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CNN Live Today

Shell Containing Sarin Nerve Gas Explodes in Iraq; Gay, Lesbian Couples Marry in Massachusetts

Aired May 17, 2004 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We will bring you the president's speech live, 2:00 p.m. Eastern is the time set for that.
We're looking at 11:00 a.m. straight up on the East Coast, 8:00 a.m. on the West Coast. From the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Daryn Kagan.

Up first on CNN, a shell containing a small amount of nerve gas sarin exploded in Baghdad today. Our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, is our lead this hour from the Pentagon -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Daryn.

Well, some startling news, perhaps, from the briefing in Baghdad just a few moments ago. It was announced that it was actually a couple of days ago, we believe Saturday to be precise, that this shell went off in Baghdad, rigged as an explosive device. It was an artillery shell that contained some sarin nerve agent.

Let's go right to what General Kimmitt had to say just a few moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a weapon that we believe was stocked from the ex-regime time, and it had been thought to be an ordinary artillery shell set up to explode like an ordinary IED. And basically from the detection of that, and when it exploded, it indicated that it actually had some sarin in it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: Now, the shell was apparently not marked, and every indication at the moment is whoever put it there as an explosive device had no idea what was inside. Now, that does, of course, raise some concerns, how many other unmarked shells are out there? What might they contain?

But officials are also putting this, military officials are putting this into perspective. There was some dispersal of some agent. A couple of soldiers did experience some minor symptoms. But this is not a WMD attack, because the way these types of shells are constructed, they are really only most lethal when they are fired from an artillery tube. They move through the air. The lethal agent mixes together, it explodes, and that's when these are real trouble. This is not a good development, but this is not a WMD attack -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Barbara, another development out of the Pentagon today, the news that thousands of troops will be moved from South Korea into Iraq. What can you tell us about that, please?

STARR: Well, officials are confirming, Daryn, that they have now notified the government of South Korea that about 4,000 U.S. infantry troops from the 2nd Infantry Division may be taken out of South Korea and moved over to Iraq to fill in there. Under the agreement with South Korea, that notification is necessary. And the U.S. is already saying that while they won't probably replace those ground troops one- for-one in South Korea, they will make some additional assets available -- possibly an aircraft carrier, Air Force aircraft, additional intelligence and surveillance assets -- to pick up the slack when those troops do move over to Iraq -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, thank you for that.

We want to go live right now to Baghdad. That's where our Ben Wedeman is standing by with reaction to the latest developments of the day -- Ben.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Daryn. Well, we did hear an update from General Kimmitt on the death toll. He said that seven people were killed in this blast that took place at 9:55 in the morning outside a checkpoint leading to the green zone, where the Coalition Provisional Authority is located. In addition to that, seven people were wounded -- five Iraqi civilians and two American soldiers.

Now, we have heard in the aftermath of this bomb criticism from other members of the Governing Council that the coalition has not done enough to protect the members of the Governing Council. However, we did hear from Dan Senor, one of the senior spokesmen of the Coalition Provisional Authority, saying that the coalition is doing all it can to provide adequate security to members of the council. This is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN SENOR, COALITION SPOKESMAN: The security considerations that we provide, that we give to the Iraqi Governing Council members are second to none. Their security is highly important to us. That is why we repeatedly offer them financial assistance, body armor as I said, vehicles, weapons, repeated training programs. We are constantly evaluating their security, looking at ways to improve it, as we are with our own force protection.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WEDEMAN: Now, Daryn, according to Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, who we heard just a little while ago, they say their first impression is that Abu Musab Zarqawi, that Jordanian national who's been linked to a series of attacks here in Iraq, may be the one -- or rather, the explosion bears many of the hallmarks of his action, this very high-profile target, somebody in a very dramatic attack. However, there has been a claim of responsibility for this attack on the Internet coming from a group called the Arab Resistance Movement. But that, of course, cannot be confirmed at this point -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Ben Wedeman with the latest from Baghdad. Ben, thank you.

