05/09/22 05/09/22 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> i have never seen such destruction. we have seen many wars in films, but never such destruction. it is a mockery. amy: out russian versus intensify their attack in ukraine, russian president putin fense the invasion on this the day of the day in 1945 when

russia, the soviet union, defeated the nazis. some u.s. lawmakers are openly calling it a proxwar between the u.s.nd russi we will spea with anatol lieven who says giving ukraine intel on russian generals is a risky gamble. he argues ukraine is already winning, victory can be achieved without risking nuclear war. then in a major development in the ongoing attack on the lives of transgender people in the united states, alabama has become the first state to make it a felony to provide gender affirming medical care to trans youth. advocates say the law can deeply harm the mental health of trans is a major survey shows they already face a high risk of suicide and depression. then an historic election in northern ireland. >> today a new era which i

believes presents us all with an opportunity to reimagine relationships on equality and social justice. amy: on friday, the sinn féin partywon the most seats for the first time ever. reuniting with the republic of ireland. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in a major speech in moscow's red square, russian vladimir putin has defended his invasion of ukraine saying it was needed to preemptively rebuff nato. putin did not declare our broader were in ukraine as many under the west have predicted. putin spoke earlier today as part of a victory celebration to mark the soviet union's victory over nazi germany in 1945.

>> preparations were openly underway for another punitive operation on a donbas and invasion of our historic lands, including crimea. kyiv has announced a possible acquisition of nuclear weapons. this was an absolutely unacceptable threat, systematically created for us and write on our borders. russia has primitively rebuffed the aggression will stop it was forced, timely, and the only right position for the decision about independent country. amy: president putin spoke of some u.s. lawmakers are openly describing the fighting in ukraine as a proxy war between the united states and russia. this is democratic congressmember seth moulton, who serves on the house armed forces committee, speaking on fox news. >> we are not just at war to support ukraine's, we are fundamentally at war with russia

, through proxy, and important we win. amy: in recent days, u.s. officials have leaked information alleging u.s. intelligence was used by ukraine to kill russian generals a to sink russia's moskva war ship. the pentagon has publicly acknowledged providing ukraine what it calls battlefield intelligence, but it denies providing "specific targeting information." president biden has reportedly criticized the leaks saying they have been counterproductive. in other developments, up to 60 people are feared to have died after russia shelled a school in ukraine's luhansk region where scores of people were seeking shelter. in the besieged city of mariupol, all women, children, and elderly people have been evacuated from the steel plant where they were holed up for two months. fighting at the plant continues. this comes as the g7 has announced new sanctions on russia, including a ban or phase

out of russian oil imports. meanwhile, first lady jill biden made a surprise trip on mother's day to western ukraine where she met with ukraine's first lady olena zelenska. it was the first time she was seen in public in's the war began. meanwhile, canadian justin trudeau made a surprise visit to kyiv on sunday. in northern ireland, the sinn féin party has won the most seats in northern ireland's parliament for the first time. sinn fein is the former political wing of the ira, the irish republican army, which for decades fought against british rule of northern ireland. sinn fein's vice president michelle o'neill appears poised to become the first catholic to lead northern ireland. o'neill is a supporter of plans to reunify northern ireland with the republic of ireland. >> those of us that are for unification, or to those who don't have that perspective at this moment in time to also

enter into the conversation, let's have a healthy debate about what our future looks like. so it is better for each and every one of us. where we all have a valued place in society. amy: we will have more on the elections in northern ireland later in the program. voters in the philippines headed to the polls today for a closely watched presidential election. ferdinand marcos, jr., the son of the late filipino dictator, is expected to win the 10-way presidential race. his chief rival is leni robredo, the country's current vice president. under the philippines constitution, president rodrigo duterte could not seek a second term. ferdinand marcos, jr. has spent decades defending his father's brutal rule, which saw 34,000 people tortured and over 3200 murdered between 1965 and 1986. tomorrow on democracy now!, we will speak with the nobel prize-winning journalist maria ressa. in afghanistan, the taliban has issued a new dress code for

