burning or stinging, blisters, and pain. tackle it! ask your doctor now if jublia is right for you. this morning, will there be. civil rights charges in ferguson? plus what scott walker sees between labor unions and isis. and the oscars and intersectionalty. but first, what do you see when you look at that dress? good morning, i'm melissa harris-perry. and let's just be honest. there's one question that has consumed our attention for the past 48 hours. what color is the dress? now we paused the debate briefly on thursday unified by the compelling spectacle of lamas

race ing racing for freedom, but then we turn to the question of the week. blue and black white and gold, kim kardashian and kanye west are hardly distinguishable, but they revealed their disagreement. i see white and gold. kanye sees black and blue. who is color blind? some are content to ensure the fascinating consequences of human variation. others are determined to stake their claim and join a team. by the way i'm totally blue and black. others want to find the one indisputable truth and deberate others with those facts. john boehner tweeted. facts, the dress is blue and black. well, there you have it. the dress is political.

now president obama may be right that we are more than a collection of red and blue states, but this week revealed in the words of an ellen degeneres tweet from this day on the world will be divided into two people blue and black or white and gold. the color of the dress is a political question because this in this sense facts are less important than perception. what if i told you after years of activists occupying the nation's parks to draw attention to economic inequality. after low wage workers finding their voices, there's now a group of presidential hopefuls and political stars talking about how to e leaveuate poverty. would you be excited? what if i told you they are all republican? did the dress just change colors? because poverty is on the agenda of the conservative political action conference this week in a big way. here's new jersey governor chris

christie. >> our vision for the united states is, one, to make sure as republicans the way they will try to tag is us say we're the party of the rich. i don't mind rich people at all, but we don't need to be defending them all the time. we need to start fighting for the people who are trying to lift themselves up who haven't had a wage increase in 15 years. >> and then there was this from utah congresswoman mia love. >> we must advance the conservative principles that have lifted more people out of povr poverty, fuelled more freedom and driven more dreams than any set of principles in the history of the world. so my challenge to my colleagues in congress is to not yield the moral high ground to the left. to get out of the way and allow the american people to rise. >> rise up was the theme for governor jeb bush as well. >> we need to give people a sense if we started growing our economy again the middle would

start having rising income again. you'd offer compelling alternatives to the failed tax policies, the failed regulation policies of broken education system and making sure that people know that we're on their side to rise up. >> it's like watching a democratic convention. what color is this dress exactly? you may want to know a little about the man many credit with the gop messaging. he's not a politician and as far as we know he's not even thinking of running for president. but he may have been the most influential speaker at cpac this week. a man who wants to quote, proactively declare peace on the safety net, and yet wants to expand the earned income tax credit to single unemployed men calling them quote, the most vulnerable in our society. meet arthur brooks head of the conservative think tank american

enterprise institute. >> if you are your brother's keeper, if you love the poor, it's good to give ul ms but you have to have a system that works while you sleep. that system, those five forces together you know what it's called? free enterprise. that my friends, is your gift to the world. >> so does mr. brooks have what it takes to change the way we see and hear republicans? or will we never quite trust those who see a white and gold dress where we see a blue and black one. joining me here at the table are former ohio state senator neena turner and matt welch, the editor in chief of "reason" magazine. and joining us from the conference in maryland political journalist leann caldwell, who had a chance to sit down with arthur brooks. how did mr. brooks find himself

the poverty guru of the right? >> mr. brooks is someone who actually has the power and the influence to convince republicans to talk about this issue. not only is he passionate about it and energetic, he's really convincing. but also he's head of one of the most influential conservative think tanks in washington, d.c. the american enterprise institute. in the five years he's been there, he's doubled their fundraising from $20 million to $40 million based mostly on his belief that poverty is an issue that the republicans need to take up. in addition, he has the ear of nearly every single potential republican presidential candidate and they are listening to him. >> so here's part of what i want to know then. when i listen to mr. brooks, it sounds like he's interest. ed in this question as a fundamental question of how the

democracy and our economy works. but i wonder if the candidates with whom he is in conversation are really much more interested here in simply apolitical tool. this is looking through my lens which tends to have a little more suspicion. i wanted to play him for a moment so we can get you to respond to that. >> this is not about the money. it's about the global brotherhood. it's about the morality. next time somebody tells you that conservatives only care about the rich, say that's wrong. if it weren't for conservative values, the world would stay poor. >> so is this for the conservative candidates is this just politics or is this like in their heart the way it is for mr. brooks? >> well for mr. brooks it's in his heart. he travels to india, he convinced the dalai lama to come to the united states and speak at his organization. he meets with people in india,

he believes that getting people out of poverty is a path to happiness. he thinks this is a way of life and he's really doing everything he can to convince republicans about this. he's part of this group called reform conservatives. and it's something that is a small group, but it's growing, especially among the younger generation of conservatives. yesterday at cpac that's how jeb bush defined himself. it's someone who thinks outside the box about economic issues and comes about different ways of how to get people out of poverty. not by decimateing the safety net, but by preserving it but also one major thing about this is that it's still conservative because it influences work. a work requirement is very central. >> so hold on a second. you were also at cpac. what do you make of what seems to be for mr. brooks more of an

interest in the floor than the inequality. it's not a big deal it's what is the floor. >> this is true of all free market types, libertarians conservatives and other words. it's more about can you escape poverty. what is the way that you can do that faster rather than having some kind of outcome in which there's a perfect measure of equality there. the things to produce that equality would put a ceiling on the floor in that position. also, i mean part of this is the tea party. this might sound strange to the ears of your listensers right now, but the people are like marco rubio, people who challenge the republican orthodox and establishment, beat candidates, came into power in 2010 and have been talking about the tax code to help the middle class. but to your point also there's a huge political thing here which is if you ask the median

republican what went wrong with mitt romney, they could come up with one answer. it would be the 47%. jeb bush said i need to send a message that i care. we're doing bush message i care again. this is on their brain as well. it's a mixture of true belief and political expediency. >> leann, thank you for joining us this morning from cpac and thank you for bringing to us a little about the story behind t the new message. i'm going to stay on this topic when i come back. still to come this morning, the attorney general eric holder gives a very strong hint at what is to come in ferguson. stay with us.

ring ring! progresso! i can't believe i'm eating bacon and rich creamy cheese before my sister's wedding well it's only 100 calories, so you'll be ready for that dress uh-huh... you don't love the dress? i love my sister... 40 flavors. 100 calories or less.

♪ ♪ i love my meta health ba

that when a democrat's president, deficits go down. republican is president and then deficits are going up. and yet they try to take on the fiscal probity. it's not. an accident that america is creating jobs faster than any time since the last time a democrat was president. >> that was president obama at the democratic national convention winter meeting. it feels to me like that is at least part of what's happening politically here. the president does have a good economic track record over the course of his six years. now we see republicans trying to get to a narrative about what they can do economically. there's a part of me that's excited, but there's another part that just sees a dress there. >> and god bless arthur brooks for bringing this to the floor. i see the color of the dress as

the haves and have notes. let us not forget that the republican candidates, most of them have held high office. either as executives or members of the congress. so i'm going to listen to 10% of what they say, but 90% of what they do. so it's one thing to winter those sweet nothings but it's another thing to act upon them. we're not just talking about average citizens. we're talking about antipoverty is the talking point. but what are you going to do and what have you done? >> to that point, we have seen what happens when republicans control both houses of congress. they can't really do anything. there's an incompetence there. we don't do the 12 spending bills a year that we were supposed to do. even under unified control. there's divisions under the republican party. we're a long way off from enacting these ideas. >> i'm wondering so what then --

buzz it can't be we're going to run on we are not chris christie or we are not jeb bush. particularly in a general election, it would be tougher because democrats will like that person as a candidate. so do democrats have something new to say about poverty alleviation alleviation, given that the economy has improved but poverty hasn't. are there a set of new democratic ideals if republicans are going to claim we have a new set of ideas 37. >> we need to dig. this is the responsibility of both democrats and republicans. we toss out -- we're happy when people work in a bipartisan way. no stuff. american people deserve better than that. working class folks and middle class folks deserve more than just the talking point of we're working in a bipartisan way. we should be doing the things that are necessary to lift people whatever that takes. there's been an unwillingness. we're excited and giddy about

