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Op-Ed: The Fear of Being "Big, Black, Male"; Qatar Refuses to Release Couple; Congressional Aide Resigns After Remarks About Malia, Sasha Obama; Wife Says Ray Rice Needs Second Chance; UVA President Cancels Press Conference; Nationwide Walkouts Over Police Violence.

Aired December 01, 2014 - 14:30   ET

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

W. KAMAU BELL, COMEDIAN: But I'm aware that that time of night, people aren't normally out buying ice cream. So I went to the counter - I went to the place and I picked up an ice cream. And as soon as I walked into the place, I was just aware that I wanted the clerk to know that I was OK, which it sucks to have to be that way, but I wanted him to know that. So I walked very directly, kept my palms open. I pulled my hoodie down and then it made me look bad because my afro was squished.

(LAUGHTER)

BELL: That's all I thought about, Brooke. I wanted to be clear that I was there to buy ice cream, not there to do something else, because I knew that anything weird happens, he might think I'm there for something else.

BALDWIN: But then there was a weird thing that happened, which was he said one price, you misheard him for another and, what, he pulled a gun?

BELL: Well, in my mind. This all happened in my mind.

BALDWIN: You envisioned.

BELL: Yeah. He told me $2.25. I heard $1.25. I gave him $2 bills. He held them. My perception was he was worried something would happen. In a second, my adrenaline fired off. It was like, oh, my god, he's thinking I'm pulling a scam. This scenario went out in which he pulls as gun and I run out of the store and because --.

BALDWIN: This was all in your head?

BELL: This is in my head, all in my head. The cops stop me. I didn't steal it. I'm another dead black man. This is all in my head. I get that. But it has been put in my head by society. Which is why this "Vanity Fair" article.

BALDWIN: You wrote being BBM has consequences. To bring this full circle to today, we know the president has multiple meetings with members of the cabinets, leaders, young leaders, talking about what happened in Ferguson. I'm wondering is there anything the president can say that can lessen those consequences as a big black male. BELL: The president should come out and say he was a big black man.

If he was not surrounded by the Secret Service, he would have that fear. He's got fears of being the president but what I'm saying the fact that, if he reached out to America and said, as a big black man, I understand what's going on here. I don't know he'll do that because, as I know, talking about race is not his favorite subject.

BALDWIN: W. Kamau Bell, thank you so much. Come by when you're in New York sometime, all right?

BELL: Absolutely.

BALDWIN: Thank you so much.

Coming up next, a scary situation overseas. An American couple in Qatar has been through a legal nightmare, accused, convicted of horrific crime involving their 8-year-old daughter. Now they have been totally cleared. They are ready to finally come home, but no, no, no, the government is saying you can't leave at the moment. They are stuck. Hear my conversation with this incredibly anxious dad ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: An American couple still being held in Qatar after being accused in the death of their child. Matthew and Grace Huang were living in Qatar when their 8-year-old daughter, whom they adopted from Ghana, died. They were charged with murder. The prosecution argued they starved her to death. In March, the couple was found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison. But yesterday, an appeals judge cleared them of any wrongdoing, agreeing that their daughter, Gloria, suffered an eating disorder and was known to self-starve because of her impoverished upbringing in Africa. This couple were free to go home and return to Los Angeles where their other two adopted children are living. That was until today when they were stopped at the Doha Airport, their passports confiscated.

Matthew Huang, the father, talked to me about an hour ago on the phone.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

So I'm crystal clear, you and Grace are still stuck in Qatar, correct?

MATTHEW HUANG, HELD IN QATAR OVER CHILD'S DEATH (voice-over): Yes, that's correct. Yesterday the trial judge said that my wife, Grace, and I are in a sense free to leave the country. However, we're still stuck in Qatar and not permitted to leave.

BALDWIN: You have U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry helping to put the pressure on but now there's this new warrant out for your arrest. What has been communicated to you? Why is there a warrant out for you?

HUANG: I'm unsure about a warrant, but I do know that we have just been told by State Department that they are unable to secure our release, and unable to allow us to travel tonight.

BALDWIN: Do you have any idea when you can come home?

HUANG: We do not. We are so missing our sons. Our sons know we're innocent. They know the court said we're innocent and they don't understand. They are saying, "Mom and Dad, why are you not coming home?" They are hurting so badly.

BALDWIN: Take me back to this whole ordeal that you two went through. I mean the prosecution had accused you all of human trafficking, of potentially wanting to sell your daughter's organs. I mean, walk me through the emotions you must have felt through this whole process.

HUANG: We're tired. We're exhausted. And we want this to end. We just want to resume our lives in the U.S. with our family. And the Qatar government is just not allowing us to do so.

BALDWIN: Is the Qatar government saying anything to you, communicating at all with you? What are they telling you?

HUANG: They are not telling us much. And we're just being told that we need to wait. And waiting is not an answer. We've been waiting for two years as innocent people in this country, in prison, waiting. One more day waiting continues this injustice.

