in a jim crow army. and, they talk about the investment of many of their fellow white soldiers in making sure that they don't have rising expectations for their own citizenship rights after world war i. but they also talk a lot about how francis opened up the world for them in a variety of different ways. their experience with french people, fighting alongside colonial troops of color, for a segment that was sort of given over to the french army for the duration of the war, fighting under commanders who don't have the same kind of investments in american whites the primacy. often, it made them realize that the war could be and in some places was you use the term jim crow army, can you explain what you mean by that, the army was up until it really was the late 1940s and in many instances after,, african-american troops were in segregated units and they had by and large white officers, there was a tiny handful of black officers who went to a segregated officers training camp but the military leadership was

has changed the fabric of of how things have been operated since the jim crow days so in florida for example we had jim crow laws essential whereby if you were a felon you could never vote again if you had a felony record you could never vote again well that left forty percent of the black male population here disenfranchised while they overturned that here in the elections and twenty eighteen so now people with a felony record if they've served their time they can vote again so forty percent of black males just got the vote here in florida. when you think of that it's a long time coming and that's one thing we've discovered on our trip across america we talked to a lot of members of the black community a lot of the native american population and really got to understand their feelings about having survived a genocide with the native americans and then an attempted genocide in the black community and the rights they are enjoying have come extraordinary cost and anguish but slowly but surely these human rights are being restored but decades and decades and decades after they should ha

films series with look at the drama "green book"-- a road trip across the racial landscape of the jim crow south. >> when you have two people who are that different and they find themselves in a confed space for a long enough time they can

he becomes known as the man who kills jim crow. he dies in 1949.r gets to see the fruition of his efforts. however, his protege thurgood marshall argues that case in front of the supreme court. noting that the naacp increases its membership by sixfold. it goes from 9000 to 63,000 members. many of those members, veterans from world war i. they are returning to dedicate themselves to a quality. it's not just african-american soldiers who are concerned about their civil liberties and rights. beginning in 19 10, you have a movement of african-americans into northern cities. before the war, 90% live in the south. they begin moving to southern urban locations before that. they shift up to the north for job opportunities and to escape the oppressions of the jim crow south. the war accelerates that. you shut down immigration. that had been the lifeblood of industry. you ship off 2 million soldiers to go overseas. you need labor. unfortunately, they are now in competition with working and you have things like a riot and east st. louis. dozens of african ame

for me to mention it again but one of the things was also in louisiana there was another it's is jim crow era style era laws and those were things have been around and new orleans louisiana had one also that got overturned but had to do with having to have a unanimous vote unanimous jury decisions in order for life time putting things in lifetime. court to be charged with a life time whatever so anyway i'm in there for on a medically reinstates voting rights for people with felony convictions upon completion of their sentences including person parole and probation excluded are those convicted of murder or a felony sexual offense. that's cool that's really me. and what's really interesting to me was when you see the numbers off this victory according to the numbers the ballot measure surpassed it had to pass a sixty percent threshold in order to do it in order to pass it got sixty four point one percent of the vote in florida from these voters and that i mean that for you know for preserves words if there's a bottom truthfully there's a huge amount that they would try to get over sixty per

four million of their fellow citizens plagued by past felony convictions often referred to as a jim crow style law florida was one of only four states that prevented x. felons from voting even. for their time and debt to society was served this block roughly ten percent of florida citizens are voting including one out of five african-american florida voters not anymore in response to florida's vote journalist shawn king declared on twitter that now one point four million former felons who have been banned from voting for life will all now be granted back their voting rights a huge and hard fought victory one of the most important of our lifetime. how was that was probably my favorite story coming out of this week of the midterms are the you will see him people who look good. whether the charge of the crime served their time were guess what you don't get to vote the rest of life because everybody that's a ridiculous law we're supposed to rehabilitate your city could be part of society but you're not allowed to be part of society because we were habilitated you because if you're yeah yeah

