PBS NewsHour Weekend; PBS NewsHour Weekend : KQED : November 19, 2017 5:30pm-6:01pm PST
- Transcript
Captioning sponsored by WNET
>> Sreenivasan: ON THIS EDITION FOR SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 19: TEAM TRUMP PUSHING THE REPUBLICAN TAX REFORM PLAN. NOW HEADING FOR A SENATE VOTE. IN OUR SIGNATURE SEGMENT, RETURN TO BOSNIA: A GENERAL ON TRIAL FOR WAR CRIMES PREPARES TO HEAR HIS VERDICT. AND, THE PROBLEM WITH APU. NEXT ON "PBS NEWSHOUR WEEKEND."
>> PBS NEWSHOUR WEEKEND IS MADE POSSIBLE BY: BERNARD AND IRENE SCHWARTZ. THE CHERYL AND PHILIP MILSTEIN FAMILY. SUE AND EDGAR WACHENHEIM, III. DR. P. ROY VAGELOS AND DIANA T. VAGELOS. THE J.B.P. FOUNDATION. THE ANDERSON FAMILY FUND. ROSALIND P. WALTER, IN MEMORY OF ABBY M. O'NEILL. BARBARA HOPE ZUCKERBERG. CORPORATE FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY MUTUAL OF AMERICA-- DESIGNING CUSTOMIZED INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP RETIREMENT PRODUCTS. THAT'S WHY WE'RE YOUR RETIREMENT COMPANY. ADDITIONAL SUPPORT HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY: AND BY THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING, AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU. THANK YOU. FROM THE TISCH WNET STUDIOS AT LINCOLN CENTER IN NEW YORK, HARI SREENIVASAN.
>> Sreenivasan: GOOD EVENING AND THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. THE REPUBLICAN TAX REFORM BILL THAT WOULD CUT BUSINESS AND PERSONAL TAXES BY $1.5 TRILLION OVER THE NEXT DECADE IS HEADING FOR A U.S. SENATE SHOWDOWN. LIKE THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BILL THAT PASSED THREE DAYS AGO, THE SENATE PLAN WOULD ALSO LOWER THE TOP CORPORATE TAX RATE FROM 35% TO 20%, LOWER INCOME TAXES FOR ROUGHLY HALF OF U.S. HOUSEHOLDS, END DEDUCTIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL TAXES AND STUDENT LOAN INTEREST, DOUBLE THE ESTATE TAX EXEMPTION FROM $5.5 MILLION TO $11 MILLION. REPUBLICANS HAVE ONLY A TWO-SEAT MAJORITY IN THE SENATE, AND AT LEAST SIX REPUBLICAN SENATORS HAVE EXPRESSED CONCERNS ABOUT THE BILL, SCHEDULED FOR DEBATE RIGHT AFTER THE THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY. TRUMP TREASURY SECRETARY STEVEN MNUCHIN SAID TODAY HE'S CONFIDENT A TAX REFORM BILL WILL REACH THE PRESIDENT'S DESK BY CHRISTMAS.
>> WE ARE COMFORTABLE WHERE WE ARE IN THIS PROCESS. THIS IS ABOUT HAVING DISCUSSIONS AND MAKING SURE THAT WE GET SOMETHING TO THE PRESIDENT TO SIGN.
>> Sreenivasan: SENATOR SUSAN COLLINS, WHO'S UNDECIDED ON THE BILL, SAID TODAY SHE'S CONCERNED ABOUT A SENATE PROVISION THAT WOULD REPEAL THE INDIVIDUAL MANDATE IN THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT, KNOWN AS OBAMACARE, THE MANDATE REQUIRES EVERYONE TO OBTAIN HEALTH INSURANCE OR PAY A FINE. PROPONENTS OF THAT PROVISION SAY IT WOULD SAVE THE GOVERNMENT $338 BILLION IN OBAMACARE SUBSIDIES OVER TEN YEARS AND PROVIDE EXTRA MONEY FOR TAX CUTS.
>> THE BIGGEST MISTAKE WAS PUTTING IN A PROVISION FROM THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT INTO THE SENATE BILL, THAT'S NOT IN THE HOUSE BILL, AND I HOPE THAT WILL BE DROPPED, OR BILLS THAT HAVE BEEN INTRODUCED BY SENATORS ALEXANDER AND MURRAY AND BILL NELSON AND MYSELF WILL BE ADOPTED TO MITIGATE THE IMPACT OF THOSE PROVISIONS.
>> Sreenivasan: TRUMP BUDGET DIRECTOR MICK MULVANEY SAID TODAY THE WHITE HOUSE IS OPEN TO DROPPING THE INDIVIDUAL MANDATE REPEAL TO GET THE TAX BILL THROUGH THE SENATE.
