12/16/20 12/16/20 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> we need in economy where people are not getting by but have the opportunity to thrive. where people can get ahead and stay ahead. we do not deserve a criminal justice system that lets the while doingoff violence to black and brown community.

amy: one of bernie sanders' top allies, nina turner, has announced she is running for congress in ohio to fill the seat of marcia fudge, who is nominated to become housing secretary. turner has a message for the new administration, there will be no honeymoon. she is part of a new effort to pressure the biden-harris team to truly enact progressive agenda. then we look at how immigrant rights activists are pushing biden to enact a moratorium on deportations. >> coming down from seven different states, the east coast to his home making sure he doesn't forget our communities, does not forget the promises that he was going to deliver on during his campaign trail. we're just weeks away from inauguration. amy: this comes as more than half of ice's immigration jails report coronavirus outbreaks and ice is punishing

immigrants who protest for their release by putting them in solitary confinement. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine repo. i'm amy goodman. frontline health workers continue to receive the first wave of the pfizer-biontech covid-19 vaccine as the moderna vaccine appears poised for authorization in the coming days. the hopeful news comes as the pandemic rages across the u.s. and officials warn the worst is yet to come. over the past week, an average of more than 212,000 cases have been reported each day. tuesday set a record for hospitalizations for the 10th day in a row at nearly 113,000. u.s. deaths tuesday again topped 3000, reaching the third highest daily death toll since the

pandemic began. in washington, d.c., the national cathedral in washington tolled its bells 300 times tuesday evening to commemorate the 300,000 people in the u.s. who have died, as it did in september when the death toll topped 200,000. california has activated its mass fatality program as cases surge in the mostly locked down state. this is governor gavin newsom. fore have orders refrigerated units standing by in counties and hospitals. we just had to order 5000 additional body bags. we just distributed them to san diego, los angeles counties. that should be sobering. amy: in more medical news, the food and drug administration has authorized the first rapid, over-the-counter home coronavirus test.

it does not require a prescription. meanwhile, fda staff are recommending watching for symptoms of bell's palsy in pfizer and moderna vaccine recipients after a small number of trial participants got the condition. the fda says it's not clearly a side effect of the vaccine but warranted monitoring. senate majority leader mitch mcconnell has finally acknowledged that joe biden won the november election -- six weeks after voting ended. >> electoral college has spoken. today i want to congratulate president-elect joe biden. amy: in a private call, mcconnell urged republican senators not to join a house republican effort to try to overturn the electoral college. president trump lashed out at mcconnell on twitter and vowed to keep fighting to stay in

office despite losing the electoral college and losing the popular vote by over 7 million votes. meanwhile, russian president vladimir putin, mexican president andrés manuel lopez obrador, and brazilian leader jair bolsonaro have all congratulated biden following the electoral college vote. this comes as plans are moving forward for joe biden's inauguration. on tuesday, biden's inaugural committee urged supporters to stay home on january 20 due to the pandemic. president-elect joe biden has picked former south bend indiana mayor and presidential candidate pete buttigieg to be secretary of transportation. if confirmed, buttigieg will be the first openly gay cabinet member in u.s. history. as transportation secretary he will oversee an agency with nearly 60,000 employees and a budget of over $72 billion. as mayor of south bend,

buttigieg ran a city with a population of just 100,000 people. during his presidential run, buttigieg pushed for expanded funding for public transportation but also more money for highways and driverless cars. buttigieg previously worked as a management consultant for mckinsey and company. biden is also set to nominate former michigan governor jennifer granholm to be secretary of energy. granholm has been a longtime advocate of renewable energy. biden is also reportedly planning to tap former epa administrator gina mccarthy to oversee his domestic climate policy. meanwhile, politico reports biden has quietly expanded his transition team to include veterans from goldman sachs, mckinsey & company, faceok, and google. hundreds of immigrant rights acvists participated in a car caravan tuesday to joe biden's hometown of wilmington, delaware, urging him to implement immigration reform, criminal justice reform, and cancel puerto rico's debt within his first 100 days in office.

