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Right Now: Women's March For Reproductive Rights In D.C.; Congresswomen Share Personal Stories Of Rape And Abortion; California Becomes First State To Mandate Vaccination For Students; Fragile Supply Chain Could Worsen U.K. Fuel Shortage; Sexual Misconduct Allegations Rock U.S. Women's Soccer League; CNN Sits Down With "Europe's Last Dictator" Lukashenko. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired October 02, 2021 - 12:00   ET

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

[11:59:59]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): According to KATV, the woman and her husband had been searching the Crater of Diamonds Park when, yes, they say she spotted this. Something shiny sitting on top of the ground, well, turned out to be a 4.3-carat yellow diamond.

A park superintendent described the diamond as "about the size of a jelly bean," with a pear shape and a lemonade yellow color. That's going to be dazzling when mounted.

All right. Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

All right, right now in Washington, thousands are gathering for a women's march in support of reproductive rights. The demonstration is in response to a restrictive anti-abortion law in Texas. And it's one of 600 marches happening across the country just two days before the new Supreme Court term begins.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is live for us at the march in Washington. Suzanne, what are the organizers' hope to accomplish?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Well, Fred, I was out here five years ago when they had that historic women's march and there were hundreds of thousands of women who had gathered. Many of them and you saw on those pink knitted hats. There were celebrities like Alicia Keys and Madonna. And there was a great deal of rage and frustration and uncertainty the day after former President Trump had been inaugurated.

It is a different scene here today. We expect perhaps 10,000 people to gather here in Washington, D.C., and it is very targeted, very specific about the goal here. Focus on abortion rights, focus on reproductive rights, specifically that Texas ban six weeks abortion.

That ban no break, no incest exceptions, and deputizing citizens to create lawsuits against those doctors who perform those abortions.

A lot of people I spoke with here, very passionate, very concerned, and their direction, their ire is specifically on the Supreme Court that denied actually getting involved in that very controversial case.

Take a listen, Fred.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm dressed up as the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. And I'm here today for everything that women have fought for since 1973, when this law was first passed, given us the right to choose, and I'm just curious what has changed in that timeframe that makes our Supreme Court justices think that we have changed our minds about that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm dressed up as Lady Justice. And I believe that it stands for the fact that justice should be blind, it should be without bias. And there's religious bias in the Supreme Court. Extreme religious bias.

And so -- and why I'm here today, the things that are going on in Texas really drove me here today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And Fred, again, they are focusing on the Supreme Court specifically on Monday, when they go back in session. They're going to be taking on a case out of the state of Mississippi, that bans abortion after 15 weeks with no exception -- rape, of incest.

They are going to be pointing to the Supreme Court to see what they decide and how they handle that. That decision will come probably sometime next year close to the midterm elections.

This is a highly political issue that many people are watching very, very closely. And Fred, that is why we're going to go from this rally here to about 2:00 and they're going to head down to the Supreme Court to deliver that message. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll look forward to that and follow along with you. Thank you so much, Suzanne Malveaux. Appreciate that.

All right, so the fight for abortion rights also playing out in the halls of Congress this week.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): During a committee hearing, Congresswomen Cori Bush and others, offered powerful testimony about their personal stories.

Bush describing what it was to be sexually assaulted as a teenager, then, becoming pregnant, and then choosing to end that pregnancy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. CORI BUSH (D-MO): Choosing to have an abortion was the hardest decision I had ever made. But at 18 years old, I knew it was the right decision for me, it was freeing, knowing I had options. Even still, it took long for me to feel like me again, until most recently, when I decided to give this speech. So, to all the black women and girls who have had abortions and will have abortions, we have nothing to be ashamed of. We live in a society that has failed to legislate love and justice for us. So, we deserve better. We demand better. We are worthy of better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And joining us now to talk further about all of this and the significance of today's women's march, the executive director Rachel O'Leary Carmona. Thank you so much, Rachel, for being with us.

You know, this is something that has been in the works for months -- today's march. But explain to us what you believe the goal is and how it will be met?

RACHEL O'LEARY CARMONA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, WOMEN'S MARCH: Thank you for having me. It's hard to hear, so, I'm going to do my best here.

[12:05:04]

O'LEARY CARMONA: And the goal for today is to get across the top-line message of abortion justice cannot wait.

