Transcripts For CNNW The Color Of COVID 20200516

Hello, everyone. Welcome to our special program here on cnn, the color of covid. Im don lemon in new york. And im van jones in los angeles. You know, this pandemic is devastating not just the health of people of color, its also destroying our wealth with layoffs. We got Small Businesses going under. Government aid is just not getting to us and thats why were here tonight. We want to discuss what this virus is doing in total to black and brown americans and also to offer some hope. We have a whole lot to talk about, van. And i dont want to make this only about numbers because that takes the humanity out of this crisis really, but the numbers, the numbers are sobering and they begin to reveal the full challenge that we are all facing right now. And to quote a Research Associate at the urban institute, when White America catches a cold, black america catches pneumonia. So here are those numbers im talking about as of tonight. More than 87,000 americans have died from coronavirus. Of these deaths, more than 17,000 are black americans, and thats according to analysis from the American Public Media Research lab. And the researchlab acknowledges the datas incomplete because the virus is moving so fast and a lot of states are still in the process of compiling information. But heres some perspective for you. Of the data the research lab analyzed from 39 states and washington, d. C. , africanamericans make up 13 of the population but account for 27 of the covid deaths. And there is breaking news out of britain tonight to tell you about. And this information matches what is happening here. A new study finds that those moeftd likely to catch coronavirus include older men, black people who live in densely populated but deprived areas and people who are obese and who have chronic kidney disease, van. And, don, lets not forget you got millions of black folks and latinos who are still working on the front lines throughout the entire pandemic, and those are jobs that are now considered essential, so they cant go home. That means they are at greater risk for exposure to the virus, not just for themselves, but their families, too. They cant work from home, so instead theyre working in the hospitals every day, keeping the Transit System working, keeping the stores stocked, cleaning up the buildings as janitors, therefore, in harms way. Throughout this difficult time, millions of americans have been forced to stay away from their places of worship when they need spiritual comfort the most. So we have a big show for you tonight. Were going to hear words of grace and wisdom from the one and only, who is my mentor, bishop t. D. Jakes. And also ahead tonight, messages of hope from Alfre Woodard, common, samuel l. Jackson and mario lopez. But first, lets get to this very special guest who joins us. Shes spent her career at the front lines caring for the poor in the rural seth. Dr. Regina m. Benjamin is with us. Doctor, thank you so much. We love having you. Youre very smart and knowledgeable about this. So lets get your guidance right now. The big news today is from the white house and its about a potential vaccine later this year, but communities of color are about 10 less likely to get vaccines. So given how hard we are that we are being hit by the coronavirus, how can we make sure that black and brown communities will get this vaccine . So, were going to have to work and take care of ourselves. I mean, not just in our communities, but everyone else. Well have to wait and see when this vaccine comes out. One of the things im looking at is to say whether or not well have a vaccine. In the meantime, we need to save our lives. And as you just mentioned, the number of things that are happening in our communities, let me remind people that in the africanamerican minority community, hispanic, native americans, we have a higher rate of hypertension, diabetes, heart disease. The American Heart Association has shown that the cardiovascular disease, particularly cardiac arrythmias people have a Poorer Health outcome, and so we really need to make sure that we understand that we have these underlying illnesses. And sometimes we dont know we have high blood pressure, we dont know were prediabetic. Thats right. Because of that and all the things you just described, we dont always have the option to stay home. We have to be on the front lines and start to take care of ourselves. We have to survive until there is a vaccine or until there is a treatment. Yeah. You know, its so important for us to take it seriously. For a long time we didnt. I think now we still have a problem. I want to read you something from nfl star vaughn miller. He told this to the washington post. Now, hes recovering himself from covid19. He said this about his own teammates. He says, quote, they dont even think its real. Thats the craziest part. I told them to take it serious. Take all this serious. Take the social distancing serious. Now, listen, if he cant even get his own teammates to take it seriously, how can we do a better job of getting communities of color to really recognize how important it is for us, especially given how vulnerable we are, to take this whole thing seriously . One of the patients in new orleans had said, and i saw him say it on your show, i believe, that were either going to be socially distant or were going to be socially dead. Its our choice. We have to take this very seriously. We really can