Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Outrage Grows Over Saudi Rape Case; Thanksgiving Travel Headaches
Aired November 21, 2007 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: OK, it is stormy in some spots, sunny in others. Whatever the case, the travel crunch, it is certainly on.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, millions of viewers you are on road, and or perhaps you're in the air, and you're racing for a mix of rough weather on this pre-Thanksgiving travel day, one of the busiest of the year.
Hello again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Kyra Phillips, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
There we go. That's what we were waiting on. I was actually checking the monitor to look to see Ed Lavandera. I see Ed has boarded the plane.
Ed, you're with your little one on your lap. Talk to us, my friend.
OK. All right. I guess we can't hear Ed, but Ed is taking a trip across country, started in Los Angeles last night, landed in Denver, and then flew to Dallas from Denver. And now he's on a plane in Dallas and he's headed to New York City. I think he can hear us now. He's traveling with his entire family. He's been bringing us these slice of life stories.
Hey, Ed, are you there?
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I'm here. Can you hear me?
LEMON: I can. Your audio's a little tricky here. It's a little tricky.
You know what? We're going to try to go back to you. If you get to the point where they saw all the cabin doors are closed, and you have got to turn off the electronic -- wait. That looks clear.
WHITFIELD: Yes, that's pretty good. But his little wee one is very patient and doing well.
LEMON: You think so? Yes.
WHITFIELD: She's not like slamming him, hitting him...
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Daddy, I got to go.
Yes.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: Anyway, we're trying this new technology here on CNN where we can really go live from just about anywhere, where you can get a signal, a Wi-Fi signal or what have you. And that's what we were doing with Ed Lavandera.
WHITFIELD: But at least the good news out of this image is we see that they're in their seats.
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: And sometimes that's half the battle is...
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Not even that. That's like 80 percent of the battle, especially when you're traveling with kids.
WHITFIELD: So, at least they're on the plane.
LEMON: Yes, so the's Eddie with his little kid.
Eddie, if you can hear us, you can just jump in here, because we're going to continue to look at you on the plane and talk to you there.
LAVANDERA: Yes. I can definitely hear you guys.
LEMON: Yes, go on. Tell us about your experience so far.
LAVANDERA: I can definitely hear your guys.
This is -- this is a -- no, I was just going to say I just really can't wait for this day to end, as much fun as we're having. This is the first flight. This is little Olivia (ph). And she's got the microphone now. And she's got her twin sister who is just right back here. The family's split up for now. We will figure all this out after we get settled back in and talk to you guys.
But she just turned one and she's about to take off for her -- this is her maiden flight. She has never flown before. So not only are we putting new technology to the test. We're putting newborn kids to the test...
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Absolutely.
LAVANDERA: ... make it to New York City of all places. LEMON: So, let me ask you. So far, I think the last time we checked with you, you were at gate C-27. You looked up on the monitor and you saw your flight was delayed. Was it an hour and 20 minutes or so? Where are you on your time schedule now, Ed?
LAVANDERA: Let's see here. We're supposed to be taking off in about 20 minutes or so. The flight was supposed to have taken off at 1:20, but after we did a couple of the last live shots, I had some people come to me in the airport and they were saying everything's going pretty well today, and people are really relaxed.
You know, if they get there an hour-and-a-half, maybe -- I think people would even get in two hours late on a day like this and feel really good about their travel day. So, you know, people -- kind of incredible about how relaxed people are traveling today, putting up with delays and lines, and that sort of thing. So if you get -- I told one guy, I said, you get somewhere an hour-and-a-half late, maybe two hours, consider that a good day and enjoy the turkey tomorrow.
LEMON: Yes. And you know what, Ed? The whole point of this was to show just how the average person travels and flies during the holiday season. And, again, you're doing a great job at telling us about this and experiencing it for us and with us.
So, comparatively, when you fly on a normal day, how does this compare? More delayed? Less delayed? Or pretty average, pretty normal?
LAVANDERA: You know, Don, I probably fly 100 flights a year. You know, we travel quite a bit for this job, as you know.
And I have had some absolute horror stories in the last four months, just like many other people that have been traveling. In fact, it's not uncommon for me -- I will get an e-mail three days after a flight and they will say, oh, we're sorry about the experience you had. Here's 5,000 miles to make up for it.
