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Venezuela Earthquakes; Great American State Fair Kicks Off; America 250. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired June 27, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:00]

CARL RUBY, SENIOR PASTOR, CENTRAL CHRISTIAN CHURCH: And he said they were eating the bodies. And I couldn't believe what I was hearing. And I asked others about that later and they confirmed that those are things that he had witnessed in Haiti.

And I just asked my fellow Americans, especially Christians, imagine being a child who has witnessed that now living in fear of being sent back. And this is a young child who survived a kidnapping attempt. And I can't imagine that my fellow Americans, and especially Christians, would be OK with sending Haitian families back to that. I'm not only worried for the children, but I'm worried about them losing their parents. And that's exactly what this decision is going to cause.

It grieves me when I hear people who claim to be Christian celebrating this. And the Bible isn't a policy manual. I understand that there are people who are going to have different opinions on policy, but any policy that doesn't treat Haitian children and Haitian families the way we would want our families to be treated is not a policy that pleases the Lord.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: While you are hearing from the children, what are some of the adults, the parents of these children, saying about what recourses they're exploring how they are bracing themselves for potential inevitability as a result of this decision. I mean, what kind of picture are they painting for you about what their worries are and what they could potentially face?

RUBY: I have to be honest with you, and I've not talked to many since the decision came down, because they are all staying in their homes. They're scared. I have had people call asking if they should go to work or not. And I've encouraged them to go until their employer tells them not to. But they're just -- there aren't other options for them.

They can apply for asylum. But the President's administration, they have been firing immigration judges who don't deport enough people. And when they advertise for replacements, they've advertised for deportation judges. Right now, only 4 percent of people in Ohio who are applying for asylum are getting it.

So there are no options. There's nothing to refer them to right now. And that is the heartache that I experience.

WHITFIELD Yes. We can hear it in your voice. Thank you so much, Pastor Carl Ruby, for being with us for sharing these very impactful stories, and now consequences as a result of the US Supreme Court ruling. Pastor, thank you so much. All the best.

RUBY: Yes. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN BREAKING NEWS.

WHITFIELD: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Saturday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

And breaking news out of Venezuela, a top lawmaker says the death toll from this week's devastating earthquake there has climbed to more than 1,430 people. That's up from 920. And time is running out for rescuers to reach survivors trapped in the rubble for 69 hours now, but there is some reason for hope.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: This morning, a 15-year-old girl and her dog were pulled alive from the rubble by a team from El Salvador. Venezuela says 21 countries have sent aid delegations comprised of more than 2,000 workers, 96 search and rescue dogs and more than 100 metric tons of equipment. But teams are struggling to get to the worst hit areas. They're dealing with near constant aftershocks that threaten to bring down even more buildings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Journalist Mary Triny Mena is on the ground for us in Caracas. Mary, what is the latest?

MARY TRINY MENA, JOURNALIST: Well, we have witnessed how many people have decided to stay outside of their homes or they are not allowed to get in because they need to check with specialists the buildings that are still standing up in the city of Caracas and also in La Guaira. They set up tents outside of what used to be their buildings, and now they are waiting for these specialists to say it is OK to return home but they don't want to their belongings be lost. So they stayed there, they slept there.

[15:05:03]

So it's quite significant, the situation that they are living now, surrounded by rubble, surrounded by these rescue efforts to find survivors. It's a community that has joined efforts to remain as much as possible in the same place and be protected by security forces that have closed many places, these due to security concerns. Right now there's a the government announced that they militarized completely the area of La Guaira, which is the central point, the ground zero here in Venezuela, the most devastated area in La Guaira.

It is working. The major international airport of Venezuela now is close up for operations, regular operation. It only receives these teams that are working in the ground. They are getting in but with difficulty. WHITFIELD: All right. Mary Triny Mena, thank you so much. Let us know what more you learn, all right. Now, I also want to bring in CNN's Stefano Pozzebon. He's just arrived into the country. Stefano, give us an idea about your journey to get and how you're able to kind of traverse this horrible landscape right now.

