04/13/21 04/13/21 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> we are told it is an accident. i am going to tell you, is not an accident. daunte wright was killed for he was even stopped because he is a black man in america. amy: protests are continuing in the minneapolis area after a police officer shot and killed daunte wright during a traffic stop.

police now claim the white officer accidentally pulled her gun instead of her taser on the 20-year-old african-american man. the shooting took place about 10 miles from where former minneapolis officer derek chauvin is on trial for killing george floyd. on monday, philonese floyd told jurors his older brother was a mama's boy who was devastated by her death in 2018. >> used to say, "mama" over and over again. i did not know what to tell him because i was in pain, too. we all were. he was just kissing her. he did not want to leave the casket. amy: we will go to minneapolis to look at the killing of daunte wright and the trial of derek chauvin. then we will speak to ben jealous, president of people for the american way, about the right-wing smear attack targeting kristen clarke -- president biden's pick to become the first black woman to head the justice department's civil

rights division. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman. a warning to our audience, our top stories contain graphic footage and descriptions of police violence. in minnesota, police fired tear gas, rubber-coated bullets, and stun grenades as protesters defied a curfew and took to the streets of the minneapolis suburb of brooklyn center for a second straight night. they were demanding justice for daunte wright, a 20-year-old black man shot dead by a police officer during a traffic stop sunday. state authorities have identified the officer who killed wright as kimberly potter, a 26-year police veteran who has served as the police union president for the department. she has been placed on administrative leave. on monday, brooklyn center

police chief tim gannon claimed potter accidentally pulled a gun instead of a taser. he also played an excerpt of body camera footage showing the police shooting. >>1 taser taser! taser! i just shot him. amy: according to "the star tribune," daunte wright is the sixth person killed by brooklyn center police since 2012. five of the six have been men of color. on monday, the director of the minnesota chapter of the council on american-islamic relations joined calls for officer kim potter to face criminal charges. this is jaylani hussein. >> we are told it is an accident. but i'm going to tell you, it is not an accident. daunte wright was killed before he was even stopped because he is a black man in america. daunte wright was killed by this

white officer because she did not see his humanity. she did not believe that black lives matter. amy: the police killing of daunte wright took place just 10 miles from downtown minneapolis, where former officer derek chauvin is on trial for killing george floyd last may. on monday, a cardiologist called as an expert witness by the prosecution testified that floyd died due to oxygen deprivation, not from drugs or a heart condition, after derek chauvin pressed him into the pavement for over nine minutes. another expert witness, law professor and former police officer seth stoughton, blasted chauvin's actions. >> no reasonable officer believed that was appropriate, except of a, or reasonable use tearful testimony as the -- amy: george floyd's brother philonise gave tearful testimony as the prosecution wrapped up its case. derek chauvin's defense is due to call its first witnesses today. after headlines, we'll go to minneapolis for the latest on

the police killings of daunte wright and george floyd. u.s. health officials are calling for an immediate pause in the use of johnson & johnson's single-dose covid-19 vaccine after six recipients developed a rare complication from blood clots within two weeks of their vaccinations. one woman died and another has been hospitalized in critical condition. it's not known if the vaccine caused the disorders. the centers for disease control reports as many as 100,000 people regularly die of blood clots each year, and clotting is often a symptom of covid-19. on monday, the u.s. recorded 70,000 new cases as the covid-19 death toll passed 562,000. the cdc reports 120 million u.s. residents have received at least one dose of a vaccine. the world health organization warns global covid-19 cases are continuing to rise exponentially, with 4.4 million

positive tests last week -- the seventh straight week of increases. among the hardest hit nations are india, which reported more than 160,000 new infections tuesday, and brazil, where covid-19 deaths have topped 355,000 -- second only to the united states. in russia, gernment stistics show over 360,000 excess deaths in 2020. the finding strongly suggests russia sought to cover up the true toll of the pandemic, as it reported just 57,000 deaths from covid-19 last year. in the philippines, far-right president rodrigo duterte made his first public appearance in nearly two weeks monday, seeking to end speculation about whether he'd fallen ill from a coronavirus infection. >> if you want me to die early, you must pray for that. amy: duterte said he would waive his chance to get a covid-19 vaccine, outraging public health officials who've called on him