martin torres, a member of make the road action, said -- "our communities helped ensure biden's victory. now, as he prepares to take office, we urge him to work with us to deliver an overhaul of immigration enforcement, including the moratorium on deportations and a pathway to citizenship for all 11 million undocumented immigrants." in response to tuesday's action, president-elect biden acknowledged the critical role played by immigrant and communities of color in fighting against trump's destructive policies. in a letter to the activists, biden said, "please know you will always have a seat at the table." we will have more on his policies later in the broadcast. biden hit the campaign trail in georgia tuesday to urge people to vote for democrats reverend raphael warnock and jon ossoff in next month's twin senate runoffs, which will determine

control of the senate. biden deplored the senate stalemate over a new coronavirus relief package. mr. biden: the united states senate to pass the package months ago. people are hurting. millions out of work, small businesses closing my people are struggling to pay the rent. worried after christmas they will be thrown out before new year's. amy: with just over one month left in his presidency, trump is gutting the endangered species act by rolling back habitat protections for at-risk species, including grizzly bears, whooping cranes, and pacific salmon. the new rule narrows the definition of habitat to areas where species currently live, but not those where animals might move to due to the climate crisis or areas where they have previously lived and could be restored. the policy group environment america said in a statement -- "animals that have already lost so much of the land they once

roamed. now they face an uphill climb from competition with invasive species, the effects of global warming, and the lack of genetic exchange between fractured habitats. this new rule ratchets up the danger, making even modest recovery efforts unworkable for many species that have already been decimated by human development." in bolivia, a scientific expedition in the andes uncovered 20 previously unknown species. scientists also saw plants and animals they had not seen for decades, some of which were believed to be extinct. some of the new discoveries include the bolivian flag snake and the lilliputian frog. the expedition in the zongo valley, near the capital la paz, took place in 2017 but the findings were just released this week. this is eduardo forno of conservation international, which led the effort, alongside the municipal government of la paz.

>> the healthy forest is a forest that is going to have wonderful species like the ones we found in zongo. it will have a lot more species that have been registered. 1700 have been registered. what it is going to allow is to make sure zongo valley is healthy and that is reflection of the need to have an healthy environment. amy: prosecutors with the international criminal court have rejected calls from uyghur exiles to investigate for china for genocide. exiled uyghurs have accused beijing of holding more than 1 million people from mostly muslim minorities in re-education camps. the international criminal court said it was unable to act because the alleged crimes occurred in china, which is not a signatory to the icc. this comes as china is facing new accusations of relying heavily on forced labor to pick cotton in the province of xinjiang, which produces more than a fifth of the world's cotton.

meanwhile, the international criminal court says there is "reasonable basis to believe" the philippines has committed crimes against humanity as part of president rodrigo duterte's war on drugs. the crimes include murder, torture, and serious physical and mental harm. the icc will decide on whether it will undertake a formal investigation in the next year after the decision was delayed due to pandemic. european union and british regulators unveiled draft laws that seek to halt big tech monopolies, as well as stop the spread of misinformation and harmful content online. the new rules are designed to rein in the power of so-called gatekeepers like amazon, apple, facebook, google, and microsoft and would impose hefty fines and offers a possible path to breaking up companies that repeatedly violate european antitrust laws. this is european commissioner for competition margreta vestager. >> in this proposal, there is a

sense of proving because this is also a dynamic step we can to investigations if need be so that we can see if gatekeepers are emerging and we can put them then obligation. and this is because without enforcement, not worth much. amy: in immiation news, a new rule is set to go into effect, which would send asylum seekers at the u.s.-mexico border to el salvador instead of letting them receive humanitarian protection in the united states. the trump administration implemented similar deals with guatemala and honduras. immigrant and human rights advocates say the policy puts already-vulnerable migrants in dangerous situations. they don't have to be from el salvador to be sent to el salvador. the minnesota board of pardons commuted the life sentence of myon burrell, who walked free tuesday after serving 18 years in prison.

