07/12/16 07/12/16 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from pacifica, this is democracy now! >> i think we have the best statement. we have rorong language that , althoughque the tpp it falls a little short of openly opposing it, which we tried to do but we are not able to achieve. it takes the position in favor of $15 for federal minimum wage. amy: as bernie sanders prepares

to campaign with hillary clinton at a joint rally in new hampshire, we speak to congressman keith ellison who was appointed by sanders to serve on the drafting committee of the democratic party platform. sanders has called it the most progressive platform in the party's history but not all of his supporters are happy. then the award-winning actress shailene woodley launches the "up to u.s. caravan to the dnc." >> no amount of pressure wiwill susuppress our belief in politil reform andndocial justice and create a nation that represents the 99%, not just the upper 1%. amy: shailene woodley will join us along with oscar-nominated josh fox who fouought to push te democratic party to adopt a ban on fracking in the party's platform. then president obama heads to dallas for the memorial for the five police officers slain last week. pres. obama: part of what is creating tensions between communities and the police is

the fact that police have a really difficult time in communities where they know guns are e everywhere. amamy: we willll speak to histon gerald horne on the racist history of the second amendment , as he describes it, from the founding of the ku klux klan to the black panthers. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. president obama is speaking in dallas, texas, today at a memorial service for the five dallas police officers killed by a sniper thursday evening. former president george w. bush is also slated to speak at . the shooter, micah xavier johnson, opened fire at the end of an anti-police brutality march, killing five officers, and wounding at least seven more. johnson was an army veteran who served in afghanistan in 2014.

a female soldier accused him of sexual harassment, took out a restraining order against him, and he was sent back to the u.s. by the military. delphine johnson, micah's mother, has said military service changed him, turning him into a hermit. this comes as the shooting in dallas is making republican national convention organizers in cleveland increasingly concerned about ohio's open carry laws. during the sniper attack in dallas thursday, texas's open carry laws made it difficult to determine who were suspected shooters and who were protesters. at least 20 marchers attended the protest openly carrying ar-15's and other military-style rifles, which is legal in texas. during the dallas attack, police circulated a photo on twitter identifying an african american protester carrying a weapon as a shooting suspect. the man, mark hughes, turned himself into police and was released after being detained and questioned for hours.

his lawyer has said he's sincnce received hundreds of death threats. after the attack, dallas mayor mike rawlings said he supported increased gun control -- "there should be some way to say i shouldn't be bringing my shotgun to a mavericks game or to a protest because something crazy should happen. i just want to come back to common sense." ohioio also has open-carry laws. the republican national convention begins in cleveland next weeeek. in news from the campaign trail, republican presidential candidate donald trump is casting himself as the "law and order candidate" in the wake of the dallas shooting. this is trump speaking in virginia beach. mr. trump: america's police and law enforcement personnel are what separates civilization from total chaos and the destruction of our country as we know it. [applause] mr. trump: we must maintain law and order at the highest level where we will cease to have a

country. 100%, we will cease to have a country. candidate.w in order amy: thihis comes as the rerepublicanan party is expepeco foformally endorse donald trum's proposal to builild a wall along the u.s.-mexico border. members of the republican national convention platform committee successfully petitiononed to hahave language calling for the wall added to the platform text monday. the proposal has sparked significant opposition across the u.s. experts have also cast doubt on the overall feasibility of trump's border wall. meanwhile, donald trump is expected to name his running mate within the comiming days ahead of the republican national convention. he's said to be condedering indianana governrnor mike e penw jersey g goverr chris chchristi, and former house speaker newt gingrich. democratic presidential candidates hillalary clinton and bernie sanders are in portsmouth, new hampshire, today where sanders is expected to give clclinton her r formal

endorsement. this comes as republican leaders are calling on the justice department to open a criminal investigation into whether hillary clinton lied in her congressional testimony last fall about the multiple private email servers she used while she was secretary of state. last week, fbi director james comey said the agency y s recommending no charges s be brouought against hillary clint, alththough he calllled her emaie , though he called her extremely careless. demonstrations are continuing across the united states over the fatal police shootings of alton sterling in baton rouge, louisiana, and philando castile in falcon heights, minnesota. on monday, hundreds rallied in chicago and atlanta where atlanta mayor kasim reed met with protesters following a sit-in outside the governor's mansion. in multiple cities, including atlanta and baton rouge, rival gangs the bloods and the crips have called truces in order to organize together against police brutality -- a move reminiscent of the los angeles gang truce during the rodney king protests.

