patrol in pairs and wear bullet proof vests at all times. in new york city all auxiliary officers have been pulled from the streets. officer ramos's funeral is this weekend. funeral services for officer liu are on hold as they secure visa for family from overseas. fellow police officers doing everything possible to save their brothers. on this christmas week, a city, a country, most importantly, two families are in mourning. mayor bill de blasio is urging our focus and prayers to remain with the families. we start at the crime scene in brooklyn, new york, where the makeshift memorial is growing. msnbc's adam reiss is there. we've seen clergy, everyday new yorkers come to pay their respects. what is the feel there right now? >> reporter: abby, it is amazing. three days after the shooting. crowds continue to grow. a lot of emotion.

a lot of tears. i want you to take a look at the memorial now which continues to grow. candles, flowers, cards, more wreaths coming as the days go on. police officers from precincts around the city, firemen, sanitation workers, everyone coming here to grieve together. the mayor was here this morning, abby. he came with officer ramos' pastor. ironically, officer ramos was studying to become a chaplain. abby? >> sad stuff there, adam. this is blake in the studio. bill de blasio right in the middle of this. on the one hand he has liberal protesters, ideological and political allies of his -- he tried to lower the temperature a bit and called on protesters to cool it. let's listen to this clip for a minute. >> it's a time to step back and just focus on these families.

it's time for everyone to put aside political debates, protests, everything we will talk about in due time. but in the coming days, two families prepare for funerals. two families try to think about how to piece their lives back together. that should be our only conditioner -- how do we support them. >> how is that message received not only by the protesters but the mayor's critics in the police department? >> reporter: i think everybody in this city is hoping cooler heads prevail as we mourn here and around the city, at least until the funerals are over. officer ramos will be buried on saturday. >> thank you for that report. let's bring in dallas deputy of chief, thank you for being with us. >> thank you.

>> there's always a concern for copycats, especially after the situation that played out last weekend. give us a sense of what police departments across the country are doing to prepare for this. what should they be telling their officers this week? >> first, i want to send my condolences and prayers to the families of officers liu and officers ramos, as well as a speedy recovery for shamika thompson in the baltimore area. i believe the best of the police chiefs and city government should be telling their officers to be vigilant and remain aware, more so than they have normally been because we expect certain deranged individuals such as brinsley to perform for cowardly acts on police officers. we have to stand ready to protect our guys in blue who protect us every day. so the message should be spoken loud and clear. be aware. don't do certain things. make sure you're eating and facing the door, you're observing all these things we

sometimes get into a routine and we don't pay as much attention to because we don't expect cowards to try to ambush us. >> >> i'd like to pick up on a reer to ral question officer bratton said yesterday. he said, can you point out to me one mayor that has not been battling with police unions in the last 50 years. name one. i just would like to get a sense of in your experience, is he right? >> i think in a lot of cases that there are certain issues dealing with labor and management that police and associations don't normally see eye to eye with government. it's to be expects from police associations or police unions to support them for better pay and better benefits. you don't want to get into a terse relationship who police

chiefs are autocratic who don't listen to association leaders and try to lead in a bottle when they should be out, you know, in a broad perspective. those become the worst police chiefs who are autocratic. city governments, city mayors or commissioners who fail to hear. we must hear or at least listen to union association leaders even if we don't agree. we have to learn to agree to disagree. not all police associations are monolithic. >> when you see the nationwide protests, do you see police -- people being anti-police? >> i see some -- some people, a small fringe of people. by and large we see protests -- 99% of protests being very

peaceful, wanting police reform, which they have the right. citizenry has a right to demand reform. we see a small 1% who are wanting dead cops or those that are not a solution to where we're trying to go. just as we have 99% of our 800,000 police and 18,000 police departments do it right and we have a small percentage of officers who do it right. that's no more of a sweeping indictment than the protest of police who tend to abuse their power. i think, or i believe that on a whole we need to focus on the more -- more of the good things we have in common. we have a right to reform. many of my colleagues believe that we want to see our profession be just that, a very professional organization. >> i think that's absolutely right and all reasonable people, i think, rebuke these crazy

