06/01/22 06/01/22 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> problem here is the nra and the gun industry the gun lobby have been putting out an extremist ideology based on fake histy in order to convince their voters that, a, they are on the right set of history and, b, gun contr poses an existential threat to the

freedom and safety and lives of their families and their futures. amy: as funerals continue in uvalde, texas, demand for gun control is mounting with bipartisan talks underway on a red flag while that might be able to overcome a republican-led filibuster in the senate, even as axis editor ted cruz, donald trump, and other republicans addressed the national rifle association annual convention in houston to oppose new gun laws. we will speak with frank smyth author of "the nra: the unauthorized history." than it was arch 29 2018, when a u.s. drone strike hit the car adel al manthari and four peasants were driving in. he was the only survivor. we will hear from him about how the pentagon refuses to admit it made a mistakend pay for his life-saving surgery.

>> it has affected be greaty. my childn are without their schools. children stay with me and cannot go out because of my disability. amy: then we look at how civil rights groups are challenging a series of racist u.s. supreme court rulings that have been used for over a century to legally justify discrimination against people in puerto rico and other u.s. territories. all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. funerals are continuing in uvalde, texas, for the 19 4th graders and two teachers shot dead at robb elementary school last week. the state's probe into the police handling of the school shooting is facing a major new obstacle as the police chief of the uvalde school district pete arredondo is refusing to cooperate with state

investigators. arredondo was the incident commander who ordered officers to wait in the school's hallways for about an hour instead of confronting the gunman who was eventually shot dead by a border patriot agent. meanwhile, on tuesday, arredondo was sworn in as a city council member but no public ceremony was held. this comes as abc news has obtained audio of an emergency dispatcher alerting uvalde police about the 911 calls being made by children inside the school during the massacre. >> you have a child online. is there anybody inside of the building? >> he is in a room full of victims. amy: during an earlier police news conference, it was implied police did not know about the 911 calls from the students.

in other news from uvalde, the texas depament of puic safety has now revealed authorities mistakenly stated the gunman entered the school by a door that was propped open by a teacher. the state now says the teacher closed the door once it was known there was a shooter nearby but that the door did not lock. we will have more on the texas shooting and the national debate on guns after headlines. the u.s. has announced it ll send an advanced artillery rocket system to ukraine that can strike targets up to almost 50 miles away. the rocket system is part of a new $700 million u.s. military package for ukraine that also includes javelin short-range anti-tank rockets, artillery ammunition, helicopters, and air surveillance radars. the white house said ukraine has given assurances that it will not use new rocket system to attack targets inside russia. russia blasted the u.s. arms package for ukraine saying the u.s. is "deliberately pouring oil on the fire." "the wall street journal"

reports france and germany are also expressing increasing concern over the shipment of more heavy weapons to kyiv over increasing skepticism that ukraine can expel russia from the donbass region. unlike the u.s. and u.k., france and germany have been pushing for a negotiated cease-fire to end the war. this comes as russia appears closer to seizing the city of sievierodonetsk in eastern ukraine. on tuesday, the governor of luhansk said russia has seized most of the industrial city which has been devastated by weeks of shelling. meanwhile, russia is cutting off more gas supplies to europe. on tuesday, the state energy company gazprom cut off some gas to the netherlands, denmark, and germany. this came hours after the eu banned most russian oil imports. the president of senegal, macky sall, who chairs the african union, has warned the european union that africa is facing a food crisis with soaring wheat and fertilizer prices combined with increasing food shortages

due to the war in ukraine. during an address on tuesday sall alscriticized western sanctions on russia saying it is making it harder for african nations to buy food. the african development bank says the price of wheat has already jumped 45% on the continent. rania dagash of unicef said th food crisis is coming as africa is also confronting the imate crisis. >> the fdamental iue in somalia is climate-induced crisisdrought. where the effects of the great crisis, in, the food crisis -- prices and fuel prices and others are hiked up to a point where we need more resources to secure what we were able to secure before. amy: the united nations is warning about an "exponential rise" in civilian killings and abuses carried out by armed forces in mali as it battles jihadist fighters. a new u.n. report documents the

deaths of 248 civilians by malian defense and secury forces in the first quarter of -- first three months of the year. the u.n. also documented a tenfold rise in human rights abuses carried out by the state. the u.n. said the abuses were "supported by foreign military elements," an apparent reference to the russian paramilitary force. in news from the democratic republic of the congo, at least 27 civilians were killed saturday in an attack by a rebel group the allied democratic forces. the red cross also reported 17 decapitated bodies were recently found in a neighboring province. the killings came in an area near the ugandan border where congolese and ugandan have been fighting rebel groups. sri lanka announced earlier today it is removing restrictions on imports in an attempt to ease the rampant shortages on food, fuel, and medicine caused by its economic crisis. this comes as sri lanka's government has begun applying for international food aid and hospitals have begun to triage medical procedures due to a shortage in vital medical supplies and medications throughout the country.