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Hello, Fredricka. Yes, we landed a couple of hours ago in the city of Valencia. Valencia is a major industrial hub in the center of Venezuela, about 200-250 kilometers from Caracas. And it's where all the flights that were originally destined for the Caracas international airport are now being diversity.

And what I can tell you is that clearly the airport in Valencia, I don't know if we have we have been able to send you enough images that you and your audience can appreciate it on the screen. But let me try to describe what I saw. It was really where you can see the scale of humanitarian operation that is coming to Venezuela.

For example, we were on the tower market for more than an hour waiting as there were two other planes also arriving from either Panama or Colombia carrying hundreds and hundreds of bags, boxes and a lot of personnel (inaudible). On my flight, for example, we were flying with teams from Mexico, teams from Japan, teams from Brazil, teams from Spain.

And when the pilot touched down in Valencia and wanted to congratulate the rescue workers and trying to instill some energy because many have traveled from far away. And, of course, scrambling and getting to a disaster, so you often arrive to the place that you're already tired because of the journey. He wanted to send a message of appreciation, to pilot's sentiment as well.

And there was an emotional moment trying to get out of the plane. You can feel the country now on the third day, almost approaching the fourth day of double earthquake that hit the country. And it's now the moment where the emotional toll is also becoming more and more palpable and visible.

A lot of people, of course, were traveling to Valencia, trying to get to Caracas to be close with a loved one, for example, or somebody had a missing relative. Gentleman on my right was flying in from Germany. He's an oil worker at the German oil exploration drills in the North Sea. And he didn't know where her sister was because her house had collapsed on Wednesday. And so, his sister is in there (inaudible).

And the sister's house was collapsed, and he was trying to go to Caracas to locate her. And you can feel now the emotional toll. In the last three, two, three days, speaking also with colleagues, with Triny, for example, whom you just heard from Caracas. The adrenaline was too strong for people to metabolize and metastasize what really happened to this country.

This is a tragedy that will define the future of Venezuela for generations. And I think that now, over the weekend, it's Saturday, people don't have work to take care of or to keep their minds away. This is the moment where people are really realizing the magnitude of what has happened. And of course, as we see at every hour, the death toll growing and rising.

And with the latest announcement from Jorge Rodriguez announcing that now 1,400 Venezuelans and foreigners have been killed in these dramatic coupled earthquakes since Wednesday, of course. That emotional toll will only become even more present and palpable here in Venezuela. Fredricka?

[15:10:10]

WHITFIELD: And, Stefano, I wonder of those survivors, where are they going to stay? What have you seen in terms of, you know, whether tents have been erected in certain areas? We know that people are expressly concerned about staying in buildings that are remaining. So, you know, where are people going?

POZZEBON: Absolutely. Well, the authorities are coming up scrambling some plans to accommodate all the people who have been have been left without an accommodation and a home. For example, yesterday the tourist ministry announced that they were conducting an assessment of hotels and tourist facilities. Given that La Guaira, the area that is most prominent the disaster zone, is also used to be a touristic hub because it's right on the beach of the Turkey sea.

And so, they were assessing whether people could stay at hotels. We learned today that at least 10 shelters, humanitarian shelters, are being prepared in La Guaira. Hospital, 10 hospitals, for example, the United States organization Samaritans have partnered with the Department of State to open a field hospital on what used to be the premises of the Caracas International Airport, which right now is destined only for military flight, military cargo flights, are allowed to land on that runway, which by the way, was heavily damaged by the earthquake itself.

But just like Triny said, a lot of people still decided to spend the night out sleeping (inaudible) trying to catch some sleep because of another aspect of this tragedy, of course, as the government has told us, is that aftershakes are still the norm. There was one of 4.9 magnitude late last night means that, of course, if you're not sure whether your house, your flat is fit for you, then you're worried about going there. You feel the ground shaking under your feet, the first thing you're going to do is not going back indoor.