to be vaccinated in public in order to combat vaccine hesitancy. this week, duterte's administration relaxed sweeping lockdown measures for the capital manila and surrounding regions despite a record surge in infections that's threatening to overwhelm hospitals. the philippines is now the worst-affected country in southeast asia. philippines have received a covid-19 vaccination, a tiny fraction of the nation's population of 110 million. meanwhile, england has begun reopening pubs, gyms, and restaurants after months of lockdown. covid-19 cases in the u.k. have plummeted due to one of the world's fastest mass-vaccination programs, with some 40 million doses administered. in brussels, european union officials are deciding whether to allow emergency use of russia's sputnik v vaccine after many european nations suspended

use of astrazeneca's vaccine for younger people amid reports of rare incidents of blood clots. in clinical trials, the two-dose sputnik v outperformed astrazeneca with over 90% efficacy at preventing covid-19. regeneron pharmaceuticals has asked the u.s. food and drug administration to expand emergency use of its monoclonal antibody cocktail. regeneron says a clinical trial showed its drug reduced the risk of symptomatic infection by over 80% among people who lived in the same household as someone who tested positive for coronavirus. in immigration news, human rights defenders are condemning the biden administration's agreements with mexico, honduras, and guatemala to further militarize their borders and regions in an attempt to keep asylum seekers from reaching the united states. white house press secretary jen psaki said monday the objective is to make people's journey north and crossing through borders more difficult. erika guevara-rosas, amnesty international's americas director, denounced biden's move and said --

"instead of deploying more troops, governments in the region must respect and uphold people's rights to seek asylum and live in safety." to see our full interview with her, you can go to democracynow.org. the united nations is warning the entire population of saint vincent habeen left without access to clean water as a volcano continues to spew ash and hot gas over the caribbean island nation. the u.n. says about 20,000 evacuees are in need of shelter. cruise ships dispatched to ferry saint vincent residents to safety refused to pick up passengers unless they could prove they'd been vaccinated against covid-19, and some neighboring islands said they would only take in vaccinated people. in japan, government officials have announced plans to release more than tonnes of contaminated one million water from the damaged fukushima nuclear power station back into the ocean. the plans are drawing condemnation from china, south korea, environmental groups, and local fishers who worry the industry will be further impacted.

japanese officials say the water release will begin in about two years and that the process will likely take decades. back in the united states, convicted rapist and former hollywood movie mogul harvey weinstein appeared by video link in a new york court monday, where a judge is weighing whether to extradite him to california to face new charges of rape and sexual assault on five women. weinstein's next court hearing is set for april 30. actor will smith and director antoine fuqua are moving production of their upcoming film "emancipation" out of georgia in a protest against voter suppression legislation signed by republican governor brian kemp in february. -- brian in march. in a joint statement, smith and fuqua write -- "we cannot in good conscience provide economic support to a government that enacts regressive voting laws that are designed to restrict voter access. the new georgia voting laws are reminiscent of voting impediments that were passed at the end of reconstruction to prevent many americans from voting." in "emancipation," will smith

will portray an enslaved man known as "whipped peter," who escaped a louisiana plantation and joined the union army in 1863. in georgia, the southern center for human rights is demanding better treatment and conditions for people incarcerated at the lee arrendale state prison -- where advocates say people who have just given birth are being shackled or placed in solitary confinement in violation of state and federal law. in a letter to the prison's warden, the group says people have described being placed in solitary within days of giving birth, sometimes without being able to change out of the bloodied clothing they wore during childbirth. the group also warns of using solidarity confinement to detain people who've contracted covid-19, who are often held in filthy cells with malfunctioning plumbing, insufficient water and personal hygiene products. fox news is defending prime time host tucker carlson over his

on-air defense of the white-supremacist "great replacement" theory. on april 8, carlson made these comments as he lashed out against immigrants and the democratic party. >> the left and other gatekeepers on twitter become literally hysterical if you use the term "replacement" if you suggest the democratic party is trying to replace the current electorate -- the vote now casting ballots -- with more obedient voters from the third world. they become hysterical. that is what is happening. it is true. amy: tucker carlson's reference to "replacement" echoed the words of violent white supremacists who marched in charlottesville, virginia, in 2017 chanting, "you will not replace us" and "jews will not replace us." the anti-defamation league called on fox news to fire carlson, calling his comments "anti-semitic, racist, and toxic." "tucker carlson tonight" was former president trump's favorite fox news program and is the most popular cable news show in history. "the washington post" reports domestic terrorism incidents surged to a record high in 2020