Iraq's foreign minister says that attacks like today's suicide bombing will only increase as the handover date approaches. But in an interview with CNN's AMERICAN MORNING, he vowed that the violence will not stop the drive toward democracy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOSHYAR ZEBARI, IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER: Those challenges, those attacks will escalate gradually, and what happened today was a typical assassination attempt of an important Iraqi leader, the current president of the Governing Council for this month. Izzedine Salim, as you said in your reports, is the second member of the Governing Council we lose in this struggle. But I personally don't think it will impact the political process of the transfer of political transfer that we are going through.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: The foreign minister says the struggle plays out on the streets of Baghdad every day, but promises that anti-democratic forces will not succeed in their efforts.

Other stories from Iraq today, an American soldier has been killed in a firefight south of Baghdad. Two others were wounded. All three were members of the 1st Armored Division, which has been fighting militiamen loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

And a pair of Russian engineers held hostage for a week in Iraq were set free today. The two were kidnapped when their convoy was ambushed last Monday. A third Russian worker was killed in the attack.

Gay and lesbian couples are lining up in Massachusetts this morning after the state became the first to allow same-sex marriage. It began today at midnight.

Our Eric Philips is in Boston with more on that.

Eric -- good morning.

ERIC PHILIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, good morning to you.

9:00 this morning is when the clerk's office here at Boston city hall opened, allowing for same-sex couples to go inside and start applying for those long-awaited marriage licenses.

Behind me you can see where the crowd has been gathering here all morning long. Every now and then you can catch some cheers and clapping coming from the crowd as yet another same-sex couple emerges from the courthouse, waving the marriage license in the air as a sign of victory. Many of these couples have been waiting for years, some of them even decades, for this day to come, and so they're very happy that it, in fact, has arrived.

This all started, though, at the stroke of midnight in Cambridge, Massachusetts as some 5,000 people lined up there to celebrate the fact that this day had come. Many same-sex couples going there, applying for the licenses at that point.

There was some opposition there at the courthouse, but it was clearly overshadowed by the number of people who were there in a celebratory spirit, celebrating this day.

What will happen from this point is couples who receive their marriage licenses will then head to their local courthouses, because there is a rule here, a law here in Massachusetts that says couples have to wait three days from the time they apply for their marriage licenses to actually get married. But many of today's applicants will go will be going to local courthouses and applying for a waiver, hoping to get that waiver and thereby allowing them to marry today -- Daryn.

KAGAN: A big issue here, Eric, people who want to come from out of state to get married there, and a law from back in 1913. Where does that status stand?

PHILIPS: You know, supporters of gay marriage will say that Governor Mitt Romney really pulled this law out of nowhere. This is a law that was established back in 1913, as you said, saying that marriages performed here in the state of Massachusetts have to be performed and then recognized by other states. A lot of states don't have laws where same-sex marriages are concerned, and so he's saying that couples who are married here today and from this point on have to live in Massachusetts or state that they plan to move to Massachusetts. And so that is what he has directed the clerks in local courthouses to verify and to ask couples about that.

At least three cities, clerks in three cities say they will not ask that question. They will not require couples to say that they will, in fact, be living in Massachusetts.

So, it will be interesting to see, Daryn, what happens from this point. If, in fact, couples are married and then move out of state, have no plans on moving to the state of Massachusetts, what will happen in that case has really yet to be seen. But the governor is urging folks who get married today to either live here or to plan to move here.

KAGAN: Eric Phillips in Boston, Massachusetts.

Remembering a milestone in American history.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Remembering "Brown v. Board of Education" 50 years later with a celebration. I'm Dan Lothian in Topeka, Kansas. I'll have that story just ahead.

KAGAN: All right, thank you, Dan, for that. Plus, we are adding up the true price of gasoline. It goes far beyond what you're paying at the pump. We'll explain just ahead.

And still to come, how to plan your summer vacation with your four-legged friends in tow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS NEWS BREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: President Bush and Democrat John Kerry honor the legacy of "Brown v. Board of Education" today. Both candidates go to Topeka, Kansas, to mark a half-century since the historic Supreme Court decision that ended segregation in American schools.

Kerry spoke at an event this morning. You saw parts of that live right here on CNN. The president will help dedicate the Monroe Elementary School as a national historic site.

Our Dan Lothian is in Topeka as well this morning -- Dan.

LOTHIAN: Well, good morning, Daryn.

We are in front of Monroe Elementary School. It has been closed or has been closed now for decades. It will reopen today, but this time as a museum.