So I think that we're going to see a lot of people outside, especially in La Guaira. A lot of people have lost their homes, of course, a lot of children have lost their parents. A lot of parents have lost their children. It's a tragedy that really is cutting through every layer of the situation. And as soon as we get to Caracas, we're going to try to bring those images and those stories to more in the audience. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right., Stefano Pozzebon, we look forward to more of your reporting. Thank you so much for that. All right, coming up, blistering heat is baking the middle of this country. We're tracking the cities set to see triple digit temperatures just in time for the Fourth of July.

Plus, thousands of legal Haitian immigrants are facing a terrifying reality after the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration is allowed to strip away their deportation protections. More on that straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:17:41]

WHITFIELD: A prolonged heat wave is taking shape across the central and eastern parts of the US. For millions, feels like temperatures are expected to climb to the triple digits. CNN meteorologist Melissa Nord is tracking where the heat dome is expected.

MELISSA NORD, CNN METEOROLOGIST; The heat wave starts in the Central Plains the second half of this weekend and it's going to increase and push eastward as we head through the workweek. It's multiple days of high heat, humidity is going to be building, little relief from rainfall. And in the overnights, near record warm minimum temperatures as well, so your body doesn't have a chance to recuperate if you don't have good working AC during the overnights as well.

Here's the heat dome set up, and that is going to just kind of re radiate that heat through the day and night across some of the same areas. The heat is centered over the Central US to finish the weekend. But as we get into Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, it's really racing eastward. We could see multiple days in a row with some cities and in the triple digits for temperatures themselves as we get towards the second half of the week there in the East Coast, all right.

Heat indices, what is it going to feel like factoring in that high humidity with the temperatures? Well, you see a lot of 100 degree numbers on this map. These are feels like temperatures, 104 in Dallas on Sunday, 104 in St. Louis. A lot of these cities here we're starting to see those extreme heat alerts issued because of the danger of that heat and humidity on your body as you're overexerting yourself outside.

The heat pushes eastward, we'll see highs reaching the century mark in places like Raleigh, Washington, DC and New York City by the end of the week. But we add in the feels like temperatures that humidity into effect. Look at this, 112 in DC on Thursday and 108 in New York City, Boston 104. That forecast feels like temperature there on Thursday.

Here's DC's numbers themselves. The actual temperature, not the humidity combined. And you can see three days in a row there where it is going to be above or at 100 degrees. New York City as well, dangerous heat moving in the end of the week, 102 On Wednesday, 104 records in jeopardy for Thursday.

WHITFIELD: My goodness, that is a lot. Melissa Nord, thank you so much, all right. Back now to our breaking news story, the aftermath of a pair of catastrophic earthquakes in Venezuela.

[15:20:01] American K9 teams have been activated to help with the search, including a team from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. That team was trained by the Disaster Search Dog Foundation. And joining us right now is Denise Sanders, Senior Director of Communications and Search Team Operations for the foundation.

Denise, I understand your K9 and handler teams have just arrived in that country, so what are they experiencing?

DENISE SANDERS, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AND SEARCH TEAM OPERATIONS, NATIONAL DISASTER SEARCH DOG FOUNDATION: So we are in direct contact with them at this point. They've been deployed through the State Department, and so they shared last night that they had arrived and are most likely getting prepared, if not already working.

We've seen all of the imagery, of course, of the absolute devastation there, and we know that there's a lot of work to be done.

WHITFIELD: How will they be utilized? Help paint the picture of how these dogs and handlers will be used, how they fan out to particular areas, what their expertise might be?

SANDERS: Well, as we say at the Search Dog Foundation, the nose knows. And as a nonprofit resource for the government, we're able to train the nose to find live human scent. So these dogs are trained to seek out the strongest scent source wherever it may be, over whatever type of terrain. So, of course, we've seen plenty of collapses and a lot of debris all around from the media images, and we know that these dogs can traverse that rubble because of the training that they've had.

