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million dollars? and the struggle continues for meaningful place reform. but first, we know what the president told us. but who told him? good morning. i'm melissa harris perry. president obama wants us to understand. president obama who was elected in no small part due to his opposition to a war in iraq at and a promise to bring our troops home with wants us to understand why he has chosen to bomb parts of iraq. to send american troops to advise iraqi forces to engage in the battle against a group of sophisticateded and well funded terrorists with no clear end in sight. when he addressed the nation wednesday night about his decision to go to war against the group known as the islamic state in iraq and syria or isis, he wanted to explain that decision.

he wanted us to understand his choice in the hopes that we will support it. ahead of the speech the president told nbc's chuck todd what he hoped to express to the american people. >> i just want the american people to understand the nature of the threat and how we're going to deal with it and have confidence that we'll be able to deal with it. >> so this determination to explain is a pattern of the president's. he believed that explaining to the people what his health care reform vision entails would get them on board. he hailed town hall meetings all over the country and online. he addressed a joint session of congress. he explained and explained and explained. >> now i'm going to take a bunch of questions, but before i do, i want to talk about what health insurance reform will mean for you. because there's a lot of misunderstandings out there. i want to be clear. here are the details every american needs to know about the plan. >> but widespread support based on understanding is not exactly what happened.

>> the reforms i'm opposing would not apply to those here illeg illegally. >> four years after the law was signed. the american public likes nearly every part of the affordable care act but still opposes the law itself. the president continues to wholeheartedly believe an explanation is the key to support for his policies. just last week the white house announceded the president will not take any executive action on the reform of the immigration system. action he promised to take by the end of the summer until after the november elections. the president said he needs the time to again make sure we really understand him. >> what i'm saying is that i'm going to act because it's the right thing for the country. but it's going to be more sustainable and more effective if the public understands what the facts are on immigration, what we have done on unaccompanied children and why it's necessary.

>> on foreign policy president obama has made a point to explain america's actions, not only to the american public, but to the world, laying out his doctrine in speeches in norway after winning the nobel peace price. and in cairo in an effort to reset relations with the islamic world. at the united nations when he broke precedence by chairing a security council meeting himself. you see, he wants to have a conversation about this. he wants the american people backing him up. the president wants to persuade us, to bring us around to his thinking. his foreign policy mantra is reportedly don't do stupid stuff. he wants to make that argument to us. and here's part of what he said wednesday night explaining why we need to escalate actions in iraq. >> i know many americans are concerned about these threats. tonight i want you to know that the united states of america is

meeting them with strength and resolve. i can announce that america will lead a broad coalition to roll back this terrorist threat. our objective is clear. we will degrade and destroy isil. i want the american people to understand how this will be different from the wars in iraq and afghanistan. >> so the president wants to inform us, to bring us along, to help us understand. but before he informs us, there's a process of informing the president. how do the people around him shape how he understands that intelligence? who is informing the president before he is informing us? # joining me now is phyllis benice. she's at institute for policy studies. also the author of going to tehran. why america must accept the republic of tehran. she served on the national security council in the clinton

and bush administrations as well as in embassies throughout the middle east. so nice to have you both here. >> great to be here. >> let me start as i said at this table last week and heard people who i like and respect who who know more about a topic than i do get into an argument about what we ought to do. i thought, okay, so then how does the the president, who is surrounded by people he likes and respects? how does he come to a decision in the context of the information he's get sng. >> first, there's two sets of people the president has around him. one is a set of people who have made their way among powerful domestic constituency groups and people who made their way through the party. the same thing happens on the republican side. so you have people brought to the fore on the political level, from domestic political constituencies and from within the democratic party. then on the other side you have people from the cia and the pentagon, department of defense. they are to provide facts. to provide information.

remember in 1947 both the department of defense and the the cia were created after world war ii, not to provide the president with facts, but to provide the president with a by sis for power projection. and this is the core issue that both parties fall into. both presidents across the board fall into. remember, president bush started his presidency with wanting the to have a humble foreign policy, if we can remember that. . what happens is both of these presidents, president bush and president obama fall in -- are captured by the parties in a bipartisan commitment to american dominance. to power projection. that they are then fueled with information that come from the cia and the pentagon, that are there for that purpose, for power projection, not to give simple facts or to inform. >> so that's a fascinating way to refrain that. phyllis n your recent piece, you suggest thaw reflectinging on wednesday's night speech the president may have done a fine job in making an argument for war. but that was the wrong argument.

what is missing is a real focus, a real explanation to the people in the country and the people in the country and the middle east and around the world on what a political solution to the isis crisis would really require and what kind of diplomacy will be needed to get there. if he's being informed, then maybe why he's informs us that way. >> el with, i think there's two parts to it. we have to be clear here that key figures in the u.s. military and security establishment including the outgoing head of the national counterterrorism center have said very clearly isis is not a threat to the united states. president obama said most of those words in his speech, but he used weasel words. he said it in a way that implies, well, they're not right now. they could be. we can't be too careful. he might have taken that advice in an entirely different direction and said, my fellow americans, i come to you tonight to say to you, unequivocally what i have been told by my

security officials who say isis is not a threat to the united states of america, period, full stop. >> but let's say he had. i would -- if i was in opposition to the president. the next day i would run that next to this the beheading videos. and 94% of americans have seen the beheading videos. >> but the problem is he would then have to go onto say this is the big problem in terms of the politicization of decision making where after the beheading, because remember the beheading didn't happen until after the bombings started. after the missile strikes. then it escalated. in revenge. and revenge may be a legitimate basis for foreign policy for isis, but it certainly is not a legitimate basis for foreign policy for the united states. we needed to say, the attack on these -- the murder of these two heroic journalists who are trying to do their best to bring information to us, does not represent -- it represents a huge, horrifying crime. it is not a threat to the united states of america.

>> so, so, so let me push on that a little bit. because i do think, and we'll talk throughout the show today about the ways in which these kind of graphic videos can impact our sense of threat or not, and in many ways even 9/11, which we commemorated again just this week, seeing it, part of the horror of it is that it happened. the other part of the ror ror is that we watched it happen live. and i do wonder, though, i mean, so if there is no revenge, as part of it, is that not a security threat? if an american can be killed on video? >> well, it is in a sense a threat if an american can be killed. it's a problem that today the tragedy is that even with all of the hope that president obama brought to government, that he was going to have a new dialogue, a new relationship with the muslim world. today it's vastly more dangerous for americans to walk not just into syria, but libya, saudi arabia, kuwait, anywhere. it's much more dangerous for americans today.

