we'll go to houston to speak with professor robert bullard, known as the "father of environmental justice," about the disproportionate effect on low income communities and communities of color, which have also been hit harder by the pandemic. then as covid-19 infection rates go down, the cdc says it is too soon to lift mask mandates. >> the bottom line is this. masks work and they work best when they have a good fit and are worn correctly. amy: we'll speak with infectious disease specialist dr. monica gandhi about which masks to wear and how to wear them and how many. then we look at mounting pressure for president biden to cancel student debt. >> president j biden has a remarkable opportunity to unite broad coalition of individuals together behind cool student loan -student loans. it would not only the cumbrancabout,ut set of the conditions that got us a president trump in the first place. amy: all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the quarantine report. i'm amy goodman. millions of people in texas are suffering as a new winter storm hits the state am

robert bullard is a professor at texas southern university.e focuses on wealth and racial disparities related to the environment. he joins me now from sugarland, texas. to have you on the newshour. tell us what folks in your area have been going through in recent days, what are they lacking? >> first of all, i think it is important to understand that this blackout in terms of loss of power is more than just about energy, if is also about those communities that were struggling before the storm, in terms of struggling with enrgy insecurity. and this storm has really shown a spotlight on those disparities in terms of communities that don't have not only electricity, but no water, no transportation, private cars to get to the grocery stores, to buy food and water, and the same communities are devastated because of health disparities. a lot of asthma, a lot of diabetes and people on die all sis machines, that they can't operate their medical equipment without electricity. so it poses a great danger, more than just being cold. >> so what you are say