amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz. geoff: and i'm geoff bennett. on the newshour tonight. >> were going to make sure hostile actors in the region know that israel is stronger than ever.

amna: chaos in the house, room writ -- republicans again fail to agree on a permanent speaker and reject an effort to empower an interim caretaker. geoff: and amid a nationwide , push for police reform, native people who are targeted by law enforcement in disproportionate numbers demand that their voices also be heard. >> native people are the most adversely affected, discriminated against and abused by the minneapolis police department. yet there hasn't been one listening session here in this community. ♪ announcer: major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- >> consumer cellular, how can i help you? >> this is a pocket doll.

well, somebody's pocket. with consumer cellular you get nationwide coverage with no contract. that is kind of our thing. have a nice day. ♪ >> the kendeda fund committed to advancing restorative justice and meaningful work through investments in transformative leaders and ideas. more at kendeda fund.org. carnegie corporation of new york. supporting innovations in education, democratic engagement and the advancement of international peace and security at carnegie.org. 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. geoff: welcome to the newshour. president biden tonight addressed the nation, saying that two major wars between israel and hamas in ukraine defending its land from russia are vital to american national security. the president linked the two as essential fights for democracy at a moment of global of people. amna: president biden warned americans that a force in ukraine and the middle east are allowed to continue, it could spread to other parts of the world. and that the united states can and must support its allies in a fight for democracy. pres. biden: nearly 20 months of

war, tragedy, and brutality inflicted on the people of ukraine. it is sick. hamas and putin represent different threats, but they share things in common. they both want to completely annihilate neighboring democracy. those who believe in a better life because of us and are desperate not to be forgotten by us, and are waiting for us. time is of the essence. just as in world war ii, today patriotic american workers are building an arsenal of democracy. conserving the cause of freedom. amna: the president urged congress to support additional funding for israel and ukraine. for more, we turn to our foreign affairs correspondent, nick schifrin, and white house correspondent, laura baran lopez. oval office addresses are rare. wanted the president feel the

need to take this specific message straight to the american people right now? >> this was only the president's second address from the oval office. we know that the president wanted to give a speech on ukraine prior to the october 7 attack by hamas on israel. but because of the fact that that conflict broke out, the president decided to get this address on both the israel hamas conflict as well as the ongoing war in ukraine, essentially making the case directly to the american public, bringing the gravity to the oval office to say that when terrorists and dictators don't have price, and when america doesn't backup democratic allies, then those terrorists and dictators continue to move on. they decide to go well beyond what the initial conflict is, and essentially saying that is why america needs to be in this fight, despite the fact that he reiterated that he is not plan to put any troops on the ground. amna: we had a number of

specifics from the president about what he saw on the ground in ukraine earlier this year. what do you take away from the broaden -- broader biden vision here? nick: it's -- american leadership owes the world together. american values make as a partner that other countries want to work with. then he said israel and ukraine represent those same values that we represent, and that's where the arsenal of democracy that you just heard referenced to december 20 9, 1940, your before pearl harbor, president franklin roosevelt telling the united states that we have to support allies, even though we were not in the war yet. he used that argument to say we are the central nation, only the united states and its military and its huge funding apparatus and help israel take on hamas and simultaneously ukraine defend against russia and prevent pressure from going

further into europe and creating a wider or there as well. amna: as you know, a funding request now goes to congress. specifically walk us through what is in that request. >> based on multiple sources familiar with the details, what the white house is expected to see into the hill as early as tomorrow, we know that it will be roughly $100 million request total national security package, within that package we expect $60 billion to ukraine, 10-14,000,000,000 dollars in aid to israel, less than $10 billion to taiwan, $14 billion to the u.s.-mexico border security and $10 billion to humanitarian aid, including two palestinians impacted by this conflict. that is a big package, and one that is coming as the president is trying to communicate to the american public and to congress and specifically to a house gop that is in turmoil that this is

an inflection point for the country, and passing a package like this is vital to american interests. amna: you saw those details in the funding request. you have reported on a number of those issues and conflicts. what is at stake on the ground when it comes to that funding? nick: for ukraine, the largest is existential. ukrainian soldiers are running out of ammunition as we speak. the $60 billion, if it passes, gets ukraine into about next summer or so, during the middle of an election year where perhaps donald trump will be disparaging the idea of sending weapons to ukraine, but they need those weapons. and it is basic ammunition, to a certain extent. israel, a little bit more high-tech, more sophisticated pivot some artillery, some of it is for now for israel to attack hamas, but a lot of it is about what happens if the conflict

