09/09/20 09/09/20 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from nenew york, this is democracy now! undnderkileaks stands threat, , so does the freedom of allession and the health of of our society. amy: the long-awaited extradition hearing for wikileaks founder julian assange has begun in london. he faces a possible life sentence if he is sent to the united states. we will speak to his attorney jen robinson just outside the london courthouse.

>> is that's a dangerous precedent for all media organizations and journalists in europe and around the world. this means that any journalist can be extradited for prosecution in the united states for having published truthful information about the united states. amy: then we look at how decades ofof u.s. militaryry interventin central america has led to the ongoing migrant crisis. we will speak with salvadoran-american journalist roberto lovato, author of the new book "unforgetting: a memoir of family, migration, gangs, and revolution in the americas." acrosss about my journey e citiesnd deserts a forgten, dea devaluelife inl salvador where visit mas graves and hideouts where gangs and government have killed, dismembered, and disappeared

their victims for decades. amy: all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm m amy goodman. in c california, three firefighters are fighting for their lives after a masassive fe ovovertook their station at the los padres national forest overnight. they were among 14 firefighters who deployed e emergenency shels as flames s overtook their positionon. the massive fire is one of more than 85 raging across the west coast with red flag warnings from san diego to the canadian border in washington state. fires this year have burned more than 2 billion acres across california even before the start of september and october -- historically, cacalifornia's wot months foror fires. said hisnewsom tuesday statements to adapt to the realities of the climate crisis.

>> but i quite literally have no patience for climate change deniers. it simply follows completely inconsistent that point of view with the reality on the ground, the facts as we are experiencing -- you may n not believe it intellectually, but your own eyes, your own experiences tell a a different story. amy: the confirmed u.s. death toll from covid-19 is approaching 190,000. this comomes as new evevidence s the dedeath rate among a african americans and latinos rose sharplply during the summer. the percentage of african americans kikilled by the e virs more than twice as high as white americans. meanwhwhile, a new study estimas more than 250,000 cases of covid-19 may be linked to a motorcycle rally that brought hundreds of thousands of people to stutuis, south dakota, lastst month. thisis would make it the largest super spreading event in the united states since the start of

the pandemic. most of those who attended refused to wear masks or practice social distancing. the ri in cases is estimated to have cost public health agencies over $12 billion. in britain, the drug company astrazeneca has paused its phase 3 vaccine trials after a trial participant came down with an unexplained illness. the vaccine is being developed with the university of oxford. globally, the death toll from covid19 is approaching 900,000. in peru, the confirmed covid-19 death tollll has reached 30,000- latin america's third-highestt ter brazilil and mexico. but the true toll would be more than double the official number. more than 68,000 more deaths repoported across peru comomparo lastst year. residents of the capital lima are reporting large gatherings and lapses in social distancing measures. >> people think the coronavirus is a joke.

this is something they don't believe. they think it is a smokescreen. i have family members who have died because of covid. this is not a game. this is real. amy: meanwhile, coronavirus cases are spiking in britain again, forcing the government to reinstate a ban of most gatherings larger than six people. on capitol hilill, said d majory leader mitch mcccconnell has abandodoned a a plan to send a w round of stimulus checks to help americans suffering from the nation's worst economic collapse since the great depression. on tuesday, mcconnell unveiled a slimmed down $500 billion economic relief package. house democrats say at least $2.2 trillion in spending is needed. in the eastern atlantic ocean,n, tropical storm rene has formed near the cape verde islands, becoming the earliest r-named storm in history and keeping 2020 on pace to shatter the previous record d for the e atlc hurricane season.. sudan has declared a three-month state of e emergency after recod rainfall and flooding left

dozens of people dead and damaged over 100,000 homes. climate scientiststs say global heheating is increreasing infafl during the rainy season anand causing the nile to jump its banks. in senegal, at least six people are dead and suburbs of the capital dakar remain underwater following record-shattering rainfall over the weekend. senegal's wawater minister r res more rain fell on saturday than senegal l would usualllly see dg itits entire three-month rainy season. president trump signed an executive order tuesday extetending a ban on oil and gas drilling in eastern parts of the gulf of mexico near florida's beaches, while expanding protections to the coasts of georgia and south carolina. trump's order comes despite his longstanding support for pipelines like the dakota access and keystone xl -- and his support for oil and gas drilling on federal lands, including alaska's arctic national wildlife refuge. trump's order comes as republican senator lindsey graham faces a strong challenge from democrat jaime harrison in south carolina, where a majority

