100 cities, thousands of voices, rallies and vigils under way across the nation right now as part of national justice for trayvon day. we have a live report ahead. >> trayvon martin could have been me 35 years ago. >> one voice that could change the conversation. wide-ranging reaction today to the president's remarks about trayvon martin. the demise of a great american city. is there a detroit comeback story to be told? two writers from the motor city with perspective on that. a new documentary on killer whales in captivity. sea world calls it misleading but the film's director is firing back. i will talk with her. hello everyone. high noon in the east. 9:00 a.m. out west.

welcome to weekends with alex. you are looking live at pictures from across the country showing what has been called the 100-city justice for trayvon vigils getting under way right now from new york city to chicago to los angeles. supporters in these hundred cities are gathering in front of federal buildings. the justice for trayvon vigils are organized by the reverend al sharpton's national action network and they're calling on the government to pursue federal civil rights charges against george zimmerman. moments from now trayvon martin's mother sabrina houlton will be speaking at the vigil here in new york. then a short while ago trayvon's father tracy martin had this to say at the rally in miami. >> my message this morning is simple. i'd like the world to know that trayvon was my son. he was a love child. he did nothing wrong and we're not going to let them persecute him the way they have. nbc's michelle franzen is at the vigil here in new york city.

michelle, a good day to you. we hear there from tracey martin. we know sybrina fulton will talk shortly. talk about the mood. is there excitement, apprehension? what is the feel? >> reporter: you can probably hear the clapping in the background right now. we just had a speaker turn out for this. a short time ago we watched -- we heard cheers as beyonce and jay-z walked out of the federal building courthouse building here and they're starting to work the crowd. it is supposed to be more of an upbeat sort of day, a call to action as you mentioned. a move away from those angry protests in the streets we saw throughout the nation earlier this week and more of what the reverend al sharpton and civil rights leaders and religious leaders are calling for calm and action and to take this as a social movement and as a sign that more needs to be done. again, these rallies, this vigil just getting under way here. we're supposed to hear prayer,

speeches, and as you can hear behind me more cheers as hundreds turn out here at the federal courthouse and the plaza here in new york city. around the country you'll see more of the same. los angeles as well as atlanta. other cities, a hundred in all preparing for this day of justice for trayvon. as you mentioned, alex, again, trayvon's mom expected to be here. we don't know if she will speak, if she is going to just show her solidarity and people surrounding her, but we'll wait and see. >> you know, to borrow a phrase from the president's campaigns, talk about being fired up and ready to go, if you have beyonce and jay-z there, leading the activities, were they expected? did you know they were coming? >> reporter: we did not expect to see them at this time. we aren't certain who else we'll see but we know they were the first to come out and sort of get this crowd up and ready to go to hear these speeches and

join in prayer on this day. >> all right. well, melissa harris perry and i are sitting on the set and both raised our eyebrows in delight hearing beyonce and jay-z had been there. thank you very much. we'll keep monitoring that. still reverberating president obama's surprising remarks on race delivered in the white house briefing room. >> when trayvon martin was first shot i said this could have been my son. another way of saying that is trayvon martin could have been me 35 years ago. >> joining me now from the white house nbc's kristen welker. good afternoon. let's talk about the decision and all that went into it to make this surprise appearance friday. what has the white house told you about that? >> reporter: alex, i can tell you that behind the scenes according to white house officials president obama has been monitoring and watching the reaction to the george zimmerman verdict very closely ever since it came in last weekend. he has been talking to family members and friends about how he

should respond. of course we have heard calls for him to speak out on this issue particularly for members of the african-american community. so after having all of that sort of reflection over the past week, he decided that as the nation's first african-american president it was important for him to speak out on this issue. so on thursday he convened a meeting with some of his top advisers, told them what he was thinking. i have spoken to some of the folks who were in that meeting. some of them were skeptical, alex, but the president laid out for them what his thoughts were and after listening to him they decided that it was absolutely the right decision. now as for the decision to make this a surprise which it certainly was, i've covered this beat for quite sometime, this is the first time the press corps hasn't gotten some type of heads up that the president's coming out to the briefing room. they really wanted the focus to be on the president's message. there was concern that if they gave us a tip-off it could in some ways detract from the message they wanted to be straight up that was very

personal. that is what we heard yesterday, alex. >> absolutely we did. don't go anywhere. i'll bring into the discussion here msnbc's melissa harris-perry and also the white house reporter for "the washington post" david mac nam arai. melissa, with you here a day later what is the single greatest take away in your mind as you think about what the president said? >> more than anything it is that the president made a decision to speak before the 100 rallies you were just talking about rather than after. so rather than waiting for a moment when it would feel like he had been pressured because of a hundred vigils around the country, instead he actually changed the mood. i can't quite describe it. but there is a way in which there was a kind of heaviness that settled over many african-americans and many in solidarity with the trayvon martin family over the course of the past week since the not guilty verdict. that heaviness was in important ways lifted. justice hasn't been completely done by many people's understandings and there's still a long, legal battle potentially

on the other side. but there was this sense of the recognition of this young man's life and of the president saying, that life has value because it is in part like my life. you guys elected me president. >> yeah. do you think the president had a choice, though? or do you think he felt compelled he had to speak out? >> i absolutely think he had a choice. particularly because i suspect as a matter of politics this was not a good way to go. certainly his base would have been quite irritated but this is not a man ever running for election again. and instead what he did was waded into a place that every time he's even gone close to it has been radioactive. all he said for example in the case of gates being arrested in his home in cambridge was he thought the police acted stupidly. he was vilified for that. he knew 17 minutes of talking about race he is going to take

heat on that. >> what do you know about what went into that decision? >> reporter: alex, it's been almost a week since the verdict came out and there was some sense, would he do this more quickly? you know, interest is some sense that the white house believed that some reporters who met with the president to talk about immigration, spanish language media on monday, might ask him. i think they were first prepared to sort of have the president give some answer to this question during those interviews but none of the reporters who met with him on monday asked him. i think the white house was surprised about that. as kristen said, the president himself said, look. it's time for me to speak out on this on thursday. he brought them in and when they talked about it as kristen said they wanted to have it be sort of more informal in the briefing room and, certainly, as melissa said, having him talk for 18 minutes i'm not sure anybody, even his advisers thut would happen. i've been in that room as well. if he says anything it is usually a few minutes, a written statement. this was very much off the cuff. i'm sure he thought about it

quite a bit but it was very powerful because of that. >> do you think, though, as i know you've scoured all the news headlines. i'm looking at this one from politico today where it says "obama weighs in on race reluctantly." that interpretation. do you see how politico reached that interpretation? do you think there was any reluctance? >> i think part of this has been the sort of standard trope about president obama that he has not discussed race enough. every time i hear that i always ask, as compared to whom? as compared to jesse jackson, reverend al sharpton, other people who are civil rights leaders, activists, advocates? or as compared to other american presidents? as compared to other american presidents he has spoken about as much as most other democrats and quite a bit more than american presidents in general about race. he has invoked african-american lives as part of the way that he tells the american narrative when he is telling that broad reach of history story. and in a few moments had weighed in very eloquently and actively on the issue of race.

