and jo ling kent in seattle. >> we have police now advancing on protesters. oh, my gosh.

jo ling kent, nbc news. >>> in 60 seconds, an nfl superstar's apology after a massive backlash to whate said >>> tonight nfl superstar drew brees is apologizing for comments about kneeling during the national anthem that set off a national backlash he says he completely missed the mark. here is stephanie gosk. >> reporter: lacking awareness and any type of compassion, the new orleans saints quarterback apologizing after this interview. >> i will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the united states of america >> reporter: brees was asked by yahoo! finance what he thinks about players kneeling against racial injustice during the national anthem. >> is everything right with our country right now? no, it's not we still have a long way to go. i think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart, it shows unity. >> reporter: the comments triggering fierce backlash, even among his own teammates. >> i'm telling you, i'm dealing with these things, my community is dealing with these things and your response to me is don't talk about

jo ling kent, we will -->> reporter: back to you, lawrence. >> thank you, jo ling kent for that report. i think the audience can judge that the person who is there in a mask that's completely hiding the face and the identity in every way of that person, which is not a medical mask. that is a, i am going to hide from everyone who i am when guy around with my megaphone telling stories about the other protesters who are protesting peacefully there. that is the kind of protester who is clearly not, clearly not part of the respectful protest that has been going on in every city in this country that's been having these protests where they are, at minimum, at minimum, 99% peaceful. 99% peaceful. most of them are 100% peaceful in this country. joining our discussion now is joy reid, the host of "a.m. joy." that was one of those moments live where we get to see some of the dynamic of what's out there and some of what the genuine black lives matter protesters are up against with people who want chaos and not protest. >> yeah, and you know what? i experienced that. i felt for jo ling out there, h

jo ling kent was reporting for us from what we all celebrated together was an orderly and peaceful demonstration that has devolved. and, jo ling, it now looks like you've taken your position on an athletic field adjacent -- go ahead. >> reporter: can you help me in? >> jo ling, we can hear you. i want to make sure your mask is on. >> reporter: hey, guys, we're in the capitol hill neighborhood of seattle right now. i don't know if you can hear me, but we have police now advancing on protesters. oh, my gosh. we're moving. we're moving. >> oh! >> reporter: we're moving. >> go this way. go this way. >> let's go. let's go. >> to our viewers, we have a security team with all of our correspondents. >> reporter: we are backing up. there is -- fireworks being deployed by seattle police. we're retreating. >> jo ling, i don't love have youing you against a fence. do you have a way out of there? >> reporter: let's go. >> guys, we need to move. >> run! >> okay. maybe the best thing to do here is for jo ling and her crew to be sure about their safety, and we can surmise the rest from her reporting. as often h

jo ling kent was reporting for us from what we all celebrated together was an orderly and peaceful demonstration that has devolved. and, jo ling, it now looks like you've taken your position on an athletic field adjacent -- go ahead. >> reporter: can you help me in? >> jo ling, we can hear you. i want to make sure your mask is on. >> reporter: hey, guys, we're in the capitol hill neighborhood of seattle right now. i don't know if you can hear me, but we have police now advancing on protesters. oh, my gosh. we're moving. we're moving. >> oh! >> reporter: we're moving. >> go this way. go this way. >> let's go. let's go. >> to our viewers, we have a security team with all of our correspondents. >> reporter: we are backing up. there is -- fireworks being deployed by seattle police. we're retreating. >> jo ling, i don't love having you against a fence. do you have a way out of there? >> reporter: let's go. >> guys, we need to move. >> run! >> okay. maybe the best thing to do here is for jo ling and her crew to be sure about their safety, and we can surmise the rest from her reporting. as often happen

