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Texas Principal Job at Stake Over His Stance on Critical Race Theory; Florida Woman Helps Young, Black Men Get Suited for Success; Johnson and Johnson Booster Provides 94 Percent Protection Against COVID. Aired 3:30-4p ET
Aired September 21, 2021 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:30:00]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: So last night, during a special session, a Texas school board voted unanimously toward firing a principal. They took one step in that direction. James Whitfield, the first black principal of the Dallas Fort Worth High School was put on leave last month. Now he's accused of promoting critical race theory and having what they call extreme views on race.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: Now, the school district claims the suspension was not in response to community complaints about his views on race. CNN's Omar Jimenez joins us now. Omar, what happened here?
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well Victor, and Alisyn, they basically voted to move forward with the nonrenewal process of Dr. Whitfield's contract. Now in this step one -- because it is a two-step process here -- but in this the step one, the school board laid out their reasons which are basically accusations at this point of why they believe they should not move forward with renewing his contract.
And there are six main ones and among their accusations were that there were performance and communication concerns, behavior to supervisors, dishonesty with the media, failure to express concerns appropriately, dividing the community, and relationship with parents, community and colleagues.
I should note that when the dividing the community accusation was read, the entire room, which was full of parents and community members busted out laughing. And one person was yelling repeatedly at the school board, you are full of it, in more explicit terms. And that basically showed that there were a lot of people in support of Dr. Whitfield throughout that hearing, and he even spoke himself in brief defense of the accusations against him. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. JAMES WHITFIELD, FIRST BLACK PRINCIPAL OF DALLAS FORT WORTH HIGH SCHOOL: I can assure you I have not changed. I'm still the same man today as when you hired me in '18, '19. You promoted me twice in three years. So, I ask you what has changed since July 26th?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you, Dr. Whitfield.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JIMENEZ: Now, as you mentioned, the school board said this was not about critical race theory, race or anyone calling for his firing in particular. Dr. Whitfield's lawyer today, however, said they asked the school board prior to that meeting space to defend themselves, to address the board and the lawyer says the board said no. Instead, they were afforded the opportunity that the general public was just a minute to speak on their own situation.
As I mentioned it's a one of two-step process. The next step, he'll be able to defend himself in a formal hearing through evidence and testimony. At that point, they'll make a final decision on whether he'll be fired or not -- Victor, Alisyn.
[15:35:00]
BLACKWELL: Omar, is anybody saying specifically what the extreme views on race are?
JIMENEZ: They are pointing to Facebook posts. A post where in particular, Dr. Whitfield, he had to take to Facebook and social media to defend himself where he basically said this is not about critical race theory. This is about fear of being the first black principal at his school.
And that's why he feels at least from what I've seen very taken aback and offended in these cases, as many community members who spoke at that meeting, you listen to them, many of them are angry because they feel that the voice of a few, at least one person who leveled an accusation against this principal at a school board is taking precedent over what the voices of those in the community are actually saying.
And so that seems to be the dispute, but no, there is not one single definitive post that seems to be the place where all of this is exploding from.
BLACKWELL: All right. Omar Jimenez, thank you.
All right, the folks at Johnson & Johnson say a second dose of its COVID vaccine gives patients an equivalent immunity boost to that of Pfizer and Moderna's vaccine. We'll talk about that.
CAMEROTA: But first, we want to introduce, "WE ARE CNN," the first multiplatform brand campaign that highlights our achievements and commitment to the work around CNN's global diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts across all screens, and behind the scenes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SARAH SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sarah Sidner in Minneapolis.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA. CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta in New York City.
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kyung Lah is Salt Lake City.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota.
ADRIENNE BROADDUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Adrienne Broaddus in Chicago.
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Omar Jimenez in Minneapolis.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the screen where it happens, the moments that can change the world.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These are the faces we see, the voices we empower.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who's on the screen, and who's behind it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is the work that continues, who we are today, and what we can become.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is where our curiosity can lead us when inclusion matters.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is why more perspectives make us stronger, and how our mission can inspire tomorrow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is journalism that reflects the world we live in.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:40:00]
CAMEROTA: All this week in a special series called "CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE" we're spotlighting bold thinkers and doers who challenge norms and make lasting impact.