>> we're making a fact that it does not make -- i promise we're going to bring more voices on the issue. when we come back, i want to ask what we need to be listening with when we're listening. what is it that we need in order to define the term of how we are going to win. it does seem we are at war. >> so in the same way that the united states is at war without al qaeda and affiliate, and its affiliates around the globe, the united states is at war with isil. >> we are at war with isil in the same we are with al qaeda. >> in the same way we're at war with al qaeda and its affiliates. here we go, here we go, here we go. ♪ fifty omaha set hut ♪ losing feeling in my toes ♪ ♪ nothing beats that new car smell ♪ ♪ chicken parm you taste so good ♪ ♪ nationwide is on your side

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what does a victory look like here? i mean, you talked about destroying isil. i honestly don't know what that

means? what does it mean? >> i didn't bring any webster dictionary with me. >> that was white house press secretary john earnest on thursday. joining the the table now is shible, the chair for peace and development at the university of maryland and author of "the world through arab eyes." and a professor at valley gorge military college and himself an iraq war veteran. so we left on the notion that war, particularly this sort of force, does not necessarily make -- that even if there were a threat, it does not, in fact, make americans safer in in global world, in part of because of how this u.s. military action is perceived and seen on the ground. >> no question. and you know, it's part of the problem for the president, as you've been saying, is that essentially i think he hasn't made up his mind whether the objective is to address the national security or humanitarian. yes, he said national security

threat. it could become a national security threat. he sounded like he's more on board with the bush doctrine where without a grave threat, you can go across borders wout u.n. support. in iraq at least you have an invitation from the iraqi government to intervene. in syria, it's an entirely different game. and he's wanting to give himself a license to go across. it's very, very problematic. particularly when he's not providing how it is a serious national security threat to isil. >> and the syria question is an important one. as you brought up, hillary. there's always a domestic political question. back in 2013 when we were discussing the the bright line question, when you asked americans should we be intervening in syria, a majority of americans said no. no, we should not be. but now you ask them, is military intervention against isis appropriate, and they say yes. >> if you really asked theam and brought it to congress as obama had to do last year, the public opinion polling may not be as

stark as it may be in these sound bite moments. >> it's totally two different things. and i think that's what the president is doing. and it's tough to do because you have an organization across that's transnational boundsries. boundaries. but really if he focuses on the iraq question, because again he has been invited by the iraqi government. we have the iraqi military, and we can support them, and we have a vested interest in supporting them. two, the syrian border. at that point that's when our -- then it becomes muddled, and then it becomes very, very, very complicated. >> but isn't it within iraq? because we talk about the iraqi government as though it shares the same sense of legitimaslate. we tend to think of it as legitimate. but there's that faction of it that's not. >> the iraqi government is operating for more as the

biggest s shiite military in the country. it's because it was stripped of the leadership that included sunni generals, many of whom are now fighting with isis. >> that's because of the invasion occupation. now we refuse to deal with the reality that it's a shiite majority country. the idea to bring sunnis in is going to resolve this, it's not going to happen. >> and i think it's bigger than that. the reality is forget about this, that is a problem. it's going to be huge and obviously we're going to deal with it. we broke that country. it's a humpty-dumpty. it's going to be hard to put back together no matter what we do. isis is a horrible organization. we all want it again. the reality is it defines the goal as replacing ruler in the world as priority number one. it's very different from al qaeda that way. and for that reason by the way, for the first time what we failed to do in al qaeda, which make al qaeda be a threat to the

region and people rallying to defeat it themselves, they were beginning to do that with isis because they fear isis. so now we own it. and you have people in the mainstream, in jordan, for example, which is threatened by isis. potentially maybe the biggest threat. they're saying don't join america's war. that's not our war. that is a problem. once you stat defining it as our issue it's taking away the owner ship. >> i wonder then, though, so i've listened to the president's speech a few times now. i keep trying to figure out what ears. i was wondering what part of what he's doing. you call them weasel words. but that potential threat to the u.s. is in part how he was also talking last week about the threat on the african continent where he says it could come to the u.s. not because he really thinks it will, but because he thinks there's a moral em pimperative

engage. >> this is going back to afghanistan before 9/11. that's what he is seeing. that's what his security experts are presenting to him. the potential for chaos and the potential for it to be a safe haven for a hot bed to see this islamic fundamentalism for a lack of a better term, so that's what he's being fed and that's what he's seeing. the problem in iraq is very different than syria. we have a much different problem. and i think we should not be engaging in what he plans on doing in syria. either weapons or weaponizing the insurgents in syria, or even the air strikes. instead we should be focusing on jordan. and actually doing a humanitarian where we have refugee camps and try to support @ government. >> stay with us. later we're going to talk about how the real estate troop location, location, location has gotten a tad bit out of hand. but up next, the warrior at my table.

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you've seen my guest at this table many times, and usually he's speaking from his perspective as a scholar and a professor, but earl is also an iraq war veteran and was part of the 2004 assault on fallujah in the marine corps. so we wanted to ask what he thought of the prospect of returning from from the war in iraq not from his stance as a scholar but a veteran. let me read you part of his response. i'm a warrior. and warriors want to fight. we eat, sleep, breathe, train and wish to practice our profession in combat against evil. there is clear evil in isis. earl, i was not expecting that answer. >> one thing i think we have to really reconsider is that the american infantrymen, the one whose actual job is to do the fighting. once they volunteer fight. once to get in the army and marine corps and the next to go in the infantry, so they know what they're getting into.

they're idealists. they see themselves as nights at the round table. the missions are ancient and the battles they fight are primal. they bring order to chaos through the skillful use of control on violence in order to protect the innocent. it really means something to the infantrymen. so when they're engaging, their warriors, not killers. they may have to kill to accomplish the mission. but they're warriors. they take and bear the brunt for people who could not or don't want to do that. >> that is the difference that warriors versus killers is the things you see as being different. >> isis is a bunch of thugs. it's a bunch of killers that they couch themselves in terms. as i said before, they're not muslims, they're not jihadists. these are people doing it on their own for their own power's sake. if the president did come up with the opportunity, which i don't think is advisable to put boots on the ground in a conventional sense, if he did, he would have no worry that the

infantrymen will want to be there. they see themselves as an instrument of national policy. >> as i read that i kept thinking in a certain way that particular idealism and the sense of intervening on behalf of those incapable of protects themselves against evil, and again, there is ha little bit of that, but it is also a very deeply american way of thinking about our role in the world. so when a president is trying to inform us, you know, you can either tap into that or try to completely alter and change that. and it seems very hard. >> the problem is that is leaving out, and i'm sorry, i understand earl is giving his own opinion here and from his own experience. >> from my scholarly experience. >> but not all infantrymen believe that. >> that's not true. >> i work with a lot of iraq veterans who have a very different view than you do about number one, did they actually volunteer and were they forced in by reasons of poverty and

lack of opportunities. >> that's ridiculous. >> but the problem is when they have come out of the wars. these are young men and women who fought in iraq and afghanistan, and they come out and created an orgs to say these wars were wrong and our job is to prevent it from ever happening again. you can't wave a magic bomb or in this case you can't wave a bunch of boots on the ground to solve this horrific problem or terrorism and isis. >> regardless, think there's a broader point. the motivator. i think it's tapping into something instinctive. and it's not just americans. i think it's a dilemma for the president. we all feel it. we even think there's some interest in us doing it beyond the humanitarian, and we have to do something. regardless of what we talk about, the politics and what's pushing the president himself, i think he's the president of the