here's jo ling kent with that. >> reporter: for three days scores of unemployed workers in kentucky have been lining up, desperate for help. >> i got through to nobody since i filed in april, the 19th >> reporter: out of work and out of patience, kentucky residents poured into the capital for their first chance to get an in-person meeting at a pop-up unemployment office since the pandemic began breanna glass applied three months ago and is still having trouble getting payments she stood in line yesterday just days after giving birth. >> i've called, i've emailed, i've did everything i possibly could. and still, nothing >> reporter: a similar scene in alabama, some even camping out overnight. the national guard deployed in washington state to help investigate fraud. nearly 46 million jobless claims filed in the last three months, including 1.5 million last week. while claims are ticking down as states reopen they've stayed in the millions for 13 weeks. a sign layoffs aren't stopping fed chair jerome powell urging congress to extend the $600 a week of extra federal unemployment aid provide

jo ling kent on what's behind the rise. >> reporter: molly and shawn are feeling the squeeze. >> our grocery bill has gone up probably 20% to 30%. >> reporter: the seattle family with two growing boys now eating every meal at home is reworking their budget. >> you start really looking at your bills and you're like, wow, this is starting to be painful. >> reporter: that pain is real. the cost of groceries spiked yet again in may, these prices soaring nearly 11% in just a month poultry, fish and eggs up nearly 4%. compared to a year ago, it's even higher. a dozen eggs up nearly 21%, and beef up 17% more as several meat processing plants get back up to speed after shutdowns due to covid safety concerns, the price hike also driven by pressure on the supply chain to keep up with grocery store demand as people keep eating and cooking at home. >> reporter: are you making any different choices, then, on where you go shopping? >> oh, yeah, 100%. we try to buy in bulk now. i have parents local, and they will buy a thing of ribs or whatever is on sale and we'll go in with it on them. we'll spli

with more here's jo ling kent. >>> reporter: in seattle's hip capitol hill neighborhood the east police precinct has a new name it's a symbol of the dramatic transformation triggered by more than a week of violent clashes, tear gas and flash bangs. between police and protesters, calling for an end to police brutality in the name of george floyd. what do you hope to tell the world out here as you protest? >> i just want justice, and we just want it now. >> reporter: in an unexpected move this week police boarded up and left the east precinct hoping protesters would disperse but they stayed. creating the capitol hill autonomous zone, or "chaz" over several city blocks, gathering to paint murals or plant gardens, without a cop in sight however peaceful the scene is prompting president trump to threaten military action again today, calling protesters terrorists >> we're not going to let this happen in seattle. if we have to go in, we'll go in. if the governor is going to do it, let the governor do it he's got great national guard troops, he can do it one way or the other it's going to get d

as jo ling kent reports not just grocery store, zoom and amazon that are thriving. >> reporter: it's the familiar sound of summer and welcome relief for the season. this family got a pool just in time. >> i've been in this industry 40 years and this the busiest season i've ever seen. >> these days a waiting list for an aboveground pool is three months. >> it's double what the industry has seen before. >> reporter: his company has been filling orders as far as o. >> people want pools because they aren't taking vacations. they are staying at home in their back yards. >> trampolines and swings as well, with parents trying to take care of kids all day every day. >> with all of us cooped up, bike sales are surging. we all need sun and fresh air. >> bike sales for covid-19 for adults spiked 121%. andrew smith at the bike shop in santa monica can't keep up with demand. >> pop the box, pull it out, say, see, it's red. do you want it? it's the only one in town, but better take it. >> kids bike, e-bikes, tandem bikes flying out the door. bike sales hit a billion dollars nationwide, a record. >

stop the spread of false information and hate speech from some very powerful organizations nbc's jo ling kentas more on the new campaign to force change >> reporter: facebook c.e.o. mark zuckerberg facing new demands to halt the spread of false information and hate on his platforms. a coalition of civil rights groups and nonprofits organized by the antidefamation league and common sense media are calling on major brands and corporations which they have not yet identified to stop buying ads on facebook and instagram for the month of july. it's called stop hate for profit >> we have been calling on facebook for years to change some of their practices when it comes to spreading hate and amplifying hate and racist messages on their platform quite frankly, we've either met with silence or unfulfilled promises >> reporter: the campaign comes as faceboor allowing false information and racist hate speech t facebook, which has 2.6 billion users, brought in nearly $70 billion in advertising revenue last year. the civil rights organizations are counting on major brands to join the temporary boycott to f