spreads. if hezbollah starts a second front or iran, that's what u.s. officials i talked to are most worried about. even right now tonight, u.s. troops in iraq and syria are attacked by iranian backed groups. that is the context or what biden is trying to do in each area and across the region. the one thing that is important to mention that the president did not spell out is what victory looks like for either war. that is something he has been criticized about, especially for ukraine. he did not do that for israel as well. the concern among some experts is there is not an easy path to victory in either war, so the u.s. will be supporting these countries even though there is not a clear endgame insight. amna: we will continue to cover both of those complex and so

much more. thank you to you both. geoff: now to more of the day's development in the middle east. earlier today, israel's defense minister told his forces to prepare for ground invasion. and the fallout continues from tuesday's blast at a hospital in northern gaza. u.s. sources say it came from a misfired gazan rocket. a u.s. intelligence assessment said this was on the low-end of 100-300 people and not the 500 initially claimed by the gaza health ministry. reporter: another morning marked by death and distraction in gaza city. this building used to be home to two doctors and their families. these doctors once ran an eye cleaning in the city but now it , is buried under piles of rubble. their uncle -- >> there is no one to film here.

my family has been wiped from the civil registry. >> this house is completely full of children, old people and all of them are civilians. they are working as doctors. there is no reason to target them. more than 10 people killed in this house. reporter: not far away another home in ruins. paramedics looking for survivors when he learned his own family had been bombed elsewhere. the target was one of his brothers, a top hamas leader but among the dead were many of his family members. >> there were about 15 people, all women and children in the house. only two of my siblings survived but the rest are under the rubble. reporter: in southern gaza meant to be a refuge no child is safe.

this is where israel ordered over a million civilians to move. gazans who had already evacuated their homes say there is nowhere to go. >> that told us to come to the south, so we came to the south. found out the strikes intensified in the south. there is nowhere safe in gaza. you have to be ready to die and stay in your house. reporter: the injured are rushed to the overflowing house or hospital. those that did not make it including babies are laid to rest. the health ministry sent an -- a distress call to gas stations. they say the hospitals have already shut down. and those remaining are operating at over 150% capacity. but a glimmer of hope with each -- aid trucks waiting at the crossing. egypt agreed to allow a limited humanitarian corridor. it is expected to open in the

coming days. all while a ground invasion of gaza is imminent. the commander toward units in the area and addressed soldiers. >> our maneuvers are going to take the war into their territory. it will be long and intense. the best commanders and soldiers are here. reporter: in the west bank israel carried out a rare airstrike after a raid and a battle in the streets. palestinian health officials say six people were killed while israel says they were militants. in southern israel the grisly cleanup continues. we are here at a kibbutz. now a complete scene of devastation. the stench of death hangs heavy in the error. -- in the air. the bodies of victims have now been removed and laid to rest. there are so many bodies at the rotting corpses of hamas militants still lay scattered

around. he was born and raised in los angeles but moved here six years ago and he is an idf reservist tasked with sorting through the devastating aftermath of the onslaught on the small farming communities. >> i would not wish these sites upon anybody else. the bloodstains on infant beds, all over the place. rpg's hitting front doors. we got the direct orders off the hamas terrorist and they had simple orders. hunt and kill everything that moves. it's just cold-blooded hatred. reporter: the threat is so high that israel has imposed a closed military zone all along the gaza border. sirens wailed morning of incoming rockets. idf reinforcements role in to the sound of outgoing fire. on the horizon smoke rises from

the unrelenting bombardment of gaza. we are a half-mile away from gaza and warned by is -- israeli defense forces to take care. the road is so close that it is within range. >> the gaza border is home to miles on end of agricultural land now emptied of farmhands and residents. a few have stay behind doing everything they can to save their farms from ruin. >> we were stuck in the safe house for outside we could hear 48 hours. the shooting when the terrorists were all around. we were terrified. reporter: his friend like many others has taken up arms. >> this was such a trauma for this area. it will take a long time to rebuild if we even can. the only way to take a future is if gaza is not there anymore. reporter: for some it is too late.