>> IF A GOOD TAX BILL CAN PASS WITH THAT OBAMACARE MANDATE REPEAL AS PART OF IT, GREAT. IF IT NEEDS TO COME OUT IN ORDER FOR THAT GOOD TAX BILL TO PASS, WE CAN LIVE WITH THAT AS WELL. THE FIRST FEMALE MAYOR OF NEW ORLEANS WILL BE LATOYA CANTRELL. CANTRELL WON 60% OF THE VOTE IN YESTERDAY'S RUNOFF ELECTION. A CITY COUNCILMEMBER, CANTRELL FIRST GAINED ATTENTION FOR HER ADVOCACY WORK DURING THE RECOVERY FROM HURRICANE KATRINA. CANTRELL WILL SUCCEED MAYOR MITCH LANDRIEU, WHO WAS TERM- LIMITED. SHE WILL TAKE OFFICE NEXT MAY. PUERTO RICO UNITY MARCH PUERTO RICANS FROM THE U.S. ISLAND TERRITORY AND ACROSS AMERICA STAGED "A UNITY MARCH FOR PUERTO RICO" ON THE NATIONAL MALL IN WASHINGTON TODAY. SPEAKERS, INCLUDING BROADWAY STAR LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA AND SAN JUAN MAYOR CARMEN YULIN CRUZ, CALLED THE GOVERNMENT RESPONSE TO HURRICANE MARIA INADEQUATE. ALMOST TWO MONTHS TO THE DAY SINCE MARIA STRUCK, ONLY 49% OF PUERTO RICO'S HOMES AND BUSINESS HAVE POWER. THE ARGENTINE NAVY SAYS IT BELIEVES THE CREW OF A SUBMARINE MISSING FOR FIVE DAYS IS TRYING TO RE-ESTABLISH CONTACT. THE NAVY SAYS IT DETECTED SEVEN BRIEF BUT FAILED SATELLITE CALLS THAT MAY HAVE COME FROM THE DIESEL-POWERED SUBMARINE "SAN JUAN" YESTERDAY. THE U.S. MILITARY HAS JOINED ARGENTINA AND OTHER COUNTRIES IN SEARCHING FOR THE SUB AND ITS CREW OF 44 OFF ARGENTINA'S ATLANTIC COAST.
>> Sreenivasan: THE LONG-TIME PRESIDENT OF ZIMBABWE, 93-YEAR- OLD ROBERT MUGABE, FACES IMPEACHMENT PROCEEDINGS TOMORROW. IN A TELEVISED SPEECH TODAY WITH THE MILITARY COMMANDER WHO ORDERED HIS HOUSE ARREST FIVE DAYS AGO TURNING THE PAGES, MUGABE ACKNOWLEDGED THE CRITICISM OF HIS 37 YEARS IN POWER. BUT HE STOPPED SHORT OF STEPPING DOWN, AS MANY EXPECTED HE WOULD. JOURNALIST TATIRA ZWINOIRA IS JUST OUTSIDE ZIMBABWE'S CAPITAL OF HARARE AND JOINS ME NOW WITH MORE. YOU WERE CATCHING I'M SURE THE TELEVISED NEWSCAST EXPECTING A SIGNIFICANT TRANSITION OF POWER. BUT HE DIDN'T STEP DOWN?
>> YES. HE SHOCKED EVERYBODY IN THE NATION, IT WAS LARGELY EXPECTED THAT SINCE HE WAS OUSTED AS THE PRESIDENT AND FIRST SECRETARY JUST THIS AFTERNOON AND GIVEN A 24 HOUR ULTIMATUM THAT HE RESIGN AS PRESIDENT, THEY THOUGHT THAT FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES HE MIGHT WANT TO TAKE THE LESS DISGRACEFUL WAY OUT OF POWER AND USE THIS STATE ADDRESS TO RESIGN, WHICH HE DIDN'T. IN FACT, HE WENT A STEP FURTHER IN HIS SPEECH TO SAY THAT HE'S GOING TO BE PRESIDING OVER THE CONGRESS. IT'S GOING TO BE DONE NEXT MONTH-- WHICH UNLESS, HE BECAUSE HE WAS JUST EXPELLED AS PRESIDENT, IN WHAT CAPACITY IS HE GOING TO PRESIDE OVER THE CONGRESS.
>> Sreenivasan: GIVEN THE MARCHS WE SAW ON THE STREETS YESTERDAY, WHAT KIND OF SUPPORT DOES ROBERT MGABE HAVE LEFT?
>> I WAS TALKING TO SOME SOURCES OF MINE AFTER THIS WHOLE SPEECH. IT'S VERY CLEAR THAT THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE THAT ARE STILL HELPING HIM. THIS IS UNCONFIRMED BUT FROM WHAT I'M GETTING FROM MY SOURCES IS THAT HE ACTUALLY READ THE WRONG SPEECH. SO THERE WAS A PART WHERE HE WAS SUPPOSED TO RESIGN TODAY. AND THE REASON WHY HE DIDN'T DO THAT IS BECAUSE HE WANTED TO PUT THE GENERALS ON THE SPOT, THE ARMY GENERALS ON THE SPOT BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN SAYING THIS IS NOT A COUP. SO THE DIFFERENCE IS IF THEY FORCE A COUP, IF IT COMES UP AS A PROPER MILITARY COUP, THEN THESE ARMY GENERALS LOSE LEGITIMACY FOR THEIR ACTIONS. RIGHT NOW THEY'RE USING THE CONSTITUTION. THEY'RE USING THE MARCH THAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY WHICH WAS ATTENDED BY, YOU KNOW, EVEN INTO THE OVER 100,000 PEOPLE IN TOWN, THEY ARE USING ALL OF THAT TO JUSTIFY THEIR ACTIONS.