women, ordering them to cover their faces in public. repeated violations of the new decree could result in a woman's father or closest male relative being jailed for three days. the united nations' mission to afghanistan criticized the decree, saying -- "this decision contradicts numerous assurances regarding respect for and protection of all afghans' human rights." hong kong's former security chief john lee has been formally picked to head the city after chf executive carrie lam's termnds next month. lee's election is expected to further solidify china's control over hong kong. on sunday, he received 99% of the vote from hong kong's election committee. he was the only candidate in the running. as hong kong's security chief, lee oversaw the crackdown of protesters who were demanding more autonomy from beijing. sri lanka's prime minister has resigned, clearing the way for the formation of a new cabinet as sri lanka looks for way to end this devastating economic

crisis. the brother of the president, who has faced of nepotism and corruption since he installed three siblings and a high-level government post, large antigovernment protests in recent weeks have demanded the ouster of all members of the family. earlier today, supporters of the ruling party stormed a major protest site in the capital, attacking protesters and prompting clashes with police who fired tear gas and water cannons most of dozens were injured. authorities have ordered a nationwide curfew across sri lanka. a refugee aid group says at least 44 people drowned off the coast of moroccan-occupied western sahara sunday after their boat capsized as they attempted to reach the canary islands to request asylum. 12 others were arrested by moroccan authorities after they survived the ordeal. spain's interior ministry reports more than 40,000 migrants arrived in spain by sea in 2021. morocco says it stopped more than 63,000 crossings last year.

back in the united states, protests are continuing across the country to defend reproductive rights following last week's publication of a leaked supreme court draft opinion showing the court is poised to overturn roe v. wade. ov the weekend, demonstrators gathered outside the homes of chief justice john roberts and justice brett kavanaugh. this comes as a new cnn poll released friday shows two-thirds of the country opposes overturning roe v. wade. meanwhile, authorities in madison, wisconsin, are investigating a fire at the headquarters of an anti-choice group called wisconsin family action. no one was injured in the blaze. a message was spray painted on the building's exterior reading, "if abortions aren't safe then you aren't either." the biden administration is warning a new wave of covid-19 could infect 100 million people in the united states this fall and winter. the white house issued the

warning as it called on congress to approve $22.5 billion in new pandemic funding. dr. ashish jha, the white house covid-19 response coordinator, spoke to abc. >> we are looking at a range of models both internal and external models. and what they're predicting is if we don't get ahead of thi thing, we're going to have a lot of wing immunity, this virus continues to evolve, and we may see a pretty sizable weight of infections, hospitalizations, and deaths. amy: president biden has declared a major disaster in new mexico, where strong winds and continuing drought conditions have helped the calf canyon fire grow to become the second-largest fire in new mexico's recorded history. the fire began burning over a month ago, and is still less than 50% contained. it has scorched more than 275 square miles, an area larger than the city of chicago. it's one of six major fires currently burning in new mexico.

in havana, cuba, at least 31 people died and 54 people were injured friday after a massive explosion at a luxury hotel. the blast is believed to have been caused by a gas leak at the saratoga hotel, which was closed at the time for renovations. the explosion also damaged nearby buildings, including the historic martí theater. on sunday, cuban president miguel díaz-canel held talks in havana with mexican presidt andrés manuel lópez obrador, known as amlo, who was wrapping up a five-country tour. amlo criticized the biden administration over reports the s. will exclude cuba, nicaragua, and venezuela from next month's summit of the americas in los angeles. >> i will and sister president biden no country in america's be excluded from next month's summit be held in los angeles, california, and the authority's

of each country should freely decide whether or not to attend said meeting, but nobody should exclude anyone. amy: to see our interview with the deputy foreign minister, go to democracynow.org. during an earlier stop in guatemala, the mexican president criticized the united states for sending tens of billions of dollars to ukraine instead of fulfilling pledges to help latin american nations address the root causes of migration. >> there are many different things that we should not compare, but more than $30 billion have already been approved to support the war in ukraine and we have spent four years since president donald trump was proposing support with $4 billion to central america and to this day there has been nothing. amy: and in other news from mexico, a longtime journalist has been found dead in sinaloa state. luis enrique ramírez was a columnist at el debate. he is the ninth mexican journalist killed this year and the 34th to be killed since andrés manuel lópez obrador took office in 2018.