i actually don't buy the narrative that he is someone who doesn't address race but i understand that it comes for people because there is an expectation that he as a black man would talk about it more frequently. of course what we saw over the past 12, not even 24 hours yet, is that when an african-american, particularly one of the power that he has, speaks on race, many people have a lot of difficulty hearing it. >> yeah. and i want to let you all know as melissa and david have been talking christmas when you're looking at live pictures, new york, los angeles we're keeping it on that, chicago, miami. miami is just wrapping up now. but, david, are you hearing anything from the white house on what the president hopes to accomplish with his remarks? i mean, is there something tangible, palatable, some specific thing he wants to achieve? >> he himself said yesterday we have to respect the verdict. the jury has spoken. you know, from his statement earlier in the week, a written statement, he is trying to sort of make sure that i think the

mood around the country remains fairly calm though people have a big emotional investment. he is first trying to make sure that people keep it -- things in perspective. on the other hand he said he didn't want to launch a national conversation which he probably did by just talking about this but rather that he wants people to have self-reflection were his words. as kristen and melissa said, choosing to speak out ahead of all of the sort of demonstrations and rallies this weekend, he has, perhaps, changed the mood in a good way, i think. however, i think that, you know, there is still going to be some pushback from the other side. you've already seen some of that. that the president is weighing in on one side of this and how can he do this? i was a bit, you know, sort of -- it did sort of remark on me that he talked so clearly about had trayvon martin been of age and armed could he have stood his ground and even shot mr. zimmerman. i was a little surprised by that because the question is, you know, still whether the justice department would take a federal charges to this case and retry

that part of it. but the president speaking out so forcefully on this, i don't know that that would, you know, sort of weigh into the factor of the decision of the justice department. >> right. >> could be an issue. >> and the support of that question is what is behind a lot of the rallies today. >> when i talked to malia and sasha and i listened to their friends and i see them interact, they're better than we are. they're better than we were on these issues. and that's true in every community that i've visited all across the country. >> you're right there among students at tulane all the time. do you get a sense that's reflected? >> i think the president is right but also maybe a little too optimistic. sidwell friends school in washington, d.c., you know, an active, interracial community of young people is going to portray the very best of what this kind of millennial generation has to

offer on questions of diversity. it is not quite true that that -- when he said it's true all across in all communities -- it's not true in all communities but i do think what he is right about is this generation sees and understands and experiences race quite differently and that we in older generations must give space for them to experience their realities of race without constantly putting our narrative on it and saying, no. this is that. i think the other important point here and i felt this was part of the motivation for the president, that the bitterness and the anger and the sense of being cast out from your own country, that this generation has not had to experience, that my daughter, my students, that malia and sasha have not had to experience, they suddenly felt it when the zimmerman verdict came down. that was their moment of feeling as though they weren't fully american, so part of what he does is he comes back in and rescues their kind of racial innocence and says, no, no. it's going to be okay. let's keep moving forward. >> clearly, a pivotal moment one

week ago tonight. >> yes. >> it's only been a week and all that's happened since. kristen, do you get a sense there is something the white house thinks will be one of the defining moments of his presidency, that which the president spoke about yesterday? >> reporter: well, i think they think that today heading into this week, again, i don't think his advisers expected him or knew what he was going to do or whether he was going to speak about this to the nation. so i think there was a sense that last night's speech or yesterday's speech was remarkable, extraordinary, and remember, this is really -- these are the most extensive comments he's made about race since he gave that speech back in 2008. that has sort of been a defining moment for this president. at that point in time, though, he was a candidate. what was striking about yesterday, we heard from a second-term president. and he was much more personal. i think much freer to share his own experiences when he talked about being racially profiled. so i do think that the

administration waking up this morning thinks that what happened yesterday will certainly be one of the defining moments for this president and i think that the question becomes what happens next. you heard the president call for a review of state laws and also a review of how we're raising african-american men. so i think that if there is actually some action that comes out of the president's remarks from yesterday that it will be all the more defining. >> okay. kristen welker at the white house, david mcnamara in our d.c. bureau and melissa harris perry, thank you very much to all three of you. what you are seeing here are the vigils, peacefully conducted, across the country, new york, los angeles, chicago, and miami. we'll keep monitoring those for you. meantime, relief is coming from a record heat wave, but when and where? here would be great. plus, what went wrong in detroit and what can be done to make things right? on water. ♪

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when detroit filed for bankruptcy this week it sealed the city's reputation as the poster child for urban blight and economic failure. what really caused the crisis? the city as hopeless as the photos of abandoned buildings imply? joining me now is the detroit free press columnist rochelle riley and mark menali author of the last days of detroit and detroit city is the place to be. with a welcome to you we'll start with you, michelle. the assumption is the decline of the auto industry caused detroit's problems but there are a lot of other factors there, many that started before the plant started closing down so how did it really goat this point? >> this has been a long time coming and most is caused by population declines that started in the 1950s. the more people moved to the suburbs the fewer people were

left to handle a tax burden that did not change. you had the same number of city employees and police officers. there weren't cuts to match the population. that is one of the biggest reasons. >> the so-called white flight you've discussed as well, that plays into all of this, moving out to the suburbs? >> actually it's white flight and middle class black flight. you started with white flight and it began before the 1967 riots but continued in ernest after that. you have people, there is an economic instead of racial sort of migration. so there were lots of people that when they could afford to move to tonier neighborhoods and grassy lawns and away from the urban center they did that in huge numbers. unfortunately, that happened at the same time that the city was starting to have a need for a greater budget but the budget was declining. only half of residents pay property taxes. the city has not had a surplus since 2004, which was the same

year that justin timberlake pulled janet jackson's bra off if you need a reference. unfortunately, the council would borrow money to pay the debt and of course when you pay one credit card to pay another there is always a credit card. >> mark, you grew up in detroit and moved back in '09 because you wanted to write your books there. what did you find in terms of the change when you got back? >> there was actually some very positive change which if you go to the downtown or the mid town district where the university and medical center is it is unrecognizable from where i was growing up. i think there is finally an acceptance that the auto industry isn't going to come back and save us. there was a very paternalistic attitude and this thought that the big three would come to the city's rescue. that illusion has been

vanquished and now people are looking to new ideas about what detroit can become. but, of course shall the economic situation was just -- everything that rochelle said was exacerbated by the -- what was going on with the banks. the sort of predatory lending and foreclosure crisis that went on just really destroyed the tax base of the city of detroit. >> this is a lot of negative stuff here. in your books you certainly trace the origins of the problems but you're not among those who think things are hopeless. you see some hope. where do you see that? >> partly it's a native sort of tenacious optimism. it's not entirely justified i have to admit. but, no. i think what i just described, the sort of changes that are going on in the core of the city are exciting and real. the big problem of course is historically all of the money, all of the resources have poured into that sort of core part of the city. the neighborhoods have been allowed to sort of languish.

that's still happening to this day. detroit has the highest homicide rate of any big city in the u.s. police response times an hour -- >> just terrible. 58 minutes. >> it's insane. in the book i go along, i run along with some cops. we were racing to a shooting. they didn't have a gps in the car so they were actually physically fumbling with a physical map. >> extraordinary. >> to find where to go. stuff like that is happening, you know, across the board. that's a huge hole to dig yourself out of it. >> a huge burden there. rochelle, in your latest column you write about some of the big investments that have been going on despite the backdrop of crisis. there are the plans for the new red wings arena, major investments in the downtown area largely from dan gilbert the owner of quicken loans. what is the incentive? might bankruptcy compromise the ability of business owners to get new business tax credits or detroit city credits? what's going to bring them back

to detroit? >> well, let me just tell you there are two droietroits. not all of the neighborhoods are urban sprawl and tenaments. not all the people who are here have given up on detroit. you have a positive response from business leaders to bankruptcy because they see as a chance to wipe the slate clean and start to -- and to continue some of the things that they've already done. i think that dan gilbert is a gambler and he's gambling on detroit coming back but he's not sitting and waiting like some people do when they buy properties and they live in florida and they wait to see if they're going to be worth something. he's actually trying to transform downtown and he is leading a wave of urban warriors i call them who are doing that same thing. i think that you're going to find is once you can get the debt under control, and $18 billion is a lot to swallow, then you will have a chance to do some of those things that will make people come back. even though more people are moving in, they're not moving in as quickly as people are leaving. younger and excited people are

moving into the city in all parts of the city trying to bring it back. >> you know what's interesting, mark does write about that. you write about some artists, urban farmers. ivy league grads who passed up on, you know, say investment bank jobs and the like to work for the city council. it really runs the gamut. >> it's true. you know, detroit does have lots of assets. you know, lots of cheap housing. you can really -- i talked to people here in new york about what rents are there and you hear the jaws hit the floor. but, yeah. i mean, going back to the debt, that is the big question. you know, if you look at managed bankruptcies of say the big -- the chrysler and general motors, how that all played out, they did get rid of the bad assets and wiped the debt clean and they also got $82 billion in federal aid. i don't hear anybody talking about detroit getting that kind of aid. that's generally what, say, a corporation needs when they're going through a managed