meanwhile, white activists in solidarity with the black lives matter movement also held a day of action in seven different cities, including in fairfax, virginia, where 4 people were arrested blocking traffic. this comes as the convenience store owner who filmed alton sterling's death one week ago has sued the police. abdullah muflahi says the police took his phone, locked him for hours in a police car, and seized his security camera footage without t a warrant. in baton rouge, district attorney heller moore has recused himself from the investigation into the fatal shooting of alton sterling. he says he is a close relationship with officer blaine parents, who are part of the baton rouge police department. on monday, he said, "given the history of the long and close relationship with the e parentsf one of the officers involved in the shooting, there would also be -- always be questions of my

partiality." meanwhile, dallas police chief david brown is calling on protesters to join the police department. >> become part of the solution. serve your community. don't be a part of the problem. we are hiring. we are hiring. get out there and put an application in. amy: in n internationall newews brbritish prime ministster david , cameron says he will r resign formally cede power to theresa wednesday, may. she has served as britain's home minister since 2010 and will be the second british woman to serve as prime minister. cameron initially announced he would resign following britain's shocking decision to leave the european union in june. speaking monday, h he called for continuing a close relationship with europe. >> i believe it is in our fundamental, national, and economic interest to remain close to the european union for trade, for business, for

security, for cooperation. so let t that be our goal. amy: defense secretary ashton carter announced the pentagon is deploying another 560 u.s. troops to iraq. this brings the total number of u.s. soldiers in iraq to more than 4600. there are also at least 3000 u.s. military contractors in the country. carter announced the deployments while in baghdad tuesday. >> i am pleasesed to report tody that we agreed for t the united statates to bolsterer the irarai efforts to isolate and pressure muzzle by deploying -- mosul by deploying 560 addiditional troos in support of the isf and espepecially at the wewest airf. this c contingent will help thee iraqis establishsh the just a gl spriboboard for ththe offensiven mosul, which the primime ministr affirmed to me he wants to accomplish this year. an airstrike has

destroyed a hospital, killing three people. journalists and activists have accused the syrian government and its allies of deliberately and repeatedly bombing infrastructure such as bakeries and hospitals. the syrian network for human rights says there have been attacks on 80 medical facilities in syria in 2016 and that at least 81 medical workers have been killed in 2016. 76 prisoners remain in the u.s. military prison at guantanamo bay, after the u.s. transferred three prisoners in the past 48 hours. yemeni citizen fayiz ahmad yahia suleiman is being sent to italy after being approved for transfer nearly six years ago. the yemeni national mansur ahmad saad al-dayfi and tajik national muhammadi davlatov were both sent to serbia. 27 more prisoners remaining at guantanamo have already been approved for release. president obama promised to close the prison at the beginning of his first term in office nearly eight years ago,. lawyers for imprisoned

whistleblower chelsea manning say she confirmed she tried to commit suicide last week. manning is serving 35 years in a military prison in fort leavenworth, kansas, after leaking u.s. army documents to the website wikileaks. manning's lawyers say they are concerned that news of manning's condition was leaked to the press before they were able to contact her. and a former black panther held for more than two decades in solitary confinement has won a permanent reprieve from solitary and nearly $100,000 in a settlement with the pennsylvlvaa department of corrections. russell "maroon" shoatz was convicted in 1970 of first-degree murder for an attack on a philadelphia police station that left one officer killed and another wounded. in the 1980's he became actitive with the p pennsylvania association of lifers and worked to abolish sentences of life without parole. he was placed in solitary confinement for his activism and spent the next 22 consecutive

years in isolation. shoatz issued a response to the settlement through his lawyers, saying -- "i have always chosen to fight! frederick douglass was right when he said 'power concedes nothing without a demand.' so have no doubt that i see this settlement as anything but the latest blow struck." more than twoy is decades state in solitary confinement was retaliation for his activism. this is war resisters league leader matt meyer, speaking on democracy now! in 2013 about russell "maroon" shoatz's solitary confinement. >> i think it is important for people to realize that despite whatever issues, political or otherwise related to his conviction, the reason he's in solitary confinement is because he was elected by an official prison approved body to be the head of this lifers group. and it was because he was seen, correctly, as a key organizer, even amongst inmates, that he

was put into the hole. he was not put into solitary confinement initially once convicted. it was only in an immediate and very direct reaction to his organizing work. and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we begin today's show on the presidential campaign trail. vermont senator bernie sanders is expected to endorse former secretary of state hillary clinton today at a joint rally in portsmouth new hampshire. the rally comes less than two weeks before t the start of the democratic national convention. clinton assumed the mantle of the party's presumptive nominee after winning the california in -- primary in but sanders june, refused to concede the nomination in part to give his campaign greater power to push the party to adopt a more progressive platform. on sunday, senator sanders sent out a release praising the adoption of what he called the "most progressive platform in the history of the democratic party."

