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U.S. Special Envoy to Haiti Resigns, Citing "Inhumane" Decision to Deport Thousands of Haitian Migrants from U.S. Border; Search Continues for Bryan Laundrie as More Witnesses Come Forward; North Carolina "Funeral Home" Ad Spreads Message to Unvaccinated; Flight Attendants Call for Permanent Zero-Tolerance Policy Against Unruly Passengers. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired September 23, 2021 - 13:30   ET

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

[13:30:00]

ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: Great reporting, Josh. And especially dealing with some of those distractions with the protesters that just showed up.

I appreciate you. Thank you, Josh.

New today, a career U.S. diplomat, serving as a special envoy to Haiti for just two months, abruptly resigned in protest of how the U.S. is handling this current surge of Haitian migrants in Del Rio, Texas.

In his resignation letter, Daniel Foote says, quote, "I will not be associated with the United States' inhumane counterproductive decision to deport thousands of Haitian refugees."

Our next guest is a longtime advocate for immigrants from Haiti, her homeland. Marleine Bastien is the executive director of Family Action Network Movement.

Thank you for being with us.

You've been very critical of what is happening to Haitian migrants at the border. So as a Haitian immigrant to the U.S. yourself, how do these images impact you? What's going through your mind right now?

MARLEINE BASTIEN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, FAMILY ACTION NETWORK MOVEMENT: Thank you, Ana, for having me.

These images brought back memories of 40 years ago when we were fighting for the basic rights of due process of Haitian refugees who were coming en masse in the early '80s.

We witnessed, I witnessed, and I can still see it in my mind's eye, police officers mounted on the big horses and basically pelting those of us who were demonstrating on the street. And oftentimes, people had to fall back, you know, in order not to be trampled by the horses.

So this -- these images brought back painful memories of the past.

CABRERA: As you know, the immigration system here in the U.S. is incredibly complex. It is dysfunctional right now.

Are Haitian refugees though being treated differently than other immigrant groups?

BASTIEN: When we know that of the total amount of encounters at the border in 2020, for example, 646,000, and only 5,000, you know, were -- plus were from Haiti, which made up .8 percent of those encounters at border.

So 2021, the total was 1.5 million and only 30,000 from Haiti, which is less than 2 percent. So when we see these numbers we can say that the Haitians are being singled out for discriminatory treatment by the U.S. government.

CABRERA: But explain, more than that, beyond the numbers, why do you mean that their treatment is different?

BASTIEN: Because Haitians are only a small minority at the border and yet they are the ones being expelled illegally under Title 42, which was a racist policy enacted by the Trump administration.

A policy that we thought the Biden administration will eliminate, will stop use. And that, not only that is he using it, a judge ordered them stopped -- to stop it and -- and but the Biden administration appealed.

And as a result, over a thousand Haitian refugees have been, you know, sent to Haiti in complete denial of their basic rights of due process.

The U.S. is abusing and ignoring both domestic and international treaties that they are supposed to respect in treating Haitian refugees.

(CROSSTALK)

BASTIEN: The Haitian refugees should be allowed to state why they are here and the U.S. is not doing that. They are expelling them illegally in complete denial of due proses.

CABRERA: We do know some have been allowed to stay and have actually been released with court dates into the U.S.

I know you met with the DHS secretary earlier this week. And as we look at what's happening there, you know, in Del Rio, clearly they are overwhelmed. The border agents are overwhelmed and the processing isn't happening fast enough.

So what did you tell DHS Secretary Mayorkas? And what do you think this administration should be doing?

BASTIEN: Well, as I told him, when I met him -- and he was very gracious to listen to us, and we do hope that he'll do the right thing.

The Haitian refugees, bona fide refugees came here because, for the past 30 years, the U.S. has used failed and corrupt policies that create conditions for the Haitians to leave en masse.

And that's -- that's what we're seeing. This is the result of 30 years of supporting dictators, autocrats and corrupt leaders and ignoring the plight of the Haitian people.

So unless we address the root causes of migration, we will continue to see this crisis.

[13:35:01]

So what we are asking right now is for the U.S. to allow these refugees in, give them political as plum interviews to determine whether they have a right to come here.

We are grateful that they are letting some people out. But at the same time, they have -- they have deported hundreds of people.

The Haitian -- well, there's no legal Haitian government as we speak. The de facto prime minister did indicate that they could not absorb these people because Haiti is in crisis.

