Transcripts For KQED PBS NewsHour Weekend 20240712

Family. Barbara hope zuckerberg. Charles rosenblum. We try to live in the moment, to not miss whats right in front of us. At mutual of america, we believe taking care of tomorrow can help you make the most of today. Mutual of america financial group, Retirement Services and investments. For 25 years, Consumer Cellular has been offering nocontract wireless plans, designed to help people do more of what they like. Our u. S. Based custer service team can help find a plan that fits you. To learn more, visit www. Consumercellular. Tv. Additional support has been provided by and by the corporation for public broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the american people. And by contributions to your pbstation from viewers like you. Thank you. Hill good evening and thank you for joining us. Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin said the Trump Administration will try again to introduce a covid19 stimulus bill when Congress Returns to work on tuesday. Mnuchin also said today that there is agreement with Democratic Leaders on a plan to fund the government through early december to avoid a shutdown. Talks between the white house and house saker nancy pelosi over a stimulus bill are still stalled. Mnuchin and President Trump favors more limited funding dubbed a skinny bill, while Democratic Leaders are pushing for additional stimulus funding for state and local governments, and for food and rental assistance. The president and i believe we should do more stimulus. We have about 7. 5 million jobs we need to get back until were back to where we were, and we want to help small businesses, we want to help businesses that are particularly impacted by this and well continue to work on proposed new legislation. Hill as Congress Returns, the race for president will see the candidates from both parties out on the campaign trail in person starting tomorrow this morning, democratic Vice President ial nominee Kamala Harris said she would not trust a covid19 vaccine endorsed only by the president , who has said a vaccine could be ready by election day. I would not trust his word. It would have to be a credible source of information that talks about the efficacy and the reliability of whatever hes talking about. I will not take his word for it. He wants us to inject bleach. I will not take his word hill summer is coming to its unofficial end, but not Racial Justice demonstrations. The Police Killing of george floyd on memorial day ignited protests that continue in many plas around the country this labor day weekend. In rochester, new york, calls for justice continued last night for the fourth over the death of daniel prude, who died inarch in police custody. New York State Attorney general Letitia James said yesteay shes convening a grand jury as part of a exhaustive investigation into the death of prude. In wisconsin, jacob blake is speaking out publicly. A Kenosha Police officer shot blake seven times in the back two weeks ago, leadg to several days of demands for answers and action, some of which were violent. Every 24 hours, its. Pain. It hurts to breathe, it hurts to sleep, it hurts to move from side to side, ihurts to eat. Please, im telling you, change your lives out there. Hill and in portland, oregon, Police Declared a protest overnight a riot, and fired tear gas after activists reportedly threw rocks and fire bombs at police. At one point a mans legs caught on fire. Police described the protesters as engaging in tumultuous and violent conduct and arrested more than 50 peopl in hong kong today, Police Arrested nearly 300 people at protests over the decision to delay local elections. Today was supposed to be election day for the hong kong legislature, but chief executive carrie lam postponed it for one year, citing the pandemic. Opponents said she was afraid opposition lawmakers would make electoral gains. Mass protests erupted in this former british colony last year over a proposed extradition law, but the coronavirus and a new National Security law imposed by china have tamped down on street demonstrations. New cases of the coronavirus continue to be reported around the world today, witthe u. S. , india and brazil still having the highest numbers. As of this morning, Johns Hopkins University Reports close to 27 million coronavirus fections worldwide and more than 880,000 deaths from covid19. In the United States, the New York Times tracking prect shows an average of almost 41,000 new cases per day over the past week. Thats a 7 decrease over the past two weeks, and a significant drop since late july when the times database found well more than 60,000 new cases being reported daily. Health officials continue to warn that Holiday Weekend gatherings and the return of students to College Campuses could mean new spikes in infections, they are urging communities to keep social distancing, mask wearing and hand washing protocols in place. A federal judge has ordered the u. S. Commerce department to temporarily stop winding down its operations to complete the u. S. Census by the end of this month. In a lawsuit brought by a coalition of