on monday, i spoke to democratic congressman keith ellison of minnesota. he served on the platform committee after being appointed by bernie sanders. i asked him to describe what's in the platform. >> one is that there were six members of the democratic drafting committee from the hillary clinton campaign, five from bernie sanders, four from the dnc. we took the base document and we made several amendments at the drafting committee. we heard testimony over the course of two days. a lot of it was really, really startling and important. i think we have the best statement on native american rights we've ever had. we have strong language that does critique the tpp, although it falls a little short of openly opposing it, which we tried to do, but were not able to achieve. it takes a position in favor of $15 in the union for a federal minimum wage. it takes a position on a whole range of things, including the

environment, that are progressive steps forward. what do we not achieve? complete opposition to fracking. we don't have that. what is else not achieved? there's some things on foreign policy fronts that, i think, would and could be better. some saber rattling with regard to iran that i don't think is helpful and good to be in our platform. i think that it would be -- i think that we could have had a clearer statement on two-state solution and the u.s.'s aspiration to have peace and security for both israelis and palestinians. i think we were a little bit weak on that. amy: can you explain what you would like to see there, congress member ellison? >> well, i think that it is important that, you know, the united states state that we don't think that the occupation of the -- what will be the palestinian state -- should continue. i don't think there's any fear of using t the o-word, if you will, i mean ariel sharon used

it. you know, the u.n. uses it. i mean, it's a commonly used phrase to describe what's going on. i think we could have also made some stronger statements aboutut the -- amy: what is that word? >> occupation. amy: that they're not using the word, occupation? >> right. i think that there's a humanitarian crisis going on in gaza. in fact, you know, the -- because of the electricity power plant has been destroyed the sewage is not being processed, and raw sewage is going up into the mediterranean. in fact, it's so bad that it's flowing up into north, and the israeli desalinization plant is not able to use its -- that plant because of the sewage that is in the mediterranean coming gaza cannotcause process the own sewage at this because of the horrible point situation that is going on there. so there is some more -- so, things like that, i think, really could have been identitified much h more clearl.

amy: the fracking ban went down? >> yeah, but there was also some language that did get in there that, you know, that, that parties to go shaded and we realized we are in a better position than we were before. amy: your fellow platform member, chosen by bernie sanders, bill mckibben, co-f-founder of 35350.org,g, tw, "so, after speeches defining orwellian, clinton forces vote down straightforward motion to stop #tpp." >> yeah, that happened, but, i think it's also important to note that the base document that we statarted on did not mention the term tpp at all. and so we went from the drafting committee, where we did identify tpp as problematic, acknowledging that some people support it, then we moved at the overall platform committee, saying that the standards for a decent trade deal would be no

investor-state provisions, no lengthening of the intellectual property for medications, no use of human trafficking. and we put those standards in the new -- in the latest version, and that did make it in. but i agree with my -- with my colleagues that we should take a position against tpp. most democrats are againstst it. and when i say mosost, i mean ns many as 85% of house democrats oppose tpp. the rank and file democrats across the nation are against it. and the only person who i can find who is really, really for it is maybybe 13 house members,a handndful of senators, and the president of the united states barack obama. it is the democratic position that we're against tpp. the minority, though, contntains some really powerful people, is in favor of it. so the platform should reflect of the overwhelming number of

democrats which is anti-tpp. , amy: and congress member keith ellison, the issue of single-payer healthcare. the idea of medicare for all. the party shying away from bernie sanders' proposal to turn medicare into a single-payer healthcare system for this country. what happened? >> well, yeah. as you said, you know, that proposal, which is very meritorious and which i support, was not embraced. that's too bad. but let me tell you. you know, i guess, amy, i'm an optimistic person. right? whenever we don't get every single thing that we want, it's not my way to say, pooh-pooh on the whole process. i say we have made important , demands and debated this issue. we have made them pay attention to what we're talking about, and the struggle continues. we're not going to stop fighting for medicare for all just because it didn't get adopted into the democratic platform. we're going to keep the fight alive because people across the country need it that way, because it is a more human, more effective way to deliver health care to the american people.

so i just say, take heart in the success that we had. keep the battle going. keep the fight up for a fairer, more equal america. that's what we do.. amy: you know, that's an interesting point, because just on a point on process, is it true that even if you lose at the democratic platform level in this meeting that you've had, in the determination of the platform, 25% of voters could sign a minority report that would allow for an amendment to come up again at the national convention in philadelphia? >> this is true. and i want to just say to you, to the rank and file democrats who are cravaving for unity, d't fear a debate. you know, it is all right for us to have e differences of opinio. you know we're so much better , off than republicans who don't tolerate any debate around the issues. we're so much better off when we signal to the american people that the democratic party is open for people to express their ideas and help shape the direction of the party platform. so i think that the point that you make about process is a good one.

