Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Iran Trying to Stop Drug Smuggling from Afghanistan; Poetry Project Lets Kids Explain their Problems; School Restricts Presentation of Student Report about Gay Activist; Imam: Gitmo Detainees Won't Radicalize Other U.S. Prisoners; Students Fear Racial Threat; Tom Ridge Weighs in on Security Debate; Cancer Patients Flight Brings Attention to Complementary Care
Aired May 22, 2009 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Pushing forward now to Kyra Phillips and the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM.
KYRA PHILLIPS, HOST: Thanks so much.
We are pushing forward on threats and plots, words and deeds, synagogues and schools. A half dozen high-school students in Wisconsin are afraid to finish out the year this year. We'll talk to two of them, coming right up.
And why would low-rent criminals allegedly turn to full-force terrorism? Their families blame jailhouse conversions. I'll ask an imam, live.
And who could object to a middle school report on Milk? Harvey Milk stirs up controversy decades after his murder, but the murder is not what teachers consider sensitive.
Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Well, we've been reporting a lot this week on kids in danger in schools. Now from the Southern Wisconsin city of Whitewater comes a chilling story of high-school students threatened with death in a message scrawled on a bathroom stall. The students' names represent half of Whitewater High School's African-American population.
Our coverage begins with reporter Cathy Orosz with CNN affiliate WITI.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CATHY OROSZ, WITI REPORTER (voice-over): This is what was scrolled on the bathroom stall at Whitewater High School: a death threat and a derogatory reference to African-Americans. We've blurred out some of the message and the names of six specific students.
BANKI MINETT, THREATENED STUDENT: There's 12 black kids. Let's put it like that. And six names out of that 12.
OROSZ: Banki Minett's name was on the list, along with his brother and cousin. The school principal told them about the discovery on Thursday.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think they should have, you know, went to the approach of telling the parents first.
MINETT: I'm thinking they already called my house and stuff staying what happened, but they didn't.
OROSZ: The boys had to tell their parents themselves, and their dads are furious.
TOBY MINETT, FATHER: I'm not trying to keep this quiet. They don't have metal detectors up there. They do (UNINTELLIGIBLE) up in the school right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is somebody in that school that is ready to do something to one of my black kids.
OROSZ (on camera): According to the district, they have since stepped up security here at the school. The principal tells me they're working very closely with Whitewater police. They've taken handwriting samples from students, and they've searched lockers.
(voice-over) School officials did not want to go on camera. An administrators told us parents weren't immediately notified because they were trying to keep the investigation confidential.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My thought is that, maybe they'll (UNINTELLIGIBLE), no matter where I go.
OROSZ: These boys tried going back to school on Monday, but concerned family members came and pulled them out. They won't feel safe until the culprit is caught.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm taking it as personal.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Now, Whitewater High has posted a letter to families on its Web site. Here's what it says: "We realize these events have caused great concern in our school and community, and we're sensitive to that. We assure you that the safety of our students is still a top priority.
"If you know of information that can aid in our investigation or help us better provide a safe and inviting environment at Whitewater High School, please contact us.
"It is also important that we stress the many positive things that are happening in our school that have been overshadowed by these recent negative events."
Now, in just a few minutes, I'm going to talk with Banki and Domi Minett, two of the threatened students, along with their father, Toby, and the principal of Whitewater High School. That's at the bottom of this hour, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. But first, the latest on four New York men accused of plotting their own holy war. They're jailed without bail after their Wednesday night arrest, shown on this cell-phone video.
Police used a semi truck to block their car after the men allegedly planted what they thought were bombs near two synagogues. They wanted to shoot down military plans with missiles not knowing the weapons that they got their hands on were duds.
Well, today, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is praising his police force.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(AUDIO GAP)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: All right. Apologize for that. Obviously, that was Vice President Joe Biden. We will get back to that in just a minute.
Now, terror suspects, well, they fueled the alleged hatred. CNN's Randi Kaye takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: United in their alleged hatred for Americans, authorities say these men wanted to do jihad. The alleged ring leader, James Cromitie, a 44-year-old U.S. citizen who served time for selling drugs. The New York Bureau of Prisons told us he first registered as a Baptist but later said he was Muslim.
For nearly a year officials say Cromitie and the others have been plotting to shoot down a U.S. military plane at a National Guard air base in Newburgh, New York, and to blow up a synagogue and Jewish center in the Bronx, using a surface-to-air guided missile system and IEDs containing over 30 pounds of C-4 military-grade explosives.
(on camera) This is one of the alleged targets, the Riverdale Temple, just a few blocks away from the Riverdale Jewish Center, also believed to be a target. Police say the men were going to plant bombs in cars and park them outside both buildings. The criminal complaint says the men were going to use cell phones to remotely detonate them.
(voice-over) What the men did not know was that they were dealing with an FBI informant and that he was supplying them with fake bombs and missiles not capable of firing.
Investigators say Cromitie told the informant he was upset so many Muslims were being killed in Afghanistan by U.S. military and discussed targets in New York. Court papers show, referring to the World Trade Center, he said, "The best target was hit already," adding, "I would like to get a synagogue."
(on camera) Wednesday night authorities say the men planted one of the fake IEDs outside of the temple in the car and two of the bombs they thought were real outside the Jewish center. Officers didn't wait long to swoop in, break the windows of the suspects' SUV, and grab them.