>> Sreenivasan: SO IS MGABE THEN TRYING TO FORCE THIS INTO A MILITARY COUP.
>> MOST DEFINITELY, HE IS. FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES IS HE TRYING TO FORCE. THIS AND NOW THE NEXT QUESTION NOW BECOMES HOW BEST WILL THE MILITARY USE THEIR PLAN B. CUZ IMPEACHMENT WAS ALWAYS PLAN B. GUE THAT WAS ALWAYS THEALLY ORIGINAL PLAN. BUT THEY JUST THOUGHT THAT THEY HAVE HUMILIATED HIM SO MUCH, BY PUTTING HIM OUT OF THE PARTY JUST THIS AFTERNOON, THAT HE WOULD TAKE THE GRACEFUL WAY OUT. BUT HE IS STILL REMAINING ADAMANT AND THIS IS JUST WHO HE HAS ALWAYS BEEN. HE DOESN'T BOW TO ANYONE.
>> Sreenivasan: TATIRA ZWINOIRA JOINING US BY SKYPE, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.
>> Sreenivasan: IN TONIGHT'S SIGNATURE SEGMENT, WE RETURN TO THE CIVIL WAR IN THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA, WHICH BEGAN 25 YEARS AGO AND SAW A NATION BREAK APART. THIS WEEK, THE UNITED NATIONS WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL AT THE HAGUE, IN THE NETHERLANDS, IS EXPECTED TO DELIVER A VERDICT IN THE TRIAL OF RATKO MLADIC. HE IS THE FORMER GENERAL OF BOSNIAN SERB FORCES WHO CARRIED OUT A CAMPAIGN OF ETHNIC CLEANSING IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA IN THE 1990'S. AFTER THE WAR ENDED, MLADIC WAS A FUGITIVE FOR 16 YEARS. HE WAS ARRESTED IN 2011 FOR ORCHESTRATING THE SREBRENICA MASSACRE. THOUSANDS OF CIVILIANS DIED IN THE BOSNIAN TOWN. IT WAS THE WORST ATROCITY IN EUROPE SINCE WORLD WAR II." RRESPONDENT MALCOLM BRABANT COVERED THE BOSNIAN WAR FOR THE BBC AND RETURNED TO SARAJEVO FOR THIS REPORT.
>> Reporter: ALMIR GARBO IS ON A PILGRIMAGE TO MOJMILO ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF BOSNIA'S CAPITAL SARAJEVO. HE DOESN'T SEE A BUCOLIC MOUNTAIN LANDSCAPE, BUT A SLAUGHTERHOUSE. GARBO JOINED THE BOSNIAN ARMY WHEN WAR BROKE OUT. HE WAS 14 YEARS OLD.
>> YOU SIMPLY CANNOT IMAGINE THAT SOMEONE WHO YOU SHARED A PIECE OF BREAD WITH IS NO LONGER HERE.
>> Reporter: THIS WAS GARBO'S FIRST FRONTLINE. THE MUSLIM-LED BOSNIAN ARMY, FIGHTING TO DEFEND SARAJEVO, WAS IN TRENCHES BY THE GREENHOUSE. THE BETTER EQUIPPED SERBS, LED BY GENERAL RATKO MLADIC, WERE 200 YARDS AWAY ON THE RIDGE.
>> Reporter: THE MORTAR BLEW MY FRIEND TO PIECES. THERE WAS BLOOD EVERYWHERE, HUMAN REMAINS COVERED MY FACE. WE COLLECTED PARTS OF HIS BODY SO WE COULD BURY SOMETHING. THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME I REALIZED THE TRUE MEANING OF WAR."
>> Reporter: BOSNIANS MAY HAVE GAINED THEIR INDEPENDENCE IN THE THREE-YEAR CIVIL WAR, BUT MANY HAVE STRUGGLED TO COPE DURING THE 22 YEARS OF PEACE. TODAY, GARBO IS ONE OF AN ESTIMATED 400,000 BOSNIANS-- SOLDIERS AND CIVILIANS-- SUFFERING FROM POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER.
>> Reporter: NOBODY WON THE WAR. WE ARE ALL SUFFERING, WE ARE ALL SICK, MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY. THOSE WHO LOST SOMEONE ENDURE PAIN AND EMPTINESS. NOTHING CAN CURE US. I FEEL SO MISERABLE. IN MOMENTS LIKE THIS, I FEEL LIKE COMMITTING SUICIDE, BECAUSE I'M MISSING PEOPLE I WANT TO BE WITH. THE ONLY WAY I CAN REUNITE WITH THEM IS IN THE NEXT WORLD. I SIMPLY CAN'T BEAR THIS ANY MORE.
>> Reporter: AFTER THE WAR, GARBO MARRIED ENISA, THE SISTER OF HIS DEAD FRIEND.
>> ANOTHER OF MY BROTHERS WAS KILLED AND HE TOOK HIS LAST BREATH IN MY ARMS. I WAS JUST NINE YEARS OLD.
