shuffling of committee assignments now and then. there is a coveted positions and powerful committees the congressman or members lobby for. in order to gain influence and prestige, that's exactly how the far-right members of the gop i wanted that leverage. some of the 21 members who initially voted against mccarthy as brokers -- were voted to plump additions. for example, conspiracy theorist andy biggs, paul gosar, honor paula, and scott perry, the chairman of the far-right freedom caucus who was also a subject of the january 6th investigation himself. all five of them were appointed to the oversight committee. considered one of the most important panels in the house, expected to launch numerous investigations into the biden administration over the next two years. meanwhile, this process is allowed republicans to exact political revenge on democrats for previously voting marjorie taylor greene and paul costar from their committee assignments after the east made threatening posts against some of their democratic colleagues. last, week speaker mccarthy

block representatives adam schiff to eric swalwell from returning to their post on the house intelligence committee. schiff and swalwell are outspoken californian democrats who previously served as impeachment managers during the impeachment of donald trump. republicans also sought retribution against ilhan omen, the congresswoman, saying remarks she said in the past which he publicly apologized in 2019. two congressional terms ago. this is the first time republicans have been back in power in the house. on thursday, all but one republican members voted to remove omar from her seat on the foreign affairs committee. that's not even a half of it. in addition to keeping members of committees, republicans created the so-called select subcommittee on the weaponization of the federal government. which will be shared by ohio representative jim jordan. jordan has repeatedly compared his subcommittee to the church committee. one of the most respected and effective channels in congressional history. the accretion of the church

committee with initially triggered by an investigative report by seymour hirsch, and the new york times, which alleged that various federal agencies had taken part and covert operations in america and around the world. named after its chairman frank church a democratic senator from idaho, the church committee investigated allegations and uncovered abuses by set federal several agencies including the fbi, at irs. it was the truth committee that exposed things like cointelpro, an fbi program -- that political activist and civil rights leaders like dr. martin luther king junior. as a result of the church committees work, reforms were suggested and subsequently made to prevent those current of abuses from happening again. those are the lofty ideals that jordan as weaponization committee will lead to invoke. as they market themselves to the american people. it's less clear what they are actually up to jordan has made vague references to misconduct. we also cue the federal

government of targeting protesters who show up in school board meetings. the committee has already been criticize, and the fishing a tradition, an effort by republican members to damage the biden administration and democrats in the lead up to the 2024 presidential race. as an active which retribution for the january 6th committee. the committee is moving aggressively, and moving fast. it's already scheduled its first hearing for next thursday, and the house judiciary chair, jordan already issued his first subpoenas, requesting documents from attorney general merrick garland, fbi director chris wray, and education secretary miguel cardona. here is with ben -- in nyu history professor who studies authoritarian regimes had to say about the committee when she joined me last hour. >> look at the people who had been appointed to the oversight committee, this is a classic example of what i call the upside down world, when you have lawless people, professionalism, which is what the gop is composed of.

it's indebted to the live, right? they become in charge of accountability. the gop, i see it as a criminal cover-up mode for its complicity in january 6th. and so, it's going to do everything possible to shut down those who stand up for investigation, for freedom of speech, for facts, and for objectivity. >> joining me now is congressman from the united virgin islands, stacey plaskett, a few days ago, she was named the ranking member of the direct subcommittee of the weaponization of the federal government. and a member of the house intelligence committee, and the agriculture committee. two years ago, she was an impeachment manager during the second impeachment of donald trump. representative, good morning to you, thank you for being with us. >> thank you so much for having me, good morning to you. >> you heard what professor ben-ghiat have a say about the