And there's a lot of things happening, as you just mentioned in the courts -- I mean, in legislation. And now there's a lot happening in the streets for women and allies to have an opportunity to make their voices heard on this topic.

WHITFIELD: And Rachel, we just played a clip of Congresswoman Cori Bush, you know, talking about her personal experience and her decision, and how freeing it was to be able to have, you know, that decision to make.

You have other speakers there today who also talk about their deeply personal stories.

(CROSSTALK)

O'LEARY CARMONA: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Why is it important for such large audiences to hear about something so personal?

O'LEARY CARMONA: Well, I think it's important to understand that pretty much everybody knows somebody that's had an abortion. One in four people who get pregnant have had an abortion. And while I -- you know, it's important for us to hear all these stories.

It also is a bit of a tragedy that, you know, folks have to put their pain out on display for us to be taken seriously. And so, what we're trying to do today is make sure that we all lift our voices in solidarity with each other, to make sure that the folks in power hear our message, which is that abortion justice cannot wait.

WHITFIELD: And hopefully, you can hear me OK, because I know it's very noisy there with a lot of great music being played. But you know, there have been others who suggest that something even more beyond marches needs to happen in an op-ed that was penned by KAylen Ralph for Teen Vogue. She suggested that women go on strike. Much like women did in Iceland in the 70s, you know, for 24 hours. It meant that a lot of workplaces had to shut down in order to get attention.

And not long after that, there was an equal rights piece of legislation that came a year later. Do you believe it's going to take something like that beyond large gatherings marches? Beyond pushing for new legislation to get the attention that you think this reproductive rights fight deserves?

O'LEARY CARMONA: Yes. I don't think that any of the organizers of, you know, the 600 plus marches across the country think that, you know, today is the panacea for anything that happens. This is a one-day event, but it is also day one of a renewed fight for abortion justice.

And so, I think that most of us would agree that absolutely more mobilizing, more organizing, more actions, more people taking to the street is what is both necessary and what is going to happen.

WHITFIELD: All right. Rachel O'Leary Carmona, thank you so much. Appreciate it. And thanks for hanging tight with us there with the audio to -- competing with the great music.

O'LEARY CARMONA: Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks, Rachel.

O'LEARY CARMONA: Yes. Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): California becomes the first state in the nation to mandate COVID vaccines for students in person with -- who were taking part in in-person learning. Will this spark similar mandates in other states?

And later, CNN's exclusive interview with Europe's last dictator.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:12:20]

WHITFIELD (on camera): All right, California is now the first state in the nation to require coronavirus vaccinations for students. The mandate will likely take effect next school year only after the FDA fully approves vaccines for school-aged kids. Vaccinations will be a condition of in-person attendance.

Independent study will be an option for unvaccinated students. Governor Gavin Newsom says the mandate aims to protect children and keep them learning in person.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): With the lowest case rate in America, it's not good enough. And we have a cohort 12 to 17 right now. We're only 63-1/2 percent of our kids have received at least one dose of vaccine and we think this will accelerate our efforts to get this pandemic behind us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Joining me now to discuss is Dr. Robert Wachter, the chairman of the medical school at the University of California, San Francisco. So, good to see you, Dr. Wachter.

DR. ROBERT WACHTER, PROFESSOR AND CHAIR, DEPARTMENT OF MEDICINE, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: He's also the author of Digital Doctor: Hope, Hype, and Harm at the Dawn of Medicine's Computer Age. Had to get that in there too.

All right, so, Dr. Wachter, how you say this decision prioritizes Public Health and Science. You like it?

WACHTER: I do. I think California has done pretty well for the last 18 months. And it's because the governor and the public health leaders and the citizens have basically said we want to do -- we want to go where the science takes us.

And at this point, the science takes us to being very clear that vaccination works, vaccination is incredibly safe. And now we have science about mandates. And they work. They lead to a marked uptick in the amount of -- and the number of people that are taking vaccines, and that makes everybody safer. So, I think it's the right thing to do.

WHITFIELD: New polling from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that just over a third of parents with five to 11-year-old will vaccinate their kids as soon as they're eligible, while 24 percent say they definitely won't vaccinate their children. So, what's it going to take to get everyone or more people on board?

WACHTER: I think that's going to change over time it has for other groups as well. I -- you know, there have been a few concerns about side effects in younger kids. But the more literature the more research comes out, it is crystal clear that your kids are going to be better off being vaccinated than not being vaccinated.