statements that that fringe is making anti-police. from what you're saying, i believe that you understand the frustration that a lot of people across the country when they see these incidents are shot by police and the justice system provides no relief. you understand that frustration, right? >> of course. that's why we shouldn't shun or push away reform and police strategies or tactics. but police department and police officers are just that. we to want see that. we want to engage in that. we to want have a better community in which we live and work where our children play. we welcome that. we welcome it in a constructive environment that takes in all side. there's no one right or correct side of this. we all have some skin in the game and we want to be counted. that's the good thing about what president obama is doing with the task force, is that we have to have those voices be heard

from all angles to we can come together with a constructive solution. i hear their cries. i understand police brutality. we're ens it. our local black police associations fight every day against corruption and police brutality and want a place that's validated and verified for a constructive environment for all officers of diversity. so, we believe in that. we hear their cries. >> absolutely. when you think about what happened over the weekend, two cops sitting in their car, shot for doing nothing, essentially. what does that do to the morale? not just for the police that now have to go out and protect citizens every single day, but also to their family members who probably are thinking now twice before they believe home today. >> i can tell you that i've lost friends, you know, in policing. and it hurts. and every time we see a cowardly act like that that occurred with those officers being murdered on the streets that they were in, a

housing community area protecting, it's horrifying. it's horrific. and all of us, we cry, we feel tears and sadness and pain because when we walk out the door, there's always some uncertainty whether we're coming home. we're praying we come home to our loved ones, the people. we're just out there trying to do a job for citizens. sometimes we make mistakes, but don't mistake the intent of our heart to do good in the communities in which we serve. so, it's horrifying. and we're all just taken aback by it. it's not any police lead that's true i've talked to across the country who has not even feeling this pain that has set in when one of our brothers or sisters are lost in the line of duty. it's just horrific. >> yeah, that's so well said. thank you for your service. thank you for being with us. we appreciate it. >> thank you so much for having me. up next, rain already making a mess of holiday travel plans. and it's about to get even worse. we are tracking not one but two potent storm systems.

plus, a check on how the weather is affecting flights to the country's busiest airport. an insider travel tips to get you where you need to go, no matter where you're going. for anyone in need of something uplifting, i will introduce you to some people who really understand what the holidays are all about. it's "the cycle" and it's tuesday, december 23rd. ♪ it's not about how many miles you can get out of the c-max hybrid. it's about how much life you can fit into it. ♪ the ford c-max hybrid. with an epa-estimated range of 540 miles on a tank of gas.

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you never to want see the

storm cycle. cats and dogs raining from the sky. we kick off our team cycle coverage from chicago where it's quiet for now. as i understand it, you're expecting a white christmas this year. >> reporter: not quite yet, toure, if you want to get out in chicago or anywhere in the midwest, now is the time to do it. we're under clear skies, wind. things look good. nothing like what's going on on the eastern seaboard right now. arnts, newark, jfk, laguardia, boston, phil y all those airports experiencing delays from one to two hours. so not good news. that's because of the fogg and rain. tomorrow we expect this system to move into the -- christmas

eve we expect to be kind of between and 5 inches of snow here in chicago. that's going to have a ripple effect across the country. if you're going somewhere, even under clear skies, check ahead. maybe those road trippers in their cars are onto something now. unledded gas averaging $ 2.37 a gallon. in 27 states in the union you can get gas for under $2 a gallon, the lowest prices, depending where are you, in five or six years. that's really good news for people driving but they also have to contend with the weather. >> let's now head to a packed hartsfield-jackson airport in

atlanta. nbc's gabe gutierrez is there. >> reporter: things have been moving here smoothly at the world's busiest airport. more than 4 million travelers are expected to go through here this holiday season. so far they've been moving smoothly through here. other parts of the country have seen a different story. so far, several hundred flights have been cancelled and 1500 delays. airports in philadelphia, d.c. and the new york area have noticed significant delays, so has houston. this storm system is expected to get better later today. aaa estimates more than 98 million americans will travel this holiday season but thankfully here in atlanta, no major disruptions so far, although that could change. back to you guys. >> thanks so much for the update. now let's find out what sort of weather surprises santa will be delivering this christmas.