burrell, who is black, was sentenced to life when he was just 16 years old for the 2002 murder of an 11-year old girl who was killed by a stray bullet. burrell has always maintained his innocence. his case was thrust into the national spotlight early this year as then-presidential candidate senator amy klobuchar faced calls to suspend her campaign for leading the case against burrell when she was hennepin county's district attorney. an associated press investigation found there was no physical evidence linking burrell to the crime and that klobuchar may have mishandled the case. the decision to commute burrell's sentence was made by governor tim walz and minnesota attorney general keith ellison. his sentence was shortened to 20 years, and he will serve the remainder on supervised release. a warning to our audience, the following headline contains disturbing images of police violence. shocking video has emerged from chicago showing nine police officers raiding the home of a

50-year-old african american hospital social worker as she was preparing to go to bed. after breaking down her door, the police handcuffed the woman, who was naked, and held her for over 30 minutes before realizing they had entered the wrong home. chicago mayor lori lightfoot tried to block the release of the bodycam footage from the nine officers who took part in the 2019 raid. but a judge this week sided with the cbs outlet in chicago which then aired parts of the disturbing video along with an interview with the woman, anjanette young, who said she wanted the video to be shown. >> you see them running up to theapartment complex with battering ram in their hand.

a crowbar. it was so traumatic to hear the way the thing was hitting the door. it happened so fast. i did not have time to put on clothes. >> suddenly, she found herself frozen in fear. completely naked. in a room full of men. amy: the police raid occurred in february 2019 while rahm emmanuel was still mayor of chicago. a new report from the economic policy institute finds farm workers in the u.s. have engaged andassive wage theft destiny repeat that. finds that farm employers and in the u.s. have engaged in massive wage theft and repeatedly violated federal labor laws around safety and wages. the report, based on data from the labor department, shows

employers withholding at least $76 million in wages from over 150,000 workers over the past 20 years, though researchers say the problem is likely much bigger since the government only investigates a small number of farm employers at one time. many violations are also not reported due to workers' immigration status. recent research has found farmworkers have been disproportionately affected by the coronavirus pandemic yet many are forced to continue working in unsafe conditions. and here in new york city, transportation workers and allies are holding a rally this -- today to call on the metropolitan transportation authority to halt any planned layoffs, service cuts, and fare increases as part of an upcoming budget. mta workers say they are bearing the brunt of massive losses due to the coronavirus crisis, as they continue to provide vital services to the city, even as

they were not given sufficient protections, including ppe, during the pandemic's first wave. this is mta worker jonathan beatrice from the group local 100 fightback. >> they ultimately want us to pay for it. not any of the 118 blionres that live in new york, some of whom have profited from this crisis. they want to freeze our pay. they want to eliminate jobs. they want to lay us all. we need to come together and tell the mta know. amy: and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, democracynow.o, the quarantine report. when we come back, we speak with one of bernie sanders top allies, nina turner, who announced tuesday she is running for congress in ohio. she is part of an effort to pressure the biden-here's the administration to enact a truly

progressive agenda. stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman in new york joined by my co-host juan gonzález in new brunswick, new jersey. hi, juan. juan: hi, amy. welcome to all of our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. amy: well, nina turner is running for congress. the former ohio state senator became a national figure as one of presidential candidate bernie sanders' most visible allies and his 2020 campaign national co-chair. on tuesday, she announced she's now launching her own campaign. >> today i am announcing my theidacy for congress for 11th congressional district of ohio. amy: nina turner is running to

fill the seat left open by representative marcia fudge, who was tapped by the biden administration to be secretary of the u.s. department of housing and urban development. turner is now the third candidate to announce their candidacy in the 11th district following cuyahoga council woman and county democratic party chair shontel brown and former ohio state senator jeff johnson. bernie sanders, california congressmember ro khanna, and congresswoman-elect from missouri cori bush have all lined up to endorse nina turner's campaign. if elected, she'll join the growing progressive wing of the democratic party in congress, which has been putting pressure on other lawmakers to pass a second coronavirus stimulus package amid the greatest largest spike of covid infections since the start of the pandemic. the relief package currently being considered does not include direct covid relief payments for american families,