i think debates are healthy. i think they incnclude more people. and i don't believe most people, if they don't win, are just going to take their ball and go home. i think they're going to keep on fighting because, you know they're going to go back home to , people who need real healthcare reform, which we are still in desperate need of, even now. amy: now, included in the platform, you've adopted language against the death penalty. >> isn't that wonderful? i mean, i think that that is -- boy, talk about an idea that his time has come. i mean, the death penalty, literally, hundreds of people exonerated from death row. clearly, administered along race and class lines that disadvantage people who don't have privilege in our society. time to get rid of the death penalty and join the rest of the world. the democratic party stands for that and that's a good thing. and i'm proud of that. and i want people to know that we are shaping the democratic party in a progressive direction. progressive ideas are ascending. we are moving the ball forward, and this is the time to get

involved and help defeat trump. amy: now politico talks about , the language adopted in the platform. they describe it as sharp language on wall street reform. what does that mean, congress member ellison? >> well, i think that they don't really appreciate the fafact tht the role of wall street is to take people who have money to invest and put it the businesses that need the investment. that's what they supposed to do. that's all they're supposed to do. but what they have done is use their intermediary role to reap massive profits for themselves and d to put the economymy at r. and, you know there is this , philosophy that any regulation of business is somehow interfering with this sacrosanct market concept and should be discouraged. i disagree with that entirely. i think that whenever businesses harm the economy, harm workers, harm consumers, or undermine human rights in any way, then it is the role of the government to make sure that they don't do

that and to make sure that markrkets are fair and they operate properly. that is all that the platform is saying. it's not sharp. if you are a person on wall street who wants to do what wall street is intended to do, there is nothing in the platform that should bother you. not one single word. in fact, if you really believe in what you're doing, you should be happy that the democratic platform is trying to make sure that we're heading in the right direction. unfortunately, some people who believe that they're entitled to make triple digit profits, triple amino, just massive rent-like profits, they're upset because they're entitled in their outlook on life. member keith ellison. he is the first muslim member of congress. part one of our conversation with him about the black lives

matter movement in the protest in minneapolis, go to democracynow.org. when we come back, we will speak with actress shailene woodley and filmmaker josh fox a about activismsm in the democratic convention. stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. as vermont senator bernie sanders is expected to endorse former secretary of state hillary clinton today at a joint rally in portsmouth, new hampshire, we turn now to look at how twowo sanders supporters are preparing for the democratic national convention. the television and film actress shailene woodley has launched a cross-country caravan campaigngn to bring people to the dnc in philadelphia. woodley appeared in the tv series "secret life of the american teenager," and has starred in films, including, "the divergent series" and "the fault in our stars." she received a golden globe nomination for her role as alex king in "the descendants."

>> you don't have a clue, do you? mom was cheating on you. that is what we thought about. whenen i was home at christmas,i caught her with a guy. it madade me s sick to see her r you. i wentntack to schchool thinking that was it, thahat i was jusust done with her. i was going to call and d tell u everything. andin the accident happened i was waiting to she woke up again. amy: that is shailene woodley. she is joining us today to talk about the "up to u.s. caravan to the dnc." byre also joined oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker josh fox, director of

"how to let go of the world." shailene woodley and josh fox, welcome to democracy now! josh, what happened in orlando? the final vote on the democratic clap form, though it is not absolutely final, it can be changed at the convention. at the vote for the platform to go to the convention happened in a well, you were there in orlando. >> what happened in orlando is a two-day fight on every siningle now. facing america right basically, a fight for the court in spirit and soul of the democratic party. and a lot of those issues, bernie sanders and our campaign one. i many of those issues, bernie sanders and our campaign and the people's agenda in front of us did not win. so there is, i think, a lot to celebrate and what happened over the weekend in florida.