of south carolina residents oppose offshore drilling. the justice department on tuesday asked to take over the defense of president trump in a defamation lawsuit filed by author e. jean carroll, who accused trump of raping her in the 1990's. in a highly unusual legal move, the doj argues that while the alleged sexual assault occurred before trump took office, he was president when the defamation suit was filed and could be defended by government lawyers, paid by taxpayers. carroll sued trump last year after he denied her allegations, accused her of lying, and said he didn't know carroll despite a photo showing the two of them together at a party in the 198080's. in salt lake city, utah, officers fired on a 13-year-old boy with autism. reported her son wasas having an emergency and to help -- and health emergency. linden cameron remains hospitalized in serious condition with injuries to his

ankles, bladder, colon, intestines, and shoulder. his mother, golda barton, had called 911 to report her son was having mental health emergency after she requested a crisis intervention team. a police spokesperson said the 13-year-old was armed and threatening people, but "the salt lake tribune" later reported no weapon was found. golda barton told reporters -- "he's a small child. why don't you just tackle him? you are big police officers with massive amounts of resources." in new york, the entire rochester police department command staff, including police chief la'ron singletary, has resigned following a a week of nonstop mass protests over the killing of daniel prude. prude, an african-american man, died from asphyxiation in march after police officers handcuffed him, put a hood over his head and pushed his face into the freezing cold ground for two minutes while kneeling on his back. he was naked. protesters have accused rochester's government of covering up the details of

prude's death, which weren't released until five months after he died. they're also demanding the resignation of rochester mayor lovely warren. in greece, there been intense wildfifis on the olive less most and other r parts of greece fane by hot w weather a gusty winds. meanwhile, camamp residents s he been p protesting dangerouslyly overcrowowded and unhyhygienic condnditions afterer at least 35 people in the camp tested positive f for covid19. the moria camp is home to nearly 13,000 asylum-seekers -- more than four times its stated capacity. in afghanistan, at least 10 people were killed and 15 others wounded wednesday morning when a roadside bomb exploded in the capital kabul. the blast appeared to target the convoy of afghan vice president amrullah saleh, who escaped serious injury but sustained

burns on his face and hand. the taliliban denied responsibility. the group has promised not to launch such attacks in urban areas under a partial ceasefire with the united states. the pentagon says it will reduce the number of u.s. troops in iraq from about 525200 to 3000 during the month of september. the draw-down comes nine months after the trump administration ignored an order by iraq's parliament for all u.s. troops to leave iraq following the assassination of iranian general qassem soleimani in january on president trump's order. a new w report findsds at least7 million people in eight countries have fled their homes since the start of the u.s.-led, so-called global war o on terror in 2001.1. the report by the e costs of war project at brown university also finds morere than 800,00000 peoe have been killed since u.s. forces began fighting in afghanistan, iraq, syria, pakistan, and yemen at a cost of $6.4 trillion to u.s. taxpayers.

inin pakistan, press freedom groups are denouncing the recent killing of journalist and women's rights activist shaheena shaheen baloch. baloch was reportedly shot twice by her husband, who then dropped her off at a hospital and fled. the coalition of women in journalism is demanding an investigation. the organization's founder said in a statement -- "the state continues to do nothing about the violations women face in the country. president trump's former personal lawyer and fixer michael cohen has released his tell-all book titled "disloyal: a memoir," describing trump as a mob boss driven by deep-seated racism. cohen quotes trump as saying -- "tell me one country run by a black person that isn't a s-hole." cohen goes on to describe a racist diatribe by trump after the death of south africa's former presisident nelson n mana in 2013. he said trump said -- "mandela effed the whole country up. now it's a s-hole. eff mandela. he was no leader."

trump allegedly said, using the f-word and s-word. michel cohen also writes that trump was so consumed by his hatred of president barack obama that he hired a "faux-bama" to record a video in which trump belittleles the fake obabama and fires him likeke a contestant on trump's foformer reality tv sho, "the apprentice." cohen spoke with nbc news on tuesday. >> i believe his hatred for barack obama basically starts with the fact he is black and that he was the first black president in thihis country. amy: in rerelated news, the department of hohomeland securiy is facing new criticism for downplaying the threat of white supremacists. dhs recently drafted a document that stated "white supremacist extremists will remain the most persistent and lethal threat in the homeland through 2021." but in newer versionons of the document, the reference to white supremacisists was removed and replaced with the phrase "domestic violent extremists."