16th american indian blood to be classified as white and not colored and therefore not subject to jim crows. so the fact that pocahontas' marriage to john rolph in a state that long tauted the first interracial marriage in between pocahontas and john rolph is nothing if not truly ironic. generations of contemporary americans have grown up learning about pocahontas from the 1995 animated disney film, but throughout u.s. history americans have been reproducing pocahontas' supposed likeness. and in the early 20th century, however, a famous philanthropist paul mellen acquired an early painting of pocahontas based on the famous engraving. and for decades it hung in pocahontas' husband john rolph's family home. it was acquired and in 1942 it was donated to the national gallery of art and then to the national portrait gallery where it is touted as their most famous portrait of an early american. what we would like people to walk away from this gallery realizing is that pocahontas holds a unique place in american history. she is the individual who put a human face on the indigenous peoples of the

but if you think about it, why would emmett not be able to quite take seriously jim crow segregation? not take seriously the prerogatives that men like mylam and bryant think they had, that he had insulted his wife? of course in the trial carolyn bryant does not just say that emmett whistled at her, she says that he grabbed her, that he made threatening gestures and words, that this was an a attempt, borderline, easily interpreted as an attempted rape. so she claimed. till comes from argo, not chicago. he really didn't like chicago very much. every weekend he was back in argo. it's where his friends were. so that way, that's an important detail. there are only two killers. well, there are only two who stood trial. we know now -- we don't know exactly what others did, but we do know that there were several other members especially of the family or friends of the family who were involved, the beating and killing of emmett till took place on the plantation that was run by leslie mylam, the son of j.w.. several other members of the family involved. and also seen in the back of the truck a

to jim crow more than she could count by hotel, tavern, restaurant train, stagecoach. it got to be a source of humor for him at times. but later douglas lives to see if in mississippi this is the first disenfranchisement is douglas lives to see the beginnings of the segregation in the 80s and 90s. nothing about it as much as i could tell surprised him because he's experienced all of the antebellum jim crow over and over. as anotheit is another variatioe proslavery ideas it would be the reconstruction an and tradition brought back to life. for him it was the resurrection of slavery. >> manifestation as our national state. >> it's also why it was so important. how influential was he in getting this passed? >> i don't think it was crucial in getting the resolution passed. he was the only male speaker, the only black participant who signed the declaration of righ rights. he was there and gave his presence to this event was huge and he was from that time on and before was a women's rights man. he was always for women's rights and is a patriarch in many ways in his private l

jim crow, was terrible. early 190o0s because memphis was one of the first city that allowed african americans to vote. they could vote in the early 1900s, but it didn't -- we were not a city of good abode. we were not a city of brotherly love.ot it was a racist culture. we struggled with that and still struggle with that to a large portion but in the 50s and 60s the civil rights movement took off here. and the leadership here was very strong, and integrated the city facilities. we are much more integrated city than we were. we have a long way to go. and let me give you an example of hard-time example. yofred davis was one of the firt african americans on the city k0u7b8 and he told me 25 years ago at a kiwanis club that if you add up all the business transacted in the city, and i'm not talking about just by city government, i'm talking about us going to the grocery store, buying insurance, all the business transacted in the city, one% is transacted with african american-owned business. that was 25 years ago.

jim crow was identity politics. that's where it started. >> he talked about jim crow in the context of the american revolution, jim crow was 100 years later and without the framework that was created, the brilliance of the framers in philadelphia, he never would have been elected president. we wouldn't have had the chance to pass the 13th and 14th amendments to the constitution. to attack the framers in founders this being mired in identity politics, the american revolution was about escaping the identity politics of the british empire where british subjects had rights and american subjects had no rights. i can't think of any better example of identity politics than that. >> laura: so he went a pretty good schools, right? credibly well educated. >> did he crack a book? >> laura: everyone complains. all the things they complain about trump, that he doesn't read enough history, all the things the elites -- he's narcissistic, thin-skinned, obsessed with his own -- what a person who runs for president, except for reagan