meteorologist steve is at the wall. do i need to pack my shovel in holiday? >> hopefully not but hopefully you have an umbrella. we do have a lot of thunderstorms. i want to focus on the most dangerous parts of the storm in louisiana and mississippi. we have tornado watches in effect for mississippi. two reports of tornadoes in louisiana and in florida. this is a dangerous storm. a lot of lightning with it and we know more people are fueling up their cars and getting out on the roadway. they are moving quickly at about 60 miles per hour. it won't take long for that rain to pass but they are dangerous. in the northeast, you may say, well, what's going on here? we don't have much going on in terms of rain. but a lot of fog. that will cause airport delays here. get ready, laguardia, jfk, newark, down to philadelphia, washington. you'll see those delays not only today and likely into tonight

tomorrow. this storm is just getting going. it's across areas of the southern states where we saw jen in chicago. nice and sunny now but that will change as this storm system pushes off to the north and east. that's where we will see snow in the chicago area. rain for new york in philadelphia tomorrow. it looks like that rain will be tapering off by the time we get into christmas day itself. right now visibilities are between 1 and 3 miles an hour. tomorrow looks like a stormy day along the eastern seaboard. great news after the storm. it looks like temperatures in the 50s and sunshine for the upcoming weekend here for parts of the northeast. >> traveling for the holidays is hard enough even when the weather isn't the only problem. >> i'm telling you, my dogs are barking today. oh! that feels better. >> that's gross. >> that's my favorite scene of all time. >> gross. >> travelocity senior editor

joins us at the table. welcome to the table. >> thank you for having me. >> courtney, for viewers just getting ready to travel today or tomorrow, do you have any tips for how we can limit the inconvenience, i have to pack two kids in the backseat. one is car sick, someone a baby. we have to make sure she sleeps. we're going to pray. what can we do? >> frequent stops, lots of entertainme entertainment, lots of snacks in the car can help. the weather will be the big story tomorrow. >> we are getting better and better, i just saw virgin telling a customer to direct message them for a flight delay issue they were having. and jetblue has flexible travel policy. everything's out there. the news feed of twitter is

essential. never pack anything that you can't live without in your checked bag. if you miss a connection, that bag could be in one city, you're in the other and your medications, chargers, is not with you. that's important. also checking in 24 hours in advance. not only will help save time at the airport but it will allow you to get that seat assignment, which when flights are overbooked or oversold, you want to be one of those with the seat assignment and boarding pass -- >> i wish they would tell you who you might be sitting next to, right? i don't want to sit next to john candy. >> i want to focus on the positive. it's not all doom and gloom, traveling with children in the car. >> thank you. >> there are ways to make life easier when we travel during the chaotic season -- >> speaking to the nonparent. >> i'll get there one day. tell me more about the tsa precheck program. >> i just signed up for that. >> good for you. yeah, we should all first of all be signing up for it next season. it's too late now. you may be pre-enrolled. look on your boarding pass, look

for tsa pre. that will allow you to breeze through t sachsa fast lane. have you your belts and things can stay on, and that may be the difference between catching a flight and missing a flight. >> it's the difference between going happy in the airport or be upset. i've been in tsa pre for a while. you say a third of americans admit to committing travel crimes but what are travel crimes. >> well, travelocity's study revealed a third of us are actually making it worse for other passengers. the most offensive crime is the armrest hoggers. >> toure is smiling because he -- >> that's mine! >> two worst offenders right here. >> somebody's got to have it. >> the other offenders are the people who bring carry-on baggage they know is a little too big. >> abby does that. >> airlines are really cracking down on that. passengers are actually shaming other passengers who do it. >> what? >> how do you deal with those

people, though? you don't want to be the grinch of christmas. you don't want to be like, stop talking or move your arm from the armrest so we can share it. how do you do it in a nice way? >> we don't want to shame other passengers but common courtesy. it's a public space. it's not your home, your bedroom. >> yeah, toure. >> i think noise-canceling headphones work for the chatty kathy. bring creature comforts from home. >> don't take off your shoes and socks on the plane. >> don't clip or paint your nails. two experiences i had while traveling. >> clipping nails on a plane? >> or subway. >> no painting your nails. keep it classy. >> i don't see why painting is bad. >> the smell in a confined space. >> well, cortney scott, thank you for those tips. i think the noise-canceling headphones will be essentially helpful for toure's wife. a week after sony pulls "the