cities, counties, and civil rights groups, u. S. District judge lucy koh put a hold on a plan to expedi the census count until a hearing can take place on september 17. The plaintiffs in the lawsui which is one of several across the country argue the spedup timeline will lead to an undercount of minority communities. In a press release, the Census Bureau said it and the Commerce Department are obligated to comply with the courts order and are taking immediate steps to do so. For more national and international news, visit pbs. Org newshour. Hill Food Insecurity in the United States skyrocketed when the covid19 pandemic began almost six months ago. Its left emergency food distributors stretched to provide enough to those in need. To help fill this gap, organizations around the country have doubled down on an ageold practice of getting excess crops from farms to families in need. On the third friday of every month, st. Marys outreach in newburgh, new york, opens its doors. After a quick covid symptom screen and mask check, people wind their way around the outside of this gym, following tape on the floor to try to remain six feet apart. They find canned food and staples like rice, but the highlight for many is the more than a dozen different types of Fresh Produce. Im so amazed that they have an abundance of vegetables like this. Look at the size of this thing its a great privilege to come here and get this here. And im not ashamed of it because im going to go home and im going to eat very good. Hill Marietta Allen is the dector of st. Marys outreach. We have a community, its very, very poor. And i try to include fresh stuff every, every month. Makes a big, big difference. And the families are very appreciative, too. So, its a good thing. Hill even before the pandemic, this part newburgh, a city 70 miles north of new york city, was categorized as a food desert according to federal data, meaning theres reduced access to fresh, affordable, fruits and vegetables. But at this food bank, much of this produce could just as easily be found at upscale farmers markets in wealthy enclavesf places like new york city. In fact, less than 48 hours earlier, much of it was. Getting this produce from here to emergency food distributors is the job of a complex Regional Distribution Network that gleans or takes excess food from farmers and gets it to the needy. Gleaning is a custom that dates back thousands of years, even described in the book of ruth in the bible. But its become more challenging during the pandemic, just as demand for emergency food is surging. So, what weve got here is pink berkely tiedye. Hill kevin smith is the owner of sycamore farms, and he brings produce to this new york city greenmarket in union square twice a week. It never closed during the covid19 shutdown. This farmers market, especially this year, has been a great sense of community for myself and the people that shop here, and for products. Its been really a saving grace for me and my family. Hill at the end of the day, anything thats not sold is carefully reloaded onto his refrigerated truck and brought back to his 237 ac farm about 70 miles northwest of new york city. Early the next morning, a team from Cornell Cooperative Extension Orange county is sifting through whats left. Ill take some stuff and go into newburgh. Hill stiles najac runs cornell extensions gleaning program. We move close to 400,000 pounds of food fresh from the farm directly to soup kitchens and food pantries so that they dont have to store it, every year. And, yeah, we move food. We move food as quickly as we need to, to make sure that it is eaten while fresh. Hill gleaning sycamores market truck means going through produce carefully to make sure only fruits and vegetables that are still good are taken. In the middle of tomato season, its a time consuming process. When gleaning, you wind up getting a wide variety of quality. This is amazing. This, this is what you want. You want food that has been grown and cared for and just didnt find a market, a home from the market. Well give it aood home. Hill all told, nearly 6,000 pounds of produce, including tomatoes, corn, peppers, beans, and eggplants, are taken from sycamores truck and loaded onto cornell extensions refrigerated truck, ready to be taken to distribution points across the region. This program, which is funded by state and local grants, as well as donations, is one of nearly 200 gleaning programs in north america, according to the association of gleaning organizations. The groh of gleaning programs, like cornell extensions, has partly been driveny adding financial incentives for farmers. Since 2018, new york state farms can receive a tax credit of up to 5,000. Thats in addition to getting a break on their federal taxes for donating crops to nonprofits. This could be the difference between whether or not, you know, they have a big bill to pay or a small bill to pay at the end of the year. Hill in addition to the tax incentives, kevin smith says having a place to donate actually helps him maintain the value of s produce at the greenmarket. We used to do it about 3 00, 4 00 in the afternoon. We started having discount