And even the side effect that people worry about, which is an inflammation of the heart, first of all, is incredibly rare with the vaccines, and second of all, is more common as a side effect of COVID than it is as a side effect of the vaccines.

So, I think it's going to take a little time for people to warm up to this. And the -- you know, the idea of mandating vaccines were approached in kids -- and students were approaching this like it's something new.

[12:15:02] WACHTER: There are already mandates that your kids get about 10 different vaccines before they enroll in school. So, this is -- this is standard operating procedure once we're sure that a vaccine is safe and effective.

WHITFIELD: There's also data suggesting that vaccine mandates actually work. Several states have reported significant increases in COVID vaccinations ahead of deadlines for various vaccine mandates. So, should more states follow California's lead? Or do you think they're taking a wait-and-see approach? Or are they just waiting for their turn?

WACHTER: Well, I think you know, we've all seen the country has divided on this as almost everything else along political lines. Should they follow California's lead? Yes, they should. California has, among large states now, the lowest rates of COVID in the country.

If Florida, for example, had mirrored California's per capita death rate, there would be 10 to 15,000 people alive today in Florida. So, I -- and that this is not just the mandates, but all the way through.

We have said in California -- we've said that we're going to -- we follow the science, we're going to prioritize public health. And that's not only good to keep people alive and safe and prevent long COVID, it also turns out to be good for the economy.

Because the only way we're going to get back to normal is if we beat this, this pandemic into the ground. So, I hope other states will follow California's lead. But California has been ahead of the curve.

And I think the recent recall election has shown that, that is not only smart science, but it's also good politics.

WHITFIELD: Well, you know that this is a sobering number that we're all trying to grapple with. The U.S. has now surpassed 700,000 coronavirus deaths since the start of the pandemic.

This is data coming from Johns Hopkins University. What are your thoughts when you think of those numbers, how many people have died, and that this country leads other nations around the world with the most deaths?

WACHTER: Yes, it's hard to get your arms around that each one of those is a, you know, is an individual, and a family, and his loved ones, and leave so much behind. It's larger than the city of Boston.

I mean, if you think about if everyone in the city of Boston passed away, that's the -- that's the size. We're almost at the size of the city of San Francisco.

So, it is staggering. And it's been brutally sad for the entire time. But I guess I'm particularly sad about the 100 or 200,000 deaths that have occurred since the vaccines became available. If all of the states had vaccine rates that mirror those of the highest, the place with the highest uptake, we'd have more than 100,000 people alive today that have died. And so, what's really I mean any death is sad and tragic this entire pandemic has been. But we're now at a stage where virtually all of the deaths were preventable. And that's the part. We've tried everything else. I think mandates clearly are the things that we need to do and they work. And of course, they're politically contentious.

But sometimes you have to do the right thing, and that's -- that is the right thing to do today.

WHITFIELD: All right. Dr. Robert Wachter, good to see you. Thank you so much.

WACHTER: Thank you, Fredricka. Appreciate it.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): All right, coming up, tense negotiations over key pieces of President Biden's agenda continue after Democrats miss their self-imposed deadline. And now, House Speaker -- the House Speaker rather has set a new deadline. A live report on where the negotiation stands next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:22:45]

WHITFIELD: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi now says Democrats must pass the president's bipartisan trillion-dollar infrastructure bill by Halloween. This coming as Democrats have hit the pause button on that bill and the president's larger spending package after moderate and progressive Democrats hit an impasse.

On Friday, Biden made a rare trek to Capitol Hill to encourage those divided Democrats to find common ground. And afterwards, he expressed confidence both pieces of his agenda will pass.

Daniella Diaz is following all of these developments for us on Capitol Hill. Daniela, So what can you tell us about this new deadline from Pelosi?

DANIELLA DIAZ, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER (on camera): Fred, this deadline comes, of course, this announcement that she made in this letter, where she said that the deadline for passing bipartisan infrastructure will come on October 31st has to happen by then she wrote in this, which is notable because this week was probably the biggest test of unity for Democrats

DIAZ (voice-over): And in the end, they started -- they didn't end much farther than where they started after working for five days straight on where they could land.