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is from walmart? wow! is it really? (laughter) find fresh peaches and all your quality produce. backed by our 100% money back guarantee. walmart. there is an aerial look and close up to the justice for trayvon martin heading out from the federal building downtown. jay-z and beyonce were among those at the start of the crowd. certainly firing up the crowd. we're going to keep you covered on all these marches across the country. stay with us. we'll be right back here on msnbc. little things anyone can do. it steals your memories. your independence. ensures support, a breakthrough. and sooner than you'd like. sooner than you'd think. you die from alzheimer's disease. we cure alzheimer's disease. every little click, call or donation adds up to something big.

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you're gonna need this. thrilling adventure heroic performance the ford summer spectacular sales event featuring blockbuster deals he's the best chance we've got. now during the ford summer spectacular, get a blockbuster deal... with $1000 matching down bonus cash. now playing at a ford dealer near you. welcome back to "weekends with alex witt." time for headlines at the half. investigators are trying to find out what went wrong after a woman died on the rollercoaster of a six flags amusement park. happened in arlington, texas and some witnesses say the woman was

improperly secured and thrown out of a ride dubbed the world's highest coaster. fire crews are concerned about unstable weather as they find a california wildfire going to roughly 42,000 acres. thunderstorms could bring much needed rain or unwelcomed wind and lightning to the fire in the mountains. legendary white house reporter helen thomas has died. she grilled nine u.s. presidents and became one of the best known reporters in washington. helen thomas was 92 years old. at 33 past, live pictures from across the country showing what is being called the 100-city justice for trayvon vigils getting under way right now from new york to chicago to clear across the county in los angeles in these cities are gathering in front of federal buildings to call for justice. the vigils were organized by the reverend sharpton's national action network calling on the justice department to pursue federal civil rights charges against george zimmerman. earlier this morning trayvon martin' father tracey martin

spoke at the vigil in miami. moments from now his mother is to address supporters here in new york. let's go to the vigil at the moment in los angeles. with a good morning to you, 9:30 your time, talk about the mood there as this justice for trayvon martin gets under way. >> reporter: good morning to you, alex. you are looking at the crowd. it is a growing crowd of about 200 at this point. the mood is very positive, very upbeat, and very strong. i spoke to organizers. they have stressed that this is going to be a nonviolent rally. in fact, they've been having meetings all week long with the lapd and the department of justice and, again, have assured law enforcement that this will remain peaceful. the lapd for its part has added extra security patrols here on bicycle and motorcycle. they're also putting out extra squad cars. again, hundreds have gathered out here as you can probably see. they've also blocked off the street here in front of the federal building. but again, so far so good.

this is a peaceful rally. >> stephanie, with regard to what the president said yesterday, have you been able to gauge reaction to that before from any of the people at this vigil? >> i have. i spoke to an organizer and he says the president's remarks have absolutely energized this crowd. he says this is something they've been waiting for. they've been waiting for president obama to speak about this verdict. the protesters are to remain peaceful today but they say they want to peacefully express their anger over the verdict. they're also pushing the department of justice to further investigate the case. they want to bring up some civil rights charges against george zimmerman and, also, they say they want to overturn the stand your ground law not only in florida but several other states in which that law is on the books. >> okay. well, certainly with the surprise appearance of beyonce and jay-z here in new york city, there's the potential there in los angeles for other luminaries. we'll check in with you next hour and see what is going on

then. thank you. >> reporter: sure. >> we invite you to watch "meet the press" tomorrow for a special conversation about race and justice in america, what progress has been made, and what needs to be fixed. when detroit filed for bankruptcy this week it became the largest city in u.s. history to do so, but it's hardly alone. since just 2010 eight cities and counties from rhode island to california declared bankruptcy. what role should the federal and state government play? at what point are cities too big to fail? joining me now the san antonio mayor. it's nice to see you. thanks for joining me. >> thanks for having me. >> as all of this was happening in detroit, it must be marked here that your own city was just recertified with a triple-a bond rating as the only city with over a million people to have this perfect rating. of course i don't want to imply at all that san antonio and detroit face the same issues. what are you doing to keep your economy so healthy? >> well, san antonio like other

texas cities, austin, dallas, houston, has been growing tremendously. that has helped. but for san antonio, part of the story is also that its economy is very well diversified and the local economy is anchored in sectors that have been growing compared to other sectors even during this recession, like health care and education. we have a very young city. we have a city that has more than 110,000 students enrolled in college and graduate school. and like the military, we have fort sam houston that has grown tremendously and a couple other military bases. so san antonio in the private sector and in the public sector has been doing well all things considered and it's also been well managed and that's why we've been able to achieve that kind of bond rating. >> indeed. you guys also have the benefit of being a wonderful tourist destination with that charming city and the riverwalk. >> that's true.

>> beautiful. >> we had a river walk and the alamo. sure. >> steven rattner who oversaw the government bailout of the auto industry, he's got a new column in the "new york times" in which he calls for the federal and state government to step in with financial assistance. give me your thoughts on that. >> i definitely believe it's an idea worth considering. it has merit. folks will remember what happened with new york. we've seen this before in the 1970s. we bailed out the auto industry. i think the first plan of action is to see what happens in this bankruptcy proceeding but state governments and the federal government i believe also do have a responsibility to help ensure that when a city reaches this kind of situation that the residents of the city and the students, folks relying on a pension are not left out in the

cold. if our banks sometimes are too big to fail, certainly our cities that are the bread and butter, the lifeblood of many american states, our cities ought to be considered for some sort of federal and state assistance as well. so i think it has merit. >> you know, you talk about the diversity there in san antonio and the success of the business community and, of course, juxtapose that with detroit, which is really seen as a one industry town, autos, and you know the trouble that's had. what would you say as a mayor that you can do to attract diverse businesses to a city like detroit? are there tools you can use to do that? >> oh, absolutely. there are the usual incentives that all cities and states use. we live in a 21st century economy that is more global than ever, more competitive, where capital is more mobile. but let me focus on something that hasn't been focused on as much in the last couple days. that's education. there is not a single city or

suburb out there that if it has a great education system, a great school district, will not prosper or at least be stable. and so what's happened in detroit is not just a reminder about the issue of pensions and managing a city budget well. it's also a reminder about these urban school districts and how much at the local level the federal level and the state level we need to focus on urban education to lift up the quality of those schools to be creative, to include things like charters, so that folks will want to live in many of those neighborhoods that, frankly, in places like detroit, for many years, have been abandoned. >> i want to switch gears though and talk to you about this cover story in the new issue of "texas monthly." they ask if your brother and the state senator wendy davis can return democrats to power in