(voice-over) This cell-phone video captures the arrests. Along with Cromitie, two other American citizens were arrested. David Williams, also Muslim, and Onta Williams. The fourth suspect, Laguerre Payen, is a Haitian immigrant who's been convicted of attempted assault.
The assistant imam at this mosque, where Payen prays, says he converted to Islam in prison and has distorted Islamic beliefs. He says Payen was living on food stamps. This is the same mosque, he says, where Cromitie sometimes prays.
HAMIN RASHADA, ASSISTANT IMAM, MASID AL IKIHAS: If this person had these kinds of thoughts, this person is not a part of our community.
KAYE: The men are charged with conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction and conspiracy to acquire and use anti-aircraft missiles. They have not yet entered a plea, and CNN's calls to attorneys were not returned.
James Cromitie's sister told reporters she hasn't spoken with her brother in two years. She said she thought he was working at Wal- Mart.
Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Well, you heard Randi mention that at least one of the suspects was apparently introduced to Islam in prison. So we want to push forward here and ask a pretty troubling question. Is the introduction of religion behind prison walls also an invitation to extremism? We're going to try to find answers this hour with a man who's been right there in the trenches.
And hey, parents, do you want your kids learning about homosexuality at school? How about a historical figure who happens to have been gay? And what's appropriate for different ages and grade levels? A sixth-grader's class report raises some pretty tricky questions.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Every grave a symbol of ultimate sacrifice, every flag a sign of undying remembrance. Arlington National Cemetery, where a 40-year pre-Memorial Day tradition was in full force this week. It's called Flags In. Soldiers from the 3rd U.S. Infantry carefully place American flags at the graves of fallen service members, each and every one of them. That's more than 260,000 headstones.
We want to honor some of the most recent fallen heroes in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. First Lieutenant Roslyn Schulte was killed by a roadside bomb near Kabul, Afghanistan on Tuesday. The 25-year-old was a graduate of the Air Force Academy. Her father says even from a young age she was a true leader.
Army Sergeant Esau De La Pena-Hernandez was killed in an enemy attack in Afghanistan. He died May 15. The 25-year-old is survived by his wife.
And Specialist Shawn Sykes died earlier this month after he was injured during an explosion in Iraq. He was a food service specialist who had served in the Marine Corps before joining the Army.
These are just three of the U.S. service members killed recently in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: The Iraqis say he got off easy. They're condemning a Kentucky jury for sparing the life of former U.S. soldier Steven Green, convicted of raping and killing a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and slaughtering her family.
Green avoided the death penalty yesterday because the jury couldn't reach a unanimous decision. He's been sentenced to life in prison without parole instead, a sentence that brought relief to his family and an apology to his victims' relatives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOUG GREEN, STEVEN GREEN'S BROTHER: I was incredibly relieved. I'm glad -- I'm glad that this -- this was the choice. Out of two bad options, this was as good as it gets.
It's been hard for everyone involved: not just my family, but obviously the Iraqis, the other soldiers involved. And it's been difficult, but I -- you know, everybody is going to need some healing. Our hearts and prayers are with you. And we're sorry and -- we're sorry.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Relatives of the victims testified their lives have been ruined by the horrific crime which happened south of Baghdad in 2006. Green was the last of five U.S. soldiers convicted in the murders and subsequent cover-up.
Protecting Americans from terrorism used to be Tom Ridge's business. The nation's first secretary of homeland security has been on the sidelines of a growing debate over terror, torture, security, and liberty. But no more.
A day after President Obama and former Vice President Cheney gave back-to-back speeches from vastly different perspectives, Ridge is speaking out. An exclusive interview with CNN's John King. John joins me now from our D.C. studios. So John, where does Tom Ridge come down on all of this?
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: It's an excellent question, Kyra. And as you go through the interview, you see he has different opinions about different parts of the debate.
But we began by asking him about those dueling speeches: the president of the United States, the former vice president of the United States out debating Guantanamo Bay, out debating those enhanced interrogation techniques.
And I put to Secretary Ridge -- and remember how important he was. He resigned as Pennsylvania governor to join the Bush administration at the request of President Bush and then Vice President Cheney in those harrowing days after 9/11.
So I put to him the threshold question. The former vice president has said all these changes and policies under President Obama make the American people less safe. I wanted to know if Tom Ridge agreed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING: You had the intelligence. You served in a very sensitive position in those days after 9/11. Do you believe we are less safe today because of steps taken by President Obama?
TOM RIDGE, FORMER HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: I do not.
KING: You disagree with Dick Cheney?
RIDGE: I disagree with Dick Cheney. But I also disagree with the approach both men are taking.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: All right. So let me follow up by saying what does Ridge think about President Obama?
KING: Well, you heard that last part: I disagree with the approach both men are taking. He thinks they're making too much politics of this and not talking about the policy, No. 1, Kyra.