despite a surge in unemployment and evictions by the end of the month. nina turner's platform includes direct covid relief payments, medicare for all, free college, and a $15 minimum wage. she has also been a vocal part of the movement to hold president-elect joe biden accountable to the grassroots organizers and communities that helped elect him. nina turner narrated a video released today titled "no honeymoon." elected the 46 prident of the united states. no honeymoon. what we mean by that? we mean that we the people hold the power, that we must continue to fight for what is just, right, and good and fight against what is not just, right, and good. we mean we must have solidarity

and commitment one to another. we who believe in freedom cannot rest. what we mean by that? as long as there are injustices, we will continue to fight. amy: it was produced by rootsaction. nina turner's campaign announcement comes as biden announced more cabinet picks

tuesday. former south bend, indiana, mayor and presidential candidate pete buttigieg will be nominated to be secretary of transportation. former michigan governor jennifer granholm has been tapped to be secretary of energy. politico reports biden has quietly expanded his transition team to include veterans from goldman sachs, mckinsey & company, facebook, and google. well, for more on the cabinet, coronavirus relief, and her run for congress, nina turner joins us now from cleveland, ohio. we welcome you to democracy now! it is great to have you with us. former state legislator nina turner, can you talk about why you have thrown your hat in the ring? >> this moment calls for that. this is my home. i am a daughter of cleveland. i haveived in th11th congressional district, served in this district as a state senator as you he laid out. i was the democratic nominee for

secretary of state in 2014, fighting against one of the worst secretaries of state in this country. all that i've done hereto for has been because of my love for my community and this nation come to stand up and make sure people understand they deserve better than at they have been getting. i congratulate congress woman marcia fudge for being tapped for the secretary of hud. there is definite like woman i believe in that position in over 40 years. the eater cleveland area has a lot to be proud of. serving the and people. we need more not just bold voices but people who will take action and will be fearless when it comes to standing ufor what is just and right and good. i new york title and juan, good morning, democracy now!, we need this type of leadership right now. juan: nina turner, do expect much pushback from the

democratic establishment or in thee even competitors democratic party? there is been some talk that dennis kucinich, who had been toying with the possibility of running for mayor of cleveland, may also consider running for this seat as well? >> yes, that is true. the more, the merrier. this is what decracy is about. people should be able to run. i don't come from the school that tries to push people out of an election. policyn terms of the key -- wethe citizens -- on amy: are having a little bit of a video stutter. sometimes you break up, nina. go ahead, juan. the: in terms of some of key policies that you would run at the click of your campaign, could you talk about those? wage, livinginimum wage. people deserve that. it is ioral how the working

class this nation from all ckgrounds have suddenly -- their wages have not keptace withnflation. we have to come especially -- even before the pandemi but especially now, how are people going to survive? if you can't survive, you will never thrive. covid relief, absolutely. it is immoral. that is for folks -- both sides of the congress and theurrent president that there has not been a second steam list package -- stimulus package for the american people that contains direct payments. that is a must. it is a necessity. it is not a luxury. we need to follow the lead of other industrialized nations set in place -- either folks get checked on regular basis and/or helping the businesses that employ them be able -- it is a shame the station is not done

that hereto for an we should obvious shame. amy: democratic congressmember alexandria ocasio-cortez talked about a covid-relief package during an instagram live video last week. this is what she said. >> what mitch mcconnell said is we want to give big corporations total immunity for five years from covid-related losses. , if we acceptthat checkor a one-time $1200 or a supershort expansion of unemployment insurance, the deal is that you're going to end up behind. one $1200u make it check on one hand, but you also make it a multibillion-dollar hospital bill with no recourse and notability to protect yourself from a negligent corporation-run employer.