sit and other people can play around with it and they may be able to get through it. We come into the hospital much sicker, much faster, deteriorating, and we die more often. And all the numbers and the statistics that youve seen, our rates of death are much higher than others, and so we especially really need to be taking this seriously. And not playing around with it. Its not a joke. So, listen, if you all you have to do is watch the news, watch cnn. We are on the road now to reopening. You see the local governments all over the country are focused on reopening right now, doctor. And Everyone Wants the economy to open up, but we want to do it smartly, right . And you need certain things in place in order to be able to do that. But heres the question. How does that stand to impact people of color, especially since so many of us are on the front lines, are front line workers and could never really close down in the first place . So many people cant close down. If youre a bus driver you cant close down. If youre driving the subway you cant close down. If youre a cleaning person you cant close down. If youre, you know, working in a hospital you cant really close down. So how are africanamericans or people of color affected by in that way . Youre right, we cant close down. We have to go to work. We have to take care of our families. 48 states are going to be open, so its not realistic to say that we can stay home. If we can stay home, we should. Right. We have to use common sense. We have to realize that we have to take care of ourselves and our families. Just because something is open, a nightclub or something is open, you dont have to go. Just because you can doesnt mean you should. And so we have to use our common sense to protect ourselves and protect our families. Do that socially distancing. Wear the mask. Even if you think you look different than everybody else, you set the pace, you are the trend setter, wear the mask. Doctor, real quick, i got to ask thats hard listen, i was talking to my niece who is an entrepreneur last night. She does hair, right . And does very well, but she hasnt been able to be at her business in over a month, almost two months now and she has to get to work. She says, don, ive got to pay the bills. So i dont know what to tell her. And i said, well, your landlord cant technically kick that out. She said tell that to my landlord. I dont know what to tell her, doctor, because its either pay the bills you know, shes got to make a choice there. So these are real. So try to do the things that we in health care and science and Public Health try to try to distance yourself as much as you c can. When youre doing hair, its going to be really hard, its like being a Health Care Worker dealing with a patient. Youre very close and youre putting yourself at risk. So try to wear protective equipment as much as you can. The mask, if you can wear a gown, wear a gown. Try to, you know, certainly wear gloves. Do as much as you can to protect yourself because its up to you not to take it home as much as you can. We really have to stay alive until we can get a treatment, until we can get a vaccine. One good thing is that i think jack dorsey put out a fund to try to save all the black barbers and the nail salons and that type of stuff. Its a 5 to 1 match or a 10 to 1 match. So thats a good thing. He needs to reach out to my niece. She could use the help down in louisiana. But go on, van. Sorry. There are people who are trying, but, listen, you used to be the Surgeon General. You used to be in charge of all of this stuff. If you were the Surgeon General right now, what would be your top priority in terms of protecting vulnerable communities . Would it be testing . Would it be ppe . What would you be doing if you were in charge right now . What needs to happen . Well, id do as any Surgeon General and what im trying to do now, give the best science based information to the American People so they can make good choices and good health decisions. As far as a priority, i mentioned id try to keep people alive as best we can. We dont have the tests. We dont have the treatment right now. So the best we can is use the tools we have, which is socially distancing, washing your hands, making sure youre getting enough rest, sleeping, doing those sorts of things. That we can do. Use the tools we have for right now until we can find some better tools. Yeah, doctor, listen, theres a whole theres so much out there, especially on the internet that people are looking to about victims atamins and on. I sound like you when people are texting me and emailing me, the best thing we have right now is social distancing and washing your hands. Wash your hands, wash your hands, keep your hands clean and disinfectants and on and on and on. Thank you so much. We have to look out for ourselves. One thing i do want to mention is that dont forget about Mental Health and behavior. Amen. Im sure youll talk about it a little bit. But stress is a major, major concern. If you feel like you need some help, reach out, call a friend. If a friend doesnt answer, call another friend. Dont try to go it alone. That is really important. Thats another factor that makes us more vulnerable as people of color as well. Thank you so much. We appreciate it, doctor. Thank you. You know, its not just health and wealth, right . The coronavirus is exposing dangers dangerous disparities in policing. Up next cnn is going to investigate for you. Plus, were