walmart. a multibillion dollar corporation finally seeing the light. what about the families who have been suffering under the pressure of the working poor are among us in this country and we need to do something about it. we have the power and the capacity, both parties have been complicit in this. >> the obama recovery has been very weak compared to other recoveries, particularly the reagan recovery. they came into office and pretty similar circumstances. so republicans are making the point we need 4.5% growth. that makes a huge difference. >> it's not like republicans have been out of power. so republicans have been standing there in the legislature. >> the biggest problem is there's a thing called bush republicans, which no republican wants to be. bush economic record was lousy. they have to figure out a way to talk about that stuff while seeming credible. >> up next the big decision and big news that came from eric

holder had this week. in small business you have to work hard, know your numbers, and stay focused. i was determined to create new york city's first self-serve frozen yogurt franchise. and now you have 42 locations. the more i put into my business the more i get out of it. like 5x your rewards when you make select business purchases with your ink plus card from chase. and with ink, i choose how to redeem my points for things like cash or travel. how's the fro-yo? just peachy...literally. ink from chase. so you can. good job! still running in the morning? yeah. getting your vegetables every day? when i can. [ bop ] [ male announcer ] could've had a v8. two full servings of vegetables for only 50 delicious calories. ♪ there's confidence. then there's trusting your vehicle maintenance to ford service confidence. our expertise, technology, and high quality parts mean your peace of mind.

now you can get the works, a multi-point inspection with a synthetic blend oil change tire rotation, brake inspection and more. $29.95 or less. oh yea, that's coming down let's get some rocks, man. health can change in a minute. so cvs health is changing healthcare. making it more accessible and affordable with walk-in medical care, no appointments needed and most insurance accepted. minuteclinic. another innovation from cvs health. because health is everything. if you're running a business legalzoom has your back. over the last 10 years we've helped one million business owners get started. visit legalzoom today for the legal help you need to start and run your business. legalzoom. legal help is here.

[ male announcer ] whether it takes 200,000 parts ♪ ♪ 800,000 hours of supercomputing time 3 million lines of code, 40,000 sets of eyes, or a million sleepless nights. whether it's building the world's most advanced satellite, the space station, or the next leap in unmanned systems. at boeing, one thing never changes. our passion to make it real. ♪ ♪

on tuesday almost three years to the day george zimmerman shot trayvon martin. after deciding not to file charges because of insufficient evidence. previously a jury acquitted george zimmerman on all charges. the variety of evidence reviewed by federal investigators included dozens of witness interviews, crime scene materials, cell phone data, medical and autopsy reports. even the opinion of a biomechanical expert to look at the description of the struggle kpt shooting. it was insufficient, not enough to stack up to the high burden of proof required for the fed's to accuse someone o of taking another person's life because of their race. in determining whether george zimmerman violated laws they had to weigh evidence against the high bar set by two federal

hate crime statutes. the hate crime prevention act of 2009. it was named for the two men whose murders drew national attention because of the brutal brutality of the killings. matthew shepard, whose assail yants tortured him and left him to tie. and james bird an african-american resident in texas who was beat. en tied to a truck and dragged to his death for more than three miles by three men, two of whom were known white supremacists. the law expanded federal hate crime protections to include violent acts based on sexual orientation and removed a restriction that required that victims of racially motivated violence be involved in an activity like voting or going to school. but the law also said that in addition to proving the bodily injury was cause to another person because of race that the evidence was also prove that the

injury was caused willfully, which meant the doj would have had to show that george zimmerman knew he was committing an illegal act and that he was committing it in open defiance of the law. the department also considered whether he would run afoul of a second statute against force of a federally protected housing rights on the basis of race. but that law also requires proof of willful intent. this is the standard for all federal civil rights crimes. the government has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a person acted intentionally and with intent to break the law and it's one of the highest standards in all of criminal law. in an exit interview with nbc news pete williams eric holder suggested that high bar may be more of a barrier to justice. >> i think that we do need to change the law. i think the standard is too high. that there is a better way in which we can have federal involvement in these kinds of matters to allow the federal

government to be a better backstop in examining these cases. i think there probably needs to be a change with regard to the required standard of proof. >> eric holder went on to say he has ideas of his own about exactly what those changes should be and will be sharing them with congress as one of his last acts as attorney general. senator turner is still with me and matt welch and joining the panel is the professor of social psychology at ucla and president of the center for policing equity. also from chicago, eugene o'donnell, professor of law and a former nypd officer. so phillip, i want to come to you first. is the standard of proof for the fed's too high u or do we want a high standard before our federal government can bring charges against us? >> i don't think that's an either/or situation. you don't want someone brought up on hate crimes charges when they were considering liking someone individually.

that would be ridiculous. that was the scare tactic used to make sure the high bar was put into place. but the attorney general was right. the standards don't fit with the kind of race relations that we have right now. these are standards to protect people who have been lynched. these are not standards to protect people living in a current racial situation. the best evidence for that is when you have a more reasonable bar like the pattern and practice things that the division of civil rights gets to do with whole departments, then you have a whole set of investigations that yield agreements and consent decrees that the community can get. behind and you see less outreach. >> explain the patterns things which is different than the other high bar. and if you could tie it in because we have talked about what could be the end of desperate impact at the supreme court. part of what i'm wondering if that falls, do all civil rights claims end up looking like this with this high bar where you have to show willful intent?

>> there's a dichotomy in how you think about it. you have the individual intent someone meant to do this and meant to do it because of race. that rarely happens. even when it does happen it's difficult to prove. the otherwise to say, there's no way that these disparities happen and it was anything other than negligence along the way. so the investigations that they do is go into a police department and say, hey, i don't care about your intent. i care about your behavior. and the outcomes here seem really to be too far out of whack with what they should be. so let's work together to make this a different set of outcomes for your community. >> so obviously george zimmerman was not on a police force. it ends up being a quite different circumstance in that case. i want to go this question because clearly george zimmerman was not on a police force. he was a private citizen acting, but so much ended up getting tied into our general conversation about the ways in which police and communities are operating or even the notion of policing these black bodies.

and part of the angst for so many is the sense that trayvon martin was vulnerable because we begin to approach and assume that a young black man out at night is always up to no good. i'm wondering about how we start to take that apart. >> i think before you get to the issue of reforming laws and federal statutes probably that case should have been handled much differently and much more seriously and with much more thrust immediately. immediately he should have been locked into a story and cross examined by the police on the scene. it's vital before the person has time to reflect, reconstruct, assemble, that you pin down what they are saying occurred. i believe there was not adequate investigation on the scene, so we're probably talking about a little bit about police training. if the police had done their job robustly, you have somebody

lying on the ground a young person dead treat that as a serious matter. i think there could have been a different outcome. >> that's such an important point. i had forgotten that the initial issue, the initial thrust for activism was around the fact he had not been arrested. and therefore there was this long delay. so i want to come to you because i feel like trayvon martin became and remains this kind of symbol of the question of justice. the family of trayvon martin said in response to finding out that the doj is not going to go. forward. we remain poised to do everything in our power to help eradicate violence because we don't want any parent to experience the loss we have endured. we'll never forget what happened to our son and will honor his memory by working tirelessly to make the world a better place. i love these parents so much, but i want more than just the parents to be doing this.

i want that statement to be coming from my elected officials. >> absolutely and hopefully this will spark. it takes a lot for this family to take the grief and say we're going to actively engage and use every effort in our son's memory to make this world a better place. we do need folks across the country, especially in elected space. but the notion that the young black male is out and must be up to no good. when ice cube talked about my skin is my sin, the dna of this country and until we are willing to admit it that racist tendencies that we are all socialized, whether we're black, white, hispanic, we are socialized in these united states of america to see black males differently from how we see other folks. this takes action. and more than just -- we start with the conversation but we need the action. now in ohio governor casey set

up the ohio task force for community and police relations, which is a beautiful thing. how do we take what folks have to say all across the state of ohio and give them a constructive outlet to talk about how they are feeling in communities that are overpoliced based on race or class. >> i want to come back on these topics. now that it's passed the committee hurdle eric holder is likely in his last days in office there will be news on ferguson before he leaves and we. to talk more about where that story is likely going, next. ♪ they lived. ♪ they lived. ♪ they lived. ♪