united states, he came in to solve problems, and he's helpless in the face of something that is really driving a lot of people for the right reason. ful z ful. >> but then he is captured and paralyzed by the bipartisan buy-in for dominance. >> i'm not sure. >> and that leaves him without another option. but there is another option. there is a diplomatic way forward. there is conflict resolution. he could be not just going to saudi arabia and having the regional governments note totally dependable on us. he could have iran at the table or the syrian government at the table. these things are never said to the american public, but they're essential to us. >> -- and not give a speech but get the russians to buy in. >> i want to pause if r a second on the bipartisanship. i don't want to miss this. i don't want to miss -- i want to listen for just a moment to this speaker boehner saying something is that i have never heard him say degruring the tim that this president has been president of the united states. just for a moment. >> what the president has asked for as the commander in chief is

this authority to train these syrian rebels and frankly we ought to give the president what he's asking for. >> and frankly we ought to give the president what he's asking for. frankly we ought to give the president what he's asking for. has anyone else heard john boehner say that? >> these are rebels who kidnapped steve sotloff and sold him to isis to this be beheaded. bipartisan buy in with that. >> hold on. i don't want to miss that either. in case folks had not read the recording. this is part of the tension with the family from sotloff's family is that he was being held by the groups that we are defining right now as the moderates and was sold by them to isis and then -- >> but the motives to sell were responsible for beheading six people that were captive. they captured them, and then they beheaded them. to arm and train them more? this is crazy. >> i think the boehner issue and the republic is to do more, not less. this is something they've been

pushing. they were pushing initially against isil. now isis. people were pushing in different directions and regions to get involved. a lot of people want to see the u.s. involved for bigger strategic reasons. and not just the political rallies or reassuring the american people, which is obviously one thing that he gets sort of the public is uncertain about his leadership now. the image he might be doing something. i just want to make two points quickly. we don't have time, but we are going to continue this conversation. the conversation particularly between earl and phyllis here has also made me very much want to convene a table of soldiers and veterans to have this -- sometimes you all set up the table for me, and as i listen to that and try to think about not only the responsibility of these men and women to us, but that ours back, i think listening to those voices would be good. i appreciate you being here. thank you to my guests this morning.

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>> okay, well, we can argue about brand new, new or like new, what in the world are we doing buying things that we're not using? >> those tables were turned tuesday night in ferguson when elected officials were on the receiving end of angered inquiries of more than 600 people who showed up to a city council meeting. they convened after decidinging monday to conduct new changes. including reforms to the the system and a board to oversee the decisions. but the transparency was called into question because the deliberations on monday were not accessible to the public. and the announcement of the reforms was not enough to ease the long simmering frustrations of the residents of ferguson in the wake of the michael brown shooting. >> you wouldn't have likeded it if it was your young son laying there four and a half hours and they send an army to combat the people crying over the boy. what is wrong with y'all?

>> tensions were more subdued at a new york city council meeting on monday where police commissioner bill bratton explained a new way to overhaul the way patrol officers are trained in the use of force. this comes two months after eric garner died after being put in an apparent choke hold by an nypd officer. the announcement of the new and improved nypd happened just days after this, the release of surveillance video showing 23-year-old santiago hernandez being beaten by six new york police officers in the bronx. hernandez allegations the officers searched him after exclaiming to being investigate a noise complaint. he said the beatings started after he asked why he was being searched and handcuffed. the bronx d.a. declined to prosecute after hernandez was charged with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. but the incident adds him to the number of unarmed black and

latino men subject to police violence. up next, i want to talk about a young man who was killed by the police with one of the people who knew him best in life. the father of john crawford iii joins me after the break. so imagine, what if there was a new class of medicine that works differently to lower blood sugar? imagine, loving your numbers. introducing once-daily invokana®. it's the first of a new kind of prescription medicine that's used along with diet and exercise to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. invokana® is a once-daily pill that works around the clock to help lower a1c. here's how: the kidneys allow sugar to be absorbed back into the body. invokana® reduces the amount of sugar allowed back in, and sends some sugar out through the process of urination. and while it's not for weight loss, it may help you lose some weight. invokana® can cause important side effects, including dehydration, which may cause some people to have loss

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polident kills 99.99% of odor causing bacteria and helps dissolve stains. that's why i recommend polident. [ male announcer ] cleaner, fresher, brighter every day. it's been a little more than a month since the day 22-year-old john crawford iii was shot and killed by police as he was shopping at a wal-mart in beaver creek, ohio. he was unarmed and holding a bb air rifle that was sold at the store when another customer saw him and made a 911 call to the police. >> there is a gentleman walking around with a gun in the store. >> that's the call to 911 dispatchers that alerted beaver creek police. >> has he got it pulled out? >> yeah, he's pointing it at people. he's loading it right now. >> police who aririved on the scene and opened fire after they

say crawford refused to drop what they thought was a weapon. the coroner ruled his death a homicide. just days after the shooting, ronald richie spoke to the press about what he call. >> a black gentleman walking up holding what looked to be an ar-15, called the police, waving at people, waving at little children. waving the gun. >> about a month later in a recent interview with the guardian, richie changed his story. while he maintains crawford was waving the air rival around, he told them at no point did he shoulder the rifle and point it at somebody. the family of john crawford and their attorneys after viewing surveillance video of the shooting say what they saw in the video not only disproved richie's account of what happened but proves the shooting was not justified. ohio attorney general mike dewine has refused their request to release the footage to the public, saying it could jeopardize the possibility of a

fair trial. the family has also criticized his appointment of a special prosecutor who will present evidence in the case to a grand jury later this month. family attorney michael wright is now calling on the department of justice to open a civil rights investigation to the determine whether the shooting was justified. and whether or not race was a factor. michael wright is joining me now from cincinnati, ohio, with him is john crawford iii's father, john crawford jr. very nice to have you both here. mr. crawford, you obviously had to endure the the awful experience of seeing this surveillance video of the police shooting your son. what did you see that is different from what the accounts of the i-witness had been? >> well, the difference is that as far as looking at the -- looking at the transparency, i'm

not sure that -- i'm not sure that i'm understanding your question. >> so, what was different in what you saw on the video, versus what mr. richie says on that 911 call? >> oh, okay. there's a lot of difference. the whole thing from what we saw on tape, it disproves everything that mr. richie said. he fabricated the whole thing. we saw the sequence of events leading up to the shooting. my son picked up the air rifle, the bb gun. he walked with it to another location, probably approximately i would say maybe 60 yards or so, and he stood there. he was talking on his cell phone to his -- the mother of his children, his girlfriend, and the next thing you know, he fall ls two to four feet, i would

guess to the right. while just standing. >> attorney wright. >> yes. >> so i wanted to ask attorney right here, when you have a father, and you yourself seeing this video and seeing something so very different, why not release the video to the public? why are we hearing and having this refusal to do so? >> that's exactly our question. from our perspective, we believe that what has been released is painting a picture of sit of what actually happened in this wal-mart. to back what mr. crawford was saying. what we saw in the video is mr. crawford picking up a bb gun off the shelf. it was not in packaging. he walked from one aisle to the other aisle. no one was disturbed by mr. crawford's presence. he was on the cell phone for approximately five minutes prior