DIAZ (on camera): This plane land the bipartisan infrastructure bill that moderates wanted to pass by Thursday night ahead of some surface transportation funding that lapsed on midnight, instead, they lap -- they passed a 30-day funding bill, which is why Pelosi has now announced that this is going to go through October, and they're hoping to pass this bill by then. But the problem here is moderates and progressives cannot agree on this timeline for passing these two bills. The bipartisan infrastructure bill, I mentioned this $1.2 trillion bill that would fund improvements to roads, bridges, transportation, create thousands of jobs.

This is what moderates want. And some Republicans. Some Republicans supported this in the Senate, just needs to go through their House before ends up on President Joe Biden's desk and is passed into law.

Now, the progressives are fighting to work on economic bill, a massive economic bill. $3.5 trillion was the number for this -- with this bill would cost, and it would expand the nation's social safety net. It would have funding to combat climate change. It would have paid family in medical leave, it would expand the child tax credit.

[12:25:02]

DIAZ: These are things progressives really want to pass. President Joe Biden promised Americans he would pass these sort of policies. And progressives threatened to withhold their vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill this week unless they can agree to a top-line number from moderate senators, Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin for this bill, that they, they want to pass.

So, take a listen to what Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said about wanting a vote on this bill. Before they agree to any sort of terms on passing the bipartisan infrastructure bill.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): The framework enough an agreed- upon framework.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need a vote.

OCASIO-CORTEZ: We need a vote. We need a -- we need to be real, are we going to deliver universal pre-K to this country or not? Are we going to expand health care to our seniors and include vision and dental or not? Are we going to invest in housing so that people back home in nature can actually get hot water in wintertime or not? That's what we need to know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAZ: You know, I think Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez puts it perfectly. Progressives are incredibly frustrated right now, with moderates trying to layout where they want this economic bill to be.

And then, on the other hand, you have moderate Democrats who are frustrated with the White House for not stepping in sooner. They have -- they really want this bipartisan infrastructure bill passed as soon as possible.

But look, this deadline Pelosi said in a letter that we just discussed -- for the deadline for to pass bipartisan infrastructure for October 31. But progressives had laid out they want both bills at the same time. And President Joe Biden is behind that.

So, unclear right now, how this is going to play out, you know, in the month to come.

WHITFIELD (on camera): A couple of steps forward, a couple of steps back, and then a couple of steps that are just stagnant. No steps at all.

All right, Daniella Diaz, thank you so much.

All right, up next, a supply chain issues in the U.K. have farmers warning there won't be enough Turkeys at Christmas, as the cost of everyday goods skyrockets here in the U.S. Details on that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:31:40]

WHITFIELD: All right global supply chain issues and labor shortages are wreaking havoc for consumers in the U.K. Long lines for gas at gas stations have been a common sight. Food shortages are leaving some supermarket shelves bare and even McDonald's there is being forced to temporarily suspend some of its most popular items. CNN's Anna Stewart is in London for us. So Anna, does it looked like things will get better soon?

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I wish it were. I mean, the current pressing crisis, the fuel crisis that does appear to be easing. That's what we're hearing from the government from industry leaders. But I have to say, Fred, if you go out in London, it's pretty patchy recovery because we're not seeing it here really long queues outside petrol stations. And that at least means that they have fuel any but doesn't have a queue frankly means that it's empty.

So we are still seeing big problems here. It's not a shortage though of fuel, and got enough petrol, enough diesel in the country. It's just not where it needs to be. It's a lack of truck drivers in the U.K. And that is one reason why on Monday, 200 personnel from the British military will be taking to the roads, getting the fuel where it needs to go.

In addition to that, the U.K. Government issuing temporary work visas for foreign truck drivers, luring 5,000 over to try and help ease this crisis. This is a result of the pandemic. But it's also been really exacerbated in the U.K. by Brexit, which saw a mass exodus of European workers. And that is impacting multiple sectors. So also they're issuing temporary visas, 5,500 for poultry workers. Why? Because as we head towards Christmas, there is a very real risk we will not be having roast turkey for Christmas. There aren't enough poultry workers available.