BLACKWELL: So, I've known my champion, Shara Mondy for 15 years. I'm excited about this.
CAMEROTA: I'm excited to see it.
BLACKWELL: She helps men achieve success by giving them the suits and the skills to find good jobs. And although she will help anyone, anyone, she has a personal interest in keeping young black men out of jail and making sure those who get in trouble get a second chance.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHARA MONDY, FOUNDER OF SUITED FOR SUCCESS: I have actually been called, you're that suit lady, right? It just makes me smile.
BLACKWELL (voice over): Shara Mondy is my champion, she's founded Suited for Success in north Florida. MONDY: I founded Suited for Success in 2004. We provide professional
business attire, suits, shirts, accessories for men in transition, seeking employment. Nobody else was meeting the career needs of men.
BLACKWELL: I'm passionate about anti-recidivism efforts because the system obviously is broken. There needs to be a bridge to support the men who are being released and this charity is that bridge.
MONDY: I started with some of my friends. I asked them if they had any extra suits because I wanted to suit a couple of guys in jail. They were going to their court appearances and they would wear the jail scrubs so we got a couple of the guys dressed to go to their court appearance, and we found out later it made a huge impact on the judge.
BLACKWELL (voice over): Not all of the men Shara suits up are ex- offenders, some are homeless or veterans or young men who just need their first suit.
MONDY: We work with pretty much any male that's in transition, seeking employment.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to take simple, basic steps.
MONDY: We don't just provide a suit, we provide job readiness, coaching, mentoring, resumes, making sure that they're fully ready for employment. If you're telling a man to get out of jail, get a job, take care of your family, you have to give them career employment. If I can get one man to get in the role of the father, take care of his children, and do what he really wants to do, then that's the success part for me.
MONDY: Today suited for success is hosting our first suit drive of 2021.
MONDY: One of our slogans is "Each One, Reach One" because the guys that we suit and help them, they get a job, they come back and reach back for a young man who's just coming out of what they went through.
EUGENE DARIUS, CLIENT, SUITED FOR SUCCESS: She's putting us around men that can lead us in that right direction and pull us up, which is exactly what we need in today's world.
BLACKWELL: I met you 15 years ago. I lost a lot of weight, and my whole television wardrobe was too big. So, I started looking for places to donate, and I found Suited for Success, and I thought, oh, this is perfect. But once I met you and realized how personal this was for you and still is for you, and that's why I've supported you for all of these years.
MONDY: I know for a fact that we've given out over a million items of clothing.
[15:45:00]
BLACKWELL: A million items.
MONDY: Million items.
BLACKWELL: Are those mine? This one?
MONDY: That was your fav.
BLACKWELL: This is my fav. This was hard to let go of.
MONDY: I know, right. Well, you know it was in good hands.
BLACKWELL: I know this is personal for you. I didn't always know why.
MONDY: Right.
BLACKWELL: Now I know why.
MONDY: This is my son, Jamez.
BLACKWELL (voice over): When Jamez got in trouble for unpaid speeding tickets Shara saw how easily one mistake could derail a young man's life.
JAMEZ DELONG, SON OF SHARA MONDY: I commend this lady because she's never ever, ever, ever gave up on me and that's why I'm here.
BLACKWELL: Shara, when you're helping a man in their late 20s, early 30s, how often are you thinking about Jamez?
MONDY: Always. Especially going into the juvenile jail. I saw so many Jamezes there.
BLACKWELL: The norm is to dismiss these men to expect that they will reoffend. Shara not only challenges that, she rejects it. She knows that these men if given the support, if given the resources can build lives to rebuild their family. The status quo is not acceptable. And she knows that that has to be challenged.