in news from washington, the justice department subpoenaed former trump adviser peter navarro to appeared before a grand jury. he is the first trump official known to have been subpoenaed as part of the department's probe of the january 6 insurrection. the missouri state highway patrol has launched an investigation after police officers in kansas city shot a pregnant black woman named leonna hale on friday. the shooting occurred after police stopped hale and a man in a parking lot after a suspected carjacking. an eyewitness said police initially asked hale to get on the ground, but she said she couldn't because she was pregnant. after police began approaching her with their guns drawn she tried to run away. an eyewitness posted a video of the aftermath of the shooting. >> i stopped here to get time gas and to get some ice cream for my kids. my son just watch this. my one-year-old son just watch this. my 10-year-old son just watch this. my 13-year-old son watch this happen. she was going to cooperate.

she got scared and ran. they shot her 1, 2, 3, 4. amy: leonna hale was hospitalized with a broken arm and a collapsed lung. the minneapolis city council has agreed to pay a $600,000 settlement to a photojournalist who was blinded in one eye after being shot in the face by minneapolis police in may 2020. linda tirado was shot while covering the mass protests in the city after the police killing of george floyd. she permanently lost vision in her left eye. she also suffered a brain injury. a jury in washington, d.c., has acquitted michael sussman, a lawyer for hillary clinton's 2016 presidential campaign who was accused of lying to the fbi during its trump-russia probe. it was the first case brought to trial by special counsel john durham, who has spent three years investigating the origin of the fbi's probe of russian interference in the 2016 election. in mexico, at least 11 people have died and 20 are missing after hurricane agatha triggered flooding and mudslides in the state of oaxaca. agatha was the strongest

hurricane to ever hit mexico during the month of may. in other environmental news, the u.s. department of health and human services has announced a new office of environmental justice to address climate-related health problems affecting poor americans and communities of color. and today the world health organization is marking "world no tobacco day." the who has just published a new report looking at the tobacco industry's devastating environmental impact. this is rüdiger krech of the who. >> the tobacco industry doves toxic waste into communities. there is nothing green about it. meanwhile, the tobacco industry attempts to rehabilitate its image through programs such as beach cleanups and funding of our mental and disaster relief organizations. this is known as greenwashing. it is nothing more than an industry tactic to build

influence and sway policies to help tobacco companies profits. tobacco is not only poisoning people, it is poisoning our planet. amy: and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now! democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman in new york, joined by democracy now! 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: funerals are continuing in uvalde, texas, for the 19 4th graders and two teachers shot dead at robb elementary school last week. the state's probe into the police handling of the school shooting is facing a major new obstacle, the police chief of the uvalde school district pete arredondo is refusing to cooperate with state investigators. he was the incident commander who ordered officers to wait in the school's hallways for nearly

an hour instead of confronting the gunman, who was officially shot dead by -- eventually shot dead by border patrol agent. meanwhile on tuesday, arredondo was sworn in as a city council member but no public ceremony was held. amidst the grief and investigation, demand for legislative action on gun control is mounting. on tuesday, new zealand's prime minister jacinda ardern met with president biden at the white house, discussing how she responded to the christchurch mosque mass shooting that killed 51 in 2019 by banning most-semi-automatic weapons. this is biden. pres. biden: to mass shooting aftermaths then i think any president in american history, unfortunately. it is's -- so much of it is preventable and the devastation

is amazing. amy: bipartisan talks are reportedly now underway on a red flag law that might be able to overcome a republican-led filibuster in the senate and allow police with a court order to remove guns from people seen as threat to themselves or others. lawmakers are meeting after texas senator ted cruz and other republicans addressed the national rifle association's annual convention this weekend and opposed calls for new gun control laws. >> but many would still tell us the people on display in uvalde or in buffalo derives from the presence of guns in the hands of ordinary american citizens. it is far easier to slander one's political adversaries and to demand that responsible citizens forfeit their constitutional right than it is to examine the cultural sickness giving birth to unspeakable acts