nbc's jo ling kent is there with the details. >> reporter: seattle is on edge, protesters showing no signs of leaving this six block area after taking it over a week ago. now festive, crowded and peaceful, demonstrators pitching tents and planting gardens this weekend in a newly renamed capitol hill occupied protest. >> we're here in peace and solidarity for a cause that leads to change. >> reporter: their doo mands, reduce funding for the seattle police department, investin th black community and release arrested protesters. the president doubling down on local officials. >> if they don't do the job, we will do the job. >> reporter: the seattle police union blames the situation on local leaders. >> when you voluntarily surrender a police facility and you acquiesce to unreasonable acti activism, criminal activity for political gain, to me that's unconscionable. >> reporter: mayor jenny durkin did not give specifics on what she'll do next. >> we're working with all people to move forward to find a way we can accommodate first amendment, but also make sure we have a vital area for our

we're now going to go to seattle and joined by nbc's jo ling kent. jo ling kent has been working the streets of seattle for days. what is the situation there tonight? >> reporter: hey, so far, lawrence, it's been very peaceful. all of these individual protesters here, a lot of them have marched over from the emergency operation center in another part of seattle about a mile away, peacefully walking over. and that is after they had a conversation about 1,000 people, perhaps more, talking with the governor -- or excuse me, the mayor of seattle. mayor dirkin, and there's been a promise now that a new conversation about social justice, criminal justice, and police reform will happen starting tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. here on the ground. but to give you a sense of the size and scope of where we are right now, this is far larger than what we experienced last night. probably two times the size of it at this point, lawrence. and we can show you -- i don't know if we can pan all the way over there, probably two or three blocks now. that is the east precinct, and t

let's head back now over to seattle just up north where we find jo ling kent. jo, you're walking on the streets there. have the protests stayed calm there? has there been any confrontations? >> reporter: katy, i want to tell you about a moment that i just witnessed which i did not expect to witness. we were back up at the edge of downtown in the capitol hill neighborhood. it was dozens of police in a line and hundreds of protesters, mostly peaceful, but it was getting tense and you had activists, perhaps the organizers of that particular group of people, coming up very close with the police and instead of having a tension, an escalation, there was a conversation. we witnessed a conversation between one of the women who, an activist, an organizer, then that paused for a minute then they came back to the police. they were able to negotiate through the police line and i saw two powerful handshakes happen between activists and police officer. and they were able to open the line and the police stepped aside. there was huge applause. this entire group of people were

let's head back now over to seattle just up north where we find jo ling kent. jo, you're walking on the streets there. have the protests stayed calm there? has there been any confrontations? >> reporter: katy, i want to tell you about a moment that i just witnessed which i did not expect to witness. we were back up at the edge of downtown in the capitol hill neighborhood. it was dozens of police in a line and hundreds of protesters, mostly peaceful, but it was getting tense and you had activists, perhaps the organizers of that particular group of people, coming up very close with the police and peaceful. and the activists who are up front, who are now way past us now, their entire motivation is to keep it peaceful to get their message out there. that's exactly what we're experiencing here in seattle for for the moment. but it's still daylight, katy, as you know, once night falls, things can change quickly. send it back to you. >> it's 8:24 over there in seattle. still daylight, indeed. jo ling kent, thank you very much. let's go to the mayor of that city, seatt

let's head back now over to seattle just up north where we find jo ling kent. jo, you're walking on the streets there. have the protests stayed calm there? has there been any confrontations? >> reporter: katy, i want to tell you about a moment that i just witnessed which i did not expect to witness. we were back up at the edge of downtown in the capitol hill neighborhood. it was dozens of police in a line and hundreds of protesters, mostly peaceful, but it was getting tense and you had activists, perhaps the organizers of that particular group of people, coming up very close with the police and instead of having a tension, an escalation, there was a conversation. we witnessed a conversation between one of the women who, an activist, an organizer, then that paused for a minute then they came back to the police. they were able to negotiate through the police line and i saw two powerful handshakes happen between activists and police officer. and they were able to open the line and the police stepped aside. there was huge applause. this entire group of people were