So they will likely be sent out to cover quite a lot of ground so that they can pinpoint again that strongest scent source of live human scent. And then the rescue crews can come in behind and extricate someone who may need medical attention or just needs help getting out. Concrete is very heavy. There's a lot of machinery that goes into it. So the canines might be

the ones that are first paws on the ground in the certain search sites. And then, there are a whole lot of humans that are boots on the ground that follow that up to make sure that the job's done well and we save as many lives as we can.

WHITFIELD: I mean, and obviously that, you know, the terrain is going to be particularly torrential because of the debris, because of metals, glass, all kinds of very hazardous objects. I wonder if you could help paint a picture of, you know, how the safety of the animals is also paramount as well as the handlers. What, if any, you know, special equipment or booties or something like that you talked about?

The dogs are traversing all of these environments. What are the protections for them and the handlers?

SANDERS: So that will be up to each handler. And as we train our handlers through our handler training program, they are the biggest advocate for their canine. And they need to determine based on each situation what is needed. They can utilize booties that is possible. It's typically in extreme temperatures or certain situations that deem it necessary. But we always remind folks that the dogs have four legs and we have trained them how to use all four of them. So with that proprioception in mind that they know how to use all four limbs, if they step on something sharp, they can pick up a leg and not fall over.

They have three others to stand on and they can move very quickly, and feel actually the terrain beneath their feet better without the booties. So if possible, and it's safe to do so, they likely will not be wearing them unless, again, the handler feels that it's necessary.

Which if it is, by all means they are trained to also wear the booties. They will not be bothered by those at all. They know they have a job to do and it's their favorite game. To us, it is obviously a devastating situation and we know that the stakes are high, but to these dogs, this is their favorite game in the world that they are getting to play with their favorite person. So they're ready to go.

WHITFIELD: All right, a life saving game. And thank goodness for these dogs and your handlers and you, Denise Sanders, from the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation, thank you so much and all the best in the continued efforts there. And of course, for more information about how you at home can help Venezuela earthquake victims, go to cnn.com/impact, all right.

Coming up, not all fun and games. The cracks starting to show behind the scenes of President Trump's Great American State Fair?

[15:24:13]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Voters in Louisiana are heading to the polls today to pick a Republican Senate candidate in another test of President Trump's grip on the GOP. Last month, incumbent two-term Senator Bill Cassidy lost his primary race in Louisiana, finishing third after President Trump endorsed another candidate.

Well, today Trump endorsed Julia Letlow faces off against State Treasurer John Fleming in a contest that is all but certain to determine the next senator in the deep red state. In the primary, Letlow earned the most votes with nearly 45 percent support, followed by Fleming at 28 percent and Cassidy at almost 25 percent.

Because no candidate received a majority, the top two finishers advance to the runoff. The polls close at 9:00pm Eastern tonight.

With just a week to go until America's 250th birthday, visitors from across the country are arriving in the nation's capital this weekend as events start to kick off. But what should be a moment for the country to come together is turning into a celebration ripe controversy. CNN's Gabe Cohen is on the National Mall where hundreds are turning out for the Great American State Fair, which is a 16-day event, right?

What have you been seeing and what are you hearing from some of the attendees?

[15:30:00]

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, Fredricka, I can tell you this state fair is really just the latest example of how divided so many Americans have become over these celebrations marking the country's 250th birthday. One of the reasons that this event is controversial is because it was put together by this Trump aligned nonprofit, Freedom 250, that the White House created just a few months ago, as opposed to the organization that Congress, the bipartisan organization Congress had created in recent years to help create the events surrounding America's 250th birthday.