This is the school that's been at the center of "Brown v. Board of Education." It is where the young Linda Brown attended school back in the early 1950s, just one of four segregated black schools here in Topeka. It is now a National Park Service site.

Earlier in the week, we had a chance to tour the site with Latonya Miller with the National Park Service, as she gave us a walk through the halls of history.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LATONYA MILLER, PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST: We know that really a lot of chaos happened after 1954. That's really when it really erupted.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, and segregation forever.

MILLER: "Brown vs. Board of Education, the case was the cornerstone of the civil rights movement.

LOTHIAN (voice over): Fifty years later that cornerstone is etched in the classrooms and halls of Monroe Elementary, the once- segregated black school where this young girl at the center of the landmark case was first enrolled. The struggle to integrate across America is graphically displayed in black and white. MILLER: The Hall of Courage is significant because it basically will take visitors and put them in the front lines of segregation, in the riots with the epithets being screamed out, with the bulldogs.

LOTHIAN (on camera): Are you trying to give visitors the emotion of the moment?

MILLER: That is correct.

LOTHIAN: Are you not opening some of the wounds that a lot of people have wanted to kind of put behind them and say, OK, this was tough, but we've gotten over it?

MILLER: There are going to be a lot of people who come through this particular exhibit with all -- with a range of emotions, from anger to resentment to being happy that it's over, that we made it through to victory, and that's the goal of it.

LOTHIAN (voice over): This is just one of four exhibit rooms highlighting the different stages of the civil rights movement -- a movement that gained unstoppable momentum on May 17th, 1954.

(on camera): This was the headline...

MILLER: This was the headline.

LOTHIAN: ... the 17th in Topeka.

MILLER: That's correct. The Supreme Court refutes the doctrine of separate but equal education, and school segregation banned.

LOTHIAN (voice over): The old fireplace is still here. Everything else has been removed, renovated or recreated.

(on camera): Can you imagine what was happening in this hallway back in 1954?

MILLER: I can just imagine all of the African-American students, you know, yelling and screaming and running up and down the halls, the bell ringing, with the echo.

LOTHIAN (voice over): While much of the museum is about the past, it is also about the future.

MILLER: Along this wall here, of course, you find the unfinished business of "Brown." A lot of work has been done in the last 50 years, but there's still a lot more work that needs to be done. It's a reminder of where we've been, and it's also a reminder of where we don't want to go in the future.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN: As part of the dedication for the new museum, there will be several speakers here today front of the museum. Behind me now what you are seeing, thousands of people gathered here as various musical groups have been performing. We've heard from several bands as well as some local choirs.

Now a bit about the museum, what some people might find interesting is that there's very little mention about the "Brown" case specifically. Officials of the museum tell us that they wanted this museum to really be a civil rights museum, about the entire process, the chain of events that occurred before 1954 and after 1954, and certainly as you heard in that piece, what still needs to be done. They tell us the reason for that is because they believe that this case, the "Brown" case, is bigger than just one person -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Dan Lothian in Topeka, Kansas. As we mentioned, President Bush is speaking there later today. You'll see those comments live here on CNN.

The stirring scenes highlighting the birth of a movement, the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision. With all deliberate speed, it is a new film, actually, that pieces together the players and the plot lines that led to the landmark decision.

The film's creator, Peter Gilbert, is live from Los Angeles with us.

Peter, good morning.

PETER GILBERT, "WITH ALL DELIBERATE SPEED": Good morning. Thanks for having me on.

KAGAN: People might know you from earlier works like "Hoop Dreams," and yet now you've gone to "Brown v. Board of Education." Looking again, I think, a common theme through your work, looking for common people making big moves.

GILBERT: Absolutely. The thing that amazed me about these folks is that I only centered on two stories, South Carolina and Farmville, Prince Edward County in Virginia. And these were everyday people who made incredible stands before the civil rights movement as we know it and who changed the course of America by standing up for their rights.

KAGAN: And you make an interesting distinction here, because we are focused on Topeka, Kansas, today, because that is the school that is mentioned there, but actually it was a number of cases bundled together that led to this decision.

GILBERT: Yes, I mean, in my mind the people in Farmville and also in Cleardon (ph) County were under the most risk. They were in the south. They were in isolated towns. And basically, you know, they stood up to the white power structure in a way that people hadn't done before.