of evil. amy: after his speech blaming other factors besides guns for mass shootings in the united states, texas senator cruz went out for dinner and was confronted by ben hernandez. >> you need to backup. >> 19 children died. 19 children died. it is on your hands. that is on your hands. amy: for more, we are joined by frank smyth, a longtime investigative journalist who has been covering the nra for the -- for more than a quarter of a century. he is the author of the book "the nra: the unauthorized history." welcome back to democracy now! your history is remarkable and reporting over the decades whether you were exposing france supporting the rwandans and the genocide by giving military weapons there or the same in el

salvador, the was support for the murderous regime and in guatemala, then taken hostage in erector in the persian gulf or when you're colleague was killed -- in the iraq war in the persian gulf when you're colleague was killed. i am wondering, as we see in a remember after nra member -- the politicians, that is, not the rank-and-file, you know, fighting against gun control you tell a very different history in this book. why don't you bring out in a nutshell the relevant points over the years that have been basically erased of what is organization is about. >> thank you, amy. the nra claims to be the oldest civil rights organization in the united states. this is complete canard. the nra did not raise gun rights at all until more than 50 years

after it was already in existence in response to a new york state past and 1911 that is now before the supreme court as well as the bolshevik revolution. in 1922 after the nra was founded in 1871. the nra supported gun control including the 1934 national firearms act that outlawed fully automaticeapons and a response to the violence of the gangsters like al capone during prohibition and it also established the first regime to control wholesaleransfer of high arms for manufacturers to wholesalers. and that is thesystem the nra doesn't like to talk about but they still support because it is quite convenient. the nra then underwent what is known as the cincinnati revolt or internal revolt, self coup if you will, shifting from an

organization that was prioritized to shooting sports on their hunting and always gun safety to then prioritizing gun rights -- consumer access to firearms, which is what gun rights really means above everything else. over the past 45 years, they have pursued an absolutist vision of gun rights which is based on the idea there could be no compromise between gun ownership and gun regulations something that is a complete flip-flop from what the nra did for over a century before. juan: frank, what was the cause or the basis for that dramatic shift in its policies? >> it was the gun control act of 1968, signed by president johnson. this was in response of the assassinations of jfk martin luther king, and bobby kennedy, those three. it was passed in 1968 and outlawed interstate sale of long

rifles like the one that was tied to the assassination of jfk. it also restricted sales of guns to minors and a number of other measures. but there was a group of inside and in -- inside and outside the nra that saw this as allegedly oppressive overreach. the gun rights movement likes to claim the nra and beyond that they have roots going back to the revolutionary war. this is also a canard. the americans gun rights movement started in response to the gun contl act of 1968, the first gun rights group in the united states was the citizens committee for the right to keep and bear arms formed in 1972 than gun owners of america came in 1974 and three years later in 1977, the nra underwent its revolt. these are all things that the nra doesn't want anyone to know. they created other myths to advance their agenda. juan: in essence, the change

came not only in response to lyndon johnson's passage of the 1968 law, but also the period when there were racial disturbances and rebellions in cities across the country. i recall pictures of hundreds of thousands of people lining up in gun shops, white americans, to buy guns because they believed at the time there was a potential racial civil war occurring in the united states. what role does raise play in these changes in policies as well? >> it played in undercurrent. it had determined his role, even though it is really talked about . that 1968 law signed by johnson was supported by the nra which divided the gun community. but there is no doubt the racial tension of the 1960's played a tremendous role in radicalizing people in the nra as well as

other groups, leading them to see consumer access to firearms as a priority and something that needed to be prioritized. you can't discount the vigilante movies of the 1970's and the crime that was rising in the early 1970's, especially, and the vigilante concept captured in films like "dirty harry," "taxi," and others. all of this played a role in radicalizing a certain element of america's gun movement, which led to these gun rights groups and the cincinnati revolt all in the 1970's. amy: i want to go to 1999. the nra held its annual convention in denver just weeks after the massacre at the nearby columbine high school. nra president charlton heston presided over the meeting. yes, the famous actor.