(dad) we lived... thanks to our subaru. ♪ (announcer) love. it's what makes a subaru a subaru. discover card. hey, i heard you guys can help me with frog protection? sure, we help with fraud protection. if there are unauthorized purchases on your discover card, you're never held responsible. you are saying "frog protection"? fraud. fro-g. frau-d. i think we're on the same page. at discover, we treat you like you'd treat you. fraud protection. get it at discover.com i have the flu with a runny nose. [coughs] better take something. theraflu severe cold won't treat your runny nose. really? alka-seltzer severe cold and flu relieves your worst flu symptoms plus runny nose. [breath of relief] oh, what a relief it is. mommy! hey!

thanks for the ride around norfolk! and i just wanted to say geico is proud to have served the military for over 75 years! roger that. captain's waiting to give you a tour of the wisconsin now. could've parked a little bit closer... it's gonna be dark by the time i get there. geico. proudly serving the military for over 75 years. the end of the investigation into the death of trayvon martin still leaves another major civil rights on the agenda.

shortly after the death of mike brown in ferguson, missouri the justice department announced two separate investigations. one, looking into the circumstances of brown's death and whether or not officer wilson violated his civil right when is he shot and killed the unarmed teen. the other is investigating the ferguson police department and the allegations of systemic police abuses. last week during a q&a at the national press club mr. holder said a resolution may be coming soon. >> it is my intention to announce our determination of the decision we have made both with regard to the individual officer's conduct in the shooting of michael brown as well as the pattern of practice investigation that we have done into the ferguson police department. >> attorney general didn't give any indication of the end result, but the civil rights investigation into officer wilson will face the same high legal bar as the recently

concluded george zimmerman case. the question of whether or not wilson willfully took the life of mike brown. as you already know a jury chose not to indict wilson on any criminal charges. i know for many people who want to see some form of justice, the federal government has been the kind of last resort of where to get it when states haven't provided that. you were bringing up in the break that it also raises concerns about double jeopardy. it doesn't in the case of the whole police force. >> i think pattern and practice is the appropriate place for the federal government to approach these types of things. i would also say the attorney general gave a speech about how we're going to stop racial profiling as a direct result of this kind of stuff and there's talks of task forces and discussions at the white house. we don't need to talk about it really. there are so many tools including in the ferguson case that are wrong that lead to

these injustices. we have grand jury processes led by -- it was set up to put a check on local prosecutorial power. it's instead become a way to indict a ham sandwich except if the ham sandwich is a cop. this is the way local structures enforce themselves. we have 400 police shootings in this country, which is 400 more than countryies like the netherlands. this is because we have all these incentives. prosecutors have blanket immunity. so if they have repeated examples of misbehavior, lying, perjury from people police officers pretty much have blanket immunity in this country. these are the ways this kind of injustice happens. we know what those are. we know the forensics are completely bogus science. we know the drug war creates prohibition and tools by which

you can get harassed. go after those things and you'll get. a lot of lives saved. >> let me ask you about that. the sense that there's a blanket immunity for police officers that they are sort of allowed to behave on the city streets in any way. is that how officers experience themselves? it certainly feels that way when you have these two high profile cases, but i'm wondering whether or not officers are ate inging in the world with we're not going to be held accountable. >> we're a nation of guns. police deal with gun violence all the time. what the attorney general is doing does have a value. there's an effect to having this conversation. no question the police have a lot of power. it's difficult. this transcends politics. very different to micromanage the police. we do keep expanding every year. we're asking them to do more.

the final thing that's worth saying, we have to make sure the public is included in this conversation. we can't have an elite conversation where we're imposing on people what they want. if you go to communities, they tend to want the police to be engaged. so this kind of libertarian notion that the police are the enemy. that's not true on the ground. >> does that resinate with you? >> absolutely. it resinates that communities want active and engaged law enforcement. i was talking with the commissioner from philadelphia and the co-chair of the presidential task force on policing. i was on a panel with him a week or so ago. he mentioned to me a story about a young officer who was responding to a robbery in progress. and the officer ended up with a deep graze mark by his eye. when he arrived on the scene, in his bed at the hospital what he said to the commissioner was my u first thought was ferguson. that's about i was worried about

losing my job and i was worried about how do i know when i'm doing the right thing. we need to not just begin this conversation. . we need to find a way to settle it that's in the best interest of the communities and officer safety. they feel like they have not immunity, i might lose my job for doing my job given the climate of the country. >> stick with us. i want to talk about the police shooting of an unarmed man in pasco. sfx: common city background noise ♪ credit belongs to the man who strives valiantly who errs who spends himself in a worthy cause and who, if he fails at least fails, while daring greatly sfx: background city noise ♪

ring ring! progresso! i can't believe i'm eating bacon and rich creamy cheese before my sister's wedding well it's only 100 calories, so you'll be ready for that dress

uh-huh... you don't love the dress? i love my sister... 40 flavors. 100 calories or less. when heartburn comes creeping up on you... fight back with relief so smooth... ...it's fast. tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue ...and neutralizes stomach acid at the source. ♪ tum, tum tum tum...♪ smoothies! only from tums. you owned your car for four years. you named it brad. you loved brad. and then you totaled him. you two

had been through everything together. two boyfriends. three jobs. you're like "nothing can replace brad!" then liberty mutual calls. and you break into your happy dance. if you sign up for better car replacement, we'll pay for a car that's a model year newer with 15,000 fewer miles than your old one. see car insurance in a whole new light. liberty mutual insurance. pasco, washington has been the site of ongoing protests in response to this moment. a 35-year-old was shot and killed by police in a hail of bullets. police said shots were fired after he threw rocks at passing cars and at officers who responded to the scene. the results of the police investigation announced this week that he was hit by five or

six bullets, none of them from behind. a second autopsy economiesed by an attorney for his family differed in a key detail. these findings determined that he was shot as many as seven times, including twice from behind. ms. turner have we come to what will be the west coast version of a ferguson at this point? >> we have and this is really sad. we still have to continue to have an open mind and allow the facts to play out, the bottom line is was it necessary to shoot to kill? that happened to him. what was his psychological state? what was going on at the time that this happened? yes, this is gut wrenching in many ways and we have to put a stop to this kind of behavior. it just makes no sense that day he would lose his life. >> the one that continues to break all our hearts is a 12-year-old and the cleveland paper said the city responds to

the lawsuit by saying that the boy's death was caused by his own actions. i'm sure you have people that apalled by this. >> i'm shaking my head. and again, it does not make sense. less than 2 seconds from when police pulled on the scene this 12-year-old boy was shot and kill ed killed. he didn't even have an opportunity to kind of comply, if you will. this does not make sense. children should not be shot in the streets of the united states of america. and i'm disappointed. >> the police lied about what happened and the video showed it was wrong. he looks big and intimidating. >> let me. come to you on this. this shooting in pasco and community protests and the hands up, we heard from phillip before on the one hand you have communities that are feeling kind of the way this whole overlay is but also for the

officers, is this it making the world more dangerous for officers, more dangerous for communities? are we undermining public safety by the actions of these officers? >> well, the nypd is retraining all officers. they are telling officers to think, take a second take a deep breath think before you act and this became sort of an issue of mockery. i ran into a hero officer this week who said that's the first commandment of policing. you see some of these events and wonder whether people are thinking before they act. we're trying to get police to be reflective and action oriented. we have had this conversation about mental health. giving the cops just a little bit of mental health knowledge allows them to think before they act. you take a deep breath and say what am i dealing with here? what's up with this? >> indeed, i think that point

about that one second and how it could save lives. again, make the world a safer place for all of our communities involved. thank you. still to come this morning, our discussion on the oscars. the fallout, feminism, but first flash bang grenades. you do not want to miss this conversation, next. in small business you have to work hard, know your numbers, and stay focused. i was determined to create new york city's first self-serve frozen yogurt franchise. and now you have 42 locations. the more i put into my business the more i get out of it.