going to speak with the richest black man in america. Thats robert f. Smith. You see him right there on your screen. He paid off Student Loans of the morehouse class of 2017. So what are his words of wisdom as we face a crisis, van jones . Were bringing you words of hope, as we promised you. Mario lopez has a shoutout for the Latino Community and common wants to tell us stay positive in these troubling times. Hey, mario lopez here. I just want to send a special thank you to all our essential workers in our community because you guys are on the front lines and you are pushing through and are, quite frankly, the real heros. So [ speaking spanish ] no matter where youre from and what you may be experiencing that your ability to to focus on the things that are positive, to actually be active towards things that are positive, to live in a way of love and wellness and just, like, the capacity to be a human being and be present and to do the things that you were meant to do on this planet in purpose. We have that. No one can take that away. That has nothing to do with money. It has nothing to do with race. It has nothing to do with disease. You have that within you. Adversity came to town and said, show me what youre made of. So we showed it our people, sourcing and distributing more fresh food than anyone. We showed it our drivers helping grocers restock their shelves. We showed it how were donating millions of meals to those in need. We showed it how we helped thousands of restaurants convert to takeout and pop up markets. And how were encouraging all americans to take out to give back. Adversity came to town. So we looked it right in the eye. And it wont be us. That blinks first. I got up, i put make up on. I have jeans on, who is she . Family run sometimes you like modify a recipe and its so good your girl, is still losing. Join now, pay later. Get your first three months free many of lifes moments in thare being put on hold. Are staying at home, join now, pay later. At carvana, we understand that, for some, getting a car just cant wait. To help, were giving our customers up to 90 days to make their first payment. Shop online from the comfort of your couch, and get your car with touchless delivery to keep you safe. And for even Greater Peace of mind, all carvana cars come with a sevenday return policy. So, if you need to keep moving, were here for you. At carvana the safer way to buy a car. Yeah. This moving thing never gets any easier. Well, xfinity makes moving super easy. I can transfer my internet and tv service in about a minute. Wow, that is easy. Almost as easy as having those guys help you move. We are those guys. Thats you . The truck adds 10 pounds. In the arms. Okay. Transfer your Service Online in a few easy steps. Now thats simple, easy, awesome. Transfer your service in minutes, making moving with xfinity a breeze. Visit xfinity. Com moving today. We are back now with our cnn special, the color of covid. Im don lemon along with cnns van jones. Police departments across the country being called upon to enforce social distancing regulations. Yeah, but some of these videos of these encounters have been going viral. Raises Big Questions about how police are interacting with White Americans versus americans of color. That part of the story of the color of covid from cnns ryan young. Back the [ bleep ] up. Reporter its viral videos like this that highlight some troubling interactions between minorities and Police Officers enforcing social distancing guidelines. In this video nypd officers approach several men sitting on a stoop. Police say one of the men tried to enter a Police Cruise . Struck an officer. As they arrest him, the situation escalates. You want to go to your friend . What are you doing . Reporter the nypd tells cnn that the officers use of force was in the act of gaining compliance from a subject who was resisting arrest. As parts of new york enjoyed the sun and nice weather recently, officer interactions with the public seem to vary by neighborhood. In this video you can see an nypd officer taking an aggressive stance in new yorks east village. He didnt even do nothing. Move the [ bleep ] back. Move the [ bleep ] back. What you flexing for . Reporter with the stun gun in hand, he engages with 33yearold donny wright. Look, look look, he didnt even do nothing. Reporter this is after Police Say One suspect became aggressive toward officers and resisted arrest. He didnt even do nothing. Reporter the officer has been placed on desk duty pending an internal investigation. I couldnt believe that it was happening. Reporter in this, Illinois State representative cam buckner decided to go shopping wearing a mask when he says an officer approached him. Asked me some questions and eventually asked to see my receipt. He said, you know, people are using the covid virus to do a lot of bad things and to get away with them. Youve got a mask on, man, i cant see your face. It looks like you may be up to something. Reporter Chicago Police tell cnn based on the limited information supplied to the Chicago Police department, we are currently unable to authenticate that this incident involved a cpd member. Popular radio host and bestselling author sharmacharl the god its about the underlying conditions that exist in black america because of systemic racism. Reporter the radio host believes officers have to be part of the solution bridging the gap with the communities. You cant be silent on these issues. You