And I also put to him, because if you listen to the president's speech, he not only criticized the policies of the Bush administration; he attacked their motives. So I wanted Tom Ridge to assess that moment. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KING: I want you to listen to one more piece of the president's speech on Thursday. Because he was damning in his characterization of how your administration, the Bush administration went about the business of fighting terrorism after 9/11. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I also believe that all too often our government made decisions based on fear rather than foresight. All too often our government trimmed back evidence to fit ideological predispositions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: You were at the table with the president, with the vice president, with others involved in this fight just after 9/11. Did you make decisions based on fear rather than foresight? Did you trim the facts and the evidence based on ideological predispositions?
RIDGE: I'm surprised that President Obama, who I really truly believe knows better, would make such a statement. The men and women in charge of America's security, whether they're military or the intelligence community, the president, the vice president, the attorney general, the FBI director, did everything they could at the time to prevent another attack on America. And it did -- did it consistent with the Constitution and the rule of law.
KING: So are you disappointed in him? In that speech, he also said this gets too tied up in politics too often. Is that politics?
RIDGE: I think it is. I mean, it's just the whole notion of a Republican vice president debate -- giving a speech after the incumbent Democrat president. It's kind of beyond politics of either party.
At the end of the day, as Americans, we're in this -- we're in this together. And at the end of the day it is a challenge that we're going to need to confront together.
And I'm a little disappointed in the president, because he said many, many times in the past now is the time -- we need to look forward, not backwards. But the pattern for the first 100 plus days, as it relates to this, to the war on terror and the tactics that we're using have not been progressive and forward-looking. It keeps looking backwards to justify what it's doing now. And I don't think at the end of the day -- I think that becomes more politics than policy. And I don't think it's the kind of approach that we need to bring America together on this very important issue.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KING: And Kyra, he went on with some very interesting things to say. More good things to say about the national security debate. Also very interesting on why he decided not to run for the Arlen Specter Senate seat up in Pennsylvania. Many Republicans had wanted him to do that.
And he talks about the future of the Republican Party. And you might want to hear about what he thinks about Rush Limbaugh.
PHILLIPS: I think we'll pay attention to all of those. There you go again, making news. John King, thanks so much.
KING: Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: You can see all of John's exclusive interview -- you bet -- with Tom Ridge on Sunday, CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION." That's at 9 a.m. Eastern right here on CNN.
A lot of credit-card users are smiling today. President Obama is getting ready to sign into law a major credit-card reform bill.
Under the legislation, consumers will have to get 45 days' notice before their interest rates are hiked. Banks also won't be able to hike rates on existing balances until card holders are more than 60 days late on a payment.
Now, over-the-limit fees and late charges will also be cut back. And there are restrictions on banks issuing cards to people under the age of 21. The new rules take effect early next year.
Spring fever is spreading. Summer vacation is looming. But that's not why some high-school students in Wisconsin are skipping class. They're actually afraid for their lives.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, the crew of Space Shuttle Atlantis will have to spend at least one more day in orbit. NASA took a pass on both landing opportunities today in Florida. The reason: a salt water system that is still drenching the state.
NASA now hopes to bring the shuttle and its seven crew members home tomorrow, either in Florida or the back-up landing site in California.
The shuttle is wrapping up a successful mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. The crew there pretty happy about what they've done.
Rain, rain, rain and just more rain. It won't let up in Florida. Not good for a great holiday weekend. Right, Reynolds Wolf?
(WEATHER REPORT)
PHILLIPS: Your running report. Thank you, Reynolds.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You bet.
PHILLIPS: Well, with no sightings of a Minnesota mom and her sick son, the boy's dad has taken to the airwaves, pleading with them to come home.
Colleen and Danny Hauser fled their home Monday to avoid court- ordered chemo for the cancer-stricken boy. The family wants to treat the cancer with a natural regimen that includes vitamins.
Anthony Hauser reminded his wife they, quote, "can't do what's best for Danny with both of you on the run." Alternative medicine has come a long way. We're talking about a multibillion dollar industry here. But there's a big difference between taking a daily supplement to boost your energy and taking it in lieu of chemo.
Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, looks at cancer patients' options.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When it comes to cases of Daniel Hauser, what really is the issue here is that you have traditional medicine and in this case chemotherapy which is very effective, about 95 percent effective for someone in his age group.
So I think even alternative medicine doctors would say, "Look, you have a very good option here, an option most likely to work, traditional medicine, even they would probably recommend it."
I think it is important to distinguish here between alternative medicine, versus complementary or integrative medicine. Complementary or integrative medicine, as you might imagine, embraces traditional medicine but says there are -- there are other options here to try and mitigate, maybe, some of the side effects of traditional medicine.
Going through this type of therapy is tough. I mean, you're likely to have mouth sores within a week, nausea and vomiting and lose his hair. It's not easy therapy. But there are all sorts of trials being done now on complementary medicine. There's even a center at the NIH which looks at controlled trials of some of these complementary and integrative therapies, versus some of the more traditional therapies.
Some of the ones that caught our eye: giving chemotherapy timed to one's circadian rhythms, so as to mitigate some of the side effects. Using shark cartilage, possibly as a therapy for lung cancer. Using mistletoe for solid organ tumors. So there are some things that are being studied out here.
If you're someone who is in the situation where you want to try something other than the traditional therapy, or you want to try something in addition to traditional therapy, there are some questions you should always ask, no matter what you're possibly considering. The risks versus the benefits. I think no matter what it is, that's always a good question to ask. Might it interfere with other conventional therapies that I'm receiving?