and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in a major speech in moscow's red square, russian president vladimir putin has defended his invasion of ukraine saying it was needed to preemptively rebuff nato. putin spoke at a miller. -- military parade to mark the soviet union's victory over nazi germany in 1945. . preparations were openly underway for another punitive operation on a donbas and invasion of our historic lands, crimea. kyiv has announced a possible acquisition of nuclear weapons. the nato block began military development of the territories adjacent to ours. this was an absolutely and acceptable threat systematically created for us and write on our borders. russia has preemptivy rebuffed the aggression. it was forced come a time to

come in the only right decision. the decision of a sovereign strong independent country. amy: in his speech, putin addressed soldiers fighting in the donbas region of eastern ukraine which russia has pledged to liberate from kyiv's control upon firm minute of silence for 51 russian fighters. but putin did not actually mention ukraine by name and he did not declare our broader war in ukraine as some have predicted. he spoke as some lawmakers, u.s. lawmakers, are openly describing the fighting in ukraine as a proxy war between the united states and russia. meanwhile, ukrainian president zelenskyy, the united states, the group of seven leaders announced a new round of sanctions against russia sunday, including a ban or phase out of russia oil imports. also on sunday, u.s.

first lady jill biden made an unannounced mother's day trip where she visited a school and met with the first lady of ukraine, who appeared in public for the first time since russia's invasion. for more, we're joined by anatol lieven, senior fellow at the quincy institute for responsible statecraft. his latest piece is headlined "giving ukraine into on russian generals is a risky gamble. he is author of a number of books on russia and the former soviet republics, including "ukraine and russia." his recent piece in the guardian is headlined "ukraine is already winning: victory can be achieved without risking nuclear war." i wanted to ask you about v-day. so many predicted president putin would declare war on ukraine today, victory day, when

the soviet union in 1945 declared victory over the nazis. but the fact is, while he did line the west for not agreeing to security issues in december, while he did talk about what is happening in ukraine as a class with neo-nazis and he did say donbas fighters are on their own land, what putin did not do was declare war on ukraine and he addressed the issue of the loss of russian soldiers. if you could comment on this and then talk about your latest piece where you say that u.s. providing intel, that ultimately, led to the killing of russian soldiers as well --

the killing of russian generals as well as the sinking of the battleship in the black sea is a mistake? >> yes. well, as to the victory day parade and putin's -- the fact he did not declare general mobilization in russia for war, i think this indicates they are going to go for a long, long campaign of ying to grind down the ukrainian army in the east so as to take the whole of the donbass region. what they will do after that is not clear. casualties have been so enormous, at some point they may offer a cease fire and negotiations -- ukraine has also proposed negotiations. on the killing of the geners,

it was well-known known in private, american intelligence was being very helpful to the ukrainians in their defense, it does seem to me that actually deliberately killing russian senior officers is a pretty provocative step, which are in the cold war, and other de would have contemplated doing because of the risk of escalation. and if, as has been the case so far and if one presumes it continues, u.s. and nato arms supplies to ukraine in continue to play a critical role in ukrainia military success in, then there is an obvious risk russia will try to terrify the west, particularly the europeans, of course come into supporting russian peace on russian terms for some sort of escalation.

putin did not declare anything of this kind today. clearly, russia has not made up its mind to this. but of course, the worst russia guys in ukraine and the longer the war lasts, the greater the temptation will be to escalate. basically to frighten off support of ukraine. amy: and the significance also of that u.s. actually admitting and provided intelligence, for example, on the battleship which is the flagship in the black sea , sinking, but apparently, behind-the-scenes, furious at the -- that the leak was made that says the was provided the intel and again in both cases, saying they did not provide the intel for the shito be sunk or the generals to be assassinated. >> well, bill burns, the head of

the cia, has very strongly criticized the leaks and tried to roll back on them but, certainly, people i know knowledgeable in this field believe the leaks were actually accurate. indeed, the u.s. is giving real-time intelligence to ukraine about russian targets, then this is very much what one would have predicted. but as i say, the targeting senior officers is a step further than that. once again, it goeseyond the tritional cia playbook and the kgb playbook, which you don't target commanders on either side because that does risk drastic escalation. amy: yesterday on may 8, president zelenskyy in ukraine compared russia's actions in ukraine to those of nazi germany sang the people has been reborn.