So I have gotten a free airline ticket this summer just because of all the delays and everything. And this week, which was one of the reasons we proposed doing this, this week is that we thought, you know, this would be kind of a nightmare week. And I guess we talked to one analyst earlier -- end of last week, who said really the way the system is set up, if there's one little glitch, one little problem, it sets everything into a tailspin.
And there really hasn't been that catastrophic either weather problems or computer problems or something that really throws everything into a tailspin. So, fortunately, we have been able to avoid that today. And I think, for the most part -- I think you guys told me last time I talked to you that flights into LaGuardia were about 70 minutes delayed or so? That's probably a good thing. If you fly in out of LaGuardia you would probably would call that a successful day.
LEMON: OK. Ed Lavandera, I wanted to ask you a question. We have to move on, but I wanted to ask you. It's always overhead space and storage space on an airplane, especially during the holiday season, that's a big question.
So, Ed, next time -- he won't be -- no, he won't be in Atlanta by the time we end this show.
Ed, thank you.
And what is it, Olivia?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: That's Olivia on his lap.
LEMON: Olivia, yes.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Cutie-patootie.
LAVANDERA: Yes, this is little Olivia.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Oh, while we have you there, hey, how is it for overhead space and storage space on the plane? Are you able to get your stuff on, everybody able to get their stuff in the bins?
LAVANDERA: Yes, everything looks good. Actually, as people are coming on board here, there's still plenty of room left. We took up more than our fair share, I have got to be honest, but everything is -- yes, no complaints on that end. I haven't heard anything.
LEMON: All right. Just telling them you're doing a public service, you and Olivia there, and Nicholas (ph) as well.
All right, Ed Lavandera...
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: ... is so sweet.
LEMON: Safe travels.
WHITFIELD: Geez, I remember my son, I think, around 1.
(CROSSTALK)
LAVANDERA: She's in charge of the audio department.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: He was like hurling stuff across the aisle. So, she is so well-behaved. That's so nice.
LEMON: Yes, she is. Yes, absolutely.
WHITFIELD: So cute.
All right. Well, perhaps you too are flying maybe even on that same flight as Ed, or perhaps you're driving. We're following your journey by the minute. I guess if you're on that flight with Ed, you're really not watching this.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: He's the only one who is connected to us right now.
(WEATHER REPORT)
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Let's go ahead and in check at what's going on at LaGuardia right now, where Allan Chernoff is. And it's been a little kind of back and forth. You have had some busy times and some not-so-busy times, Allan.
What's the latest?
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jacqui, it's beginning to get a little worse. And the reason is what you see right over there, low cloud cover. The people here, the managers had hoped -- they were expecting that the clouds were going to clear by now, but that hasn't happened, just as the peak rush is getting under way.
And you can some people packing, getting ready. They will have a little bit of time. And let's go over to the board inside. And we will have a look to see exactly why.
What happens, of course, is that, when you do have the delays on arrival, then you have airlines waiting for the planes to come in. They have to be turned around, so that becomes a bit of a problem. Here at LaGuardia in particular it's becoming a problem for United Airlines, because they have a relatively small operation out of the LaGuardia.
So, their flights to Chicago are now delayed by at least an hour in terms of departure. The arrivals, we have been reporting all day, we have been having those delays. And now many of those delays, as you can see over here, they are more than an hour right now.
American Airlines, which we're looking at over here, while most of their departures still on time, but more delays than they had earlier. And the reason is, American has a bigger fleet that is based here in New York City. So, that snowball effect not hitting them quite as much, but as we have more delays on the actual arrivals, we will have more delays in turn for the departures.
And, as the day goes on, Jacqui, unless those clouds clear, it could get even worse -- back to you.
JERAS: Yes. It's not looking real good for that out there, Allan.
Yes. If your plane isn't there, it's kind of hard to take off on time if it's coming from somewhere else, as well. Chad Myers has left me. He's on the computer looking for pictures of his kids, so he can make his next live shot as cute as Ed Lavandera was -- back to you guys.
LEMON: I was only saying that, that you are just as cute as a kid, as a button. That was it, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely.
LEMON: No slight to our Chad.
Chad Myers, you're a handsome man.
MYERS: I knew what you were talking about. I just couldn't -- I had nothing to say.
WHITFIELD: Oh, yes, cute is cute. Some people don't like to be called cute.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Now, that's cute, people.
LEMON: Let's move on, please. That's what I'm hearing right here in my ear.
