♪ john: tonight on pbs news weekend, president trump calls on arab nations to take in more palestinian refugees and talks of cleaning out gaza, as we get a look inside at the ongoing and desperate need for aid. then, some disabled workers are paid less than the minimum wage because of a nearly 90-year-old loophole in the law. and the sail powered cargo ships

that may be charting a course to sustainability on the high seas. >> we want to not only reduce the carbon footprint, we want to kill it. >> major funding for pbs news weekend has been provided by the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. and friends of the newshour. this program was made possible

by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. john: good evening i'm john yang. in the middle east tonight, efforts are underway to resolve a dispute between israel and hamas over a female hostage hamas said they'd release yesterday, but didn't. that led israel to prevent tens of thousands of palestinians from returning to northern gaza. now, according to reports, hamas and islamic jihadists said she could be released this week. this as president trump suggested that egypt and jordan take in more palestinians in order to "clean out gaza," an idea jordan rejected and egypt is unlikely to accept. for now, the delicate ceasefire is allowing food and supplies to flow into gaza, but after 15 months of war the need is great and the situation remains dire for gazans, not the least of which for children.

rosalia bollen of unicef spoke to ali rogin from inside gaza, where her organization has been helping families since the war began. ali: rosalia, thank you so much for joining us. what is life like in gaza these days? rosalia: the bombings, the explosions, the violence has had stops, but the deep deprivation, that familes face here does continue. children and their families are in need of about everything, really. the moment i step out of the compound, the unicef compound here in amawasi, i see makeshift tents as far as the eye stretches, tents made of clothes, plastic sheeting, improvised. the deprivation is not just limited to the shelter situation. there's garbage littered all over gaza. there's raw sewage floating through areas where people have set up their tents. diseases are rampant. i see plenty of children with skin rash, children coughing. parents tell me their kids have

diarrhea. so there's lots of suffering there, too. it's obviously a very dangerous environment because of the rubble, all sorts of sharp objects, because of the garbage and the open sewage. kids are roaming around in that all day long. that's not an environment for, for any child to be in. they're really exposed to many different kinds of dangers in this environment. ali: is it possible to identify the need that currently is the greatest? rosalia: beyond the sort of cross-cutting living conditions, protection from the cold, warm shelter, access to nutritious meals, clean water and health care. i'd say that children's suffering isn't just physical, it's also psychological. every single child i come across has a story of loss or of deep trauma. kids in gaza have witnessed things that no child should ever have to witness really.

children have spoken to me about deaths, about the ones that they've lost, about being afraid to die themselves. there was a five-year-old boy whom i met who survived a bombing on his home. however, he sustained a skull fracture that made him blind. his eyes went to heaven before he did. that's how he put it to me. and so these children are in dire need of psychosocial support. ali: we hear what sounds like a constant drone in your in your background. are those airplanes? what are some of the the sounds that children and everybody are experiencing constantly? rosalia: the sound of the drones flying over is really a constant. it's almost as if it's white noise. it is there permanently. with the cease-fire now, it does briefly stop throughout the day and then it comes back. so it's it's a sound that is omnipresent that children find very ominous and very, very scary.

it's one of the defining sounds of this war, really. ali: we have been in this stage where a cease fire has been declared. how is the cease fire translating into the refugees, the people that you are with on a daily basis? rosalia: it has largely halted the killings and the maiming of children here in gaza. this underlines that this cease fire is vital for saving children's lives, and it is important for that reason that it's a lasting cease fire. it's been 15 very long months for children here in gaza and for the hostages and the families of the hostages. in terms of how it has been received, there's lots of mixed feelings among the adults. the children are filled with hope. there's one boy who was describing to me a playground right opposite his house and how he's just longing to be able to

go to that particular playground and play football and go use the swings. i've traveled a lot throughout gaza these past four months, and i was actually quite heartbroken hearing these children talk about all these things they can't wait to do because the devastation in gaza is very extensive in some areas. for instance, in khan yunis in rafah. when you see the landscape, it's as if there's been a major earthquake. there's not a single structure that is still standing. and kids are just so much looking forward to leaving all of that behind. but whether they'll be able to do that, that doesn't seem to be the case. since the start of the cease fire, all humanitarian aid agencies have enormously accelerated the inflow of aid supplies, including unicef. so that's a good start. that inflow has to be sustained. but humanitarian aid will get these people only so far if it is direly needed.

