special, we begin our show with a rare interview with the daughter of the cuban president raul castro. her name is mariela castro. she is best known for her ardent support of gay, lesbian, and transgender rights. mariela castro was recently granted a visa for a rare trip to the u.s. we had a chance to sit down with her last week at the cuban consulate, here in new york city. we spoke, not only about her work combating homophobia, but about her work on the cuban five. she calls on the u.s. to release five cubans jailed for spying on violent anti-cuban militants in exchange for u.s. citizen alan gross, who was arrested in 2009 and sentenced to charges of subversion we turn now to my interview with mariela castro. i began by asking her what brought her to the u.s. mariela is translated by elizabeth cole. >> i presented my work at the congress of the nine american studies association which was held in san francisco last week. i was also invited by the world professional association for transgender help. >> talk about the work you were doing in cuba. >> i'm the director of the national cen

. >> rose: it might work with raul castro or it might work with -- >> i don't think it will work with raul castro or the old men surrounding him. >> rose: but the successor -- >> nobody knows and that's the problem with cuba, the boston thing in cuba is a young talented political operator because they don't like those guys around, if you are 40 something-year-old who is bright and ambitious, you tend to disappear from the political spectrum in cuba because the regime is threatened by you, the truth is no one knows what comes after raul castro but our hope will come after is some group of people who are open to democrat opening in cuba wa because thats what i care about, a free cuban people can decide any economic model they want. >> rose: go ahead. it is said in iron, iran example, there is a very strong reform element, we saw that in various countries in the middle east there was a strong reform element, and the arab spring gave it momentum and gave it hope, gave it inspiration, it gave it a willingness to take a chance. >> yes. >> rose: can that happen in cuba or can it never happen

now the daughter of raul castro is proposing a prisoner swap. sten to what mariella castro told christiana. >> one of the issuings right now a allen gross, who you know where are well, you know about his case you've been asked it many times. let me show you what he said about the prisoner's mother. >> i have a 90-year-old mother who has terminal lung can serks and she's not getting any younger, and she's not getting any healthier. i would return to cube bara, i return to cuba if they let me visit my mother before she dies. >> translator: allen gross has been granted everything he asked for. he's been able to see his wife. he's been able to have matrimonimat moean don just -- very long sentences that must be right. the six must be released, both the five cubans and allan roesz. >> you're saying that they should be released? >> translator: of course i'm referring to the five cubans and allen gross. i believe this would be the happiest solution for all involved. >> christian is joining us from new york. did you get a sense she was speaking on behalf

going until 7:00, i think, or maybe 7:30, will be a conversation with mary ella castro, daughter of raul castro, the president of cuba, and the niece of fidel. why is it relevant? she was instrumental in changing the attitudes and laws in cuba on lgbt folks. she is pro gay marriage, pro transgender health, hiv. she is going to be making a presentation. it is open to the public free of charge. come early. it is going to be slammed. >> when is it? vice chair joseph: tomorrow. i suggest you arrive between 5:15 and 5:30 in order to get in. she will probably not be there until 5:45. having said that, that is my comment. >> i would also like to invite everyone to the local production of "the vagina monologues." the cast includes supervisor malia cohen and others. it is women of color united against violence. i have been a volunteer in this production for about eight years. vice chair joseph: will everyone be there? >> it is this friday at 7:30. president newlin: anybody else? >> i just wanted to say that last night the harvey milk club had their soiree, which was fantastic. as a result, today, on har

going until 7:00, i think, or maybe 7:30, will be a conversation with mary ella castro, daughter of raul castro, the president of cuba, and the niece of fidel. why is it relevant? she was instrumental in changing the attitudes and laws in cuba on lgbt folks. she is pro gay marriage, pro transgender health, hiv. she is going to be making a presentation. it is open to the public free of charge. come early. it is going to be slammed. >> when is it? vice chair joseph: tomorrow. i suggest you arrive between 5:15 and 5:30 in order to get in. she will probably not be there until 5:45. having said that, that is my cot.

now daughter of president raul castro is making waves. she is injecting herself into u.s. politics. cnn chief international correspondent christiane amanpour, castro says she would like to see president obama re-elected. >> did you expect more from president obama or has he gone as far as you expected him to go on the cuban issue? do you think he wants to lift the embargo and that there could be proper relations from cuba and united states under a second obama term? >> translator: i believe that obama is a fair man. and obama needs greater support in order to take this decision. if obama counted on the full support of the american people, then we could normalize a relationship, we could have better relations than what we have under president carter. >> do you want obama to win the next election? >> translator: as a citizen of the world, i would like him to win. seeing the candidates, i'm pro obama. >> christiane amanpour joins us from new york to talk more about her exclusive interview with mary ella castro. give us your initial thoughts of her, what was she like? >> she was absolute

cuban-american hernandez says one was the obama's administration granting raul castro's daughter permission>> i don't like obama before, and now worse. >> reporter: experts say some hot button issue could gain nudge traction between now and november to turn florida's hispanic vote one way or the other. absent that, it will be as patrick mantega says, jobs, jobs, jobs. >> thanks, john zarrella. i'm fredricka whitfield. thanks for joining us. >>> "the diamond queen," starts right now. >>> once upon a time in case we had forgotten or never knew there was a beautiful young princess. a fairy tale princess. ♪ >> at the age of just 27, she was crowned a queen in a glittering fairy tale ceremony filmed in technicolor. ♪ >> long before anyone had heard of kate or diana, there was elizabeth. a star from the very beginning, and a regal, unflagging presence in our lives ever since. >> i think she's the most visual representative human being ever to have existed ever in the entire history of the world. i cannot think who the rival is. so that in itself is utterly extraordinary. >> reporter: this is only