like 5x your rewards when you make select business purchases with your ink plus card from chase. and with ink, i choose how to redeem my points for things like cash or travel. how's the fro-yo? just peachy...literally. ink from chase. so you can. alright, so this tylenol arthritis lasts 8 hours, but aleve can last 12 hours... and aleve is proven to work better on pain than tylenol arthritis. so why am i still thinking about this? how are you? aleve, proven better on pain. good job! still running in the morning? yeah. getting your vegetables every day? when i can. [ bop ] [ male announcer ] could've had a v8. two full servings of vegetables for only 50 delicious calories. [announcer] if your dog can dream it purina pro plan can help him achieve it. ♪ driving rock/metal♪ music stops ♪music resumes♪

music stops ♪music resumes♪ [announcer] purina pro plan's bioavailable formulas deliver optimal nutrient absorption. [whistle] purina pro plan. nutrition that performs. in our house, we do just about everything online. and our old internet just wasn't cutting it. so i switched us from u-verse to xfinity. they have the fastest, most reliable internet. which is perfect for me, because i think everything should just work. works? works. works! works? works. works. a report by independent outlet details the story of one

night last may when a s.w.a.t. team raided a home in georgia looking for a suspected meth deal er dealer. generally police are supposed to knock and announce themselves, but the s.w.a.t. team had a no-knock warrant, that is legal permission to burst in unannounced. thinker they are increasingly used in drug raids to keep them from destroying evidence when police arrive. at 2:00 a.m. in may, the s.w.a.t. team tried to force the front door open with a battering ram, but something blocked the door from opening all the way and allowing the s.w.a.t. team to see in. one tossed in a flash bang grenade. it blinds and deafens anyone in the vicinity. here's footage of the portland oregon police deploying flash bangs to clear protesters in november.

>> so that's the type of device that a s.w.a.t. team in georgia tossed through the front door of a home in the middle of the night. the officers didn't know there was a playpen just inside the door. they didn't know a 1-year-old boy was sleeping inside. the grenade landed on his pillow and the child was badly hurt. he was in the hospital for weeks and underwent multiple surgeries. his family says they owe $1.6 million in medical bills. the county sheriff has said that the officers acted appropriately based on the information they had at the time that no children were in the house. a state grand jury declined to indict any of the deputies involved. for the family, the ordeal is not over. his parents said he will need

surgery every two years until he's fully dproun. he often wakes up in the night screaming and shaking. it almost seems it's like he's remembering what happened. in a devastating report about flash bangs called "hotter than lava." joining us is one of the authors of that report. so julia, how common are these and how common are legal actions against officers who use them and harm children or other civilians? >> it was surprising to me about what i learned about flash bangs is they are used routinely. there's something really designed somebody who is about to shoot you, but in fact, they are used for low-level drug raids often. in georgia. i found jurisdiction used them on every raid. but the injuries can be severe because the temperature inside that burning fireball is hotter than lava.

so it's severe burns that occur. we couldn't find any police indicted for tossing one of these grenades. >> can you tell us the story? >> sharon cay harris is a 56 yeeshld grandmother in little rock who i found. she had had a little business selling food out of a food truck, which is a trailer that she drove around. on sunday she would sell it from home along with beer which is a misdemeanor. so the police sent in an informant to buy food and beer from her and sent a second time. for this $100 fine they raided her home, threw in a flash bang, broke down her door and caught her clothes on fire. she was fine but it shows to the level of crime which these devices are being used for. >> are you serious? i don't know what else to say except have we got on to a point

where police -- let me back up. every time i hear one of these stories it makes meso angry and i think the police have lost their minds. but it is an empirical question whether or not civilians are in circumstances where they are more or less likely to be in confrontations with police. what do we know? is it getting better or worse? >> the short answer is we know way less than we should. in the big cities by all accounts and from all the data i have reviewed the numbers of police involved use of forces are going down dramatically. but we have to remember 75% of departments have people less than 25 officers on them. and we don't know anything about that. so if three quarters of the officers are in these really small departments where it's ten people there's not necessarily enough if you have one shooting in a year, three flash bangs, that's not enough to see an up

tick in the department, but because we don't collect national data, we'd miss the national trend and that's hugely important. >> let me come back to you for a second. little rock is not a small town, but it isn't chicago or detroit or the place we think of these central policing moments. i did want to read the little rock police department did have a response. you may see a large number of flash bang deployments, but we see a large service of warrants without gunfire. that's coming from the little rock department's spokesman. the idea that well we didn't shoot anyone being the standard still strikes me as surprising as a standard for police work. >> and the thing that they need by that is that they are concerned that all the people they are raiding that they -- so the thing is i don't think it would have taken a lot of police work to realize that sharon kay harris who is about 5 feet tall

wasn't going to shoot them. so the question is -- >> we're talking about a misdemeanor violation. >> a misdemeanor violation. i understand they want to have a risk-free policing environment, but i also think that there doesn't seem to be enough work going into who is a risk. >> where do the flash bangs come from? on the one hand i'm trying to breathe through the doj and not have the zimmerman and whatever is going to happen in ferguson. as i'm trying to breathe through, where did these military style equipment come from? >> it started with s.w.a.t. in los angeles, california. and the television show then also helped out and people got the idea that instead s.w.a.t. is supposed to be for bank robberies. now more than 90% they are being used are done to enforce drug warrants. we get back to the idea of drug

war stuff here and there's no consequences for going on the wrong house, the wrong door no-knock raids. >> so that's right, but. i would also add i don't know you want to put this on daryl gates. there's not a law or a general agreement on a federal level that proportionality needs to be a standard. it is in the uk. so here it's about intent and did it you follow the rules and that's what officers are trained to do. >> can we get a federal rule? >> if you don't have proportionality as a rule if they are not held accountable, they will say this was to the standard and they are right. >> the panel is going to return in the next hour. thank you for that reporting. stunned by it here. still to come this morning, he says defeating labor unions proves he's ready u to take on isis and he's the guy at the top of the republican polls. plus oscars and third wave

feminism. just you and your honey. the setting is perfect. but then erectile dysfunction happens again. you know what? plenty of guys have this issue not just getting an erection but keeping it. well, viagra helps guys with ed get and keep an erection. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain; it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. side effects include headache, flushing, upset stomach and abnormal vision. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in vision or hearing. ask your doctor if... ...viagra is right for you. i have the worst cold with this runny nose. i better take something. dayquill cold and flu doesn't treat your runny nose. seriously? alka-seltzer plus cold and cough fights your worst cold symptoms plus your runny nose. oh, what a relief it is.

ring ring! progresso! i can't believe i'm eating bacon and rich creamy cheese before my sister's wedding well it's only 100 calories, so you'll be ready for that dress uh-huh... you don't love the dress? i love my sister... 40 flavors. 100 calories or less.

when it comes to good nutrition my daughter's an expert. hi dad. she's a dietitian. and back when i wasn't eating right she got me drinking boost. it's got a great taste, and it helps give me the nutrition i was missing. helping me stay more like me. [ female announcer ] boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. all with a delicious taste. grandpa! [ female announcer ] look for valuable savings on boost in your sunday paper. when i'm shopping for a used car, i want to be comfortable. i don't want an aggressive salesperson breathing down my neck pressuring me into a decision. when i go to the supermarket there's no one pushing me to buy the more expensive cereal. i just want to shop like i do everywhere else. ♪ ♪ as long as people drive cars carmax will be the best way to buy them.