again, putin referred once again to what is happening in ukraine, the invasion is to fight neo-nazis. >> everybody is doing this now on both sides in the war propaganda. of course, these of the term "genocide" by both sides and the united states has become completely ridiculous, frankly. genocide is now being used as a synonym for any killing or even mild depression of civilians. i have to say to me as a historian, it is deeply insulting to victims of true genocide. it is just sloppy and either stupid or cynical propaganda on either side. amy: do you think the fact that really putin's speech was very muted today, again, did not talk

about this as a war and did not refer to it as he had as a special security operation, that he is really dealing with the blows of ukraine extremely armed by the west, fighting back, even taking back towns that the russians had occupied in the last week's? >> well, yes, indeed. putin has got russia into the most terrible mess in ukraine. so far, russia has not fully achieved any habits key objectives and it's initial one, to overthrow the craney government and support a hold of ukraine to russia, has failed completely. so now they are trying for a much more limited success in the east but they're making only the slowest progress on the ground. even toward that.

now, the putin propaganda and state machine has managed so far to rally a majority of the russian people behind the government and the campaign, but if this war goes on and on and russian cultural teas mount and mount -- casualties mount and mount and there is no russian victory, then the future of the putin regime must be in serious doubt sooner or later and undoubtedly, public discontent must grow, though how quickly, who can say? amy: i wanted to go to democratic commerce member seth moulton who serves on the house armed services committee, armed forces committee, who has joined a number of u.s. lawmakers in openly describing the fighting in ukraine as a proxy war between united states and russia. this is what he said. >> we're not just that were to support the cranes, we are fundamentally at war through

proxy of russia and it is important we win. amy: your response? >> all i can say is the representative ought to be working for vladimir putin because this kind of thing does wonderful for putin's propaganda partly because he can tell the russian people, oh, you know, it is not ukraine that is fighting to a standstill, we are fighting against the whole of nato and the united states. that makes russian defeat much easier to excuse and accept come in early mobilize russian nationalism behind the campaign. but also i think it is profoundly stupid as a strategy because it implies the u.s. is at war, which it isn't. it is providing weaponsnd intelligence. there are u.s. goals in this war which go beyond ukraine and ukrainian goals. because as president zelenskyy

has set again and again, this war end has to peace under some kind of peace -- end in some sort of peace agreement post of defeating russia and driving it out completely is a different matter from russia to a standstill. the risk that sooner or later russia will lose its temper and escalate in some way, by way of trying to frighten the west. for me, this is an extremely risky strategy and also a very stupid thing to say. amy: finally, you're wanting to the west right now? >> by the way, i should say i completely agree with western support to ukraine and also sanctions against russia, but the question is, what is the goal of this? is the goal peace and russian

withdrawal, which must be based on some type of territorial compromise over crimea and at least part of the donbas? is that what our pressure on russia and for ukraine is ming at or do we have a much, much greater and much moreangerous goal? i don't think western governments are clear about this. i think they are divided. and i think we really need to achieve clarity on this critical point. amy: anatol lieven, thank you for being with us, senior fellow at the quincy institute for responsible statecraft. his latest piece in the guardian is headlined "ukraine is already winning: victory can be achieved without risking nuclear war." we will link to it all at democracynow.org. next up, major development beyond going attacks of the lies of trans people here in united states most of alabama has

become the first state to make it a felony to provide gender affirming medical care to trans youth. we will turn to trace --chase strangio with the aclu. stay with us. ♪♪ [music break]

amy: this democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in a major development in the ongoing attacks on the lives of transgender people in the united states, alabama has become the first state in the nation to make it a felony to provide gender-affirming medical care to trans youth. a law went into effect sunday that bans the use of puberty blockers and hormones, which can be life-saving for trans children and teens. doctors and others who are found in violation of the law could face up to 10 years in prison. the measure is taking effect even as it is being challenged by the human rights campaign and

other lgbtq+ rights group. the justice department has also joined the case saying the alabama law violates constitutional rights. a similar measure in arkansas has been blocked by a federal judge. this comes after republican senator marco rubio introduced a bill friday that would prohibit employers from deducting expenses related to their workers' travel costs when seeking gender affirming care for their children out of state, as well as for those seeking an abortion. lgbtq+ rights advocates say these laws are violent and discriminatory and deeply harm the mental health of trans youth as they already face a high risk of depression and suicide. a new survey by the trevor project found 45% of lgbtq+ youth in the u.s. have seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year.