this is a clip of charlton heston speaking the following year. >> so as we set out this year to defeat the divisive forces that would take freedom away, i want to say those fighting words for everyone within the sound of my voice to hear and to heed and especially for you, mr. gore "from my cold dead hands." amy: that is charlton heston soon after the columbine massacre. now, at the same time that you have him as president -- you can talk about how that happened -- you have wayne lapierre rising up in the organization. so we go from the events held after the massacre to a year

after to just this last weekend. nra ceo when lapierre speaking once again right after the massacre and this was in houston texas, last weekend. >> it is time to restore the american precept that each individual is accountable for his actions. and that is why we, the nra will never, ever stop fighting for the right of the innocent and the law-abiding to defend themselves against the evil criminal element that plagues our society. amy: talk about wayne lapierre's rise, charlton heston, and what we are seeing today. >> when lapierre joined the nra in 1978, so when you're after the cincinnati revolt, and he had worked for a blue dog democrat in the virginia state house on gun legislation before. and before that he briefly w a

special education public high scho -- public school teacher but virginia and new york, which i think a somewhat interesting. he was a very young man, i think 28 when he joined the nra. he helped pass the firearms protection act during the reagan administration which rolled back some of the 1968 law which really gave him credibility within the nra. then in 1991 after a series of scandals and infighting in the organization there really was threatening to bring it down they chose lapierre to become the executive vice president and ceo, which is the title -- combined title now that he uses in 1991. there was a push to try and depose him by an individual by the name of neil knox who accused everybody but him of being weak on gun rights as a way of trying to outflank organization on their core issue. charlton heston was recruited by lapierre and his ally to come

into defeat that challenge. so intron heston race that rifle and said "from my cold dead hands," he was playing to the public and also internally to the nra because he needed to show his gun rights credentials in order to keep -- support lapierre and keep him in power. what is also interesting after columbine is lapierre -- nobody talks about ththis -- testified and talked about how the nra has no problem with full background checks, no problem with what we now call universal background checks. this is an amazing thing because now they claim -- for 20 years that claim since then, background checks pose an existential threat to liberty and could lead to genocide. they say gun -- then registration is a slippery slope.

this is ridiculous. after columbine, lapierre said the complete opposite. so this flip-flop is something he hasn't been held accountable for, that we would be easy. i think the gun reform people and democrats have been reluctant to challenge the nra and i think that is a strategic failure on their part. juan: frank i wanted to ask you, those who want to defend the gun rights supposedly within the nra constantly point to these mass shootings as being results of individual evil reflective of a moral decay in society. but they never talk about comparing what happens here in the united states to other countries in the world. there is extraordinary uque situation of the united states with so much gun violence. could you put it in perspective for those who are not aware of

what the situation is and other countries around the world? >> great question. here it is. the united states has 25 times more gun violence and other advanced nations on average. 25 times. so what is the difference between us and those other advanced nations? every one of those nations has a national system to regulate retail firearm sales, consumer firearm sales. the united states is the only advanced nation or nation anywhere in the world that leaves retail regulation, consumer firearms sales up to our regional governments were individual states. nobody else does that. what that means is in chicago up to 60% of the weapons seized in crimes came from out of state because it is the states with weak gun laws that supply the guns that are used in crimes to a large degree and it is states with strongegun laws. not to mention guns that are trafficked to mexico, central

america, throughout the caribbean. the nra likes to talk about cultural sickness. there is a movement now in the gun reform community or the gun safety community to talk about it as a safety issue and talk about reframe it all as a safety issue. i think that is not strong enough. i think we should be reframing this issue in the u.s. -- i am an independent that i support gun control and i am also a gun owner and i support gun control. we need to frame this, why are we the only nation that does not regulate retail firearm sales? and why is it that 50 years ago, this was talked about by president johnson and why is it today now the republicansr democrats are afraid to talk about this issue -- the republicans are using this to derail every measure that the democrats bring forward. it is almost like a chess game and the democrats have been completely outmaneuvered by the republicans in the gun lobby