texas. what do you think? >> well, i do think the democrats are going to return to power in texas. the question is not if. the question is when. there is a strong effort right now through battleground texas to make that more possible. i think the point of the story in texas monthly is that you need both things. you need the spade work, the ground work of an effort like battleground texas. you also need the candidates to actually come up and run good races. and so who knows what'll happen, when it'll happen? but i do think in the next couple of years that it is going to happen and it needs to. >> do you think it's possible, though, we have five decades of texas being pretty much a red state. do you think this could happen by 2016, 2020, turn blue? >> sure. that's what they said about virginia and north carolina and a couple other states, that in the 2008 and 2012 cycles went

blue. texas is a bigger state. so it's going to take a little bit longer. if you look at the demographic trends, if you look at the fact that because of texas's success you've had a ton of people move into the state from other places that are having a moderating impact on it especially in the suburbs of big cities like austin, houston, dallas, and you look at how far to the right many of the republican elected officials have gone, like ted cruise, those things add up to the democrats if they play their cards right being able to seize the middle, business folks, folks who are independent. that's what you hear in the air in texas right now but there is a ton of field work to do and still a need for great candidates. >> thank you so much for your time, san antonio mayor julio castro. >> thanks for having me. >> let's go to the weather and all of the extreme heat. is this going to let up? look who i'm talking to.

can you answer that question? >> it is going to let up. one more day. we just have to handle it for one more day. tomorrow it is going to cool down in the northeast but today we are already seeing temperatures well into the 80s and into the 90s work in humidity. it feels like 105 already in boston. so this is stifling heat and we need a cold front to move through to really help things out. there it is. it is already producing some scattered showers and storms especially in areas like northern ohio. that is an area where we could see some stronger storms as we go into the afternoon. from northern kentucky right up into new england, we will see the risk of possibly large hail, torrential downpours, and damaging wind gusts. something we'll keep an eye out for later this afternoon and evening. we will go from nooint in the northeast back down into the 80s by the time we get into tomorrow. just this one more day of extreme heat and once it cools down tomorrow it actually is going to stay in the low to mid 80s throughout most of next week. alex? >> okay. we'll take it. thank you very much, dylan. a discussion on race and

justice in america following the president's comments yesterday and the rally is under way in 100 cities today.

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president obama's personal comments about the state of race in this country. during his surprise appearance friday the president said trayvon martin, quote, could have been me 35 years ago. and he questioned whether the case's outcome would have been different if a white male teen were involved. >> the african-american community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that doesn't go away. >> nancy pelosi tweeted this quote. thank you, mr. president, for your very personal and very presidential statement on trayvon martin. florida congresswoman debby

wassermann schultz tweeted, mr. president, you make me proud. earlier today i spoke about this with msnbc contributor james peterson and "the washington post" clinton yates. >> the fact that he went off script, i mean, there was no prepared remarks. the fact that he just spoke candidly from the heart about this shows you that these -- this is not just something he has been thinking about but obviously something that is a contextual thing, but a reality for most people. >> james, the timing of this. this is before the national action network. of course reverend al sharpton's network. they are asking for all of these demonstrations today. >> that's right. >> but in a peaceful protest these demonstrations to be calm. do you think the president was thereby lending his voice to that call for calm and do you think this will have that effect? >> i think these demonstrations have been largely calm already. so i don't think there was any need for the president to try to hedge against some kind of violent outbreak. these protests largely have not been violent in any way. people want to express themselves.

some people are angry and some people are frustrated. you know what, it's a really important point that sometimes it is a refusal to see the social and racial inequities in our society and we have to move beyond that. people have got to come to the table and become more connected to the experiences of those who have been racially profiled, connect to the experiences of unjust racial biases in the criminal justice system. that is the only way we can begin to eradicate some of those challenges. us having these conversations, raising these issues, the symbolic nature of the trayvon martin issue and case will help shape the ideology of younger folk who will ultimately have the power over this criminal justice system. >> an interesting perspective offered by nba player charles barkley often outspoken. he said last night we never talk about race in this country until something bad happens. he also said this. >> when people talk about race, they always want to act like it's only white people who are racist. listen, there are black people

who are racist also. don't ever get that -- that's one thing i always want to talk about. i consider racism the greatest cancer of my lifetime. unfortunately, to some people i'm always going to be black. >> so, clinton, how do you think those statements advanced the dialogue if at all? >> i don't think they do much. the problem is that racism as perpetuated against blacks and other people of color in this country has been the most harmful. a lot of black people feel they have been raised and live in a society in which they've been forced to feel put down therefore they are racist. i don't think measuring one group's level of hatred versus another is necessary. i think the point here is to let people genuinely be honest about what they feel inside so we can get to a point of trying to break, you know, bridge the gap and make some harmony here. the fact is that in this country if you were labeled a racist you are outcast. as a result, nobody wants to bring up the things they honestly feel inside in order to have a discussion. that to me is the biggest issue. >> in terms of finding harmony as you say there, james, we

heard the president saying when he listens to sasha and malia and their friends and their interactions, here's the quote. they are better than we are. they're better than we were on these issues. is that your experience? do you think the next generation is better? >> i would tend to agree. in fact, if i loork k at this s of cross section of college students i've taught over the last 12 to 15 years even in that short time span students are coming into university classrooms with more open minds than we had when in university classrooms. i think there is still this challenge to raise levels of consciousness of this particular history and, you know, mr. barkley is flat out wrong here. we're having conversations about race all the time. we may not be on national news networks but there are scholars and critics and writers and thinkers and organizers who are engaged in this discussion. maybe mr. barkley could participate in that. the way we tend to define racism has to do with structures and systems so black folk can maybe be prejudiced but it is very difficult for black folk to be racist because you have to have the tools of the system to make

the racism hurt and have an impact on people's lives like on our criminal justice system. yes we do see progress and with each generation as long as we're prepared to educate them and connect them to these important histories, we'll be better than the previous generation. that's just sort of how it works. >> clinton, i want you to weigh in as well here in terms of how much better is better if you agree with what james is saying and the president as well. is better good enough? >> no. better is not good enough. but i'd like to think i'm of the generation that is actually doing something and not just simply saying, hey, look at that generation. they happen to be getting it better. >> much of my conversation there with james peterson and clinton yates. a new documentary about killer whales has seaworld on the offensive. the park says this new movie is misleading. we'll hear from both sides. wait a sec! i found our colors. we've made a decision. great, let's go get you set up... you need brushes... you should check out our workshops... push your color boundaries while staying well within your budget walls. i want to paint something else.

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a new documentary is raising critical questions about whether killer whales should be held in theme parks and how much trauma they suffer being kept in captivity. >> sheriff's office.