committee, give me a sense of your assessment, of what your role and the role of democrats on this slightly weird committee should be? >> first, i have to say, i am just so grateful to leader hakeem jeffries for having me to be the lead for the democrats on the committee. i think you see from the composition of the democrats, we really represent, once again, the mosaic that makes up the american people. we have older members, younger members, new members, senior members who have been around a while from all over the country with a deep knowledge and experience. in investigations oversight, and aloft. and dems have said, at the beginning of this congress, we are willing to work in a bipartisan matter. because there are areas, of course, velshi, that you know, ali, the need to be investigated. whether that is the irs disproportionately auditing

african americans, or it's things like bill barr utilizing his perch as attorney general to support donald trump. we are willing to do that. the republicans, and particularly jim jordan have shown over and over again that they are not interested in that. what they are interested in doing is chasing it rainbow conspiracies and far-right fearmongering to their base. >> tell me then, as the ranking member, as a member of the minority party, with the limitations that that all involves, what do you do to say, because again, 100% of people would say oversight is good. and weaponization of government is bad. how do you make this committee not a waste of time? how do you not spend your days on the committee just swatting away or trying to swat away nonsense, and actually say, is there any possibility of greer on terms of stuff that the american public would agree

needs to be investigated? >> i have reached out to jim jordan in the last few days, i was just announced as the ranking member to see if he is interested in sitting down on a regular basis, to see if there are areas, or hearing that we can do, that we would both agree on. in the meantime, we are going to be the truth spot, be willing to say when it is nonsense. the subpoenas that he recently issued to the justice department, to the fbi regarding the school board nonsense. it was unnecessary. the department of justice, as well as the fbi, we are very forthcoming about the information that they had. we are working with jim jordan and with other individuals to get that in the information. this is the one we are dealing with nonsense, to make sure evidence and facts are out for the american people, while at the same time, and in our own way, trying to bring light on the areas that need to, in fact, be investigated.

i am grateful for -- i said on oversight, under elijah cummings, who was always willing to work across the aisle to find common ground. but who also stood for truth. and i will use him as a model to ensure that the american people here, the facts, and evidence, that we deal in truth, and that we push back on, things that would divide americans, that rally up the worst intentions in all of us. trying to get out the real oversight >> you stated you regret cyril cummings, as an example, and there are many, democrats and republicans are both do, that without a chair in a ranking member, they work instead degree of association, they will send letters jointly, where are you in that sort of relationship with jim jordan? in fact, the thing you made mention of, where jim jordan misses the at -- fbi chris wray, and miguel

cardona, were you a consultant about that? >> no i was not. that's one of the things the letter i sent him, i advised him, hey, i'm here, i have been appointed, i know it was very recent. and going forward, let's follow the rules of all the practice of the house. i notice of what you are going to do. interestingly, we are on the same hallway, our office is in-house. there is no reason that you can't go on by and see me. unless we are in the best way that we can. we will see if that comes out. you know, i'm not an optimist or a pessimist, i'm a realist. no >> representative plaskett, thank you for taking time to represent us on the show, representative stacey plaskett of the united states virgin islands. so i'm velshi, we are hitting a major milestone, one year of the velshi banned book club.

all made possible by you. for today's meeting, we are taking you back to the very beginning. now joined by nikole hannah-jones, the author of the landmark 16 19 project, the inaugural gassed. you don't want to miss the meeting. plus, putin's warping history. the justification for the invasion on ukraine. we will speak with a man who knows ukraine more than most. a former united states ambassador to ukraine, bill taylor. but from the broken, economic good news, a very strong u.s. jobs report. what does it mean in respect to the recession that many economists predict will happen this year? velshi is back in a moment. ppen this year? velshi is back in a moment