And actually just yesterday, we were hearing from the Pig Association, we might not have sausages either. This worker shortage is an issue across the board. They're tackling it with these temporary visas with the military. It doesn't feel like a long term solution. So unfortunately, we're likely to see more shortages ahead. Fred? WHITFIELD: All right. Lean thin pickings for the dinner table. Anna Stewart, thank you so much. All right, we'll right here in the U.S. no, no lines at the pumps right now. But some of those shortages we just heard about while we might be experiencing to a degree, Costco in fact says, it is limiting sales of toilet paper and paper towel. So it's going back to that again. And orders for everything from cars to sneakers and even toys are jammed up because of labor shortages and a shipping bottleneck.

We're also paying more when we shop. Retail chain Dollar Tree says inflation and skyrocketing shipping costs means it will have to start charging more than $1 for some of its items at the dollar store. So with us now, Gary Locke, he's a former Commerce Secretary and the former U.S. ambassador to China. Ambassador Locke, it's so good to see you. So how did this supply chain issues sneak up on us or did it and are you going to blame as Anna did the pandemic and even Brexit?

GARY LOCKE, FORMER COMMERCE SECRETARY: Well, a lot of it does deal with the pandemic because when trade virtually shut down and across the world you had containers that were in the wrong spots of the world. And you need to get them back to the countries that would be sending those supplies to America. But if America is not sending anything out to those countries, there's no way to get those containers out, let's say to China or to Southeast Asia or other parts of the world, so that they can then be filled to bring back to the United States.

[12:35:19]

But also you're seeing a huge supply chain disruption because of COVID in all these countries that export to the United States. You know, during the trade war with China, many companies wanted to diversify their supply chain and have manufacturing production in other parts of the world, Southeast Asia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand. But then when COVID hit, those factories all got shut down. And so for instance, Nike makes -- produces almost three-fourths of the clothes and shoes now in Vietnam, not China, three-fourths now in Vietnam, but half of those factories have been shut down because of COVID.

The same thing with Under Armour, a brand name, Adidas, the list goes on and on. So what's ironic is that some of these companies are now trying to move some of their manufacturing back to China. But it just really shows how interdependent we are on the health and welfare, the logistics all around the world.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And then I wonder does -- is this a prelude to bigger troubles down the line, it's going to be harder for people to find things, necessities, and even those gift giving things for the holiday season? Do you see that?

LOCKE: Oh, very much. So which is why I think retailers are saying shop early. And we're oftentimes used to these big sales around Christmas time and the holiday season, you may not have those sales, because supply is going to be limited.

And so retailers are going to be saying there's no need to mark down the prices on these goods all the way from shoes, clothing, athletic gear, toys, sporting goods, et cetera, et cetera, or even tools that you might buy at the box stores because supply is going to be limited. So I guess the recommendation is start your Christmas shopping now.

WHITFIELD: OK. Wow, started like yesterday. All right, so let's talk about the other shortage, not just in supplies but in labor. I mean, there's a real world impact going on with these labor shortages everywhere from restaurants to stores, I mean, I don't think any of us have been to a store or a restaurant or a food chain, et cetera, and not seen it for ourselves that there are fewer people who are there to keep the shops going. And you can see some of the graphic right here of the kind of hits that have been taken. What's behind it really? I mean what's going on?

LOCKE: Well, first of all, I think we have a disconnect between people who are looking for work and available jobs. A lot of -- there's been so much disruption in the hospitality industry, in the food industry, restaurants, so many restaurants, even in our city of Seattle which have closed down permanently.

So people are beginning to say, maybe I don't want to, even though there's a new restaurant opening up or another restaurant is starting to bring back people, maybe I don't want to be a restaurant worker anymore. Maybe I'm in a low paying entry level production job.

And I don't, you know, there's been so much disruption, I'm going to change. I need to look for more stable, more predictable work. And then you have companies that are starting to hire, but they need more skilled workers, and we have a skills gap in this country. So we really need to figure out how we can start training people, giving them the skills that they need, so they can take these good paying jobs and we need more predictability.

The sooner that this pandemic is over, the more stability we have, the more industries can bring people back with the assurance that they're not going to be laid off two weeks from now or three weeks from now. You also have a problem when suddenly schools are all shut down because of, you know, so many of the kids have gotten sick or teachers are out.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

LOCKE: Well, the parents --

WHITFIELD: Right, they can't go to work.

LOCKE: -- need to be home. They can't go to work. They have to be home to watch the kids.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

LOCKE: And the same thing with disruption and childcare centers so many of their employees are out sick.