that is not worth it, right? your check is not worth more like. amy: that is new york congressmember alexandria ocasio-cortez, bipartisan group of senators introduced a covid relief bill monday that does not include direct cash payments. it does include a so-called liability shield for businesses, which republicans secured in exchange for agreeing to approve funding from local and state governments. bernie sanders says he will not support a bill that includes this corporate liability shield. you have congress that has a majority of members who are , at thisres saying no point, covid stimulus. the mcconnell says he will move forward though absolutely is

insisting on this shield for corporations. talk about the significance of this and what exactly what you want to see in a stimulus package. see theinitely want to guarantee basic income. alexandria ocasio-cortez is correct, that one-time check does nothing even if it was in there. when he guaranteed basic income, especially for the magnitude of this particular crisis. amy and juan, it shows the heartlessness. what about the shield for the american people? what about the shield for folks are facing eviction? what about the shield for people who go to bed hungry every night? what about the shield for the homeless? this is a heartless way to do the people's business, their bidding. and the american people are going to have to stand up and say in the words of fannie lou hamer, "i am sick and tired of being sick and tired." how heartless you have to be to

care more about industry and corporations than you do about the everyday people of this nation, amy? this cannot continue. the health care portion of it, absolutely right. we need medicare for all right now. we needed it before the pandemic. we especially need it right now. we know almost 15 million people have lost their employer-sponsored "health care" on top of the millions of people, almost 97 million or so people that were already uninsured or underinsured. it was a crisis before the covid and it is especially a crisis right now. it cannot be tolerated. it cannot stand. we have got to fight. latestina turner, the reports coming out of washington last night were suggesting that the compromise effort would separate this stimulus into two bills. one that would inclu the

federal aid to cities and states and the liability shield corporations, and a separate one that would deal with assistance to ordinary americans -- admittedly, it would only have $300 additional unemployment benefits instead of the $600 from last time, but it would include some rental assistance assistance.d do you think it is advisable if you were in congress right now to go ahead and pass the bigger bill and and wait until the new congress comes in in january to decide on the liability shield and the municipal assistance? >> they should debbie connecting the liability shield to the desk they should not be connecting the liability shield. thingsthose two together, we know exactly what they're doing that. they are playing games with the

american people. this is a complicated issue. getlieve firmly we have to the checks committed $300 is certainly not enough at all -- we are going backward and not forward. the sleepingaken giant. it is unacceptable. i know covid is out there and i don't want anyone to get covid, but we have got to stand up strong and find a way to make it throwingt this kind of crumbs come if you will, will not be tolerated. that is our money. i want the american people to understand that you have people in the congress, in both chambers, who are playing games with our money. that money should be given back funde american people that this nation. period. it could not be accepted. amy: this is former democratic presidential candidate bernie

sanders speaking to msnbc about the incoming biden administration's cabinet. somer scope i he seen good a palmist of people i like. i think people who are really smart, experienced. but i have not seen people from se prressive movement per in the cabinet. amy: there is bernie sanders looking for progressive representation at the cabinet level. he was pushing, apparently, very hard for labor secretary. any word at that is going to happen, nina turner? to then if you can respond joe biden saying, pushing people to back off before the january 5 runoff election, senatorial races in georgia, that will determine the balance of the senate. you just narrated fms as "no honeymoon."

first, what would a bernie sanders is labor secretary mean and are you satisfied with the cabinet so far? clubs having senator sanders is labor secretary would change everything. as we know the senator is always been equated to the house of labor. even in the last presidential run when the walmart workers could have -- from any of the 25 or so candidates running on a democratic platform come they chose bernie sanders to come to the meeting of stakeholders and represent them. he has been on the streets without a house of labor. not just in the senate, talking about it come he has been on the streets with the workers. he's the ultimate champion of the workers. his vision for labor, $15 hour minimum wage, making sure people have a right to form a union, you name it, he has been there. he would be an extraordinary labor secretary. in terms of the cabinet picks so

far, yes, i agree with the senator there have not been a lot of progressives put up thus far. we have to do better. i would love to see stratification economist derek hamilton, people like michael render a.k.a. killer mike. my god, what kind of cabinet without being. barbara lee or karen bass. those of the other types of people they should be looking at to put in the cabinet so he has a robust desk people with a robust commitment who will not flinch to lead and serve but to clearly be on the side of the poor come the working poor, the barely middle-class and in this country. that is what we need. i don't see that thus far. juan: i want to ask you about the issue of immigration. we are seeing reports now of increasing surge of migrants coming to the xican border,