>> let's go, let's go. >> now let's go to jo ling kent in seattle. , what is the expectation for today? >> reporter: hey, katy, we're down here in downtown seattle and you have some protesters already moving towards the center of downtown. they're getting ready for another demonstration, that is supposed to start any minute now and this comes after a lot of looting as you can see here and boarding up of businesses. over the last couple of days, it's been a largely peaceful scenario, but that disintegrated last night. we have a gentlemen here cleaning up some of the graffiti and damage that's been done to local businesses, but this situation here in seattle, the wider context of it is that the office for police accountability here in seattle is now saying that they have received over -- about 12,000 individual complaints concerning the seattle police department in response to these weekend demonstrations that have now spilled over to the week. we're waiting to hear from the seattle mayor as if there is going to be a curfew yet again. we expect that to

i want to go now to jo ling kent, who is live in seattle. we'll keep our eye on that. jo ling, things last night were pretty intense. police using tear gas to disperse crowds. what is the scene there like right now? >> reporter: hey, chris. we're here in the capitol hill neighborhood where things did get pretty hairy last night. what we see behind us is a crowd that is actually shrinking a little bit here. it's been relatively calm. you can hear the drumbeat of the music, the chanting in support of black lives matter and george floyd. it's the fifth day, i believe, of protests here in seattle. and beyond at the very front of the group of protesters there, you can see beyond the signs, there's a bunch of umbrellas. there's more umbrellas tonight than there were last night. it's a tactic being used by protesters to protect themselves against pepper spray, against tear gas. but this is coming as we've heard more from individual protesters. i've been talking to organizers today, and they all gathered to hear from the mayor of seattle. the mayor of seattle coming before hund

let's get right to msnbc business correspondent jo ling kent. jo, break down the numbers for us again. what do they mean big picture wise? >> reporter: hey eamon, good morning. the 1.5 million claims filed last week, what you need to know about that number is it continues to decline and that drop has happened now for ten straight weeks. there's a little bit of a silver lining here. i always like to look at the continuing claims number from the labor department, and that number is about 21 million so that means people who are continuing to collect unemployment, that number is also down pretty significantly, down by about 300,000. so the good news is things are starting to turn around, as people go back to work, but we have to put this 1.5 million number in context. this really still is a massive deeply damaging number which economists say means the recovery will take long per. not just weeks, not just months, it's probably going to be years and some of the evidence of that eamon is in the retail sector. corsai research is saying that 25,000 retail

jo ling kent, our correspondent there. and, jo, i'm told largest group thus far. >> reporter: yeah, brian. things have escalated quickly in terms of crowd size. there are thousands of people here in seattle on what is the sixth day in a row of protesting. now the news here is that after setting a 9:00 p.m. curfew the city of seattle has now canceled the curfew because the chief of police, carmen best, has told the mayor, according to the mayor's office, that they will be able to maintain the peace as well as provide a safe environment for everyone here and maintain order. now, this comes, brian, as we here, perched three stories above this gathering, have learned that the meeting that the mayor had today with organizers and activists was in some people's eyes successful according to the "seattle times." others disagreeing. but what you see right there on your screen is police in riot gear. they have just arrived and then replaced, perhaps a shift change. and we see the riot gear here. they are then supported by the national