WHITFIELD: Yes. It's a vicious cycle. LOCKE: It is a very much a vicious cycle. So the reality is, the truth of the matter is, the more people who are vaccinated all across the world, not just in America, all across the world, the quicker our economies, our jobs, our lives can get back to normal, whatever the new normal is.

WHITFIELD: That cannot be said enough indeed. Ambassador Gary Locke, thank you so much for being with us. Appreciate it.

LOCKE: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: And this quick programming note of the new CNN original series, Diana, introduces viewers to the person behind the princess and reveals a life more complicated and fascinating than the world actually knew. Diana premieres Sunday, October 10th at 9:00 p.m. right here on CNN.

[12:39:59]

All right, coming up, the U.S. Women's Soccer League canceled all of their games this weekend amid sexual misconduct allegations. Overnight, the league's commissioner quit. Details straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A seismic moment of reckoning in women's soccer. The National Women's Soccer League is calling off all its matches this weekend and its commissioner is stepping down after a bombshell report in "The Athletic" accusing a longtime coach of sexual misconduct. Coy Wire has more.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Fred there is anger and a growing call for answers following allegations of sexual misconduct by one of the National Women's Soccer League's most successful coaches. Paul Riley fired by the North Carolina Courage on Thursday after an investigative report by "The Athletic."

[12:45:12]

Players allege that over a period of years, Riley used his power and influence to sexually harass players, even coercing one of them into having sex with him. Riley denied the accusations in the report. CNN has not been able to reach Riley for comment.

Late Friday night the League released a one sentence statement about Commissioner Lisa Baird, saying she resigned and the League accepted. Earlier Friday, the NWSL in collaboration with the Players Union called off all matches scheduled this weekend based on quote, the gravity of the events of the last week.

Now the Players Union in a statement said quote, words cannot adequately capture our anger, pain, sadness, and disappointment. We refuse to be silent any longer. Our commitment as players is to speak truth to power. We will no longer be complicit in a culture of silence that has enabled abuse and exploitation in our League and our sport, unquote. U.S. Soccer announced it will conduct an independent investigation of the allegations. The organization not only governs soccer in the country, it also supports the NWSL financially, Fred, and until this season managed League operations. FIFA, the sport's international governing body also announced it is launching an investigation into the matter. Fred, back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right, Coy Wire, thank you so much.

All right, and now to this incredible story of a CNN Hero Maria Rose Belding, co-founded a database to match excess food with local organizations ready to distribute it. CNN Heroes is marking its 15th anniversary. And she explains how being named a top 10 hero in 2018 helped MEANS grow its efforts to get food to those who need it most.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA ROSE BELDING, CO-FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MEANS DATABASE: I was 14 when I started building MEANS. I was 23 when we were honored. And to get this award and to have our work and shown in its full breadth was just so incredible. And it really changed the narrative that we've been up against that we were just kids, this was just a club, no, our entire hearts and souls were poured into what we were doing at MEANS and that we were having this large scale national impact.

Since then our budget has more than quadrupled. We were able to, thanks to a pretty great grants, invest more than $4.1 million in small restaurants across nine U.S. cities. And I'm so grateful for all the opportunities that Heroes opened up for all of us. So thank you and congratulations on 15 incredible years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:47:53]

WHITFIELD: Wow, what an incredible individual and team. Go to CNNHeroes.com for more. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, and the former Soviet Republic of Belarus, politics begins and end with one man Alexander Lukashenko known by many as Europe's last dictator, famously scornful of Western media. It's rare for the Belarusian president to sit down with a foreign journalist. But CNN Matthew Chance managed to get this exclusive and contentious interview. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is what the brutal crackdown in Belarus looks like. Opposition activists detained then beaten by police.

After disputed elections last year, the mass protests that followed were crushed. Human rights groups call it a catastrophe, a widespread reports of torture, even killings in police custody.

Now CNN is confronting the man responsible, the Europe's last dictator.

(on camera): Would you take this opportunity now to apologize to the people of Belarus for the human rights abuses that they've suffered at your hands?

ALEXANDER LUKASHENKO, BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): No, I would not like to take this opportunity. I don't think this is even a relevant question. And in principle, I have nothing to apologize for.