>> we need someone to respond for a dead person at seaworld. a whale has eaten one of the trainers. >> the 12,000 pound orca has been linked to the deaths of three people. seaworld has launched an aggressive campaign to criticize the documentary sending a detailed response to film critics. joining me now the director of the documentary. welcome. >> thank you for having me. >> what made you decide to do this documentary? >> i heard about the story of don brancho being killed by a killer whale at seaworld. i am a documentary film maker but i'm a mother who took her kids to seaworld and i was confounded and confused how a highly intelligent animal would have essentially, you know, attacked his beloved trainer or bite the hand that feeds it in that sense. >> so the documentary, black fish, what are we going to learn that we didn't already know? >> you will learn about just

sort of how impossible and, you know, majestic and intelligent these creatures are. they have everything we have in their brains. they also have. and yet they also have a part of the brain we don't even have and we don't even know how to describe it or discuss anything about it because we don't even have it. we've never seen it before. >> it's interesting. can i ask, is part of the publicity release, when you look into their eyes, somebody is home. somebody is looking back at you but it may not be what you think. what are you talking about there? >> yeah. you only know how you feel about these animals. right? you know during the 40 years that seaworld has been around we've come to sort of fall in love with killer whales. and, yet, we look at them. we know they're highly intelligent. and yet we love being with them, love touching them, love getting up close. but we only know our side of the equation. for their side of the equation we're left making up a story. we don't know. >> do you have evidence that

these creatures are suffering in captivity? >> there's tremendous sort of irrefutable evidence that they are suffering in captivity. i think that i being a mother who took her kids there, it took me a while to sort of unearth this and to realize that the facts just sort of lead us to believe that they are completely not suitable for captivity. they don't thrive let alone survive very long. they fight with each other constantly. and then they agress toward their trainers because they are so bored and frustrated. >> seaworld has released a statement about the documentary saying in part, that, blackfish is billed as a documentary but instead of a fair and balanced treatment of a complex subject, the film is inaccurate and misleading and, regrettably, exploits a tragedy. it also says seaworld is one of the world's most respected zoological institutions and that the film "blackfish" fails to mention seaworld's commitment to the safety of its team members and guests and the care and welfare of its animals.

so exploiting a tragedy is basically what they are saying you're doing. how do you respond to that? >> oh, that one hurts. it stings. i think that it's, you know, i was in touch with don's family very early on. this is such a profound, sad tragedy. it's always front and center for me and it was always front and center for me. this is a tremendous woman. she was, you know, beloved by her friends, by the people that knew her and her family, focused on the incredible work she had done. that sort of, you know is where they're putting their energies is really focusing on where she was as a person and not really regurgitating that fateful day. >> yeah. and certainly putting your energies into "blackfish." thank you very much. we should mention the movie again playing on friday in new york and los angeles. it will extend nationwide shortly. also we want you to know we invited seaworld to join us today but they declined. however, they sent us that

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coast to coast, state to state a hundred rallies and vigils and justice for trayvon martin called for. >> the african-american community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history. >> president obama's take on the trayvon martin shooting. how can the president's comments heal a divided nation? the road to ruin. what led detroit to financial disaster? how can it rebound? and a cry for help. a scramble to save a young child dangling four stories high after getting his head stuck in a window. good day to you and welcome to "weekends with alex witt" just a bit past 1:00 p.m. here in the east. we'll get to what's happening right now. what is called the 100 city justice for trayvon vigils.

you're looking live at pictures from across the cities. supporters are gathering in front of federal buildings. they were organized by reverend al sharpton and the national action network calling on the government to pursue federal civil rights charges against george zimmerman. a few moments ago the parents of trayvon martin spoke at separate rallies in miami and in new york. first we'll listen to what tracey martin told supporters in miami. >> my message is simple. i'd like the world to k t trayvon was my son, a love child. he did nothing wrong. we're not going to let them persecute him the way that they have. >> we have team coverage of the rallies this afternoon. stephanie stanton in los angeles, michelle franzen at the vigil in new york. michelle, we'll start with you. talk about the mood in new york.

>> it's been going on, this speech, this vigil, this prayer, the sit-in at the federal courthouse and the plaza for about an hour now. we are in sweltering temperatures, alex, as we have been all week. about a thousand people i would say, just an estimate have turned out here to hear not only the reverend al sharpton but other speakers including trayvon's mom, sabrina martin who also turned out here. she didn't speak beyond the area the there. she said i hear your voices. i want to hear your voices but we need to do it in a peaceful manner. that is what civil rights leaders say that this hundred-city vigils, justice for trayvon, is all about. it's taking the protests we saw earlier this week in light of the verdict in the george zimmerman case and taking it to what they call the next step, a call for action. what they are calling for, very pointed here today in the comment, is that they want the

justice department to take a good look at this case. they are asking for federal civil rights charges to be filed here. in addition to civil rights leaders to religious leaders to trayvon's mom and family members, also, to show their solidarity and support a surprise visit by jay-z and his wife of course superstar beyonce. turning out here they did not give speeches but showed up here showing their solidarity here to the cheers of many people coming out holding up signs. many of them echoing what they say were president obama's comments yesterday that resonated with them personally. >> interestingly, are people talking about that and the president making an impact? are you hearing that pretty much when you go speak with people there? >> we are hearing it throughout the speeches and everyone has been sort of giving their attention to something, to people giving speeches. we're seeing a sign that had the

president on there echoing his remarks yesterday. i am trayvon martin where the president mentioned that trayvon could have been him 35 years ago, could have been his son. that certainly is a part of the fabric here and around the country i would imagine. >> yeah. okay. thank you very much. we appreciate that, michelle franzen from new york. let's bring in nbc's stephanie stanton with the vigil in los angeles there. forecast about the mood. last hour there were a couple hundred people. looks like it's grown a bit. >> absolutely. official word, this crowd is 250 strong and growing. let's give you a closer look as we zoom in to what's happening behind us. we are a bit of a distance away and that was according to law enforcement they wanted to keep the media, any live shots away from the direct crowd there. given what happened earlier this week, some rogue protesters who caused some trouble throughout the city. you can see this rally here is very peaceful. we see people holding signs, going on for about an hour and

of course there have been several speakers at the podium. organizers have assured the lapd that this would be a peaceful protest. leaders met with members of law enforcement to lay out their plan as to how this would happen today and so far so good the lapd for its part added extra patrols on foot, on bicycle, motorcycle. extra squad cars as well. again, as the protest continues, the folks here calling for justice for trayvon. they also want to draw attention to the stand your ground law. they want it overturned in florida and other states. >> you know, you may have heard michelle talking about people invoking the president and what he said yesterday on the placards and the signs now carrying. what do you see relevant to that and what the president said in los angeles? the president's remarks energized the crowd. one of the organizers told me he had been waiting for the president. he and others had been waiting

for the president to make remarks about the verdict, about their displeasure of the not guilty verdict for george zimmerman. i haven't seen anybody holding signs of the president. i see a lot of signs, pictures of trayvon of course folks out here selling trayvon martin merchandise as well but, again, so far the big story here is that this protest is going along smoothly and it is peaceful. many thanks for that report. the parents of trayvon martin are reacting to president obama's unexpected personal remarks he made about race on friday. sybrina fulton and tracey martin released this statement, quote, president obama sees himself in trayvon and identifies with him. this is a beautiful tribute to our boy. trayvon's life was cut short but we hope his legacy will make our communities a better place for generations to come. we applaud the president's call to action to bring communities together to encourage an open and difficult dialogue. the president spoke friday about their son trayvon martin and race in this country for the

first time since the george zimmerman not guilty verdict. >> when trayvon martin was first shot, i said that this could have been my son. another way of saying that is trayvon martin could have been me 35 years ago. let's go to the white house now and nbc's kristen welker. with another good day to you how much do you think the president was keeping in mind these rallies across the country when he timed these impromptu remarks? >> reporter: well, alex, i think that a number of factors played into the president's decision. white house officials say he has been monitoring the national reaction quite closely, so he was certainly aware that these rallies were going to take place. he's really been paying close attention to the reaction ever since the verdict came down both within the african-american community. a lot of leaders within the african-american community calling on him to speak publicly about the verdict but also of course there was heated reaction all across the country, alex.