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cycling now the white house is applauding season's decisi io allow screening of "the interview." we've been following the twists and turns. >> the biggest about-face from sony, announcing a limited theatrical release of "the interview" in independent theaters. so far nine theaters have started selling tickets online and we expect more theaters to come. this is a big reversal after the theater stopped release. sony ceo michael lnyton saying, we've never given up on releasing "the interview" and we're excited our movie will be

in a number of theaters on christmas day. sony's decision to run the movie seems stob in response to president obama saying on friday, it was, quote, a mistake for sony to cancel the film's three at cal release and in the wake of demand from independent theater goers. texas-based alamo draft house is already selling tickets at some of its locations. in fact, its website was briefly down, presumably in response to a surge of traffic. the 80% of u.s. theaters owned by the top five theater chains have not announced any plans to reverse their decision to pull the movie from their screens. of course, the other big news we're awaiting the next shoe to drop is what sony digital distribution plans are for the film. back over to you. >> julia, thank you so much for that report. joining us via skype is christian parks, chief brand officer at alamo draft house. here with us on set is eric

gardner, senior editor for "the hollywood reporter." as being one of the theaters to show this on christmas, why did you decide that? why do you want to show the film? >> for us it was never really about the film. we're huge fans of sony and we've been supporters throughout what has been a very difficult process for them. we love seth, james franco, everyone attached to this dmrim. we're huge fans of. but this is bigger than the film for us. this was really about freedom of expression and anything that purported to take away those civil liberties, so we joined with our friends, our partners at the art house convergence and petitioned yesterday to get this film placed in our theaters. as i say, it's more than a film. it really becomes about the

ability to really express yourselves and we thought it important our audience had the ability to choose whether to see this film or not. >> but one more for you, christian. how many screens will this be on on christmas day? >> we're working on it right now. we have 19 theaters in our chain. within that chain we're looking at the amount of screens that will actually be playing. it's still to be determined. we're looking to be determined and it will be added to existing theaters and also demand for people to see this film. >> i'm glad to see christian and alamo going ahead with this but many people will be able to see this via streaming service. sony is working out a deal, close to a deal to have this available on demand, on christmas day. from the beginning, we heard another major company will not want to get involved with this picture because they don't want the guardians of peace to come attacking them. that would scare away amazon,

netflix, what have you. why is one of the major streaming services now willing to play ball? >> for them it's an opportunity. there's been so much rallying behind this movie. so many people who say we have to stand up to foreign dictators and show this move have you. some are seeing this as a chance to promote their movie and be patriotic. you have the head of sony and obama coming together. >> they're showing "the interview" to be patriotic. >> whatever it takes. >> the real question is, how will this controversy affect seth rogen's oscar bid? >> can we hear the answer? >> what's the expectation in terms of the controversy, how will it affect whether people come to see this movie? on the one hand you can argue people will be intrigued because

of the controversy, on the other hand, some people will be afraid. what do you say about that? >> it's a balance. there's definitely questions whether theaters will be safe and that's something we're working with local law enforcement to make sure our theaters are safe. it's everyone's right to choose whether or not they go to theaters and whether or not they participate in this. we know there's a massive demand to see this film. we've already screened the film. we screened the film at a film festival of ours on the 19th. people responded incredibly positively to the film. >> do you like the film? >> i actually -- i haven't seen it. i'm based in los angeles. the screening was down in austin. for everyone that saw it, they gave it a thumbs up. i guarantee, if this film is playing in los angeles on christmas day, i'll be in the theater watching it. >> i'm curious to know what the broader, macro aspects are in