sales. We created a culture of late in the day shoppers who were looking only for deals. So when i started working with stiles, i no longer felt the pressure of taking home this extra produce as a burden. I would much rather donate than discount my rates here where i have an established market. Hill for the last decade, sycamore has donated, on average, about 65,000 pounds of produce each year. And its not alone. As the pandemic increases Food Insecurity, cornell extensions gleaning program has been busier than ever. Everybody is growing Fresh Produce for us to donate. Its been, i would say, weve easily doubled the amount of food that were moving in a weekly basis. Hill but even as donations increase, the pandemic adds new challenges to how stiles and her team operate. In other years, excess crops like these tomatoes, which were passed over by pickers for not being perfect, might have been collected by volunteers for donation but nothis year. I would like to get volunteers into the field. However, we do have to take into consideration social distancing, masks. This year, covid has kind of slow us down in that matter. Hill back in newburgh, about 20 miles from sycamore farm, gleaned tomatoes, corn, beans, eggplant, nectarines, and peaches are delivered to st. Marys outreach. The next morning, volunteers put the produce into grabable plastic bags, before they are distributed to those in need. This food pantry has been here for almost a decade, but this will be its last time operating in this 3,500 square foot gym. Because of covid19, a Head Start Program for kids needs the space for social distancing. With increased demanfor emergency food, Marietta Allen says shes looking for a new space. Im hoping we can find something, but wherever are, we give away as much as we can. Hill in 1968, america was embroiled in protests over civil rights and the vietnam war. In that tumultuous time, tonight show host Johnny Carson turned over his hosting duties for an entire week to actor and activist Harry Belafonte. Belafontes guests, mostly African American, included Martin Luther king jr. , lena horn, and bobby kennedy. It was a week, though, almost lost in history, but now revisited in a documentary called the sitin, airing thursday on nbcs streaming platform, peacock. I recently spoke with the sitns director, yoruba richen, and producer joan walsh. Thank you so much for talking to us about this documentary. Im just curious, how did this all come to pass in 1968, with Harry Belafonte actually sitting in for Johnny Carson . Well, from what we know, michael, he Johnny Carson really cared about these issues. We dont think of him as a political person. But he had a lot of concern about race relatis. He was a little bit ahead of his time, partly because he was in the entertainment business. You know, he was close to harry. And he wanted to turn the show over so that harry could showcase his view of the world for a full week. And he got backup from from nbc executives also, which was Pretty Amazing, as you said, given the time. I also think, harry was such a huge star at that t and its we sometimes dont remember. You know, he was multiplatform tv, film, movies. And i think that johnny thought he was the guy literally he was the guy who could do it, who could speak to a National Audience about these issues, and be entertaining. Hill because of what harry was already doing i mean, some of the film goes to what harry was doing in the 1950s and onstage with a diverse cast members and so forth. So i guess, to a certain extent, that made it more acceptable to americas audience . Yeah, i mean, i think harry was a hu super a superstar for everyone, black, white. You know, we say in the film, its Pretty Amazing for him to be appealing to white audiences during these times of segregation. There are only a few, very few who did that. I think of sammy davis, jr. And harry. Hill i would imagine that the Network Executives still, though, were nervous about the content of what he was going to talk about . Because, after all, belafonte was not a comedian. Part of his negotiation, he was very, very he was very humble. In our documentary as well, he says, i didnt think i was ready to take Johnny Carsons chair, and i dont tell jokes, and, you know, im just not that guy. So he also negotiated that he would sing a song each night instead of doing a standup kind of monologue. And that was the accommodation they made with his type of stardom. Hill it was astounding to see the caliber of people who were on thehow. Just the two that were recorded, as far as we can tell. And it was astounding. You had dr. King sitting next to paul newman, sitting next to leon bibb, sitting next to nipsey russell. I mean, thats just its amazing. Youd never see it anywhere else. I think it shows his reach, right . His reach into the political world and into the entertainment world. You know, its one of those people. Its like, you know, the one for the ages, where people are want to be around him. Peopleis intelligence, his talent, his commitment, his his loyalty, is, i think is what got all those people together to have that kind of lineup that week. Hill when you started