and whatever is coming in, i am convinced, personally will save lives because the needs are so high. ultimately, what we need is also the private sector to be able to operate in gaza so that families can access fresh produce in the markets. we need the rubble to be removed. families need to be able to to return to their homes and leave the tents behind. all of that will take time. but there's a large number of operational constraints that we continue to face inside gaza despite the cease fire. the road conditions are very poor. there's lots of congestion. there's risk of unexploded ordinance. there's risk also of looting by criminal groups. so there's all sorts of constraints that need to be addressed for us to have unfettered access. ali: rosalia bolen with unicef, thank you so much for your time. rosalia: thanks for having me. john: on israel's northern front, tensions are high in lebanon after more than 20 people were killed by israeli forces.

lebanese health officials said 22 people were killed and more than 120 injured when israeli troops opened fire on protestors. some of them were carrying hezbollah flags. they were protesting the israeli military's continued presence in lebanon. the ceasefire agreement with hezbollah set today as the deadline for their withdrawal. the israeli military said they need to remain to make sure hezbollah doesn't regroup in the area. weekend rain is bringing some relief to fire ravaged southern california, but it's also raising concerns about possible flooding and mudslides. the storms have helped firefighters clamp down on the palisades and eaton fires, which are both nearly 100% contained. but the rain could create toxic ash runoff that could sweep up the remnants of cars, furniture, paint and plastics. more rain is in the forecast for monday. vice president j.d. vance is standing behind president trump's blanket pardon of january 6th rioters who stormed the capitol. vance had previously said those

who committed violence against police that day should not be pardoned. vance spoke on cbs' face the nation in his first television interview since the inaguration. v.p. vance: violence against a police officer is not justified. but that doesn't mean that you should have merrick garland's weaponized department of justice expose you to incredibly unfair process, to denial of constitutional rights and frankly, to a double standard that was not applied to many people, including, of course, the black lives matter rioters who killed over two dozen people and never had the weight of a weaponized department of justice come against them. the pardon power is not just for people who are angels or people who are perfect. john: also in the interview, vance said despite the fact that the heads of big tech contributed millions of dollars to the trump inauguration, their companies are "still on notice" about having too much power, and he warned them to "stop engaging in censorship." on the eve of world holocaust day, pope francis warned of the scourge of antisemitism.

during his sunday prayers, the pontiff said the horrors of the holocaust should not be forgotten or denied. tomorrow marks 80 years since the liberation of the auschwitz concentration camp. still to come on "pbs news weekend," the fate of a federal law that allows some disabled workers to be paid less than minimum wage, and how sail powered cargo ships may offer a cleaner way to transport goods across the globe. ♪ >> this is pbs news weekend in washington, home of the pbs news hour, weeknights on pbs. john: the national minimum wage was established in a landmark labor law that president franklin roosevelt signed nearly 90 years ago. today the minimum wage is just over $7 an hour. but a provision in the law allows employers to pay certain workers with disabilities less than that.

ali rogin is back with a conversation with maria town, the president and ceo of the american association of people with disabitlies. it's part of our series "disability reframed." ali: maria, thank you for joining us. why is it legal for some companies to pay some workers less than the minimum wage, which right now is $7.25? what's the history of this rule? maria: well, in 1938, in during the new deal, the united states passed the fair labor standards act, which sounds very good. and in many ways it is. it outlawed child labor. it established the 40 hour workweek. and within the fair labor standards act, there is a section that allows employers to pay people with disabilities less than minimum wage. and this was originally created as a kind of incentive program to get employers to kind of hire people that were deemed unhirable. you know, it was based on the

idea that disabled people were inherently less productive. so you could pay us less, but we still needed to work. and that policy and the programs associated with it have stayed in place, again, since 1938. ali: what is the environment like now, for people in the workforce who have disabilities? maria: well, so in the span of almost 90 years, one, we've had a whole disability civil rights movement happen. that's still happening today. that's actually been fairly successful. we've had the rehabilitation act that establishes nondiscrimination by the federal government. we've passed the americans with disabilities act and amended it to make it even better, where workers with disabilities can get reasonable accommodations so that we can be as effective as possible and thrive in our workplaces. we also have things like technology. you know, imagine how much the