terms of the long-term impact to sony, whether that is the trust of the employees within the organization or actually long-term business. what's your take on that? >> i think it's going to have long-term implications on sony. even if the film grosses $500 million, it won't be worth it to them. in the short term a lot of agencies are wondering if they should be doing business with sony right now because there will possibly be leadership changes coming. in the long term, they are fighting seven lawsuits at the moment from employees whose social security numbers and health records have leaked out. >> very interesting developments today. christian parks, eric gardner, thank you for your time. >> i'll take you to a place celebrating what really matters this holiday season. i told my dentist about my sensitive teeth,

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♪ the holidays are officially here. only one day left until christmas. hanukkah is in full swing. no matter what or how you celebrate, it's the most wonderful time of the year. also, let's face it, it can be one of the most stressful times of the year. recently, i was lucky enough to take part in a holiday celebration to put everything in proper perspective. it was an important reminder of the greatest gifts of all. ♪ laughing all the way >> reporter: santa claus, check. gifts, on the move. elves, ready to go. >> coffee is too strong for you. >> reporter: and carollers. ♪ jingle bells >> reporter: all warmed up. with just days left till christmas, you can feel the excitement in the air. but this isn't santa's workshop.

>> it's definitely the highlight of the year for us to be able to do this. >> reporter: it's one of the nation's leading cancer hospitals. >> what we can do to lift their spirits by bringing gift bags and having people dress up and singing songs and going caroling so it's a little bit of the holidays in the hospital. >> reporter: for more than 100 years, new york's memorial sloan kerting cancer center has pioneered cancer treatment and they say just as important, patient care. >> it's body, mind and spirit. the medical treatment is going on for the patients with their boetdz, but then we have the mind and spirit we need to address as well. >> reporter: critical to that mission is the work of the society of msk. founded in 1946, the woman-led volunteer group has one main goal. making the hospital feel more like home. and they do this by organizing activities and, of course, going all out for the holidays. >> people have no idea that this is coming, so it's just like a

really wonderful surprise. >> reporter: the merry band of volunteers was ready but there was one elf missing. ♪ and then we were off singing classic carols, delivering donated gift bags stuffed like stockings and spreading cheer to patients and staff alike. >> this is good for my breathing in and out. ho, ho, ho. >> that's it. >> merry christmas! >> it makes it feel like christmas and hanukkah and the new year. special times. it makes it feel like the holidays for all of us. >> ho, ho, ho. merry christmas. >> reporter: gloria lopez calls memorial sloan-kettering her second home. >> you don't feel like you are sick.

you feel like you're in a hotel with five stars. >> reporter: she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in 2012. she's undergone dozens of rounds of chemotherapy and four major surgeries on her leg, her spinal cord, her brain and then her leg again. she admits this year has been the hardest. >> they removed this part here and here. they use the leg. that was good. >> reporter: but you might call the results miraculous. after a cutting-edge procedure, gloria's cancer-free ankle and foot function as the knee she lost to tumors. >> at the end i will be able to jump, to run, again with this. this is my knee. >> reporter: patients' families are with them every step of the way, which is why the society's annual holiday celebration means a lot to them, too. >> they made it feel like christmas, so we've had tears in our eyes, but they brought the christmas spirit to this hospital, so we're very blessed. >> reporter: ralph figueroa has

beaten cancer once. his whole family hopes the second time is the last. >> we are so blessed to have come here. never experienced something like this. it's more than a family. so, we're very lucky. >> you have to live day by day and feel good. >> reporter: ralph's kids in florida are hoping for the greatest gift of all, dad at home for christmas dinner. gloria plans to celebrate with her family in the bronx. but for them and for all those here, the society of memorial sloan-kettering will be here all year with reminder of life's everyday joys. >> merry christmas. >> you have to be happy with whatever you have. it can be worse. i wake up, i say, thank you, god. now, where is christmas? where it is? now i see them singing, i say, i can have christmas again ♪ that's the jingle bell that's the jingle bell ♪ ♪ that's the jingle bell rock >> gloria, ralph, their families and all of those at memorial

sloan-kettering were truly inspirational. it reminds you what is really important this holiday season. if you'd like to learn more about the incredible work being done at memorial sloan-kettering or head to the society, head to the society of mskcc.org and we will be right back. ♪ approaching medicare eligibility? you may think you can put off checking out your