welcome back, i'm melissa harris-perry. republicans wrap up their party on the potomac. they bring. together the party faithful high profile gop leaders and several presumed presidential candidates. early polls already have scott walker leading that pack of candidates, none of whom have officially announced their running. walker's speech brought the crowd to its feet. however, it is what he said during the q&a portion that grabbed national attention. the remarks about how he would deal with terrorist groups like isis by saying this. >> if i could take on 100,000 protesters, i can do the same across the world. >> now those protesters that he's referring to were state

workers. just weeks after taking office in 2011 walker succeeded in ending collective bargaining rights for the unions. there are plenty of reasons that comparing that fight is a bad idea. but it does highlight the importance that the governor places on his battle against labor unions. it's the issue that first earned him national political prominence. he went on to survive a recall election and to win reelection last year. while many signs suggest that many of the working class are worst off than four years later, the political star has continued to rise. perhaps it's no wonder he's lashing out against. on wednesday the wisconsin state senate passed so-called right to work legislation. i know right to work sounds great, but it's a death nail for labor unions. the bill says that employees in the private sector think car manufacturers or hospitals cannot be required to join a union even if wages are

negotiated bay union. the right to work laws weaken unions. supporters say having the laws on the books attract companies and boost revenue. governor walker says bring it on. if the bill make s it through the state assembly and lands on his desk he's promised to sign it. a few states away unions are giving another republican governor labor pains this week. new jersey governor chris christie first won national republican hearts when he enacted pension reform. he bragged about his success during his speak about the convention in 2012. >> they said it was impossible to touch the third rail of politics to take on the public sector unions and to reform a pension and health benefit system that was headed to bankruptcy. but with bipartisan leadership we saved taxpayers $132 billion over 30 years and saved retirees their pensions. we did it.

>> or not. it turns out in new jersey like in many other states public pensions are underfunded and eating up a growing share of state budgets. christie negotiated a deal where public employees and the government pay more into the system. he was lotted by moderates everywhere. this worked for a couple years, but when cristhristie found himself unable to the budget, he opted to cut the contributions. labor unions sued and on monday they won. a new jersey judge said that the governor broke his own law and was obligated to contribute to the system. it's remained to be seen how he will respond. this issue that helped christie to gain national prominence may hurt his viability as a presidential candidate. one issue, two governors, what does it mean for their political futures? joining me now is senator turner. and the executive director of u.s. action. fred it looks like mr. walker

is doing well among republicans hopefuls. it's still early. does that strike fear in the heart of labor and of labor unions around the country? >> i u think you see both governors. they are so blinded by political ambition. they will do anything. chris christie is willing to break the law. scott walker is willing to enact policies that will bring down wages in his state. and what he said this week at cpac it really actually is worse than we thought. he really has disdain for workers in wisconsin. and he hasn't apologized. he hasn't retracted his statement, and i think he should. he should apologize to the hard working men and women. >> he did tiptoe it back. >> but what i will say and we have to put this at the feet of voters. the man did survive a recall and he was reelected.

so i mean i feel you, but the nature of democracy is the people went out and they were like, yep, that again. >> i can hardly stand it. governor walker compared the citizens of his state to terrorists for standing up -- >> he said he's strong. >> the governor said that he can handle isis because he could handle the constituents in. his state who were standing up for their wages and how they pay their mortgage and how they put food on their table. there's something outrageous about this. but you're right, unfortunately last year only 36% of eligible voters even dared to come out to vote. so all paths lead back to the ballot box. but give me a break, the last time i checked there were republicans in unions and democrats and libertarians and everybody in between. >> this is an important point that feels like i want to go all the way back to the very first bloc when we were all sitting here together and talking about

republicans have a new way of addressing poverty. we really can look and see that all workers' wages rise when unions exist. even if you yourself aren't in a union, in states where there are unionized workforces wages rise. how can this hour be the same as last hour? >> there's two different conceptions. there are competing conception boeft of which are heartfelt. one is yours that more unionization means more shared process prosperity. there's the general right to work state conception, which is more southern, which is that you bring more jobs and that will create prosperity. scott walker feelings that. he went after unions in the begin. ing because he, like a lot of people think we have made too many public sector union promises that we can't keep. chris christie actually can't and won't keep the promises that they need and that needs reform. that's an attractive measure. i'm not sure on a nationwide

basis whether the whole right to work battle resinates as much because we have sifted into blue and red states on this issue and they are competing notions of prosperity. >> so i feel you on fencings. in the sense of there are real fiscal issues associated with pensions and some of that occurs as a result of us not knowing how long it was that people are going to live. the world actually shifted under our feet. >> the difference between defined benefit and defined contribution. >> it's about choices. >> wouldn't unions be willing to talk about that? >> in new jersey they were. there was a deal and chris christie went back on the deal. workers paid more. they said we're going to pay more for pensions. chris christie, you have to do your share. he was unwilling to tax people over $1 million more. >> walker it's a breaking of the ability to sit at the table at all. it's one thing to say we have a problem here. everybody has to come to the table. it's another thing to say you don't have a right to sit as an organized union at the table.

>> when you eliminate collective bargaining shs the ability o sit at the table and have that conversation about how we can bargain our wages and working conditions and do what's best for our state or our country. >> most people when they know this they will sit down at the table and bargain. they will do the right thing. we saw that -- >> workers don't want to bankrupt their state. >> we are seeing cities go bankrupt. let's be clear about this. in cities in california and rhode island the public sector pension problem is $4 trillion that's an unfunded liability. it is bankrupting cities. those discussions sometimes don't lead to results to avoid those o bankruptcies so there's something worth dealing. >> so the same question around poverty. are any democrats better positioned? part of what i'm wondering, if republicans are going to be the anti-unions, can democrats after particularly what happened with

education unions and the kind of education reform discourse of the past few terms, can they say we're on the side of unions? >> yes, democrats are on the side of unions but in all of this, we all have to have what i want to call the coming to jesus meeting and have that meeting on a regular basis. but the way to address these things are not on the backs of working folks. that is not the way to address this. >> the come to jesus meeting, twitter will explain to you. up next guess who is about to get paid more? maybe you. you have enough money to live life on your terms? i sure hope so. with healthcare costs, who knows. umm... everyone has retirement questions. so ameriprise created the exclusive confident retirement approach. now you and your ameripise advisor....

can get the real answers you need. start building your confident retirement today. something entirely new is being built into bounty. dawn. new bounty with dawn. just rinse and wring so you can blast right through tough messes and pick up more. huh aren't we clever.... new bounty with dawn. anyone have occasional constipation diarrhea, gas, bloating? yes! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these occasional digestive issues... with 3 types of good bacteria. live the regular life. phillips' [ male announcer ] legalzoom has helped start over 1 million businesses. if you have a business idea, we have a personalized legal solution

that's right for you. with easy step-by-step guidance, we're here to help you turn your dream into a reality. start your business today with legalzoom. yoplait greek 100. for when you just can't make it without a protein-packed, thick and creamy, power-me-up-with-something filling taste-bud-loving, satisfaction by the spoonful, deliciously fruity dinner feels a million years away grab and go, let's take on the world with 100 calories, snack yoplait greek 100. there are hundreds of reasons to snack on it.

this week the parent company of tj max said it would begin

paying workers $9 an hour starting in june. analysts agree that the company, which employed 190,000 people is following the lead of walmart. they announced last week it would increase pay for workers to $9 by april and to $10 by next february. this news raises the possibility that more retailers will follow suit. with 1 in 4 american workers being in the industry that has the potential to help a lot of people. why the change at walmart? it had little to do with pressure from organized labor. the move simply made good business sense. >> we just decided this is a really good moment to be more bold in the changes we're making and it's really aimed at just running a really good business. >> so have american companies finally decided to respond to years of mounting public pressure to raise wages or is it more symbolic? what do you think of the idea it

has nothing to do with the protests? >> of course, it did, let's be honest. putting pressure on hem, we never would have changed the wage policy. but that the fight for 15 all the moves around the country to raise the minimum wage they are having an impact and that's great. it's a good first step. it's not enough. i think you'll see pressure continue. >> you and i have had this debate on this show before about minimum wage and what it does. whether it is overall a good thing for. the economy or not. and here we have the walmart ceo saying it's not the unions. we just think it's good business sense. is this them saying paying higher wages is bad? >> the argument against the minimum wage is not an argument against walmart raising. i think people get confused about that sometimes. i think walmart partly because it had the biggest target on its

back for the longest time. walmart was the devil when it came to organizing against a single corporation in this country. >> it's good a big footprint. >> there's a reason why they were chosen as such. they start odd to play nice. they started giving money to liberal groups in washington, d.c. we know this pretty well. they started figuring out how to be more environmentally friendly. they used words like sustainable. i think this is part of that. i hope it's purely economic thing and that it's a sign that our economy is starting to finally to spike up. i worry that it's more of a political softener. >> this is such an interesting and important point to me. so many of the bad actors that have a target on their back either around civil rights questions, we have seen other major corporations that when they make their settlement or peace, you go to the good organizations and they are sponsored --