fueled by white-supremacist, anti-muslim, and anti-government extremists on the far right. "the post" found that since 2015, right-wing extremists have been involved in 267 plots or attacks leading to 91 deaths. and the national collegiate athletic association, the ncaa, saidonday it firmly and unequivolly suppts ansgendestudent hletes in t face of republin-led effos to n trans hletes from schl spor. the ncahas alsoowed to ld ampionshs only iplaces that areree of dcriminatn. in a statement, it says -- "our clear expectation is that all student-athletes will be treated with dignity and respect." almost 3state leslatures are considering bills nning tran students from competing in school sports. four states -- mississippi, nnessee, aansas, a idaho -- have already enacted such bans. and those are some of the headlines. 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. juan: welcome to all of our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. amy: we begin today's show with a warning. a warning to our audience, this segment contains graphic footage and accounts of police violence. protests are continuing in the minneapolis area after a white police officer shot and killed a 20-year-old black man, daunte wright, during a traffic stop sunday afternoon in the minneapolis suburb of brooklyn center. the deadly shooting took place about 10 miles from where former minneapolis police officer derek chauvin is on trial for killing george floyd. on monday, police fired tear gas, rubber-coated bullets, and stun grenades as protesters defied a curfew and took to the streets brooklyn center for a second straight night. police said 40 people were arrested.

more than a dozen were arrested during protests in minneapolis. just before he was killed, daunte wright called his mother to say he was being pulled over -- allegedly because an air freshener was obscuring his rearview mirror. on monday night, daunte's aunt called into cnn. >> my brother, my sister they should not have to be bearing their son. over the air freshener. they stopped him over air freshener. let's get that correct. his tag was not expired. my sister had just bought him that car. people want to try to look for something bad to go ahead and justify this. how about we just justify this man's life was taken?

i took my man's life from him most of my great nephew has to now grow up not even knowing, not even being able to touch his father. you tell me iit all right to take somebody's life over a misdemeanor warrant? you've got these politicians out here smoking weed. they did. amy: that was the aunt of daunte wright on cnn. state authorities have identified the officer who killed daunte wright as kimberly potter, a 26 year police veteran who served as the police union president for the department. she has been placed on administrative leave. on monday, the police chief in brooklyn center claimed potter accidentally pulled her gun instead of a taser. the police department also released body cam footage of the shooting. >> taser1

taser1 taser! i just shot him. amy: according to "the star tribune," daunte wright is the sixth person killed by brooklyn center police since 2012. five of the six have been men of color. brooklyn center mayor mike elliot, who is the town's first black mayor, spoke to reporters monday. >> our hearts are aching right now. we are in pain right now. we recognize this could not have happened at a worse time. we recognize this is happening at a time when our community, when all of america, indeed all of the world, is watching. -- is watching our community and that we are all collectively devastated, and we have been for over a year now by the killing

of george floyd, and that we continue to be distressed as we go through the derek chauvin trial. so having a police-involved shooting happened in our community and killing a young man is heartbreaking and unfathomable. amy: on monday night, the brooklyn city city council voted to give command authority of the police to the mayor stripping the power from the city manager. soon after the vote, the mayor announced brooklyn center's city manager had been fired. earlier in the day, the city manager refused to name the officer who shot daunte wright. he was questioned by civil rights attorney nekima levy-armstrong. >> can you release her name? >> i won't do that at this moment. >> why?

>> it would be inappropriate. >> what was inappropriate was killing daunte wright under the circumstances. you're working to protect a killer cop than a victim of police murder. amy: that was nekima levy-armstrong questioning brooklyn center city manager curt boganey just hours before he was fired. nekima joins us now from minneapolis. a civil rights attorney, activist, and execute director of wayfinder foundation. she previously served as president of the minneapolis naacp. we are also joined by jaylani hussein, executive director of the minnesota chapter of the council on american-islamic relations. nekima levy-armstrong we welcome you both. nekima levy-armstrong, let's continue where you are questioning. talk about what took place on sunday and also why you felt it