to him being shot and killed by these officers. in the video, it does not -- it shows that mr. crawford was not even aware that the officers were in his vicinity. >> i -- we listened -- i want to play this so that people understand this is the attorney general general of ohio's refusal to release this video. let's just listen for one moment. >> i think that it is not -- it's playing with dynamite frankly to release that tape hat this point. >> mr. crawford, your son is gone, he has been taken from you. when you hear the attorney general say it is playing with dynamite to show that video, what is your response? >> it infuriates me. if you look at it, frankly, it is plying with dynamite in a

sense that it's going to cause some people to lose their career. it's going to cause some people to go to jail. so in essence the undertone there is socially, yes, it is playing with dynamite because we do have transparency. the truth is on that video. >> and the piggy back, what mr. crawford is saying, there have been things that have been released. the 911 call has been released. the cruiser cam footage that shows people running out of wal-mart after mr. crawford was shot and killed, that's been released. the beaver creek police chief came out and publicly exonerated these officers. two officers were involved. one officer is already back at work while the investigation is supposedly still pending. >> attorney wright, you have appealed to the department of justice to attorney general eric holder who made an appearance in ferguson, and who last week announced they are going to be investigating the first son police department in missouri. what is it that you want from

the department of justice? what is the claim there? >> we want the department of justice to get involved and take over the investigation and prosecution of these officers. >> and why do you think the involvement of the federal government would bring a more just result? >> well, because we believe that's going to create more transparency. again. the video has not been released. everything we've seen regarding this situation has been one sided. so we believe the department of justice needs to this get involved and investigate in addition to take over the prosecution of these officers. >> and then piggy backing, let me just add this. frankly, it's insulting. it's a conflict of interest. it's clearly a conflict of interest with the attorney general being from that area, from green county. so seeshlly we're in his

backyard. and so he should automatically from that standpoint alone recuse himself of the situation and attorney it over to the attorney general's office. >> mr. crawford, beyond everything else i just want to say i'm very, very sorry for the loss of your child. >> thank you. >> up next, we are going to switch gears and show you what happens when we send jamie kilstein out to file a special report. papi is well. te manda saludos. i haven't told her i switched to tide pods. it's a concentrated 3-1 detergent that gives me an amazing clean. better play along. i'm doing laundry. i pretreated stains like you do and use two caps of detergent. un pac de tide pod hace todo eso. ¿qué? tide pods. well, if you recommend them. that's my tide. what's yours?

maybe you've noticed it here in television. we like to label our seg ms. we come up up with catchy things like david letterman's top ten. we've tried a bunch on this show. we've gotten rid of this of them. one we tried out for a while was something called "wow, seriously." it was a segment we tried to

tell you about with stories that made us go, "wow, seriously?" if you're a regular viewer of the show you've seen it and know we pretty much bailed on it a couple of months ago. that is until now. this week we read a story that left us saying, come on, wow, seriously? it was this one. in "the new york times." buy condo, then add parking spot for $1 million. uh-huh. $1 million. the price of the place to keep your presumably very expensive car right here in new york city beneath a building not yet building on a place formally designed for of all things, cars. the times reports that the million dollar parking spots will be offered on a first-come, first-serve basis to buyers at the ten-unit luxury apartment being being dropped by atlas capital group, the former site of a parking lot. first come, first serve. there are only 10 million-dollar

spots to be had so hurry over. you can imagine we really needed to know more. so we sent our nerd land friend and coauthor of the north coming book "new sale" out on assignment in the neighborhood of manhattan known as soho. >> so there is a parking spot in new york city that's going to cost a million dollars? >> ten of them, actually. >> $10 million? >> no, ten parking spot. >> ten parking spots. a million dollars each. tell us about how this first kind of game to fruition. >> well, we've been selling parking spots for a number of years. sohos one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the united states. i felt the value of this parking spot in this prime location is a million dollars.

>> would they be able to donate their spot to the homeless when they're gone to like crash there for a little bit? >> i don't think so. you have to live in the building to have a parking spot. >> so i can like rent it out to my poor like artist friend? >> no, you couldn't rent it out. >> i feel like this parking spot is probably going to be more roomy than their studio apartments. >> they're about 150 to 200 square feet. >> so what do you think of the idea of a million dollar parking space in soho. >> i wish i had a million dollars for a parking space. >> only if it was laced in gold. >> i have a bike. that would be a waste of money, i think. >> oh my gosh. >> that's the right response. >> so when you're in london and you're making fun of americans, is a million dollar parking space something we would use? >> it wouldn't have been the first thing, but now it might be, yeah. >> how mad are you that a $1 million parking space exists. >> it's not on that meter. >> what meter would it be on?

>> the what the [ bleep ] meter. >> who does something like that? >> that's a great question. who do you think does something like that? >> bill gates. >> oprah. she probably own all of us anyway. she own all of new york. >> someone who a million dollars wasn't anything to. maybe jay-z or beyonce or somebody. >> see, i was mad at whoever had the parking space. but if it's jay-z and beyonce, you can't be mad. >> connect me with them. i have student loans. >> donald trump. >> would you want to hang out with someone like donald trump? >> i mean, yeah and then no. >> depends who buys the parking space. we don't know if he's actually a person doing charity. >> i feel like i want to be your frernd. you seem like the person who sees good in everybody. how many juices could you buy for $1 million? >> oh, too much. >> buy a nice car. buy lots of clothes. also nice house. pay back my parents. i don't know. just not a parking space. >> pay back your parents.

you parents will be happy to hear that. >> spend it on clothing. >> you can still admit to being vain. you're not like give it to charity. >> this happens to be a very expensive neighborhood. this is going to be the best luxury building in soho. so it makes sense there would be a parking spot for a million dollars here. will there be people who resent it? i'm sure. there will also be people who want to live here, who can see the value and can afford the lifestyle. >> you're a charming man. >> i'll take that as a compliment. >> can i crash at your place? >> no comment. >> okay. fair enough. >> thanks to jamie for taking on the this most difficult assignment. oh, by the way, you can preorder no, not the parking space, but "newsfail" right now. up next, understanding and respecting her story. there's more nerd land at the