trans youth and lgbtq+ youth of color reported the greatest suicide risk. at least 60% of the youth surveyed said they wanted mental health care in the past year but were not able to get it. for more, we're joined here in new york by chase strangio, deputy director for trans justice with the aclu lgbtq & hiv project. welcome back to democracy now! talk about the significance of yesterday, the first law in the country that has been enacted -- this one in alabama -- against trans youth. >> good morning. this is just a really devastating and terrifying time on so many levels. with alabama's law, this is a law introduced him alabama since 2020. we were able to block it in the state continues to move it forward. unfortunately on the last of the legislative session, he was pushed throughnd immediately gned by the governo had an emergey in the case which meant only 30 days from the tim

it was signed by the governor to when it went into effect, creating an absolutely terrifying seachange, reality on the ground for trans people, their families, and doctors in alabama. not just alabama, but across the southeast. there is a clinic that is serving trans and the lessons and their families and georgia, florida, tennessee, mississippi, and now in a matter of hours, all of that care is becong a felony which means families are upgrading their lives, trying to figure out when and whether they can get life-saving care for the adolescent children. i think it is important to note this is happening in the same context we're seeing the criminalization of artion care, that we are continuing to see massive spression of votes across the country. these things are creating chaos and fear among individuals, families, and communities across 50% of the countryt least. we are looking get a situation

where soon we will have an absolute seachange, are federal constitutional rights will lead to actions by the states that are going to continue this escalation we're seeing in alabama and elsewhere. amy: let's talk more about the content of this law and similar laws, such as the executive directive that was issued by the republican-texas governor greg abbott which orders the department of family and protective services in that state to conduct child abuse investigations of parents who give gender-affirming care to their trans children. the texas directive is now on hold. a major new report published last week by the yale law school, the yale school of medicine and the university of texas southwestern, notes that -- "texas and alabama officials have falsely claimed that doctors are routinely sterilizing children and teenagers with surgical procedures." it also says both states "consistently ignore the mainstream scientific evidence

that documents the substantial benefits of gender-affirming care greatly exaggerate the risks of gender-affirming drug therapy and rely on poor-quality evidence." one of the co-authors of the report, meredithe mcnamara of the yale school of medicine and child study center, said -- "we need to call for fact-based checks on legal opinions and legislation. scientists need to have a seat at the table. and perhaps most importantly, there must be a penalty for writing fake science into law. trans and nonbinary youth are facing the fight of their lives to simply exist and we can't let them stand alone. this is a matter of life and death." chase, your response? talk about the significance of this yale medical school report. >> this is so important have accountability, that we have fact-check. it is true these laws are

codified complete misinformation and outright rise about care. young people are not being forcibly sterilized when it comes to gender affirming care. they are big or subleased are lies, circumstances when it comes to the unconventional surgeries that are explicitly allowed under these laws. we have to be clear about what is happening. it is not just replican lawmakers codifying the information. the public discourse, media, -- we have spent the last five years and more having a debate, so-called debate over the legitimacy of trans that has allowed these types of laws support. the reality is this care is -- 21 medical care groups saying these laws must be enjoined. this estate medical care we can use for decades. this is affecting medical care we know to save the lives of adolescents. this care is only provided to adolescents. they talk about children, but this is treatment provided to people once they have reached puberty. it is incredibly difficult to

access. there are long waiting lines. therere long weightless. the can be cost prohibitive are ready for many families. there are conservatives protocols in place that govern the provision of this care through. strictly regulated medical protocols. we are talking about a situation where parents are consenting, adolesnt are consenting, and doctors are recommending this treatment, treatment well studied, well provided, and we have dumented benefits for these young people but instead of recognizing that, we're in a situation th escaled criminalization of this care. and in a case of texas, the governorirecting the department of texas service to investigate families. thankfully, that is on hold. then we have alabama that is criminalizing the care by parents and doctors up to the age of 19. as we are talking about the age here, it is important to note republican legislators across the country continue to increase the age later and later we hear the discourse of children, but missouri has