There are all things -- all sorts of things that can interfere. For example, grapefruit juice can interfere with lots of medications and their absorption.
And finally, of course, what are the side effects?
I imagine this young boy is scared. I imagine it's very difficult for him right now to weigh all of his options. A lot of people following this story. We're certainly going to bring you the updates.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VELEZ-MITCHELL: All right. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
And an Illinois meat packer is recalling nearly 96,000 pounds of ground beef products because of a possible E. coli contamination. That move after three people in Cleveland, Ohio, got sick.
The company, Valley Meats, is linked to the illnesses. Related cases were reported in Pennsylvania and Illinois. The recall includes 3S, Grillmaster and J&B brand products. Valley Meats is headquartered in Coal Valley, Illinois.
They are disturbing words to hear, especially from the mouths of children.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hear gun shots through my door. Bang, bang.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wonder every day if I'm going to get shot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hear bullets telling me to run as fast as I can.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Kids living under the constant threat of crime putting their fears, their hopes, and their very lives on paper. It's a hard lesson, but it' an inspiring story.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Billions of dollars more for war, 91 billion, to be exact, for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that's only through October. The vote last night was 86-3. Lawmakers earlier stripped the bill of any money to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
President Obama signed the bill today, aimed at ending wasteful military spending. The bill calls for increased oversight after the Government Accountability Office recently reported $295 billion in cost overruns.
We all know Afghanistan is a war zone, but it's also a drug trafficking zone. And no one knows more than its next-door neighbor, Iran, which is being flooded by Afghan drugs. Now the Iranians are putting piles of confiscated contraband on display, hoping to send a message.
Here's CNN's Reza Sayah.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cameras rolled as Iranian police and paramilitary troops put on a display of military might before dozens of foreign diplomats and journalists. But this was not a show of force against foreign powers, said Iranian officials. Instead, they said it was a warning to some of the world's most dangerous drug smugglers, who sometimes kill their way across the Afghan border, carry opiates into Iran to get a piece of billions of dollars in drug profits.
In a helicopter tour of the Iran/Afghan border, Iranian officials flew dozens of diplomats and reporters from the city of Zahedan north to Zabul to show how they've tightened border security. Among the guests on the tour, Antonio Maria Costa, the head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.
According to the U.N., more than 90 percent of the world's opium is made in Afghanistan, with an annual export value of nearly $4 billion. More than half of that supply is smuggled into Iran, some by mule, others by well-armed gangsters. Much of the supply is shipped to Europe. The rest stays in Iran, where Iranian police say it fuels violence, crime and drug addiction.
Iranian officials say during the past two years, they've spent nearly $800 million to seal shut almost half its border with walls, barbed wire, trenches and thousands of border guards.
(on camera): According to the U.N., nobody has seized more opium-based drugs than police in Iran. In fact, the numbers show 80 percent of the opium-based drugs seized in the world are happening in Iran. And this is some of the drugs that Iranian police have seized. And if you've never seen what opium looks like, this is it. It comes in this pasty form, $4 billion of it, according to U.N. figures, coming across the Iran border.
ANTONIO MARIA COSTA, U.N. OFFICE ON DRUGS AND CRIME: I have great appreciate for what Iran has done in the past few years.
SAYAH (voice-over): The UNODC's Costa praised Iran's efforts and called for the international community to help. Some analysts say Afghanistan's drug problem presents an opportunity for Iran and the U.S. to forge a partnership on an issue they agree on. But Iran's police chief reminded the gathering of the mistrust that remains an obstacle to a partnership between Tehran and Washington.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
SAYAH: U.S. troops are part of the problem in Afghanistan, he said, not part of the solution.
Reza Sayah, CNN, Zahedan, Iran.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: "I hear gunshots at my door. I wonder if I'm going die." The words are disturbing, especially because a child wrote them. What started as homework turns into so much more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: We're just getting started in the NEWSROOM. We brought you this shocking and tragic story out of Texas recently, mentally disabled people forced to fight by the people who were supposed to care for them. Now, the state is trying to make sure this never happens again.
Plus, you get sick. Your home becomes unlivable. You have to move out. A nightmare that's becoming a reality for more and more American families, all because of what's in their walls. We're going to tell you what you need to know.
Streets ravaged by crime. Children fearing for their lives. Doesn't sound like good news, does it? But believe me, we found the silver lining in this dark cloud in the form of a group of grade- schoolers in Rochester, New York. It all started with a fourth-grade assignment on writing poetry. It ended with powerful and inspiring words.
Here's Maureen McGuire of our CNN affiliate, WROC.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I hear their (INAUDIBLE) to my door, bang, bang.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I wonder every day if I'm going to get shot.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I hear bullets telling me to run as fast as I can.
MAUREEN MCGUIRE, WROC- TV REPORTER (voice-over): They're the voice of children...
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I cry because of where I live. I am a strong black girl whose alive on the streets of Rochester.
MCGUIRE: ... reading their own words.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I pretend to ride a motorcycle to get away.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I wonder if they will invade my house.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I try not to let it get to me.