KAGAN: Why was a white filmmaker interested in this story, Peter?

GILBERT: Well, I believe that race is the underbelly of America. You know, I think it's great that we're talking about it today, but I hope that we keep talking about it. And I hope that, you know, it keeps going on and on and on so that we keep talking about race in our country. Unfortunately, we just let it drop by the wayside. It's uncomfortable for people. And I think it needs to be more in the political process.

And one of the things that I do in the film is that I show kids today talking about race and grappling with all the issues that we have to grapple with in America today. We just can't deny that it's not a huge issue in America.

KAGAN: Usually, when people go to the movies here, they expect a beginning, a middle, and an end to a story. But this story of "Brown v. Board of Education" is nowhere near the end, and that's reflected in the title of your movie, "With All Deliberate Speed."

GILBERT: Yes, "With All Deliberate Speed," the Supreme Court did an amazing thing by having a 9-0 decision that said segregation is illegal. But then rather than implementing it immediately, they waited a year and came up with that term, "with all deliberate speed," which basically said take your time, do whatever you want, and when you're ready integrate. And we're still, I think, dealing with the problems that those four words created.

And I think that, you know, we need to keep looking and keep making sure that our schools stay integrated and be very aware that segregation is happening in America all over.

KAGAN: And where can folks see your movie?

GILBERT: The film is in five cities right now -- Washington, New York, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles. And it's part of Discovery Docs (ph). It's in theaters. And then it will also be on television in six months. But I think what's nice is you'll really see the common people who really made this issue so important.

KAGAN: We'll be looking for it. Peter Gilbert. The movie's called "With all Deliberate Speed." Thanks for your time.

GILBERT: Thank you so much for having me on.

KAGAN: Appreciate it.

We are at 20 minutes past the hour. A check of weather coming up next and a lot more news. Stay with us here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER BREAK)

KAGAN: The landmark "Brown v. Board of Education" anniversary is propelling civil rights to center stage today. Both presidential candidates are marking the 50th anniversary of that historic court decision, ordering an end to school segregation in the U.S. A look at what they're doing when we come back.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.


Aired May 17, 2004 - 11:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We will bring you the president's speech live, 2:00 p.m. Eastern is the time set for that.
We're looking at 11:00 a.m. straight up on the East Coast, 8:00 a.m. on the West Coast. From the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Daryn Kagan.

Up first on CNN, a shell containing a small amount of nerve gas sarin exploded in Baghdad today. Our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, is our lead this hour from the Pentagon -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Daryn.

Well, some startling news, perhaps, from the briefing in Baghdad just a few moments ago. It was announced that it was actually a couple of days ago, we believe Saturday to be precise, that this shell went off in Baghdad, rigged as an explosive device. It was an artillery shell that contained some sarin nerve agent.

Let's go right to what General Kimmitt had to say just a few moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a weapon that we believe was stocked from the ex-regime time, and it had been thought to be an ordinary artillery shell set up to explode like an ordinary IED. And basically from the detection of that, and when it exploded, it indicated that it actually had some sarin in it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: Now, the shell was apparently not marked, and every indication at the moment is whoever put it there as an explosive device had no idea what was inside. Now, that does, of course, raise some concerns, how many other unmarked shells are out there? What might they contain?

But officials are also putting this, military officials are putting this into perspective. There was some dispersal of some agent. A couple of soldiers did experience some minor symptoms. But this is not a WMD attack, because the way these types of shells are constructed, they are really only most lethal when they are fired from an artillery tube. They move through the air. The lethal agent mixes together, it explodes, and that's when these are real trouble. This is not a good development, but this is not a WMD attack -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Barbara, another development out of the Pentagon today, the news that thousands of troops will be moved from South Korea into Iraq. What can you tell us about that, please?

STARR: Well, officials are confirming, Daryn, that they have now notified the government of South Korea that about 4,000 U.S. infantry troops from the 2nd Infantry Division may be taken out of South Korea and moved over to Iraq to fill in there. Under the agreement with South Korea, that notification is necessary. And the U.S. is already saying that while they won't probably replace those ground troops one- for-one in South Korea, they will make some additional assets available -- possibly an aircraft carrier, Air Force aircraft, additional intelligence and surveillance assets -- to pick up the slack when those troops do move over to Iraq -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, thank you for that.