>> Reporter: TODAY, THE GARBOS D SON.T WITH THEIR TEN-YEAR-
>> THERE IS NO WORK. THERE IS NOTHING. THERE IS NOTHING TO BELIEVE IN. IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO GET A JOB UNLESS YOU KNOW THE RIGHT PEOPLE. IN ORDER TO SURVIVE, YOU HAVE TO DO ALL MANNER OF THINGS LIKE ALMIR IS DOING TO PROVIDE FOR THE TWO OF US. BUT HIS EFFORTS SIMPLY AREN'T ENOUGH FOR US TO LIVE LIKE NORMAL PEOPLE. IT'S JUST IMPOSSIBLE.
>> Reporter: GARBO SCRAPES A LIVING DOING CONSTRUCTION JOBS IN THE UNDERGROUND ECONOMY, BUT HE CAN'T WORK RIGHT NOW, BECAUSE HE RECENTLY FELL THREE STORIES AND FRACTURED TWO VERTEBRAE AND A NUMBER OF RIBS. THE ILLUSION OF A BOOMING ECONOMY HAS BEEN GENERATED BY THIS NEW MALL ON WHAT WAS SARAJEVO'S SNIPER ALLEY, BUT ALMOST 40% OF BOSNIANS ARE OUT OF WORK. THE YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IS THE WORLD'S WORST: MORE THAN 67%. THE COUNTRY IS RIDDLED WITH CORRUPTION AND HOBBLED BY POLITICAL STAGNATION. AWAY FROM THE BRIGHT LIGHTS OF HER JOB, TELEVISION HOST VANJA SEMIC SAYS HER EX-HUSBAND BATTLED P.T.S.D., AND SHE STRUGGLES WITH DEPRESSION.
>> WE ARE SURROUNDED BY PEOPLE WITH HUGE PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS THAT ARE NOT BEING TREATED EFFECTIVELY. THEY IN TURN ARE CREATING MORE PROBLEMS FOR THE PEOPLE AROUND THEM. THERE'S WIDESPREAD DEPRESSION. EVEN IF YOU MANAGE TO DEAL WITH ALL OF THIS INSIDE YOU, AND YOU FIND INNER HAPPINESS, THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE AROUND YOU ARE DEPRESSED AND UNSATISFIED. SO YOUR HAPPINESS IS UNDERMINED BY ALL THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU, BECAUSE THEIR DEPRESSION MAKES YOU FEEL GUILTY.
>> Reporter: BOSNIA'S COLLECTIVE SENSE OF ANGER AND SADNESS WILL BE AMPLIFIED NEXT WEEK WITH THE CONCLUSION OF THE WAR CRIMES TRIAL OF BOSNIAN SERB GENERAL MLADIC, WHO'S NOW 76. AT A UNITED NATIONS TRIBUNAL AT THE HAGUE, IN THE NETHERLANDS, MLADIC FACES A POSSIBLE LIFE SENTENCE FOR GENOCIDE AND CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY. THE MOST NOTABLE CHARGE IS ORDERING THE MASSACRE OF NEARLY 9,000 BOSNIAN MEN AND BOYS IN THE TOWN OF SREBRENICA IN THE SUMMER OF 1995. THE REMAINS OF HUNDREDS OF SREBRENICA VICTIMS ARE IN THIS FACILITY RUN BY THE INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION OF MISSING PERSONS. IDENTIFYING THE FRAGMENTS IS A LABORIOUS PROCESS, AND THE REMAINS OF ABOUT 1,000 OF THOSE SLAUGHTERED AT SREBRENICA ARE YET TO BE FOUND. FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST DRAGANA VUCETIC HAPPENS TO BE A SERB, AND, THUS, SHE SAYS, IN A SMALL WAY SHE'S ATONING FOR WHAT HER FELLOW NATIONALS DID AT SREBRENICA.
>> I DON'T FEEL ANY KIND GUILTY, BECAUSE SOME GROUP OF PEOPLE DID THAT. IT'S NOT COMPLETE NATION GUILTY FOR THIS. BUT I'M ALSO VERY PROUD THAT I AM IN THIS PROCESS, THAT I CAN HELP, AND THAT I AM POSITIVE EXAMPLE THAT WE ARE NOT ALL BAD.
>> Reporter: THIS EMPLACEMENT IS A REMINDER OF INTERNATIONAL GUILT OVER SREBRENICA. IT'S A RELIC OF A DUTCH PEACEKEEPING BATTALION, WHICH ABANDONED ITS U.N. BASE AS THE SERBS OVERRAN THE TOWN. A DUTCH COURT RULED IN 2014 THAT THE NETHERLANDS WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR 300 DEATHS OF MEN TURNED AWAY FROM THE DUTCH BASE, BUT WAS NOT CULPABLE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE DEATHS, AFTER THOUSANDS OF BOSNIANS WHO FLED INTO THE WOODS WERE ROUNDED UP BY THE SERBS. DRAGANA JOVANOVIC, RUNS A GROUP THAT CAMPAIGNS FOR RECONCILIATION. SHE TOO, IS A SERB.
>> WE HAVE TO TALK AND TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT RECONCILIATION AS HUMAN BEINGS THAT ARE GOING TO SHARE THIS SPACE FOR NEXT AND FOLLOWING CENTURIES, AND WE HAVE TO PREVENT THAT FUTURE GENERATIONS SUFFER FROM THE SAME THINGS.