gotten to point that out and say that is wrong. Reporter the nypd says 80 of new yorks social distancing summons between midmarch and early may have been issued to blacks and hispanics. The videos have gotten the attention of nypds top cop. What weve seen on some of those videos is incredibly disheartening. Its not what we want to see, but i will push back strongly on any notion that this is business as usual for the nypd. Or that this is, quote, unquote, racist policing. Yall know your environment impacts your emotional and mental wellbeing. They dont care. I would probably take they dont care for 500, alex. Are you backing up or are you backing up . Back up. Ryan young, cnn, chicago. Thank you, ryan. Terrible stuff. Don, policing is not the only area people of color are experiencing disparities. From our health to our wealth. Grocery store workers lost 2 of hazard pay. The richest black and brown celebrities losing millions of dollars from cancelled games, concerts and movies, the Financial Burdens are overwhelming from top to bottom. This is graduation weekend. It should be a moment of pride especially for students at historically black colleges. Those ceremonies are all virtual. Even harder to celebrate that. Our next guest, billionaire investor, robert f. Smith, surprised the graduates of morehouse. Watch their reaction when they found out he was paying off all of their Student Loans. On behalf of the eight generations of my family who have been in this country, were going to put a little fuel in your bus. Ive got the alumni over there, and this is a challenge to you, alumni. This is my class, 2019. And my family is making a grant to eliminate their Student Loans. Now, that Angel Investor is joining us right now. Robert f. Smith. He is the founder, the chairman and the ceo of vista equity partners. Hes also on the board of my organization, reform alliance. Got to get that in there. Now, this is a big deal for us at cnn. Weve had oprah, weve had jayz. Youre in that category. You never do interviews. Even after you made global news giving away that money to morehouse students, you didnt talk to anybody. Why are you speaking out tonight . What has you speaking out about the situation, robert smith. So, gentlemen, again, thank you first for inviting me on, and i think more importantly for actually having this sort of a feature to raise the awareness of the issues that are happening in our community. You know, our friend andrea rye best coined this as a pandemic on top of a series of epidemics. The challenges our community is facing in many cases are multifold. During a period of economic turmoil and hyperinflation, those businesses went away. And i just think about it took 20, 30, 40 years for some of those businesses to recover, and in that period of time, frankly, Property Values fell. The entire community, frankly, started to deteriorate. And when i see the sort of economic, frankly, disruption that is occurring in our neighborhoods, i start to think about what can i, what can we do about it . And its important now to really encourage, drive all of our folks to create, frankly, solutions for ourselves and solutions to help our communities and our business communities because they end up being the lifeblood of the fabric of a lot of how we how we communicate as people in our communities and drive the Economic Opportunity for our young people. I always want to, you know, van and i were talking about you earlier as we were preparing for this show, robert, and, you know, just like a kid, you know, a young kid always says why . Why . And i think thats maybe the most important question when it comes to journalism. You are using your own money, your own time helping out people you dont know, saving businesses that are not your own. Why . Why are you investing your own time . Why are you doing this . This is the duty of all of us. Its the duty of all of us as americans. Its the duty of all of us as Community Members to help out our communities. You know, one of the things in my business, we have about 1. 4 million small to medium businesses as customers and, you know, we made a call to action to all of our executives and ceos, what can we do to aid our customers . One of the first things we did was build some solution sets to help them access the ppp program. Well, through that process it became rhode islaeadily apparen that the black and brown communities, asian communities, Rural Communities were actually not accessing the ppp or gaining access to it. Can i give them some stats so that you can talk about this . Sure. Because lets see minorityowned businesses have gotten very little. And this ppp program, which is the paycheck protection program, was set up to help businesses cover basic expenses during this downturn. 95 of blackowned businesses stand little chance of obtaining one of these loans. 91 of latinoowned businesses have a very small chance of getting these loans. So continue on then you look on and see the 75 . Sure. 91 in hawaii and pacific islanders. 