OK. If you are hitting the roads -- thanks to both of you -- or flying the skies, make CNN.com your first destination. Check out our special report and get an online travel kit with tips on where to go and how best to get there -- that and more at CNN.com/holidaytravel.
And also a very special Thanksgiving for CNN's Rick Sanchez.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As a matter of fact, it is, Don.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: You know -- what's so funny? what's so funny over there?
LEMON: You make...
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Rick, I love you. You and me, like this, you know?
SANCHEZ: I bet you didn't know I was going to be live. I bet you didn't know I was going to be live.
WHITFIELD: No, I didn't. I didn't. It was a very pleasant, lovely surprise.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, I got a question for you. You guys ready? Quiz time.
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
SANCHEZ: How many millions of immigrants do you think came through Ellis Island? How many millions of immigrants do you think came through Ellis Island?
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: That's probably an answer we should know, and I don't.
SANCHEZ: No, no, it's one of those things you probably wouldn't know, unless you happen to go there and take a look at it on the sign.
Well, I will give you the answer.
LEMON: OK.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Twelve million immigrants came through Ellis Island, maybe just -- slightly a little bit more.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: How many illegal immigrants are now in the United States, unofficially, according to most of the studies?
WHITFIELD: Thirty million.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Twelve million.
LEMON: I thought it was 14 million.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Well, 12 million is the number that they usually go by. It's an amazing coincidence and it's also a little bit of comparative analysis that brings us up to what we are going to be talking about tonight.
We take you to Ellis Island. We talk about immigrants' past. We talk about immigrants future. We call it "My First Thanksgiving in America." This things is rock solid.
And, by the way, of course, I happen to be one of those immigrants in the United States. I wasn't born in this country, so for me this is highly personal. And I will share with you during the hour a little bit of my own family's story. This is going to be good.
LEMON: Look forward to that, Rick.
WHITFIELD: Of course it's going to be good.
SANCHEZ: OK.
WHITFIELD: Look forward to it. Thanks so much, Rick.
All right. Well, this is not good, fires deliberately set along French rail lines. Are they the work of transit strikers or someone trying to discredit them?
LEMON: Insult to injury -- on a scale as big as a desert, the world waits to see how Saudi Arabia handles global outrage over a young woman who has suffered enough.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, now, nineteen minutes after the hour. Here are three of the stories we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Less than an hour from now, the military will give commercial flights the option of using a big chunk of its East Coast airspace, and they might need it on this pre-Thanksgiving day, which is a big travel day, in fact, especially if winter weather warnings hold true.
And setting a big goal -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says the U.S. will try to reach a Middle East peace deal before President Bush leaves office, but she cautions there is no guarantee of success.
And striking workers throwing France's transit system into turmoil, adding to it a series of fires along the nation's high-speed rail network. The government blames radical strikers, but the unions are condemning the fires, too.
LEMON: It is a uniquely American holiday. Before the Fourth of July, before Flag Day, the pilgrims fled an unwelcoming land and they were thankful about it.
This week, we celebrate Thanksgiving in a very different time, and in many cases the unwelcoming land is this one.
Joining me now, CNN's Rick Sanchez himself, his family a product of the American experience.
Hello, Rick. Tell us about that. And happy Thanksgiving to you, my friend.
SANCHEZ: Likewise. It's going to be a great weekend. Got my family up here in New York, going to the parade tomorrow.
You know, you said that, and that's very important, Don. This is a uniquely American experience. And every immigrant who has ever come to this country over the last couple hundred years has experienced it as such, and it's meaningful.
So, when you go to Ellis Island, I don't know how many people out there who are watching this right now have ever had a chance to go to Ellis Island and actually see that experience, count the numbers, count the family names, look for your own family to find out when perhaps they came and what it must have been like for them, going back maybe one, maybe two, maybe three generations.
Maybe you're an immigrant yourself. Well, this is the story that we want to tell. And I guess, is there a better time to tell it than now, given what's going on in our country with the -- quote -- "immigration crisis" that we all seem to be talking about on the radio, on television? Politicians are frightened of it.
We take an honest appraisal of this. And that's why we're going to this tonight. You will see this special. By the way, in many ways, obviously, for me and for many others, this is highly, highly personal.
Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ (voice-over): As a child of immigrants, I'm in the middle. To my parents, I speak Spanish. To my wife, I speak English.
(on camera): So, honey, tell me what we have got for dinner.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have the prime rib, turkey.
SANCHEZ: Now, that's not very Cuban, is it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's not even American for Thanksgiving.