jim crowe was terrible . in the early 1900s.s is memphis was the one of the first cities that allowed african-americans to vote in the early 1900s but it didn't , we were not a city of good abode, not a city of brotherly love. it was a racist culture we struggled with that and still struggle with that to a large portion but in the 50s and 60s the civil rights movement took off here . and the leadership here was very strong . and integrated the city facilities. we are much more integrated city than we were. have a long way to go and let me give you an example, fred davis was one of the first african-americans on the city council and he told me 25 years ago at ak want us club that if you add up all the business transacted in the city, i'm not talking about just by city government, us going to the grocery store, insurance.all the business transacted in the city, one percent is transacted with african-american owned businesses. that was 25 years ago. i talked to him a year ago, it's still one percent in a city that's 65 percent afri

jim crow was identity six. that's where it started. so, part of what's happened is that when people feel their status as being threatened, they react and what i would agree with is the washington consensus, whatever you want to call it got a little too comfortable looking at the gdp numbers and the internet and everything is looking pretty great and then after the cold war after what you've engineered, you have this period on the part of america and american elites thinking we got this all figured out. remember there were books coming out. it came back to bite us. >> that was kind of a long lecture. i'm sorry. what are you most proud of about the pub with legacy? i suppose i'm most proud of the fact that i had the privilege of serving two presidents of the united states as the chief of staff and the privilege of being the secretary of treasury and being secretary of state and the privilege of running time of presidentiafivepresidential came republican presidents and spending 12 years in washington and leaving washington on indicted. [a

"the new york times" adds fuel to the fire writing this, those neo-jim crow barriers writing to makeup from the soil like ghosts. fox news contributor and -- always good to have you with us. thanks for having me here tonight but let me take a look at one more bit of "the new york times" piece and i want you to get to react to this. this is by carol anderson. "i saw the election to the eyes of black people who had to deal with jim crow who remember the euphoria of barack obama's win and who now have to grapple with neo-jim crow." >> yes, stacy abrams has been running as a progressive and this is what the 21st century liberals do, they make everything about race, identity politics, so they are stressing race, gender, orientation, everything but someone's fellow american-ness. this is where we are today. >> martha: one of the issues in this is that kemp's secretary of state and had jurisdiction over the race itself which he argued over the entire is that there will be problems with the vote, that he had created rules where if the signature didn't exactly match up with the registration,

a brand-new jim crow.today on election day they will not use white sheets to keep away black voters. today they are using spreadsheets. [applause] . >> i know this sounds daunting this is not then an uplifting conversation so far. [laughter] so the last chapter i call the resistance. i zero in on that epic battle in alabama against roy moore and doug jones. this was some shared jedi. [laughter] i start off the chapter to lay out alabama the poverty and public health crisis in education crisis and alabama ranking in the bottom tier consistently and all of these quality-of-life indicators. this is the toxic blue base that gave rise to judge roy moore the republican candidate for the u.s. senate in a 2017 special election.ec his bible thumping diatribe embodied the sense of god ordained racism that had already doomed the state to the bottom tier. his resume was a testament to homegrown canon masquerading as homespun symbolism despite his obvious shortcomings the idea senator roy moore was not so far-fetched t

any of the monuments go out during the height of jim crow, during the height of lynching, absolutely,this is happening at the same time. is this the primary reason that most of these organizations are raising funds to put up arguments? that would've been going on for 25 years by the time it actually gets to it. i think the primary impotence, if we had asked the men and women who were involved in putting at the monuments, the primary impetus is to honor, the common soldier, or a figure like lee or jackson, this will honor that person and what the confederate costed for. the confederate cause, does that include the nation? absolutely. are they talking about it in those terms, probably not, but it is part of the context. i'm certainly not denying that they go out during the height of jim crow era, but there are other ways, does it add to this? does a monumentally reinforced racial hierarchy? of course it does. is the primary purpose of putting it up, no. there are plenty of other ways that the white southerners are trying to enforce the racial hierarchy in the south. >> i really enjoyed