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start in 2023, not only are all three major stock market indices up since the beginning of the, we have blockbuster job numbers from the department of labor yesterday. the economy added roughly 517,000 jobs in the month of january. that is nearly triple what

economists predicted. fara pacing the average monthly job growth through 2022. the federal unemployment rate went down one tenth of a potential point for 2.4%, the lowest unemployment rate since may of 1969. 53 and a half years ago. president biden touted the strong economic showing yesterday at the white house. >> here is what we will resigned. the strongest job growth in history, the lowest unemployment rate in 54 years, manufacturing rebounded in a faster rate than the last 40 years, inflation is coming down, but simply, i would say the biden economic plan is working. >> now the question becomes, is the country doing well enough to stave off the recession that has had been in fear what happened? to put down the good, the bad, and the not-so-ugly of the economy. my friend caleb silver. the editor in chief of investopedia. caleb, thank you for being. let's start with the good. this is august, you and i have known each other for a lot of years, how many times have you

seen a five? >> i had to look at that five times to make sure that it was correct. it was correct. it big surge in job, but revision is higher for the last couple of months. job trending getting better and better, even though we thought it might get worse. and the unemployment rate, you mentioned, 1969, age of aquarius, a lot of people looking for work, maybe they were worried about a slowdown coming. a lot of people trying to get back in the job market as of last month. that's a good sign, which is increasing up 4.4%, falling a little bit on the decline. they have been strong. you know how hard it is to get wage growth in this country. they have not kept up with inflation, but it helped out a lot. >> come with me let's take a look at the. bad interest rates going up by less, the increments are not as great as they have been, but this is still the eight interest rate increase in a row. >> that is because inflation is still high. the federal reserve won't inflation at 2%, there is a gap there. how do you deal with rising inflation? you raise interest rates. that is the most ingressive raise campaign we have seen.

we are slowing it down, it's still high. they will be ongoing. we thought one more this, year could be two more, could be more than two more. that's why there was a little bit of shaking his mistake market. as the rates go up, it puts pressure on consumers, it puts pressure on businesses. you see what's happening in the housing market, declining sales every month last year. as the third year went to 6%, the car sales, used car sales, and credit card apr that 19%, an all-time high. >> we have a bit of a drop in a 30-year mortgage rates, finally, those people who were holding out we'll see it go the other way. the danger here, when you see rates going up in an effort to slow the economy down, to reduce inflation, it is this, a recession. this would typically be the ugly. the reason i say not-so-ugly is because while everybody thinks there might be one coming, they are a little bit less worried about how deep it is. >> that's the thing about a procession, you want to make sure it's not too deep, not too long, does not look like it will the be that. that even though ceos, by and large, are expecting a recession, but they always play

defense because they don't want to get caught off guard. starting to creep into consumers. consumer spending is getting softer in the last couple of months. some of that was because we pulled the holiday sales forward into october and november, some of that because the credit card rates are at 19%. credit card debt, about 50 $500, that is a big deal. and consumer confidence, getting a little bit of softness as we get towards the potential slow down here, consumers pulling back. we also have seen less. we talk about a strong jobs market. if you look at the technology, media, finance sectors, you are seeing layoffs. a couple hundred thousand. they did not make their way to the big number yet. those could increase this year. maybe this is a tech session or a rich session, not necessarily a recession, from sessions but you know or personal, people feeling differently. >> the layoffs and the tech sectors do come off years of massive hiring in, and some say over tiring. >> growth was enormously fast in the last couple of years. one of the big companies, meta, google, apple, et cetera they

hired a lot of workers. they are reducing staff as they economy slows. their business little bit. get better profit margins. >> the good, the bad, and then not-so-ugly. kayla, as always, thank you, caleb silver, the editor in chief of investors. when we go where we want to understand a lot of the questions. after the, break sometime in the past, sometimes the past can explain the president, not vladimir putin's latest move. unveiling a new statute of the dictator joseph stalin. and up -- bill taylor is next. up - bill taylor is next. bill taylor is next. ahhhh... with flonase, allergies don't have to be scary. spray flonase sensimist daily for non-drowsy, long lasting relief in a scent-free, gentle mist. (psst psst) flonase. all good. , >> this week, russia unveiled