MONDY: I'm not only giving them a suit. I'm giving them their dignity. I'm giving them that spark that they thought they didn't have because they felt they were less than someone else. It's amazing what just feeling the part in a new suit can do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL (on camera): So, listen, we'll continue to share these inspirational stories. Be sure to join Alisyn and me on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern for the "CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE" a one-hour special.
CAMEROTA: That was so inspiring, Victor. What a great story.
BLACKWELL: I just love that Shara has committed so much of her life. She'll meet a man in a parking lot and offer him suits or shoes or ties and anything, and she has been doing it for so long with not much attention. She now is getting her flowers, and she's helped so many men. The stories are phenomenal.
CAMEROTA: I mean it's wonderful because obviously you need the tools in order to break the cycle. How can you break the cycle if you don't have, as she said, the training and the job, you know, resume help and the suits and you are able to wear the outfit? But were those your ties, does she have your ties there still?
BLACKWELL: Those were some of my ties. I have sent literally hundreds of suits, and ties, and slacks and shoes, and she pulled out some of my ties from one of my donations.
CAMEROTA: A vintage Victor Blackwell, that's got to be worth something.
BLACKWELL: All right.
CAMEROTA: OK, tune in Saturday night.
All right, meanwhile, on top of the COVID surge, experts warn this upcoming flu season could be severe. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:50:00]
BLACKWELL: For the close to 15 million Americans who have received a Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the company says a two-dose version of the J&J coronavirus vaccine provides 94 percent protection against symptomatic infection and 100 percent protection against severe disease.
CAMEROTA: Joining us now is Dr. Megan Ranney. She's a professor of emergency medicine and the Associate Dean of Public Health at Brown University. Dr. Ranney. help us understand this. I thought the appeal of the J&J vaccine was that it was a one and done dose. So now are they rethinking that? Now you will need that single shot plus a booster.
DR. MEGAN RANNEY, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: So, I would think about this in the same way that we're thinking about Pfizer and Moderna, which is that all of us are going to need a booster at some point. That's just how vaccines work.
We also saw today from another pre-print release that even that single dose of J&J still works very, very, very well at protecting against severe disease or hospitalization. But that second shot for J&J just like what we're seeing a third shot for Pfizer provides a little extra boost or added protection, which becomes even more important with these new variants that we're seeing.
BLACKWELL: So, about this time last year, Dr. Ranney, a lot of public health officials were talking about the potential for a twin-demic. The COVID pandemic and the flu pandemic that didn't come to fruition. Flu cases were dramatically low the last flu season. Is it more likely that that could happen this year?
RANNEY: Yes, let's be clear on why flu cases were so low last year. It's because we were all masked and we were all distancing. Those things are not being done any more in the vast majority of the country. We all expect there to be more cases of the flu this year. We are already seeing huge rises in RSV another respiratory virus.
[15:55:00]
We are bracing ourselves for an awfully busy winter ahead. So please get your flu shot. COVID shot does not protect you against flu, unfortunately.
CAMEROTA: But are we expecting a more severe strain of the flu?
RANNEY: We don't really know. Normally we watch what happens in the southern hemisphere, particularly in Australia, to predict the next year's flu virus season here in North America. But because Australia has still been under lockdown, we don't really know what's going to happen. It' a little bit of a waiting for the crystal ball, we'll know much more over the next month or so.
BLACKWELL: So, New York schools, they're doubling up on the frequency of testing for students, instead of every other week, every week now. Also unvaccinated students will not have to quarantine if they had close contact with a student who tested positive if they were wearing a mask and were three feet apart. Is that a good idea?
RANNEY: So testing, great idea. More frequent testing is not a bad thing. It helps us to identify those outbreaks a little bit faster. The quarantine rules, I don't love them but honestly, it's what much of the country is doing right now. If both kids are masked, they're saying don't quarantine, just watch them and retest.
In fact, Massachusetts is doing a trial of a test to stay, where no one has to quarantine no matter how close you are. You just do a rapid test every day to try to minimize the number of days of learning lost by our children while also keeping the infections out of the schools.
BLACKWELL: All right, Dr. Megan Ranney, thank you so much.
CAMEROTA: And "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts after this quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