MCGWIRE: Poetry from the heart of the city. This spring, something remarkable happened in Heather O'Reilly's fourth grade class at School Number Six. A routine lesson on writing poetry produced results that no one was expecting. These 9 and 10 year olds wrote about what it's like to live on the streets riddled with crime and poverty. HEATHER O'REILLY, FOURTH GRADE TEACHER: It had a lot to do with the violence in the community, more so this year than in previous years. And the kids that weren't normally my best writers came out with some very moving pieces.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I am a man who survived the streets or the gangs. I wonder if I will live long enough.
MCGUIRE: Jahmeic Hunter and Tavon Phipps are just two of these extraordinary poets. Both live in the shadow of violence.
(on camera): Some of what you write in that poem is kind of scary stuff, do you know that? Why it did you write about that?
JAHMEIC HUNTER, FOURTH GRADER: It was scary. I used to live and walk in terrorists (ph).
MCGUIRE: Yes.
HUNTER: They shoot at each other.
TAVON PHIPPS, FOURTH GRADER: My uncle had got shot nine times. Then, after that, the male who shot him had came and was shooting at our doors.
MCGUIRE: What did you do?
PHIPPS: I had used my phone to call for help.
MCGUIRE: You called for help? Who did you call?
PHIPPS: The police.
MCGUIRE (voice-over): And no one is more moved by these kids than the police who patrol their neighborhoods. Not long after the poems were written, Officers Manny Ortiz and Angel Vasquez were invited to school to listen.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I worry that I won't see the life the way I want to. I cry because of where I live.
OFC. MANNY ORTIZ, ROCHESTER POLICE: That is the worst part of our job. To see kids, anyone, particular hard to see children and the way the violence affects them.
MCGUIRE: And so a poetry reading turns into a talk about dreams for the future.
OFC. ANGEL VASQUEZ, ROCHESTER POLICE: I think you may want to be a writer some day. End up writing news stories for them, for Channel 8 or for the newspapers. I mean, anything. You know, you continue to write the way you're doing now, there's nothing that can stop you.
O'REILLY: You know at the end of the day, everything that they've been through, they are just kids. I think they get the bad rap that the city district is school of kids, they don't know how to learn, they're not respectful. And they are.
MCGUIRE (on camera): So are you going to keep writing?
HUNTER: Yes.
MCGUIRE: I hope so.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I say my prayers to God. I dream that the violence will stop trying to get in.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I hope one day I can leave this place.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I try to stop people from fighting. I hope the fighting stops.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I hope that my dreams will come true.
UNIDENTIFIED STUDENT: I am a man that survived the streets of the gangs.
MCGUIRE: Maureen McGuire, News 8 Now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: We hope that all of you keep writing you poetry, as well. We're going to be sure to keep an eye on all you kids. We also want to highlight more incredible people and stories right here in the NEWSROOM every day. Send us your ideas at cnn.com/newsroom.
She worked hard on her class report, but when the time came, her classmates weren't allowed to see it, not all of them, anyway. It's a controversy that puts a spotlight on what our kids are learning and should be learning at school. More from Elex Michaelson of our affiliate XETV.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(VIDEO CLIP -- "MILK")
ELEX MICHAELSON, XETV-TV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Inspired by the movie and the man, Natalie Jones (ph) chose Harvey Milk as the subject for her school presentation.
NATALIE JONES (ph), STUDENT: He stood for all minorities, no matter what you were.
MICHAELSON: Her PowerPoint focused on Milk being the first openly gay man elected to public office in America but never endorsed homosexuality.
JONES: It was just telling what he did.
MICHAELSON (on camera): A day before the presentation, the school sent out this letter to parents saying Natalie wasn't going to be presenting to the class.
(voice-over): Because the issue is sensitive, it says, she talked at lunch and only to kids with parental permission.
JONES: And I was just kind of sad because I've been, like, looking so forward to it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't have an answer for that.
MICHAELSON: The ACLU has told the school that's unconstitutional.
DAVID BLAIR-LOY, AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION: The school district illegally discriminated against Natalie Jones (ph) based on the content of her speech.
MICHAELSON: The district cites its sex education clause, saying parents are the first teachers regarding sexuality. But parents we talked to were split.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kind of a controversial issue, and so I would say that the parents should know about it. I think they should have a say-so.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're going to hear about it in school anyways.
MICHAELSON: Natalie wants an apology and, like Milk, won't back down.
JONES: I did learn never to give up, that's for sure.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Well, this story got the team talking about our great school days, what and when we were taught about sexual issues. It was a pretty wide range of experiences. And that's true for kids even today. For example, California schools aren't required to teach sex education at all beyond HIV/AIDS prevention. On the other hand, 20 states and the District of Columbia mandate sex ed in public schools. In 36 states and D.C., parents can pull their kids out of sex-ed classes.
So, what do you think about all this? Tweet us at kyracnn and we'll try and read some of your tweets on the air.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Pushing forward now on a rapidly developing story out of New York. Four men accused of plotting their own holy war against Jews and of plotting to shoot down military planes with missiles. This cell-phone video shows their Wednesday night arrest, the result of a yearlong FBI sting operation.