And the President's stamp is clearly on this event. Not only did he hold this rally in recent days to mark its opening, but if you look to my side, you can see this scaled down replica of the triumphal arch that the President is hoping to build here in the nation's capital very soon. And so, there are those people who say that this event really has become a partisan spectacle, as have other celebrations surrounding America's 250th birthday.

So when it comes to the state fair, what we have seen in recent weeks is musical artists pulling out, calling this event partisan, saying they didn't want to be part of it. We saw several Democratic led states say they would not send official delegations to be a part of this. Some citing cost, but others saying it's really about politics and the partisan tone of the event.

And perhaps a perfect example, Fredricka, today, just a mile down the road there is this protest. You can call it counter programming, but it's a separate event put together by several, mostly progressive organizations that said we want to mark America's 250th birthday our own way. We don't want to be a part of the state fair.

But I will tell you, talking to people here who have come from all over the country, many of the ones I spoke to, big supporters of the President. Here's a little bit of why they came to DC to be a part of this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's great. I think he's doing a great job and I think it's the best thing he could have done for the country, trying to unite the country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People don't like what the other side's doing. No matter what it is, they'll fight tooth and nail. It's just politics. But politics aside, this is a great thing for America. And I think we should all enjoy it and believe that this is an exceptional event.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COHEN: But, Fredricka, I also talked to an organizer at that event across town just about an hour ago who told me so many of the people there they don't feel comfortable, they don't feel welcome at this event. They said, anyone is welcome at our 250 event just across DC, and so you can see that divide, how people are interpreting these events, and they just don't want to be a part of it.

WHITFIELD: And then, Gabe, Reuben Jones at Spectrum News recorded video of a Confederate flag that was seen on display in the North Carolina exhibit at the Great American State Fair. What are you learning about that?

COHEN: Yes. So that actually happened just behind me in the North Carolina pavilion. You can see the flag hanging over the doorway there. People who were here attending the state fair were surprised yesterday when they walked into that booth, into the North Carolina pavilion, and found that there were images of a Confederate flag projected on multiple screens.

I will tell you, North Carolina is one of the states that did not send official representatives. Their booth is actually being run by several companies from North Carolina. And I spoke to a spokesperson for the pavilion who told me that they became aware of an unapproved image in a video that was displayed inside the pavilion on Friday. And they said, "as soon as we were made aware, we immediately removed the video and began reviewing how it occurred."

So we still don't know how that image ended up there, but it certainly speaks to some of the concerns that people have over this event. And again, we still don't know how that picture ended up in the North Carolina pavilion. But we were in there a little earlier, Fredricka, and it clearly has been taken down at this point.

But even the governor's office in North Carolina immediately put out a statement and said, this is not the North Carolina that we love and we represent. They had called Freedom 250, the organization that put this together, demanded that be taken off the screens. It seems, though, that the companies inside were already notified and they were working to get it taken down.

WHITFIELD: Gabe Cohen in the nation's capital, thanks so much. All right, up next, the US Supreme Court says a popular weed killer doesn't have to warn you about cancer risks, but does that mean you're actually safe? Alaskan oncologist about the legal ruling and the medical reality next.

[15:34:43]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. The US Supreme Court has now cleared the way for the Trump administration to deport more than a million people who were living in the US with 10 temporary legal status, and also prevent people from making asylum claims at the border. The pair of Trump immigration policy wins carry wide ranging implications. And experts say removing TPS, temporary protective status, holders from the workforce will have a major impact on key sectors of the American economy.

And that includes about 350,000 Haitian nationals, about 6,000 Syrians, and thousands from 11 other countries who will no longer be able to live and work in the US legally. CNN's Gloria Pazmino is joining us now from New York City. Gloria, what more are you hearing?

[15:40:06]

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Freddie. You know, I think the way that we can sum it up here in New York City is a lot of uncertainty, worried, you know, not really knowing how this decision is going to be enforced and when, and how it's going to impact the Haitian community and the Syrian community that lives here in New York City, which is home to one of the largest hair Haitian communities outside of Haiti and second only to Florida.