>> donald trump got. an naacp award. >> i have feelings about that. >> power can seize nothing without a struggle. i certainly agree it was from the pressure. before we get too excited, it is good. but i have to put a however on this point. walmart is a $500 billion company. so it took them this long to see the light? this is the morally right thing to do to make sure that your work verse a wage that they can live on. not just survive, but to thrive. we have to take people in this country from surviving to thriving. >> and morally right is one piece. but the point about the big target. it's not just because they make a lot of money. it's capitalism, people should make a lot of money. but they double dip in the system. because what happens is if your wages are so low that your workers continue to be able to get government subsidies

particularly food subsidies and those food subsidies are spent at the one place you can buy cheap groceries which is walmart walmart. your money is coming back around to you in this way that i do think people find appalling. this idea of paying people working full-time poverty wages, wages so low that the federal government and taxpayers put the floor underneath them. we are subsidizing them. >> 70% of our economy is a consumer economy. we need. people to be viable in that economy. it's unacceptable. >> we find it appalling because it is. and the fact is we're long overdue for a conversation about wages in this country. we have had 40 years of wage stagnation. productivity has been going up, wages have stayed flat. >> do americans feel that? if we are going to have a free market push towards imagining we work hard and because we work hard we get to have homes and

make the american life. the idea that we literally are working harder and not feeling it i feel like americans experience it in a way they can't even put their finger on. >> it's been 15 years like this. this is in a bush/obama phenomenon. so wages really haven't grown in 15 years. private sector employment has not grown. it did not grow under bush until 2007. there was a net loss in private sector jobs. that's a long time for not very exciting economy right now. so people have a sense of when obama or anybody from the administration tries to tout their economic record i think people kind of get their nails out a little bit. we don't feel like that it's experiencing it, especially when we have a labor participation rate. that's not a great moment. >> you have been hanging out at cpac and you coined the phrase

bush/obama phenomenon. i don't know if i'm going to let you get away with that one. still to come how patricia arquette set twitter on fire this week. [ female announcer ] hands were made for talking. feet...tiptoeing. better things than the pain stiffness, and joint damage of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. before you and your rheumatologist

decide on a biologic ask if xeljanz is right for you. xeljanz (tofacitinib) is a small pill not an injection or infusion, for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well. xeljanz can relieve ra symptoms, and help stop further joint damage. xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers have happened in patients taking xeljanz. don't start xeljanz if you have any infection unless ok with your doctor. tears in the stomach or intestines, low blood cell counts and higher liver tests and cholesterol levels have happened. your doctor should perform blood tests before you start and while taking xeljanz and routinely check certain liver tests. tell your doctor if you have been to a region where fungal infections are common, and if you have had tb, hepatitis b or c or are prone to infections. tell your doctor about all the medicines you take. one pill, twice daily, xeljanz can reduce ra pain and help stop further joint damage, even without methotrexate. ask

about xeljanz. [announcer] if your dog can dream it purina pro plan can help him achieve it. ♪ epic classical♪ music stops ♪music resumes♪ music stops ♪music resumes♪ [announcer] purina pro plan's bioavailable formulas deliver optimal nutrient absorption. [owner] come on. [announcer] purina pro plan. nutrition that performs. huh, fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. everybody knows that. well, did you know words really can hurt you? what...? jesse don't go! jesse...no! i'm sorry daisy, but i'm a loner.

and a loner gotta be alone. heee yawww! geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. jesse? i want to bring in from madison, wisconsin scott ross the executive director of one wisconsin now. scott, i want to go back for a second to this idea o of scott walker the ways in which he's leading at cpac and ask what would it mean for the republican party if scott walker ends up being the republican nominee? >> well i'll tell you, scott walker is the most experienced post baby boomers elected official in america. and he operates in a way which

is definitive decisive devisive and disciplined. and he's also kind of dishonest. what that would mean for america is a state which has never been more divide. we see the biggest cuts to education in our state's history. we see last in the midwest in job creation and the rights of workers, women and voters all under assault. that's what scott walker will bring to the united states. but what he also brings is he's a winner. he's got a big money machine behind him and he is shameless and operates in a way that a lot of politicians don't. >> i want to play something for you. this was sponsored by the wisconsin manufacturers and commerce. it's kind of a proright to work or anti-union piece. i want to play it because what you said is you're last in job creation, but this is the discourse about why right to work should be creating jobs. let's take a listen. >> what we see in right to work states is higher wage growth

higher job growth greater economic opportunity. businesses investing more. these are the kinds of things we want to bring to wisconsin. it's why wisconsin needs a right to work law. >> so is that happens? higher job growth. higher wage growth and great. er economic opportunity? >> it's literally the opposite. right to work states have an average of $5,000 less in household income. they spends $3,400 less on education. they have higher rates of un unemployment, higher rates of people without insurance, higher rates of people it's a disaster. it's wrong for america. what it does do is rewards millionaires and corporate ceos who finance things like governor walker's campaigns. that's why they want to do it. they wouldn't be spending zillions of dollars if it wasn't going to benefit corporations

and millionaires over the middle class. that's what we have seen. >> you're the executive director and you're planning to rally today? >> yeah there's a rally at noon central time here in wisconsin. people standing up for workers' rights rights. that's what we have had to do because they have been under assault since scott walker took office. he promised to create 250,000 jobs. what was the first thing he did? he attacked the rights of 170,000 working citizens. people like nurses people who plow the streets, the people who he now refers to as being equated to isis because they disagree with him. so people are getting together. there's going to be a rally today 37 we continue to fight against right to work in the same way we have been fighting his other attacks on the wisconsin way of life. >> scott ross one thing that's certainly true is that this is a candidate who has survived a lot, who is a winner whether

one agrees with his policies or not and that makes me bet that we're going to see a lot more of you over this course of the republican primary season because what happens with scott walker we'll want to keep drawing you back in and having a conversation. so thank you to scott ross. up next, the oscars and third way feminism. (vo) after 50 years of designing cars for crash survival, subaru has developed our most revolutionary feature yet. a car that can see trouble... ...and stop itself to avoid it. when the insurance institute for highway safety tested front crash prevention nobody beat subaru models with eyesight. not honda. not ford or any other brand. subaru eyesight. an extra set of eyes, every time you drive.

what's that thing? i moved our old security system out here to see if it could monitor the front yard. why don't you switch to xfinity home? i get live video monitoring and 24/7

professional monitoring that i can arm and disarm from anywhere. hear ye! the awkward teenage one has arrived!!!! don't be old fashioned. xfinity customers add xfinity home for $29.95 a month for 12 months. plus for a limited time, get a free security camera call 1800 xfinity or visit comcast.com/xfinityhome. start the interview with a firm handshake. firm, but not too firm. make eye contact...smile. ay,no! don't do that! try new head & shoulders instant relief.