The men are described as Islamic extremists, and we're hearing that at least some of them were apparently introduced to Islam in prison. FBI Director Robert Mueller told Congress it's part of a growing and disturbing trend.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT MUELLER, DIRECTOR, FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION: The concerns we have about individuals who may support terrorism being in the United States run from concerns about providing financing to terrorists, radicalizing others in regard to extreme -- violent extremism, the potential for individuals undertaking attacks on the United States, all of those are concerns relevant to an individual comes into the United States from whatever source who may present a challenge.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: All right, let's push forward on this issue, specifically the introduction of religion behind prison walls. Is it also an invitation to extremism? Let's talk with Imam Frederick Thaufeer Al-Deen, who's also served as a prison chaplain, and still does, right, Imam?
IMAM FREDERICK THAUFEER AL-DEEN, FORMER PRISON CHAPLAIN: I worked with the Federal Bureau of Prisons in the past and State of Oklahoma, where I was when I became a Muslim.
PHILLIPS: All right, so let's talk about this talk now about these state prisons being a breeding ground for radicalization. What's your reaction to that?
AL-DEEN: Well, my reaction is that unfortunately, prisons are breeding grounds for a lot of criminal activity from robbery to murder to rape to child molestation, you name it.
PHILLIPS: So, knowing what you know then, taking into account what you just said, you've got FBI Director Robert Mueller saying, look, this actually could be a fertile ground for extremists. So, let's look at the Gitmo detainees. The talk has been, from the president to his right-hand man, David Axelrod, that it's possible that these Gitmo detainees could be put into our prison system. What do you think about that?
AL-DEEN: Well, for some of them, I feel I have sympathy because among those detainees are people who are caught up in Afghanistan and other places on the basis of bounties being placed on their heads. And they were just at the wrong place at the wrong time. Somebody trying to get some money picked them up and brought them there.
PHILLIPS: So, but the Gitmo detainees if Gitmo does eventually shut down, which is the president says he wants to see happen, and these detainees go into the prison system here in the United States, do you think by having Gitmo detainees in these prisons already with these convicted felons, that that could be a breeding ground for extremism?
AL-DEEN: No, I don't think it will be a breeding ground in the -- to the extent that the tenor of this story would represent. The federal and state prison systems are housed and staffed with very professional people. And they, in their individual lives, for the most part, if you (ph) examine the lives of those staffers, and you'll find that they are people that represent the positive way a person should behave in society.
So, if a prisoner would focus on the contacts that they have with correctional staff, their counselors and what have you, the wardens and deputy wardens and what have you, it would offset the kind of negative influences that you are going to find in prison. Some people try to push guys to become gang members, pushing people to become racists, racial supremacists.
So, it depends on what you as an individual are predisposed towards and what you allow yourself to be influenced by that determines whether or not you'll be radicalized. Radicalization is a process where a person is changed from one attitude or opinion to another. It happens in our military. It happens on football teams. Radicalization's something that happens in life. The ends are sometimes, of course, different, widely different.
PHILLIPS: All right, well, let's say, you know, these Gitmo detainees, right, come into a prison system, and they're mingling with murderers, gang members. I mean, the worst of the worst. They're out there, you know, in the yard, and they start talking, and all these guys, all they do is believe in hate. Would you be concerned about seeing these various groups, hard-core groups, coming together?
AL-DEEN: Well, your question houses an assumption. We don't know what the Gitmo detainees' attitudes are because they haven't had a day in court. When that day in court happens that we find out that maybe, as you stated, they're filled with hate, then our judicial system will take the steps necessary to protect us, other prisoners and the general society from crazy people like that.
But for the most part, if a Gitmo detainee were to come into a prison system, he would be handled by the most professional correctional staff on the planet. So, I think the chance of them being able to radicalize people so that they come out and harm us, I just don't see it happening, knowing the level of typical professionalism that exists in most of our prison systems.
PHILLIPS: Final thought, because, you know, you have been one to go into these prisons as an imam. Back in 2006, city correction officials created this specialized intelligence unit on Rikers Island to stop the fanatics before they actually had a chance to indoctrinate others. When you go into the prisons, and you meet with Muslims, how do you handle that if you think, ooh, boy, this is someone who's definitely a fanatic or going that way or wanting to influence others in a harmful and a bad way? How do you take action? How do you handle that?
AL-DEEN: As a Muslim, my first, after belief in God and a concept called Tauhid, I would follow the example of our prophet, all the prophets, Moses, Jesus, Abraham, all of them. And I would first do no harm. And then I would take the opportunity to take those steps and say those words and exhibit the behavior that nurtures the decent, natural goodness in persons rather than to inflame the negative rebelliousness that is also in people. And that's what we do.
PHILLIPS: I hear you. Appreciate your time. It's great talking with you.
AL-DEEN: Thank you. Don't forget the lunch.
PHILLIPS: In all clarity here, yes, the imam has been talking with my producer about getting together for lunch. I'm trying to arrange that for a good religious discussion. Imam, thanks so much.
AL-DEEN: Look forward to it.
PHILLIPS: So do I.
AL-DEEN: Thank you.
PHILLIPS: Well, spring fever is spreading. Summer vacation is looming. But unfortunately, that's not why some high school students in Wisconsin are skipping class. They're actually afraid for their lives.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Back to our top story, hateful words and mortal fear in school. A half-dozen high school students in Whitewater, Wisconsin, all of them African-American, are sitting out the last few days of the term because they were named in a death threat on a bathroom wall. Two of those names are Banki And Dami Minett. They join me now live from Milwaukee along with their dad, Toby.