We want to go live right now to Baghdad. That's where our Ben Wedeman is standing by with reaction to the latest developments of the day -- Ben.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Daryn. Well, we did hear an update from General Kimmitt on the death toll. He said that seven people were killed in this blast that took place at 9:55 in the morning outside a checkpoint leading to the green zone, where the Coalition Provisional Authority is located. In addition to that, seven people were wounded -- five Iraqi civilians and two American soldiers.

Now, we have heard in the aftermath of this bomb criticism from other members of the Governing Council that the coalition has not done enough to protect the members of the Governing Council. However, we did hear from Dan Senor, one of the senior spokesmen of the Coalition Provisional Authority, saying that the coalition is doing all it can to provide adequate security to members of the council. This is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN SENOR, COALITION SPOKESMAN: The security considerations that we provide, that we give to the Iraqi Governing Council members are second to none. Their security is highly important to us. That is why we repeatedly offer them financial assistance, body armor as I said, vehicles, weapons, repeated training programs. We are constantly evaluating their security, looking at ways to improve it, as we are with our own force protection.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WEDEMAN: Now, Daryn, according to Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, who we heard just a little while ago, they say their first impression is that Abu Musab Zarqawi, that Jordanian national who's been linked to a series of attacks here in Iraq, may be the one -- or rather, the explosion bears many of the hallmarks of his action, this very high-profile target, somebody in a very dramatic attack. However, there has been a claim of responsibility for this attack on the Internet coming from a group called the Arab Resistance Movement. But that, of course, cannot be confirmed at this point -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Ben Wedeman with the latest from Baghdad. Ben, thank you.

Iraq's foreign minister says that attacks like today's suicide bombing will only increase as the handover date approaches. But in an interview with CNN's AMERICAN MORNING, he vowed that the violence will not stop the drive toward democracy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOSHYAR ZEBARI, IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER: Those challenges, those attacks will escalate gradually, and what happened today was a typical assassination attempt of an important Iraqi leader, the current president of the Governing Council for this month. Izzedine Salim, as you said in your reports, is the second member of the Governing Council we lose in this struggle. But I personally don't think it will impact the political process of the transfer of political transfer that we are going through.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: The foreign minister says the struggle plays out on the streets of Baghdad every day, but promises that anti-democratic forces will not succeed in their efforts.

Other stories from Iraq today, an American soldier has been killed in a firefight south of Baghdad. Two others were wounded. All three were members of the 1st Armored Division, which has been fighting militiamen loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

And a pair of Russian engineers held hostage for a week in Iraq were set free today. The two were kidnapped when their convoy was ambushed last Monday. A third Russian worker was killed in the attack.

Gay and lesbian couples are lining up in Massachusetts this morning after the state became the first to allow same-sex marriage. It began today at midnight.

Our Eric Philips is in Boston with more on that.

Eric -- good morning.

ERIC PHILIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, good morning to you.

9:00 this morning is when the clerk's office here at Boston city hall opened, allowing for same-sex couples to go inside and start applying for those long-awaited marriage licenses.

Behind me you can see where the crowd has been gathering here all morning long. Every now and then you can catch some cheers and clapping coming from the crowd as yet another same-sex couple emerges from the courthouse, waving the marriage license in the air as a sign of victory. Many of these couples have been waiting for years, some of them even decades, for this day to come, and so they're very happy that it, in fact, has arrived.

This all started, though, at the stroke of midnight in Cambridge, Massachusetts as some 5,000 people lined up there to celebrate the fact that this day had come. Many same-sex couples going there, applying for the licenses at that point.

There was some opposition there at the courthouse, but it was clearly overshadowed by the number of people who were there in a celebratory spirit, celebrating this day.

What will happen from this point is couples who receive their marriage licenses will then head to their local courthouses, because there is a rule here, a law here in Massachusetts that says couples have to wait three days from the time they apply for their marriage licenses to actually get married. But many of today's applicants will go will be going to local courthouses and applying for a waiver, hoping to get that waiver and thereby allowing them to marry today -- Daryn.