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welcome back. i'm melissa harris-perry and i would like to read something. i woke up this morning feeling like i had a horrible nightmare. feeling like i'm mourning the death of my closest friend. but to have to accept the fact that it's reality is a nightmare in itself. no one knows the pain that the media, and unwanted options from the public has caused my family. to make us relive a moment in our lives that we regret every day is a horrible thing. i want you to pause. those were janay rice's words and take her seriously. it's very likely before you knew her name, you knew her husband, ray rice. february of 2013 he earned a super bowl ring with the baltimore ravens when they defeated the 49ers. before you knew her name, you had seen her unconscious form being drug by an elevator by ray

rice, it's very likely before you knew her name, you had seen her sitting sitting solemnly along ray rice during a may 23rd press conference that the ravens arranged. if you had not been paying very close tension to the story you may not have known her name before seeing the newly released this week by tmz sports video in which ray rice punches her in the face and knocks her unconscious. in case you missed it, her name is janay rice. it may be easy to miss it because the names we have heard most are ray rice, commissioner roger goodell, nfl. after the most recent vi yoed of ray rice punching janay was release, the ravens terminated his contract. commissioner also receively vied new punishment to an indefinite one shortly after the ravens fired him. it seems everyone has seen the tape, everyone has an opinion. everyone wants to weigh in.

here's what janay rice wrote on instagram. to take something away for the man i love that he has worked his ass all for his whole life just to gain ratings is horrific. this is our life. what don't you all get? if your intentions were to hurt us, embarrass us, make us feel alone, take all our happiness away, you succeeded on so many levels. in response "washington post" columnist wrote, poor woman. domestic violence is above all embarrassing. and seeing the part of her life she thought was behind closed doors broadcast around the world is humiliating. but there will be greater good out of her personal pain. this seems to be the position of many. on purpose or by default. it doesn't what she says or wants as long as her pain and humiliation serve a greater good. i want us to pause and say her name, janay rice. i want us to read her words.

this is our life. i want us to take her seriously. not because we agree with ler, but because what is happening right now doesn't seem to have much to do with janay at all. when a survivor chooses to tell her story, it is empowering. when it is leaked against her will and consent, then it becomes another violation. when a survivor decides to be an advocate for others, it's empowering. when her story is used against her will and interest to serve a greater good, it's abusive. firing ray rice makes the nfl look better and makes us feel better about watching. shake you are heads in disbelief about the poor whom stayed with her abuser makes us feel stronger and smarter than she is. using the video footage to make a larger point about our political or social agenda makes us feel righteous. what happens if we stop worrying about us and start asking about her. what if the story we took seriously in all of the painful, ugly, uncomfortable reality was her story, not ours.

joining us now are nbc national reporter and dewan smith williams, wife of foreigner nfl offensive lineman, wally williams. also here is the founder of saving promise, a nonprofit aiming to stop intimate partner violence. and managing director of a domestic violence project. in this most recent week as the the nfl has decided to get tough on ray rice, who does that help most? >> the nfl. zble it's making them feel like they are corrupting the probleming. or maybe making the the problem better. but it's not about make it better or correcting it. it's about changing the behavior that has been ongoing for a very, very long time. and it saddens my heart to see j janay in the video. you can see the hurt and pain in

her face. any woman who has been in a situation where they have been, whether verbally abused, physically abused, abuse is abuse. any woman that has been in that experience knows that pain without a shadow of a doubt. and you know, right now janay is protecting what she has, because that's all she has. >> when you say that, i do not want to miss that. i keep feeling like the story that emerging from this, if you listen with different ears is the problem isn't the abuse, the problem is that the abuse was on video. >> correct. >> and because the abuse suz was on video, now we have to take action so women don't ever let it be public. because if it is public, then the income for your household, the future for will be destroyed. and i don't know how to wrap my head around on the one hand saying we cannot tolerate this, and on the other hand saying, i feel like we just made a set of

policies that are going to push women further into the darkness. >> but if i may, we tend to do that all the time. when there's an issue we tend to react. and we were speaking about this in the green room earlier. bhen there's an issue, we react. we and act and put no meaningful thought into how to implement it. how to deal with the root problem. it's like throwing a sponge in the ocean. we're not asking the people, what is it that you need? it's not informed by the victims. it's not informed by the survivors or the families. it's informed by the laws. >> and part of why it subpoena isn't formed by the survivors is we can hear from janay rice eel testimony, her public statements which i want to take seriously because they are hers. i don't want to condescend towards her. but she's also in a position where she has repaidedly refused

to want to bring any kind of punishment onto ray rice. and so part of why there are so many laws around the country that take it out of the hands of the survivor is that is part of the process of violence against our domestic and intimate. >> absolutely. i think this is a defining moment. as tragic and traumatic i suspect as it is for her family, this is a moment we can take a pause and say wait a moment, this is a time that we can shift what has happened, take the spotlight off of this, use janay's story, and bring about a level of prevention and education and awareness to make sure that janay's story is really celebrated in a way that other women will know that i can come forward. i don't have to be ashamed. but to victimize her for a second time, by making her feel like she should be ashamed of

what has happened, that she is being whoezen to make a decision between whether she should stay or leave is yet again victimizing her and making us all feel like thgs not something we should want to see in the public eye. she's already been ashamed and victimized. this is a moment to bring forth greater prevention, education and awareness. >> we made a choice not to show the video for any of a variety of reasons besides the fact that i'm appalled that it exists in the public space in that way. i saw every person at this table cringe when those images came up. and i think keeping again, it is one thing to talk ability legal action, punishment, even potentially nfl professional sanctions against ray rice. it's another thing that all of us who do not know this woman's story. who have never met her child,

have seen this moment in her life. >> i have not watched the video out of a decision not to revictimizer her. there are things i have heard from other people. suches a the callousness from which he drags her body. but people play different roles in the situation. and each, you know, the choices that she makes within her relationship are her own. the choices that everybody made along the way are accountable. ray rice is accountable. on some level when we think about we've had these sexual assaults that have been documented on video in which victims without their consent were revictimized. on the other hand the level of believing women is solo here. that it requires a video. >> and i mean, the thing that was for me this week just not only -- it's not like we haven't known for months clearly what happened in that elevator. but it took the actual video of

seeing it. and i keep thinking, i just know that i know that i know that while we present in a news story, you just know not everyone is watching it appalled. that just like we enjoy the violence and thrill of the nfl itself. that's part of what is going on. >> you're also watching brain injury being inflicted. >> and then also, with janay, the way she presented her statement. even when you have been a victim, the people in your inner circle that when you decide to make the decision to come out and share, not to throw anyone under the bus, but the people in your close circle question what you're doing. what are you doing? he could lose the job. you're being judged and questioned again wj the people you trust and feel should be supporting you. >> we're going to come back on this. i do want to point out and talk

about this, about the specific ways in which race and documentation status and poverty influence all of this. robin gibbons wrote being a black woman, you want to protect your man. you think the black men in america have it so difficult anyway. so now you're turning them in. it feels like the ultimate betrayal. maybe janay rice is feeling a little bit of that, though i don't want to speak for her. more on her story when we come back. ♪ mmm mmm mmm mm mmm mm mmmmmm here we go, here we go, here we go. ♪ fifty omaha set hut ♪ losing feeling in my toes ♪ ♪ nothing beats that new car smell ♪ ♪ chicken parm you taste so good ♪ ♪ nationwide is on your side ♪ mmm mmm mmm mm mmm mm mmmmmm