this 73-year-old spent more than 24 hours in a safe room waiting for rescue. rushed away by security forces, her life will never be the same. >> i don't want to go back. i really do not want to go back. of all the people that are not with us which means either they are not alive or they kept them. i don't know that i can go back there and not see these people anymore. it is terrible. reporter: for thousands of israelis whose lives along the gaza strip have been uprooted, being evacuated, their future is uncertain. what is clear to them is what must come next. kibbutz residents have traditionally been left hoping for peaceful coexistence. the mother long advocated for

negotiations but all of that has changed. >> she will give him tea and cookies. she said these events are unforgivable. and if she says it, you need to double it for a thousand times because she is a really peaceful woman. reporter: as israeli public opinion unites and impenetrable lines are drawn, the chance for peace grow slimmer by the day. amna: we need to bring you some more sad news, an update to a story we reported last night. two of five family members taken hostage by hamas have now been found dead. israeli american carmella dan and her 12-year-old daughter were discovered by the israel

defense forces in recent days. her father, older sister and younger farther -younger brother remain missing. geoff: in the days other headlines, the european union pressed metta and tiktok took slain what they're doing to block this information about the israel-her mossimo -- war. they were given one week to respond. they could face billions in fines if they don't comply with the new law aimed at protecting users of false claims and other harmful contact -- content. the economy may have to cool off to bring them frther. in a speech in new york, jerome powell said the federal is still 2% inflation, getting there is delicate business. >> doing too little could allow

above target inflation to become entrenched and required monetary policy to bring more inflation from the economy at a high cost. doing too much could also do unnecessary harm to the economy. >> his marks underscore warnings that the fed may resume raising interest rates of grace -- if grace -- if growth does not slow. roughly 16% of the company's workforce, the move follows a plunge in profits and sales in the third quarter. the u.s. senate's newest member, california democrat laphonza butler has decided not to run for a full term next year. she was appointed 18 days ago to succeed the late senator dianne feinstein. butler told the new york times that she realized this is not the greatest use of my voice. several major candidates are already in the california senate race. the pentagon says china is still building its nuclear weapons arsenal and faster than

expected. a report today also says beijing may be building conventional missile systems that could strike the u.s. the report comes a month before president biden made meet with the chinese leader in san francisco. federal regulators have approved a major natural gas pipeline expansion in the pacific northwest. a canadian farm, tc energy, says it is needed to meet consumer demand. today's action on wall street -- on wall street rising interest rates in the bond market undercut stocks again. the dow jones industrial average lost 251 points. the nasdaq fell 128 points. the s&p 500 slipped 36 points. the las vegas aces are now the first back-to-back champions in the wnba in 21 years. they rallied last night to beat the new york liberty for their second straight title. asia wilson had 24 points and 16

rebounds to take the most valuable player award. the aces won despite having to play without two of their starters. still to come on the newshour, former trump attorney sidney powell pleads guilty in the georgia election subversion case. we speak with a state department official who has resigned over the u.s. response to the israel-hamas war and how the native people are often left out of the conversation about police reform. >> this is the pbs newshour from weta studios in washington and in the west from the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. geoff: the leadership crisis in the house of representatives today even became more chaotic. republicans were unable to agree on the speaker of the house and rejected a plan for a temporary solution to get the acting speaker more powers. lisa was outside the heated

meeting today and joins us now. republicans cannot agree on a speaker or on what to do next. help us understand what is happening. lisa: today was especially chaotic beginning with jim jordan, the speaker nominee for the republicans presenting a plan to try to buy himself time. he proposed giving the pro tem speaker more power to conduct business on the floor but that met with a brick wall and soon after that mr. jordan came out to tell us what he thought would happen next. >> i'm still running for speaker and i plan to go to the floor and get the votes and win this race but i want to go talk to a few of my colleagues. i want to talk to the 20 individuals that voted against me so we can move forward. and begin to work for the american people. lisa: and that is what is happening right now. gordon has been speak into the holdouts and so far none of them changing their mind. let's talk about the plan he floated.