(LAUGHTER)
SANCHEZ: Then there's my kids. For them, it's really confusing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is she saying?
SANCHEZ: And Spanish...
(on camera): Said you did a nice job with the fire.
SANCHEZ (voice-over): ... doesn't come too easy.
In our household, dinner begins with grace, sometimes in two languages.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you for this bountiful meal.
SANCHEZ (on camera): Do you remember your first Thanksgiving in the United States?
(voice-over): The immigrant experience is passed down by stories. SANCHEZ: Dad's car broke down on the highway on his way home from work. There were seven of us in a two-bedroom apartment on 29th Street, with one bathroom.
(voice-over): For my kids, it's tough to get. They are proud of their Cuban heritage and of the sacrifices their grandparents made.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know my grandparents fought to come here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I really just pity those that have to go through all those hardships like they did.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: You know, it's interesting, when you talk about this subject -- and I mentioned a little while ago that it's obviously going to always be highly personal.
My parents are the ones who came here broke, poor. They didn't have two nickels to be able to rub together. And somehow they made things work. And we look back on them and we look how they made things happen.
I was talking to Glenn Beck about this yesterday. You know, Glenn and myself, and Lou Dobbs and myself, we're in this big building here in New York, and we run into each other in the hallway. And we have discussions about this, and disagreements, honest, fair disagreements.
And I was telling him, I said, you know, Glenn, for me, it's so hard, because when I listen to these discussions, I would feel like a hypocrite if I didn't take a good, hard look at what immigrants are going through and feeling right now, because I'm one of them.
I came to this country that way. So, it's hard for me to look at this thing and not get highly personal when I look at it and when I examine it. So -- but I think it's a discussion that us all of us need to be having.
And on this Thanksgiving, we're going to try and do a little different hour of television, looking at this story from the inside out and at the arguments that are taking place right now in America that have good arguments, made, by the way, on both sides. It's a complex issue.
We need to find a way to figure it out, but, hopefully, we can do it without demeaning either side. And that's the goal.
LEMON: You know that phrase that we say, the American experience, maybe it should be the American experiences, because there are many of them.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
LEMON: Rick Sanchez, we look forward to that.
SANCHEZ: Yes. Thanks, guys.
LEMON: Tonight, "OUT IN THE OPEN" special edition, Thanksgiving -- Happy Thanksgiving to Rick Sanchez. And he will be reporting from Ellis Island on the first Thanksgiving for some immigrant families and the last for others, "OUT IN THE OPEN" this evening on CNN, 8:00 Eastern.
More NEWSROOM in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BUSINESS REPORT)
LEMON: Coming up, we're going to talk about insult to injury on a scale as big as a desert. The world waits to see how Saudi Arabia handles global outrage over a young woman who has suffered enough.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
LEMON: Well, coming up, we're going to talk about insult to injury on a scale as big as the desert. The world waits to see how Saudi Arabia handles global outrage over a young woman who has suffered enough.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, we have some developing news when it comes to America Votes 2008. It concerns New Hampshire. Of course, as we've been hearing about primary dates being switched, moved up in some states. Originally, this was held in March and then moved back sometimes as early as January -- possibly, we're being told, December this year.
But we're getting word that the secretary of state in New Hampshire, Bill Gardner, will announce the state's primary when he goes before cameras in Concord, New Hampshire. That should happening at 3:30 p.m. Eastern. Of course, New Hampshire is usually the first primary to kick off the quadrennial U.S. presidential election. But, also, it's being threatened this year, because they're trying to get states with -- more populous states, let's just say, with a bigger influence in the presidential race.
So, again, we're waiting for a press conference -- an announcement, I should say, 3:30 Eastern, as to when the primary will be held in New Hampshire. And that should be any minute. It's 3:34 now. So any minute he should step up to the mike.
As soon as that happens, we'll bring it to you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, let's talk about train problems out West, in California, near the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Mountains there. In Lassen County -- you're looking at several cars on their side because 17 cars from this train actually derailed there and possibly this derailment could impact and affect rail traffic across the country this holiday weekend. We don't know exactly what happened. But look at the tracks right there that look pretty damage. So it's unclear what other kind of routes might be taken for any other kind of railroad traffic in this area.
But this is a mess here in California. It's Lassen County, California. When we get any more information -- ooh, there you go -- a much better view of the separation of some of these cars and the derailment right here. They're just kind of crumpled up like little toy train cars there. We'll find out exactly what happened and why and bring that along to you.