none of the documents drafts refer to anti-fascist activists or antifa as a threat despite claims made by president trump and attorney general william barr. in labor news, graduate student instruructors at thehe universif mimichigan have gone on strike n part to protest the school's safety plans around covid-19 as well as the university's ties to law enforcement agencies including immigration and customs enforcement, ice. meanwhile, university of arizona employees have officially established a union after months of denouncing the university's reopening plan and following a series of furloughs and layoffs during the covid-19 pandemic. the union has recruited over 200 member so far and will represent current and former u of a faculty, student workers, and stop. and thousands of students and professors are participating in a two day scholar strike protesting racial violence andd police brutality. the actions are being livestreamed with free lectures

and panels about racacial violence, policing, and community organizing. anand those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the ququarante report. i am amy goodman in new york, joined by my cohost juan gonzalez, who is in new jersrse. juan: welcome to all of our listeners s and viewers from around the country and around the world. amy: we're going to turn right now to london. this week, wikileaks founder julian assangege is appearing in court for the first time in six months a after his extradition hearing was delayed due to thehe coronavirurus pandemic. assange has been held in london's high security belmarsh prison since he was arrested at -- in april 2019 at the ecuadorian embassy in london, where he had taken refuge for almost seven years. as he arrived at the court, was arrested on 18 new charges from a u.s. indictment filed in june. assange is wanted in the u.s.

for exposing u.s. war crimes in iraq and afghanistan and faces a 175-year sentence on espionage and hacking charges. on tuesday, the proceedings were briefly adjourned after assange shouted "nonsense" in the courtroom when james lewis, representing the u.s. government, claimed assange was pressing extradition for the names of informants, not for the documents shared on wikileaks. it was response to witness clive stafford-smith testifying that "grave violations of law" like targeted u.s. drone strikes in pakistan were exposed. the judge warned assange he would be removed from the courtroom in field again. protests in defense of assange and press freedom have taken place in london and in cities around the world. this is julian assange's father john shipton speaking monday as he left the london courthouse.

>> the case is a fraud against the court. court of the the american department of justice. julian is an australian a citizen. the publications are in the united kingdom. he is kidnapped and judicially abducted to the united states to spend 175 years in jail. amy: for more, we go to london from an update from jennifer robinson, human rights attorney who has been advising julian assange and wikileaks since 2010. she is joining us during the court's lunch break. back tonson, welcome democracy now! you are seeing julian assange for the first time in six months. he has been at the belmarsh prison for a year and a half and under lockdown because of covid. can you describe what it is like to see him now for the first

time and what these charges are against him, including the new ones that were just brought? good morning, amy. timew julian for the first in six months as result of the covid. he has been incredibly isolated in prison. it was surprising to us he had lost a lot of weight. we have been tuning concerns about his health given the long-term impacts of being both inside the embassy and now in a high-security prison in the circumstances. you mentioned in your opening we have had not one but two indictments. he was arrested on a second indictment monday the department of justice issued in june. we were first told, no difference and now we are told those new allegations, which include allegations related to an episode providing assistance to the nsa whistleblower edward snowden, now are part of the case.

this is part of what we say the u.s. government is trying to shift the goalpost, as it were. we heard from our defense counseling monday perhaps in response to the strength of our case that the u.s. government is shifting and changing its case almost 18 months after we evidence, veryer unusual and highly irregular process in any kind of extradition case and certainly one as unprecedented as this. juan: jennifer robinson, whwhat about these new hacking allegations by bringing them so late in the process here as the hearing has started? >> i think adding these additional "hacking allegations," which is generally unquestionable and denied by mr. assange, i think is their attempt to shift the case away from the manning disclosures and

the evidence of war crimes and human rights abuse, corruption in the world over. it is a press freedom case. the items by the department of justice to somehow present this as a hacking case when there is no evidence of hacking by mr. assange demonstrates a desire to move away from the important issues on press freedom. we have heard already in the evidence of this case -- in this week from the founder of reprieve about the imports of wikileaks disclosures, that u.s. rendition, torture, and drone strikes and extrajudicial killings in pakistan and how those explosions have been essential in his work -- both in terms of holding the u.s. government accountable for those actions in pakistan but also with respect to his guantanamo allegation in the united ace. we also heard evidence from a professor about the unprecedented nature of the attack on first amendment this case represents an journalists being threatened by presidents