>> Reporter: BUT THE CARNAGE INFLICTED BY THE SERBS WAS NOT RESTRICTED TO SREBRENICA. THIS IRONICALLY NAMED SARAJEVO ROSE IS THE MARK OF A MORTAR THAT KILLED 26 PEOPLE LINED UP FOR BREAD DURING THE SIEGE OF 1992. LIKE MANY OTHER LATER ATROCITIES, IT DIDN'T TRIGGER AN INTERNATIONAL MILITARY INTERVENTION TO PROTECT THE PREDOMINANTLY MUSLIM-BOSNIAN GOVERNMENT SIDE. THE SREBRENICA MASSACRE WAS THE LAST STRAW FOR THE UNITED STATES, AND IT LED TO THE NATO INTERVENTION AGAINST THE SERBS, WHICH EVENTUALLY BROUGHT THE WAR TO AN END. AND THEN THE UNITED STATES HAMMERED OUT THE DEAL AT DAYTON, OHIO, WHICH HAS ENSURED THAT PEACE HAS LASTED UNTIL TODAY. BUT NOW THERE ARE NEW APPEALS FOR THE UNITED STATES TO TAKE THE LEAD TO TRY TO BREAK THE STAGNATION, WHICH IS PREVENTING BOSNIA FROM BECOMING A FULLY FUNCTIONING NATION. WITH ITS IMPERATIVE TO STOP THE BLOODSHED, DAYTON IMPOSED A CONSTITUTION THAT GAVE EQUAL WEIGHT TO BOSNIA'S PREVALENT ETHNIC GROUPS: THE MUSLIMS, WHO NOW PREFER TO BE CALLED BOSNIAKS, THE CATHOLIC CROATS, AND THE ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN SERBS. THE SYSTEM ENABLED ANY ONE GROUP TO VETO THE OTHER, AND 22 YEARS AFTER THE ARMISTICE, THERE'S POLITICAL STALEMATE. THE POLITICAL INERTIA TROUBLES UNIVERSITY CHANCELLOR EJUB GANIC, BOSNIA'S WARTIME VICE PRESIDENT, PARTLY BECAUSE IT DETERS INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENT THAT MIGHT SALVE BOSNIA'S CHITECT, AMERICAN DIPLOMAT RICHARD HOLBROOKE, AND SAYS BOSNIANS ARE INCAPABLE OF RESOLVING THEIR DIFFERENCES WITHOUT INTERNATIONAL HELP.
>> AMERICANS ARE ARCHITECTS OF THE DAYTON PEACE AGREEMENT, AND THIS IS THE ONLY SUCCESS STORY OF AMERICA, WHERE THEY DIDN'T LOSE A SINGLE SOLDIER, WHERE THEY GET ALL THE CREDIT FOR STOPPING THE WAR. MAYBE THEY SHOULD MAKE ONE MORE STEP AND HELP THIS CONSTITUTION TO BE SIMPLIFIED, STREAMLINED, SO THE COUNTRY CAN PROCEED.
>> Reporter: BUT GANIC'S FORMER PARTY, THE BOSNIAK S.D.A., IS STILL A POWERFUL FORCE, AS ARE THE SERB AND CROAT WARTIME EQUIVALENTS. ALL ARE PREDICATED ON NATIONALISM. AND THAT'S A CORE PROBLEM, SAYS KEVIN SULLIVAN A VETERAN SARAJEVO BASED ADVISOR, SPEECHWRITER, AND NOVELIST.
>> WE HAVE A PROFESSIONAL CLASS, WHICH HAS ESSENTIALLY BEEN THERE FOR THE LAST 20 YEARS, AND WE SEE THIS IN OTHER COUNTRIES, WHERE YOU HAVE A POLITICAL ISSUE THAT HAS NOT BEEN RESOLVED, AND THE PARTIES THAT ARE INCAPABLE OF RESOLVING IT HAVE REMAINED IN POWER.
>> Reporter: BUT IN THIS CABIN NEAR THE SREBRENICA MEMORIAL SITE, LOVE HAS CONQUERED ETHNIC HATE. ALMIR SALIHOVIC AND HIS WIFE, DUSICA, WERE THE FIRST MIXED SSACRE.TO MARRY AFTER THE HE'S A MUSLIM. SHE'S A SERB.
>> WE DIDN'T THINK ABOUT WHAT OTHERS WOULD SAY. WE REALLY DIDN'T THINK ABOUT IT. AFTER SOME TIME, I ASKED, "WHAT WILL YOUR PARENTS SAY?" AND HE SAID, "WHAT WILL YOUR PARENTS SAY?" AND THEN WE DECIDED TO LET TIME TO DO ITS WORK, AND THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED. TIME DID ITS WORK, AND IT'S GREAT.
>> Reporter: THEIR SON, YUSUF, IS BEING RAISED AS A BOSNIAK, AT HIS MOTHER'S INSISTENCE.
>> I AM ONLY INTERESTED IN MY LIFE. I DON'T CARE WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING. I'M ONLY LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE, AND OTHERS' OPINIONS AREN'T IMPORTANT.
>> Reporter: THIS YOUNG BOSNIAN FACES AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE. BUT HOPEFULLY, IT WON'T BE AS TRAUMATIC AS GROWING UP WAS FOR FORMER CHILD SOLDIER ALMIR GARBO. AT 41, HE WRITES POETRY AS THERAPY.