so, for me, in order to truly overcome jim crow segregation, you need not only to dismantle to the lawseed also to dismantle the psychic structure whereby whites expect that blacks will act in a way that reaffirms their civic superiority. mean by internal transformation for conversion it's genuine acceptance by white people of the equal citizenship of black people. now, a lot of white people, when i say this to them, say, we do accept that. that was the civil rights movement, that was what we got with the civil rights act of 1964, that's what we got with the voting rights act of 1965 and if you interview people, white or black, clearly racial attitudes have changed. white people -- most white people say they believe in racial equality, they'll say they believe in racial fairness, believe black people should have access to ballet and be able to taped school with white people, they believe black people should have a fair shot at employment, et cetera, et cetera. so, a lot of white people say we have already ungrandthe psychic transformation and my claim in the book is that there's a sort

do many of the monuments go up during the height of jim crow, during the height of lynching? absolutely. they are absolutely happening at the same time. is that the primary reason that most of these organizations are raising funds to put up monuments to lee on monument avenue in 1890? that had been going on for 20 years by the time it actually gets to it. i think the primary impetus, if we had asked the men and women who were involved in putting up these monuments, their primary impetus is to honor the -- whatever, if we're talking about a common soldier or a figure like lee or jackson to honor that person and what the confederate cause stood for. does the confederate cause include being a slave-holding nation? absolutely. are they talking about it in those terms? not so directly. but that is part of that context. so putting up -- i am certainly not denying that they go up during the height of jim crow era. but there are other ways -- does it add to? does a monument to lee reinforce the racial hierarchy? of course it does. is that the primary purpose of putting it up? no. the

. >> it's not the new jim crow, it's the old jim crow. >> it's the old jim crow in a it new suit. steele, paul butler. , paul butler here we go. discover. i like your card, but i'm absolutely not paying an annual fee. discover has no annual fees. really? yeah. we just don't believe in them. oh nice. you would not believe how long i've been rehearsing that. no annual fee on any card. only from discover. i'm a musician about to embark on a concert tour,r. with the majority of which will be down south. atlantic city? the deep south. this thanksgiving... in the deep south, there's gonna be problems. when you see me worried... tony. you'll know if i'm worried. how about some quiet time. it's amazing you said that, my wife used to say that all the time. their journey inspired an unexpected friendship. i don't think i ever met anyone with your appetite. [ laughing ] we were talking about the model t. now here we are talking about winning the most jd power iqs and appeal awards. talking about driver-assist technology talking about cars that talk and listen. talking about the highest custo

pocahontas realize that if this law is passed, they will be classified as people of color subjected to jim crow laws. and be in virginia, wealth, power, and influence has long been associated with lineage. one of the most important lineage societies in the country has always been the first families of virginia. the first families of virginia trace their lineage back to the english colonists to came to fort james. many of these first family of virginia members desend from the marriage in between pocahontas's son thomas and a member of the randolph family. so there are many people in virginia that claim descent from this marriage and know that they have american indian blood. so in 1924 when the law is passed, it includes an exception. nd that clause allows for anybody with 1/16 of american indian blood to be classified as white and not as colored and then therefore subject to jim row -- crow laws. so the fact that pocahontas's marriage to john wolf should be eugenics 20th century laws in a state that long touted the first interracial marriage between poke hasn'tas and john recalls is nothing if

time you are in 1940, 252% differential in funding, 252% more than black schools because we have jim crow education. mississippi, 751%. and in many black school systems there weren't high schools. by the 1940s over 50% of black adults in louisiana, georgia, alabama, south carolina and mississippi have less than five years of formal jim crow education. i will throw a constitutional passage at them that a harvard jd would have trouble getting through and say interpret it. by the time the us is getting ready to fight the nazis only 3% of african-americans were registered to vote. that is how powerful the mississippi plan was. and then have these mechanisms, and the poll tax and literacy test, they did not violate the 15th amendment. these are powerful. when you think about where we are today with voter ids that use societally imposed conditions dealing with poverty, lack of mobility and lack of transportation and access to a department of motor vehicles, that is how you begin to build in and stay on this side of the 15th amendment, history may not repeat itself but yes. >> i'm going to skip