on this on this journey, with this documentary, im just curious, for both of you, what astounded you about about this week of hosting the Johnny Carson tonight show for Harry Belafonte . What astounded you . The diversi of his guests, the quality of his guests, the way that he the way that he handled himself as an interviewer, which, as you know, its not that easy. You know, if it looks easy, youre doing a good job, because its really not easy. And so he stepped into that role so seamlessly and also brought both humor and commitment. So those were some of the main things. Yeah, i mean, the fact that i didnt know about it, i mean, when joan and the producers approached me about directing the film, i was imdiately interested because i didnt know about it. But also, the fact that it wasnt until many years later, til arsenio hall, that we have not had another host. I mean, harry was host for just that week. He was the first African American host of that week. And then, you know, a long, dry period, until we had another African American host of late night, and we still have a problem there around diversity in late night. So thats also aounding. Hill right. I wanted to play a clip, and the clip has to do with Harry Belafonte going back to the tonight show within a month or so of him hosting the show. Did you have a ball with it . I caught you a couple of nights, it looked like you were having a great time. I had a marvelous time, the groiest time in the world, even, the week that i spent here. We ended with ratings that were larger than the ones we opened with, and we opened with the largest numbers in the history of the show. Hill and he also talks about, i think the documentary shows, the list of guests that he had on. Its phenomenal. And then he talks about, thank you for the sitin, which is just, i mean unless you know history, theres so many people who may not catch that. I mean, this was Harry Belafonte, then, now, whenever, awfully clever entertainment. Verclever. I mean, we found out about that he called it theitin semilate in the process. Someone reached out to me who happened to be Johnny Carsons secretary in that time period, and she was so excid that, you know, that the week was being written about. And she sent me a copy. He took out a fullpage ad in variety thanking not only all of his guests, but also the staffers on the tonight show who helped. But at the top, he says, you know, thanks to all of you who joined me at this sitin. You know, and sitin is not a neutral term at that point. You know, the civil rights movement, the modern civil rights movement, in some ways, it started with, well, rosa parks sitting in, but also the students sitting in at lunch counters, you know, College Students sitting in around the vietnam war. So it wasnt just, you know, like a funny throwoff line. It just showed it showed that he saw what he did, in a friendly way, as a political act, not just a, you know, well, we had a great week and we got great ratings. Yeah, its a brilliant move to call it a sitin. Which, of course, is our title of our film. And not that we were the brilliant ones, harryas the brilliant one to do it. And to bring that kind of politics again to main street, in variety, in on the tonight show. You know, thats sort of the history, you know, so much of his work that he was doing, bringing those politics for some, radical into the mainstream. Hill its a terrific film. I hope a lot of people get a chance to see it. Its called the sitin, just as Harry Belafonte penned it way back in 1968. And were talking to the director, yoruba richen, and were talking to producer, of course, joan walsh. Tha you very much for joining us. Thank you. Thank you so much for having us. Hill thats all for this edition of pbs newshour weekend. For the latest news updates visit pbs. Org newshour. Im michael hill. Thanks for watching. Stay healthy and have a good night. Captioning sponsored by wnet captioned by Media Access Group at wgbh access. Wgbh. Org pbs newshour weekend is made possible by sue and Edgar Wachenheim iii. The Anderson Family fund. Bernard and denise schwartz. The cheryl and Philip Milstein family. Barbara hope zuckerberg. Charles rosenblum. We try to live in the moment, to not miss whats right in front of us. At mutual of america, we believe taking care of tomorrow can help you make the most of today. Mutual of america financial group, Retirement Services and investments. Additional support has been provided by Consumer Cellular. And by and by the corporation for public broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the american people. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Youre watching pbs. mr. Rogers wont you be my neighbor . Its an invitation to help somebody know that they are loved and capable of loving. Love is at the root of everything. Love or the lack of it. man freds work was love your neighbor and love yourself. It was a communication right into their hearts. mr. Rogers children have very deep feelings just the way everybody does. There must be times when you do feel blue . Im not feeling blue right now though. Me neither mr. Rogers thank you for whatever you do