>> dedicating the dream. >> in this place he will stand for all time. the martin luther king jr. memorial is officially open on the national mall with an emotional ceremony. and living the dream, finally. he waited more than two decades in prison to win his innocence and a title. all that right here, right now on cnn. >> hello, everyone. i'm don lemon in atlanta. thank you for joining us. we're going to start with a tragic day in auto racing. >> in front of him. >> whoa, here we go. >> huge contact. up in turn number two. multiple cars involved. >> what you're looking at right there that, is a video of a crash that killed two-time indy 500 winner dan wheldon. it happened today in a horrific multicar crash in las vegas. the race had barely started with one slip set off this fiery chain reaction. wheldon's car went airborne. the car disintegrated. flames and debris flew off in all directions. wheldon was airlifted to the hospital but was pronounced dead a couple hours later. an emotional meeting among the drivers. they agreed to cancel the race. instead, they honored wheldon with a slow five-lap trip around the course. wheldon's number 77 was put at the top of the win inner's pole in the infield. let's bring in t.j. holmes tonight. several other drivers were also taken to the hospital. what is going on where you are now at that track? >> you know, it's just horrific. it's a sad day. you know, we're used to seeing -- we know that accidents are a part of racing. but we're used to seeing them get up and walk away so oftentimes no matter how horrific the crash looks. we're here at the track still. right behind me to my right here is really that first turn, turn one and two. this is the straightaway here. there is so much debris. the debris from where the wreck first started, the debris continued for about three quarters of a mile to give you an idea. and these are cars that are going literally 220 miles an hour. you can't stop. you can't just throw on the brakes when something happens in front of you. and that is what played out here. we'll give you a look at. this we do have the video. just a horrible crash about 11 or 12 laps into this race today. dan wheldon was actually up for a $5 million prize as part of a promotion if he won this race. there were so many factors playing in to this accident. but this was built here, don, as the race that was really going to help indy going into next year. kind of been a struggling series for the past several years. but the new ceo really was betting a lot on this race, promoting it. there were 34 cars. that's a record for this track. he had been promoting it on the las vegas strip. and so many things were a part of it. and now to have this on this day is just -- is just horrific. i talked to a few folks who were still left out here after the race. listen to them describe what they saw and also their feelings after the race. >> you had probably three full safety crews around him. he was not moving in the car. i mean we were able to get the -- we were able to look in right at him. it didn't look good. >> you've been following racing since the late '50s. you have ever seen anything like this? >> no. that's what totally beyond anything i've ever seen. it was just total carnage for a while. >> and, don, a couple things that will be talked about now after this race. 34 cars were entered into this race. again, that's a record for this track. that means there were going to be a lot of cars on the track going 220 miles an hour. these are not like nascar stock cars that bump each other. it's a part of racing. they cannot touch each other. when the tires touch something is going to go tragically wrong. that will be talked about after this race. the $5 million prize will be talked about as far as a special promotion. did that factor into the drivers racing harder? also you had two guys going up for the championship here. they were out here racing hard. you had two rookies going for a championship here as well. it was danica patrick's last race. there were so many story lines to this particular race. and people will be talking now and questioning whether some of that played some kind of a factor in how the racing was going and if it possibly played any role in this accident. but right now, just a horrific picture of the crash and racing lost one of their superstars today, dan wheldon. >> we'll get to that. the number of people that entered the race and we'll hear from danica patrick. thank you for that. we want to bring in patrick snell. cnn sports. everyone knows auto racing is extremely dangerous. but when it actually happens like this, it is a complete shock. let's talk about this. 225 miles per hour. and more cars for this race than normal. >> right. and the big concern is during practice, during the week voices had been raised. listen, the speeds are getting up to 225 miles an hour. you got more competitors that you would normally be allowed to have in this kind of an indycar meeting. and basically, i think people perhaps got caught up in the whole race. this was the season finale. we had two races going for the title. australia's world power and dario franchitti. the focus was on them and the exciting spectacular seasonal razzmatazz of the finale in las vegas. perhaps this went under the radar, the fact there were safety concerns over the speeds. >> and you interviewed dan wheldon and did so recently. >> dan wheldon is a character. as a fellow brit, i mourning. no question about that. extremely popular. huge respect from his piers. that's come out already. we've had so many tweets about him and his achievement. there's no question, don, that the world of motorsports has lost one of its favorite sons. that's very evident indeed. 