 years to be distributed to local election administrators. but, you know, congress doesn't have to listen to the president . the president's proposed budget gets thrown in the trash can almost every year. and so there's really no compelling need for congress to act on what president biden has recommended. and we're already seeing pushback from some republicans who do not want to get more money to election administration this go around.

geoff: what's that old saying when it comes to budgets, the white house proposes and congress disposes? jessica huseman, editorial director of votebeat. appreciate your time. jessica: thank you so much. ♪ geoff: for the past few years, the "newshour" has been reporting on issues facing the formerly incarcerated, like finding a job, housing and health care. next week, those issues are front and center in a pbs newshour documentary called "searching for justice: life after lockup." let's take a look. >> i never planned to go back. so every time, it has been extremely devastating. when i went to jail this time, i must have anguished for days. i could not believe it.

i just knew that this is not right, it is not where i want to be, not what i want for my life. there is so much more to this life than sitting in a cell. it has ruined -- i lost the normal things people lose when they go to jail, part of the process. >> what are those normal things for people who don't know? >> everything, everything. the normal things you lose when you go to jail is everything. your whole life. whether it be a marriage, family, kids, finances. you know, people can say money doesn't make you happy. not making money doesn't make you happy either. now i am out here and i don't know, i am not set up for anything, i'm not set up for any financial situation. geoff: this past week, i spoke

with "newshour's" chief correspondent and host of the documentary, amna nawaz. so amna, tell us more about this documentary. what were the questions that you and your team were trying to answer? amna: i think most people know or have heard before that the u.s. incarcerates more people than any other country in the world, right? something like 70 million americans now have an arrest or criminal record. and so there's a lot of stories about life inside prison. but you should also know that 600,000 people get out every year. and what happens to them? so our colleagues, producers mike fritz and frank carlson, spent about two years looking into just that, following the lives of four people, including michael cevallos, the man who just we just heard from there to see for those tens of millions of americans, what is life like after you've served your time? and what we found was that that time in prison or jail for most of these people really haunt

them for long, lg, long after their free. the rules and the regulations that greet them on the outside limit where they can work and how they can live and how they can parent. so we spend a lot of time with them, not just trying to understa who they are today and how they're living today, but what led to their inrceration in the first place. geoff: you mentioned michael cevallos, who we saw in the clip. who else did you follow? tell us more about who else will meet in th documentary. amna: yeah, so a bit more about michael. he is 53 years old, and we should note he has now spent most of his life, most of his life behind bars and with no support or training inside. so basically everyime he gets out, he really struggles to build a life and to reconnect with family and toind work and get his footing. you'll also meet a woman named rachel schuyler. she is 32 years old. she is now fighting to get her daughter back. she lost custody after her last conviction. rachel really struggled with addiction and had massive childhood trauma early in life. she was never, never really able to get any kind of help for the -- kind of help, and the system just keeps putting her back behind bars.

you'll meet a man named miael plummer, who was convicted of murder when he was 17. he was just reased in 2020, and now he's trying to reconnect with his now adult daughter and a granddaughter. he met the granddaughter for the first time. he's working two jobs and trying to make ends meet and trying to build a life at the age of 42. and you'll also meet a woman named renee wyatt. now, renee struggle with addiction and with homelessness. she's been in and out of jails and prisons for much of her life, and she became kind of the exception to the rule. she beat the odds, she got out and she stayed out, and she's now using her experience in prison to try to counsel and support women who have similar stories, too. so every single person we met, we should note every single person had a history of trauma or instability. every single one of them had a parent who either struggled with addiction or had been previously incarcerated. studies show these are patterns, right? and these are patterns that our system really does more to reinforce than it does to break. geoff: what do you hope that people will take away from this documentary after they watch it? amna: you know, watching these

folk's stories, you're not just going to meet them, you're going to really get to know them. you're going to get to understand them. you're going to see the whole picture of their lives, not just not just their time behind bars. you know, these people are so much more than their criminal records, but really, oftentimes society sees just that and only that even after they're out. so we now know tens of millions of people, more than any other nation, are basically written off because of their crimes, right? they're not able to participate, let alone integrate into the world around them after they've done their time, after they have paid their debt to society. that's because our systems just continue to punish them long after they're free. so we hope that people will watch. we hope the'll get to know these folks, and we hope that maybe they'll stop and wonder, can we do better? can we be better? geoff: i will tell you, i will be among those watching this documentary. thanks so much for your time. it's great to have you. "searching for justice: life after lockup" airs wednesday

night at 10:00 eastern / 9:00 central on pbs. ♪ we take a look now at how diversity in media and entertainment affects young people. our student reporting labs program, which leads journalism training in middle and high schools around the country, asked teenagers why representation in pop culture matters to them. >> there is a lot about pop culture that is pretty negative, but it can also help you find out who you are in this world. >> i told my parents last night and they were ok with it. >> it was a big part of me discovering and accepting my sexuality and "glee" was great at showcasing lgbtq representation. >> freshman year i was still trying to find ways to make

other people see me and love me as me. >> the fact that loki is gender fluid. a lot of people don't know what gender fluidity is and it is hard to explain it to them when they have no examples. it is difficult to be there example. >> it will also be a reminder of the heritage of this country, which is one of diversity. >> when jennifer lopez and shakira rformed at the super bowl halftime show, i remember being so proud because these people are part of my culture and my race. i felt seen, i felt embraced. >> i follow a lot on tiktok that helps me connect to my roots. i didn't think it mattered, but it really does help. >> probably "aladdin," because

it showed middle eastern culture. i came here in second grade and i felt the need to fit in with classmates who were mostly white. >> some shows are really overplayed with drug use and partying, but this one focuses on mental health. >> a netflix show called "tiny pretty things." there are a lot of dark points in the show with dancers developing eating disorders, and a lot of people don't like to talk about it that i myself struggle sometimes with stuff like that and i think it is a really good thing show brought attention to that. >> one stereotype is that asian women are cute into small a cannot stand up for themselves, but in "squid game" and "

shang-chi," asian women could stand up for themselves. >> in spider-man, i had seen one portrayal in particular that most accurately portrays a muslim girl. here is this girl and she is able to have fun and be free in europe and still wear a hijab. >> "like panther" -- "bck panther" started a lot of conversations, and that's why it is important for to be represented. >> to become more accepted, which is something that makes everyone overall better people. ♪ geoff: finally tonight, we want to share some of the amazing work done last year by photojournalists around the world. here are a few of the newly announced winners of the 2022 world press photo contest.

first upthis image captures protesters in myanmar, using homemade slingshots to fend off military resistance. the photo was taken by an anonymous photographer for the "new york times." this next image how indigenous australians use fire to protect their homeland. that's from matthew abbott for "national geographic" and panos pictures. and, this last photo from canada commemorates children who died at the kamaloops indian residential school, created to force indigenous children to assimilate. it was taken by amber bracken for the "new york times." and that's "pbs news weekend" for tonight. on monday's "newshour," the head of the united nations' refugee agency discusses the global consequences of millions of ukrainians fleeing russia's invasion. i'm geoff bennett. join us online and again here tomorrow evening. for all of us at "pbs news weekend," thanks for spending part of your sunday with us, and we'll see you soon. >> major funding for pbs news weekend has been provided by --

and with the ongoing support of these individuals and 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. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy.]

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