for many americans, mount rushmore is one of the country s most patriotic and awe-inspiring symbols, like a giant apple pie wrapped in a kid rock t-shirt, yee-ha. but for others, it s a reminder that this country was intended to be whites only. as we talk about the removal of controversial monuments and statues, mount rushmore is a part of that. located in the black hills of western south dakota, it s become the epicenter in a battle over who are the rightful inhabitants and caretakers of the land currently known as the united states of america. i m letting you go first because i m a gentleman. but really, it s because i m afraid. and these two have a lot to say about all of it. this is nick tilson of and krystal two bulls of the northern cheyenne and lakota. she is also a military veteran. we met at the entrance of mount rushmore park there with the ndn collective, an indigenous nonprofit fighting to get indigenous lands back into indigenous hands. our people this
looking to share the good news a other than the type news the media shares out here. the seventh generation has arrived. with nearly 50% of the pine reservation falling under the age of 25, they re driving a new wave of activism, taking back indigenous land, culture, and rights, and they are determined to define the future of pine ridge. i m meeting pine ridge council leadership interns devon hernandez and destiny big pro. do you want to keep your masks on? i m following vp. reporter: along with the vice president of the pine ridge council and political adviser tasha friday. it s under my office, so i m going to cope mine on. reporter: indigenous youth like devon and destiny are starting to peel back the layer, a revolutionary act. it is a direct challenge to how in the past the u.s. government made their culture and traditions illegal. ever since i was little, i
modes of public transportation. i can breathe. yes. reporter: the justice department is appealing the ruling by a federal judge who found the mandate exceeded the cdc s authority. just hours before doj filed, the white house said any appeal would be about preserving the cdc s ability to respond to health crises. we expect there to be ups and downs in the pandemic and we certainly want the cdc to continue to have this authority. reporter: public health experts say that authority is critical to keeping the public safe. when we under power public health decisionmaking we put ourselves at risk, our families at risk in the long term. reporter: but the doj as move follows days of confusion from passenger goes nation wild. as the tsa and most local transit systems made masks optional. one minute wear them, one minute don t wear them. hey, i m keeping mine on. reporter: complicating things some jurisdictions have their own rules like philadelphia, san
and bus system, masks are still required. and up in philadelphia masks are required indoors in locations indoors across the city but not at the 30th street station and not on septa trains either. so it s a lot of mixed messages from folks. here s what some folks i talked to have to say. i feel as though it s a lot of unexplained things going on. i feel like one minute wear them, the other minute don t wear them. so hey, i m keeping mine on. confusing. absolutely confusing. and difficult to navigate in terms of what we should do, shouldn t do. options that we have and don t have. reporter: and this all comes as cases are on the rise here in d.c. and in 33 other states today. so while mandates may be changing, covid is keeping on. so dr. patel, gary mentioned it there. you have cases having a bit of an uptick especially in the northeast. obviously the decision to get rid of the mandate was a legal one made by a federal judge.
and we really did a great thing today, and we re really thrilled about. i ve been involved in tourism my entire life, and everyone in las vegas shad rally around this because this is what our rallies are about. and you just had a good friend of mine on, dr. seiff. that s how small this community is. we all know each other. you re the chairman and ceo of diamond resorts, right? i was the founder of diamond resorts. the hotel community, you guys know each other. many of the people who work in the hotels know each other. what is it like for the people here? you said nothing like this has happened, it s a small community. what are people going through?