>> WHY AM I DREAMING ONLY ABOUT THE WAR, WHY AM I DREAMING ABOUT IT EVERY NIGHT? WILL A BETTER DREAM EVER COME? EVERY NIGHT BRINGS A NIGHTMARE, AND I SURRENDER TO THE DREAM, BECAUSE TONIGHT I'M PRAYING FOR MY FRIEND.
>> Reporter: AND HE SHARES A CIGARETTE WITH HIS FALLEN COMRADE.
>> IT IS VERY HARD TO MOVE ON, BECAUSE OF THE MEMORIES. SOME OF THE PLACES THAT WE VISIT BRING US TO THE PAST. WE ARE LIVING OUR LIVES IN OUR DREAMS. WE ARE RELIVING THE NIGHTMARE THAT HAPPENED TO US. NONE OF THE WAR CRIMINALS CONVICTIONS, OR THEIR LIFE SEENCES OR MILLIONS OF DOLLARS, COULD REPLACE A LOST HUMAN BEING.
>> Sreenivasan: A NEW DOCUMENTARY THAT TAKES ON RACIAL STEREOTYPES ON PRIME TIME TELEVISION PREMIERS TONIGHT ON" TruTV." IT'S CALLED "THE PROBLEM WITH APU" AND IT CHALLENGES THE REPRESENTATION OF AN INDIAN CHARACTER ON THE LONG-RUNNING ANIMATED SERIES, "THE SIMPSONS"" COMEDIAN HARI KONDABOLU MADE THE DOCUMENTARY AND HE JOINS ME NOW FROM SEATTLE. SO YOU MAKE CLEAR IN THIS MOVIE THAT YOU ARE NOT TRYING TO SET OUT THIS MISSION OF POLITICAL CORRECT, YOU'RE NOT TRYING TO ERASE THE CHARACTER FROM THE HISTORY OF THE PROGRAM. YOU'RE ACTUALLY APPROACHING IT AS A FAN OF THE SIMPSONS. SO WHAT IS THE PROBLEM WITH APU.
>> I THINK ONE OF THE BIGGEST PROBLEMS IS DURING THE MAJORITY OF THE SHOW'S RUN, IT WAS THE ONLY INDIAN-AMERICAN REPRESENTATION. AND THE REPRESENTATION THAT WE HAD WAS A BIG STEREOTYPE. IT WAS A, YOU KNOW, A PERSON WORKING AT A CONVENIENCE STORE, WHICH IS FINE, WHICH IS NOT LIKE A BAD THING. BUT IT WAS SOMEBODY WORKING AT A CONVENIENCE STORE WHO HAD NO OTHER PROSPECTS. WHO WAS HAPPY TO BE SERVILE. HE WAS CLEARLY WRITTEN THROUGH THE EYES OF WHITE WRITERS T WASN'T LIKE AN AUTHENTIC CHARACTER. AND NOT ONLY THAT THE VOICE WHICH IS A RIDICULOUS ACCENT IS DONE BY HANK AZ ARIA WHO IS A-- WHITE MAN. SO IN TERMS OF THE HISTORY OF MINSTRAL IN THIS COUNTRY IT IS CONSISTENT WITH THAT.
>> THE PROBLEM IS IS WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY OTHER REPRESENTATION IN THIS COUNTRY.
>> THERE WAS NO AZIZ, NO MINDY, NO KAL, NO THAT DUDE WHO WAS ON LOST. THIS IS ALL WE HAD. APU REFLECTED HOW AMERICA VIEWED US, SERVILE, DEVIOUS, GOOFY.
>> Sreenivasan: ALSO A CONVERSATION WITH WHOOPI GOLDBERG IN THIS, AND SHE, I DIDN'T KNOW THIS, BUT SHE HAS A COLLECTION OF WHAT SHE CALLS NEGR OBELIA WHERE WHITE ACTOR WAS PUT ON BLACK FACE AND AS YOU POINTED OUT HANK AZARIA A WHITE ACTOR HAS BEEN DOING THIS BROWN VOICE FOR SOME 30 YEARS, THIS IS THE MU MINUTESTRELCY THAT WE NORMALIZED.
>> I WOULDN'T SAY IT IS NEW BUT I WOULD SAY IT SAY CONTINUEATION OF A LONG LEGACY. I SAID DURING THE INTERVIEW THIS WAS MEANT TO HURT BLACK PEOPLE AND SHE SAID IT WASN'T THAT COMPLICATED. TO HER ST A NORMAL EYED THING THAT IS USED TO MOVE PRODUCT. I THINK THAT IS THE SAME WITH APU. I DON'T THINK THEY MADE THE CHARACTER TO HURT ANYBODY BUT CLEARLY IT WAS AN EFFECTIVE STEREOTYPE T MADE PEOPLE LAUGH AND THEREFORE UNTIL IT REALLY IS QUESTIONED NOBODY HAD AN ISSUE WITH IT. I MEAN THE SOUTH ASIAN COMMUNITY HAD AN ISSUE WITH IT BUT NOBODY COULD HEAR US. I WANTED THIS FILM TO BE PATTERNS AND I THINK THAT IS THE SAME WITH MY APU DOCUMENTARY. THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THAT APU IS STILL AN ACTIVE CHARACTER.