71 for asian. Why is that . What is the problem, robert . Whats wrong . Yeah, in the First Tranche of that, typically, you know, even the larger africanamerican businesses went to their traditional depository banks and i was actually astounded when i got the information that a number of them, a, they didnt get help by their banks. Their banks prioritized other businesses. And, frankly, they got turned away or they didnt hear anything. So when you look at our community, about 70 of minority neighborhoods actually dont have a branch bank, but there are a number of Small Community banks, Community Development financial institutions, which we call cdfis. And one of the things weve done is through one of our companies enabled these businesses to now interface with the etrans system with the sba. Many of these businesses now weve actually got them turned into a way from their larger banks, who turned them away, didnt give them information in the First Tranche and now theyre getting funded. Don, i believe youre from new orleans. There was a dentist in new orleans who was a, you know, very wellrun business, had, you know, significant deposits at his bank. Turned him away. Didnt get information. We got him to an mdi and they actually cdfi, they actually got him funded in the second tranche. So whats interesting is the second tranche of ppp, a, the loan values are now i think around 75,000. So theyre getting to smaller businesses. There is still capacity left in that system. Weve now built out and organized an infrastructure of cdfis, mbis and these lending institutions that are now aiding and supporting a number of our urban and rural Small Businesses. Let me so the First Tranche let me translate the second tranche, however, there is still capacity. We now have the infrastructure in the system to process these loans. We are just trying to hes got to let you in, van. Let me translate. Hes holding court, but thats okay. Im from baton rouge. Hold on, van. Im from baton rouge, but thats okay. Its all the same. As long as you got help, it doesnt matter. Its all the same. Its all louisiana. Go ahead, van. For the folks at home listening to the genius do all of this. I want to be very clear the heart of this. Sir, you are helping banks you dont own. Correct. You are helping Small Businesses that you dont own. Correct. You are calling the government, youre calling banks, youre doing all this stuff and not only that, youre trying to move the culture. Youre working with deon taylor. Help me understand why. I dont see any other billionaire on planet earth doing what youre doing, trying to help businesses that they dont even own. Why are you doing it . It is important for us to ensure that we im going to say these words, dont waste this crisis. This has been the first distribution of capital of size and mass from the government to the citizens of america. Our Community Needs to ensure that we get our fair share of this and the ability to modernize, repair, restore and regenerate our communities. Capital is one of the most important elements of that. We need to modernize the banking infrastructure of these capillary banking systems. We need to modernize our Small Business infrastructure. Why do you care so much . Why do you care so much . All of those things are critically important for us to ensure that we have, frankly, vitalized communities. And its important if i have the capacity to bring some education, knowledge, insight and capacity, thats part of my responsibility to do that in my role. Van, thats how he got so much is because he gave so much. Thats why he gets so much is because he gives so much. Thats the whole secret to it. I love this man. I do have to say, i gave the commencement at Clark Atlanta in 2018. I thought i was bad because, you know, i was quoting Donald Glover and all that and all kinds of stuff. Then 2019, i was like, this man has ruined it for everybody. I cant not give another commencement address unless i give away a ton of money or pay peoples Student Loans off. You have ruined it, robert smith. No, i think what ive done is continue to set the bar. The thing, though, just some parting comments, if possible. I mean, to me, ive been actually encouraged by the way that many people have now been embracing this idea of how do we revitalize and rejuvenate our communities . Weve been having numerous conversations with administration, numerous conversations with Speaker Pelosi and senator schumer. Weve actually now, and i think its important, we need to drive awareness into our community. Weve sent notes and messages out to the conference of National Black churches, National Action network. There is a lot of money available today still in the second tranche of the ppp. We have an infrastructure in place to help process these loans. Okay. Lets make sure our people get to it. Frankly, secretary mnuchin has been very helpful in getting some of the nonback lendered approved in the sba. Very, very important but i got to go. I got to go. I got to go. We will have you back. I promgts you. I have a show five nights a week on cnn and i promise you for two hours i will have you on and we will talk more about this because this is not over yet. Im glad you mentioned churches because were going to have t. D. Jakes on in just a minute and well discuss that as well. Thank you, robert smith. Thank you all. Thank you so much. Appreciate everything you do. God bless you. Continue to do that. Great, thank you. All the best. Tomorrow we mentioned what we did for the graduates. Tomorrow cnn is going to honor graduates of 2020 with a twohour event, hosted by jake tapper, erin burnett and me starting with class of 2020 in this together at 7 00. Featuring former president bill clinton, gal gadot and more. And then at 8 00 make sure you join lebron james and former president barack obama for graduate together. The celebration starts tomorrow night at 7 00 on cnn. You