it could have gotten things operating again. the idea was to give the speaker pro tem of the house mchenry more power to conduct business which would require a houseboat -- a house vote but it met with , an intense divide. with no real plan as to who could be permanent speaker or who could hold those powers temporarily it feels like we are entering the outer rim. geoff: it is hard to believe we are entering a fourth week of this. help us understand why republicans are unable to move forward. especially when they have a temporary solution available to them. lisa: this seems to defy logic for many of our viewers. you have a conference that has been built upon questioning institutions. now it is questioning the institution itself. at the same time, you also have a group of people who themselves are not unified. who had deep divides in the party which they have been trying to hold to a minimum publicly but privately have only grown. all of that added up today as

members walked out of the meeting with signs of clear and growing frustration. >> our conference has a responsibility to the american people, to our districts, to work together and unify. the conference is broken. >> there is nothing i wanted more than for jim jordan to be the speaker of the house. he is the fighter we need in our country. what they're doing right now is walking the republicans off the plank. it is a giant betrayal. >> if we go to the floor for another vote and jim does not show progress or back slides, it is time to go back to the drawing board. if there are other people that are interested, they could be good but we have to choose a speaker. there are so many things we have to do. we just cannot get down to business.

>> we are in the middle of an ugly process. we need to get through it as a team. lisa: for house republicans, the problem is there is no leader for the team. there is a leadership vacuum. it was especially evident today that emotions are running high and there is an emotional contagion with resentment between republicans adding fuel to the fire. geoff: got some republicans that voted against jim jordan saying they have been receiving threatening phone calls and in some cases death threats. how is that affecting the dynamic on the hill? lisa: it is serious and has hurt mr. jordan. his allies whether they are on the hill, there is a sense that they are not playing fair. and that they are playing dangerous games here. i spoke to a couple of members who have been receiving those threats. >> that was a large part of what we did today, express our concern with the threats that many of us are received from within our own party. that is the part that is the

most disheartening. we share the same conservative values and principles. to be intimidated by members of our own party is frustrating. >> it makes me more resolved. folks that express themselves, that have courage, those threats embolden us even more. lisa: this is part of why the opposition is standing their ground. they say if they give into these threats they feel their entire career will be beholden to this kind of tactic. one republican member told the conference today that he had to see that a sheriff was posted at his daughter's school. there are many dynamics here and some are dangerous for the country and some for individuals. republicans want a way forward but they cannot find it. geoff: lisa desjardins, thank you.

♪ amna: the wide ranging racketeering case against donald trump took a new turn today. as second codefendant pleaded guilty to charges in the alleged scheme to overturn the 2020 election. this time it was one of his former attorneys, sidney powell. >> how do you plead to the six counts of conspiracy to commit intentional interference with the performance of election duties? >> guilty. amna: following all of this closely is stephen fowler who joins me now. let's start with sidney powell. a former member of donald trump's legal team. remind us what role prosecutors say she played in this sprawling election interference case. reporter: powell is cused of orchestrating a plan that saw a forensic data firm traveled to a

rural georgia county and copy sensitive election data including ballots and machines in efforts to find alleged fraud in the election. there was no fraud in george's election and this county was an overwhelmingly republican county. she said she orchestrated the plan to steal the data from georgia. amna: tell us about the plea deal. she's a second codefendant to plead guilty in this case. what does her deal entail? reporter: instead of starting a trial process tomorrow that has jury selection beginning, she pled guilty do six months or six years of probation, a 6000 dollar fine and she has to pay additional restitution to the state, right to a letter of apology and agree to testify in future trials. she also has to turn over documents. it does not specify what kinds

of documents but she has documents that prosecutors say are important to them. that is the scope of what we are looking at. amna: she is a key advisor to iamna: she is a key advisor to president trump in the weeks in which he was working to overturn the election results. what could her cooperation mean for the case against mr. trump and others like rudy giuliani? reporter: though she is only accused of a small part of this massive conspiracy in georgia, her tendrils leaked into other aspects of this. she was there when rudy giuliani held a press conference talking about fraud in the election. she had communications with donald trump. the more defendants that testify in this case, the more lockdown prosecutors have to show that donald trump committed a racketeering violation by trying to overturn george's presidential race.