it has tea tree and peppermint that cools on contact. and also keeps you 100% flake free. i use it for cooling scalp relief in a snap. mi bebé ha crecido tanto. try new head & shoulders instant relief. for cooling relief in a snap. last sunday was the 87th annual academy awards. few nominations went to people of color earning the twitter derision oscars so white. when they were announced back in january. but neil patrick harris did recognize a few. not everyone appreciated the way he did. the longest running bit of the night was with octavia butler. he asked butler to help him watch his list of carefully

guarded oscar predictions. he explained the task required her diligence and undie provided attention. no snacks. now the ongoing joke stirred up discomfort from many twitter users and prompted responses like this one from janet mock. hey, oscars octavia spencer is not the help. you can watch that ballot box on your own. or this from roxanne, typical, octavia spencer plays a maid, wins an oscar and is expected to work at the ceremony. but nothing sparked social media quite like the statement patricia arquette made for wage e equality. she said it's inexcusable that we go around the world and we talk about equal rights for women in other countries and we don't. it's time for all the women in

america and all the men who love women and all the gay people and all the people of color that we've fought for to fight for us now. arquette's speech during the ceremony was heartfelt, but her pose showed a fundamental misunderstanding of a key feminist concept that they are not separate, they are fundamentally u intersecting. what is so aggravating is that her comments could best be. described as anti-intersectional. it states that you see your struggle as women for equal pay as if there aren't masses of people who live beneath the labels that benefit from such reforms. welcome to feminism 101. still with me former ohio state senator turner.

so lori what was wrong? what went wrong with her speech and her comments? >> well unfortunately, this has been difficult for people to understand through the years, but not all women are white and straight. i know this is difficult and you named this segment ain't i a woman so we have been talking about this since the 1800s. so many amazing feminists have been pointing this out. we exist, we are women of color, there are queer women, trans women and we need to be part of this movement because it will not succeed unless it's working for all women. >> we fought for the blacks now fight for us. hey, some of us are the blacks and the women all at the same time. so part of the question then is

so what difference does it make? what i kept hearing is sure there are black women too and arquette says but they too would benefit. that queer women would benefit. just as much as straight women. >> trickle down feminism works about as well as trickle down economics. inequality at the top, and i mean straight white privileged women like myself, we're doing much better than most women and we're still unequal. so inequality at the top predicts inequality down the line but there are so many more people down the line that are focusing on the women at the top isn't going to cut it. we need to think of those that lives at the disadvantaged intersections. >> arquette took to twitter afterwards. this is not like a small mishap. she had a conversation. she addressed the privileged question quite directly. i wanted to read one of her tweets on the issue. she says basically that i'm

not -- you say i'm living with privilege, but i grew up poor. we'll see if we can get that tweet out. i grew up poor. don't talk to me about privilege. i lived well below the poverty line. i won't forget women's struggle. is there something to be said? >> i think that's fair on her part. she was certainly speaking from her heart. she thought she was saying the right thing. she had no mall intent. that being said to have a deeper understanding about the struggle of women who may or may not ever make it to where she has made it in life, it is totally unacceptable. her point about us being a country that continues to fight for other folks chrks is a, which is a beautiful thing, but here in the united states we have 77 cents on the dollar for a woman. it's even less for chocolate. we need to deal with that because when women suffer that way economically we are penalizing their children

communities, states and nations. so it behooves us economically and morally. i'm going to continue to push the moral position. >> i just want to ask this. this has been my sub tweet all day because she and i really only disagree on one fundamental topic and that is the likely democratic nominee in 2016. and i have u been pretty clear that i am not a big fan of hillary clinton running in 2016. but that said, let me suggest there is an actual empirical piece that's part of that angst for me. i get that she is an embodiment of womanhood, there's been discussion about her running as a woman. but. when we look at the breakdowns the intersectional reality that that gender gap is a race gap. they have been supporters of

president obama's initial election and reelection. and i wonder whether or not hillary clinton ends up reading like patricia arquette in 2016. >> i don't think so. she is there. we have to remember the secretary came by way to the democratic party from hearing a speech from the reverend dr. king. people change along this journey. we have to continue to push those folks in power, whether it is the secretary or governor or a mayor to do the right thing in these spaces and in these places. so i think it's not necessarily a fair assessment to lay totally all of this. >> more on this i promise. and kelli ozborn news when we come back. curling up in bed with a favorite book is nice. but i think women would rather curl up with their favorite man. but here's the thing: about half of men over 40 have some degree of erectile dysfunction.

well, viagra helps guys with ed get and keep an erection. and remember, you only take it when you need it. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain; it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. side effects include headache, flushing, upset stomach and abnormal vision. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in vision or hearing. ask your doctor about viagra. ring ring! progresso! i can't believe i'm eating bacon and rich creamy cheese before my sister's wedding well it's only 100 calories, so you'll be ready for that dress uh-huh... you don't love the dress? i love my sister... 40 flavors. 100 calories or less.

in small business you have to work hard, know your numbers, and stay focused. i was determined to create new york city's first self-serve frozen yogurt franchise. and now you have 42 locations. the more i put into my business the more i get out of it. like 5x your rewards when you make select business purchases with your ink plus card from chase. and with ink, i choose how to redeem my points for things like cash or travel. how's the fro-yo? just peachy...literally. ink from chase. so you can.

good job! still running in the morning? yeah. getting your vegetables every day? when i can. [ bop ] [ male announcer ] could've had a v8. two full servings of vegetables for only 50 delicious calories. today something entirely new is being built into bounty. dawn. new bounty with dawn. what a novel idea! just rinse and wring so you can blast right through tough messes and pick up more. huh aren't we clever.... thanks m'aam. look how much easier new bounty with dawn cleans this gooey mess versus soap and a sponge. thank you! new bounty with dawn. available in the paper towel aisle. obviously!

tradition for various magazines and news outlets to create best dressed looks after actors debut their oscar night looks. which brings me to the episode of "fashion police." the four hosts weighed in on the best and worst academy award ensembles ensembles. when it came time for comments about the singer zendaya's red carpet look the co-host rendered this critique. >> i feel like she smells like oil. or weed. >> later that night coleman dropped some knowledge in an open letter. the 18-year-old wrote there's a fine line between what is funny and disrespectful my wearing my locks was to sho case them in a positive light to remind people of color that our hair is good enough. locks are a symbol of strength and beauty. in case it was frot dropped hard

enough backed coleman saying fashion police has been bashing my fro for years. you know what i say? she did apologize on tuesday after fashion police co-host and friend of coleman kelly osbourne complained on twitter. she threatened to leave the show and yesterday e! news announced that she had. in light of all this i'd like to take a moment to discuss the politics of black hair. >> a couple years ago, i think you lacked the courage to go full fro. >> it is true that right after the events in ferguson, i very much wanted to go full fro and my husband said you might feel differently on saturday. >> that's the problem. everybody does have opinions about how women of color need to be wearing their hair.

it's always politicized and policed. . there's never an opportunity for us to just wear our hair how we want to. >> it is our hair. think about this deeply. the notion that the hair you were born with is somehow sub standard. the way that the creator created you is sub standard. this culture has been pushing that in the minds of african-american women in particular for generations. go back to the days of slavery. there is something fundamentally wrong with saying to somebody the way you were born is sub standard and you need to conform to be beautiful. >> this is precisely why want to come back to the intersectionalty point. we're talking about in the context of the oscars so it ends up feeling like this is just some sort of cultural moment but it is at the core of everything from the ability to work in certain fields to the

idea of what constitutes valuable humanity whether you're in a black woman's body or a brown woman's body or a poor woman's body. this is why the arquette comments mean something. >> pop culture seems frivolous, but it is the stories that we tell ourselves about ourselves. >> what color is that dress? >> it's blue. it's definitely blue. i think when we're talking about the politics of black hair talking about the politics of light skin and dark skin women, we're talking about the intersection of gender and race and class because not only are we talking about making sure that we're policing bim to make sure they look a certain way, but also that conformity is incredibly expensive. it's time consuming. as a demonstration, lori spent three times as much time in the hair chair and makeup chair as i did this morning. and we both spent more time than

any of the men. >> psychologically and economically expensive. >> and you pointed out colorism. it is a real thing. at all points even when i acknowledge disprivilege around race, it's important to acknowledge privilege around light skin girls. >> octavia spencer as an example, we're spending so much more time talking about patricia arquette than octavia spencer. we attribute a lot of ideas about intelligence and class and about your worth as a human being. so on her body you see a whole bunch of intersectional and issues intersect. and then you see the way she was treated at the oscars. >> the thing i want to say when it comes to intersectionalty is this is not just about being politically correct.