know, people of color across the country looking to faith in a moment of crisis. Ahead, a special live interview and a moment of prayer with bishop t. D. Jakes of the Potters House, the megachurch in dallas. And weve got some more empowering messages of hope. Samuel l. Jackson and Alfre Woodard have words of inspiration for you tonight. I know the majority of africanamericans and mexican americans and native americans cannot stay home and work, you know, on a computer. Were the people that have the jobs that require you to go out and come into contact with people. Hopefully well all come out on the other side of this. Id like to be able to hug somebody that i dont know just because, you know, i see them, they smile and say they like what i do and they ask for a hug, and i want to be, you know, safe in that environment. So when theres a vaccine, im getting it. Hopefully you will, too. And we can hug each other. I hold in my heart each and every one who weve lost, and i keep you in my prayers who are struggling. You know, this was a natural calamity but it was exacerbated by the fact of our lack of access to health, justice and to Economic Justice in our communities. Some of the cities are reopening, but the truth is, in most black and brown communities, you didnt have the luxury of sheltering in place. You make up the bulk of the essential workers in all of the service capacities. We remain the backbone of this nations ability to stand up straight. And weve taken a hit in this time of covid and our families have taken a hit. Well, if you must venture out, please do so heroically. Put on your mask for yourself, for your family, all the other families, mamas, the daddies, the kids, you know, whatever it is youre rushing out to see or do, its going to be there. You just want to make sure that everybody is still here among us to enjoy it all. To give you the protein you need with less of the sugar you dont. [grunting noise] ill take that. Yeeeeeah 30 grams of protein and 1 gram of sugar ensure max protein. Now available in twelvecount. Stock up today now avaexcuse me wouldcount. Jayou be interestedustomer. In bundling your home and auto with progressive . No. Well, you could save money. Im independently wealthy. You can get roundtheclock protection i have a bodyguard. Okay, this is totally unrealistic well you werent really selling it. How am i supposed to play off that . I aint buy it at all. That was really bad. Okay i can do better. I can do better. Hey my name is jamie and im here to say. audible groans alan jamie, dont do that. Did yocould be signs that syour digestive systemwn isnt working at its best . Taking metamucil every day can help. Metamucil supports your daily Digestive Health using a special plantbased fiber called psyllium. Psyllium works by forming a gel in your digestive system to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down. Metamucils gelling action also helps to lower cholesterol and slows sugar absorption to promote healthy blood sugar levels. So, start feeling lighter and more energetic. By taking metamucil every day. Welcome back to our cnn special, the color of covid. Don lemon along with van jones here. The coronavirus pandemics having a devastating impact on the lives of undocumented immigrants in america. Cnns leyla santiago reports now. Reporter from her balcony, maria described the horror of fighting covid19 for a week in the hospital. Her fear of not surviving to care for her children. She says she feels very weak and shes tired. A mother of three, all u. S. Citizens, she tells me, maria made money working in a food truck before she contracted coronavirus. She got pretty emotional then. She said shes crying because of how terrible the experience of covid19 was for her and how grateful she is that shes still alive today. Reporter grateful, but aware shes going straight from a Health Crisis to an economic one. She hasnt been able to do the jobs that once put food on her table. Neither has her husband. Both are undocumented. Shes worried about the hospital bill. She doesnt know how much it will be. Reporter they dont have health insurance. Rent, food, medications all uncertainties. Because theyre undocumented, they dont qualify for unemployment benefits. Under the c. A. R. E. S. Act, they, like all undocumented immigrants, didnt qualify to receive a stimulus check. Everybody in our Community Needs to be protected. Regardless of their immigration status. Reporter luis aguiar is the advocate of the immigrant Advocacy Group casa. The coronavirus has forced thousands of families to turn to them for food and financial services. The most impacted, he says. Folks working the service sector, those are the ones who have to go to work. Those who are still lucky enough to have a job. Reporter according to the most recent pew research in 2016, unauthorized immigrants made up about 8 each of service and production workers. Nearly 1 4 in the farm, fishing and forestry sectors and 15 of construction workers. Were not in the shadows. We are now at the forefront of this and we are taking the brunt of this pandemic. So they need to take care of us. Reporter jose is a nurse on the front lines. Hes also a daca recipient who was brought to the u. S. As a 15yearold. He says he lost his job when elective procedures were cancelled. While being a daca recipient allows him to live and work in the u. S. Legally, he was unemployed for more than a month and reluctant to apply for unemployment benefits, fearing