i think all of that was factored in to president obama's decision to speak out on friday. officials here saying that he consulted with family members and with friends. then on thursday he called a meeting with some of his top advisers to tell them that he had made his decision that he wanted to address this publicly. i think it is striking because of course it was a surprise we keep going back to that point but it can't be over stated how rare that is. usually this white house gives the press corps here some type of heads up when the president is about to come to the briefing room. that didn't happen yesterday in part because according to one white house official they didn't want reporters sitting around speculating about what the president might be talking about. they wanted these comments to stand on their own. they certainly had a big impact because it was such a surprise. i think the comments were also striking because they were so deeply personal. take a listen to a little bit more of what president obama had to say. >> a lot of african-american boys are painted with a broad

brush and the excuse is given, well, there are these statistics that show african-american boys are more violent. using that as an excuse to then see sons treated differently causes pain. >> and the president also talked about his own experiences being racially profiled. alex, you'll remember that the last time he really addressed race this was back in 2008. these remarks much more personal, extemporaneous in part because this is the second-term president. i think he feels a little bit freer to express his emotions but his comments yesterday i think will certainly impact the national dialogue that is happening right now. >> i think you are absolutely right. okay. kristen welker, thank you so much. joining me now congressional reporter for politico and an msnbc contributor. perry, i know you have written about the president's comments in your latest articles.

give me the reaction to the timing and tone of this message. >> it was deeply personal, remarkable how personal it was. as kristen said we've never heard him speak about these issues ever in this. he had only given a speech about race overall in 2008. he said last year my son can be trayvon, you know, and that was a very personal comment. this was much deeper when he talked about being followed when he was shopping. that was something he never said. i was just watching. i have covered him for six or seven years and i never heard him speak in that detail about race and sort of extemporaneously, this was not a planned speech. he had a few notes but it wasn't written out. the moment was so profound for those reasons as well as because of how much he crossed. he talked about his daughters and their experience with race. he talked about himself growing up. he talked about america. he managed to speak to the pain that people particularly african-americans are feeling while also if you noticed there hasn't been the kind of negative reaction among conservatives. remember what he said in 2009, skip gates was arrested. >> right. >> police were stupid. and acted stupidly.

that became a big touchstone of criticism and these comments so far have unified the country and not divided it at all. >> what is interesting is this is a man who can clearly deliver a speech very well off a teleprompter and you covered him for all this time. the way he spoke, how much time do you think he gave to just perculating these thoughts? or do you think it was just as extemporaneous as we were giving him credit to be? >> i think he thought about what he was saying before hand. i don't mean to suggest he didn't. it was more like it wasn't a written out speech prepared in the same way that his -- it wasn't a long address. >> spoken from the heart. >> one of his aides yesterday said he thought it was going to be a five-minute speech. it was 18 minutes suggesting this went on longer than was anticipated originally. that's fairly unusual. usually they know how long he'll be speaking. >> okay. shall has the white house indicated what the president hopes to accomplish with his message? >> i think he just really wanted to bring a personal tone and this is the message that he

wanted to deliver on behalf of the african-american community. and you saw this from a lot of the reaction from the black leaders. i mean, this is the message that they have been waiting for from president obama and that there was universal applause for the message that he delivered. >> okay. unfortunately, guys, we are out of time. it's all too short so we'll make it up to you. thank you so much. you were on earlier. you're fine. >> thank you. >> all right. see you guys again. thank you. what are the chances that george zimmerman will face federal charges? that's next. lth plays a key role throughout our lives. one a day women's 50+ is a complete multivitamin designed for women's health concerns as we age. it has 7 antioxidants to support cell health. one a day 50+.

as we've been telling you in a hundred cities across the nation today people are gathering for the so-called justice for trayvon vigils to call on federal prosecutors to bring civil rights charges against george zimmerman. attorney general eric holder said earlier this week the

justice department will evaluate the issue but many legal experts say it would be a tough case to make. joining me now is lauren resnick a partner and former federal prosecutor who has tried civil rights cases and the president and executive director of the lawyers committee for civil rights. ladies, with a welcome to you both, lauren, what do you think the standards are that need to be met to constitute a criminal civil rights offense or hate crime? >> in the federal system, the federal prosecutors will need to be able to prove a racial motive or bias for the actions that george zimmerman took including not simply following him but also looking at the circumstances around the firing of his gun and the actual killing of trayvon martin. so the federal prosecutors will have to look at arguments about self-defense as well as the circumstances around why george zimmerman followed trayvon martin and whether there was a racial bias. there are additional technical requirements in a federal statute as well.

>> okay. barbara, i know you're part of a conference call on monday that the justice department set up to discuss possible charges. what did you hear from them? >> i heard a lot of what they've been saying publicly is that this is a very high bar they are going to have to prove in bringing a case should they decide to and they are going to do a thorough investigation. i want to be very clear even though it is a high bar it is not insurmountable. i also want to point out that the justice department definition of hate crime that is consistent with the statute is that mr. zimmerman would have had to have been motivated in whole or in part by a racial bias to have committed the offense he committed. there will be obviously they're looking at several staffers here that wou -- statute here that would be implicated from the hate crime statute, to a prohibition of any

violation of civil rights. there is also a possibility they might look at the statute having to do with fair housing. there is a series of possibilities here for what they can consider is it true barbara that they were asking for tips, the justice department? >> well, they asked for anybody who has information because obviously in proving their case they must look at the background of this individual, prior statements of this individual, the potential racial bias. anything that may have been said prior. after and post the incident. they want to know that information so, yes. they have set up an e-mail address, which is sanford.florida@usdoj.gov for anyone who has actual information pertinent to this case. >> lauren, how unusual is that? what does it say to you that the doj is asking for tips? >> they do it all the time.

you know, police departments and law enforcement. >> i'm glad to hear that but to you, lauren, concerning what you do professionally. >> certainly. the police do it all the time. it has not been the practice of the department of justice historically to set up lines in many cases. what it suggests to me is in addition to the investigative facts uncovered in the state investigation as well as the work that the federal investigators have already done in connection with the case that the department of justice is looking for additional information that can illustrate as barbara said conduct or comments at or around the circumstances at issue to see if it can establish racial motivation beyond a reasonable doubt. in the federal system there are 12 jurors and the department of justice needs to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt so that there is a unanimous verdict how difficult will it be, lauren, to establish that george zimmerman followed trayvon martin because of his race? >> you know, it is interesting

because people have very clear -- based on life experience including up to the president -- people have very clear views of the inferences they draw from george zimmerman's decision to follow trayvon martin that night. the evidence in terms of the factual evidence surrounding those circumstances do not expressly articulate a racial motive. his call to 911, he identifies trayvon martin, he references punks and various expletives and it is not until he is asked to describe trayvon he describes his race. the department of justice is going to look for more surrounding circumstances because certainly people who look at the circumstances here based on life experience and the difficult racial history our country has had have very clear takeaways as to why they believe george zimmerman may have followed trayvon martin but the government will be looking for evidence to support those inferences. >> okay. so still looking. how about from what we saw in the trial, barbara? do you think the justice department could make a case with the evidence we stlau?

>> i think one thing is clear that the trial that was held the state was not allowed to make any arguments around racial profiling and they were explicitly prohibited from doing so by the judge. that is one issue. so the prosecution actually did not pursue a case looking at racial motivation whatsoever. that was never before the judge from the point of view of the prosecution whereas the defense used race as a defense here. >> i want to thank you both. appreciate your time, ladies. thank you. >> thank you. there is great anticipation for a bundle of joy in jolly old england. when will that special delivery come? [ male announcer ] frequent heartburn? the choice is yours. chalky... not chalky. temporary... 24 hour. lots of tablets... one pill.