certainly, we had a victory on the fight for $15, which was brought to us by nina turner. we had a monumental achievement on the environment and on climate, which was negotiated by bill mckibben, ben jealous, myself, cornell west. amy: by congressman ellison. >> where we had huge changes in the direction of the democratic party, certainly on energy. however, on tpp and expended benefits for senior citizens, i many other issues, we failed -- on gaza -- to persuade clinton delegates who are voting as a entireetty much the time. there a progressive agenda fighting its way in to the democratic party. what is interesting, we hear a talk about unity. i think today is going to be difficult for many, but true unity has to do with the truth, right? it doesn't have to do with

compromise between politicians. with the democratic party reaches where the people want to be on certain issues, that is where you feel this idea of unity rather than some of what we understand from the clinton camp as being lobbyist-driven and corporate-driven, it doesn't feel so much like we are the same room as the rest -- amy: do you agree with congressman ellison saying it is the best to get. for example, the ban on fracking was voted down. that is an issue that you make all your films about. >> it was voted down, but in a way, we won something about the future, which is almost as important as the current ban on fracking. we got the democratic already to say that frack to gasp power plants should not be developed, that w we should develop wind ad solar. that cuts the legs out of the future of the entire fracking industry. with the democratic party has been saying until now, we need to build 300 new fracked gas

plants. this would incur 2 million fracking wells in the future. this is the first moments the democrats of said, this is a bad idea. we're going to submit all federal energy tragic to the keystone xl climate tests. we're going to consult communities. this is in the platform. communities, people of color, and native tribes have to have a seat at the table. is a 180 degree shift for the democratic party. of course, we will continue to fight for tpp. i would say all of our real gains are movement gains. these are not gains the democratic establishment politicians came into office with. andrew cuomo did not arrive in albany saying, i want to been fracking. hillary clinton is not going to arrive in washington if she gets elected with that type of mentality, but it is our job as a movement -- i think bernie sanders and build a given node this -- though mckibben know

this. it is our job to continue the political revevolution, and that is what is in front of us at the moment and what is so brilliant about what shailene woodley is doing. amy: shailene woodley, do you explain what your campaign is about? >> it is all about unity, all about unifying and mobilizing the momentum that has been built because of bernie sanders. specifically, amongst millennials and first-time voters in this election. after the california primary, there is a lot of bernie sanders supporters who felt like they were giving up. they felt defeated and hopeless. they felt like, i went out and voted and my vote was not counted. there was a lot of confusion and anger and feeling being anchised by american citizen and not being able to participate.

after the primary, i sat there -- i have never been political before. this is my first time engaging in politics because i felt like there was a candidate who actually spoke the truth and spoke to me and did not give the voice to millennials, but heard the voices of millennials. i thought that was profound and capitalize on.to i constantly see people my age, people in their 20's, and late teens, early 30's, who are feeling hopeless and feeling like no matter what they do, nothing is going to change politically. and we can't have that happen because what needs to happen for our country, for the world, is moving forward, we need to get wegressives in office so have more opportunities to elect people like bernie sanders. it is bigger than this 2016 election, and that is what i wanted to start with friends the "up to us caravan." we're going to the dnc not to

protest the progression, not with anger, but to encourage american citizens, specifically young people, but all people, to stay involved politically because what happens up in our government affects us on a micro level. there's so much -- you could do a lot as a grassroots activist. but eventually, you hit a wall of governance. when you hit the wall, you was summoned on the other side willing to hear you and listen to you. the only way that it will happen is if we get progressives and office. the only way to do that is to keep them politically engaged. we are fundraising. we will fund of the holdings of people working 2, 4 jobs who generally don't get to participate in movements like this are able to join. it is important that everyone is represented. every single background, different religion, people who are not even democrats -- people who are killer supporters, bernie supporters. it doesn't matter because we recognize it is bigger than this 2016 election but bigger than the one person in office.

the people have a lot of power. we only have power if we stand together in solidarity and demand it. that is something i think bernie awaken of peoeople is realizing, oh, i can say the system is broken right n now. it is broken. we can fix it. the only way we will fix it is up stand together and unify. the events that hahave happened over the past week have only added to our movement in saying at first we thought we would caravan toto the dnc did talk about voter suppression and possible election fraud. and other things that have pastfer hired in the months. now it is moving people to say, there's a lot of suffering, a lot of anger and rage and a lot of sadness am a but also a lot of hope and resilience. if we can combine forces -- your singer with black lives matter movements. all movements are united now.

we have more power if we stand together than if we stand in solitude. amy: can you explain what the to the dnc"ravan is, how it is physically traveling across the country? >> we have one and los angeles and another starting of portland. we will be crossing states until we get to philadelphia where we will meet. every single state we stopped in each night we will have community meters with desk meetings with leading activist in here about what troubles post up in boulder, colorado, we will talk about fracking. in south dakota, we will meet with those from north dakota. in ferguson -- every place we go, we want to learn about the different struggles our brothers and sisters in neighborhoods we don't necessarily live in are going through. just to educate ourselves, just to spread knowledge. and to realize there is a lot of work to do. it is easy to feel insular in our bubbles. as we crossed thehese states, it