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we are back and discussing domestic violence and the latest case depicting nfl player ray rice abusing his now wife janay rice. we have survivors at the table. i'm wondering as you have watched this play out, what your thoughts have been about janay

rice. >> well, i know that she's feeling very isolated. feeling that, like i said before, that she's protecting what she has. my concern for her now is now that this has come public and she has made the decision to stay n the future, when there's disagreements in the home, is everything going to come back to this situation because she has allowed our public life, her personal life to roll over to the public, which has affected hi career. >> that he will see it that way. that he will see her as the instrument of -- >> right. >> of his losing everything. >> that's why making this policy is a difficult one. it does potentially i keep thinking we know black women are less likely to tell in general because we know the consequences of calling the police on a black man. we now undocumented women are less likely to tell. they risk the possibility of their own deportation and that

of their beloved. and somehow the har ch penalties end up penalizing the survivor. >> and calling the police. wh enthe police are called, you're coming. you're upset. i mean, things have happened. there's been physicalties coming in the home. the officers come in and talk football. they want the guy's autographs. >> and another thing people don't realize is when women leave, they're 17 times percent more likely to be killed by an abusive partner. >> leaving does not make you safer. >> and yoz now know, i come from four generations of women that survived 60 years of domestic violence. had my grandmother left, had i left, had my daughter left, we all could have been killed. we need to realize it's not as simple as people may think it is. when you look and say why does she stay? women stay for many reasons. out of love, out of loyalty, out

of financial dependency, out of staying for the children and most importantly out of fear. what we need to think about what is what can we do to help? what we do to prevent this and make sure women know what their roles are and how they can be safe. >> maybe it's my social media world. but doesn't it feel like the question is asked more frequently why does she stay than why does he abuse? >> right. >> there's that lovely hashtag, why i stayed. expressing so much of what you expressed. about all of those interdependences. they began the tash hashtag and brought so many voices out in the social media realm on it. why don't we ask, excuse me, mr. rice, why do you because? maybe that's before the intersection of this. >> and one of the interesting

things is this is really a defining moment. before this unfolded, this is the dialogue and the awareness that has been increased as a result of this, it can take this tragic moment and transform it to a defining moment for us to really do something different about it. >> do you really so? >> we do not do it. i'm saying we make the same mistake. the last time we had this dialogue and discussion is back with rihanna and chris brown. then a big public outcry. we had a lot of discussion about it. when the spotlights were gone, it went away. rihanna went back on with her lime. chris went on with his life. >> it hits the the spotlight when there's wealth and celebrity involved. in reading your recent piece and you talk about the things we could do to actually make life better and safer. taking away their guns. enabling survival and strengthening house protections.

those are things we don't think of in a rihanna/chris brown case. because theme are people with such means. so we don't end up having the conversation about domestic violence in the context of a lack of those kinds of needs. >> they're insulated by their relative privilege. they're insulated by resources. but for a lot of people. the precariousness in which their life is taking place is exacerbated by the abuse and makes them more likely to stay. for example, there was a woman living in a town that had an ordnance if you had the police come to you, we're going to have problems. you have to wait until after the commercial so i can say those words. so hold onto that one for one second. but i want to follow up on that one for just one tick here before we go to break. which is this idea of the policies that we have could actually make things worse for survivors. >> because i think think we don't ever take the three-pronged approach. you have to make the abuser

accountable. that's where policies and laws come in. you have to provide every person with the essential tools of life to be able to get out. why can't we get out? because of child support. why can't we get out? because of child care. maybe you can't proceed because you're undocumented becauseover housing. because of the news we still report as domestic incidents. they're not incidents. >> if he hit and unrelated man in the elevator like that. would he have ended up in a first-time offender earrings diversion program? >> we shouldn't have diversion programs. >> but i can't. because i spend too much time on this show saying we shouldn't -- okay. we got more. stay with us. up next, why you could be at risk of losing your home for reporting that you've been attacked.

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she survived, only to face the possibility of eviction, thanks to a local ordnance. according to the aclu. the ordnance encouraged landlords to evict tenants when police are called to a property three times in four months, including for incidents of domestic violence. the last part is special because that's the reason she stopped calling the cops on her ex-boyfriend, even when he allegedly attacked her with a brick. but when she was stabbed the neighbor's call triggered a threat from the city to forcibly remove her from her home. on monday the aclu announced they would repeal the ordnance and is paying briggs and her lawyers $490,000 in damages. i keep thinking, all right, you want to do something. these policies actually

revictimize those who are trying to survive this. >> absolutely any time where there's an ordnance that is harming victims, that seems like an easy one. places where you could get unemployment insurance, these are many states passing this, but it's not even all of the states that have a minimum for unemployment insurance for women if they need to leave their jobs. if they decide to lee. >> but it's not easy. in louisiana, greater new orleans warehouse directing center just brought an attempt to keep -- you can't evict victims of domestic violence. so it seems like it. but it's not. >> >> not in the context of this table. ful but that's an obvious first place to start. there are other places where we have to balance competing difficult things. such as when we talk about calling the police and what is going to happen to the man that

you call on. this is something we've been alluding to. it's the fear of increased criminalization, particularly in communities of color that disinsent ivize people callg from police. the backdrop is it used to be cops wouldn't do anything. and that's important to not ferkt. there are documented cases of women being violently assaulted in front of police officers and they didn't do anything. so we certainly don't want to go back to a model like that. but there's numerous studies showing in contexts where arrests take place and they stay together t woman is then victimized or the partner is then victimized more afterwards. so we have to think about whether arrests and the policies we have on the the books are the best way to help victims. >> right. i'm thinking there shouldn't be diversion programs. i spend so much time on the show talking about not overcriminalizing anyone in the country, but particularly the

ways in which it impacts black men. wefr spent weeks covering the stories of police showing up and shooting and killing unarmed black men. if you are the beloved. even if you are the beloved who is being abused in the most horrible ways, you may not pick up the phone and dial 911 if you think when the police arrive they are going to shoot your spouse, your boyfriend, the father of your children. like racism actually makes women less safe in the context of domestic violence because you're trying to balance all of those things at the the same time. >> that's right. >> and one primary issue is we keep looking at the courts and the legislation as the catch-all and the savior of what is going to make the relationships better. it's not. it doesn't make you safer. it does provide you relief in certain circumstances in getting house to have the piece of paper. an order of protection does not stop someone from breaking down your door. it doesn't stop someone for petitions for visitation of the

children or custody. so we go back to that third prong i didn't get to, which is that we need to deal with this from the very beginning. we need to make people accountable. we need to speak about healthy relationships. we need to allow for a really robust set of variables. and doors that victims and survivors can walk through and say this is how i want to deal with it. we need to honor the fact if we're saying we want someone to feel empowered, it's to make their decisions. you can't make a decision without viable options. >> when you talk about starting at the beginning, is the nfl too late? but the time they're professional athletes, it's occurring in the colleges. it's occurringing in the high schools. when do we start earlier? >> we start as soon as we can. i proport that we need to start as early as middle school to