33 years young, leaving behind a wife and two very young sons as well. >> patrick snell, thank you. patrick, i want to read this. this is from danica patrick. she released a statement, saying racing lost a wonderful champion today. dan brought so much excitement and personality to the sport and its fans. he was a great driver and i feel privileged to have raced with him. i pray not only for him but for his wife suzy and their two boys and the rest of his family. of course, there are many others praying for them as well. and there is the family right there. our thanks to cnn's patrick snell. we're going to move on now to other news. in philadelphia, police have made a horrifying discovery. you're not going to believe this one. four mentally challenged adults locked and chained in the basement of an apartment building. the three men and one woman are believed to have been there for a week. three people are in customer -- are in custody. they're accused of holding the captives to get their social security checks. susan candiotti reports. >> reporter: don, it's almost too awful to think about what happened to four adults inside this apartment building. it was simply put a room of horrors. police call it an act of evil. in a basement below the basement of this philadelphia house, a chain shackled one of four mentally and physically challenged adults to a boiler, all of them locked behind a steel door. one woman and three men age 29 to 41. >> it looks like a dunkon. these people were stored like surplus meat in the basement. >> reporter: held captive in a 15 x 15 foot room, emaciated and covered in bed sores and filthy conditions. the building's owner discovered them saturday when he heard dogs barking inside. he pried the door open and couldn't believe his eyes. >> one person was from the left ankle with the pad lock and chain. and the police didn't have the tools to cut the chain. i got my hacksaw and i cut throughout pad lock. >> quite simply this case makes you shake your head. i mean it's despicable and unspeakable. the mere fact that, you know, individuals would treat disadvantaged people like this is just ridiculous. i mean it just makes us sick. >> reporter: neighbors couldn't believe what was going on. >> crazy that somebody like this in real life can do something like this. this is stuff you see in movies. >> reporter: three people are charged including linda weston who police say orchestrated the whole thing. the suspects traveled with their victims from texas it florida and arrived in philadelphia october 4th. they're jailed on six charges including kidnapping and aggravated assault. investigators say they might have been stealing social security checks of the alleged victims. the fbi is looking into that. the four victims are now hospitalized. >> i don't know know what the motivation in this is financial or just out and out evil. i'm not sure. but either way, it's just a despicable act. >> reporter: the victims were in such bad shape the landlord told us if he had found them one day later, he believes they would have been dead. don? >> susan candiotti, thank you very much. in philadelphia for us tonight. martin luther king jr. is the first african-american to be memorialized on the national mall. ♪ lord lead me on >> aretha franklin, queen of soul among the celebrities and dignitaries at the dedication ceremony today. a 30 foot statue of king now stands between the jefrson and lincoln memorials. those who spoke today included some of king's children plus congressman john lewis, dan rather and president of the united states. >> if he were alive today, i believe he would remind us that the unemployed worker can rightly challenge the excesses of wall street without demonizing all who work there. and the businessman can enter tough negotiations with his companies union without vilifying the right to collectively bargain. he would want us to know we can argue fiercely about the proper size and role of government without questioning each other's love for this country. >> a dedication was set for august but was postponed because of hurricane irene. dr. cornell west recently told me he planned to mark the dedication of the king memorial by getting arrested and he did. the princeton university professor was among occupy protesters in washington. he was arrested on the steps of the u.s. supreme court while holding a sign that said poverty is the greatest violence of all. he said being arrested was in the spirit of dr. king's disobedience. when we come back here on cnn, we'll have a live report from where the occupy movement all began and has now blossomed worldwide. now what? and later, a wrongly accused boxer spent two decades in prison. he's finally out. and at 52 years old, he just won his first pro fight. but also, it's his last. life insurance companies treat you like a policy, not a person. instead of getting to know you they simply assign you a number. aviva is here to change all that. we're bringing humanity back to insurance and putting people before policies. aviva life insurance and annuities. we are building insurance around you. at red lobster. there's so many choices. the guests love it. [ male announcer ] it's endless shrimp today at red lobster. as much as you like any way you like, like new sweet and spicy shrimp, all for $15.99. my name is angela trapp, and i sea food differently. gives you a 50 percent annual bonus. so you earn 50 percent more cash. if you're not satisfied with 50% more cash, send it back! i'll be right here, waiting for it. who wouldn't want more cash? [ insects chirping ] i'll take it. i'll make it rain up in here. [ male announcer ] the new capital one cash rewards card. the card for people who want 50% more cash. what's in your wallet? sorry i'll clean this up. shouldn't have made it rain. aspercreme breaks the grip, with maximum-strength medicine and no embarrassing odor. break the grip of pain with aspercreme. 30 days and counting. the occupy wall street phenomenon in new york has gone global with demonstrations this weekend with rallies against europe and asia. let's head back to where it started right now. cnn contributor, errol louis is in zuccotti park in new york. this is becoming your position for us. you're becoming our occupy wall street correspondent here. so here's the question. they're still going strong. is the enthusiasm waning and did they ever clean that place? >> did they ever clean that place? it's funny you should say that, don. there is something going on as we speak. there is chanting going on on the other side of the park. apparently police are trying to take down a phalanx of tents on the other side of the park. and there is some chanting going on. we're going to go over and take a look in just a moment. but, no, the morale is sky high. frankly, they had it go international. that was the news of the day. i went over to the press area and i said what's going on? they say we went international yesterday. they're very proud that there were protests marches in sympathy of their cause in italy and in south korea and in london and in tokyo and all across the united states. so they feel like they're very much on a roll. although whether that's true tomorrow morning here down near wall street remains to be seen. >> so here's the question. just update us again. so what you're hearing is we know they were supposed to clean the park and there was consternation on the occupy wall streeters against the city. so right now we're hearing that police were trying to take down some