amna: mr. trump also faces federal cases brought by the special counsel, jack smith. do we know if her cooperation or testimony impacts those cases? reporter: we don't exactly know what overlap there is other than both of these cases are looking at election interference. georgia's state case is a different set of laws even though there are several key players. now president trump's attorney says he welcomes this saying powell testimony will exonerate donald trump. it remains to be seen. and she may not be the most reliable witness to be used in the federal or state case. it does not help donald trump but it does not hurt him at this juncture yet. amna: that is stephen fowler joining us tonight. always good to see you. ♪

geoff: the war between israel and hamas has caused an erosion -- iraq shown -- has caused an eruption of anger and grief and many corners of the world. here is nick schifrin. reporter: the state department is responsible for most arms transfers to american allies and partners and for more than 11 years josh kaul ran its congressional office. he wrote in his public resignation letter that he knew his job was not without moral compromise of calls the transfer of weapons to israel shortsighted and instructive and unjust. and he joins us now. welcome. why are weapons transfers to israel in this moment unjust? >> let's recognize what were

talking about. the transfer of arms that could last for decades with purpose is to kill. it underlines the gravity of the decisions we make every day in the u.s. government and the state department. recognizing that the biden administration earlier this year issued a conventional arms transfer policy which raised the standards to a more likely than not that the weapons at the u.s. provides to another country will be used for violations of human rights, they will not be transferred. what we have seen with israel repeatedly and operations in gaza in 2009, 2014, 2020 one is massive civilian casualties. thousands of palestinians killed through a relatively indiscriminate use of bombs to destroy buildings and yet, in the context of this conflict today, where we have already seen thousands of palestinian casualties, there has been no policy debate. indeed there has been a rush to provide arms when normally there

is discussion and thought. geoff: the israeli defense forces say they only target hamas officials weapons and rocket launch sites. it sounds like what you said at the end there is one of your key criticisms. did you raise your concerns within state? and what was the response? >> i raise them as soon as two days after the hamas atrocity. and let me be clear, that was an atrocity, no further caveats. shortly after that i raised concerns about look, we have seen that for 20 years the provision of security assistance to israel has not led to peace and instead has been used to take us further from peace. i wrote to a number of leaders within the department two days after the hamas attack and said, i recognize there will be a

demand signal for arms to israel. can't we stop and think if this is getting us to where we want to be where we move forward? reporter: and what was the response? >> no response. reporter: how unusual is that? >> extremely unusual. you think of other countries and the region. the debate over arm requests can last for months. sometimes even years. reporter: during your time, the u.s. for example provided arms two egypt, and were widely criticized for its human rights abuses and to saudi arabia which has been accused of human rights abuses. why did you not resign after those transfers? >> in those cases i could make a difference and manage through my work to add some elements to it for example there is a training

program that has been going on with saudi pilots to improve their targeting and in the case of egypt we have vetting where anyone accused of gross human rights violations are not allowed to have weapons. it is a broken system. reporter: you could argue that that is proof that the vetting the state department does of the israeli defense forces have not found a violation. >> they have identified many but they have not been able to come to a conclusion. reporter: are you saying that there have been units inside israel's defense force that the state department has been concerned about, their actions being brought back to senior officials and over the years they have consistently not acted upon that? >> that is correct. geoff: let's listen to the spokesperson for the state department.

>> we comply with all applicable statutory requirements in our assistance provided israel. reporter: isn't that what the u.s. pushes? >> we have complied with the laws but the laws are intentionally vague. for example they require a determination that something has happened in terms of the gross violations of human rights before sanctions can be applied. yes, we are acting within the rule. is that good enough? we are not acting within the arms transfer policy. reporter: you have deep experience in the region and you have connections. do those connections drive your opinion on this? >> they drive a lot of my passion. but what has driven me throughout my service is a passion for human rights and that compels me to look at those issues and carry forward on this being something that we need to do better on.

amna: let's delve further into the biden administration's response to the israel-hamas war and specifically how the president's trip to israel is being seen in the region. for that we got two views. jordan's deputy prime minister and foreign minister and he is now vice president at the carnegie endowment for international peace and david mccloskey from washington institute for near east policy. he is a former journalist and was a senior advisor for israeli-palestinian negotiations during the obama administration. i want to begin with you, david. the president has made the trip to israel to show solidarity and unwavering u.s. support. from what you know what was the message he was delivering behind closed doors? >> having built street credibility of the empathy with the country at a time of severe