We have about 160,000 people who live and work here in New York City. And frankly, these communities have been living here for many, many years. We're talking about entire generations whose lives could potentially be upended by this decision. We have overall 350,000 Haitians around the entire country, 6,000 Syrians that have TPS protection, which means that the shockwaves of this decision could be felt in their communities and in the industries that they work in as you mentioned, Fred.

Now, TPS is given to nationals from certain countries that are experiencing unrest or natural disasters. And the protection allows them to live and work in the US legally as long as that status continues to be valid. Many of the people who we spoke to told us it would be incredibly difficult to return.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEAN BAPTISTE, HAITIAN IMMIGRANT: Not good, not good. It's not fair to send them to Haiti right now. It's not a good idea. No matter what, we're not going to give up. You have to continue to fight for the Haitians.

JOHN PRINSCON, HAITIAN IMMIGRANT: Right now my country were really bad. You know, I don't know when they going back again where I am before. You know, we will die for my country, I love my country, but I love this over here too, because they help me do something for my family.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAZMINO: I think the sentiment of that last man is very similar to what we heard a lot of. You know, they came here, they have been working for several years to try and provide for those of their family members who are here, but also those who are still back in Haiti. You know, the attorney who argued the Syrian TPS case before the Supreme Court described this decision as "the largest de-documentation event of people in US history."

And removing Haitian TPS holders from the workforce is likely going to have an outsized impact on local economies. Haitians make a large part of the service and elder care industries, which is already facing significant shortages. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right. Gloria Pazmino in New York, thank you so much. All right. Also this week the US Supreme Court cited against a Missouri man who claimed the popular weed killer Roundup caused his cancer.

The court overturning a $1.25 million jury verdict previously awarded to the man, finding that the original lawsuit, rather, should have never gone forward because the federal government does not require a cancer warning on the label. John Durnell, who was known for spraying Roundup in the park in his neighborhood, claimed exposure to the pesticide was to blame for his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis.

Joining us right now is Dr. Chadi Nabhan, Oncologist and Author of "Toxic Exposure: The True Story Behind the Monsanto Trials and the Search for Justice." Great to see you, doctor. So what do you make of this decision?

CHADI NABHAN, HEMATOLOGIST AND MEDICAL ONCOLOGIST: I think this is an unfair decision, in my opinion. I'm not a legal expert, but what we know is science evolves. And what we know about Roundup today is very different than what we knew 10 or 20 years ago.

By saying that we don't need to warn consumers about the possibility of cancer risk, we're really defying the evolution of science. In my opinion, this was the wrong decision because there's a lot of animal studies, toxicology studies, cellular studies, and epidemiological studies that have demonstrated the link and the association between Roundup and cancer, and specifically non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

I'll say one important thing is that, the EPA, the Environmental Protection Agency, relies on evidence that's usually presented to them at the time by the manufacturer. And we'll have to remember that evidence might change. And a perfect example of this is one of the most cited papers that claims glyphosate safety.

[15:45:02]

And glyphosate is the main ingredient in Roundup, has been retracted; has been retracted several months ago, citing integrity and ethical concerns because it was ghostwritten by Monsanto. How did we find out about this, we found out about this through the litigation and through the trials. This was an evidence that the EPA relied on to say it's safe and now it was retracted.

So I'm clearly not happy with the verdict and there are many reasons that obviously we can go through as well.

WHITFIELD: Bayer, which bought Monsanto in 2018, released a statement saying that the Supreme Court's decision would provide regulatory clarity for manufacturers and farmers, and, "should help significantly contain" Roundup lawsuits. I mean, what will the long term impact of this decision be in your view?

NABHAN: From a legal perspective, I can't comment obviously because this is really. There are a lot of legal scholars and lawyers that are able to provide you the legal ramifications of this. But as a physician, as a scientist and as a citizen, it's really important to recognize that we evolve with time.