Meantime, justice -- Saudi Arabia style. The government of the desert kingdom is defending its decision to harshly punish a woman who has already suffered a kidnapping and gang rape. The official word -- the law is the law. The case throws a harsh light on a little known legal system.
More now from CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): After days of intense media scrutiny over verdicts in a gang rape case, Saudi Arabia's government issued a statement of clarification. It begins: "We would like to clarify to the public that the Ministry of Justice welcomes meaningful criticism."
We conducted interviews by telephone as we await Saudi visas. The victim's husband is speaking out to Western TV for the first time -- says he is angry with the judges.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): The king has called for judicial reform. We read about that in the media. They should say something to you. This means our judicial system needs to be reformed.
ROBERTSON: He says the case has thrown his 19-year-old wife into a state of severe depression and accuses one of the judges of bias against his wife from the outset.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Even when he pronounced the sentence, he said, "You were involved in a suspicious relationship and you deserve 90 lashes for that."
ROBERTSON: In a six bullet-point statement of clarification, the government defends the court's decisions. On the critical issue of increasing the severity of the victim's punishment, it contends that she, as well as her attackers, had broken the law. But it did not explain why the judges decided to increase her sentence to 200 lashes and add a six-month jail term.
Saudi journalist and women's rights activist Ebtihal Mubarak told us women are angry. EBTIHAL MUBARAK, SAUDI JOURNALIST: Well, this is really extremely highly frustrating and -- for us as women and as women activists, columnists and writers. There is nothing much we can do about it, just, you know, other than write about it or write petitions about it.
ROBERTSON: She says the rape victim did not break the strict law that bans unrelated men and women from meeting in private.
MUBARAK: As a (INAUDIBLE) it shows clearly that they were in a public place. They were in front of a shopping mall before they were abducted.
ROBERTSON: This case, she says, reaffirms women's worst fears -- if raped, they have no defense in the law.
MUBARAK: When you're out on the street, I mean, and you get raped and, that, really, there is no certain law that will correct things or bring justice. It does send a message of that sort.
ROBERTSON: It is rare in conservative Saudi society, where rape stigmatizes not just the victim, but her whole family, that a husband is willing to go public. He says all he wants is justice.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I take Islam seriously and I don't like injustice. I see this as an important social issue.
She is my wife. And, to me, marriage is sacred. You marry someone for good or for worse. And I love my wife.
ROBERTSON: Women's rights activists like Mubarak see little hope the sentence on the rape victory will be reversed.
MUBARAK: I don't see a light at the end of the tunnel. And to be honest, I don't think that (INAUDIBLE) will bring -- will, you know, look again the lashes (ph).
ROBERTSON (on camera): Saudi officials are more optimistic. The kingdom's ambassador to the United States issued a short statement, saying: "The case is working its way through the legal process and I have no doubt that justice will prevail."
Nic Robertson, CNN, London.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
WHITFIELD: So that is the case.
But what does it all mean for women in the Saudi kingdom?
And what about those reforms the king promised?
Stay with us. We'll cover all of that with our guest, Zainab Salbi, of Women for Women International.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Sabotage, vandalism -- call it what you will, fires set along French rail lines as the government's striking transit workers and passengers up in arms.
CNN's Jim Bittermann is on the story in Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Along France's high speed train lines in the north, east, west and southeast of the country -- acts of sabotage. Signaling and communication cables were deliberately set on fire overnight, forcing the railway to reroute and slow down the trains, which normally run at 320 kilometers an hour. That's more than 190 miles an hour.
Railroad officials said there was no danger to passengers, since control systems automatically alerted supervisors to the damaged wires. While no one would directly blame striking transportation workers for the destruction, officials called the vandalism coordinated acts of sabotage, which occurred just hours before the first negotiation sessions aimed at ending the labor dispute.
The transport minister, Dominique Bussereau, condemned the destruction, and said President Sarkozy wants the perpetrators punished to the full extent of the law. And the interior minister, Michele Alliot-Marie, called it inexcusable and said she has directed investigators to proceed with the utmost urgency.
Union leaders, too, condemned the sabotage, although one suggested that it was directed by someone trying to discredit the union movement. It will no doubt have that effect. The railway was not shy about explaining to passengers that this latest reason for delays was due to the sabotage.