Gentlemen, thanks for being with me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure.
PHILLIPS: Dami and Banki, did the two of you, when you went into the restroom, did you go separately or together when you saw this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, actually we didn't see it in the bathroom.
PHILLIPS: You actually didn't see it. When was the first time you saw it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On a picture.
PHILLIPS: On the picture. Who showed you the picture?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our principal.
PHILLIPS: The principal actually showed you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
PHILLIPS: And what did you see in that picture?
BANKI MINETT, THREATENED AT SCHOOL: Well, (INAUDIBLE) you could see the KKK, and you could see some of our names. You could see all of our names, but they spelled my name wrong and my brother's name wrong. PHILLIPS: And what was the threatening message, Dami, on that picture?
DAMI MINETT, THREATENED AT SCHOOL: It said that "we're going to kill us some niggers today."
PHILLIPS: Wow. And you guys didn't hear about this at all until the principal came to you, so, Dami...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no, no, that's not right.
PHILLIPS: How did it happen, Toby?
TOBY MINETT, FATHER OF THREATENED STUDENTS: I didn't hear about this until about 9:00 at night. It happened -- see, the important thing that we got to get is this timeline. This thing happened on the 14th. I didn't hear nothing about it. I didn't -- my son told me about 9:00 at night. I was out of town.
He came telling me that, oh, Dad, they want to kill us up at the school. Well, you know, after swerving trying to avoid traffic, you know, I'm not really taking everything that the kids say, you know, seriously because you don't want to react. They're kids.
So, based on that, I didn't get up and move the next morning, Friday, right away. I kind of waited. Waited until about 2:00. Still no call from the principal and nobody else. At the same time, I guess my concern is, they was able to call the police, question the kids, bring in some more kids, and do some handwriting sampling.
They was able to do all this stuff, but they did not think to contact the parents of whose names that the kids that was on that death list? It didn't make no sense. And they still didn't contact me until I actually went up to the school and had a meeting.
PHILLIPS: So, let me ask you this. So, Dami and Banki, did the principal say you, don't tell your parents about this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. He didn't say that. He just didn't mention...
PHILLIPS: Got it. He just said, here's the picture. Here's what's going on.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly.
PHILLIPS: OK. So, why did he show you the picture? Did he tell either of you boys why he wanted to show you that picture?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I guess try to have us aware of what was going on.
PHILLIPS: OK. All right. So, once you were made aware -- and we're actually looking at a picture of that disgusting message on the window there, on the mirror there, Dami...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, it wasn't the mirror.
PHILLIPS: What was it on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was the bathroom stall.
PHILLIPS: Oh, it was on the stall, inside the stall. OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
PHILLIPS: So, Banki, when you saw that did you -- what went through your mind? Did you feel scared? Did you feel threatened? Had you ever been threatened before from any of the white students before this?
B. MINETT: Well, I have. Last year, my freshman year, I had swastikas put in my locker.
PHILLIPS: What was put in your locker?
B. MINETT: Swastikas.
PHILLIPS: Wow. And did you bring that to the attention of the principal?
T. MINETT: Yes, I did. Well, I could get up in here, because he came and told me, and at that point I went and talked to the principal and asked him what he wanted to do about this. And you know, I didn't really raise -- kick up a whole lot of sin (ph) right then because I wanted to see how he's going to react.
He kind of downplayed it. As usual, we didn't get nothing else done. I mean, it kind of like went on the carpet, you know? There's been other incidents out in Whitewater and, you know, stuff that they don't even know about. But I don't really mind them putting a death threat on me, but when you start to mess with the kids, well, now, that's a whole different thing. I mean...
PHILLIPS: So, Toby, did you tell the boys, that's it, you're not going back to school? Or did Dami and Banki come to you and say, Dad, we don't want to go back to school?
T. MINETT: It was kind of like a -- I mean, the kids, they love the education. I mean, this is where they went to school all their life, so they don't know nothing but this. But when you, you know, they don't know the seriousness of it, I don't believe. How can they? They're only 16, the oldest. You know...
PHILLIPS: Let me ask the boys. Banki, do you -- or Banki, do you feel threatened? Are you scared to go back to school?
B. MINETT: Well, at this point, no. Because I think 700 against 12 is pretty even, so I'm not scared.
PHILLIPS: Oh. Dami, Dami, what about you?
D. MINETT: Well, I still -- I want to go to school to still get my education and stuff, but on the other side, I look at it that I am threatened by the whole entire thing because you never know who it was and who could have done it. And that's just...
PHILLIPS: Toby, let me, let me -- you know, as I listen to Dami and Banki, and I see them, these guys -- these are no wimps. I mean, these are strong, smart boys. And, you know, these kids that wrote these message are obviously tremendous cowards. I mean, they're idiots. They haven't brought up well. They're insensitive, and they shouldn't have done it.
So, let me ask you, because you seem like an awfully strong dad, too. Why not let these boys go to school and show these other punks, hey, you can't threaten me. You can't write something on a wall and make me feel like a wimp. Right? I mean, Dami, Banki, are you with me, or no?