types of jobs available in our economy have changed from 1938, where you've got a lot of like factory labor to today you have programing or customer service, right? we have remote work opportunities. we also have completely different ideas of people with disabilities. in 1938, you would not have seen a person like me running my organization because i would have never had an opportunity to go to school and get a quality, free and appropriate public education. the whole landscape of disability has changed since this time. and in the statute that authorizes this program, it actually has a clause that says, it only needs to stay in place while it's necessary. and we would argue it is no longer necessary nor right to pay people with disabilities less than minimum wage. ali: and we should level set here, what types of industries

and employers have used this program? what type of work is this program meant to incentivize? maria: that's a great question. things like sorting documents, paper shredding, cleaning of buildings. you see a lot of companies that primarily hire people with disabilities doing maintenance work on buildings, lawn mowing services, things like that. ali: is there any concern that if this rule is changed, that people may simply stop employing people who until this point they've been able to pay less money? is there a concern that people might stop putting people with disabilities in these jobs? maria: that is a concern. and a lot of the families have that concern and are very vocal with that concern. and it is understandable for many people who who have worked in these jobs, they've actually been in these jobs for decades. and for a lot of families, this was an alternative to institutionalizing their loved one. so it was a good thing in maybe

the 1970's or the 1980's before we had things like the americans with disabilities act or the olmstead decision. but research consistently shows that that fear is not based in reality. a new study from northwestern university examined phase outs of said minimum wage that have happened across the country. and there are a number of states that have already phased out this program. and what that study found is that employment actually improves for people with disabilities once the sub minimum wage is phased out. not only does it improve, it actually opens up high wage jobs for disabled people. ali: this proposal is coming at the end of the biden administration, the beginning of the trump one. some allies of mr. trump have said that they would prefer that this rule stay as it is. where do you think this ends up? maria: well, you know, ultimately, after the public comment period concludes, it will be up to the trump administration to determine whether or not they finalize this rule and what is included in that finalization. so they they could do nothing

with it. or they could decide to finalize it. and if they do that, they can make a number of changes within the rule. and it is really up to us, the disability community, to make sure that the trump administration does the right thing and ends this discriminatory program. ali: maria town, president and ceo of the american association of people with disabilities, thank you so much for joining us. maria: thank you. john: 80% of all global trade -- among the flurry of a thicket of orders president trump signed on and i gratian day was one that says the federal government only recognizes two sexes, male and female. republican congressional candidates made rolling back federal production -- protections for transgender people a critical issue. they spent nearly 215 million dollars on network tv ads on the issue, much of it focusing on vendor affirming care for minors.

despite all of this attention, a new study i harvard school of public health finds that gender affirming medications are very rarely prescribed to minors. lindsey dawson is the director of lgbtq health policy at k ff, an independent source of information. this study looked at gender affirming medication, prescriptions, to adolescence. what did it find? lindsey: the study found that prescriptions for gender affirming care, hormone therapy and puberty blockers are very rare in adolescence. this isn't very surprising. it echoes other findings we have seen and counters the misinformation we have seen about being trans being widespread and prolific. it just isn't the case. the study is more evidence that speaks to that. john: previous studies that looked at gender affirming surgery, what did they find? lindsey: gender affirming

surgery is effectively not occurring among minors. if you scour the evidence, you will find occasionally minors are accessing this type of care. this is rare and is in cases where minors are experiencing prolonged gender dysphoria. in these conversations and decisions, they are made very carefully between minors, providers and parents. it is not something that happens overnight. it is a careful iterative type of care. john: why all of this political attention to what sounds like a very small number? lindsey: it's a really small number of people and even among that small group, smaller shares are accessing gender affirming medical care. but these issues have been deeply politicized and polarized, particularly in recent years and then in the campaign of the noun trump administration. john: why do you think that is? why make transgender people the focus of these political attacks? lindsey: so much of this rests

on stigma and discrimination and misinformation. really using that to fuel partisan debate and polarization. john: how safe are these practices? how safe is gender affirming medication and surgery? lindsey: as with any medical intervention, there are risks and benefits. that is the truth when you take advil for a headache, as with anything else. there are risks to gender affirming care, but those are carefully thought about. many of them can be mediated and they are long thoughtful decisions that are made in a group decision between young people and parents and providers. john: mr. trump's executive order on this matter this week, a lot of what he says, he is framing this as protecting women, trying to help women. his executive order says efforts to eliminate the biological reality of sex fundamentally attacks women by depriving them of their dignity, safety and