a brand-new jim crow. today on election day, they're not going to use white sheets to keep away black voters. today, they are using spreadsheets. thank you. [applause] and i know that this sounds daunting. i mean, this has not been an uplifting conversation so far. [laughter] from what i am guessing right here. so -- the last chapter in this book i call, the resistance. and i zero in on that epic battle in alabama. against roy moore and doug jones. it was some sheer jedi. [laughter] i start off this chapter by laying out alabama. the kind of poverty that black folks have to deal with.the kind of public health crises, the kind of education crises, and alabama ranking in the bottom tier, consistently, on all of these quality of life indicators. this, is the toxic base that gave rise to judge roy moore. as a republican candidate for the u.s. senate. in a 2017 special election. his bible thumping tribes inembodied the sense of righteo god ordained racism. that have already doomed the state to the bottom tier.

jim crow, lynchings and horrors of the jim crow south. reconciliation and emancipation were not opposing forces. they complemented each other nicely. contrary to the common perception, even by the early 20th century, union veterans had not felt compelled to invite african-americans to dedications. that is why these dedications were overwhelmingly whites even though slavery was in fact talked about. a few words about confederate monuments here at antietam, five confederate monuments if we do not count those individuals. the earliest was a marker for the baltimore battery and placed at the same time as the maryland monument. the others are much later. the lee headquarters monument, dedicated in 1936. the others, even later, georgia, texas dedicated during the centennial and what i now know is technically off part property, the 11th mississippi was dedicated during the second centennial. this is still a union memorial park. i don't even consider it a reconciliationist park. to return to where we began, with our current discussions about civi

we lived in the jim crow south. there were white and colored only signs. when he returned in 1968, the civil rights act of 19 six four had been passed. the voting rights bill was signed in 1965. we were engulfed and economic injustice and the most important thing in this country was the which dr. king denounced the war. this really takes a turn into an evolving king that we see in the movement. >> i want to make it clear that i'm going to continue with all of my might and all of my energy and all of my action to oppose the abominable evil unjust war in vietnam. [applause] the sanitation workers strike began when two sanitation workers were killed in the back of a garbage truck in 1968. 1300 sanitation workers strike against their employers. they were trying to get a better working environment for themselves and their families. dr. king saw what was going on and he vowed to come to memphis to lead a nonviolent campaign. once he returns to the city of there was up were going on in the back of the march. most people associate the dr. king was the primary orga

we still lived in the jim crow south. there were white and colored only signs and all public facilities and public accommodations. when dr. king returned in 1968, the civil rights act of 1964 had been passed. the voting rights bill was signed in 1965. giving african-americans the right to register to vote without discrimination. we were engulfed and economic -- engulfed with economic injustice and the most important thing in this country was the war in vietnam, which dr. king denounces the war. this really takes a turn into an evolving king that we see in the movement. >> i want to make it clear that i'm going to continue with all of my might and all of my energy and with all of my action to oppose the abominable evil unjust war in vietnam. ,[applause] >> the sanitation workers strike began when two sanitation workers were killed in the back of a garbage truck in 1968. 11 days later 1300 sanitation , workers strike against their employers. they are primarily trying to get a better working environment for themselves and th

for the state's electoral future and its jim crow past.oining me is msnbc's national correspondent, trymaine lee, who was in florida and covered amendment for its passage. this is something that i came to be passionate about, and it will really change if we go back in and register and get these exfelons registered. it could change florida politics going forward. >> it really could. when you think about the last despicable vestiges of jim crow to keep the formerly enslaved people, when you think of 1.4 million people, the last time rick scott won the governorship in 2014, he won by less than 70,000 votes. as we've seen with women and black folks in this country, it may take a few terms to get folks who have never enjoyed access finally into the process. >> one of the things i said touring the skmurcchurches and g people to vote on this is that you got to now go back and register them. we've got to go back. whether they vote republican or democrat, they must be enfranchised because how do you restore them if you don't restore them to full ci