including nixon and roosevelt and now by president trump himself. juan: specicifically, you ntioned mamark feldstein's testimony and the evidence he presented. one of the interesting things as i reviewed thaststatement of his was nott onlnly his historical k at h how the p press in america really for a a couple of h hundd years was a highly partisan press, but he also talks about a amendment doesn''t protect the prpress as an indusy but as technology. for our viewers and listeners who are aware of his testitimon, could you elaborate on that portion of his evidence? professor feldstein explained as some length the importance of the first amendment and how it protects every american citizen and any person within u.s. jurisdiction, their ability --

their free speech. it protects the media's ability to communicate with forces, receive information and publish it in the public interest. what he pointed out about the danger of this particular case is the breakdown of the distinction between -- wit result ofriminal as a their disclosures. never directed at the media. the first amendment is to protect the media [indiscernible] julian assange heavy communications with chelsea manning, receiving information from chelsea manning and publishing that information, they're saying it is somehow -- inspiring the underlying criminal act. we have seen this same prosecution strategy not rolled out in brazil by president bolsonaro against glenn

greenwald. that is why this is so dangerous. this is the kind of activity that journalists engage in all across the world, which is why "the new york times" and "the washington post" in editorials have said this is criminalizing public interest journalism that has been used for decades. amy: i w want to explain to peoe that jen robinson is standing outside the courtroom at the lunch break and there are many prprotesters who are there. as there have been protesters in cities around the world as julian assange is in the midst of a month-long extradition hearing. whether he will be extradited to the united states. we wanted to turn to julian in his own words. we have not been able to speak to him in belmarsh prison, but i went to london and interviewed him when he had political exile in the ecuadorian embassy in 2015. , attack.s. government on wikileaks, has tried to construct a theory which if

permitted will be the end of the national security journalism. not just in the united states, but about the united states. that journalists cannot solicicit information f m sources. and to solicit information is to be involved in a conspiracy. amy: accomplice. typesterms of the charge that it is trying to charge me with does include conspiracy and conspiracy for espionage. this is rubbish. we cannot tolerarate this at the political level or media level. amy: that is julian assange inside the ecuadorian embassy before he was taken a year and and ago by british pololice put in the belmarsh prison. this is nils melzer, the united nations special on torture who --ited julian last year

special rapporteur on torture, who visited assange last year in london's belmarsh prison. metaphysical examination for an hour by hour forensic expert and we had the two hour psychiatric examination. all three of us had the same that he showed all the symptoms that are typical for a person that has been exposed to psychological torture over an extended period of time. amy: that is the united nations special rapporteur on torture who visited assange at belmarsh. jen robinson, for people who are not familiar with julian assange 's case, if you can talk about what the underlying charges are here where britain will decide whether to extradite him to the united states where he faces 175 years -- what was it that

wikileaks released? then millions of documents about afghanistan, iraq, it's utter? and what was chelsea manning's role in this and the significance of what she did? has been charged under the espionage act -- [indiscernible] publishingnd classified u.s. information. that includes the collateral murder -- [indiscernible] demonstrates war crimes in iraq. it includes the iraqi and afghan war logs, which demonstrated united states government was not sharing the truth about what was actually happening, including the killing of more than 16,000 civilians in the context of the iraq war. he is being prosecuted in relation to the state department cables that revealed human rights abuse and corruption the world over.

these are incredibly important publications for which wikileaks the nobelted for peace prize. he faces 175 years in prison for doing his job as a journalist and publisher. that is why this case is so dangerous. as you will be hearing the evidence that will be heard over the next four weeks is from journalists, ngos such as reprieve -- we heard from yesterday -- talking about the importance of these links, how it is being used in terms of political movement, human rights litigation, holding them to account for the wrongdoing, and more evidence also about the present conditions julian will face if he is returned to the united states to face prosecution. juan: jen robobinson, canan youk about the fact it was p presidet trump when he was r running for president as a candidate actually said in public statements thahat he loved wikileaks and urged them if they