was a critical to lay these facts out. >> thank you, amy. from our understanding, daunte wright driving in his car, minding his own business -- a ne car -- and he was pulled over for having an air freshener hanging on his mirror. his mom was on the phone with him during that traffic stop. she heard him asking the police, "why are you pulling me over?" then she heard them ordering him out of the car. the next thing you know, the fund disconnects. a few minutes later, she gets a call back from the girlfriend who was in the car with him, letting her know that daunte had been shot. in the aftermath of all of that, we went to the site where daunte killed. his body lay in the street for

five hours waiting for the bureau of criminal apprehension to come and pick up his by. that agitated the crowd. tensions were high. after daunte's body was removed, we would to the ooklyn center police department were over 100 young people were outside demonstrating. and one of the most shocking aspects of the situation was that the police chief and the city manager ordered that the lights be turned off all around the police station putting us in significant danger. juan: nekima levy-armstrong, i went to go back to the issue of why daunte stopped. so much of policing over the past 20 years in america has been based on this theory of the broken windows theory. stop and detain a suspect for

a minor issue in the hope of being able to discover some bigger cminal activity. this has been at the heart of some many of these stops. i'm wondering, fromhat you can tell, has this been a writing policy in the minneapolis policy and has there been any attempt by city or police officials to change that policy? >> unfortunately, there has not been a serious attempt to change thphenomenon of driving while black, which is something that happens to black people on a routine basis in the twin cities and across the state of minnesota. several years ago, african-american residents and activists push for a bill that would end racial profiling. but legislators at that time did not follow through on their promises to address the issue. and so black people in the twin cities and across the state of minnesota are pulled over significantly -- at rights and

our white counterparts. it is sometimes led to the kind of fatalities we saw with daunte wright philando castile, d many others. juan: and what do you know in terms of this history of politicking alert police officer -- particular police officer kim potter. she had been a union president in the past but also she was identified as the role in advising an officer in a previous killing, 2019 killing of another man? >> let me clear about the fact that what this woman kim potter being a 26 yeareteran, there's absolutely no plausible way that she mistook her gun for a taser. or her taser for a gun. it is unfathomable she would even make that excuse. in terms of our previous killing of a young black man who had

autism, kim potter was involved in advising the officers to take separate cars and other acts that they could take in order to be trying to cover up what happened to that man. his family has been in morning since his life was taken. and he enjoyed several other people of color who have been killed by the brooklyn center police department. amy: i went to bring jaylani hussein into the conversation, executive director of the minnesota chapter of the council on american-islamic relations. you have been out on the street from the beginning of the protest. you're trying to get the police to calm down. this was afterwards and how they dealt with the protesters. can you layout what you understood and also seeing that horrific videotape -- it was other officers who stopped daunte and his girlfriend as he is talking to his mother on the phone and he has a little air

freshener piece hanging from the rearview mirror? but when you see that videotape, she doesn't just draw the gun and shoot. you see it for a few seconds as she said "taser." there is even a different color handle on the taser. wouldn't someone say, "that is your gun"? let alone, why any of this had come to join guns on young man who had some air freshener hanging from the mirror >> absolutely. thank you for having me. again, all of us right now are sending our condolences to this family. we don't know what to say to families anymore. sadly, i the unfortunate reality is that as everybody's watching the chauvin trial right now somewhat that something has

ndamentally changed to actually hopefully -- hold people accntable. this is a testament that american policing is as dangerous as they are. as you mentioned video my first of all, police officers are trned to pull the taser from the opposite side. you are right. you taser has a completely different feel. it is much lighter. and this officer, who has been there for 26 years, should know better. but you are right. as i said yesterday and will continue to say, this officer did not believe in the humanity of daunte wright. and for her to immediately pull anything for young man who was cooperating, a young man who followed instruction, a young man who showed no visibility of threat to be shot in that manner is absolutely the reality of policing in america.

they are deadly. they kill black and brown people. and this is exactly what has been happening. and this is why america needs to wake up and policies have to be put in place to hold these killer cops accountable. and i think many people are trying to did themselves in the sand right now thinking, oh, no, this did not happen. it did happen. a young man was killed while you're watching the derek chauvin trial. to be honest with you, amy, it is gut wrenching. as you said, the evening, peaceful protesters standing outside the police -- not a single person. i was one of the few people there early. not a single person was even on the sidewalk of the police department until nearly 50 officers came with riot gear. and many had been planing for this during dust because of the chauvin trial.