trauma, a sense of clarity of saying i have no illusions who hamas is with the slaughter of 1300 people and the like, and i have dispatched these aircraft carriers to deter iran. having that street credibility with the israeli public and the bond he has deepened in these last 10 days he also thought this was a chance for some friendly advice. and to say i really want this humanitarian corridor bringing trucks in from egypt. and secretary of state blinken pave the way also with his diplomacy over the last week. and second, i want to know the endgame. i want to know how the military strategy as part of a political strategy after this is over. what would a post hamas gaza look like? have you given some thought to that? amna: president biden did

announce that some of the aid lines into gaza have been opened and he pledged another $100 million. how is this trip resonating? >> to be candid, it is being seen extremely negative like. not because the president did not show empathy for the as really -- did show empathy for the israeli civilians killed. nobody should condone targeting civilians, nobody. but because he did not show the same empathy towards the palestinians being bombed. a collective punishment. and the arab world today is asking, what about the day after? not just who will rule hamas but if we are to have a political process, and this is the root cause of the problem, can the

united states, this is what the arab world is asking, can the united states be counted on as a broker to be an honest broker? [indiscernible] the reputation has been severely damaged. amna: let me take a piece of what he said, civilian casualties. there have been over 3000 palestinian killed and retaliatory strikes since that hamas attack. how hard did president biden press on that? publicly he said we want them to minimize casualties. is that a priority for the u.s.? >> no doubt. he said he got little pushback. this is not about checking a box. it is ironic though that according to american intelligence and the president who said my data comes from the

pentagon and they entail community -- intel community, it was a misfire -- amna: you are talking about the hospital strike. >> i worry that the disinformation on social media will be a new factor here that can flame attitudes throughout the region and go prove a negative that some of you did not do. for the people, it hurt one side. amna: let's talk about the reaction we have seen to the hospital blast and to continued as really airstrikes and the potential ground invasion ahead. what would be the impact on jordan and other nations? >> there would be a strong impact. we have witnessed protests in jordan that are unprecedented.

jordan and egypt are extremely worried that this is going to result in a mass exodus of palestinians and the conflict could escalate from the west bank to jordan. why should a human corridor from gaza to egypt? why can't palestinians go to the west bank and be assured that not only do they risk conflict it might be used by israel to , try to empty parts of palestine into egypt. that is what is at stake. we are already seeing thousands of palestinians who have been killed by israeli rates even without the hospital issue. and i'm afraid this is only going to be a preview to the

carnage if israel goes into gaza. we are going to talk about tens of thousands of casualties. and then where'd do we go from here? how do we translate this to the political process? it's something that nobody knows. amna: david, let me get your response. >> as someone who worked in the obama administration on this issue, our effort for two states was stymied by the fact that the rejection-ists were too strong. three times the u.s. tried to solve this conflict. these were noble efforts. to solve this once and for all. hamas was strong enough to torpedo it. my hope is that there is more dignity for both sides here. that you are able to have a post hamas gaza which is about how do we reconstruct?

how do we rebuild and work together? israelis and palestinians? i think the president's efforts with saudi arabia when this is over to find broader normalization would be a real answer to this kind of rejection ism that we have seen. amna: i take your point but at this moment when everything seems to be trending in the opposite direction, is there any space to have that conversation? amna: and it will get further complicated. >> i disagree. i do not see israel moving gazans into the sinai. i just don't see it. israel has sharply denied these kinds of reports. i think some of the reports are not based in my view on reality. my view is the status quo cannot continue.

we need some way that the rejectionists do not have a veto over the majority of civilians on both sides who just want to live together. there is no hope for two states if they have that veto. amna: i will give you the last word. >> i totally agree that the status quo cannot be maintained because otherwise the cycle of violence will continue. we have to deal with this because of this occupation. why is there an occupation in the first place? the longest occupation in modern history. if there was not an occupation we would live peacefully but israel insists. we have to deal with the root cause and until we understand this reality, no normalization

agreement will be reached or can bring peace to the middle east and bring peace to that piece of the region if the arabs and israelis cannot come to terms together. it does not require a normalization agreement. it requires a peace agreement. amna: thank you so much to both of you for joining us. we appreciate your time. ♪ geoff: amid ongoing police reform efforts in the u.s. native american activist say they have often been left out of the conversation. for more than three years after the police murder of george floyd there is a new push in places like minneapolis for awareness and change. special correspondent fred has this report.