>> Sreenivasan: WHEN FOR YOU DID YOU REALIZE THAT BASICALLY APU WAS BEING WEAPONNIZED AGAINST YOU? NESS I WOULD SAY AROUND JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL. I THINK INITIAL LIEN WHEN THE SIMPSONS CAME OUT I WAS SO HAPPY TO SEE A BROWN FACE. AND THEN YOU START TO REALIZE THAT THAT IS HOW YOU ARE VIEWED BECAUSE THAT SAUL YOU HAVE. AND I THINK ITS' A BIG DEAL BECAUSE THAT'S THE ONLY IMAGE YOU HAVE, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T HELP BUT BE SHAPED BY MEDIA. AND YOU CAN'T HELP BUT BE SHAPED ESPECIALLY AS A YUNG PERSON BY HOW OTHERS SEE YOU.
>> THERE IS A SECTION IN THE FILM WHERE YOU TALK TO DIFFERENT ACTORS ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THIS HAD AN INFLUENCE IN THE TYPES OF ROLES THEY GOT. I THINK IT WAS ASIF WHO SAID CAB DRIVER, CAB DRIVER, DOCTOR, CAB DRIVER, CAB DRIVER. WHAT ARE THE LONGER-TERM EFFECTS OF RECOGNIZING THIS IS THE MOST PROMINENT SOUTH ASIAN CHARACTER ON TELEVISION OR IN THE MEDIA AT THE TIME. PRESAN JAY GRUP TA, FAR EID ZAKARIA.
>> THE TWO MAJOR DEPICTIONS OF BROWN PEOPLE WERE CONVENIENCE STORE OWNER ON THE SIMPSON, BROWN PAINT, RIDICULOUS, ABSURD CHARACTER AND ON THE OTHER SIDE OF IT IT WAS TERRORIST. AND RESULT, 9/11 HAPPENS, AND THERE IS ALL THESE, YOU KNOW, ANTI-SIKH, ANTI-MUSLIM, ANTI-BROWN HATE CRIMES AND YOU WONDER, WELL-HOW COME THEY CAN'T SEE OUR HUMANITY. WHEN YOU HAVE TWO VERSIONS OF YOU, OF CONVENIENCE STORE OWNER THAT COMES IN TERRORIST AFTER A TERRORIST ATTACK, WHICH SIDE DO YOU THINK PEOPLE ARE GOING TO ERR ON.
>> Sreenivasan: HARI KONDABOLU, THE DOCUMENT ASK ITS PROBLEM WITH APU AIRS TONIGHT ON TRU TV. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
>> THANK YOU, HARI.
>> THIS IS "PBS NEWSHOUR WEEKEND," SUNDAY.
>> Sreenivasan: THE HEAD OF THE EUROPEAN UNION SAYS CATALONIA'S PUSH FOR SECESSION FROM SPAIN IS A "DISASTER IN SEVERAL WAYS." JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER TOLD THE SPANISH NEWSPAPER "EL PAIS" TODAY HE CAN'T ACCEPT WHEN REGIONS GO AGAINST NATIONS, ESPECIALLY OUTSIDE THE LAW. AFTER CATALONIAN LEADERS DECLARED INDEPENDENCE IN OCTOBER, SPAIN DISSOLVED THE CATALAN GOVERNMENT, ARRESTED ITS LEADERS, AND SCHEDULED A NEW REGIONAL ELECTION NEXT MONTH. NORTHERN IRELAND POLITICAL LEADER GERRY ADAMS IS RESIGNING AS AS PRESIDENT OF SINN FEIN. THE NATIONALIST PARTY HE'S HEADED SINCE 1983. ADAMS TOLD A PARTY CONVENTION LAST NIGHT, "LEADERSHIP MEANS KNOWING WHEN IT'S TIME FOR CHANGE, AND THAT TIME IS NOW." ADAMS, WHO'S 69, ALSO SAID HE WON'T RUN FOR RE-ELECTION TO THE IRISH PARLIAMENT NEXT YEAR. ADAMS WAS A KEY NEGOTIATOR OF THE 1998 "GOOD FRIDAY" AGREEMENT THAT ENDED FIGHTING IN NORTHERN IRELAND BETWEEN CATHOLICS SEEKING A UNION WITH IRELAND AND PROTESTANTS WANTING TO STAY IN THE U.K. BANGLADESH SAID TODAY IT IS NEGOTIATING WITH NEIGHBORING MYANMAR TO TAKE BACK SOME OF THE 600,000 ROHINGYA MUSLIMS WHO HAVE FLED SINCE AUGUST. THE MINORITY ROHINGYA, LIVING IN CROWDED REFUGEE CAMPS, CROSSED THE BORDER TO ESCAPE A MILITARY CRACKDOWN MYANMAR SAYS WAS A RESPONSE TO INSURGENT ATTACKS. BUDDHIST-MAJORITY MYANMAR HAS DENIED CHARGES BY THE U.N. THAT THE CRACKDOWN AMOUNTED TO" ETHNIC CLEANSING." KENYA'S SUPREME COURT IS EXPECTED TO DECIDE TOMORROW WHETHER TO NULLIFY THE OUTCOME OF LAST MONTH'S REPEAT ELECTION, WON BY PRESIDENT UHURU KENYATTA. OPPOSITION LEADER RAILA ODINGA CHARGED TODAY, THAT SINCE FRIDAY, KENYAN POLICE HAVE KILLED AT LEAST 31 OF HIS SUPPORTERS WHO WERE PROTESTING THE VOTE. ODINGA CALLED THE VIOLENCE" STATE-SPONSORED THUGGERY" AND CALLED FOR "INTERNATIONAL INTERVENTION" TO STOP IT. THE KENYAN SUPREME COURT NULLIFIED THE FIRST ELECTION IN AUGUST, WON BY KENYATTA, OVER PROCEDURAL IRREGULARITIES. NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBAL LEADERS ARE ASKING FOR MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE KEYSTONE OIL PIPELINE LEAK LAST WEEK IN SOUTH DAKOTA. READ MORE AT www.pbs.org/newshour.