they came out and started to agitate protesters and, god forbid, there was a major accident because they were literally firing flashbangs that other types of projectiles at apartment buildings were children were in their home literally no regard for children, no regard for families that lived across the police department. we were on the call with the mayor who, fortunately, i need the city did not have authority. the police chief did. and they refused to even talk to us. i remember talking to one of t officers on the scene. i said, who was in command? they said the police chief. we said we need to talk to him. they said he is busy planning. meaning he is busy terrorizing our community. which is what happened. it is an unfortunate time right now for all of us. but the unbelievable thing that happened in brooklyn center is exactly the reality and this

will continue to happen, sadly, until something fundamentally changes. juan: jaylani hussein you mention you are on the phone with the mayor. can you talk about this issue of this unelected city manager actually being in charge of the police? many small towns and cities across the country use the system of city managers but there really accountable to no one, unlike the mayor or the city council. what is your sense of what happened there? >> mayor mike elliott that night was responsive to all of us. we talked to him about on the scene to remove the police officers initially where they had killed daunte wright. and he was working that entire night in communication with us and community leaders as you said. the charter of the city of

brooklyn center has given full authority of this city manager to direct and lead the police department. when the mayor, my understanding, called the city manager and told him of the demands of community, he ignored it. he has been there for 20 plus years. yesterday, as you saw, we demanded for the firing of th city manager, the police chief, and the officer. and just the process the police department has created -- the policy it has created to shield self from any type of accountability was displayed. that they could not even fire the police chief until they fire first of all the city manager, until they change the charter -- or at least change any ordinance to be able to have control of the police department. this is the reality. the mayor really could not do anything even though he was trying to plead to de-escalate

the situation while the police were escalating. amy: and the governor walz went right from talking about this, he said he was going to, the minnesota legislature, demanding that legislation that was introduced after george floyd was killed be passed. jaylani hussein, can you talk about why that h not happened yet? >> for folks who are not aware, i know minnesota is a little bit of a flyover state, but this is one of the racist states in the union. it is racist becse f the longest time, no policies around police accountability -- or really any other serious issues, have been raised but nothing has been done because minnesota has one of the disparitiesn economics, education for people of color. it continuously has been and has gotten worse. politicians, couldn't democrats come have claimed they are addressing this issues but when all is is presented to them,

they have done nothing. we have been proposing nearly eight bill since the summer and we have been faced with opposition, faced with absolutely no action. it has been the democrats. we have not even had a chance to fight with republicans. the same democrat leaders who were telling us that they care about these issues, who did not do anything last that, talking about now it is time to pass accountability. where we were already in the middle of a reckoning with the killing of george floyd i now the trial of derek chauvin and those officers. i hope that may be more people can wake up and see the reality that minnesota, the state that killed george floyd, has done nothing while other states are trying to at least attempt to pass some legislation. i think people need to wake up and realize this has never been a problem just in the republicans who really stand with the police, but also democrats failed to hold up

their end of the bargain. amy: jaylani hussein, thank you for being with us, executive director of the minnesota chapter of the council on american-islamic relations. when we come back, we will talk about the derek chauvin trl. we would like to ask nekima levy-armstrong to stay with us, civil rights attorney, activist, and executive director of wayfinder foundation. we will also be speaking with ben jealous as we look at the case of derek chauvin. it also, who will be next to head the civil rights division of the department of justice? which bears on all of this? stay with us. ♪♪ [music break]

amy: "is it because i'm black" by syl johnson. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. we continue to talk about what is happening in minnesota, and after the trial of former nneapolis police officer derek chauvin on trial for murdering orge floyd. the trial is taking place 10 miles from where white police officer killed daunte wright, a 20-year-old black man sunday. on monday, a cardiologist called as an expert witness by the prosecution testified that floyd died due to oxygen deprivation after chauvin kneeled on his neck for over nine minutes. george floyd's brother philonese also testified and talked about how close george was to his mother, who died in 2018. >> and would we went to the funeral, george just sat at the casket, over and over again,

would say "mama." over and over again. i did not know to tell him because i was in pain, too. we all were. he was just kissing her. he was kissing her. he did not want to leave the casket. everybody was like, "come on. it is going to be ok." it was difficult because i don't know can take that when you watch your mother, somebody who loved and cherished you and nursed you for your entire life, and then they have to leave you. we all have to go through it, but it is difficult. george, he was just in pain the entire time. >> you indicated your mother passed away may 30, 2018? >> yes, sir. >> a picture of your mother and george when he was younger. >> yes, sir. >> permission to publish?