i want to go now to jo ling kent, who is live in seattle. we'll keep our eye on that. ling, things last night were pretty intense. police using tear gas to disperse crowds. what is the scene there like right now? >> reporter: hey, chris. we're here in the capitol hill neighborhood where things did get pretty hairy last night. what we see behind us is a crowd that is actually shrinking a little bit here. it's been relatively calm. you can hear the drumbeat of the music, the chanting in support of black lives matter and george floyd. it's the fifth day, i believe, of protests here in seattle. and beyond at the very front of the group of protesters there, you can see beyond the signs, there's a bunch of umbrellas. there's more umbrellas tonight than there were last night. it's a tactic being used by protesters to protect themselves against pepper spray, against tear gas. but this is coming as we've heard more from individual protesters. i've been talking to organizers today, and they all gathered to hear from the mayor of seattle. the mayor of seattle coming before hundre

joining me now, nbc's business and technology correspondent jo ling kent and chris lieu, former secretaryn, now a senior fellow at the miller center. o where are the strong points in the u.s. economy? >> i always like to take a look at continuing claims. that means the amount of people who continue to get unemployment benefits. and that number has also dropped. but it's still at 21 million. we have to remember that even though we see this downward trend, as you mentioned, the numbers are still staggering and very dramatic. and so yes, we did see a jobs report last week that showed a lot of people going back to work. but we also have seen massive layoffs continuing and retail is one of those very important sectors that i always like to watch, because it indicates how so many workers are faring. and companies like zara, for example, are announcing they're closing 1,200 stores worldwide. you have kay jewellers, jared, closing stores directly because of the covid-19 impact. when you look at the broader picture here, you see research saying 25,000 stores may permanently close this year alone.

correspondent jo ling kent is in seattle tonight. they've had a mixed day, i think it's fair to say there, jo ling. >> reporter: hey, brian. we're in the capitol hill neighborhood, and i want to show you this massive march of peaceful protesters. we've been following them for a couple of hours now. it's 8:11 here on the west coast, and it is two hours past curfew. and the name of this protester game today has been peaceful and patient. we have been following them for a couple of days now, and if we pan up here, sam, to the stop of the street, that is where the police line is, and that is where the protesters are trying right now to negotiate to go. now, some of them are moving in a different direction, but that police line is holding steady. there's three layers of law enforcement there followed by the national guard. the governor, governor inslee here, deploying the national guard yesterday, about 400 individuals in total. but this is the center of a conflict with president trump. he, as we saw today, gave that address to the nation.

hours later they picked up their guns declaring a riot when rocks and bottles were hurled at them jo ling kent caught in the crossfire. >> oh, my gosh >> reporter: as police pushed back the crowd. >> look, america, this is not about black anymore. this is not about white. this is about justice for all humans >> reporter: but tonight after a week of protests patience is wearing thin. as one side of the police line demands order and the other justice. the question tonight in this city and so many others, what will happen after curfew? here in los angeles police are staged just around the corner. it could be a long night ahead. lester >> miguel almaguer in los angeles tonight. thanks >>> an early curfew taking effect here in new york as well after last night's violence. ron allen has been following the protests all day. ron, what's the latest >> reporter: good evening, lester. this is what we've been seeing all day through the streets of new york city. thousands of peaceful protesters apparently trying to make a profound statement before that 8:00 p.m. curfew goes into effect we're also seeing a

. >>> part of the city and demanding police reform jo ling kent is there with late details. >> reporter: seattle is on edge, protesters showing no signs of leaving this six-block area after taking it over a week ago. now festive, crowded and peaceful, demonstrators pitching tents and planting gardens this weekend in the newly renamed capitol hill occupied protest. >> we're here in peace and solidarity for a cause that needs to change >> reporter: their demands, reduced funding for the seattle police department invest in the black community. and release arrested protesters the president doubling down on local fishes. >> if they don't do the job we will do the job. >> reporter: the seattle police union blames the situation on local leaders. >> when you voluntarily surrender a police facility and you acquiesce to unreasonable activism, criminal activity for political gain, to me that's unconscionable. >> reporter: the mayor did not give specifics on what she'll do next. >> we're working with all people right now to move forward to find a way that we can accommodate first amendment but also