meaning the nra and the gun industry and they really don't know what to do. the democrats are completely divided and unclear about what they want now. that is a problem. what needs to happen going forward. that is because the democrats have encouraged gun reform people to take the approach, the way you passed legislation as you reach across the aisle and find common ground. the whole gun lobby -- the gun lobby's point is no compromise no common ground. so when they raise background checks, josh hawley a year ago talked about then registration being a threat to liberty. this is a canard based on a fabulous distortion of the holocaust claiming prior gun registration lists enabled it. this is completely untrue, but this is the kind of propaganda the gun lobby's put out, that nobody is challenged yet in the united states. if you talk to anybody in the gun rights community, if you go to any nra meeting or go to gun

clubs and you ask peopleey explain to me the slippery slope, they will read it like it's gospel truth. this is part of the problem. amy: frank, we have to wrap up now but i wanted to ask you about the fact isn't the nra at its lowest with corruption probes, enter fighting? the interaction of the nra, and you describe this so well in your book, with the gun industry and how much power that has and its nexus, how it all got exposed at sandy hook. >> the nra is imploding, in my view. i think they will not survive and new york attorney general civil lawsuit against them for mass embezzlement where the charges originated with the whistleblower oliver north. people forget that. oliver north, who first accused

lapierre of embezzling funds. he has not backed down, he has just gotten quite about it. so they are in trouble. but the ideology they have cooked up at the same time they are waning is stronger than ever. this is the legacyf the nra and the gun lobby, and this is what i think people that want to pursue gun reform do not understand. it is not the nra's money, not so much anymore. it is the ideology. it is the fact they have convinced tens of millions of americans that any gun control poses an existential threat to their freedom. this is ridiculous and remarkable they have connced people of this, all based on false history and convoluted theories that are as crazy as anything you find oqanon and predate qanon, but the nra has been up to this now for decades. it is having -- they have managed to convince a great many people, in this is something the democrats and the gun reforms

haven't even begun to address. amy: frank smyth, thank you for been with us longtime investigative journalist, author of "the nra: the unauthorized history." next up, was march 29, 2018, when a u.s. drone strike hit a car with five men, love them cousins. -- all of them cousins. we will hear from the survivor. stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: larry gitlin "light at the end of the darkness." he is also known for his out of about houston." one of four musicians who refuse to play the nra convention. he said he did not even think the convention should have taken place. he, nra member comes up, said only to have a moment of silence

for the children and teachers killed in uvalde. this is democracy now! democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. it was march 29, 2018 when a u.s. drone strike hit the car adel al manthari and four cousins were driving in as they went to serve as witnesses for a land deal. a short video recording of the aftermath shows the r they were riding in engulfed in flames. adel al manthari was the only survivor. he suffered severe burns. in a minute, we'll speak with his supporters who say the pentagon should pay for the surgery he needs to keep his legs but so far the pentagon has refused to acknowledge the adel al manthari and his four cousins were civilians and that the drone strike was a mistake. in an statement recorded for democracy now!, manthari speaks from his hospital bed descbing his struggle. >> it has affected me greatly. my childreare without their schools.

i life is sctered. my children stay with me and cannot gout because my disability. four years and i have not moved. i cannoto anythingithout my children and i do nomove except with -- except with my childr's help. i can only go to the bathroom with m children was to i can only wash with my children. i n onlyalk with my children. i have deprived them of their youth and they are just schoolchdren. i deprive them of ucation and freedom and going up and mixg with people because they sat with mat home for 2hours a y. i have a son who finhed high scol and has hopes that he finishes university education, but he could not. i have another son who finished the ninth gra when the stre happened and did not continues education beuse he was atteing to me. i have two daughters who wer deprived of school. my whole family ishattered. they tell as they are fighting terrorm. what kind of terrorism? what is this terrorism they are fighting?

where is it? they should know who they are bombing, not like this. amy: that is adel al manthari speaking from his hospital bed. his supporters have asked the pentagon to "urgently re-open the assessment into civilian casualties in this strike and specifically his status as a civilian injured" so he can be eligible for the funds to get life-saving treatment. investigations by the yemen-based human rights group mwatana and the associated press, as well as the journalism outlet airwars and yemeni tribal leaders, have all found there is no evidence the al manthari family was linked to al qaeda. for more, we are joined by two guests. kathy kelly is a longtime peace activist and author who is a founding member of voices in the wilderness as well as co-coordinator of the ban killer drones campaign, raising funds for adel al manthari's medical care to help h recover from a u.s. drone strike. she is also a memb of world beyond war. also with us is aisha dennis project manager on extrajudicial executions for reprieve, which