. >>> the daughter of raul castro is calling for a prisoner swap between the u.s. and cuba. it could free a potomac man jailed in havana. mar yella castro espen says alan gross could be released in exchange for five cubans in the u.s. gross is serving a 15-year sentence after he was convicted of spying in cuba. gross says he was just trying to set up internet access for cuba's jewish community. >>> one d.c. council member wants to put an end once and for all to city leaders' stadium ticket tiff. jack zaens is proposing colleagues split tickets to the parks among the mayor and council members. disputes have made headlines in recent years. some council members criticized chairman brown for how he handed out tickets to verizon center events last year. in 2009, then-mayor fenty, adrian fenty, refused to share baseball tickets with council members for more than a month. >>> today in alexandria, a trial expected to start for a man accused in a dui crash that killed a little boy. police say 22-year-old victor aldona was drunk in january when he drove his car off of duke street near

cuban-american says one issue was granting raul castro's daughter permission to attend a conference in like the woman before and now, worse. >> reporter: experts say some hot button issue could gain enough attraction between now and november to turn florida's hispanic vote one way or the other. absent that it will be as patrick says, jobs, jobs, jobs. >>> if you know someone who is looking for work, we've got a story that you don't want to miss. there are 26,000 jobs available right now. we'll tell you who is doing the hiring and what they are looking for. but first each week, cnn's dr. sanjay gupta innovators from all walks of life and all fields of endeavor. the program is called "the next list." tomorrow he looks at david peterson who created a new language for one of television's most popular shoes. >> they are a kind of wandering tribe in this imaginary world that he has created. they are first and foremost warriors. >> we took the tribe from the best selling series. in george's book they speak their own language. we thought they could create that fictional language for a few line

raul castro's daughter talks about a scenario of a u.s.p. >>> and how two top obama administration officials supposedly stood chest to chest like a schoolyard fight

. >>> the daughter of cuban president raul castro is calling for a prisoner swap between the u.s. and cuba. mariella castro espen tells cnn that cuba could release alan gross in exchange for five cubans held in the u.s. they're all accused of spying. gross is serving a 15-year prison sentence in cuba. he was trying to set up internet access for cuba's jewish community when he was arrested in december of 2009. several politicians and human rights activists have pleaded for his release. >>> right now defense secretary benjamin netanyahu is in india -- leon panetta is in india, urging leaders to take a more active role in the war in afghanistan. he was in vietnam for an emotional ceremony with his vietnamese counterpart. they presented each other with artifacts from the vietnam war. vietnam's defense minister gave panetta letters from a dead army sergeant who wrote that just days before his death. panetta presented a diary found on a dead vietnamese soldier. both defense chiefs say the u.s. and vietnam must work to promote peace and prosperity in the asian pacific region. >>> loudoun

. >> you permit the daughter of raul castro to get a visa, to come to the united states, to speak out the united states, to speak about somehow justifying the dictatorship inside of cuba and yet you permit an american citizenship to castro jails. >> reporter: a state department official responded. >> those cubans were allowed to come to the united states to speak openly because in our country they are able to do so despite my not agreeing at all with the statements of mariela castro, obviously. >> reporter: there's also fallout over a judge allowing one of five cubans imprisoned in the u.s. on espionage charges to visit an ailing relative in cuba, while alan gross has not been able to visit his 90-year-old mother in the u.s. who is very ill. that cuban detainee has finished his sentence and is supposed to stay in the u.s. on probation until 2014. wolf? >> brian, do you have any update on his mother's condition? she's, when? 90 years old in texas. >> reporter: that's right. gross' mother has terminal lung cancer. judy gross told me the mother is very weak and is feeling pain she didn't

seen it's already happened to an extent in the economics sphere under her father, the president, raul castro. i also asked her about president obama because he's obviously taken the cuban file a little further than his predecessor has. this is what she had to say about president obama. well, i asked her about what he had done in terms of opening up the way the u.s. deals with cuba a little bit. certainly in remittances an other such things. she thought that this was progress. she also said that she appreciated president obama's move on gay issues such as supporting same-sex marriage, and she did volunteer that if she was an american citizen, she might, indeed, even vote for president obama. in fact, she would. beyond that issue on the crucial issue of what might happen, what might change inside cuba, she made some very interesting comments. not only on the gay issue, whether or not there would be an agreement for the first time in history on civil unions in cuba, but also on travel restrictions. she said that's going to be taken up by the parliament sometime this year and she supported that.