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2014 will be remembered as a

monumental year in the lbgt movement. state bans have been falling like dominos thrown out by the courts. in fact, just last week, the u.s. supreme court ruled that same-sex marriages can begin in florida next month. while that state's ban continues to make its way through the courts. another victory for the movement, indeed, but marriage is just one side of the fight for equality. joining us is jonathan lovitz. jonathan, welcome. >> great to be here. >> now, the u.s. lbgt community has enjoyed much success in 2014, but i'm curious looking out to 2015, what are the biggest obstacles you see facing the community? >> well, you're right. it's been a fantastic year of success. looking forward, we can't rest on our laurels. we had tim cook come out, a major leader in the tech sector.

which moves when a major ceo of the fortune 500 company comes out, the walls don't happen. but looking aheated, it's what do we do with that? how are we inspiring the next generation of lbgt ceos to come out, knowing that the climb up the corporate ladder is easier than you think. we have a lot to fight for in terms of legislation and as we face it, we have a pretty intransigent congress in the next few years. we have a lot to do in state and on the corporate level. it's strange to say, but corporate america has been leaps and bounds ahead of legislators in terms of making it better for lbgt america to succeed in business. >> tim cook's coming out feels very powerful and inspiring, but he's the head of one of the world's biggest corporations. he's already ensconced in a high-level position. does it really have an impact on folks who are lower on the corporate totem pole who are in less progressive companies? as we are discussing before, in modern america, most people will

not come out and say, home mo hc things to your face but they hold those biases in. >> tim cook proved more than other being out and being successful are no longer mutually exclusive. we're spoiled in new york and san francisco and d.c. we know how fortunate we have it to be able to be out and with our partners. >> we think the rest of the world is the same. >> right. picture this, i can be married in 35 states now, but in 29, just for putting a picture of my husband on my desk, i can be fired. we have major problems like that. that are still facing us. we need an employee nondiscrimination act to ensure quality nationwide. we need protection for credit -- >> talk to us now. you can get married in 32 states. that's continuing to grow. in 37 states you are not protected against

discrimination. if you go out to get a loan, you're not treated equally, essentially. how is it in some -- the same state you can get married, can you go to the bank and not be treated the same. >> it's not unlike the marriage situation where we have patch work of laws where 12 states have protection for federal credit. but in, like you said, 37 others, i could walk in for a bank loan to start my new business as an openly gay entrepreneur and be told no and i have no recourse. the problem is when i talk about this with people, they say, why haven't i heard about this problem? who are you going to tell? we need federal protections to ensure that when you are seeking credit, when you are looking to start a business, when you're working up that corporate ladder, things are uniform no matter where you work. my home state of florida, like i said, if i were to put up a photo -- >> big news for florida, though. >> yeah. i can get married there starting january 6th, but today i have no protections in the workplace. just talking about my partner could get me in a lot of trouble. >> wow. >> jonathan, thank you so much for popping by. happy holidays. >> thank you. now to a market alert.

christmas is coming early to wall street with just 15 minutes to the closing bell, the markets are on pace for a fifth straight day of gains on a flurry of positive economic data. the dow poises to close above 18,000 for the first time ever bolstered by a higher than expected third quarter gdp number, 5%. the economy grew at the fastest pace in more than a decade. consumer spending in november rose at the fastest pace in three months, income up as well. keep in mind, consumer spending accounts for over 70% of gdp. sounds like another great reason to do last-minute holiday shopping. you total your brand new car.