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a new statue of justice talent in the city of volgograd, formerly his -- stalingrad, it is the latest of many monuments to stalin, the bus as talent was placed in the united states in bedford, virginia in 2010. it was taken down soon after. the erection of the latest salads that you came to

commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of the battle of stalin grant, a major soviet defeat over notti germany. the first major defeat of world war ii, or as is known in russia, the great patriotic war. one of the reasons hitler thought he can take stalingrad was stalin and the soviets blunder in invading finland in 1939. what is known as the winter war, we will do a deep dive in what we will learn on the tomorrow show. the reds defense of stalingrad turn the tide after world war ii in the european theater, one of the most credible military defenses in modern history. but the bloodiest battle of world war ii came out a colossal cost, around 1 million casualties for each side over the course of the five month battle. in his remarks, marking the anniversary in volgograd, vladimir putin, who claims his father was a personal chef or vladimir lenin and joseph sal, and memorials -- will simultaneously framing the war of conquest in ukraine as you continuation of the defense

of stalingrad. fighting the not the invaders, only now, in ukraine. the dark irony being, in russia's president war, ukraine is making the mighty defense, rushes playing the part of the inhumane invader. once again, due to an overconfident autocratic lunatic being in charge, both sides are suffering tremendous losses. in less than when you're a, fighting russia suffered almost 200,000 casualties, according to the u.s. senior official. an astonishing figure was a unit new york times points out is eight times higher than american casualties in two decades of war in afghanistan. in public remarks, near the end of january, norway's defense chief says ukraine has suffered an estimated 100,000 military casualties, along with another 30,000 civilian deaths. 30,000 civilian deaths. frontline fighting has centered in donbas, where the situation is reminiscent of the over the top baptist of world war i with men, especially untrained

russian recruits, many of them convicts were set to slaughter by no strategic again. russia renewed a -- having several new missile strikes on the city, which last april, was the city of a deadly russian attack. fighting still continue in bakhmut. a town where russia was trying and failing to gain control for months, but holds minimal military importance. for more political importance, a spill chili for black vladimir putin, it would be the most significant gain for any kind of russia since last summer. all the while, russia continues to conduct direct that read more like terror attacks on civilians, and civilian infrastructure that is far from the front lines. reports indicate that russia is preparing for a new assault in the coming weeks. or possibly days. during his stalingrad commemoration remarks, putin also referenced the german tanks that are being sent to ukraine, twisting reality, say 80 years later, the russians are still fighting the same german tanks.

that is one warp version of events. this time, those german tanks are being used in defense of freedom in the face of a deadly, ritualistic dictator. joining me now is the ambassador william taylor, the vice president for russia and europe at the u.s. institute of peace, he served as americas ambassador from ukraine from 2016 to their nine. i was a chargé d'affaires at the u.s. embassy in kyiv in 2019. he was the diplomat, coordinating assistance for the former soviet union from 1990 to 2002. ambassador, good to see you, thank you for being with us this morning. >> thank you, great to be here. >> we are now closing in on one year of this war. when you look back, you and i have been talking about before it started, when you look back, the things that the ukrainians have asked the west for, the west has said no way, after several weeks or months, have become a reality. now they have their tanks, two weeks ago there was a remarkable commitment of weaponry and ammunition from the west. now they're asking for

airplanes and bomb range missiles. joe biden says nope, when asked about that the other day. >> so probably, where president biden meant was, ask me again later, because that has been the trend. the ukrainians have been asking for air defense, and i've gotten air defense. the air defense that they have gotten at has been steadily more lethal talk. there were stingers that were handheld by soldiers. very effective. very effective. now we are at the top, we have given them the top of the line, the patriot antiaircraft missiles. that is the top, that is what we use, that is what the united states military uses. it has gone from stingers to patriots. same thing, ali, on the anti tank. you know, we gave him the javelins, the individual soldier can fire at tanks, now we are all the way, up as you say, to the long range rockets, medium range rockets.