>> Sreenivasan: PRESIDENT TRUMP IS CRITICIZING THE FATHER OF ONE OF THREE UCLA BASKETBALL PLAYERS JAILED IN CHINA FOR SHOPLIFTING. THE PLAYER WERE FREEDED AFTER MR. TRUMP RAISED IT ON HIS ASIA TRIP, ALL THREE PUBLICLY THANKED THE PRESIDENT BUT THE FATHER OF PLAYARY LIANGELO DOWNPLAYED THE PRESIDENT'S INVOLVEMENT. TODAY PRESIDENT TRUMP TWEETED MR. BALL WAS UNACCEPTING OF WHAT I DID FOR HIS SON AND I SHOULD HAVE LEFT THEM IN JAIL. FINALLY THE NEXT CLASS OF AMERICAN RHODES SCWOLT SCHOLARS WAS ANNOUNCED INCLUDING A RECORD 10 AFRICAN-AMERICANS AMONG THE 32 CHOSEN. THEY WILL ALL ATTEND ENGLAND'S OXFORD UNIVERSITY NEXT YEAR. THAT IS ALL FOR THIS EDITION OF PBS NEWSHOUR WEAKENED, I'M HARI SREENIVASAN, THANKS FOR WATCHING AND GOOD NIGHT. Captioning sponsored by WNET Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org
>> PBS NEWSHOUR WEEKEND IS MADE POSSIBLE BY: BERNARD AND IRENE SCHWARTZ. THE CHERYL AND PHILIP MILSTEIN OF ABBY M. O'NEILL. IN MEMORY.. BARBARA HOPE ZUCKERBERG. CORPORATE FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY MUTUAL OF AMERICA-- DESIGNING CUSTOMIZED INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP RETIREMENT PRODUCTS. THAT'S WHY WE'RE YOUR RETIREMENT COMPANY. ADDITIONAL SUPPORT HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY: AND BY THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING, AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU. THANK YOU. BE MORE, PBS. [SPEAKING SPANISH] WOMAN: THE LANDLORD DRILLED A HOLE DURING A TIME THAT SHE WASN'T HERE AND RAN AN EXTENSION CORD THAT CONNECTED TO THIS OUTLET HERE. SO RIGHT NOW SHE OWES ABOUT A THOUSAND. MAN: SO SHE OWES $1,100 ON AN ELECTRIC BILL? WOMAN: YES. YEAH, SHE DOES. AND SHE'LL TELL HER, "WELL, IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, YOU CAN MOVE."
- Series
- PBS NewsHour Weekend
- Producing Organization
- NewsHour Productions
- Contributing Organization
- Internet Archive (San Francisco, California)
- AAPB ID
- cpb-aacip/525-zw18k7679h
If you have more information about this item than what is given here, or if you have concerns about this record, we want to know! Contact us, indicating the AAPB ID (cpb-aacip/525-zw18k7679h).
- Description
- Episode Description
- Included: the divisions that remain in Bosnia-Herzegovina 22 years after its civil war.
- Episode Description
- This item is part of the South Asian Americans section of the AAPI special collection.
- Segment Description
- To view the segment on Hari Kondabolu, visit https://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-525-zw18k7679h?start=1097.48&end=1379.67 or jump to 00:18:19.
- Date
- 2017-11-20
- Media type
- Moving Image
- Duration
- 00:31:00
- Credits
-
-
Producing Organization: NewsHour Productions
- AAPB Contributor Holdings
-
Internet Archive
Identifier: KQED_20171120_013000_PBS_NewsHour_Weekend (Internet Archive)
Duration: 00:31:00
If you have a copy of this asset and would like us to add it to our catalog, please contact us.
- Citations
- Chicago: “PBS NewsHour Weekend; PBS NewsHour Weekend : KQED : November 19, 2017 5:30pm-6:01pm PST,” 2017-11-20, Internet Archive, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed December 26, 2024, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-525-zw18k7679h.
- MLA: “PBS NewsHour Weekend; PBS NewsHour Weekend : KQED : November 19, 2017 5:30pm-6:01pm PST.” 2017-11-20. Internet Archive, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. December 26, 2024. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-525-zw18k7679h>.
- APA: PBS NewsHour Weekend; PBS NewsHour Weekend : KQED : November 19, 2017 5:30pm-6:01pm PST. Boston, MA: Internet Archive, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-525-zw18k7679h