And even before the railroad company disclosed the attacks, public opinion against the strikers was growing. The latest poll shows 68 percent of the French believe the strike to be unjustified and 69 percent hope the government does not give in to the strikers' demands.
Jim Bittermann, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Also, this hour, we're talking today about women in Saudi Arabia, specifically the case of a woman sentenced to jail and a pretty serious lashing for breaking a religious law that most of us in the West find pretty hard to understand.
Let's bring in the founder and president of Women for Women International.
Zainab, good to see you.
ZAINAB SALBI, PRESIDENT, WOMEN FOR WOMEN INTERNATIONAL: Good seeing you.
Thank you.
WHITFIELD: So we really are talking about Sharia law -- Islamic law, which is heavily practiced here in Saudi Arabia and other places. And so we've heard, in Nic Robertson's piece, how the law really supports the punishing of this victim of rape.
So how common is her experience -- being sentenced to these lashings, not just for the crime itself, but for her attorneys coming out and speaking on behalf of her?
How common is this experience?
SALBI: It's not necessarily common in the rest of the Muslim world, although it is common in Saudi Arabia, one would argue. Sharia law is not a tangible -- it's not a law that everyone has the same law. Everyone interprets Sharia law according to their own understanding and the school of thought that we have of Islam.
And in Saudi Arabia, it's one of the most extreme interpretations of Islam. And I would say the question of what happened to her particular case does not only reflect the intensity of all the extremism of the Islamic interpretation in Saudi Arabia, but it makes me worried about the direction of country is taking.
I argue that women are the direction -- are the bellwether for the direction of the society, that we should not look at women -- what happens to a woman as a marginal discussion. We should really look at it as what is this telling us about the rest of the society.
And what worries me about this particular case, it is not necessarily showing justice, for sure -- something that I would argue is against the foundations of Islam, which is based on justice. And it's definitely not showing equality in the treatment of women in the right way. And that makes me worry about Saudi Arabia in general and the direction of country is taking.
WHITFIELD: So why is that Saudi Arabia, on some levels, has been considered a fairly progressive Muslim country and how is it that something like this is embraced in this country as though this demonstrates honor to Sharia law?
SALBI: That's a very good question, actually, because Saudi Arabia is considered a progressive Muslim country in terms of maybe their financial regulations or law. But it's by no -- far by no means considered progressive in terms of their human rights records or their -- definitely their women's rights records.
Nowhere in the Muslim world are women treated in the same way that Saudi women are treated, in terms of not even allowed to drive or being lashed, as the woman -- the victim has the sentence here.
WHITFIELD: Nor are women allowed to vote.
SALBI: Nor are women allowed to vote. And the truth of the matter is everywhere else in the Muslim world, women have rights to drive, to work, to vote. And it's really Saudi Arabia that is standing alone in the Muslim world that is not necessarily allowing women to do these things.
WHITFIELD: Zainab Salbi, Women for Women International, thank you so much for your time...
SALBI: It is a pleasure.
WHITFIELD: ...on what is universally a very disturbing occurrence and story.
Thank you so much.
SALBI: Thank you.
LEMON: We're going to update you now on New Hampshire. And the wait may be over to find out when the primary is going to be there. The secretary of state there has made an announcement that he's going to do it sometime within the hour. So we'll bring that to you if it happens here. If not, you'll see it in THE SITUATION ROOM.
Also, who says you can't learn anything by watching TV?
One of these third graders knew just what to do when his best friend began gasping for help.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: A third grader who's being hailed as a hero credits cartoons for his question thinking.
Laura Mazzeo of CNN affiliate WJXT in Jacksonville, Florida, has this heartwarming tale of the best friend who proved to be a lifesaver.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
CARL BROWN, JR. BEST FRIEND: He was choking and he like gagged. Ugh! And then it flew out and it was like this.
LAURA MAZZEO, WJXT CORRESPONDENT: Third grader Carl Brown, Jr. knew just what to do when he saw his very best friend in danger.
CARL BROWN, JR.: And I saw tears coming down. So that's when he was stopped -- when he was choking.
DAVIS SOOTS, SAVED BY FRIEND: When I ate a Cheez-It, I accidentally swallowed it.
CARL BROWN, JR.: I came behind him, had my arms around him and I did the Heimlich.
MAZZEO: You might wonder how this third grader knew the Heimlich. But he says he learned the move watching TV. CARL BROWN, JR.: I saw it on a cartoon movie. It was a man -- a big man. And he was choking on like an apple or something. And a little boy came and did the Heimlich and tried to get it out.