is supporting this effort and has built close relationships with communities affected by u.s. drone strikes over the past decade. welcome you both to democracy now! aisha, tell us more about adel's situation, how you know about this drone strike, and what the pentagon is denying or saying. >> adel first came to our attention shortly after the strike back in 2018, and we have followed his case since then he has, as you heard, suffered very severe injuries -- not just burns, but also a fracture to his hip, severe injuries to his hand and his legs. he has been put in situation by the dod's lack of response on this issue where he effectively is fighting for his quality of life and his dignity and to

survive. we filed a complaint with the dod in response to his worsening condition about a month ago. it is important to note this isn't the first time the dod has been alerted to this strike. back in 2018, we and the daily beast engaged the dod and they refused to respond. they said they were going to conduct civilian casualty assessmes but they did not. not to our knowledge, anyway. they certainly did not engage with the community that was affected. they did not engage with the family themselves. colombia law school brought the strike ttheir attention amongst a set of other strikes with civian casualties. again, they barely responded. after months, they came back saying the rejected claims there

were civilian casualties but did not explain why. e case was then brought to their attention again by senators warren and murphy. ain, the dod failed to take this seriously. then adel's condition severely deteriorated and we knew we had act. we helped to work with killer drones to secure his care but we understand from doctors and urgent -- egypt he still needs an operation. juan: i would like to bring kathy kelly into the discussion. you're the co-coordinator of ban killer jones. we have been hearing a lot in the war in ukraine now step a lot of praise for the effectiveness of drone strikes. could you give us a bigger picture of what the record is of these drone strikes, especially

in the middle east and the horn of africa and the horn of africa in yemen where they have been used so much over the recent decades? >> thank you. i think adel's testimony helps us understand the permanent trauma and harm caused by drone attacks to thousands and thousands of survivors and their family members people who are named, people who are traumatized. there is tremendous secrecy around the use of united states weaponized drones, but now we are saying the proliferation of drone warfare. and it does make it easier on the part of those using weaponized drones to continue to prolong, to exacerbate warfare. the proxy nature of it, it would seem there's no harm done to the people operating the drones but that is not true, either because the moral injury, the personal,

conscientious harm done to the operators of the drones is something we must consider. daniel hale, when he was standing before a judge who sentenced him to four years in prison because of his disclose about the consequences of drone warfare in afghanistan alone said 90% of the time the people who were killed weren't even the ones who are supposedly to be targeted. he said, i could no longer take what was not mine to take, innocent lives. so i think adel's testimony discloses a story that has been replicated again and again and again. he speaks of the family -- 10 people, three were toddlers, seven were children. no way could they have been estimated to be terrorists. the department of defense exonerated. amy: i want to go to the

comments of the pentagon. in may, "the new york times" won pulitzer prize this year for their "courageous and relentless reporting that exposed the vast civilian toll of u.s.-led airstrikes, challenging official accounts of american military engagements in iraq, syria and afghanistan." pentagon spokesperson john kirby responded to the pulitzer. >> we knew we made mistakes and we're trying to learn from those mistakes. we knew we were not always as transparent about those mistakes as we should be. but they're reporting we enforced those concerns and in some cases gave us cause for additional concerns. it made us ask ourselves new and difficult questions of her own even as it forced us to answer their difficult questions. amy: that is the pentagon press spokesperson john kirby. aisha dennis if you can respond to this? also how it would specifically apply to adel al manthari. >> the first point to make is when he says these are mistakes, it speaks to trivialize what

we're talking about, which is the killing and maiming of civilians. a miake is when you leave your car keys at home or send an email to the wrong person. we are talking about systemic failure, repeated strikes against civilians and also the repeated failure and refusal to engage with the evidence. so it is great the dod is attempting to learn from past mistakes and we very much welcome that sentiment, but we also know lloyd austin has said they will refuse to investigate the past. what he means by that is they will refuse to investigate prior strikes. the problem is, how can the dod hope to learn from previous strikes when they won't grapple with the evidence and what has really happened? they're not talking to communities. they are not talking to experts. in adel's case we are happy to