reporter: a recent rally in the heart of south minneapolis native american community brought out high emotions and strong numbers. they were protesting the imprisonment of leonard, an american indian activists serving life sentences for the 1975 killings of two fbi agents. supporters have long said he was wrongly convicted and they consider him a political prisoner. >> as long as leonard is not free, there is aps that this system holds of every single one of us as indigenous people. reporter: activists say the problems with the system are upheld by law enforcement authorities who regularly mistreat native people. the vast majority of native americans live away from the reservations and live in cities like new york or albuquerque.

most of their law-enforcement encounters happen with local police. in minneapolis, a city that became the center of a global racial reckoning after the murder of george floyd, police interactions with communities of color remain under intense scrutiny. in june the department of justice released its investigation into the minneapolis police launched after floyd's killing. among its findings, the department officer stop native residents at almost eight times the rate they stop white people and during those stops native people are 20% more likely to face searches or use of force. the disparities were worst in the third precinct where george floyd was murdered and where many native americans live. that area the doj said is where officers referred to as cowboys. >> they did not tell us anything that we did not know.

reporter: we spoke with three native community leaders with deep understanding of police interactions here. >> as a young man growing up here i've always dealt with the police. it was us against them. >> the report said that native people are the most adversely affected and discriminated against and abused by the minneapolis police department and yet there has not been one listening session here in this community. >> so basically it is just another report that says, we are doing this to your people but you are still invisible because we won't work with you. reporter: they said residents in this area rarely call the police. wait times can be lengthy and they want to avoid escalation with the department that by their count has only four native american officers out of nearly 600. >> when the police are called here they are called because they are desperately needed. >> i've been beaten by the

police twice. i never once reported it out of fear of retaliation. you will see those officers again. reporter: minneapolis was the birthplace of the american indian movement founded in 1968 to improve conditions for natives living in urban areas. it grew into an international movement for treaty rights and the reclamation of tribal lands. it created a citizen watch group whose goal was to help victims of police brutality. >> here is where i got beat by the cops. reporter: in 2002 he settled a police brutality case with the npd. for $125,000. today he sees a community plagued by homelessness and substance abuse and a police department focusing on the wrong issues. >> this is what neglect looks

like. native americans homeless in their own lands. reporter: last year he and other leaders toward the area with a new police chief and minneapolis. he also spoke at o'hara's swearing in ceremony. >> we are planting seeds of trust and accountability and transparency and of community. but planting is the easy part. so much damage was done to our community by the police and the city and we have to make an accounting of what happened. and we have to have restitution. reporter: this is hardly unique to minneapolis. native american people make up less than 3% of the population in the u.s. but between 2010 and 2020 they were killed in law enforcement encounters at a higher rate than any other racial group. >> this is the part -- reporter: johnny crow grew up in minneapolis and he remembers bouncing among homeless

shelters. he can also recall his father getting roughed up by the police. >> it is just the way they treat us. you have to be strong. that is the mentality i was taught. reporter: last fall crow himself was detained at a minneapolis gas station after police said his car was connected to a wanted person. he was handcuffed and put into the back of a squad car before officers checked his id and they accepted that the person of interest was his cousin and let him go. he is suing the city and the officers involved saying he was injured and traumatized during the unlawful stop and unreasonable seizure. >> as a kid i remember the police would hand me stickers and i used to think they were so amazing. once i became a young man i started to look -- and i started to look like a native man, i was

no longer welcome. i was more of a threat. reporter: mpd says it cannot comment on pending litigation but in a statement it says the department is planning a listening session on police reform with the native community and the chief said it is misguided to think we will erase these disparities completely without correcting the underlying historic systemic injustices. >> i am hopeful that things will be different for my son. right now, my issues with the police were not as bad as my father's and one day if my son has an incident with the police it won't be like mine. reporter: what gives you that optimism? >> i'm sorry-- my belief. ultimate belief.

i'm trying to instill that in my son. reporter: activists say the invisibility of native americans in this city is an enduring challenge but as the future of public safety is chartered here they are demanding to be seen. geoff: fred's reporting is in partnership with the under told stories project at the university of st. thomas in minnesota. ♪ amna: that is the newshour for tonight. geoff: thank you for joining us, and have a great evening. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- ♪ the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions and friends of the newshour

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