T. MINETT: No, wait. You asked me something. But they went through...
PHILLIPS: I want you all to respond.
T. MINETT: Right, yes, yes. They -- I heard what you said. But it's not the fact that, you know, it's not about us being scared to send them back to school or none of that. I mean, we can fight one- on-one, but how are you going to duck when you got 50 guns pointed at you?
And not only that, how can you fight a ghost? I don't know who it is. It could be -- I mean, I just had what they call a swagger 16 birthday party. I had 70 kids over at my house. I don't know which one it was, and I just don't feel safe letting them go back to school.
And here's something else I want to mention. You know, this is 2009. This is not just happening right here. It's happening all over the country, and I just didn't feel like I should just let this one, a death threat -- my kids are part of a hit list basically.
I don't feel comfortable letting them go back to school. I don't care what the kids say. Until somebody -- I'm in control until they're 18.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: What's it going to take? So what's it going to take, Toby, for you to feel better? Is it going to be finding the kids who did this and holding them accountable? What's going to make you feel better about the boys going back to this school?
MINETT: Well, I'm kind of undetermined at -- you know, naturally, once they find somebody, or at least bring some type of light to it. But the real issue is, it started on the 14th. And I had, on Monday, after we did the Fox 6:00 show, that weekend on Monday, I asked Dawson -- I said, "Dawson, I was told to go and file a police report and come up here and have you guys put a -- what do you call it? An escort on the kids."
And all this time, Dawson is saying, "Oh, well." And Mr. Parker, too, the dean. He's also saying, well, you can't really -- it would take too much manpower to put an escort on the kids.
What are you talking about? The teachers are there.
And now here comes Wednesday. Now he wants to personally escort all the kids to the school. I'm like, "How are you going to personally escort them?" It's six of them.
PHILLIPS: Right.
MINETT: Well, we don't want to make it to -- we don't want put too much attention on it.
PHILLIPS: All right.
MINETT: Well, it's already attention on it. They're on a death list.
PHILLIPS: Well, I'll tell you what. I'll tell you what -- and I, as a parent, I can't even imagine what you're going through. That's got to be so incredibly difficult.
We're going to talk to the principal in just a minute to talk about what exactly the principal is doing and the school is doing.
But just finally, I want to hear from Banki and Dami.
Guys, you both want to go back to school. I hear that from you, Dami. You want to get an education. It's important to you, right?
DAMI MINETT, THREATENED AT SCHOOL: Yes.
PHILLIPS: And Banki, how do you feel about that?
BANKI MINETT, THREATENED AT SCHOOL: I want to do the same thing, because our parents, they just -- when this thing even came up, they just made our mind set to school. And without school, there's nothing going to happen.
PHILLIPS: Right.
T. MINETT: Look at Obama. He's in office right now. How is all this stuff still going on in 2009? This is basically the same old stuff, just a different day.
PHILLIPS: I tell you what, there is absolutely no excuse for the kids and what they wrote on that stall. You're absolutely right.
Well, I'll tell you what -- I know. I know this is heated, Toby. We're going to follow up on it. We're going to stay on top of this. I'm going to talk to the principal right after the break.
T. MINETT: You should talk to the chief of the police. Why did he say that he didn't think that this was a threat?
PHILLIPS: And we did. And we did.
T. MINETT: And why he thought it was a joke. How can he think this is a joke?
PHILLIPS: And we're going to talk about that. We're going to talk about the fact that it came out that they thought this was a prank. They're now handling it differently.
Just so you know, Toby, Lieutenant Tim Gray with the Whitewater Police Department, they say they're going to be holding a news conference today, they have some developing information.
So Dami, Banki, we want to stay in touch with you. Toby as well.
We're going to follow up on the story. But Dami and Banki, I loved to hear what you say about what you said, you definitely want to get your education and go back to that school. Do not let these kids intimidate you.
All right?
T. MINETT: No, but none of that don't mean nothing if they come up dead.
PHILLIPS: Well, I'll tell you what, we're all taking it seriously and we're following it.
T. MINETT: I hope so. Because if a guy come up in there with -- one thing is a pistol, but let the man have an automatic. It won't be just my kids getting hurt.
And I'm just appalled that it took this thing happening on last Thursday. And now, just a week later, now they're finally, oh, well let's pay some attention now.
In the meantime, my kids love these schools. They're not just football pros. They are athletes. They do basketball, football, they can even do some tennis if they want to. They're athletes.
And then Parker says that, "Well, Mr. Minett, if you don't feel comfortable with your kids there, maybe you should consider transferring."
Why would he say something like that to me, as if that's a solution? That's not a solution. The problem would still be here, not just in Whitewater, but all across America.
I'm not just doing this -- this is not about me. This is about the kids and exposing what's going on up here. This is a university town. What are we breeding here?
PHILLIPS: And on that note, you did write a letter to the school. And as we take this to the break, I'm going to read your words, Toby.
It says, "It is a disgrace to hear from my kids. And my kids keep asking. I must admit that my kids feel vulnerable and afraid of being not protected by the school." You go on to say, "All my life I have believed that character counts. My family has been able, with the help of others and with the help of God, to defy poverty, avoid prison, overcome segregation, bigotry, racism, and attend good schools in this country."
We'll continue to follow up the story.