trying to cross the mexican border. there have been a few maj hurricanes and essential america that have devastated huge portions of central america. what kind of advice pressure when you put on president biden at this point as to what he should do in terms of immigration -- reversing the immigration policies of president trump, especially given the fact we may be facing a new surge of migrants at the border? >> absolutely. that is job number one. overturn order to reverse, rather, what president has that in his heartless administration. should be done. and beyond that, we have to be able -- the climate crisis in many ways is driving -- people there is a push and pull factor that happens when you have this kind of disruption. whether it is famine, whether it

is the weather -- you know, hurricanes, tornadoes -- you will have people all over the world who need really. i that particular case, the president-elect needs to bring together world leaders so we can deal with this issue. the climate crisis and immigration as a whole, we can deal with as a world because we, the united states, should certainly be one of the many leaders, not the only one, that many of the leaders that deals with these types of complex impacts the everyday lives of our sisters and brothers all over the world. we should do that as a coalition collectively. that is how we're going to build what we need not only in our country, but in the world. reverend dr. martin luther king jr. says what happens directly happens to all of us indirectly. the covid virus, the pandemic has shown that company climate crisis we have that is driving most of this, not all of it, hash on that as well.

we need a world, national and a worldwide response. of the covidg crisis, you mentioned reports "the new york times" saved in wealthy nations of the world have basically been locking up the supplies of vaccines that are coming out right now to do with the pandemic so canada has ,lready locked up the ability contracts to inoculate their people five times over their population. the population, three times over its population. the european union and the united kingdom. meanwhile, the nations of africa, asia, latin america, very few of them have been able to obtain supplies of the vaccine until possibly 2022. could you talk about the inequity of who is going to be getting this vaccine or these

vaccines? is the height of inequity. but it is a formula that has been carried out in the history of this world. black and brown nations in peril, vulnerable. nations are primarily white or european, they get to lock it up. that cannot stand, either. again, the connection -- we are certainly citizens of our respective nations, but also citizens of the world. affectsexample of what one directly affect us all indirectly, called a pandemic for reason. -- level of selflessness selfishness. we can run but we can hi. nations that have locked up the vaccine in that way may think what they're doing is ok, good for their citizens but ultimately it is not because the pandemic has shown clearly there is no order when it comes to something of this magnitude.

it is the wrong thing to do, juan, and we cannot accept that. canada and the united states and others, that can't sit well with us. in: finally, nina turner, 2014, cleveland police officer timothy loehmann shot to mayor price within two seconds of arriving -- to mayor price within two seconds where he was playing with a pellet gun. he was 12 years old. when her 14 -- when his 14 year old sister regimen, handcuffed her and put her in the cruiser. very quietly in october, the trump administration ended a civil rights investigation into the police killing of rice. "the new york times" reports the justice department more please by career prosecutors to open a killing before's denying the request in 2019.

we with you in 2016 during the democratic national convention in cleveland to that park and you showed us where to mayor -- shot by police. if you could talk about the issue of defunding the police and also the fact that joe biden says no to defunding the police and no to medicare for all? >> the medicare for all is totally unacceptable in every way. i know some folks do not want to use the term "defund the police," but we have to have -- we have a crisis in this country a long time in the making. i know my face cannot be seen, but you and i were at that park. i was in the last term of my senate in 2014 when that happened. it was in november. i called then governor john kasich. i did not call him as a state

senator, but as a black mother in america. i said, governor, we have to do something. we cannot let folks explode. we have to let them know we hear their cries. what happened totamir rice could have happened any like mother or father's son. to his credit, he did. that is how we launched the task force community police relations. for the first time in the history of our state, have standards by which law enforcement agencies have to abide by and have -- be able to judge them tcritique whether they're answering to those standards. amy, a crisis in this nation a long time coming. the way police and other law-enforcement agencies and in this country, never to protect and serve the black community, there to lordbe over the black community historically. that is embedded in the dna of