proposed legislation that would like this care up to age 25. -- block is correct age 25. it is not about protecting anyone come it is about surveilling and criminalizing trans bodies, making this medical care increasingly out of reach because we're continuing to see about what this care tually is. amy: let me k you about the florida medical -- middle school teacher said she was fired from her job in march for discussing sexuality with her students. casey scott, a middle school in lee county, said her students began asking questions about her sexual orientation. she shared with them she is pan sexual. her students were inspired to create art about their own identity. she hung the artwork and says she was then told by lee county school district officials to remove the artwork, was sent home, and fired over the phone. in a statement to nbc news, lee,

school district said scott was fired because she "did not follow the state-mandated curriculum." flutter recently enacted a new law known as the don't say gay bill, which prohibits discussion on such orientation and gender identity in the classroom of younger kids up to third grade, measure expected to go into effect july 1. say more about this. >> we are in a situation where across the country we have the so-called restrictions on any discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity. everyone has a sexual orientation and gender identity. they're not prohibiting people talking out boys and girls, prohibiting -- they are aimed explicitly at the lgbtq community. we are seeing the fallout. it means people cannot talk about their families in the classroom, kids cannot share their own experience of existence or the existence of their families. florida's bill got a lot of press attention but oklahoma

passed a similar bill come alabama passed a bill on the finaday of session along with a felony health band. we will see these types of escalations happening across the country. the goal of these pieces of legislation are to expand the power of the state to constrain what we can and cannot talk about, to constrain who we canna cannot be, to constrain the possibility for our lives. we're starting to see i the teacherst but the reality is, this is a constraint on people being up to share the history and the more we constrain the ability to tell the truth about the history that we have all known to be true and we are in communities's histories have been systematically erased, is it leavemore spa for the government to escalate the type of criminalization we are seeing. for example, this type of constraint on discussion of lgbtq people is reemerge in. until recently had a law that officially had forced teachers

to include in the curriculum at the state to express homosexuality was against the moral fiber of the people of alabama. we have a long history in this country. we are seeing these things reemerge at the same time the government is enforcing these imperatives to erasehose history so that we can act like these are new but they are not part of the century long street that are designed to expend the power of the state and constrain people survival opportunities. these are not isolated incidents. they're part of a coordinated attack. we suld be concerned. right now in 2022 we're facing them in terms, the 2022 -- these are all very strategic efforts to mobilize voters, to make it harder and harder for people to build a check on governmental powers. amy: i wanted to talk about this historic week around abortion, delete draft opinion the supreme court is going to overturn roe v. wade. i want to talk about both abortion and dinner affirming care. we reported earlier that

florida's republican senator marco rubio introduced a bill friday that would prohibit employers from deducting expenses related to their employees travel costs when seeking gender affirming care for their children at of state as well as for those seeking an abortion. if you can talk about what often in the last because not been talked about as much because, well, the abortion issue has been preeminent, why it is important to talk about trans care the same time and if you can also talk about inclusive language around pregnancy. >> if you look at the reality of how specifically the right has systematically over the last 50 years used state legislatures and the federal judiciary to slowly expand the power of the state control people's reproductive choices and erode the federal constitutional right to access abortion, that that very playbook is being utilized to constrain much more than

access to abortion. it is being used to constraint access to contraception come to e restroom if you are a trans person, to help care for transgder adolescence. the reality is, the animating goal behind these pieces of gislation is to control bulls bodies, to enforce norms that entrench power in the hands of the state, that enforce heterosexual christian nuclear family is the only model that is part of a state buiing project, by the way. we don't connect these things, we're ultimately going to see the erosion of all of our rights. sn8 in texas, that type of legislation that creates about supervision where private citizens are deputized by the government to surveillance and criminalize and enforce criminal penalties against their neighbors. that is what is happening to trans young people and their

families in texas and elsewhere. you look at the expansion of these proposed legislations where we are seeing efforts to criminalize people for going out of state to access the health carehey need in the abortion context of the trans context, these are part and parcel of the same playbook. assam lawmakers introducing the antiabortion legislation are introducing the anti-trans bill in the same states. it is part of the same strategy to enforce norms of gender that limit people's reproductive autonomy and ability to self determine their identity. the reality is we have failed to mobilize collectively and we have let the right dividers which has been very effective for them and very unfortunate press because we are looking at a situation now where we are going to see a supreme court ready and willing to read not just the constitutional right to access abortion but contraception, the right to access marriage equality, to determine whether and how we can access health care generally when the health care is a firm