is not just about getting to the dnc. it is about learning the different things that trouble our cizens and d that our citizens have to go through, and learning if we stand together, we are more powerful. amy: i want to turn to comments made by bernie sanders supporter nina turner who was asked on msnbc why sanders had not yet endorsed clinton three weeks after the primary. >> there is an awakening of people on the left and right, understanding clearly people in this country deserve more. senator sanders has pointed out seeks to take his 1900 delegates to that convention and continue to push for the most progressive democratic platform that we have ever had in the democratic party's history, number one, and number two, to make sure that not only do we have the requisite platform language, but also that we have the commitment to the policy implementation that is going to be needed for

the people of this country. amy: can you respond to that, shailene woodley? today, the big meeting in new hampshire where bernie sanders is expected to endorse hillary clinton. will you also be switching your support? bymy support has always been and for the people. i can't speak and say i will immediately and doors hillary clinton. i don't know what i will do. said, this is a moment in history that in 50 years from now, i think bernie sanders, we will look at our history books of people will say, this man did that much for our country that we're talking about on democracy now!, but not talking about this on mainstream news yet. mina's, to me, statement. that is why this caravan is so important. there are a lot of people who are not burning or hillalary supporters, but are not paying attention to what happened in

orlando. they don't know what is going on because they're not watching the news or not keeping up with it. i feel it is our job to keep that momentum going and spread the education. these are our victories. we are winning. this is revolutionary when it comes to what we have a cost in terms of climate change within the democratic party. that is major. if i can be a small voice in encouraging others to look at those facts and realize, yes, you win some and lose some, but we are on the right half. we are going somewhere. we are moving forward. close to your heart, food justice. can you explain what that is and how you see this fitting into politics today? >> food justice. is that what you said? amy: yes. >> we see it all over. ,e see marginalized communities

who a lot of times live in food deserts, who don't have access to healthy food. therefore, they become obese a lot of the times. they have a lot of medical issues -- diabetes is off the charts as far as where it lies in our country right now. especially amongst kids. of course, because these communities don't have access to good health care, a suffer. i feel like it is our job politically -- if we want to encourage and give everyone an empowered life in our country, we have to start as a simple thing is just survival. if people are not given the chance to survive and thrive, then what kind of a light from setting up for them as a government? i am working on an initiative to get food stems available online because then people who do live in food deserts and areas where they only have one choice for and and it is a tiny market there's nothing healthy in there, everything is processed, and later on have health

problems because of it, if we can have food stems available online, then these people will be able to order healthy food for the same price. it will not cost them any more than what they would be able to afford at the local grocery store. amy: i want to go back to josh fox on the issue of the tpp. donald trump has spoken out forcefully against the tpp. she compared the trans-pacific partnership trade deal to rape, saying it was "done and pushed by special interests who want to rape our country, just a continuing rape of our country. that's what it is." speaking earlier in the day in pennsylvania, trumump vowed to withdraw from the tpp. mr. trump: i wantnt you to image how much betteter our future can be if we declare independence d us fromelites who le one financial and foreign-policy disaster to another. our friends in britain recently voted t to take back control of their economy, politics, and

borders. amy: that is donald trump. certainly, speaking out much more forcefully about this than hillary clinton, sounding more like bernie sanders on the issue of the tpp.. >> the question is, who is the bigger hypocrite, right? this is baffling to me. how can the democrats vote for the tpp? they're handing an issue over to donald trump that is extremely popular in the west belt states that they need to win. tpp would weaken our environmental regulations, shift jobs overseas, do so many things to undermine the core values of the democratic party. it links hillary to the previois policy of nafta, which is incredibly unpopular. the tpp i is like nafta on steroids. id not understand what the strategy is at the democratic headquarters, the clinnn campaign, saying we should do this. i think they can lose the election over this. this is extraordinarily important. this is one of the reasons i think we have to show up in philly. owe him aders, we

huge debt of gratitude. the same time, the only way i see a path forward and getting the democrats off of the tpp is like what fracking and with these other issues. we have to show up and organize. amy: will you be showing up at the rnc? >> no. amy: shailene woodleley, will yu be? >> no. amy: why have you chosen not to? >> i am not going because i am working. it wasn't an option. amy: we do a lot on art and resistance. you live in the world of hollywood. your famous film star and television star. can you talk about the atmosphere within that world and how much activism you see there and what you're trying to do within your own workspace? >> things are changing really quickly because of technology. because of technology, you don't have to be a famous movie star piece aboutrt