cnn's christiane amanpour scored a rare exclusive interview with raul castro's daughter, mariela.d participated in an academic conference last week. that visit sparked outrage by those who oppose her father's regime. part one of christiane's interview will air today at 3:00 p.m. on cnni. christiane is also abc's global affairs anchor. >> nice to see you. >> where does mariela fit into the entire castro regime? people are looking to see if there's a transition coming out of there. >> that's exactly right. you can imagine doing civil rights in the form of gay and lesbian rights is an obvious transition. i asked her particularly about opening up the political space there. and she said, look. her own father, raul, has made a big change in terms of economic and property rights. and she says yes, we do want to have not just one party, for instance. but of course, had he pthey put everything on the embargo. as you know, it hasn't worked, they feel on the defensive. so we had a very interesting conversation about all those issues of human rights, civil rights, political rights. it was a v

, we'll talk to christiane amanpour who completed an interview with mariela castro, daughter of raul castroiscrimination. >>> also, singer and songwriter and my all-around favorite ledisi joins us. she's also written a new book. it's a collection of her essays and songs and poems and her talking about her path to inner peace. and we do take advice from a guy who gets paid to beat up other guys. he is one of the most popular mixed martial artists and fighters in the world. but he has written a self-help book. i've got to tell you, it's amazing. it's called "the laws of the ring." he has 37 laws that he feels that he subscribes to in the ring that are applicable for the rest of us who are not mixed martial artists. >> very disciplined folks. it will be interesting. >> if we had this much discipline, we would be different people. >> can i ask you, is there anything in there that says, don't hit your brother? because i'm constantly having to say that. >> for your kids? they may need to grow up a little bit. maybe that's item 38 that he hasn't written yet. don't forget, you can catch us live or

raul castro by the way. >> i did everything was the sixth i sent pat and mark little cassettes and other things to get the information off. leggitt memorandum conversations and then they discovered that he saw a stack of my memorandum conversation i could no longer serve those. so it was very tough because the ambassador was not against human-rights, but the ambassador wanted to control american foreign policy in the region. when i came in to the bureau, the exit after vector that chose me had been a person who had been negotiated with me on the other side of the table and pulled the selection for by told he said honor want paris for buenos aires because that some of the bitch will keep them honest and it turned out to be prophetic sadly. but the ambassador lost control not because of policy. i didn't do anything with policy. there was mark's job. what i did as the meal with the command fielder is i sent the quarters of argentina forward and the was the job of the foreign service was to tell the department of state honestly what was going on and when the investors all the facts were chan

the daughter of raul castro throwing her support behind the president.r's regime still continues to hold americans hostage. >> brian: a graphic scene in the film "prometheus," caused a 15-year-old boy to suffer a seizure. >> on the head. changing. >> changing into what? >> brian: the australian boy was watching the surgery scene when he passed out. he was rushed to the hospital. he's stable. the movie, which is rated r here in the united states, is rated m in australia. you know ha that means? meaning it's for mature audience. >> alisyn: scary. >> steve: who let him go to the movie? if it's scary, don't go. now you know. it's really, realistic or something like that. >> brian: "prometheus," didn't it come through his chest? >> alisyn: that's aliens. >> steve: "prometheus" is good night who escaped at rockefeller center. >> brian: really? >> steve: yeah. meanwhile, lady gaga left with a concussion after taking a serious hit on the head in the middle of a concert in new zealand last night. one of her dancers accidentally clocked her with a pole. ♪ >> steve

given prison often for years so we urge every american to remember all victims of fidel castro and his brother raulust as we remember all of those of the world who've suffered and died under the iron fist of under to the other dictatorships. in iran under the ayatollahs and in iraq under saddam hussein, under molosovich in bosnia and the brutal genocide in darfur. as i've said many times before the cuban people are no less deserving of america's support into the millions in prison and forgotten in gulags lost their families left to die for nothing more than a single to the casino%. i'm compelled to ask as i have before why is there such an obvious double standard when it comes to cuba? wiota gulags so different from the gulags of the old soviet union? why are we willing to tighten sanctions against iran but loosen them when it comes to an equally repressive regime inside of kuwait? when it comes to cuba why are we willing to throw up our hands and say it's time to forget? it is not time to forget. we can't forget those that suffered and died at the hands of dictators, not in iran or cuba or anywher

them in prison often for years so we urge all of them to remember the victims of fidel castro and his brother raulust as we remember all of those around the world who suffered and died under the odierno is of dictators in cambodia under the mayor in iran under the ayatollah and saddam hussein under bosnia and the brutal genocide in darfur. as we've said many times before, the cuban people are no less deserving of america's support in the millions in prison and forgotten in the soviet gulags what their families to die for nothing more than a single expression of dissent. i am compelled to ask again today as i have before here why is there such an obvious double standard when it comes to cuba where they so different from the gulags of the old soviet union. why are they willing to tighten the sanctions against iran that loosen them when it comes to an equally oppressive regime inside of cuba. when it comes to cuba why are we so willing to throw up our hands and say it's time to forget? it is not time to forget. we can never forget those that have suffered and died at the hands of dictators, not in ir