last we heard from jo ling kent in seattle, she was getting hit by a projectile as last night's peaceful demonstration turned into something else. jo, i understand you're back on the same athletic fields where we last saw you 24 hours ago. how are things going tonight in seattle? >> reporter: brian, here in seattle, it is peaceful so far. in the capitol hill neighborhood. it turns out there's a lot of different ways to show your support for black lives matter and george floyd. social distancing here on this big athletic field. you may have seen us crop it a little last night. just beyond this area is the intersection where you have thousands of protesters gathered facing towards the east precincts there. it's a much, much larger crowd than what we saw yesterday and assembled a lot earlier. it's more tonight than yesterday. i want to tell you what you're seeing. the mayor of seattle jenny durkin came out a couple hours ago to speak to protesters when they were gathered across about a mile count road here in seattle, and her message which was not only very well received, was that she is no

thank you. >>> jo ling kent, thank you. >>> coming up we'll by joined by a tulsa, oklahoma, officialut the rally this weekend amid the pandemic. you're watching msnbc. for better things than rheumatoid arthritis. when considering another treatment, ask about xeljanz a pill for adults with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis when methotrexate has not helped enough. xeljanz can reduce pain, swelling, and further joint damage, even without methotrexate. xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections. before and during treatment, your doctor should check for infections like tb and do blood tests. tell your doctor if you've had hepatitis b or c, have flu-like symptoms, or are prone to infections. serious, sometimes fatal infections, cancers including lymphoma, and blood clots have happened. taking a higher than recommended dose of xeljanz for ra may increase risk of death. tears in the stomach or intestines and serious allergic reactions have happened. don't let another morning go by without asking your doctor about the pill first prescribed for ra more than seven years ago. xelja

jo ling kent is there in seattle. the governor of washington has called out the national guard. that curfew in place on sunday, jo, i assume it's going to be in place today as well. >> that's right, craig. we've actually moved from seattle to nearby bellevue, washington, because we want to show you some of the damage and looting that occurred during that curfew last night. you can see here this is an xfinity store and the glass has been shattered. it's attached to a macy's over there. that has been boarded up. what we saw are areas looted as the national guard was deployed yesterday. in seattle with thousands of protesters along with here in bellevue, you can see the looting that happened inside. protesters were able to enter this store, take a bunch of merchandise and leave. now, the mayor of bellevue has an emergency order in place right now coordinating with the national guard. craig, one of the wonderful silver linings of this is you have people coming out to show this support for the community. clean this up. we have nelson. guys, thank you so much for talking to us. we're l

joining me now from seattle is nbc news correspondent jo ling kent. , what exactly are their demands? >> the demands are to achieve police reform and make a real change to this community, which by the way, where we're standing right now, just a week or two ago, was filled with thousands of people facing off with police, and now it's essentially a whole different kind of community. you can see here, there's a coaup where people are making donations, coming together to build a new kind of mini society, if you will. it's happening all down this city block, throughout that anderson park, people have set up tents and comumunity gardens. the idea here is to call for change, to stay here until they see more reform at the city level. be it from the police department or the mayor's office. i spoke, interviewed the police union president yesterday. and he says this area is lawless. he's pushing back, saying there is no plan forward, and this could metastasize across the country. here's what he had to say. >> i think when you voluntarily surrender a police facili

. >>> we're looking at live shot from seattle tonight, and jo ling kent is reporting what is an extraordinary, what we've seen this week, police chief has just told the protesters they are canceling the 9:00 p.m. curfew in seattle tonight because the protesters have been so peaceful so far, and the police now believe that with the cooperation of the protesters, they can ensure peaceful protests tonight, and there is no need to impose a curfew in this city that has been operating so peacefully today. and that could be a turning point in what we've seen in these demonstrations nationwide. >>> in minnesota, keith ellison changed the story today. he lost on election by 35 votes, and that's why he's now the attorney general of the state of minnesota. ran for chair of the democratic party in 2017 and lost 235-200 in vote of party professionals who decide these things and then decided to give up 12-year rear career in house of representatives to run for attorney general of minnesota. possibly most important attorney general in america history. today keith ellison asked protesters in minnesota and ar