who we are. we should have a lot of qutions and these movements about how we're are going to fight back collectively and not rely on the discourse the state is [indiscernible] when it comes to language and destruction of inclusive language public conversation, you can see how the opinion links early in the week last week where -- this is devastating. we're in the future of 70's peop's ability to survive and access safe medical care. you have some people focusing on the fact on occasionally recognize some people are not cash wmay use the lanage are pregnant people come the language of birthing people. that is just a fact. women are people, by the way. people may become pregnant who are not women. we acknowledge reality on occasion to hold space for people like me or not women who may become pregnant. that is a factual truth. it allows people have more access to care. it lets more people in.

we are not out here send we should not talk about women. people can still talk about women. there is an important conversation to be had about the systematic attack on women's opportunities, on the regulation of women's bodies. the reality is as such it is not just women who are affected. by the way, the more we have this nonexistent discourse -- not just trans and and on by near people who -- it is the gender-based policing. this harms all of us. we all have a role to play in fighting back. amy: chase strangio is deputy director for trans justice with the aclu lgbtq & hiv project. next outcome historic election in ireland where the sinn féin party has won the most seats in parliament for the first time in history. back in 30 seconds.

♪♪ [music break] amy:h block was a shorthand for the prison where within whose h shaped blocks, 1981 irish republican hunger striker took place. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we turn now to the historic election in northern ireland and at the united kingdom were on friday the nationalist sinn féin party won the most seats in northern ireland's parliament for the first time ever.

sinn féin is a former political wing of the ira, the irish republican army, which for decades fought against british rule. sinn féin's vice president michelle o'neill appears poised to become the first catholic to lead northern ireland. >> those of us that are for unification, or to those that actually don't have that perspective at this moment in time to also into the conversation, let's have a healthy debate about what our future looks like most of so it is better for each and every one of us. amy: for more, we're joined by two guests. in northern ireland, eamonn mccann, journalist, writer, activist and former member of the northern ireland assembly. 50 years ago, he took part in the march on bloody sunday in 1972 and helped form the bloody

sunday trust. he is the author of the recently republished 1974 book "war and an irish town." also with us, mairéad farrell, sinn féin lawmaker in the irish parliament. she is joining us in the republic of ireland. she is the niece of mairéad farrell who was dead by the british army in 1988. we welcome you both to democracy now! mairéad farrell, i want to turn to you first. if you can explain to a global audience the significance of what has taken place and the fact, interestingly, that it is women-lead? >> absolutely. i think what is significant as well about the sinn féin, members of the assembly, is 55%

of them actually are women. we are led by michelle o'neill, who is set to become the first minister in the executive assembly. i suppose it can't be understated the significance of the fact michelle o'neill is set to become the first minister. it is reflective of a very positive campaign that sinn féin lead in this election campaign, key issues of the day, the key issues as we know are issues that are affecting people across the world and indeed the rising cost of living. i own party president put it quite well to really show people the significance of the fact michelle o'neill is poised to become first minister compass the fact where the mcdonald's had the reality is that state was created in order for michelle o'neill, so someone

like michelle o'neill, women, to never become first minister. i think we are the largest party , michelle o'neill has received that mandate compass usually significant and i think something that sply cannot be underestimated. it is a big day. it is lunchtime here in ireland. michelle o'neill is -- join amy: the irish parliament. >> this is the aembly in the north. she is there today to lead the sinn féin team of 27, members of the assembly and to create that assembly and create that executive. an company talk about mary lou mcdonald? >> i could talk about her all day if you want me to. she is the president of sinn féin.