BALDWIN: I know you've been totally cleared of wrongdoing. As far as your daughter was concerned, do you even know how she died? Has there been an autopsy?

HUANG: There was an autopsy that the Qataris completely messed up. We do not know how she died and we cannot begin to grieve.

BALDWIN: That's my final question. I hear you on your sons back home, but as far as your 8-year-old daughter, through all of this, being imprisoned this entire, being put on trial, have you now had any chance to grieve for her?

HUANG: No. I am just angry, I'm upset, I'm tired. We want to be restored to our family. We would like, we want and demand to be allowed to leave Qatar immediately and go to the U.S.

BALDWIN: What do you want your boys to know back here at home?

HUANG: We want our sons to know we love them very much and we'll be home soon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Matthew Huang on the phone with me from Qatar.

Ahead, a Republican spokeswoman didn't like what she saw at a Thanksgiving event at the White House. She called out both of the president's daughters, and then she was quickly slammed for those comments today. The scandal took a new turn. We got that update for you coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: An apology was not enough. The Republican congressional aide who slammed the first daughters resigned today. Elizabeth Lauten was the communication director for Stephen Fincher. She went on this rant calling out the president's 16 and 13-year-old daughters for the way they dressed, the way they behaved during last week's presidential pardoning of the turkey ceremony. We took it live on Thanksgiving. So she likened these two young women's outfits as though they were looking for -- her words -- "spot at the bar." She scolded them for making faces and not, quote "showing class." The social media backlash against Lauten was swift. Many called it shameful and out of line. And now she's stepping down.

Let's go to chief congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, with more on the fallout.

Come on, the first family, the kids, the daughters? Off limits.

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There's so many things to unpack here, Brooke. Let's start with that. Yes. It is a bipartisan tradition. There are a lot of thing that have fallen by the wayside in this political environment, but not going after the kids is actually, thank goodness, one that has not, one that is still sacrosanct. That's why not just Democrats, but Republicans who said this is crossing the line. There is still a line and she crossed it.

The communications director for the Republican National Committee and others, and it's why she ended up resigning this morning because of the fact that you just don't go there with kids. And it was the same when George Bush had teenage daughters in the White House, and going even back to Amy Carter who had a young daughter -- Jimmy Carter, who had a young daughter, Amy Carter.

BALDWIN: Have we heard anything from Congressman Fincher about his aide?

BASH: Listen, the fact that his communications director is no longer working for him speaks volumes. The fact that she's gone. Not a direct statement, but the fact that she resigned says it all.

It's really interesting, Brooke. One of the things we have to discuss and one of the lessons is, don't go there with politicians daughters, never mind presidential daughters, because they are in such a fish bowl through no fault of their own. But also social media. You're a tweeter. I'm a tweeter. You're on Facebook. I'm on Facebook. We know that it's actually company policy, what you put on Twitter is something you have to be able to put on the air. And it's not that different in politics. She's a communications director, was, for a Republican Congressman, and so what she puts out there on social media is a reflection on her boss and her party, which is why she's no longer working there. And it's also why Republicans were so swift to say, here's the door.

BALDWIN: I'm glad, despite everything you covered in Washington, that, at least, is still sacrosanct.

Dana Bash, thank you.

BASH: Thank you.

BALDWIN: So the wife of former Baltimore Ravens running back, Ray Rice, says her husband deserves a second chance. Ray Rice's indefinite suspension for domestic violence has been tossed out. He is now free to rejoin the league. Janay Rice, spoke with NBC, her first public remarks about the day last February when Ray Rice hit her in that Atlantic City elevator, knocking her unconscious. She calls the incident "horrible" -- her word -- but she also says her husband is a changed man.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATT LAUER, NBC CO-ANCHOR, THE TODAY SHOW: Was there ever any incident of violence in your relationship with Ray or has there been any incident of violence since that elevator incident?

JANAY RICE, WIFE OF RAY RICE: No. No. There's no way. He knows what he would have to deal with, you know, if this was something -- you know, I'm not going to sit there in silence and let something happen to me and, you know, God forbid, in front of my child.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Ray Rice was originally suspended for two games. But NFL commissioner Roger Goodell made it indefinite once the video went public. A former judge, acting as arbitrator, overruled the league's suspension on Friday, calling it arbitrary.

Just in to CNN, the president of the University of Virginia abruptly cancelled a planned speech today at the National Press Club in Washington. Instead, Theresa Sullivan remained on grounds at UVA and announced a series of reforms in response to reports of sexual assaults linked to fraternities at UVA. The "Rolling Stone" magazine article, this is what thrust this whole thing front and center.

Joe Johns is working this one for us today. He joins me now.

The president didn't show up today in Washington. But what did she announce?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, this was sort of a pr move, obviously. They figured it would be better for the president of UVA to be on the campus talking to the students rather than speaking to the National Press Club, so she gave this address to the university community posing a series of questions that she and the community are attempting to address.