. >> jo ling kent in seattle, stay safe. glad you're okay. new york city, a lot of folks who woke up in new york city found a city that looked a lot different than when they went to sleep. looting, vandalism, damages to stores and restaurants. part of the busiest portion of manhattan, just outside 30 rock. anne thompson is in new york city. anne, a short time ago, word that governor andrew cuomo will be addressing the crisis 15 minutes from now, 11:30. what's the scene right now on the streets of new york city, anne? >> reporter: craig, right now i'm in herald square. you can see behind me the sun glass hut. it was one of the targets of looters last night. police say they were groups of young people who came and would smash windows, try to run inside, get stuff and take it out. so this morning, this has been all about cleanup and refortifying the plywood structures here. you see it here at sunglass hut. if you look down 35th street, you can see foot locker. sephora got hit as well. across 35th street, you can see the most popular guy in new y

and jo ling kent in seattle. >> we have police now advancing on protesters.. >> forgive me. we are going to make some moves here so we don't [ bleep ]. we are going to end up in a place we don't want to be here if we are not careful. oh! i'm -- i just got hit in the side. >> move as quickly as you ask. >> move! move! move! >> nearly all of us except those seriously injured went back into the field because we exist to bear witness and to hold power to account. because it is our duty to tell the public of this country what authorities are doing ostensibly in their name. again there was no threat, no violence from journalists unless you consider coverage by the media a threat. in this heated moment we must continue to remember that there are some police who entered this profession to honorably serve and protect, but what police departments and police unions don't seem to ever want is scrutiny. they don't like it from their chiefs. they don't like it from civilian review boards, from their mayors, they certainly don't like it from the media, but scrutiny is what

nbc news's jo ling kent live in seattle. what are you seeing? >> hey there, ari.es, we are three stories above what is a very large protest here in seattle. you can see behind me the protesters are stretching just about a block back and they are chanting "black lives matter." they are asking the police to take off their riot gear as well. and you can see that police line full of umbrellas, and then facing off with an increased presence right now of national guard in full riot gear along with seattle police. now, earlier when we brought you these pictures it was a couple of lines of law enforcement. now you can see that it is six, seven rows deep. we also i believe have an armored vehicle on site as well that has pulled forward. now, these umbrellas of course, as you know, have been put up to protect against possible pepper spray or tear gas. but the police have already warned on the p.a. system for protesters not to throw projectiles across the police line because they want to "keep this peaceful." now, ari, it's an interesting evening here because as you look and

let's bring in nbc news jo ling kent with more details. about unemployment insurance and extending that extra money that the federal government is handing out. it still sounds like there are a lot of people who could use, frankly, need, that cash. >> absolutely. the number of people currently collecting unemployment right now that ongoing collection number out of the labor department report is over 19 million. so the pain is still very much there. the good news is the 1.5 million number we got for last week continues to be a bit of a drop. but we're still sitting at this million-something figure, right? and that continues to be unprecedented for what we've seen prior to this. 19 million people collecting unemployment right now. compare that to pre-covid levels. just about 2 million in february. the other number that really matters and should matter to policymakers right now is that 970,000 people are collecting pandemic unemployment assistance. if you look at all the people collecting that right now, that's about 11 million people. so all