this country. let me say this because my husband is a retired police officer. our son is in law enforcement right now so i get this in a unique way. thewanting an understanding real dangers of being out there to try to protect and serve those that have the mindset to do so and then understanding both of my black men have been racially profiled throughout your life. we have got to as a nation re-think policing in this country. we have got to put the requisite resources and mental health, and education, making sure people peoplejob, making sure live in a safe community. we need to overhaul the entire system. it is not just what happens in policing, it is what happens when judges and prosecutors, the entire system -- some people may call that defund the police most the more important aspect here reform.st totally

some people would say transform and destroy and rebuild the way the legal system works. amy: we have to leave it there. we expect to be talking to you soon in the future. candidate for ohio's 11th congressional seat. former national cochair of the bernie sanders 2020 presidential campaign, former ohio state senator. when we,, immigrant rights moratoriumushing a on deportations and release people from immigrant jails. stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: "if i was president" by las cafeteras. performing in democracy now! in 2017. this is democracy now! i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. president-elect joe biden promised to reverse trump's most restrictive immigration policies during his 2020 campaign, but since he was elected biden has not included immigration among his top four priorities -- the pandemic, economic recovery, racial equity, and climate change. on tuesday, hundreds of immigrant activists and their allies caravanned through biden's home city of wilmington, delaware, where they demanded he

issue a moratorium on deportations and advance a path to citizenship for undocumented people within his first 100 days in office. this is yatziri tovar with make the road action. is delaware post the reas we chose to be here is beuse this is where president-elect biden is living right now. what better way to make sure that our voiceare being heard ancoming down to his hometow coming down from seven different states all from theast coast, all the way over here to his homeo making sure -- making sure he does n forget ou communities, forget the promises that he s going to deliver on during his campaign trail. just weeks away from inauguration. amy: president-elect biden sent a letter to organizers of the event, writing -- "the work of realizing our shared vision is before us-the

good and necessary work that will lead to an immigration system that is fair, humane, and that reflects our values as a nation of immigrants." caravanners also stopped at hudson county jail in new jersey, not far from the bergen county jail. both jails contract with immigration and customs enforcement to hold immigrants who have civil emigration cases, not criminal charges. over the weekend police fired smoke grenades at a solitary rally outside the bergen county jail, where they arrested nine people. on tuesday, the archdiocese of newark signed onto a statement calling for "the immediate release of the men on hunger strike and of all people at the bergen county jail to protect their health and well-being." this comes as more than half of ice's immigration detention jails are currently reporting

coronavirus outbreaks. across the country on tuesday, protesters also gathered outside the northwest detention center run by geo group in tama, washington, where another detainee there tested positive for the coronavirus that causes covid-19, bringing the number up to at least 22. in this recording from inside the ice jail from december0, you can hear a guard telling people detained in the same dorm that they will be separated into individual cells. this is captain leroy portillo. listen carefully. each person is going to be in their own self. understand? it is a precaution we need to take to protect the life of each person. because summit has tested positive and they are still here. amy: the northwest detention

center is run by private prison company geo group, which issued a statement that it has "taken extensive measures to ensure the health and safety of those in our care and our employees, who are on the front lines making daily sacrifices at the center." ice also reported that a contract pharmacy technician had become the eighth worker at the jail to test positive. for more, we go to seattle, where we are joined by maru mora villalpando, co-founder of la resistencia. she is herself is undocumented. also with us is manuel abrego, who is head of la resistencia's phone supporsystem for people held in the tacoma ice processing center. he was released from there in 2018 after being held in solitary confinement for eight months for going on hunger strike. both maru and manuel are featured in a new report in the progressive magazine headlined "hunger for justice" written by democracy now!'s renée felts. maru, explain what is going on

in this jail and where you are in tacoma and what you are demanding. >> has it a spread of the virus of coronavirus. since october and november, seek the spreading of the virus not only those in detention but even employees. thankto the people who given us this information, pressuring ice to release information to the public and to a judge. in tacoma, we finally have confirmation of at least one person that while in detention tested positive. i kept arguing illness he people with covid in detention or they

brought from mostly the department of corrections -- and it or oregon. they were saying they were able to contain the virus in this is not true. also the fact guards and employees of ice are bringing in the virus. their testing positive coming yet coming to work. we just learned last night some people that were working in the kitchen were asked not to come to work just like it paid one dollar a day -- to not go back to the kitchen because it seemed like they have been in contact with somebody else detained or possibly an employee that has tested positive for covid-19. organizing and resistance for people in detention staging hunger strikes. this is the fifth or sixth hunger strike. i lost count.