There was a period of time where we thought smoking and tobacco was safe, where people smoked and advertised for smoking. And we had doctors smoke at hospitals and so on. We don't -- we obviously know that this was not -- is no longer correct. So the idea that whatever the EPA will say is going to be blanket statement correct and this will not change is protecting the manufacturers from warning consumers about certain things that we may find and discover as time progresses, and as we discover new things moving forward.

WHITFIELD: All right. Dr. Chadi Nabhan, thank you so much for your time and expertise. Appreciate it.

NABHAN: I really appreciate you highlighting this. This is very important.

WHITFIELD: All right. His art was one of the defining images of Barack Obama's presidency and now he has reimagined Lady Liberty. We'll show you how next.

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[15:51:46]

WHITFIELD: All right. For its cover commemorating America's 250th anniversary, Time magazine landed on an iconic symbol reimagined. Graphic artist Shepard Fairey, known for his 2008 presidential candidate Barack Obama "Hope" poster, was the American muralist Time tapped to deliver on the magazine cover. And here it is, a fairy's depiction of the Statue of Liberty draped with a variety of images, movements and moments of America's history.

Shepard Fairey joining us right now. Congratulations on the cover.

SHEPARD FAIREY, GRAPHIC ARTIST: Thanks for having me, Fredricka. I appreciate it.

WHITFIELD: Wonderful. So when Time asked you to create an image for the cover what was your decision making process leading to the Statue of Liberty kind of reinvented here?

FAIREY: Well, Time wanted this to be a celebration of a lot of the great accomplishments of the United States over the years. And I felt that the Statue of Liberty is a great symbol for, you know, positive things that the United States has done. It's also a symbol of welcoming immigrants. And its backstory is incredibly fascinating.

Not everyone knows all the elements of the backstory, but it was given to the United States as a commemoration of the first centennial, as well as the emancipation of slaves and America's dedication to democracy. Of course, the Emily, I mean the Emma Lazarus poem, "The New Colossus" calls the Statue of Liberty the mother of Exile.

So I think that within a blend of many amazing accomplishments that also provided huge struggles and controversy at the Time that many of these accomplishments were happening, to see the progress towards pluralism symbolized by the Statue of Liberty was really important to me. WHITFIELD: So in your version of Lady Liberty there, you know, she is kind of patina, right? You know, there are images, including the peace symbol, the flag raising at Iwo Jima, and Dr. King's face among the many kind of symbols and images kind of draped around her shoulders there. You know, what was your kind of process of including or maybe even weeding out certain images or symbols?

FAIREY: Of course, there are so many different things that have been significant historically, but I spoke with the editorial crew at Time and talked about the things that they thought were important to emphasize historically, as well as things that I thought were important symbols of progress as well as culture, whether it be jazz as a music form or the iPhone. And, of course, you know, sports as a thing that bonds a lot of people together.

So, yes, it was a process. But we settled on the things that we thought were really, really important to the history and reminders of, you know, different moments that we should all reflect on at our 250th anniversary.

[15:55:10]

WHITFIELD: And then really quick, what about her face? Because she could be, you know, representative of many ethnicities. What do you want people to see in her?

FAIREY: Well, that's part of the point, that the idea of the Statue of Liberty as, you know, some always a bit ambiguous, but in contemporary form, a multiracial, multiethnic woman. I think that the beauty of the United States is the melting pot, the blend of cultures.

You know, in fact, we're all immigrants except for Native Americans, relatively recent immigrants. So this idea that there's a beautiful blend in the melting pot was something I wanted to put across in a contemporary way.

WHITFIELD: Well, congratulations on the cover. Shepard Fairey, so glad you could be with us.

FAIREY: Yes. Thank you for having me, Fredricka. I really appreciate it.

WHITFIELD: And happy 250th. Thank you so much for joining me today, I'm Fredricka Whitfield. THE ARENA WITH KASIE HUNT is next.