jim crow was terrible.t one of the good things is memphis was one of the first cities that allowed african-americans to vote and they could vote in the early 1900 but it didn't -- we were not a city of good abold. we were not a city of brotherly love. it was a raceist culture. we struggle with that and still struggle with that to a large portion but in the 1950's and 1960's, the civil rights movement took off here and the leadership here was very strong and integrated the city facilities. we are much more integrated city than we were. we have a long way to go and let me give you an example. fred davis was one of the first african-americans on the city council. and he told me 25 years ago at a quan is club, that if you add up all the business transaffected in the city, and i'm not talking about just by city government. i'm talking about us going to the grocery store, buying insurance. article the business transaffected in the -- tall business transacted in the city. 1% is transactsed with african-american-ow

they also lacked influence in the era of jim crow. as a result, by the end of the 1920s, the eastern cherokees still faced an uncertain future. chapter two, 1930-1945. the great depression stalled the growth of the new south. at the peak of the depression, the total tribal assets of the eastern band barely totaled $1 million. the tribe had $125,000 in cash deposited in a fund in washington controlled by the office of indian affairs, and the 60,000 acres of tribal land also held in trust were valued at $875,000. there was very little actual cash available on theth reservation, and the tribal operating budget was almost nothing. families struggled. during his 1932 presidential campaign, fdr promised americans, quote, a new deal. in this new deal, it surprisingly applied to american indians as well. in june of 1934, congress passed and roosevelt signed the wheeler-howard act, also known as the indian reorganization act, or the i.r.a.. the legislation contained several important provisions. first, it ended allotment, restored tribal lands

then we went through jim crow, slave codes. we came here.w we're at this point where we have 400 years of degradation, oppression and slavery and the fact that i have to explain that on national tv to somebody is like amazing. >> and would your community be helped then by saying that we have open borders and we're going to allow anyone who wants to come in on their terms to come into the united states? >> is that what we're talking about? >> wave a foreign flag -- >> let's stick to the ad, which was -- even fox news, again, which is in lock-step with this president, refused to air it, pulled it. my question was do you think the ad is racist? >> i don't think it's racist. it would be racist if america were a race, if we were a white country saying we don't want brown people or black people. america's not a race. and protecting american citizens of every color is actually the opposite of racism. and so illegal immigration is a huge problem for america. and donald trump was elected -- >> you don't think it's racist -- >> -- perhaps primarily to

it is straight up 2018 jim crow. there is no way to debate or discuss it, and that is what oprah was talking about and every american should be paying attention to this. if you have to cleat to win what they are doing now and have done forever in his country to prevent certain people from voting. in this case dispro potion knitly black people that is 2018 jim crow. how it should be discussed. >> not to mention, by the way, the republican nominee for governor is also the secretary of state and refused to recuse himself from any of this. >> that's that. same in kansas. >> and it's completely ridiculous. >> yeah. >> one more thing oprah doesn't get enough credit for. she is a self-made person. donald trump is not. >> yeah. >> tremendous adversity, and saying he's self-made. obstacles. >> he's inspirational. you can identify with her. she started at nothing and went all the way to where she's at. look at donald trump. his dad gave him a lot of money. a very different story. >> gave away cars, joking, and refrigerators, s

fms series with a look at the drama "green book"-- a road trip across the racial landscape of the jim crow south. >> when you have two people who are that different and they find themselves in a confined space for a long enough time they can have a positive and evolving effect on one another. >> yang: all that and more on tonight's "pbs newshour." >> major funding for the pbs wshour has been provided by: ♪ ♪ moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> consumer cellular believes that wireless plans should reflect the amount of talk, text and data that u use. we offer a varie of no- contract wireless plans for people who use their phone a little, a lot, or anything in between. to learn more, go to consumercellular.tv >> financial services firm raymond james. >> the ford foundation. working with visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: >> this program was made and friends of the newshour. >> this program was made possible by the corporation foru ic broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs

he specifically called it jim crow. that psychological bird that is fed that at least looks those know who didn't get the tax cut benefit who were fooled. they can say to themselves at least i'm not doing as bad as an african-american or at least i'm not trying to illegally come into the country and murder cops and rve eleverybody else he's tg about this morning. it's a distraction from even your reality. everybody wants better for themselves. when they can't get it and he's not providing it, then he feeds them that is almost thanksgiving, that bird jim crow, that says everybody else is corrupt and evil and violent and he's not. and unfortunately, that's just the way america's always worked. i pray -- i pray, i pray with all this high turnout that people are going to turn that back. it's amazing to me to go -- you can elect a black president in this country and still people go back to the same characteristics that existed when dr. king was alive. so we have to do something culturally -- >> we have to stop capitalizing o

talk but a black boy, jim crow south, athenss georgia at the beginning of the great depression. defy you to find very many miami had a land like that. i said why did you do he said i walked down the road, took whatever job i could get. he said he became a pullman porter own to train, the largest private employer of blacks and my dad was able to tragedy around the country, which is eye opening and came to california and it was sunny and people were smiling and my dad said, it seemed less racist so maybe i'll relocate to california. pearl harbor publication dad joined the marines. said why, he said that go where the action is and i love the uniform. my dad was a marine, the first black marines, 20,000 of them in 1942 to 1949. went to guam. became a staff sergeant, promoted four times and in carm of cooking. my dad could bake anything. he could oak look at it and tell what is in it. goes bag to the south where he met and married my woman. he went to restaurants, restaurants, to restaurant and they told him don't hire and they said n-word to his ford. he win to unemployment offers.

. >> reporter: he grew up when jim crow law kept the races separated.c they were en by his father, a bus driver. >> my father, when he retired from gray hound was very much a racist. nd> i see it in your faceyes. it's painful. >> it is painful, yeah. >> reporter: a chance . to overcome the pa >> make something of yourselves and do something for somebody else. eporter: tearing up to tell their stories. >> if we can do it in birmingham, alabama, you ought to be able e to do it anywh the face of the earth. >> reporter: a powerful example for students and the rest of the coury. hema ellis, nbc news, alabama. >> powerful story. >>> still ahead, the keys to living longed one city's example help your community? giving thanks and giving back to those who lost so much. in severe cases, pneumococcal pneumonia can put you in the hospital. it can hit quickly, without warning, making you miss out on what matters most. a single dose of the prevnar 13® vaccine can help protect you from pneumococcal pneumonia. prevnar 13® is approved for adults to help prevent infectio

movie "green book" is based on the true story of concert pianist don shirley, who dared to tour the jim crowouth in the 1960s. >> this gentleman says i'm not committed to dying here. >> i'm afraid not. >> reporter: oscar winner mahershala ali plays a musician who hired a tough guy as his driver, tony lip lip, played by viggo mortensen. is this a movie for our time? his film fits perfectly in sort of the culture right now as far as something that can serve as an example of what is possible. >> without even realizing it, they're pushed shoulder to shoulder, back to back, by what they face together. >> now i've got to worry about what people think about the way i talk? >> there are simple techniques i can teach you that are effective. >> reporter: the title comes from the green book they used to find the places that would serve black travelers. gloria gardenner says the book was her family's survival guide. >> it's a matter of life and death. many cities we went through, there was ku klux klan, there were lynchings. >> reporter: in those dark times, tony lipp's son, who co-wrote the film, said

the bad news was that this was , so theof jim crow veterans organization that put this together, the grand army of the republic, said that all of the balls, bank wentz tors and accommodations will be for the white veterans, though black veteran -- black veterans are on their own. a group of african americans put together a committee, the colored citizens committee, to greet these members of the army and they got people to open up their homes, because these visiting african-americans cannot stay in the hotel's. the organized banquets, and etc.. and were able to come participate. here is an image of them coming down pennsylvania avenue. of course, some were too old to make the two mile journey and had to be driven in vehicles or on horseback, or lien on the onulder of someone -- lean the shoulder of someone. at least there were soldiers who were able to come and get there due in the review. they walked past the reviewing stand where president woodrow wilson saluted them. occasion was bittersweet, not just because of jim crow, thatll of the segregation those veterans had to go through.