let's bring in jo ling kent to take a look at the jobs numbers from this week.g here with us today. when you look at the numbers and read into them, what are the enduring patterns that you're seeing? >> good news, katy, is that the number of total initial claims has fallen for the tenth week in a row, so that's good to see. that means people are going back to work and we're seeing the layoffs subside a little bit. but it doesn't mean that it's gotten, say, better or it's good right now overall, because 1.5 million unemployment claims in one week is still staggering compared to this time last year and in any sort of, quote, normal circumstances. i always look at continuing claims, the number of people who continue to collect their unemployment because they don't have work. that's 21 million. so the context on that number is it continues to come down, but that's still 21 million people collecting those claims. another number that i think goes underreported here is the pandemic unemployment assistance, which gig workers and independent contractors are collecting. a

for "today," jo ling kent, nbc news, los angeles. >> it's hard to think of more essential workers thans everywhere, including you guys, learned that firsthand. >> any parent who tried home schooling, now more than ever we need not fewer but more teachers to help our kids get back on track. >>> a beautiful reunion for a >>> still to come here on "today," the latest on an alarming rise in cases of coronavirus in states that are reopening. >>> plus, check your privilege. the viral social media challenge that's opening a lot of eyes all across the country. dylan? >>> we'll have those stories, plus why the newest bachelor is making history. we'll have that coming up in popstart. first, these messages. (pirate girl) ahoy!!!!! (excited squeal, giggling/panting) gotcha! (man) ah! (girl) nooooooooooooo! (man) nooooo! (girl) nooooo... (vo) quick, the quicker picker upper! bounty picks up messes quicker, and is two times more absorbent than the leading ordinary brand. (man and pirate girl) ahoy! (laughing) (vo) bounty, the quicker picker upper. hey allergy muddlers... achoo! ...do your sneezes tu

jo ling kent has more. >> reporter: good morning. buying food has been changing for months now and this morning we have an exclusive new look at exactly how much more you're paying for all those staples at the grocery checkout the coronavirus recession is changing the way we're eating across america as grocery store prices skyrocket. new nielsen data obtained by nbc news show that nationwide prices for staples are on the rise in places like new york orange juice is up nearly 15% in dallas-ft. worth, ground beef spiking 15%. eggs up nearly 25% and chicken breast up 26% in los angeles. no matter where you live, families are feeling the price hikes. angelica relies on food stamps to feed her family of six in south l.a. >> these are a dollar. they're usually like 89 cents. >> reporter: lately her government assistance doesn't go as far >> that only lasts me like ten days >> reporter: the squeeze on budgets means changes for everyone in seattle, molly edmonds was recently laid off. with her husband shawn and two grown boys eating three me

. >> jo ling kent, thank you.le hannah jones, a pulitzer prize winning writer and create aor of the landmark project. what are you making of this moment particularly -- i don't want to put you on the spot with the "new york times" so independent not going to say that. there's been a lot of bottom up. it feels like the demands for change in corporate structure are coming internally as much as externally. >> yeah, we certainly are seeing a period where employees are speaking out against their employers, which you for obvious reasons don't normally see. that's a very risky thing to do. i think a lot of black americans feel if people are taking to the streets that there's always of these attentions being paid on being silent right now is to miss an opportunity to change the work environment and to make a much bigger structural change. >> what do you make of these pledges? you've got the nfl, $250 million, our parent company, $100 million saying they're going to put this money to combat inequality, racial justice. you'

company's also under renewed pressure to limit the spread of false information and hate speech jo ling kentstop the spread of false information and hate on his platforms. nonprofits organized by the antidefamation league and common sense media are calling on major brands and corporations which they have not yet identified to stop buying ads on facebook and instagram for the month of july. it's called stop hate for profit >> we have been calling on facebook for years to change some of their practices when it comes to spreading hate and amplifying hate and racist messages on their platform quite frankly we're either met with silence or unfulfilled promises >> reporter: the campaign comes as facebook grapples with criticism inside information and racist hate speech to spread following george floyd's death facebook which has 2.6 billion users brought in nearly $70 billion in advertising revenue last year. the civil rights organizations are counting on major brands to join the temporary boycott to force sweeping changes including that facebook stop generating ad revenue from misinformation and h