CHANCE: Well, you say you've got nothing to apologize for. But Human Rights Watch says multiple detainees have reported broken bones, broken teeth, brain injuries, skin wounds, electrical burns, Amnesty International speaks of detention centers being becoming torture chambers, where protesters were forced to lie in the dirt, stripped naked while police kicked and beat them with truncheons. You don't think that is worth apologizing for?

LUKASHENKO (through translator): You know, we don't have a single detention center, as you say, like Guantanamo or those bases that the United States and your country created in Eastern Europe. As regards to our own detention centers, they are no worse than prison in the United States. I suggest you discuss concrete facts and not the views or statements of some dubious human rights organizations.

[12:55:08]

CHANCE: Well, I don't think Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International are dubious. They're internationally recognized, you know, standards and human rights activist. And they all got testimony, a former detainees in your prison camps and your prison detention centers, both men and women who spoken of sexual violence against them, including rape, and threats of rape. Are you saying that that is just made up that it's fake?

LUKASHENKO (through translator): Everything that you've just said is fake and fantasy.

CHANCE (voice-over): For the past 27 years, Lukashenko, the former Soviet collective farm boss has ruled Belarus with an iron fist as its first and only president. He's known as a maverick who makes controversial remarks on issues like COVID-19.

LUKASHENKO (through translator): Which he famously dismissed as a Western psychosis, it could be battled with vodka and saunas.

CHANCE (voice-over): He told CNN those remarks were just a joke. But only after he'd become infected himself and more than 4,000 Belarusians have died, according to official figures.

And no one's laughing on the streets of the capital Minsk where people are reluctant to speak out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, sir. CHANCE (on camera): Why? What do you think about Lukashenko? Are you happy with your president?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a very interesting question. I can't tell you the truth.

CHANCE (voice-over): It's understood here that openly criticizing the regime can have life changing consequences.

(on camera): Do you think it's a free country?

(voice-over): It was a lesson passengers on board this Ryanair flight flying over Belarus in May learned the hard way. It made an emergency landing in Minsk, after local air traffic control told the pilot, there was a bomb threat. Once on the ground, Belarusian police arrested a dissidents on board along with his girlfriend before allowing the aircraft to depart.

(on camera): Do you continue to insist that there was a genuine bomb threat? Or do you now admit that the whole incident was manufactured by you and your security forces in order to capture a critic that you wanted in jail?

LUKASHENKO (through translator): Matthew, I'm not going to admit to anything in front of you. I'm not under investigation. So please choose your words carefully. But if this had been a premeditated action planned by our security services, you would be flattering me because for security services to carry out such an operation without breaking a single international law, or even instruction, well, that would have cost a lot. So this is your fantasy.

CHANCE: But it's not just me that doesn't believe your story. Most airlines in the world have stopped flying here. Isn't it true that you will do anything even violate international laws in the skies in order to get the people you want to get your critics into custody? That's the truth, isn't it?

LUKASHENKO (through translator): If you are afraid to fly over our territory, I can personally guarantee your safety. But if I or the law enforcement authorities see any threat to the Belarusian state, we will force any plane to land be it from the United Kingdom or the United States.

CHANCE (voice-over): This growing evidence of international norms being violated on the ground as well. European officials accusing Belarus of using migrants as a weapon, encouraging them to cross its borders with the E.U., an act of revenge, they say for sanctions and support for dissidents.

LUKASHENKO (through translator): Do you take me for a madman? Only weak people care about revenge and part of my modesty, but I don't consider myself a weakling.

CHANCE (voice-over): But it is weakness that Lukashenko's critics say is pushing him ever closer to another strong man next door. Vladimir Putin of Russia has provided hundreds of millions of dollars in financial aid, Kremlin support like that is likely to come with strings.

(on camera): There's talk of closer integration, closer economic, political, as well as military ties. Isn't that the real price of Vladimir Putin support, that this country of Belarus will be slowly absorbed into Russia? Is that what you've agreed to pay?

LUKASHENKO (through translator): To say that Belarus would become part of the United States, Britain, or Russia is an absolute fallacy. Putin and I You are intelligent enough to create a union of two independent states that would be stronger together than separate. Sovereignty is not for sale.

[13:00:02]

CHANCE (voice-over): But it's unclear if Belarus under Lukashenko has much of a choice. Already Russia is stepping up joint military drills and adding to its permanent presence in the country. Fueling concerns that with Belarus, Russia is gaining a new Western outpost.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Minsk.

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