Haiti's going through one of the worst crises in recent history, so it can't absorb these people. So they are telling us that they can't.

So these people should be allowed in. And you see my humanitarian bill out and receive humanitarian relief.

CABRERA: OK. I wanted to give you a chance to finish that.

I do want to at least acknowledge that the administration did extend temporary protected status for Haitians, which I think is one of the reasons that we've been told this surge of Haitians is happening right now following that extension of the TPP for Haitians, specifically in the Biden administration.

Marleine Bastien, thank you very much for sharing your perspective and giving some incites. Appreciate you.

BASTIEN: Thank you for having me, Ana.

CABRERA: One week. That's how long it's been since anyone has seen Bryan Laundrie. And more witnesses are now coming forward. So where does the search stand?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:41:25]

CABRERA: New details on what may be one of the last sightings of Gabby Petito before her death.

A couple vacationing last month tells CNN they were at a restaurant in Jackson, Wyoming, and they saw Petito crying and Laundrie visibly angry during what they described as a commotion.

This comes as the manhunt continues for her fiance, Bryan Laundrie. It's been more than a week since he was reportedly last seen.

And CNN's Amara Walker is joining us from Venice, Florida, where authorities are scouring a large nature reserve again today.

Do investigators have any leads that we know of, Amara?

AMARA WALKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, none that we know of right now.

And, Ana, this is a fifth day that search teams have descended upon the Carlton rugged reserve here and still no sign of Bryan Laundrie.

Now dive teams were requested out today after 10 divers spent much of the day yesterday searching but their search turned up nothing.

I guess the question now is, how long will law enforcement continue to focus on this reserve?

I can tell you that, a few hours ago, we saw about three all-terrain vehicles leaving the sight. We don't know what that means or if it signifies anything about the scale of this operation.

And you also mentioned one of the last sightings of Gabby Petito. August 27th, that is the date that we're getting from a witness named Nina Angelo.

She spoke with CNN, and she said that on that day in Jackson, Wyoming, she was sitting with her boyfriend at a restaurant called the Merry Piglet.

And there, there was some kind of incident that put Gabby Petito in tears. And she said that Bryan Laundrie was also visibly angry. So much so that he was walking in and out of the restaurant directing his anger at some of the staff.

And that even the waitress that was serving her and her boyfriend was visibly shaken.

The manager also talking to CNN, saying that she reported the incident to the FBI on Wednesday after the remains of Gabby Petito were found on Sunday.

We didn't know that confirmation until Tuesday. The FBI not commenting on this.

But, Ana, just another piece of the puzzle that we're all trying to piece together now.

CABRERA: Amara Walker, appreciate that update.

[13:43:43]

An ad for a funeral home is telling people in North Carolina, "Don't get vaccinated." But there's a twist. The man behind the viral ad is going to join us next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [13:48:52]

CABRERA: Call it clever. Call it reverse psychology. Whatever you call it, the message may be getting through to the unvaccinated.

Have you seen this yet? A digital billboard, driving around Charlotte, with this message: "Don't get vaccinated."

And then there's a link to Wilmore Funeral Home. But here's the thing. Wilmore isn't actually a funeral home.

And when you visit the Web site, this is the message you see, "Get vaccinated now," with a link to an area urgent care where you can make a vaccine appointment.

All of this, the creative brainchild of a local ad agency, Boone Oakley.

And the creative director and president of that agency, David Oakley, joins us now.

David, this is a pretty creative idea. It's got a lot of people talking, that's for sure. How did you come up with the idea, and what was your goal?

DAVID OAKLEY, CREATIVE DIRECTOR & PRESIDENT, BOONE OAKLEY AD AGENCY: Well, first of all, Ana, thanks for having me on today.

I'm very proud of the work that our team has come up with. They did a great job on it. Yes.

CABRERA: So, how did you come up with this idea? What was the goal?

OAKLEY: Well, our whole goal was we noticed how the vaccination rate had really flattened in North Carolina. And we were having a creative meeting about three weeks ago and we decided that maybe we should take this on as a passion project.

[13:50:09]

We are all vaccinated and we believe that we've got to do something about it. That maybe traditional messaging like, get the shot, get vaccinated really weren't moving the needle -- no pun intended.

But we --

(LAUGHTER)

OAKLEY: So, we decided that, like, who's really benefitting from all these people that aren't getting vaccinated? What businesses are doing well because of it?