MAZZEO: The two boys have been by each other's side since the very first day of school. But now Carl is even more Davis' best friend.
DAVIS SOOTS: He is a lifesaver.
MAZZEO: Carl's quick thinking caught even the adults at school by surprise.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought they were horsing around. But when I really looked at David, his face was just extremely red, crying. And by the time I got there to help him out, Carl had done the Heimlich, you know, maneuver.
MAZZEO: As you can imagine, Carl's dad is beaming with pride.
CARL BROWN, HERO'S FATHER: I don't think there's enough words in the dictionary to describe how I feel. I mean to know that he saved someone's life and that he took the role of doing something positive.
MAZZEO: And Davis' dad is beyond grateful.
REAGAN SOOTS, FATHER: I was in amazement that here a third grader would know and take action to do something that, you know, is -- is awesome.
MAZZEO: So with Thanksgiving just a few days away, two little boys and their families have every reason to be thankful.
REAGAN SOOTS: I want to hug him, too.
Can I hug him?
(END VIDEO TAPE)
LEMON: Now.
WHITFIELD: Oh, ho.
LEMON: That is a great Thanksgiving story.
WHITFIELD: That is the biggest ah story.
LEMON: Yes. And in a show of thanks, Fred, you know what?
We were told that the Soots have invited the Browns to this weekend's Jaguars game.
WHITFIELD: Oh, cute.
LEMON: That should be fun.
WHITFIELD: Well, you know what I really about that, too?
I love that these two little kids are going to forever like play, you know?
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: just that demonstration again...
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: ...to bring, you know, a kind of comedy to what was a pretty serious matter.
LEMON: No kidding.
WHITFIELD: But they did the right things, huh?
LEMON: Nice...
WHITFIELD: That was too cute.
LEMON: A nice anecdote when they're married with kids and all that stuff.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: You can tell it all the time.
WHITFIELD: Teach the Heimlich maneuver.
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Speaking of needing the Heimlich maneuver every now and then, that turkey and all those trimmings. So slow down when you eat.
LEMON: I can't wait.
WHITFIELD: We know what the official food of Thanksgiving is.
But what's the menu the night before?
LEMON: Oh, I know that.
Should I give it away?
No, I won't. OK. I won't.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Yum-yum, turkey and stuffing on Thanksgiving. Well, that's not it right there.
How about pepperoni and cheese the night before?
LEMON: (INAUDIBLE). WHITFIELD: Yum-yum-yum on that, too.
Thanksgiving Eve one of the best busiest travel days of the year that we know, especially for pizza delivery. You could be logging a lot of miles because, let's face it, you're slaving over a hot stove tomorrow, so you want to take an easy day off the night before, right?
Well, Domino's expects that its pizza sales today will increase by 68 percent over a typical Wednesday.
LEMON: Absolutely.
WHITFIELD: And you'll be getting pizza, because you'll be in the airport.
LEMON: I'll be in the airport. And Chinese food, too. That goes up, as well, on Thanksgiving.
WHITFIELD: Really?
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Interesting.
All right, The closing bell on Wall Street.
LEMON: Yes, Susan Lisovicz is standing by with a final look at the trading day on turkey eve.
LISOVICZ: Well, let's keep talking turkey, guys.
LEMON: OK. Let's talk turkey.
LISOVICZ: Because it is the 25th anniversary of the Butterball toll-free turkey talk line. Three million people have called for free turkey advice over those years. The most common turkey query is how long does it take to defrost a turkey. And the answer is, in the fridge a day for every -- one day for every four pounds.
But other people have had stranger questions. We want to bring them to you.
Is thawing your turkey in an electric blanket, OK?
WHITFIELD: Oh, come on.
LISOVICZ: No.
WHITFIELD: Ew.
LISOVICZ: Is thawing your turkey in a Jacuzzi, OK?
WHITFIELD: No. Come on.
LISOVICZ: No.
WHITFIELD: who does that?
LISOVICZ: Is jumping in the hot shower with your turkey, OK?
That is just simply wrong.
LEMON: OK, you know what?
WHITFIELD: I (INAUDIBLE)...
LEMON: I don't want to know about people's weird lives.
LISOVICZ: I think -- I mean -- you know, I mean, it goes on from there. But, in any case, they're good humored and they actually have good information.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
