we begin with the latest developments in the mass shooting in illinois. six killed, 38 injured when a gunman opened fire at a fourth of july parade in highland park. that is an affluent suburb of chicago. this video shows a band playing as people begin to run. other footage caught the jarring sound of gunfire. [ gunfire ] imagine the shock and confusion. maybe it was fireworks, they could rightly think. no, those were gunshots. the series of shots you heard followed by a second round of shooting that lasted about 7 seconds. the gunman was on a rooftop with a high-powered rifle. parade-goers scattering in all directions once they realized what was happening. you see a band running there. the crowd left behind chairs, toys, baby strollers, and blankets. here s one witness describing that scene. a few minutes into the parade started, like, the marching band had just passed, i heard a subsequent pop, pop, pop, all in quick succession. i thought to myself, that s not that
that s what we committed to public service for, for two decades or more. yev, you came here, as your brother says, at the young age of 4. as you grew up, what was your experience as a refugee? what was your experience as an immigrant in the united states? how do you believe that it s a different experience for a refugee trying to come here now? first of all, willie, thanks for having us here today. it is a real treat for me to be on the show with alex. you know, our refugee experience 30 well, 42 years ago, we came very young. our dad bored the full brunt of the refugee experience. not speaking the language, coming to a brand-new country with a young family, hauling furniture for $20 a day until he learned enough english to become a new york city engineer and really start a new life. for us, we were very young. we were very resilient.
far-off land. for decades, for generations, we ve been able to come together all as one, and as americans with shared values and shared interests. might take a while, assimilation, it might take a generation, but that s the way this country has been built. right now, we don t welcome immigrants and refugees. that s something that i would hope to see change moving forward. colonel yev vindman, obviously, lots of refugees being forced from their home country of ukraine because of the war. just wanted to get your sense as to how things are going right now, in terms of the refugees finding homes elsewhere, even if not in the u.s. just yet. but also the state of the conflict with both sides taking heavy losses. the ukrainians resisting russia s initial assault on kyiv, of course, but russia now making some slow, grinding progress in the east. yeah.
he sees himself and our family in the images of the ukrainian people. so, today, the statue of liberty is more complicated for us than it was that day on the boardwalk 37 years ago. those are the twin brothers, retired u.s. army lieutenant colonel alexander vindman and colonel yev vindman. both were born in ukraine. the refugee crisis in ukraine and elsewhere demand a stronger response from the biden administration. they join us now. gentlemen, great to have you with us. i think before we dig into what you re talking about in this opinion video about the refugee crisis in ukraine, it is important to take a step back and remind people. colonel vindman, alexander vindman, i ll start with you. of your own story, how you came to this country, what drove you out of the soviet union, the ukraine of today, and why this
joe kyiv. our mother died, so we went to italy. then we came here. those twin boys back in 1985, alexander and yev vindman, familiar names in america, featured in a ken burns documentary about the statue of liberty. the vindmans revisiting the role of america as a safe haven for immigrants, as the war in ukraine sends millions of refugees looking for a new home in europe. the vindmans join us next on morning joe. the vindmans join us next on morning joe. your projects done right