And I think Mary Gross said, wow, what about a funeral home? We started laughing about it. And then we said, man, that's right, they wouldn't want you to get vaccinated because it's good for their business. So that's how the idea was born. And over a couple of days, we decided

to do it as a mobile billboard, and debut it during the Carolina Panthers-Saints game on Sunday.

CABRERA: I think everybody's wondering, did it work?

Here's what we've discovered. Star Med, the urgent medical care facility, which you worked with on this campaign, tells us they have seen a 22 percent increase in vaccine appointment registrations this week compared to last week. And that this is at a time when, nationally, the vaccine rates are declining.

So, what's your reaction to that?

OAKLEY: Well, that makes me really happy. When we went into it, our goal was, if we can get one person vaccinated because of this message, it's a total success. Just one person.

So, to hear that they had a 22 percent increase so far is -- I'm very proud of that and happy. And hopefully, it will continue trending in that direction.

CABRERA: It's kind of an edgy idea, right? Has there been any backlash to your ad?

OAKLEY: Well, it's kind of funny, the arc of when you see it. It's so stark to see a message that actually is so blatant to say, don't get vaccinated.

And at first, you think it's from an anti-vaxxer group and you read a little farther and you're like, what? It's from a funeral home? Huh?

We've gotten a little feedback. We've gotten a couple of, shall I say, crazy people calling Boone Oakley about it. But other than that, I'm very happy with the result.

CABRERA: So, if it's a success, and given, just under 49 percent of residents are fully vaccinated in North Carolina, are you thinking maybe doing a take two or have you thought about expanding it to other cities or statewide?

OAKLEY: It's funny you ask that, Ana, because we have had questions all morning from different cities about different football events, different things happening in the next couple weeks and asking if we could bring the truck back out. And it's something we are talking about doing right now.

CABRERA: Well, keep us posted.

David Oakley, appreciate your efforts and thanks for taking the time to share with us today.

OAKLEY: Thank you very much. It's a pleasure to get to be here with you.

And get the shot, everybody. Do it. CABRERA: All right. Just do it. To use a different lingo from a

different slogan from a different company.

OAKLEY: Right on.

CABRERA: OK. Coming up for us, the videos are unbelievable. People on planes fighting and harassing flight attendants. But harsher punishments could be coming for these passengers behaving badly.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:57:50]

CABRERA: We've all seen the video of those unruly passengers on airplanes. And today, flight attendants are calling on lawmakers to consider even harsher penalties to stop it from happening.

CNN's Pete Muntean is following today's hearing.

Pete, what are you learning?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: We're learning, Ana, that there's layer after layer to this really ugly issue.

And what's so interesting is that flight attendants say there's a way to stop this problem before a problem passenger ever really gets on board. They are looking to airports to curb the sale of to-go alcohol.

Remember, it's illegal to bring you own alcohol on board a commercial airliner. And flight attendants say that many of these passengers are already showing up drunk and causing problems, which is contributing to these super high numbers.

And 4,385 incidents of unruly passengers reported by flight crews to the FAA since the start of this year. And 101 new incidents in the one week.

The FAA says the rate of these incidents is tapering off a little bit.

But I want you to listen to one of these flight attendants who just spoke to Congress. His name is Teddy Andrews. He's a flight attendant for American Airlines. He's been doing that for about a decade. But he says he dreads coming to work now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TEDDY ANDREWS, ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: But now, our most immediate danger is air rage. These days, I come to work, anticipating disruptive behavior.

It feels like flight attendants have become the target for all kinds of frustration. But every day, flight attendants are disrespected for the job we're trained to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MUNTEAN: Now, flight attendants say the FAA's zero-tolerance policy, that went into place at the beginning of this year, needs to be made permanent now.

They say too many of these passengers are walking free, not facing anything in the way of prosecution, not facing even civil fines, which can be as high as $37,000 from the FAA -- Ana?

CABRERA: Wow.

Pete Muntean, appreciate you bringing that to us.

And thank you all for being with us today. We'll be back tomorrow at 1:00 Eastern. And as always, please follow me on Twitter, @Ana Cabrera. We'll keep the conversation going there.

The news continues now with Alisyn and Victor.

[14:00:03]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone. Welcome to NEWSROOM. I'm Alisyn Camerota.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: I'm Victor Blackwell.