sir, would you please describe this photo and what you know about it. >> that is my mother. she is no longer with us right now. that is my oldest brother george. i miss both of them. i was married on may 24. my brother was killed may 25. my mom died on may 30. it is like that are sweet because i'm supposed to be happy when that month comes. amy: george floyd's brother philonese testifying on monday. derek chauvin's defense is that to call their first offense witnessed today. to talk more about the trial of derek chauvin, we are staying with nekima leevy-armstrong, a minneapolis-based civil rights attorney, activist, and executive director of wayfinder foundation.

former president of the minneapolis naacp. can you talk about the wrapping up of the prosecution? once again, one officer after another, the leaders of the minneapolis police department, and then experts saying that it was not a heart attack, it was not drugs, it was the cutting off of the oxygen supply by chauvin's knee, the significance of this? and also the defense asking to sequester the jury given what happened with the murder of another african-american man down the road -- but of course, the judge said no? >> prosecutors finished their case as strongly as they started in ter of humanizing george floyd, pting on extremely emotional testimony from the bystanders early on, as well as from george floyd's brother,

provided what is called spark of life testimony in the state of minnesota. one of the things that i think is important as a result of the testimony of george floyd's brother is the fact his testimony paints a picture for the jury what george flo's life made to the family and to the community and how his death has impacted them. i also think the state did a really good job of providing expert witness testimony in the form of medical evidence as well as use of force testimony, and also helping to break what some may call the blue wall of silence by having so many police officers testified in the prosecution's case against george floyd. we know in trial, the blue wall of silence -- it is a start. the cheap has been able to set the tone for the department in

terms of his expectation and sending a signal to officers that they will not be allowed to get away with this kind of behavior. now on the flipside, there are folks who feel the only reason the officers have testified is because the world is watching. and i believe there is a lot of truth to that because some of the underlying issues within the minneapolis police department culture have not yet change. in terms of yesterday's motion hearing, we heard from the defense counsel nelson that the unrest that happened on sunday night would have any impact on the jury so he was recommending that the jury be sequestered. judge cahill made the best decision in refusing to sequester the jury and articulating these are two separate incidences. what happened in brooklyn center as a rult of the kling of

daunte wright at the hands of the police is not the same as at is happening in the trial of derek chauvin in the killing of george floyd. juan: i wanted to ask you in terms of the decision by governor tim walz to issue a curfew for several counties in the twin cities area from 7:00 p.m. until 6:00 a.m. tuesday and given the fact we are dealing with -- this is the beginning of ramadan, your thoughts on these restrictions? >> i think the restrictions e ridiculous, from my perspective, as someone who has bn out on the front lines -- i have been out close ties along with other organizers. it is really settinghat the governor would issue a curfew rather that working actively to curb police violence. anset the te by using his bully pulpit, pushing for policy

changes and advocating for the rights of black people and other people of color who have been abused by police. instead what we are significant or push for more funding for law enforcement, bring in the national guard come help them set up barricades and chain-link fencing around the courthouse and other buildings throughout the twin city, and now this ditional curfew. many other peoe last night and usually violated the curfew because they are sending a signal that they are fed up with police violence in the state of minnesota a not feeling safe as black people in the community. amy: nekima levy-armstrong, inc. you being with us, minneapolis-based civil rights attorney, activist, and executive director of wayfinder foundation. when we come back, we will be joined by the former head of the national naacp, now president of people for the american way. we will be joined by ben jealous to talk about not only the

chauvin trial, but the right wing smear campaign targeting kristen clarke, president biden's nominee to head the civil rights division of the department of justice. her hearing begins wednesday. stay with us. ♪♪ [music break]