hahad information on the hillary clinton emails, the supposed didisappearedd emails, to releae them, , that now it is the trump administration seeking to prosecute him and extradite him back to the united states? >> that is right. there has been a change in approach from president trump from prior to being elected and now in his role as president. what we saw was a change in position from the trump administration. we know there was no indictment under the obama administration. that was in secret because of the grand jury process. the indictment was not issued until well into the trump administration. we had indications the trump administration was going to take a different approach when mike pompeo declared wikileaks [indiscernible] followed quickly by statements

by the attorney general jeff sessions saying the priority to prosecute wikileaks and now we are seeing the outcome of that. an indictment where julian faces 175 years in prison. this is part of we said the trump administration's attack on journalism. it is a precedent that will be used against journalists not just in the united states, but around the world. the most dangerous thing about the position of the united states attorney has made clear in his evidence before this court is not only is the u.s. government seeking to exercise jurisdiction outside the u.s. for publishing information about the united states, they are also saying they will exercise that jurisdiction but at the same time for publishers and journalists will not benefit and should not benefit from first amendment protections. and that should be very concerning for journalists everywhere around the world. amy: many of the news organizations in the united states work with julian assange, like "the new york times" and "the washington post" in hosing

war crimes in iraq and afghanistan. had they come out to the extent that you would like to see and would it make a difference, as well if you can talk about what you expect to see over this month? is daniel ellsberg testifying today? one of the most famous whistleblowers in the world. that is correct. we will be seeing over the next four weeks evidence from a on theof experts free-speech implications of this indictment. daniel ellsberg will be giving evidence about his own areas as the leaker of the pentagon papers. we will hear from expert witnesses about the nature of the grand jury process and the prison conditions inside prison. of the u.s. role press, so significant because it is the u.s. seeking the exextradition of julianan assan-

again, for which he would face 175 years in prison? historically, think the position of u.s. press has been disappointing. we have been saying since 2010 this was a risk and if this precedent would be fought against wikileaks, it could be used against other media organizations and journalists. but since this indictment was issued by the trump administration, we're saying unanimous responses from "the new york times" and "the washington post" and ngos the world over that this is a dangerous precedent for freedom of the press and julian ought to be released immediately. [indiscernible] i think it is true to say there is in think a chorus of mainstream media organizations, ngos, and indeed some governments that say this case

is dangerous and not to be shut down. juan: jen robinson, how is julian assange's health? what is the situation in the and thewith covid potential for him to be exposed? as i explained, we have not been able to visit him in prison since the pandemic broke out. all social and legal visits were canceled, which means he has been even more isolated than before. because of his long-term having been effectively in prison long-term, the years in the embassy and now prison, has a number of respiratory issues, along with other health concerns -- which make it particularly susceptible to covid. it has been difficult to even have videoconferencing with him because it is his doctor's advice he should not be moving within the prison because of the risk of contracting covid. there have been a number of covid debts inside the british prison since the outbreak of the

pandemic. we have been very concerned about his health from a pandemic perspective, but also a decline in his health as a result of this long-term imprisonment. it is very unusual. this is a publisher who is being held on remand and a high security prison because of an indictment and extradition request from the trump administration. it is having a serious impact on his health and we will be hearing further evidence, psychiatric evidence about the impact this has had on julian and what will happen to him in the concerns for him if he is retuturned to pris in n the unid states. amy: i is there any discscussion between your team, julian assange's legal team, and the trump administration over a pardon? be the subject of evidence in these proceedings. we will have to wait to see what happens in it. amy: we will continue to follow the case of julian assange. he has been in captivity, either in political exixile inside the ecuadorian embassy, or at the

high s security omar's prison, r over eight years. the last six months in a most totatal looked down the high security prison because of the pandemic. we w will contininue to cover ts case. jennifer robinson, human rights attorney who has been advising julian assange and wikileaks since 2010, speaking outside the courthouse during the lunch julianf the case around assange. when we come back, we look at how decadedes of u.s. military intervention in central america hahas led to the ongngoing migrt crisis. we will speak with salvadoran american journalist roberto lovato, author of the new book "unforgetting." stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: "be thankful for what you got" by william devaugn. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report.

i am amy g goodman with juan gonzalez. as we spend d the rest of the hr connecting the dots on how the majority of central american refugees and immigrants to the united states come from three countries -- guatemala, honduras, and el salvador -- which are the same three countries the united states intervened in n ring the 19898', on the s sides of the mimilitary governments and paramilitary death squads that killed tens of thousandnds, and in guatatemala , hundreds of thousands, mostly indigenous people. in el salvador, manyny soldiers responsible for carrying out the notorious 1981 el mozote massacre, in which nearly 1000 unarmed villagers were killed were elite united states-trained forces. between 1980 and 1992, the u.s.