this is a tactical necessity for the feminismt movement to move forward. consider the wage gap. look at transgender people in the workplace. there are studies that show that transgender women after they transition in the workplace face pay decreases. what could better. lay bear the ways that gender discrimination are coming into play in our society so we need to make sure transpeople are in this conversation too. >> it's also important to note that both of those real people in many states can still be fired for transitioning. if you get a pay bump, you can still be fired. >> assuming they have even overcome the stigma and violence to get to that workplace. >> i just want to say during the oscars, we all experienced watching on twitter, there's a lot of people dissecting jokes that's a level that's unhealthy

and seeing things in some of the jokes -- for me if the joke is funny and the hair joke wasn't funny, that was the problem. the oprah joke certainly wasn't funny and didn't even make any sense. >> i think dissecting jokes to a point that's not healthy, jokes are the stories that we tell ourselves about ourselves. i think they merit dissection in the same way. >> part of what makes something funny or not has to do with the social constructed notions about what is true. so i like a good bad joke. a joke that touches on the things that we're not supposed to say. and yet i also feel like there are rules about how you can tell a joke. thank you to the panel. up next our foot soldier of the week. [ male announcer ] the wish we wish above all...is health. so

we quit selling cigarettes in our cvs pharmacies. expanded minuteclinic for walk-in medical care. and created programs that encourage people to take their medications regularly. introducing cvs health. a new purpose. a new promise... to help all those wishes come true. cvs health. because health is everything. ♪ ♪ i love my meta health bars. because when nutritious tastes this delicious i don't miss the other stuff. meta health bars help promote heart health. experience the meta effect with our multi-health wellness line. ♪ ♪

when heartburn comes creeping up on you... fight back with relief so smooth... ...it's fast. tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue ...and neutralizes stomach acid at the source. ♪ tum, tum tum tum...♪ smoothies! only from tums. american express for travel and entertainment worldwide. just show them this - the american express card. don't leave home without it! and someday, i may even use it on the moon. it's a marvelous thing! oh! haha! so you can replace plane tickets, traveler's cheques, a lost card. really? that worked? american express' timeless safety and security are now available on apple pay. the next evolution of membership is here.

what's that thing? i moved our old security system out here to see if it could monitor the front yard. why don't you switch to xfinity home? i get live video monitoring and 24/7 professional monitoring that i can arm and disarm from anywhere. hear ye! the awkward teenage one has arrived!!!! don't be old fashioned. xfinity customers add xfinity home for $29.95 a month for 12 months. plus for a limited time, get a free security camera call 1800 xfinity or visit comcast.com/xfinityhome.

next week on this show i'll be live in selma, alabama, marking the 50th anniversary of the historic civil rights march from selma to montgomery. a few months after the march, president johnson signed the voting rights act into law. and yet 50 years later, the right to vote is still in jeopardy with legislators across the country proposing laws to make it harder for people to cast our ballots which brings us to our foot soldier of the week a bronx native who wants to use her poetry to get new york city youth involved in politics. crystal valentine has been writing poetry since she was a fourth-grader and now is at nyu studying child psychology. she is traveling the five boroughs this year speaking to young people and spreading the

word about civil engagement and voting. crystal joins me now. tell me what made you want to enter and become the poet laureate? >> i'm always wondering how can i help my community, how can i as a black woman help other people of color? and when this opportunity came to me i was like wow, let's just try it out. i'll be able to go to schools, i'll be able to go to community centers and be able to really let my voice be heard. so yeah. >> i've been giving lectures this month and talking about the importance of art and creativity in movement making. why does poetry have a role in a continuing civil rights movement? >> how do you move people? poetry moves people. you can sit there and lecture to individuals and say, this is what you need to do or i can recite a beautiful poem for them and the poem is off of real emotion. you can't mistake real emotion. so that will move people into

action. >> who are the poets that you read? >> oh. of course maya angelo audrey lord, my own mentor, mahogany brown. just people who get it, you know? empowering people of color who really make a stand. >> so do you think young people are truly engaged in the political world right now? >> not so much. i feel like they can be more engaged, many young people aren't voting in the elections. and i think that we can power up on that one. but i think that we just need the right communication to really get it out to them, you know? >> tell me about the poem you wrote that helped you to win this competition. >> the poem i wrote, basically in the poem i'm trying to see how high do the stakes have to be before we come together and

solve our problems? usually people come together in a time of crisis. and i'm saying let's forget about the crisis, let's not have this crisis. let's not have anyone being hurt or being disrespected. let's come together and make a stand for ourselves. >> would you be willing to perform for us? >> yes, of course. >> i'd love to have you do so. >> a voter's problem. maybe we're just waiting for the locusts to come. maybe we're waiting for the whole world to set fire for god to finally clensanse this melting pot for pure human race to rise from the ashes because obviously the stakes aren't high enough. obviously high school dropouts rates aren't high enough. obviously president obama's signature on an $8.7 billion food stamp cut isn't enough in america's attempt to exile an

entire continent isn't enough and people being beheaded on national television isn't enough. maybe we're just waiting for something ridiculous to happen like miley cyrus becoming the first female president, like racism being diagnosed as a mental illness. obviously we're just waiting for something deadlier than rape culture and police brutality to split this road in half. maybe politics aren't armageddon enough for us, aren't spark enough for us, aren't call to action enough for us. this is a call to action to rally, to revolution. and i know it's hard living in a society where we attend more funerals than birthday parties. i know you think you're just another flame in an uncontainable inferno. and what does a flame know of boating anything? i think i just saw the rapture coming. and i know you think obama is just another god that has forsaken us.

just know that calling any man a god is the true armageddon. just know that your refusal to vote is the true armageddon, so vote. because when armageddon does happen, it will look nothing like this. thank you. >> crystal valentine, that is an extraordinary piece and i think captures so much of what your generation will undoubtedly have to address. my college adviser was dr. maya angelo. i have no doubt she is smiling with pride about what you have done with politics and poetry. >> thank you for having me. >> thank you for being with us today. i greatly appreciate it. that is our show for today. thank you for watching. see you tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. eastern. tomorrow you will not want to miss our segment on genius as a social -- we might have a genius right here. we'll talk about gene yous

through the prism of harry potter. right now, time for a preview of "weekends with alex witt." hi alex. >> i noticed she left out ron weisely. it is what it is. job in jeopardy what the past 24 hours on capitol hill revealed about john boehner's vulnerability as house speaker. gunned down in moscow. the outrage after an outspoken critic of russian president vladimir putin is murdered. first came their pay hike, now they need more hours. the next fight ahead for minimum wage workers. and what makes a genius a genius? answers from an 11-year-old college sophomore learning quantum mechanics. don't go anywhere.

doers they don't worry if something's possible. they just do it. at sears optical, we're committed to bringing them eyewear that works as hard as they do. right now, buy one pair and get another free.

ideas come into this world ugly and messy. they are the natural born enemy of the way things are. yes, ideas are scary and messy and fragile. but under the proper care, they become something beautiful. i want my foyer to smell more like a foyer. i want his bedroom to smell like he's away at boarding school. surround yourself with up to 6 hours of

luxurious, long-lasting scents... ...introducing new unstopables air refresher. yoplait greek 100. for when you just can't make it without a protein-packed, thick and creamy, power-me-up-with-something filling taste-bud-loving, satisfaction by the spoonful, deliciously fruity dinner feels a million years away grab and go, let's take on the world with 100 calories, snack yoplait greek 100. there are hundreds of reasons to snack on it. the inside story, how congress pushed the department of homeland security to the brink of a shutdown and why it might happen all over again in the next week. which one of these three candidates looks like the front-runner in a gop straw poll of today's big conservative gathering and how much does it

matter? why a young woman in massachusetts is being charged after her friend committed suicide. the details around the unusual case. the one man trying to understand himself. he walked away from millions of dollars and is now telling his story in a powerful video. high noon here in the east. 9:00 a.m. out west. we