juan: "when i'm 64" by the beatles. amy today we want to wish you a very happy 64th birthday. it seems only yesterday you were a young rebel reporter. now you are a mature rebel reporter. amy: thank you. it is wonderful to spend this day with you or at least this hour, with our listeners, viewers, and readers. such difficult times that we have to deal with. no better group of people to deal with these radical issues. thank you so much. this is democracy now! i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. we're continuing to talk about what is happening in minnesota and around this country amid

ongoing police abuse hate crimes and increasing attacks on voting rights. we look now at president biden's nomination of kristen clarke, head of the lawyers' committee for civil rights under law, to become the first black woman to lead the justice department's civil rights division -- what the former attorney general eric holder called the agency's crown jewel. clarke is set to appear wednesday before the senate for her confirmation hearing amid an onslaught of attacks from republicans. so far this year, the far-right fox news host tucker carlson has devoted at least five segments to attacking clarke's nomination. last month, he interviewed maureen faulkner, widow of the philadelphia police officer -- widow of the police officer who mumia abu-jamal was convicted of killing. faulkner accused clarke of working to free mumia, even though clarke worked on voting rights while she was with the naacp legal defense fund, not

mumia abu-jamal's case. support for mumia abu-jamal was also used in 2014 to attack the nomination of another black civil rights attney, debo adegbile, to the same doj position. he actually worked on the case unlike clarke, though that is hardly disqualifying. this is faulkner attacking clarke on fox. >> she hates white people. that is my honest to god truth feeling and she wants to defund the police. she is a vile woman. and she is dangerous. i know she has said things about the jewish people and now she seems to be backpedaling on all of this. now that she's been called out on it. amy: in fact, krten clarke is a longtime champion of voting rights, a defender against hate and violent extremism, and a supporter of equality for all. this is video released by the people for the american way in support of clarke. >> my name isusan and i worked

fo26 years andedison in new york. this w the good old boyslub. they would make commentars about your chest or your behind. en wmet kristen clarke, we found somebody that believed in us. she gave us our life back. she said to comment, you will treat everybody equal. kristin really did make our fighher fight. now we need to make her fight our fight. tell your senator to pport kristen clarke. amy: kristen clarke's confirmation hearing comes as another civil rights lawyer, vanita gupta, awaits a senate vote on her nomination to become the justice department's assistant attorney general. from our, we go to ben jealous, president of people for the american way, former president of the naacp. welcome back to democracy now!

also for gubernatorial candidate in maryland. if you can comment on this right wing smear attack on kristen clarke? >> first of all, happy birthday, amy. amy: thanks. >>he iro of hearing a guest on tucker carlsen's show accuse anyone of being anti-semitic, let alone racist against a group of people, just sits with me. earlier this week the anti-defamation league called for him to be fired because of his anti-semitism in the civil rights community has long been concerned about his racism. but that is what the right wing do. there has never been a woman of color to lead the united states department of justice civil rights division. there have only been two black men to ever lead it. and whenever one comes up, they make sport, quite frankly, of trying to destroy their

character, trying to defame their character, destroy the reputation. they s women of color as being very vulnerable --hich is why we launched her fight/our fight campaign. by appointing a number of women of color. we can already see the right wing aack, getting out the sharp knives to go after each of these minees. juan: could you talk about why you think kristen clarke is the best person for the job right now? >> she is incredible. she is incredible. represented the league of women voters for years on a number of voting rights cases. she has been down in the trenches on gender discrimination, on race discrimination, making sure -- as miss cartels i, everyone is

treated equal. when you meet her, she lights up a room where her commitment to really ensuring the constitution has meaning for all the people of this country. that is who you want leading the civil rights division. the trouble is the republican party, massive assault on voting rights and defending the rights of cops, and the last thing they want in this moment is a fully staffed united states department of justice civil rights division by a civil rights lawyer, led by a voting rights lawyer. that is there nightmare right now. they're trying to pretend she is something that she is not. she is incredible fighter for the justice equality of all. juan: what about the situation with vanita goodell, the judiciary committee basically

deadlocked by the long parts and, her nomination? what is your sense of how women of color are being dealt with even in the biden administration right now by senate republicans? >> the good news is the senate democrats intend to get gupta out of committee and they have the votes. we are confident about that. with regard to the republicans -- i'll get to do is go back and roll the tape on h ted cruz went after ms.upta. it w vile. it was an embarrassment. it was full of lies and venom. his extent how -- it speaks to how fearful a party has become characterized by powers, by people like kemp in georgia, people like donald trump who would rather some rest votes that compete for voters -- suppress votes and compete for voters.