actually, just this week, ali, the administration has agreed to stand longer range, much longer range rockets to allow the ukrainians to fight deeper, to target deeper into russian held territory. this has been the trend. my bet is that range gets longer. my bet is that sooner or later, i hope sooner, there will be aircrafts at added to the mix. >> we have not had great diplomatic progress over the last year. we have a brand-new u.s. ambassador in russia, with a year coming along in a stalemate at the moment, although, we are expecting a massive russian offensive in ukraine, is there a possibility for a diplomatic approach, and something that looks like an exit ramp for russia? >> ali, we always look for options for peace. we always look for ways to stop the, war to terminate, war termination is something we are looking at. and, why the way that wars and

is through diplomacy, as you said. but the ripeness, the ability for diplomats on both sides to come to some kind of area, depends on the how rape that situation. is it is not ripe yet. for either side, ali. the ukrainians don't want to stop all they are pushing the russians out. ukrainians want first, to push the russians out of their country. the russians, putin in particular, has not figured out, has not realized, has not gotten it, that he actually is losing this battle. and, he would like to have a cease-fire in place. so that is, putin is in a bind, ali. sooner or later, there will be a victory. i think. in terms of the ukrainians being able to push the russians out of the country. at that point, there will be the time for diplomacy. we are looking for options of peace, that could be one. >> when you when i talked last february, as this was wrapping up, i'm not sure whether either

of us would be talking about it one year later. what is it tell you that we are still talking about it one year later? >> that tells you, ali, that the ukrainians are resilient, determined, motivated, in ways that the russians are not. ukrainians, like the defenders at stalingrad, this is so interesting, you are right, the irony is amazing, the defenders of their own, nation of their own country, of their own city, of their own communities. they win, they are determined, they know why they are fighting. the ukrainians know why they are fighting. defend their land. the russians, the aggressors in this case, don't know why they are fighting. putin has not been able to tell his soldiers, or his civilians's people, or indeed us why he is -- invaded. that is the big difference it seems to me, ali. in terms of motivation, it is clearly ukraine. now, the weapons are coming

into stronger to the ukrainians, and the russians are running out, and they don't have places to go, to replenish their weapons. >> bill, always good to talk to, you thank you for being with, us bill taylor, former u.s. ambassador to ukraine, at the u.s. institute for peace. coming up, it has been one year since we started the velshi banned book club, one year of literary analysis, conversations with authors, he read from book club members like diane edson who wrote and to tell us, she started her own version of the velshi banned book club at her local church. she wrote, quote, i love the defiant nature of your banned book club, i decided to emulate it. as a result of your club, i started ours. i have said it so many times. one year later, it feels a little different, and worth repeating, we cannot do this without you, our members. please write to us, at my story at velshi.com. we want to know which doors you want to read, and the authors for what you want to hear, today's meeting is coming, up we went back to the beginning and invited nikole hannah-jones,

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so let's see some hustle! >> we've got a lot more velshi on the way, but first i want to make sure you are aware of a few key programming note, starting saturday february 18th, this is important, if you record the show, velshi, both myself on the show, will be at a new leader timeslot. saturdays and sundays, from 10

am to noon eastern. again, we start at ten a.m. instead of 8 am. which means a little more sleep for all of us. that same weekend, february 18th, and the following weekend, i'm going back to ukraine. i will be live on the ground in ukraine, as we prepare to mark one full year since the russian invasion began. plus, don't forget, if you missed anything from any of our shows, though she is always available as a podcast, you can catch us anytime, to describe and wasn't for free, wherever you get your podcasts. of course, you can find me on social media, including some of the newer programs, platforms, post news, and mast on. here's a list of all of the places you can finally. after the break, nikole hannah-jones, the creator of the 16 19 project, she will join the special edition of the velshi banned book club. on the land, marbach bend rana adaptation was made into a documentary. na adaptation was made into a documentary.