it could hurt his future immigration status. So when he was hired for a new job at the Baltimore Convention center field hospital, he was relieved. My patients really dont care about my immigration status. They care that i am a Competent Health care provider that is providing care in their time of need. Reporter and the need is widespread. Medical and financial. Marias family is facing both and pleading for help from the u. S. President , but not just for herself [ speaking spanish ] she says, dont forget about us, the immigrants. Reporter and, don, unfortunate news that we learned tonight, marias situation not really getting better. She tells me that her son today tested positive for coronavirus as well, adding to her anxiety. You know, many of these advocates will tell you that its important to make sure that these undocumented workers are taken care of, not because they deserve a special privilege but because giving them access to testing them to testing, making sure they have proper ppe is something that will help stop the spread for the entire community. Leyla, thank you so much for your reporting. Appreciate that. With so much loss and suffering, some people are relying on their faith, but stayathome orders are even making that difficult at this time. Next, a very special prayer and conversation with, there he is, bishop t. D. Jakes, founder of the Potters House in dallas. I cant wait to see that, van. Yeah, thats going to be awesome. Also, weve got some more messages of love and support for you. Here is iyanla vanzant. I know weve all been adversely affected by covid19, but i want to remind you of the genius and power you have in the cells of the fiber of your being. From your nearest ancestor to your nearest grandparent, you have a reservoir of strength, courage and capacity. While it is tempting to remain focused on whats out there in the world, i want to encourage you to go within and call forward whatever it is you need at this time. Call forward clarity of mind, tenacity of heart, stamina of body, and endurance of spirit. All forth your vision for the future and your peace in the now. Its not easy, beloved, but we can do this. Our options may have been limited, but we still have choices. Choose to stand on the shoulders of those who came before you. Stand tall and stay safe. What does it mean to be a Good Neighbor . It means being there for each other. Thats why state farm is announcing the Good Neighbor Relief Program we know our customers are driving less, which means fewer accidents. So state farm is returning 2 billion dollars to auto policyholders for the period ending may 31st. And well continue making real time decisions to best serve you our customers. Because now, more than ever, being a Good Neighbor means everything. Like a Good Neighbor, state farm is there. Many of lifes moments in thare being put on hold. Are staying at home, being a Good Neighbor means everything. At carvana, we understand that, for some, getting a car just cant wait. To help, were giving our customers up to 90 days to make their first payment. Shop online from the comfort of your couch, and get your car with touchless delivery to keep you safe. And for even Greater Peace of mind, all carvana cars come with a sevenday return policy. So, if you need to keep moving, were here for you. At carvana the safer way to buy a car. Start with a round brush head. How do your teeth get a dentistclean feeling . Add power. And youve got oralb oralbs round brush head surrounds each tooth to remove more plaque. For a superior clean, round cleans better. Oralb. The story where the chances are low, and the cost is high. The sacrifice is real. Its all around us. But this isnt a story about how tougher times beat us. This is our comeback story. The time when we rally and come from behind. The time when we defy the odds and get back to work while the whole world watches. Yeah, this is your comeback story. And when its time to come back, well be ready. So, everybody gather around the television. I think we could all use some healing and i think everyone will get something out of this. We are back now with our cnn special, koip. Im don lemon along with van jones. This Global Pandemic has tested people mentally, physically and spiritually. And at a time when people most need connection to their faith and their religion, stayathome orders are preventing them from fully engaging with their communities of faith. So joining us now is bishop t. D. Jakes, founder of the Potters House, a christen megachurch, nondenominational megachurch in dallas, texas. Bishop, thanks so much for joining us. Got the dynamic duo. Got the legend. The dynamic trio. Bishop, thank you. I watched your message on youtube that you sent out about not making this a political argument. This is a human thing. I appreciate what you said and i think everyone should go and look at that. We may get a chance to talk about it in this. I just want to talk about the church that you lead. It boasts tens of thousands of members, and i just want to know how this this pandemic, this quarantine has impacted you and your ministry and the people around you. It has been very, very difficult. We have tried to busy ourselves serving wherever we could, feeding people that were hungry, people who have lost their jobs, elderly people, destitute. We tried to do the best that we could to serve in those areas, but we certainly miss gathering together. Theres been a rash of funerals. Weve