activism. iphones touse their make document. young people bought a cheap camera and filmed something telling the story or narrative pieces. those films are being bought by small studios ending projected and put out there. i think because of where the world is now, hollywood is recognizing that you can make these big films and make some's like "divergent," and the marvel films and those have their place, but we also have to make films that people can relate to because what cinema allows is a form of escapism. if all escapism is escaping from disaster, then what are we escaping to? where the movies we can escape to hope? that is where i want to sort of be a beacon of light for in this industry, is acting in films and one day directing. how can i make movies about issues that affect people and give them that cinematic release

but leave them feeling engaged and activated in a way that they need to hit the streets and start doing something? it is one thing to want change, it is another to show up to create change and realize change all the way to its finality. amy: are you concerned about being penalized for expressing your political views? >> i'm not, because i am an artist. there is a lot of fear in this industry about speaking out politically. a lot of hollywood has been hillary clinton supporters. out as a bernie sanders supporter, at first a few friends were like, oh, i don't know you should be so public about this. for me, it has never really been about bernie sanders. i agree with his policies and his truth and honesty and integrity. i'm about democracy. i don't have that fear, i think, of people -- the backlash that could come towards me because i am speaking about is democracy.

i'm speaking about everyone being able to vote come everyone having a chance to participate in the electoral process. there's not really any negativity that can come from that. amy: i would do thank you for being with us, this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. , television and film actress, the tv series "secret life of the american teenager" and has starred in films, including, "the divergent series" and "the fault in our stars." she received a golden globe nomination for her role as alex king in "the descendants." she has launched a cross-country caravan campaign to bring people to the democratic national convention in philadelphia later this month. democracy now! will be broadcasting from the republican national convention in cleveland as well as the democratic national convention in philadelphia, expanding two-hour specials every week day starting next week in cleveland. josh fox, thank you for being with us director of "how to let , go of the world and love all the things climate can't change," which premiered here at the sundance film festival eaearlier this year and is now playing on hbo. his former films include "gasland" the documentary which first exposed the harms of the

fracking industry. it was nominated for an academy award. he also made "gasland 2," which aired on hbo. when we come back, the history of gun reform. what does it have to do with ronald reagan, the black panthers, and the ku klux klan? stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. obama is speaking in dallas today at a memorial service for the five dallas police officers killed by a sniper thursday evening will stop dallas authorities said micah johnson amassed a personal arsenal in putting the semi-automatic rifle, bomb making materials, bullet group vests an emanation. president obama warned of these he access s to guns station what is exacerbating the divisions between police and local communities. pres. obama: part of what is creating tensions between communities and the police is

the fact that police have a really difficult time in communities where they know guns are everywhere. amy: president obama also addressed the fatal police shooting in falcon heights, minnesota, were not shot philando castile a traffic stop for a broken taillight. the aftermath of his death was live streamed on facebook by his girlfriend while she was next to them in the car with a police officer pointing a gun at her and her four-year-old daughter. pres. obama: in minneapolis, we don't know what happened, but we do know there was a gun in the was licensedrently , but it caused, in some fashion, those tragic events. just ignorean't

that and pretend that somehow political o or the president is pushing his policy agenda. --is a contributing factor not the sole factor, but a contributing factor to the broader tensions that arise between police and the communitities where they serve. so we have to talk about that. amy: joining us now is historian gerald horne. he is author of two new books, "the counter-revolution of 1776: slave resistance and the origins of the united states of america" and "race to revolution: the u.s. and cuba during slavery and jim crow." he is a professor of history and afafrican american studies at te university of houston. we welcome you to democracy now! , gerald. can you start off by talking about this past week, from the killings of black men to the killings of the police officers

in dallas? >> well, we should not seen these events as terribly surprising. first of all, you have a society , as president obama noted, is awash in weapons. second of all, we have unresolved issues of racism and inadequate discussion about the legacy of slavery and jim crow that helps to contribute to situation where black people are perceived as criminals by the police authorities, which inevitably leads to their slaughter, as you saw in louisiana and minnesota most recently. amy: i want to ask you about int scene of the protesters dallas where you had some 20 of them carrying, oh, military .ifles like ar-15's yes, in the anti-police brutality rally -- now, this is

legal in texas. jenna dolls attack, police identified an african-american protester on twitter carrying a weapon as a shooting suspect. mark hughes turn himself into police and was released after being detained and questioned for hours. his lawyer has said he is since received hundreds of death threats. he said later, "i can't believe it. the gracie thing is it with hindsight, i could've easily been shot." mayor mike rawlings said he said there should be someone to say, i should not be bringing my shotgun to a mavericks game or to a protest because something crazy should happen. i want to come back to common sense, the mayor said. ohio has laws. the rnc is set to begin in cleveland next week. talk about the hisistory of gun control, from the ku klux klan to the black panthers and when it was really put into effect.t. >> you need to understand the second amendment to be with