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>> it's been exactly one year since our first ever meeting of the velshi banned book club, a year of literary analysis. and a deeper understanding of the power that these banned books have. especially for readers in middle and high school, readers whose libraries an english curriculum have become an ideological battleground. but as we discussed over this last, year these books can change in life, these books can affect truly change a life. >> this constellation of books that are under attack right now, when we keep them away from our children, we are withholding wisdom from our kids. we are making life harder for our children, and we are damaging our nation. >> i grew up sort of hearing about, you know, lgbtq books

being banned, i would have to sneak to barnes and noble and go to the gay and lesbian section and find edmond winds book for example. -- and i would, sometimes i put another cover on the front of it to sort of hide that i was reading it. >> the difference between my children, and the parents of children who can cry out against this book, is that they have to know the information in the book to stay safe. might have to know this information. >> -- gives people hope, i think the world can start to take their hope away. >> shortly after we came up with the concept for the velshi banned book club, we created our own list of banned literature to read. including many titles members suggested, handmaid's tale, perennially taught to kill a mockingbird. we noticed an alarming title, the book center most frequently title for banned almost always explore at least one of the same three's themes. race in america, sexual identity, and women's bodily autonomy, including sexual assault and rape.

this isn't something that's going away, it's actually getting worse. curriculum in book banning aren't just yelled into a microphone into a school, moving there in political speeches. who are vying for the white house. in the past year the stakes have risen, it's the next generation that's gonna pay the price for this. they're gonna be left without a safe way to understand themselves in the world around them, and they won't have melinda from the book speak to lead them through the searing pain of sexual assault, or daunte from aristotle and daunte, to discover the secrets of the universe, to join them with an all encompassing first love. or nikole hannah-jones, work the 16 19 project, to explore african american history, american history, and the legacy of straw slavery in this country. one year ago our thesis was that censorship is never okay, and that remains true. but today, after speaking with so many authors, and reading so many of these targeted books, the velshi banned book club has become a form of resistance. so to celebrate and honor one year of reading in resistance, we are taking it back to the beginning, back to the book,

and the author with him we started it all. the 16 19 project, a new origin story by the pulitzer prize winner and honorary banned book club, member nikole hannah-jones. the initiative, name for the year the first enslaved african people arrived on the shores of virginia, it began as an editorial franchise for the new york times. it is since grown to include the best-selling book, children's picture, both school curriculum, a podcast, and now a documentary series on hulu, narrated by nikole hannah-jones herself. >> in 16 19, enslaved africans were brought across the water, the first to arrive over 400 years ago. and although they tried to break our ancestors, to erase our identities, we forged a new culture of our own, giving forth yourselves. >> that body of work asked us to re-examine and re-frame what we know to be true of u.s. history, and consider that quote the experience of slavery

is inextricable from american history, and quote. the 16 19 project turns to the past to explain the president, and successfully, so a grueling examination of the man considered to be the father of modern gynecology. and the black woman on who he experimented on. that's just one example of nikole hannah-jones visceral writing that will sweep you four days, months. maybe your life. the book also highlights cultured legacy through creative writing, each chapter includes a work of short fiction or palm created by a different black writer, recruiting langston hughes famous and tragic, palm american heartbreak, and epigraph, quote, i am the american heartbreak, the rock on which freedom stopped its tow, the great mistake, that jamestown made, long ago. since this inception, 16 19 project has faced sharp criticism, and a relentless firestorm of calls for its ban of school libraries, gates that, it's even from the trump white house. a google search of its title populist thousands of results condemning it. why? the 16 19 project, it

encapsulates exactly why books like those we have featured on the velshi banned book club, like deer martin, and beloved, are banned each and every day. it is the convergence of a celebration of black america, and a deeply misrepresented fear of so-called critical race theory. it represents change that is not just coming, change that is already here, in which we live. right after the break i'm gonna be joined by the author and creator of the 16 19 project, the inspiration for the velshi banned book club, nikole hannah-jones, stay close, you really don't want to miss a special one year anniversary of the velshi banned book club. lshi banned book club. and at chevron, we're working to help reduce the carbon intensity of the fuels that keep things moving. today, we're producing renewable diesel that can be used in existing diesel tanks. and we're committed to increasing our renewable fuels production. because as we work toward a lower carbon future, it's only human to keep moving forward.