sent over $4 billion in economic and military aid to el salvador's government, nearly $1 million a day. well, today, we follow the story of one man and his family, and why he says the story of el salvador is the story of the united states. roberto lovato is an awarard-winning journalist. he has just published his new memoir, called "unforgetting: a memoir of family, migration, gangs, and revolution in the americas." he is joining us now from san francisco, where he was born. roberto, welcome back to democracy now! congratulations on this unforgettable memoir. it lets s start with the e titl. while you call it "unforgegetting." >> thank you. it is a pleasure and honor to be with you and juan and the crew once again on this choice occasion for me.

i wore a red shirt for you in celebration and solidarity. when y you play that some, still play -- comes --"ever getting" the greeks believe when you went into the underworld, when the deadwood into the underworld, they had to cross the river of forgetting before going to either elysium or hades. out aas trying to pick titltle for this book, i reaeald that the journey that i taken all of these d different underwororlds for the book, whether it was going underworlds from the underworld of the fmla gorillas, ththe underworld of my personalal family history y thas ununknown to me in m many ways, where my own psychology y and at the e underwororld of migrants o have to kikind of -- i just

thought, wow, what a perfect way to bring up and e excavate the truths they get hidden. the ancient greeks believe ununforgetting, the term that means not lazy river, unforgetting. history.rgetting my book is a coming out for me personally, and i will explplain that as we go. juan: roberto, you begin the book talking about the tour you were giving in 1992 in n los angeles, the time e workingg wih the immigrant rights groroup in los angeles andnd you're t tourg around the foundatioion program office -- one of these people who decides whether to give money to worthy organizations.

you have very mixed feelings thahat area ofnd lolos angeles. there is a sudden shoot out one point. could you talk a about that whoe ? also,o, whatork lessssons might be drawn for a t ofof activists today, blacack ls matter activists and prison reform activists f forcibly beig courteted by foundations that he discoverer they have not t been proply funding antiracism programs around the country? >> that is a grereat queststion, jujuan. the introduction of the book is 1992 right aftfter the l.a. rios had hit. we had foundationsns and corporations, along with scholars -- - people interestedn pupush riot l.a. wewe were in macarththur park touring.

at one point i said i felt like i'm getting tired of being despairing dante wanting t to se the underworld. i'm showing this guy leleland mccarthy park when i'mm approacheded by thfifirst ms 133 member i ever met. i could tell leland was scared out of his wits, like he was in a lions den or something. he was looking to me for security. i open it that way b becau it shshows kind of the way the whoe issue of use and urban youth and gangs, even foundations and corporations will kind of shy away from -- including legislators of color here in california. . ms 13hey gangs are born and 18 street were born. after they were born, he kind of

adopted the structures of the mexican mafia. i am there when it is escalating and getting more violent. attorney general william barr who is now in the trump administration, played all of l.a. and resources to elsewhere to start the gang work, which we see the products as we speak. he also introduced the ion at to join t the lapd a law enforcemet to join the problem come the gang structures to el salvador. book too g go on in ththe subsequent chapter to talk about your experience visiting immigrant families in detention in karnes, texas. could you talk aboutut that t ad also this whole effort ofof the fedederal government to put thee

dedetention cecenters in the m t out-of-the-w-way placeces so t t even journalalists have trouble getting to them? >> this is an example of the underworldlds i'm trying t to gt at. a lot of people don't realize those immigrgrant prisons -- refused to called in detentntion centerers. it is a travesty to call them that. it is a travesty.. down ininhese prisons southern texas p precisely becae immigrant rights groups won't go down there. it becomes harder for them to go down there and harder for journalists, say, san antonio, to drive these miles down south to visit these places. there are ice the most. i own jouourney begins when meet a child and mother were plodding along with other immigrants, women and children and youth, to s stage a p protet against the awful conditions

that movove some mothers to slit their wrists or r children to ty to hang themselves. i was reluctant because my friends ursula and philippe a join me -- invited me to go to this present and i was kind of reluctant because i had this whole story from the war and i didn't even know i had kind of stirring up at me and i knew i would eventually have to tell my story stop basically, my bubble burst when a child tells me this really horrific story what he saw. at that moment i realize, know what? it is time to tell my story. it is time to come out, so to speak. and i do. i come out about things i hadd known n and things i would learn and things i needed to tell about myself, including my paparticipation in the revolutitionary process. amy: can you talk about that, roberto? can you talk about your involvement with the fmln? you are well known journalist in the united states.