start educating kids. and again, the other thing is we have to move away from this real active model. laws, policies, legislation like you said, madeline, does not solve the problem. what solves the problem is greater prevention and education and awareness. getting ahead of the problem pro actively. and not waiting until we hear the stories and sitting around the table talking about it yet again, we have to think about what can we do differently going guard? that's why i'm very strong on the division for saving promises in terms of putting forward greater awareness and engaging the communities at a level to mobilize around a call to action to make sure land owners and lawmakers and law enforcement are all trains and acknowledge what is needed to be done in terms of education. >> when we come back after the break, we're going to have an important update on a story we first told you about last week, the oklahoma police officer

accused of sexually assaulting eight different women. as a police officer, i've helped many people in the last 23 years. but i needed help in quitting smoking. along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. chantix reduced the urge for me to smoke. it actually caught me by surprise. some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these, stop chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it. if you develop these, stop chantix and see your doctor right away as some could be life threatening. tell your doctor if you have a history of heart or blood vessel problems, or if you develop new or worse symptoms. get medical help right away if you have symptoms of a heart attack or stroke. use caution when driving or operating machinery. common side effects include nausea, trouble sleeping and unusual dreams. i did not know what it was like to be a non-smoker. but i do now. ask your doctor if chantix is right for you.

we've been talking about the vulnerability women sometimes face with loved one, but now i would like to update you on a story we told you last week. the dangerous vulnerabilities some women face with people sworn to serve and protect them. on august 29th an oklahoma police officer was charged with sexually assaulting at least eight women. he faces 16 felon counts of sexual abuse. prosecutors say he used his authority as an officer to force women to expose themselves and perform sex acts. through his attorney, he denies all charges. the officer was released september 5th, after his bond was lowered from $5 million to $500,000. he's now under house arrest where the court has ordered him to remain while he awaits trial.

the women he is accuse of assaulting between the ages of 34 and 58 and they share one commonality. they are all black women. the oklahoma state conference of the naacp is requesting the department of justice file hate crime charges against him. the president of the naacp's oklahoma chapter anthony douglas has called for a heightened focus on the case which initially received only local coverage. and leads them to classify them as hate crimes. anthony douglas, president of the oklahoma state conference of the naacp is with us. nice to have you. >> thank you, miss perry. absolutely. why are you asking for a hate crime designation? what difference will it make? >> well, the difference me and my staff looked at, these, african-american women that we know of that came forward. so we look at the community, and we look at these eight women, so

we wablted to list this as a hate crime because we don't know, was he racial profiling these women or not? >> now you said to the reporter from buzzfeed who initially reported this story out before we started talking about it on air that you were appalled and maybe surprised there wasn't more national media attention. education specially in the wake of ferguson and the shooting of mike brown? do you think it's because it's about women or sexual assault rather than death? why do you think it took a while to get us focused on this story? >> well, i think it may have taken a while because of all the events happening dealing with african-americans and policing. i do want to applaud the media. now you have taken a great interest in this story. because of these women being abused. no women deserve to be abused. even by a police officer. >> but just hold one second.

you said earlier that there are cases of women being abused in front of the police. this is a story of allegedly women being abused by the police. and it feelses to me again like if you have very little trust in police because of these sorts of incidents how that makes it more difficult to call and report. >> any situation where there's disproportionate power being levied is a situation where sexual abuse gets covered up. and obviously the police hold a great amount of power in our society. if you read her reporting on this, which has been excellent, it seems clear the mistake the perpetrator made in the case was to abuse the wrong kind of woman. he abused a middle class woman who did feel comfortable calling the police. other targets were people who had criminal records and already feared further sanction, and he took advantage of the fact that they were already disempowered and afraid of going to prison. >> yeah, let me come back to

you, mr. douglas. one of the things we've heard is many of the women were not only african-american, but many of them may have themselves had criminal backgrounds, which is potentially or allegedly why this officer may have allegedly abused them. as you all are doing this work of trying to get justice for these women, what are they saying about their own anxiety or shame about having had criminal records themselves? >> well, one of the things that i have talks to and said we're not focused on the control record. every woman has a right to feel safe and free and should not be abused by people there to protection and serve them. so my focus on their contract record is not important. the abuse is important to me. especially from a police officer who is there to serve and protect them. >> hold for me one more moment, mr. douglas. this kind of alleged violence in the context of police. i wonder because we all see

policing not only in african-american communities, but often communities where they're presuming to be many immigrants of people undocumented, similar concern about communities and families getting broken up, does this ring true for the work that you have done with the community? >> i think absolutely it wring rings true. when you're looking at domestic violence in terms of power and control, you're looking at different ways an abuser can control over the victim. if the victim is undocumented. then what's the greatest way to control them? if you tell, if you call, if you don't listen, we're going to call the police. you're going to be deported. you're illegal. i'm going to keep the children. the kids in almost any case are used as a pawn. so you have someone that really feels that it becomes more dangerous for them to reach out for assistance and support, which really just closes the door. and then you have reports like this. it is part of the trickle.

it's part of the trickle of you have domestic violence, but people are suffering race schism. you have domestic violence and people are suffering sexism. when you have real world examples where it's happening. it just further strengthens the not wanting to reach out. >> haveout gott you gorten a re from the department of justice about charging this as a hate crime? >> at the present moment i have not received a response. we're waiting patiently on the response. >> no oklahoma city, anthony douglas. thank you for sounding the alarm and asking us to pay attention. and this thank you for being here today. >> and thank you for having me today. >> also thanks to my guests here in new york city. up next, my letter of the week coming just on the heels of new york's fashion week.

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even though i spend most of my show behind the desk, i put a lot of thought in picking out my shoes. i love fancy footwear. i have a whole host of h shoes in my office. some are hosting shoes or other doing the morning run with my youngest daughter in her stroller. for every occasion there is a shoe. so i understand the intent of nine west's new ad campaign and what the company's senior vice president for marketing meant when he said we have to change the way we talk about occasions because women are modern now and shop for a different reason. only i'm not so sure nine west's campaign really represents modern women. which is why the company is getting my letter this week. dear nine west. it's me, melissa. the display window at the nine west near my studio here at 30 rock is my happy place because your shoes are two of my favorite things. affordable and fashionable.

and i always get the best customer service from the ninewest clerks who spend all day on their feet taking care of other people's feet. which is why i was so distressed by what i saw the last time i checked our your store window. the company's message to women in the new ad campaign seems to have gotten off on the wrong foot. one features leopard foot pumps and the tag line, starter husband hunting. there's nothing wrong with a woman strutting her stuff or looking for mr. right or mr. right now. but why call the shoe starter husband hunting? in an era when the woman is the main breadwinner in four out of the enhomes, is this really what women are on the hunt for? a huh husband? there's also the print ad that shows a woman with a pair of flip-flops peeking out of her nine west bag with the tag line walk of shame. i always celebrate women's life

to enjoy their sexuality. if you want to appeal to the modern woman, why shame her? why not call it the stride of pride? if men had a shoe for the morning after, you know that's what they would call it. then the shoe for the first day of kindergarten. the bus arrives and so do the waterworks. then it hits you, mommy now has the weeks off. unless, of course, mommy is among the women who make up nearly half of our nation's workforce. those women are likely heading back to the office after dropping the kids off at school. and that's the real issue with this add campaign. it seems woefully out of touch with the mod rn woman that it is supposed to be celebrating. husband hunding? shame after sex? who do you think is wearing these shoes? june cleaver? in you're trying to stay in stride with the 21st century women, why not sell them to women on all steps of walk in h life. like i march for justice shoe. or look who is boss boots.

how about the i'm a champion shoe? the i ran and won shoe. or shoes for women on the move. for those taking a stand on women's rights, no matter how long it takes or redefining our our understanding of the rights to be a woman. for those who have to stay on their toes. for the modern woman who brings the funny and makes the money. for the shoes for women who woke up like this. i know. as one executive explained the ads are meant to make noise. if you want to get the right kind of attention for women, you cannot have one foot stuck in outdated ideas of the past. even if that foot is wearing a really cute shoe. sincerely, melissa.