KAGAN: A big issue here, Eric, people who want to come from out of state to get married there, and a law from back in 1913. Where does that status stand?

PHILIPS: You know, supporters of gay marriage will say that Governor Mitt Romney really pulled this law out of nowhere. This is a law that was established back in 1913, as you said, saying that marriages performed here in the state of Massachusetts have to be performed and then recognized by other states. A lot of states don't have laws where same-sex marriages are concerned, and so he's saying that couples who are married here today and from this point on have to live in Massachusetts or state that they plan to move to Massachusetts. And so that is what he has directed the clerks in local courthouses to verify and to ask couples about that.

At least three cities, clerks in three cities say they will not ask that question. They will not require couples to say that they will, in fact, be living in Massachusetts.

So, it will be interesting to see, Daryn, what happens from this point. If, in fact, couples are married and then move out of state, have no plans on moving to the state of Massachusetts, what will happen in that case has really yet to be seen. But the governor is urging folks who get married today to either live here or to plan to move here.

KAGAN: Eric Phillips in Boston, Massachusetts.

Remembering a milestone in American history.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Remembering "Brown v. Board of Education" 50 years later with a celebration. I'm Dan Lothian in Topeka, Kansas. I'll have that story just ahead.

KAGAN: All right, thank you, Dan, for that. Plus, we are adding up the true price of gasoline. It goes far beyond what you're paying at the pump. We'll explain just ahead.

And still to come, how to plan your summer vacation with your four-legged friends in tow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS NEWS BREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: President Bush and Democrat John Kerry honor the legacy of "Brown v. Board of Education" today. Both candidates go to Topeka, Kansas, to mark a half-century since the historic Supreme Court decision that ended segregation in American schools.

Kerry spoke at an event this morning. You saw parts of that live right here on CNN. The president will help dedicate the Monroe Elementary School as a national historic site.

Our Dan Lothian is in Topeka as well this morning -- Dan.

LOTHIAN: Well, good morning, Daryn.

We are in front of Monroe Elementary School. It has been closed or has been closed now for decades. It will reopen today, but this time as a museum.

This is the school that's been at the center of "Brown v. Board of Education." It is where the young Linda Brown attended school back in the early 1950s, just one of four segregated black schools here in Topeka. It is now a National Park Service site.

Earlier in the week, we had a chance to tour the site with Latonya Miller with the National Park Service, as she gave us a walk through the halls of history.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LATONYA MILLER, PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST: We know that really a lot of chaos happened after 1954. That's really when it really erupted.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, and segregation forever.

MILLER: "Brown vs. Board of Education, the case was the cornerstone of the civil rights movement.

LOTHIAN (voice over): Fifty years later that cornerstone is etched in the classrooms and halls of Monroe Elementary, the once- segregated black school where this young girl at the center of the landmark case was first enrolled. The struggle to integrate across America is graphically displayed in black and white. MILLER: The Hall of Courage is significant because it basically will take visitors and put them in the front lines of segregation, in the riots with the epithets being screamed out, with the bulldogs.

LOTHIAN (on camera): Are you trying to give visitors the emotion of the moment?

MILLER: That is correct.

LOTHIAN: Are you not opening some of the wounds that a lot of people have wanted to kind of put behind them and say, OK, this was tough, but we've gotten over it?

MILLER: There are going to be a lot of people who come through this particular exhibit with all -- with a range of emotions, from anger to resentment to being happy that it's over, that we made it through to victory, and that's the goal of it.

LOTHIAN (voice over): This is just one of four exhibit rooms highlighting the different stages of the civil rights movement -- a movement that gained unstoppable momentum on May 17th, 1954.

(on camera): This was the headline...

MILLER: This was the headline.

LOTHIAN: ... the 17th in Topeka.

MILLER: That's correct. The Supreme Court refutes the doctrine of separate but equal education, and school segregation banned.

LOTHIAN (voice over): The old fireplace is still here. Everything else has been removed, renovated or recreated.

(on camera): Can you imagine what was happening in this hallway back in 1954?

MILLER: I can just imagine all of the African-American students, you know, yelling and screaming and running up and down the halls, the bell ringing, with the echo.

LOTHIAN (voice over): While much of the museum is about the past, it is also about the future.