well-being. what do you make of that? lindsey: it follows in the footsteps of many debates we saw with reproductive care and it is aimed debt limit and access to services for a group of people based on sex and gender lines. john: does this give us any hint or clues as to future actions or policies of the trump administration? lindsey: the executive order that came out on his first day in office was quite broad and in many ways it was nonspecific. there were hints in it that the administration might seek to make good on campaign promises to limit gender affirming care, but this executive order does not do that. there would need to be additional actions, potentially rulemaking which is a law process -- a long process. we may see litigation as well. this isn't a change that will happen overnight and not something the exec adored her does. john: what do you think the effect is, on transgender people, the discussion about it, the focus on it and especially transgender adolescents?

lindsey: there are trends youth who are denied access to medically necessary care that could prevent significant mental health problems, potentially even suicide. there is the more cultural problem for lg to be -- lgbtq people when there is significant animus to the lgbtq community. john: lindsay dawson, thank you very much. ♪ john: 80% of all global trade travels by sea, and the ships carrying it account for 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions. now some shipping companies are taking a new tack as they try to navigate the industry to sustainability on the high seas. it might look like an old school tall ship, but this shipping vessel is charting a new course. >> we always use the sails and only the sails.

i mean, we don't use the engine, even in really bad weather. john: yann jourdan is the captain of the high tech cargo carrier grain de sail 2. >> last crossing, we did a maximum speed of 18 knots and an average speed of 11 knots, so -- john: its fastest crossing took just 15 days from new york to saint-malo on the west coast of france. the only power: the wind. it's a new take on the clippers of yore - fitted out with two giant carbon-fibre masts, an aluminum hull, and solar panels and hydro-generators to power the ship's electronics. jacques barreau founded grain de sail with his twin brother olivier. they used profits from their chocolate and coffee business in france to build their first sail-powered cargo ship. >> the position of the grain de sail fleet is to be at minus 90% compared to the usual carbon footprint.

john: that's less than 2 grams of carbon emissions per ton per kilometer. by comparison, the most efficient container ships on the sea today emit 10 to 40 grams of co2. an airplane emits as much as 800 grams per ton. >> we want to not only reduce the carbon footprint, we want to kill it. john: he acknowledges that it comes with a hefty price tag. >> the cost of the transportation when you want to be compatible with the environment, yeah it's more expensive, but the normal price is here. when you are transporting goods with fuel, you don't pay the pollution, you don't pay the global warming, it's free! so it's normal that it's very cheap. john: the european union is trying to change that. starting this year, large container ships will pay for some of their emissions. about 165 cargo ships around the world are already using some wind power to save fuel.

the regulatory pressure could make wind more appealing. the grain de sail two is half the length of a soccer field and carries up to 350 tons of cargo, not much compared to the hundreds of thousands carried by some diesel-powered ships. >> we will need, in 20 years, to reduce the quantity of goods transported across the oceans. if we don't succeed to reduce this amount of goods transported, it's not going to work. john: the barreau twins want to launch a third boat in 2027 that will carry eight times more cargo, helping drive down costs. yann jourdan guesses he would earn four times as much working on a big cargo ship, but says he can't stomach going back. he's got something besides money putting the wind in his sails. >> i also do it for my son, for him to be proud of what i did. "hey daddy, what did you do to

improve the situation?," well, i did my best to make my job in a clean way. john: that is pbs news weekend for this sunday. i'm john yang. thanks for joining us. have a good week. >> major funding for pbs news weekend has been provided by. >> in 1995, two friends set out to make wireless coverage long-term contracts, nationwide coverage and 100% support. consumer cellular, freedom calls. >> 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.

linney: this is "masterpiece." coburg: i would like a grandson. kent: you mean drina's with child again? when were you going to tell me? linney: previously, on "victoria." victoria: i am a queen, and to be a queen, i must rule. yet to be a wife, it seems i must submit. melbourne: you have an instinct for what you must hold on to. victoria: i've missed you, lord m. you always know how to make me feel better. someone is pilfering, mr. penge! (crying out) brodie: stop! penge: get that boy! buccleuch: what is the meaning of this? i want you. you have me. linney: "victoria," tonight,