engage with them directly to put them in contact with his doctors, with witnesses on the ground, and with the yemeni authorities that can testify to the fact he was a senior civil servant. amy: i want to end with the words of adel al manthari himself speaking from his hospital bed in egypt. >> all u.s administrations are the same. they all lack transparency and do not value human life. biden's adminisation ithe same as ump's. they have drones without pilots th caressly dr their bombs without knowing if the target is a terrorist grp or civilians. what i know as someone who lives in the area th was bombed is that most people are innocent and have no links to terrorism. amy: that is adel talking from

his hospital bed. kathy kelly, final comment on the pentagon not acknowledging this, not giving money though money is allocated for civilian deaths -- so-called collateral damage. so how are you raising money for adel? >> if you go to the ban killer drones side,here's a section whicpeople can get to the gofundme campaign we have and there is still more money needed to meet the goal for that campaign. it is a scandal the pentagon can completely dodge responsibility. amy: how much money have you raised? >>8 thousand $642. amy: how much does he need? >> there's an estimated 25,000. there ill more surgeries and ofourse, he is going to face a lifetime of striving for physical therapy and resolving trauma.

amy: kathy kelly, longtime peace activist, co-coordinator of the ban killer drones campaign which is fundraising for adel al manthari's medical care to help -- and aisha dennis, reprieve's project manager on extrajudicial executions. next up, civil rights groups are challenging a series of racist supreme court rulings that have been used for over a century to legally justify discrimination against people in puerto rico and other u.s. territories. stay with us. ♪♪ [music break]

amy: this is democracy now! democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. we continue to look now at a new campaign for civil rights groups urging the federal government to

overturn a series of u.s. supreme court rulings that have for over a century been used as the legal justification to racially discriminate against people living in puerto rico and other u.s. occupied territories. the rulings are known as the insular cases, which opponents have long denounced as some of the most racist u.s. supreme court rulings, firmly rooted in white supremacy to protect u.s. colonialism. the insular cases have allowed the u.s. federal government to deny puerto ricans living on the island voting rights, access to public social programs and other equal protections as those residing on the mainland u.s. the renewed efforts to overturn the insular cases comes about a month after the supreme court sided with the biden administration to continue denying supplemental security income benefits, ssi, to seniors

and people with disabilities living in puerto rico. the lone dissenter was justice sonia sotomayor, whose parents were born on the island. she referred to the 8-1 ruling as "irrational" and "antithetical." but what came as a surprise in this case was a 10-page concurring opinion written by the conservative justice neil gorsuch calling to completely overthrow the insular cases. in part, gorsuch wrote -- "a century ago in the insular cases, this court held that the federal government could rule puerto rico and other territories largely without regard to the constitution. it is past time to acknowledge the gravity of this error and admit what we know to be true: the insular cases have no foundation in the constitution and rest instead on racial stereotypes. they deserve no place in our law." the ultraconservative justice neil gorsuch road. well, for more, we're joined in new york by lía fiol-matta

senior counsel for latinojustice pref where her work focuses on economic justice and issues related to puerto rico. latinojustice, alongside the american civil liberties union and other civil rights groups, have joined forces in this renewed effort to overrule the insular cases. also what this is juan gonzalez, cohost of democracy now! juan when you first responded to the supreme court decision and pointed out what neil gorsuch had said in addition to sonia sotomayor, this was one of the most popular commentaries on our website. we want to ask lia for starters, what is this campaign all about? how are you organizing and why are you doing it? >> good morning. it is such a pleasure to be here. this campaign is pretty much coordinated between latinojustice, hispanic

federation, the aclu, and equally american as well as other allies, but these are the main organizations. we have embarkeon a strong campaign srted before the decision was issued against the insular cases through public education, presentation, media contacts like this one as well analso we embarked on a campaign to pressure -- continue pressuring the biden administration to denounce the insular cases and for federal court to stop relying upon them as well. our main concern obviously at this moment is to have the supreme court finally overrule the insular cases in the case that is been filed for consideration of the supreme court, but also we want to pressure congress to pass legislation to also support federal benefits programs, to treat the territories equally. juan: lia, i wanted to ask you

about that case. this is a case of u.s. citizens from american samoa. can you talk about that case and how it is similar to the issues raised in puerto rico and other u.s. territories? >> first of all, the american samoans are not americans citizens and that is at the crux of this case. there consider united states nationals. the cases to request or demand u.s. citizenship but also directly for the supreme court to overrule the insular cas cases, the organizations that i represent latinojustice and others, have joined in amicus brief asking the supreme court to take on the case, particularly because it is a frontal attackn the insular cases cases. that is because the 10th circuit court of appeals rely on the insular cases casesven though