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as the nfl is grappling with its controversy, something that we're going to get into much

more on tomorrow's program, it is worth noting that there's also progress being made on at least one front, the inclusion of lgbt athletes. recently michael cut to pay for home state team, the st. louis rams. sam landed a spot on the dallas cowboys' practice squad, making him officially the first openly gay player in the nfl and showing that even in red state america, football is for everyone. now, in the wake of that historic moment, this week's foot soldier is looking to take the pro sport a step further. wade davis who you might recognize as a frequent guest on this show, is one of only a handful of openly gay former players and executive director of the you can play project, an lgbt sports advocacy group guaranteed to ensuring equality, safety for all athletes, regardless of sexual orientation. he's worked with the tampa bay

buccaneers and others to bring together lgbt organizations, supportive players and fans through their high-five initiative, they've taken current nfl players to their local lgbt youth service organizations to help young gay athletes break down the invisible barriers between professional sports cultures and gay communities. tomorrow, wade and the you can play project will partner with the buccaneers for the nfl's first-ever lgbt community gameday, a tailgating event that will bring together lgbt advocates, businesses, fans and players to promote equality in the league. giving us a reason to feel hopeful about the future of america's sport, wade davis is our foot soldier of the week. i was already done with the nfl after we fumbled in overtime as the new orleans saints. but it really has been a tough week. and yet when you look at this, tell us a little bit about lgbt

community gameday and why we should feel good about this? >> what's great is that the tampa bay bucs are trying to show that they care about their communities and specifically the lgbt community. so there is a gameday event, a tailgating event where we've envited some corporations, some lgbt organizations, young people to say, the bucs care about everyone, including their lgbt brothers and sisters. >> when you are working with young people with you can play, when we look at public opinion data, the big gap around lgbt attitudes is really an older folks, younger folks gap, not so much conservative or republican/democrat or anything like that. do you find that young people are all ready to play together? >> yeah. what's wonderful about the high-five initiative, when we took some players to the institute, the kids left there saying, can we get troy benson back. they saw so much of themselves in these actual players. and the players saw these young

people not as at-risk, but at-promise. they see these young kids have a promise. if they can remove that barrier that we can actually see some coalition building and solidarity work that can happen to get young people to say, i want to play the sport of football or basketball. >> do we want young people to play the sport of football -- i ask that in a serious way in part because part of the work of lgbt inclusion has been inclusion in marriage, inclusion in military service. and yet those are also institutions that we have criticisms of, right? the problems of marriage, the problems of military service and similarly inclusion in the nfl right at a time when we're saying, is the nfl something we would want to be included in? >> the nfl is bumbling this issue right now. but when i met with roger goodell, he was intentional about saying, i want you to come in and tell me how to fix this. that all players can be safe to

feel open and honest about who they are. i've had no pushback from any owner, any player. we've been having some hard but very important conversations about why it's important that athletes are allowed to show up on their team as their authentic selves. >> speaking of pushback, let's talk about michael sam and the cowboys. he ends up in texas. i understand you got a call from the cowboys in part to make sure that the community is being safe and embracing him and all of that. >> yeah. when michael sam was drafted by the rams, i played for coach fisher. i also have a teammate who's the special teams coach for the rams. so they brought me in and said, make sure that our players know how to show up as a loving presence for michael sam. and a lot of our work is around debunking myths that exist around gay athletes and also letting coaches know that if you allow a player not to live in the space of double consciousness or in a space of hypervigilance, you get an immediate better player. therefore your team is better.

so all these things coaches get. >> when you come on the tv show and we're talking about sports and you quote double consciousness, you make me happy. it's a high-level nerd moment. have a great and exciting day tomorrow with the buccaneers and lgbt community gameday. that's our show for today. thank you for watching. see you tomorrow morning, 10:00 a.m. eastern. harry smith of nbc news is going to be here as we try to get our heads around just what former secretary of state hillary clinton is doing in iowa. we're going to dive deep on all of the issues facing the nfl and we might even have a little something to say about the fancy new gizmos unveiled by apple this week. i promise you one thing's for sure, it's going to be high-nerd. see you tomorrow morning, 10:00 a.m. right now, time for a preview of "weekends with alex witt." hi, alex. >> we love and expect high-nerd from you, melissa. maybe hillary clinton likes steak. she's doing the steak fry. we'll have that show tomorrow.

we are going to talk about what difference just one word can make in the u.s. military action against isis and why it's suddenly being spoken. also an american tourist is about to go on trial in north korea. we'll take a look at what justice in that communist community looks like. and she's written two books on it. you'll hear device from the bbc's katty kay for women in the workplace. a new catalytic converter when all you got is a loose gas cap. what? it is that simple sometimes. thanks. now let's take this puppy over to midas and get you some of the good 'ol midas touch. hey you know what? i'll drive! and i have no feet... i really didn't think this through. trust the midas touch. for brakes, tires, oil, everything. (whistling)

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more adventures await in the seven-passenger lexus gx. see your lexus dealer. the fight against isis. now it's become a diplomatic battle. can the u.s. convince key states in the middle east to help? another football star in legal trouble. this morning, running back adrian peterson has turned himself in to police over a charge involving one of his sons. hot and cold, it's a mixed and starkly different weather picture from one side of the country to the other. and the annual iowa steak fry. hillary clinton will be there. why is it critical for her if she wants to run for the white house in 2016?

hey, there, everyone. just about high noon in the east. welcome to "weekends with alex witt." we have a new message today from president obama in the fight against isis as the administration prepares to intensify air strikes against the islamic militants. kristen welker is live at the white house for us. what's the president saying now? >> reporter: in his weekly address, president obama continues to map out his strategy for destroying the terrorist group known as isis. and this comes as his top officials now acknowledge the united states is at war. with u.s. air strikes continuing to rain down in iraq and expected soon in syria, this morning, president obama called the conflict a campaign in his weekly address. >> what's needed now is a targeted, relentless counterterrorism campaign against isil. >> reporter: top