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you know all the words to do with nikole hannah-jones, a pulitzer prize warning winner for new york city, she's created of the times initiative, the the 1619 project, but most importantly, today she's the award winning author of the book the 1619 project, and the inspiration for the viewer velshi banned book club. nicole was our inaugural gassed one year ago today, welcome, back thank you for kicking this off for us. thank you for being the reason that want to do this, since, then we have read so much together, and learn so much together. >> yeah, thank you so much for starting this banned book club, especially in these times. it's so necessary to be talking about these efforts to restrict knowledge, into defy them. >> one of the things when we have authors on is their books, or when they experience some sort of, ban limitation, or

removal, bookstores put them into a section, and their books very well might actually sell quite well as a result. i was asking, you when you came out with the the 1619 project at the new york times magazine, i don't think you could've foreseen how much criticism you are going to get. good or bad that it happened? >> i mean, you, know it's mixed. i think so much of the criticism is not legitimate critique, it's not coming from people who have engaged with the ideas of the project or the work. but at the same time, the more they talk about it it just helps spread the message. i wanted us to know the date 16 19, to take that date out of obscurity. it's certainly not an obscure date anymore. >> what is thoughtful critique of what you've done look? like because there's -- not and we find this with every, but there's not thoughtful stuff before by someone who's not read the book, have you engage with people who don't like what you're trying to do, or trying to say? but they can be debated?

>> certainly, i mean the the 1619 project is making an argument, it's making the argument about american history, about american origins, about the role of slavery, and its legacy. and you can agree with the argument, or disagree with argument, i think that is the purpose of journalism and writing in this way. not to simply say these are my beliefs, and everyone has to believe them, but to say these ideas are worth considering and debating. so for instance, professor leslie harris, who published a piece in political, kind of critiquing some of our claims, saying i would've said it that strongly. i've invited her to my class at howard, and she's talked about her critiques. so they're certainly valid critique of any ambitious project, but that's not what we're talking about? to say that i disagree, i wouldn't say that, way it's different from saying kids should be exposed to this. these ideas don't belong in the classroom, we should try and banned these books. >> in fact, that has become couched in this other thing that is misrepresentation about critical race theory. there's been a lot of talk

about this catchall phrase, and the fact that children are learning overleaf's officiated things in school that will make them feel like they were to to blame for slavery. you've had to deal with this is the first day. you are doing any such thing, you are saying let's look at american history in a broader context. >> absolutely, we should just call the anti critical race theory, the campaign, it's a propaganda campaign, that's what it is. it was stoking division for political gain. because obviously, both critical race theory, the actual critical race theory, and the 1619 project are not talking about individuals, they're talking about systems. it's the opposite of that. so it's not saying any child, or any person is responsible for things he or she didn't do. it says that we were built on a system of anti-blackness and racism, and those structures are structured into our society. i also, i have a 12-year-old child, she's back there, and i want my child to learn

sophisticated and complicated, and nuanced understanding of all things. that's actually why i center the school. >> did you in fact, you weren't writing this book to be, or you didn't do the original the 1619 project with the assumption that everyone's gonna read all the nuances. and it is sophisticated, and like so many of the books that we've had on, and you told me this in that meeting a year ago, you said this stuff is supposed to make you a little uncomfortable. all the stuff we read is supposed to make you a little uncomfortable, to post introduce you into a world that you don't, know and bring you facts you didn't already have. >> absolutely, the books that have stuck with me the most through my life are those that have unsettled me, those that have challenged by worldview, that made my mind have to work in a different way. this is how we gain empathy. it is how we get enlightenment, this, again is the purpose to me of an education. none of us should be sending our children to school simply to have the worldview affirmed in every way, they should be