MILLER: Along this wall here, of course, you find the unfinished business of "Brown." A lot of work has been done in the last 50 years, but there's still a lot more work that needs to be done. It's a reminder of where we've been, and it's also a reminder of where we don't want to go in the future.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN: As part of the dedication for the new museum, there will be several speakers here today front of the museum. Behind me now what you are seeing, thousands of people gathered here as various musical groups have been performing. We've heard from several bands as well as some local choirs.

Now a bit about the museum, what some people might find interesting is that there's very little mention about the "Brown" case specifically. Officials of the museum tell us that they wanted this museum to really be a civil rights museum, about the entire process, the chain of events that occurred before 1954 and after 1954, and certainly as you heard in that piece, what still needs to be done. They tell us the reason for that is because they believe that this case, the "Brown" case, is bigger than just one person -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Dan Lothian in Topeka, Kansas. As we mentioned, President Bush is speaking there later today. You'll see those comments live here on CNN.

The stirring scenes highlighting the birth of a movement, the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision. With all deliberate speed, it is a new film, actually, that pieces together the players and the plot lines that led to the landmark decision.

The film's creator, Peter Gilbert, is live from Los Angeles with us.

Peter, good morning.

PETER GILBERT, "WITH ALL DELIBERATE SPEED": Good morning. Thanks for having me on.

KAGAN: People might know you from earlier works like "Hoop Dreams," and yet now you've gone to "Brown v. Board of Education." Looking again, I think, a common theme through your work, looking for common people making big moves.

GILBERT: Absolutely. The thing that amazed me about these folks is that I only centered on two stories, South Carolina and Farmville, Prince Edward County in Virginia. And these were everyday people who made incredible stands before the civil rights movement as we know it and who changed the course of America by standing up for their rights.

KAGAN: And you make an interesting distinction here, because we are focused on Topeka, Kansas, today, because that is the school that is mentioned there, but actually it was a number of cases bundled together that led to this decision.

GILBERT: Yes, I mean, in my mind the people in Farmville and also in Cleardon (ph) County were under the most risk. They were in the south. They were in isolated towns. And basically, you know, they stood up to the white power structure in a way that people hadn't done before.

KAGAN: Why was a white filmmaker interested in this story, Peter?

GILBERT: Well, I believe that race is the underbelly of America. You know, I think it's great that we're talking about it today, but I hope that we keep talking about it. And I hope that, you know, it keeps going on and on and on so that we keep talking about race in our country. Unfortunately, we just let it drop by the wayside. It's uncomfortable for people. And I think it needs to be more in the political process.

And one of the things that I do in the film is that I show kids today talking about race and grappling with all the issues that we have to grapple with in America today. We just can't deny that it's not a huge issue in America.

KAGAN: Usually, when people go to the movies here, they expect a beginning, a middle, and an end to a story. But this story of "Brown v. Board of Education" is nowhere near the end, and that's reflected in the title of your movie, "With All Deliberate Speed."

GILBERT: Yes, "With All Deliberate Speed," the Supreme Court did an amazing thing by having a 9-0 decision that said segregation is illegal. But then rather than implementing it immediately, they waited a year and came up with that term, "with all deliberate speed," which basically said take your time, do whatever you want, and when you're ready integrate. And we're still, I think, dealing with the problems that those four words created.

And I think that, you know, we need to keep looking and keep making sure that our schools stay integrated and be very aware that segregation is happening in America all over.

KAGAN: And where can folks see your movie?

GILBERT: The film is in five cities right now -- Washington, New York, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles. And it's part of Discovery Docs (ph). It's in theaters. And then it will also be on television in six months. But I think what's nice is you'll really see the common people who really made this issue so important.

KAGAN: We'll be looking for it. Peter Gilbert. The movie's called "With all Deliberate Speed." Thanks for your time.

GILBERT: Thank you so much for having me on.

KAGAN: Appreciate it.

We are at 20 minutes past the hour. A check of weather coming up next and a lot more news. Stay with us here on CNN.

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KAGAN: The landmark "Brown v. Board of Education" anniversary is propelling civil rights to center stage today. Both presidential candidates are marking the 50th anniversary of that historic court decision, ordering an end to school segregation in the U.S. A look at what they're doing when we come back.

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