mary lou mcdonald needs the parliament in which i sent an she is the sinn féin president. she is the leader of the opposition at this moment in time and excellent at keeping -- holding the government to account on key issues of the day. those key issues are the key issues as we know that are affecting working people across the world. and those are the rising cost of living, the fact we are seeing huge increases in the cost of living while we are not seeing the same increases in the pain that comes in the door. -- in the pay that comes in the door. mary lou mcdonald is our president and she is leading this from the front and is been excellent the last number of days in leading this party. today, the focus is on michelle o'neill, who is going into the

assembly, is ready to set up the executives and back up and running. i'm looking forward to michelle o'neill the first minister. amy: your thoughts, mairéad farrell, about how your aunt we feel who was killed by the the british army and ira, for whom you are named? >> i've never met her. she was killed before i was born, so two years before i was born. of course, for people who have campaign all their lives and she can paint all her life, indeed i am over than she ever got to be because she was killed, but she never had the opportunity. she campaigned all her life for irish freedom and for more equitable ireland then what we have at this moment in time.

it is a huge step forward to see michelle o'neill and sinn féin ready and willing to form tt executive and to deal with the key issues at the day. that is very important. what we're hearing now, the gop has said they want certain issues with regard to the protocol and dealt with forming an executive but the reality is the people are suffering as a result are those people that are suffering as a result of the cost-of-living crisis, suffering because there's huge waiting lists in the health system. there's a budget ready to go. my colleague was finance minister had a budget ready to go. that needs to be delivered. that is what the foc needs to be on this week when michelle o'neill takes up the sition of first minister. we need everyone to come around the table and deal with those key very relevant issues for

people. amy: eamonn mccann, your joining us from derry. your former member of the northern ireland assembly. took part in the bloody sunday march of 1972, helped form the bloody sunday trust. if you can talk about the significance of what we are seeing today? again,'s to a global audience who is not that familiar with politics of ireland. >> northern ireland, 101 years ago, many historians would agree it was founded in order in so far as it could be that there would always be a unionist majority. that is to say a majority of people who wanted northern ireland toe british. the state was founded in order

to give that section of the population a majity. oh, permanence has lasted a century -- but it is gone now. can be no guarantee that rthern ireland will remain part of the united kingdom. sinn féin is already the largest party. it is a must almost certain to become the largest party in southern ireland. that would mean the first minister in northern ireland -- both from the sinn féin party and the party that has committed to irish unity. that is going to create a very interesting situation in the north because clearly, foreshadows a united ireland

because that alarms unionists in the north to the same extent as it pleases nationalists under the north, which is did not say arlen is a complicated place as you know -- arlette is a come the keita place as you know. the more alarm unionist will become. connected to that effect -- this is also historic -- [indiscernible] represented by the alliance party. middle-class party. nevertheless, just orange or green. a significant section of the reprentatives in storment do not designate themselves orange or green, unnist or nationalist. that is a new factor.

the reason is the constitution in northern ireland, on the good friday agreement of 1998, doesn't allow for green separate designations of storment. the implicit notion everybody in northern irela shall be allocated green party or the orange party, then the task is, this is what the good friday agreement was about, to find a way in which the greenside or the orange site can live together. the implication in the middle emerging and i think that is a process, emerging uncharted post of this was never planned for. it will be interesting to watch that. amy: i want to go to former president of sinn féin gerry adams, leading a vigil last week

marking the 41st year since the death of bobby sands may 5, 1980 one, while on hungertrike in the present >> [indiscernible] those of us who are active in those days will remember, bobby and the other hunger strikers. income that is former sinn féin prison. how it links to the victory today for sinn féin? >> well, it is a long time since bobby sands died. he died -- he gave his life

literally to bring about the united ireland. today in 2022, discretion whether the settlement which has been reached on the good frida agreemt, whetherhat represts an adequate [indisceible] by republicans and the naonalist comnity generally. the settlement, which is being put in place and opeting come is that a fair enough return? that is a question which we can't answer yes or no as yt. a ry fluidituation i ireland, particularly northern ireland. it would be llish to alyze the ters of stac positions and ainst unification. amy: whave five seconds. >> wther we identify the

settlement [indiscernible] defies logic. nobody knows. i don't know. nobody else knows how this will work out. amy: we will leave it there, eamonn mccann and mairéad farrell. [captioning made possible by democracy now!]lo)?■o■oóñçñçñçñç q

♪ hello. welcome back to nhk "newsline." i'm takao minori in new york. a politician with a familiar name is set to become the next leader of the philippines. ferdinand marco jr. has tried to escape the shadow of his father.