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people are talking about a powerful new book that could change the way many of us see america. half has never been told. it is written that slavery was a sem inal reason america grew into the most richest country writing this. for more let's welcome the author of "the half has never been told" professor it is a fantastic book. how did slavery lead to the global powerful america that we know. >> i think one thing to understand is that the commodity that people started to produce after 1800 was the most

commodity period in the world, the period of industrial revolution, where we shift from rural to industrial economies and the factory systems needed cotton and enslaved people in the american south could produce it more quickly and efficiently than anybody else. they had no choice than to produce it that way n zblakt if slavery is the reason this country became a rich and powerful nation, in your opinion, should reparations be paid to the descendants of slaves. >> i think that is something that comes up every time we talk about this book. and more broadly, any time we talk about this subject, certainly what i've observed and heard when people talk and discuss had issue is that we're very eager to inherit assets from the past but not so eager to inherit debts from the past because debts imply we should be

repaying debts. >> you walk us through the first 90 years of american history and talk about leaders like lincoln, jefferson and jackson even, as you did your research was there a figure of american history that most surprised you? >> i think probably the 1830s. we look at the 60s and talk about the civil war, we're in the 150th anniversary of the end of the civil war and the 13th amendment which finally brings e emancipation to the united states. but the end of the 30s slavery gets so big and powerful it disrupts the politics and economics. >> gifven the reliance of the u.s. economy on slavery what do you think was the ultimate tipping point for change? >> i think the most significant

thing, this really struck me from the book, we see this happening in 1830s when enslaved people were able to escape, never in large numbers, but people like frederick douglas and so on stooart to state to t north, free states and tell their stories and make it a much bigger more powerful movement, that's the moment you start to see the possibility of change e emergi emerging. the change is actually coming from people who really escaped from the belly of the beast and tell their story and thus change the world. >> so the book is called "the half has never been told" why do you think we as a nation have struggled to deal with what slavery is really about? >> well, i think it is uncomfortable subject because we like to think of ourselves as a nation founded on ideals of freedom and yet this absolute

unfreedom and exploitation was so crucial to the growth of our success and power. it has been impossible it seems for us to really deal with that history up to this point. sometimes we have gone backwards in understanding it in 1890s and early 1900s we moved backwards of the celebration of the confederacy and things like that. >> we're talking about why america became the global economic power that it is. what they got from slavery, is it more the value of having all this free labor, or is it the value created by trading and selling human beings. >> it's both of those things. it's both the astoppish product productive -- both the astonishing productive in the cotton field spawned by torture

and one other thing, people around the world wanted to invest in this system, not directly, but indirectly they found ways to invest their capital in the form of credit in the expansion of slavery, britain, france, germany, netherlands, northern united states are sending credit to the south because they know they will get a powerful return on itful so the profits from slavery go out to the rest of the world. the credit the investment allows the united states to help it build its economy greater and greater. >> in the book you seem to challenge the great leader 2450e9 theory of history what is the most misunderstood part of lincoln's legacy do you think. >> that's a great question. we argue a lot about lincoln. many are skeptical of the idea that he was anti-racist. that he intended to bring about

emancipation. i think while lincoln is an incredible president and leader, i think it is okay to see him as someone who changed over time and pushed to change and observed the people around him, learned from watching enslaved people free themselves and come to the union lines in the civil war and that changed his opinion and changed his policies and changed his sense of what is possible. >> professor this is a powerful book, deeply written. congratulations and thank you for your time. >> thank you so much. zbl >> join us back here on monday for our special year ender show. "now" starts right now. after cancellation, delay, and hacking, the interview may finally be coming to a theater near you. >> sony pictures is officially announcing that the interview will have a limited theaterical

release on christmas day. ♪ ♪ >> if that ain't a real story what is. >> okay let's do it. >> sony will now in fact show the interview. >> ceo of sony you heard from him over the weekend. >> we have not caved. we have not given in. we have persevered. we have not backed down. >> we got the interview. >> he says we have never given up on releasing the interview. >> i think they made a mistake. i wish they had spoken to me first. >> i think this is damage control. >> james franco tweeted this -- i'm in for alex wagner, six days after they decided to cancel the release of "the