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welcome back to "weekends with alex witt." right now in a hundred cities across this country a call to justice for trayvon martin from new york city to los angeles supporters in these cities are gathering in front of federal buildings in what are called justice for trayvon vigils all organized by reverend al sharpton's national action network calling on the government to pursue federal civil rights charges against george zimmerman. earlier today the parents of trayvon martin spoke at separate rallies in miami and in new york. listen to what they and reverend al sharpton told supporters. >> my message this morning is simple. i'd like the world to know that trayvon was my son.

he was a love child. he did nothing wrong. and we're not going to let them persecute him the way that they have. >> you speak up for these children. trayvon was a child. and i think sometimes it gets lost in the shuffle because as i sat in the courtroom, it made me think that they were talking about another man. and it wasn't. it was a child who thought as a child, who acted as a child, who behaved as a child. >> people said you can't mobilize 100 cities in one day. well, we just watched from atlanta to miami to chicago over 100 cities. we are standing up today for justice for trayvon martin.

>> meanwhile new reaction today on the heels of that unscripted and very personal speech president obama made about the death of trayvon martin and george zimmerman's not guilty verdict. >> there are very few african-american men in this country who haven't had the experience of being followed when shopping in a department store. that includes me. there are very few african-american men who haven't had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. that happens to me at least before i was a senator. >> joining me now congresswoman karen bass a democrat from california. always good to see you. thanks for joining me. >> thanks for having me on. >> you put out a statement not too long after the president spoke. >> yes. >> did you have any idea he would be speaking so candidly? >> no, i didn't. but i tell you, it was really a pleasure to hear him speak like that. it was painful, though. you know, i mean, the president has been so criticized in the

past if he makes any mention of race. you remember the criticism he received when he said that if he had a son he would look like trayvon but it was wonderful to hear him speak from the heart, to talk about his own personal experience. and to mirror the fact that he knows that african-american boys, men go through this experience on a daily basis. and a lot of women, too. >> how important is it, representative bass, do you think for people to understand that perspective? how much do you think many people in this country don't even think about that? >> well, i mean, i know that people don't. and here is what i always say. because a lot of people will listen to this and say, well, i've never experienced that. people who aren't african-american. i always say, for one moment can you just take a deep breath and say, it isn't my experience but is there something i can learn here? instead of just being dismissive. which is what i hear all the time. people say, i don't believe

police act that way. i don't believe that happens. just because it's not your personal experience does not mean it doesn't exist. if you have an entire population saying that this is a normal occurrence almost on a daily basis, then obviously it has to be valid. >> so what kind of an outcome do you hope will come from what's happening right now in your town in these hundred cities across the nation? we've been taking people out to los angeles and watching what's going on there. what do you hope those who attend this rally take away? >> i think a couple things. you know, one, people collectively need to grieve and they need a place to vent their emotions. i think that's very important. but i'm always about action. i think that there are several things that are happening and are going to be happening around the country that we need to pay attention to. there's the young people in florida right now who i'm frankly very proud of that are standing up in the governor's office and saying, we need to repeal stand your ground laws. that needs to happen in 33 states.

you know, in a couple of months we'll have another trial. another 17-year-old who was shot based on stand your ground laws explicitly here. 17-year-old jordan davis was in his car, a man who was white, came over, and said he was playing his music too loud. he was in his car with a number of people. they shot him and he said he was standing his ground. so trayvon martin was an absolute tragedy. my heart breaks for that family every single day because i know the pain that they wake up with. but this is continuing to happen. we're going to have another trial again in florida at the end of september. this needs to stop. >> you know, speaking of trials, mark o'mara, george zimmerman's attorney, put out a statement after the president spoke. here is part of what he put out. quote, we hope that the president was not suggesting that this case fits a pattern of racial disparity, because we strongly contend that it does not. what is your reaction? >> well, my reaction was i thought it was an offensive statement and i'll tell you why.

right after the verdict came out, the defense attorney also said that if it was switched and zimmerman were african-american and trayvon were white the same thing would have happened. i'm sorry. there is just no historical evidence that documents that. can you imagine if trayvon martin was trying to stand his ground? he didn't even know who that was that was coming up on him. if zimmerman was afraid, why didn't he just stay in the car? i was offended by his statement and i was offended by the statement he made right after the verdict came out. >> part of the statement that you put out mentions the need to, quote, put resources in place to bolster african-american youth especially young boys in the aftermath of the murder of trayvon martin. what would you like to see done? >> well, you know, actually there are a number of wonderful programs that happen all over the country. i would like to see them supported more. people talk about the homicides that take place in chicago. people talk about the

african-american on african-american crime as though people in communities are not working to stop this on a daily basis. but, you know, the projects, the programs that fight the problems that really tried to address what's going on with african-american males alsop rate on a shoe string budget and i think more resources needs to go. there needs to be a commitment in this country for our youth, period. and especially our vulnerable youth. african-american males certainly fall into that category. >> congresswoman karen bass, many thanks for your time. >> thanks for having me on. president obama's comments are resonating across this country and of course making the front pages. a sampling of the headlines. this from the san jose mercury news. president obama gives voice to pain. the atlanta journal-constitution headlines the story this way. president obama says martin could have been me. and in the news journal in wilmington, delaware, president obama, we must search our souls. now back to the largest city that ever filed for bankruptcy in the u.s.

the big question, what's next? we're sharing pictures of the abandoned homes in detroit and they are one of most stark examples of the city's downfall. city officials try to find a solution. what lessons will they draw from past efforts? joining me now is detroit city council president jenkins. i really appreciate your time. thanks for being here. >> thank you for having me. >> i'd like to have you put into perspective for our viewers who don't live in detroit who may not have visited there, give us a sense of the issues that face the residents. >> well, for years the residents have been faced with diminished city services because we haven't had the revenues to provide services people deserve. the police response time is too low. we have fire houses that are shut down. because of the population dwindle, we have many, many abandoned houses that the city can't afford to tear down. so we've been facing many challenges here in detroit for a while. >> we've been -- we threw up a couple details here and

statistics. there are some certain crime statistics coming out of detroit which boggles the mind. the homicide rate is at its highest in 40 yearsment only 8.7% of crime cases get solved. 58 minutes? the average wait for police? even in a serious crime call. do the residents you've been speaking to feel like local or fofts just gave up on them? what is the perception of bankruptcy and how is that going to help solve some of the issues? >> the residents are frustrated and residents want to know why. it is not that people haven't been trying. certainly people are trying but our resources are what they are. while bankruptcy is not something anybody wanted to see at this point it is the only way we can turn it around and bring people the quality of life they deserve. >> what about the decline in population? it is dramatic. i mean, is this white flight or as someone else told me earlier

today, it's also middle class black flight. i mean, is that what is behind this exodus? >> well, it certainly started as white flight began as early as the 1950s and it has continued to the mid to late '80s but from that point on you had middle class african-americans who were leaving the city of detroit moving elsewhere looking for better school systems, looking for better city services, so at this point it's just flight in general that in order for us to stop it we have to be able to provide a better quality of life in order to provide the better quality of life we need the tax base to do it. >> right. >> so it's a cycle. you need to have new business come in because this is a city that has been largely viewed as a one industry, one company town with the auto industry, so when you're trying to appeal to new businesses, how when you're filing for bankruptcy can you give those things that new businesses will want? they'll want the detroit city tax breaks.

they'll want the, you know, new business tax incentives. will those be able to be offered? >> mm-hmm. >> yes. we continue to offer those on a regular basis here in the city of detroit. it is an interesting story. i call it the tale of two cities because while we are constantly getting new businesses and new jobs and our downtown is thriving in a way that it hasn't in a very long time, our neighborhoods continue to suffer because our tax base is growing but it's not growing at the rate we need it to in order to get a handle on our debt and our constant -- our annual deficit. so businesses are still being offered. tax incentives are being offered and one of the great things we can provide is real estate, beautiful real estate at a price that you can't get anywhere else. >> we've heard it said earlier today that getting an apartment there in downtown detroit versus here in new york city where you

get a closet, absolutely you are right on that. thank you very much. president obama's statement on race still reverberating through america but how will it resonate in history. rvey's i'm so happy you're home dance. that's real love. and so is giving him real tasty food. but some leading dog foods add sugar, dyes, or even artificial preservatives. [ dog whimpers ] but now there's new so good! from iams. with 100% real wholesome ingredients and none of those other things. now that's real love. so is that. new so good! see what's really in your dog's bowl at iams.com. new so good! all this produce from walmart and secretly served it up in the heart of peach country. it's a fresh-over. we want you to eat some peaches and tell us what you think. they're really juicy. it must have just come from the farm. this right here is ideal for me. walmart works directly with growers to get you the best quality produce they've ever had. what would you do if i told you all this produce is from walmart? wow!