More than anything, Brooke, it was a summary of the discussions that have been going on since this story broke, questions like does the university do everything possible from text every student, whether had they've done enough to support survivors, encourage report, how much is alcohol a factor at sororities and fraternities. On a smaller scale, she's hiring a trauma counselor, turning her holiday reception into a discussion about sexual assault and said, essentially there's a problem with the culture that needs fixed, and said they are going to install bystander training on the campus to try to reduce the problem of sexual abuse and sexual assaults. So a whole litany and a series of things they will try to do to address this question, including, Brooke, a survey next year asking students about the sexual climate. So it's the beginning of the response we're seeing at UVA.

A lot more still to come out because there are a number of investigations, as you know, that haven't been completed.

BALDWIN: I hear you on surveys and forums and investigations, but let's cut right to it. This is a university that holds lying, cheating and stealing, the honor system in high regard. If you violate one of those, so, boom, you're gone. So there was that interview with the dean, and the student report was asking, what if you commit sex assault, and it seemed to me, from that interview, which was seeing new light because of this "Rolling Stone" piece, that was acceptable as long as that person admits guilt. Is that still OK?

JOHNS: That's a real problem and they haven't said anything about that yet. It's a question that comes up again and again. The university hasn't really addressed it. However, we do know they walk a balance here, every university does. If you have, as in the example of this alleged gang rape at the fraternity house, a victim, an alleged victim who says she doesn't want to press charges, then what do you do and how do you handle it? You have to balance the rights of that victim to say whether or not she wants to go public with this against what's the best interests of the university and the question, of course, of an alleged crime occurring on the campus. That's a very tough question. And I think a lot of universities are struggling with that as you have 86 different schools around this country who are being looked at by the department of education for the way they handle sexual abuse cases.

BALDWIN: You're absolutely right. The spotlight's on UVA because of the Rolling Stone piece but not the only school dealing with.

Joe Johns thank you.

Across America, crowds showing their anger over Ferguson grand jury decision and police violence. They are walking out of schools today, marching out of businesses in this show of solidarity with protesters in Ferguson, and they want change. They are demanding that police change how they treat people before it's too late.

One of them, Michael Render, aka Killer Mike, the rapper, who broke down emotionally into tears on stage a week ago today talking about that grand jury decision. I talked to him in this incredibly candid interview and we talked about a lot of things, including what he would say to Officer Darren Wilson if he were standing there with us. Do not miss this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: According to the British website the Baby Center, the new number one boy's name in the United Kingdom is Muhammad, up 27 spots from last year. But names from movies and TV and pop culture are pretty popular as well and some might surprise you.

So let me bring in CNN's Erin McLaughlin, live with me in London.

Let's begin with the headline, "Muhammad." Why do you think that is?

ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There is a debate here in the United Kingdom about how they made the determination that Muhammad is the top baby name for a boy. They did it by adding up all of the variations of the spelling of the name Muhammad, of which there are quite a few. And there are those here in the U.K. who argue, if you add up the variations of the name of Oliver, Ollies and Oliver, Oliver would, in fact, be the top name here in the U.K. But then there are those who say, no, Oliver and Ollie are two very different names, whereas variation of the spelling of Muhammad are the name Muhammad. But what this really reflects is the diversity here in the United Kingdom, the growing diversity, which experts say is down to birth rates and immigration -- Brooke?

BALDWIN: OK. I think that really speaks volumes, the growing diversity. Beyond Muhammad, I've been reading about this -- some of the other names that are popular related to pop culture. Give me some examples.

MCLAUGHLIN: Well, the Beckhams, the names of the Beckhams -- David Beckham, David and Victoria's children, the name Harper for the first time ever, according to this research, cracked the top 100 for a girl. The name, Cruz, their son, quadrupled. The number of Romeos, up 68 percent, perhaps due to those ads that he's been staring in.

But what's interesting to me from that trend is that the names of celebrities are not only influencing what parents are choosing to name their children, but what celebrities choose to name their babies are having an influence as well.

BALDWIN: OK. Things to think about.

Erin McLaughlin, thank you, in London.

All right. Let's continue on here on this Monday. Top of the hour. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

Right now, from the highest level of governments to street level, demonstrations by students, the nation is seeking answers over that grand jury decision in Ferguson, Missouri. Right now, you have protests under way in more than 50 high schools across the country, from schools and colleges from Middleton, Delaware to Missoula, Montana, students united on Twitter under the #handsupwalkout, decrying police violence.

It has been exactly one week since the grand jury chose not to indict police officer, Darren Wilson, for the shooting death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown. And at this minute, here, I can tell you President Barack Obama is scheduled to be sitting in a meeting with law enforcement and community leaders to talk specifically about Ferguson and perhaps some changes moving ahead. The president is expected to preview his new executive order that will direct that federal agencies review the way they provide local police with military equipment, like the equipment we saw, back especially in August, in Ferguson, Missouri.