what we know since last night is at least five people have now joined a hunger strike. one of them has today reached 30 days of the hunger strike and he messaged us last night saying he is being harassed by the medical staff saying if he continues his hunger strike while in medical isolation, he will be losing his case. it will have an impact on his immigration case and he will get deported. juan: maru, could you talk about how ice releases people, including a mandate released this last friday night at 9:00 p.m., could you talk about how they deal with these cases? >> this is very unique. we have never seen such a thing. we have been doing this for such a long time and we kw ice releases pple. they get them ready and call them to an area called intake. sometimes around 11:00 a.m. or so and there are some hours and around 3:00 to 7:00 p.m., people

get released throughout the afternoon, early evening. last friday, somebody texted me in the middle of the night, close to midnight but i did not see it until saturday morning, because we have to drive somebody to the airport very early to also go home. he had been released on friday. i was able to go pick him up saturday morning at 7:0 outside the detention center. it was 34 degrees. he had teased in the night outside the detention center -- he had to spenthe night outside e detention center. because of covid, they set up a tent because they cannot have people inside. so he literally spenthe night inside the tent. when i arrived to pick him up, he was extremely cold, wearing only a sweater. he was not wearing a mask.

this is retaliation. he had been organizing, supporting other people, helping .ther people to get released this is just ridiculous that ice will release somebody so late at night knowing there is no one there. nothing. this guy came from alaska. he had no idea where he was. juan: what is the response o ice to those who do attempt to either go on hunger strike or organizeithin the detention centers? >> right now we have seen a lot of people have stopped eating, not because they are on hunger strike, but things are getting so bad in the detention center that ty are told me to look, if you're not eating, will go to

the whole, which is the way people know is litary confinement. people litally go and grab the trade from the food carand just put the tray back just to make sure that ice thinks the're not on hunger strike, yet they're not eating. people are afraid. amy: i want to bring manuel abrego into this conversation. you have firsthand space of being in solitary confinement. these are civil jails. the crimes being charged are some kind of violation of immigration status. here you are put in the solitary confinement for eight months. what is it like? what are you hearing now that you have been released because of national outcry about how your held from the people you're taking calls from? are small.s they are like nine by 12. you don't he anything in there. it is just you. they don't let you use the

phone. they don't let you come out of your cell. it is like 23 hours a day you are in the cell just for complaining or protesting for what you believe strong, no? they give you the right to protest. in ice rules, they say you can protest, comfort dissipate in the hunger strike -- participate in the hunger strike if you feel your rights are being violated. they give you the right to do int but they put you segregation. juan: manuel, could you talk about what you're hearing on the hotline from people who are still in the northwest detention center? of being inscared there right now because of covid. and when they get quarantined,

they put you in segregation. and they don't have contact with anyone. we are their voice outside. it is like they're getting punished for everything going on with covid and the hunger strike and everything. they don't even want to eat because they think they're going to get infected. someone in the kitchen tested positive for covid. that is what is going on in there right now. juan: maru, could you talk about what you will president-elect biden does when he gets inaugurated on these detention centers? -- heinx and immigrants needs to deliver. we expect and in the first 100 days a moratorium on

deportations. and thatoesn't mean keeping people sitting in detention. down all thehut detention centers. a process for aboshing ice. reparations for everybody that has been in detention and has detention.ing in ice amy: thank you both for joining us. we will continue to cover this issue. maru mora villalpando and manuel abrego i the immigrant rights la resistencia. happy birthday to renée felt. 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. [captioning made possible by democracy now!] ai>úog

♪ thank you for joining us. from our studio in tokyo, this is nhk "newsline." we start in the u.s., with the central bank has pledged to continue still lating the economy. the federal reserve says it's going to keep buying bonds at its current pace to make ample funds available to the financial system amid a resurgence of coronavirus infections. policymakers announced their decision on wednesday after a