challenged. i mean think of the books that stick with you most, and when we talk about a shameful past, it's okay to feel ashamed by that. it doesn't mean that you have to feel guilt, by collective shame i don't think is a bad thing. countries do great, thanks and countries do terrible things, and we have to deal with it all. >> so many of the books that face bands are actually aimed at young children. you've actually had an adaptation, you wrote a version of the 16 19 project called born on the water, it's towards targeted towards a younger age group. tell me about this. >> warren on the water is an origin story for black american descendants of slavery, it begins with a little girl who gets a very typical assignment, a little black american, girl draw the flag of your ancestral land. she doesn't know what it is, because slavery erase that. so it's trying to give an origin story to the child who is like me. into say this is your country, this is your native, land you built this country, your ancestors built this country, and in some ways it is a very

patriotic book, just like the 16 19 book is unintentionally patriotic. because what it argues, despite what critics say, is that black people have lived in this country despite everything that this country is done to black people, they've loved, and they fought to make it a country of our highest ideals. >> so many of our members of the book level of literature in great writing. you use a lot of literature and poetry in the book, one of the first poems is white line by claudia rankin. i'll read the first line. even don begins before his first, beginning is still in -- let's agree, a long way, a long way from the kingdom of and john, go to english ships, pirate the third, the portugal's -- and split up. its human cargo. >> tell me about the choice to include this and other poems. >> this is actually one of the saddest things about the 1619 project book bans, these are essays that are written by some of the most prominent historians in america, from

harvard, from princeton, from yale. and there is all of this fiction and prose written by some of the greatest living american writers, from claudia, rankin to barry jenkins, i mean go down the list. and we included that because we wanted as much as this could be to be a collective story to use the descendants of slavery as the greatest testament to everything that our ancestors endured. and to provide really, a breath between all of these essays. to be able to take in writing, and the art of those who didn't come here by choice, but have made this country what it is. >> let's just end by asking you, do you feel stronger for this? you and i, were both very engaged on social media. and i used to watch what happened to, you i mean the way you got dragged, by people who had no idea who your. what is that done to you? >> i definitely am stronger, we were talking before we came on

camera, i've gotten much better at it. i realize that so many people who were attacking, it was for me to respond to serve their interests, but it wasn't serving mine. so, yes the last four years are definitely stronger, because as i understand, is that you don't see these types of efforts against this, barbara any other books that have been banned if they're not having impact. if they don't matter to millions of people. they're not banning books and no one cares about. so yes, i'm definitely stronger, and again, i just so prescience away that you have shined the light on this for the last year. >> well we appreciate the fact that you've shown us the thing to show to our viewers. nikole hannah-jones is the award winning author of the 1619 project, there is a lot more where that came. from i'm gonna continue this conversation with nikole hannah-jones after our show, ends in a few days will be able to stream the extended cut of this discussion, exclusively on peacock. for, now that doesn't, fermi thank you for, watching all see right early tomorrow morning, i'll be joined by the singular kimberly crenshaw, the -- hutu and the term intersectionality, and gave us the language to describe the

truth of identity. her work specifically has been targeted -- from the college girls and five -- be sure to join me by the, way also after president biden's state of the union address on tuesday night, for postgame coverage with my good friend stephanie ruhle, that's from midnight to a am eastern, stay right where you, are picks up our news coverage right now. e right now. >> good morning and welcome, i'm yoshimasa elder, in washington d.c.. it sounds like something straight out of the comics, it's not a bird, or a, plane it's a suspected chinese sky balloon, hovering over parts of the northern united states. this footage was captured over montana, the same day the pentagon says the balloon passed through the area. but it's not clear this is the balloon in question. the incident has officially impacted international relations, postponing secretary of state antony blinken's high stakes trips to beij