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actually have blown me away. find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. outside of london st. mary's hospital, royal watchers and the global media are standing by just in case today is the day. the royal baby arrives. this is the second weekend in a row they've been camped out in growing anticipation. there was a mad dash for the lights and cameras yesterday what he fake will and kate arrived at st. mary's. moments after media reports the real royal couple was on the way back to london. just one of the tabloids pulling a mean publicity stunt. it's time for the big three in today's topics. reflection on race. what's next? we'll bring you my big three panel to talk about that. best week worst week as well of course. perry bacon junior joins us, political strategist with impact strategies angela errey and msnbc contributor, susan del

recio. perry, how difficult do you think this was for the president to stand up there and say what he did yesterday? >> i don't think it was that difficult for him. i mean, my understanding is he has been thinking about what he wanted to say about this since last, since the verdict came out. i think he has been -- about a week. more of a question of timing and setting the right mood and having the right words. it seemed to me that him thinking it out seemed to work. i think he hit the right tones really well in this speech yesterday. more than when he talked about race in the past. so i think the days to think about and agonize about it apparently talked to a lot of friends and family about what he wanted to say and it seems to have been an effective way to communicate and think about the speech. >> if anyone didn't hear it in its entirety we'll play part of it right now and, angela, have you listen to it with me. here is part of that. >> very few african-american men in this country who haven't had the experience of being followed when they were shopping in a department store. that includes me. there are very few

african-american men who haven't had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. that happens to me at least before i was a senator. >> angela, no other president could be bringing this perspective thus far. how important is it that all of this came together? >> i think it is extremely important. it would be very, very challenging, alex, in this day and age, to have the first black president in 2013 and have him not speak out on this. so i think earlier in the week attorney general holder addressed the naacp and he talked about his personal experiences with racial profiling. the conversations he had to have with his son. and so for the president to echo some of those same sentiments and not only address racial profiling, the challenges with stand your ground, but also to talk about the serious conversations this country needs to have to move forward was absolutely essential. i'm very, very glad he did it what was your biggest takeaway from what the president said? >> i think he set a perfect tone

for it frankly. by making it personal, it really was -- for the first time you have a president who hates talking about himself, sharing himself with the country. i also think the timing of it was just about perfect. i think he wanted to see how the country was going to react. you've been showing the demonstrations all around the country. and they are very -- there is no outbreaks, they're all very civil. trayvon martin's parents have also set an incredible tone and shown great leadership on this. >> yes. >> so i think matched with the way they handled themselves the president's timing was actually perfect on this. >> i think the president certainly made mention of that and what kind of examples they have set. perry, how important do you think it is for this president to make clear to americans that this is what african-american males go through? i mean, do you think most americans don't understand or don't try to put themselves in another's shoes like that? >> i don't know if i'm not -- i

don't know the answer to that. i suspect a lot of americans do know these things. people i talked to certainly do and the question is, though, he is the president of the united states.states. so he -- his words mean more. i don't think people think of barack obama the same way as someone who maybe when going through a shopping mall had people follow him and wonder if he might steal something. i don't think most americans think of him that way. so he really took us back and said, this could have been me in a really personal way. it's surprising and dramatic. as i watched that speech, i thought, wow, i've covered him since 2005 and interviewed him, and i just never heard him speak in those ways about racial issues. he's given speeches, but not in that personal tone. >> a bit more from the speech here. angela, take a listen.

>> i don't want us to lose sight that things are getting better. each successive generation seems to be making progress in changing attitudes when it comes to race. it doesn't mean we're in a post-racial society. it doesn't mean that racism is eliminated. >> do you see a long-term impact, angela, from the president's comments? >> i think yes and no. the onus is on the american people. the president has spoken out. he's laid out a great speech, mentioned some very good points. but there are things, again, to perry's point, we talk about this all the time. kitchen conversations, everyday conversations for people who don't have a choice to take off their race, the color of their skin. to also hear them talk about that we don't necessarily live in a post-racial society is abundantly critical because those are the same words that people use to describe this era of obama. to hear him say that, no, this doesn't mean that racism is solved. in fact, i would say it's more

complex because it's gone from more overt to covert, meaning people are hit in their paychecks, people are hit in their profile, even the words that are spoken, i'm following you because you're a young black man and i'm allegedly afraid of you, whatever that is. it's a very tricky type of racism that's been institutionalized for years. >> nba's charles barkley plays a role in this week's best week/worst week. , groceries, or even gas bills. kick! kick... feel it! feel it! feel it! nice work! ♪ you got it! you got it! yes! aflac's gonna help take care of his expenses. and us...we're gonna get him back in fighting shape. ♪ [ male announcer ] see what's happening behind the scenes at aflac.com.

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now back to the big three for the best and worst of the week. susan? >> the worst week i gave to steve cohen out of tennessee, congressman out of tennessee, because he took a really bad twitter situation and made it even worse by insulting a female reporter when asked about whether he's the father -- you're upset you found out you're no longer the father of this woman. he replied with a condescending comment, even though you're attractive, i'm not going to answer that question. so he got himself in more hot water.

on the positive news, i think it goes with the u.s. senate, not only what reid and mcconnell were able to do with the filibuster. and the fact that kirsten gillibrand was able to get senator marco cruz to sign off on something, that was tremendous. >> the worst was charles barkley. he said that trayvon martin beat the hell out of george zimmerman. i don't know who died and made him om nisient, but i'm over charles barkley. the best is barack obama, and all the things we talked about since he finished his speech yesterday. kudos to the president. >> perry, yours? >> bob mcdonnell, the word about his affairs and everything.

bad governorship and made it worse. and the best is harry reid. he said, i'm going to change the rules of the senate. the rules didn't change, but he definitely got nominees through. >> thank you guys for that. that is a wrap of "weekends with alex witt." i'll see you back tomorrow. every day we're working to be an even better company - and to keep our commitments. and we've made a big commitment to america. bp supports nearly 250,000 jobs here. through all of our energy operations, we invest more in the u.s. than any other place in the world. in fact, we've invested over $55 billion here in the last five years - making bp america's largest energy investor. our commitment has never been stronger.

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yup. another pill stop. can i get my aleve back yet? ♪ for my pain, i want my aleve. ♪ [ male announcer ] look for the easy-open red arthritis cap. good afternoon. i'm richard lui in for craig melvin today. here's what's happening right now for you. >> trayvon is not here to speak for himself. it's very important that pare s parents, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, you speak up for these children. trayvon was a child. >> demanding justice for trayvon martin. family and demonstrators are taking part in vigils in over 100 cities, just one day after the president revealed his candid thoughts over his case. >> trayvon martin could have been me 35 years