talk about who the fo -- fmln were. now they are part of the regular political process and a party in el salvador today. but what decisions you made early on? amymy, you as a jouournalist, d juan know, i would not get pulitzer grants if i wasn't -- with the fmln. that is and how it works. what you have in j journalisismd literature, i would argue, are not representative of the whole spectrum of political and illogical,l, even racial -- - iu look at latinos - -- thahat even latinos as a come up witith a sb racial groups of latatinos. than 1% of u.s. literature. i made a decision after r doing work with refugee communities in the warr zones and working with refugees here in sasan francisco

and other groups, i was becoming more conscious. there's a love story in my book, which is part of the point. all you hear is terror. unli, i grew up salvadororan. love is a given of the place as wewell. i am in one of the most difficult places i've ever sesen .n my life in terms of war also terrible things, including terrible things done to children. eventually say it is not enough for me to just do -- kind of like what juan was talkingng about, nonprofit work k and havg this language getttting this funding let people do here and in o other pararts of the woworo be officially rerepresenting communities with very high salaries. i wasn't really feeling that so i decided i would do something else. i had friends that introduced me to people in the fmln and they thought i could be useful working with urban commandos in

the just ask and things. thisat moment when i see home that was bombed, i stopped being american. you can go and look at most of my journalism. i avoid using the word "american ,"ince 1991 because i did not want anyththing to do o with th. -- a citizen of the united states of america, the revolutionary imaginanary taking hold ofe to wanant a better place. amy: and the fmln, for people to understand, was a rebel fighting force at a time when the u.s. was pouring millions into the military regime and the paramilitaries responsible for everything from the killing i've the six jesuit priests, housekeeper, and daughter to the el mozote massacrcre of 1981?

>> yes. the fmln wasas organizing againt the fascist military dictatorship backed by the u.s. government beginning with the carter administration. if you're an historian like my , , you will see the u u.s. involvlvement dates decades bac. they started supportining el salvador's military dictatorship starting aroundd 1934 when they finally recognized martinez who 1932, which some historians will tell you to some of the most violent episodes not just in latin american history, but world histotory, in t termsf the number of people killed per day, per week in a concentrated place. routesn, there were founded by poets. this is s one of the things that attracted me to o it. the non-distinction between the poetic and the political,

between the revolutionarary and daily life,e, betweenen love and lalabor. , aording to the cia, one of the most efeffective politicacal military and social movements in latin america in the 2020th c century, for exama, can see one of every three salvadoreans was orgrganized agagainst the state in the 198's according to -- to beaugh me what i it means a popoet warririor. it is something we need right now, which is s part of the rean i wrwrote the book was to share- there is all this dark, heavy stuff, but i think you'll find a lot of love, tenderness, and hope in the book. that is the only way we got through as salvadoreans. in my experience, around the world in a most intimate way, i've never seen a people with suchch astonishing resilieiences

-- filling -- amy: we have to go to break out we will come back and we want to talk about your front relationship with her father in this revelation in your booook that he was a a young witness to the tons of 1932, the peasant uprising in the government massacre, k killings of thousans and thousands of salvadoreans. roberto lovato is the award-winning journalist. his memoir is just out called "unforgetting." stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: "dias y flores" by silvio rodriguez. ourr guestst today is roberto lovavato, award-winning journalist, author of "unforgetting: a memoir of family, migration, gangs, and revolution in the americas." i am amy goodman with juan gonzalez. break,erto, before t the you were talking about 1932 ---- a lotot of peoplele don'tt realize that the fmln of the 191970's and 1980's from one of the organizers of the peasant uprising of 1932, also one of ththe founders of the central lilimit can communist party. can you u also talk abouout the lilinks between n what happenedn

1932 in your understanding of it as well as the develoent of the fmln?? > yeah, i in my view and thtw , it ---- the fmln probably should have been named [speaking g poorly which] -- watching their kids die and they rebelled. there was also, this organizing with them. leadershihipthe local was indigigenous. in the wake history woworks, oftentimimes we erase indigenous agency. about importanant to talk

what historians act taught us that people e rose up trying to overthrow the government in what was the first, just insurrection -- there were communists including a man who s saw an opportunityty not just to tae power because of the vivice presidenent, but also perpetrtrs what schololarat o oxford have toldld me is s one of the s sine most vioiolent episodes in worod history as far as people killed per d day in coconcentrated spae and per week in aa concentratetd space. the records of the group were buried, burned, by large -- some historians and el salvador are starting to reconstitute themm anand rebuilild the memory and unforgrget.