had a lot of deaths. Weve had a lot of grief. An emotional toll, our counselors are busy around the clock responding to people who are stressed out, overwhelmed. Its been a lot. But weve done what we could. Yeah. You know, according to a new poll by the pew research center, africanamericans are much more likely to say that their faith has been strengthened as a result of this pandemic. Now, why do you think that is . What are the we have had a long history of leaning on faith to get through the life. All the way back to slavery. It is our worship and praise and reliance on god that has sustained us through many dangers. Toils. Its not foreign to us. So many people have been cut off from the way they normally pray. People dying and dont have somebody to read the bible over them. Funerals people cant go to. Churches and synagogues. Can you take a moment and lead us in prayer. Especially the communities hit so hard by this virus. Absolutely. Lets pray together as a nation. We bow our heads in submission to god because we know lord that you are the only one that can truly get us through the time that we face. With covid19. We pray for people all over america and all over the world who are suffering and grieving. Who are distressed or emotionally distraught. Those who are being victimized in homes. Those are overwhelmed by financial needs. We lift them up before you the righteous judge. The sovereign god. The one who cares about the complexity of mankind. And we ask you whatever the immediate is and they are so many, whatever the pain is and they are so vast. Whatever the grief is. They are so deep. That you touch and reach and heal and deliver and strengthen and we trust you for righteousness and peace and set a right every wrong and correct every misstep. And we pray to you we ask you to touch those people who are hurting the most. In the name of the lord, we pray. Amen. Amen. I received that. And i hope everyone around the country and around the worltd receives that. Heres what i want to say to you, im paraphrasing in this. When i watched you today, you talked about how this is being politicized. And how Everyone Wants our economy and our country open back up. Theres not a soul who doesnt want that. We want it done in the right way. As we want it done with sense. It has to be done in the right way. If we dont, it will counter productive and well fine ourselves in similar straits again. It is that we can just flick a switch and everything go back to normal. And risk further death and the tolls of death have been insurmountable. It is the fear and uncertainty. You can open up the country all you want to. If people are not willing to go into stores and restaurants. The economy is going to suffer. People are waiting for a rational strategy. That they understand clearly that they are given details. That they understand. Until then nay have become the ceo over you and youre making the decisions as you well should do. I encourage everybody listening. You know your health and age and stage. You know the complexity. Dont let anybody coerce you into making a decision that is counter productive to your well being. Thank you so much. And so many of us look to you and you have been there for us. A rock to the community and the country. We love you for it. There are a lot of ways to help your neighbors who need help. Including communities of color. Go to impact your world on the cnn site. Cnn. Com impact. That was amazing. I receive all of that. I hope everyone around the world receives that. T. D. Jakes and robbert smith. And the rest. Thank you. We want to end this special hour with a focus on the souls that we have lost. The statistics are staggering. This is about much more than numbers. This is about mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters. Friends who have been killed. So as we honor the lives lost we will again be leaning on the music of jazz legend. Who performed in quarantine themselves. Playing 12s it. By their father. Who also lost his own battle with covid19. Adversity came to town and said, show me what youre made of. So we showed it our people, sourcing and distributing more fresh food than anyone. We showed it our drivers helping grocers restock their shelves. We showed it how were donating millions of meals to those in need. We showed it how we helped thousands of restaurants convert to takeout and pop up markets. And how were encouraging all americans to take out to give back. Adversity came to town. So we looked it right in the eye. And it wont be us. That blinks first. The following is a cnn special report. Tonight we look to the timeline for the truth. We think we have it very well under control. The very next day his administration declared a Public Health emergency. What did the president do about the coronavirus . I issued a travel restriction from china. Public health experts, they say he bought himself a little bit of time and then he just squandered it. What did the president say . Its going to disappear one day. Its like a miracle. It will disappear. And did it match reality . A cdc official said publicly it was not a question of if this virus spreads, but when. How delayed actions and false statements from beijing to the white house contributed to missing supplies. Were running out of medications. Were running out of equipment. Slow testing, and confusion about the best way forward. Its frustrating. Its disheartening. We can do this. We can do this. We know how to do this