when they go about the work of preserving the right of the worst officers to kill black people with impunity. and nico if you can talk about the climate we are in right now as we talk about the killing of daunte wright, this young 20-year-old, the father of an infant, driving with his girlfriend on a sunday afternoon to a carwash at 2:00 in the afternoon and he is killed by a white police officer in brooklyn center. we have derek chauvin, now the defense begins. we're talking to you from maryland, becoming the first state to repeal the police bill of rights andse establish new standards for use of force and how police are investigated and disciplined. the majority democratic lawmakers overrode the vetoes by republican governor larry hogan to pass the new measures, which

also require officers to use body cameras, strict no-knock warrants. he ran against larry hogan. can you talk about whether uc -- you see these kind of developments as enough? you also talk about changes in police department like we see in at the guy new york and yet -- ithaca, new york, at the pace of police murders on unarmed african-american men? >> we are seeking to destroy, jen and the system that has rained in our country for hundreds of years in which black people can be killed with impunity. in the state of minnesota what we know is there is an authoritarianism that runs through law enforcement as well as racism.

but in between philando castile and george floyd, justine damon was killed also a white woman was killed by a black officer. she was having a seizure, as i recall. similar to what we saw in the case with the 20-year-old in brooklyn park, she was noncompliant because she was having a seizure. she was shot and killed. in this case, he was noncompliant and was shot and killed. they said they were going to tase her. the person behind the wheel of a car. we have got to get in this country where does what is also portant about that case, he called his mom afraid. he was with his girlfriend. he called his mother afraid of what they may dto him. his father was out grocery shopping. it is every black pents nightmar while it soun possible he did not make the best decisions in that moment, there are plenty of

young white people who don't make the best decisions when dealing with officers who do not end up dead. and that is what we really have to take -- yes, what is exciting about what we seeing in upstate new york in ithaca is they have taken a step back and said, we need to put police under direct civilian control. cap a civilian-led public safety department. we need to take that half of the work that is really social work, dealing with drunks, dealing with homeless people, and --let's replace them with a number of social workers. that is a kind of thinking we need. we need the thinking in this moment were society are deeply committed to people -- we want everyone to be safe, how do we build public safety departments

that represent who we are today rather than maintain a culture that takes you right back to the worst era in our history? juan: on some of the conservative right-wing talk shows, you're saying -- seeing increasing reporting on the rise in crime and violence that is occurring across the country. i am wondering, as if to say, see what happened is a result of criticism and more accountability on the police crime is rising. i am wondering your response? i remember when i was a young reporter in the 1980's and 1990's, never forget the night of the crown height riot in brooklyn and i was standing next to several policemen who were standing by doing nothing while there was increasing violence and industry. i heard juan: say to the other

-- one cup to the other, "now the city will see what dinkins people are going to be doing." as if to say, "let them write it." i'm wondering what degree do you feel police department's are standing down innocence and allowing violence and crime to escalate as a way of showing the society how much they are needed? >> lets do with both issues separately. if you go back to commissioner kelly who became famous tn the dinkins of administration, just on the issue of crime rising and falling, he said, taking credit for that is like taking credit for the moon or the sun rising or setting. that is under normal times and normal circumstances. did you have what appears to be going on now where such a preponderance of anecdotes of black parents calling the department and being told, oh,

the kids are worried about our blog? we can't respond because we're worried about how we will be responded. of officers, unions having conversations about what will happen -- positive face backup back, if a statement of the station, if they don't respond. and i hope somewhere there's a lawyer considering bringing a civil rico case against these fops. the fop in minneapolis, let's not forget they issued a press statement calling that fop in minneapolis a white supremacist organization. we have unions that represent police officers that have gone way beyond -- it appears

officers not protect the people they have sworn to protect in order to strengthen the union's position. amy: we have to leave it there, ben jealous, president of the people for american way, former president of the naacp. very happy bgñgú

. welcome back. thank you for joining us again on nhk "newsline." iran's state-run television has reported that the country informed the international atomic energy agency that it will start enriching uranium to 60% purity from wednesday. the announcement came a day after tehran blamed israel for a power failure at a nuclear facility. >> we jus