thetitution which is calling card for the gun lobby and washington, d.c., has everything to do with slavery. with the second amendment speaks of militias and speaks also of guns, they are expressing a fear of slavery. the second amendment did not apply to insulate africans were the indigenous population. it could be considered a capital offense to sell w weapons to the native american populationn. likewise, wiwith regard to the reconstruction e era post 1865, one of the s signal reasons t tu klux k klan was s organized wass precisely to disarm newly freed enslaved africans. that is toto say t that the secd amendment did not necessarilyy apply to blackck people inin the post-civil war era. in fact, their s second amendmet rights weree basicalally elimine it. similarly, if you fast-forward

to the 1960's, even the nra and gun lobby sought to push for gun reform afterer the specter of te black panther party marching to the california legislature with arms in hand help to outrage and inflame political sesentiment, includining the political sentiment of then governor ronald reagagan of the statate f californiaia. so you cannot didisconne the history y of the second amendmet from the history of racism and white supremacy. amy: explained that scene in sacramento. explain exactly what went down when you have the republican governor at the time, ronald reagan, taking on, really, gun control. his reaction to black panthers being legally allowed to have guns and they marched on the capitol in sacramento of california. know, the black

panther party, which in oakland, california, at least, was organized in 1966, had as part of its mantra, part of its principal, to confront the authorities around the question of police brutality and police misconduct and police terrorism. as a result, they marched on sacramento, california, seeking reform in that regard. of course, in caused does it caused inflamed sentiment to ensue. amy: i want to ask you about philando castile and the calls for the nra to speak out in his case. he said -- his girlfriend said he had a license to carry. he told the officer that will stop what about this? >> well, apparently, it has caused internal disruption within the national rifle association that the nra has been relatively mute about the fact that mr. castille and

apparently had a permit to carry a weapon and yet he e s shot by an officer of the state. one can easily imagine t that if philando castile had not been black, if you have been white, for example, there would have been outrage expressed by the nra. this helps solidify the point i have been making, which is you cannot disconnect the history of the second amendment in lobbying for it from the history of white supremacy. amy: talk more about the ku klux klan, historian gerald horne. >> the ku klux klan not only was it just organization that was formed after the was civil war to deprive black people of the right to vote, but keep in mind, it of the second duration in the post world war i era about 100 years ago. in fact, controlled may statehouses and marked in thee tens of thohousands on washshgt, d.c.. it was a popular mass-based

organization and i daresay the sesentiment the ku klux klan expressed about a century ago has yet to be extirpated from society. amy: as you look at what is happening today, president obama in dallas. you teach at the university of houstston, holding a summit that supposedly, not clear who exactly will be included in that summit, but healing with all of the issues here -- the killining of the police and also issues of police brutality. what do you think needs to happen? >> first of all, we need to support black lives matter, which is under assault right now. as you probably know, there is a petition on the white house website that is garnered tens of thousands of signatures that calls for states to determine that blm is a terrorist organization. i am sure you're familiar with the defamatory remarks made by former new york city mayor rudy giuliani against blm.

i think nonot only does s this organization needs support domestically, but it needs support internationally. if you look at the history of raradical reform with regard to what is antiseptic we referred to as race relations, oftentimes it is meeting an external shock from the international community in order for that reform to go forward. amy: the supreme court justice ruth bader ginsburg said on monday and "the new york times" the 2000 and decision establishing and individuals right to own guns was a bad decision. what do you ththink is the best approach to gun-control? >> i think all of us would be well advised to look at the legislations that governor jerry brown of california signed a few days ago which, among other things, calls for background checks with regard to obtaining ammunition. the second amendment does not speak to the question of ammunition. i think that is a loophole we should try to drive a truck

through. we should also look in the background checks genenerally. in fact, on the e california ballot in nonovember as of nowo, there will b be proposisition 63 sponsored by lieutenant governor gavin newsom that attempts to go beyond the legislation that jerry brown authored. i think activists in locales across the nation need to push this kind of statewide reform with regard to gun-control bebecause seeminingly, the republican right wing and washington, d.c., will be blocking gun-control in the federal and national level. finally, those who criticize president obama saying his refusal to criticize the black lives matter movement led to the killiling of ththe cops. your response? >> that t is poppycock. president t obama is under a a t of criticism and a lot of pressure frorom the right wing o distance himself from black lives that would be like distant ring h himself from his own children. i think you should be pressured

instead to give support to black lives matter because they are the hope for the future. amy: gerald horne, thank you for being with us. among the books "the , counter-revolution of 1776: slave resistance and the origins of the united states of america"