tents and then -- is that all we know? >> yes. that's all -- it literally happened just as we were going live. i hear chants right now going on. someone ran over and told us this was going on. and, you know, it could be any number of different things. frankly, you know, it's unlike most parks here. there is a very unusual sort of thing that non-new yorkers wouldn't necessarily know about. but this is actually a private park. but they made a deal with the city when they acquired the park that it would become open to the public 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. so that is very unusual. >> hey, errol, do us a favor. check it out for us. as you get information, will you come back and report? >> absolutely. >> errol louis at zuccotti park, thank you, sir. we appreciate your reporting tonight. we want to go to las vegas where cnn is set to host the next major test for the republicans battling for the presidency. on tuesday, they meet for a debate cosponsored by the western leadership conference. and our own jim acosta is standing by in the strip in vegas for us now and so is steve sebelius. a political reporter for the las vegas review journal. good to see both of you. let's start with you, jim. every time we have one of these debates, it seems like there is a new attention grabber. this time around, of course, it is herman cain. it was other candidates before that. it was michelle bachman and others. now it's herman cain's turn. >> reporter: that's right, don. this is going to be a big test for herman cain on tuesday night. and a lot of republicans are going to be watching to see how he handles, how he responds to a couple of controversies that popped up just this weekend, don, you know, down in tennessee. herman cain was campaigning and he talked about the fact that he would like to see an electrical fence down on the u.s./mexico border to keep illegal immigrants out of the country. and, you know, that really raised a lot of eyebrows. he said on "meet the press" this morning he was only joking. i would imagine that that is going to come up at the debate on tuesday night. he's going to be asked about that. one of the other candidates may challenge him on it. and his 9-9-9 tax plan which he obviously has gotten a lot of air time and a lot of attention for. it came out over the weekend, don, a couple of analysts looked at that tax plan and said it looks like lower and middle income americans will be paying more taxes and he acknowledged that on one of the sunday talk shows. so he's going to have to get through this test. he looks a lot like some of the other candidates you talked about, don, michelle bachman, rick perry. they both emerged as the unromney in this campaign. they went up like a shooting star and then imploded when they were held up to the media spotlight. >> i guess fickle is a good word at this point. still, it's early on in this process. if they're not in yet, it's not early on. it's still fairly early on. steve, let's talk about the issues in this debate that are really affecting las vegas or nevada as a whole. 14% unemployment in the city. lots of immigration issues for the state. and should these candidates be addressing this on tuesday night? they will be, i'm sure. >> well, yeah, absolutely they should be addressing it. nevada voters preparing for our caucus now on january 14 do want to hear about some of those things. i'm sure the issue of yucca mountain the place for nuclear waste is going to come up as well. really the unemployment and jobs issue, that will be the number one issue here on voters' minds. that certainly something the candidates have to address. >> who do you think, which candidate is going to appeal most, do you believe, to nevada republicans and why? >> well, i think it's going to be mitt romney. mitt romney in 2008 captured 51% of the votes in the caucus. he still has an organization here. he rehired the staff he had in 2008. and the mormon community in las vegas, very small part of the population. they turn out almost 100%. i think it's mitt romney's game to lose right now. that's especially true since the caucus date was moved up leaving candidates with a month less time to organize. >> okay. so this is for steve and then jim. i want you to weigh in on this. you say it's going to be mitt romney, steve. that's what you say. herman cain is going up in the polls perry is seeing some surge and mitt romney is level, going stagnant. so what is it about mitt romney in your estimation as a nevadan that it's not appealing? >> well, mitt romney certainly has appeal here. to republicans though nationwide, he's running in the republican primary. there's strain of conservatism that says that mitt romney is just not one of them. i don't know how strong that is in nevada. but certainly mitt romney also gained about the fact that he says out of solidarity with new hampshire he's going to skip the nevada caucus entirely. really, it does come down to mitt romney. he'll do well here. how well he does in other places, that's an open question. >> what does he have to do on tuesday night and also chris christie, one would have thought that chris christie the darling of the republican party that it might have given him a boost that, didn't even happen. >> yeah. you know, mitt romney, you know, he has really done so well in all of these debates. i mean whether you're republican or democrat, a lot of independent folks have looked at this and said has won all of these debates. if he comes in on tuesday night and runs the table again and cleans up here in vegas and wins this debate on tuesday night, it is going to be hard to stop the chatter that he is the eventual nominee. you already saw that starting to emerge as a narrative coming out of the last tuesday debate up in dartmouth. if mitt romney has another strong performance, it's going to be hard for the other republican candidates to stop that narrative emerging from what happens here on tuesday night. herman cain is going to try his best to throw mitt romney off his game. i think we'll see the other candidates do that as well. mitt romney's biggest challenge is something you hear from what, -- from what the democrats are saying right now. david axelrod was saying this on one of the sunday talk shows. mitt romney is at this 20% to 25% plateau among republicans. he has to figure out a way to get above that in order to capture the nomination, i think. and that's his biggest challenge at this point. >> jim acosta, thanks to both of you. we'll be watching. it's going to be interesting on tuesday. who will come out on top in the cnn western republican presid