states are not nothing if not manufacturer's -- mass manufacturers of a amnesia. on, you getint military dictatorship. one of the longest standing military dictatorships. he also get one of the most consistent left oppositions, effective left opposititions in the americass in the salvlvadors people struggle, which is s part of the reason i wrorote my bobok because of the pathetic images of children crying and mothers screaming. the soundbites o of mothers screining in places -- the dominant imageges along withth s of s salvadorereans. you have this incncredible astonishingly incredible political capability that the salvadoreans have had and d stil have. amy: le moton's outcome youu reveal in your book. talk about your father's connection as a witness. father was nine years

happened ins jajanuary o of 1932. i did not even know. in college. you cannot find the books. doing research and rrealized, this town is w wherey dad is from. my dad never said anything for decades. so i start doing the research and i asked my dad and he had seeno me that he it and it was an epic moment in my family history and my own life because it explained a a lt to me about why such a crazy kid read in violent and dangerous c circles would join e fmln and the other crazy things

i've done in my life had this deep undercurrent of family history that i think a lot of us have in our families. family secrets. i try to cononnect those family secrets to the secrets of covered upwhich h was and buried along with mass grave sites thahat are still nott excavated to the state. juanan: speaking a famimily sec, you also revealed in your book ththat your father, who had d wd fofor united airlines for mamany yeyears as a ramp service worke, also had his own underground life, basically, i the mission district of san francisco selllling contbaband. dad, was involved in the contraband industry in san francisco's missioion district. a lot of colorful characters came out of there. my dad w was at ththe centerer . my dad, a very s smart guy, created a transnational network

,f contraband of jewelry calclculators, perfume -- eventually g guns. my dad was running guns between el salvador -- san francisco and el salvador. he wasn't selling ththem to thee fascist or the fmln or anything, th i is before in the prewar in the 1970's. he was doing it to anyone who cocod afford i it. i learned about the c constructn of criminality at a vevery personal level. i had shshame abouout my dad.. and my dad's activities. and i started excavating the history and find out it wasn't just my y dad. .t was my grandmotherer and with the same hand she cooked, she was originator of this transnational network o of contraband the sustainer family. i'm not going to call her a criminal or my data criminal. i think they were people trying

to sustain their families by anyway they could. they live ththrough an all the door thahat did not just a genocidede, but the poverty in e grgreat depression thatt made -- look like a wine festival. amy: finally, william barr, the current attorney general, the attorney general under george h.w. bush. we just have a minute, but as you wrap up, roberto, what is his connection to this story? >> william barr is attorney general, under the first bush, redeplployed fbi resources and d the e greatestppointme o of fbi resoururces up to that point, taking fbi agent''s who were fighting -- - looking at foreign threats and started focusing them on gangs. then he e starts looking a at m3 another gangs rigight after the l.a. rights.s. heas in l l.a. and started us on the pap to eventually, like,

militarizing the police that we have right now. he also o had t the ins deport e gangs problem toto el salvador d then he exported after the war u.s. style policing. i found out that military trainers from el salvador came to train lapd in counterinsurgency. and other police forces. when you s start saying -- seeig cop uniforms ththat we sesee now and william barr h had everything -- not everything, but he had a lot to do - -- i he to sing his song because he deserveses all of the crcredit e deserves f for what he did to ol salvador a and too l.a. inin our national situation long before trump. amy: roberto lovato, there is so mumuch more in the stunning memoir. roberto is award-winning

journalist and the author of the book "unforgetting: a memoir of family, migration, gangs, and revolution in the americas." that does it for our show. democracy now! is looking for feedback from people who appreciate the closed captioning. e-mail your comments to outreach@democracynow.org or mail them to democracy now! p.o. box 693 new york, new york 10013. [c[c

♪ thank you for joining us. from our studio in tokyo. this is nhk "newsline." china's senior diplomat has accucused the united states of threatening peace in the south china sea. wang yi was speaking at the foreign meeting held online. wang said the u.s. has interfered witith th