they dounced them also and criticized them but said the insular cases gives congress the authority to make decisions about the territories and therefore relying on the insular cases the 10th circuit revers the district court of utah that had agreed the plaintiffs that american samoans should enjoy all citizenship rights as other territories of the united states. juan: one of the things that has struck me over the years on the court decisions regarding puerto rico is the absence of the so-called liberal justices on the supreme court. ruth bader ginsburg when he she was on the, justice kagan have not tackled a precedent set by the insular cases and in any frontal way. i'm wondering your thoughts on that and how this might conceivably change especially now that in extreme conservative justice like gorsuch has taken

such a strong stance? >> absolutely. we were not necessarily expeing the case to prevail but due to the conservative court, we were not very much expecting that outcome but we were terribly disappointed at i can mention the other liberal justices did not join the dissent, the strong and fantastic dissent of sonia sotomayor. so we are also grappling with that and hopefully in this next case that is pendi hopefully we might have a change. as you know in the vaello-madero decision both sonia sotayor and justice gorsuch --he pretty much had been oral argument in november asnghe federagovernment, why don't we just overrule the insular cases cases and the socitor general

kind of said yeah, these are not great cases but this is not the crux of the matter before you so they kind of skirted the issue. gorsuch had already signaled his opposition and then of course in his concurrent in vaello-madero which is long and detailed he provides a historical context of the court and he denounces them very, very strenuousl we are hoping those justices and hoping the liberals as well now -- obviously we will have a new liberal justice on the court at the time this case is taken up at the court so our fingers are crossed this will hopefully be the case that will finally have these cases overruled. amy: juan when you insular cases insular cases share this commentary on the -- when you shared the commentary on the insular cases us wondering if you could share why these are called the insular cases this

whole century history, how it fits into the ultraconservative philosophy of course it to talk about these racist laws? >> juan: the key thing to understand is under the aftermath of the spanish-american war in the united states acquired the remaining territories of the spanish empire, including the philippines, temporarily cuba as well, puerto rico, that there was a debate as to what is the relationship between noncontiguous territories of the united states as these new places for the american flag was planted and the rest of the country. so between in the early 1900s and in a series of decisions, a lot of them having to deal basically with tariffs -- a lot of commercial issues. but there also individual issues

as to what rights of the constitution apply in puerto rico. so several cases about -- downs versus bidwell and a bunch of other cases, the court had to grapple with this. and essentially, said, yesthe constitution only applies in these territories to the level which congress decides it can apply and that congress has complete power to decide how to run these territories. so basically, it established the legal basis for the holding of a colonial empire. so that is really -- has never really been challenged in 100 years, in any significant way except in the last two years with the crisis of puerto rico especially, and there been several cases and now the american samoa case. so now for the first time

really people are grappling with what it means. because in the meantime, and i'm sure lia can talk more extensively about this, how the insular cases cases have been used to provide second-class benefits to the people of puerto rico especially. because in some cases, even the virgin islands have been exempted by congress from some of the more onerous second-class services the government provides the territories. lia, if you could talk about the concrete ways this affects the people of puerto rico? >> absolutely. i would also like to say the insular cases establish a doctrine that has no constitutional basis, which is the territorial incorporation doctrine. the five inhabited colonies of the united states are considered unincorporated territories and only "fundamental rights apply to them" and those are decided by congress arbitrarily. in terms of pueo rico

specifically, we note the vaello-madero decision denies ssi benefits to the neediest americans, the poor, disabled, blind, and elderly can citizens that reside in puerto rico. there are other federal benefits as well that are not condered in that case but there were other cases, for example, the department of health and human services. that case involved ssi, snap other benefits in which puerto ricans on the residence of the island are treated unequally to the other states of the united states. unfortunately, that case whic was being appealed the first circuit, i guess prey much is mo at this point as well as other cases in addition to that one. yes, absolutel the benefits and the decisions that have been applied to the territories are arbitrary. i want to point out the nthern islands, ty do have ssi. that was part of the decision --

amy: we just have 10 seconds. what can biden to specifically? >> resident by needs to deny the -- he cannot instruct but needs to import records to stop relying on that -- and on amy: we h÷÷ñññññññññññññññññññññññññññññññcñcñcñc