Return to Transcripts main page
CNN 10
Initial Jobless Claims Give Negative Indication About U.S. Economy; Young People Lift Their Voices in Tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. Aired 4-4:10a ET
Aired January 15, 2021 - 04:10 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Oh, hi there. I was just reading a little book about Fridays. Turns out, they`re awesome. Welcome to CNN 10. My name is
Carl Azuz. It`s great to have you watching. We start today with some not so good news about the U.S. economy. Initial jobless claims are up. What does
that mean? Why does it matter? Also known as first time unemployment claims, this is a number of Americans who are asking for government
assistance because they just lost their jobs in layoffs or business cutbacks. The number is recorded weekly and the U.S. government says last
week 965,000 people filed for first time unemployment benefits.
The week before that had been done by 784,000 Americans. It`s not the highest level it`s ever seen. When the shutdowns peaked last March and
April, the government says more than 6 million people filed initial jobless claims during two back to back weeks. But when you consider that the number
averaged around 200,000 weekly in 2019, you can see how last week`s measurement that approached 1 million is considerably higher. One prominent
economist says part of the reason for the increase was the fact that a second stimulus package was passed in late December. That probably caused
more people to apply for government benefits raising the jobless claims number. Another economic indicator, the U.S. Stock Market has seen pretty
steady growth since November so that`s a good sign.
10 Second Trivia. Which of these historic figures was given the name Michael when he was born in 1929? Martin Luther King, Jr., Michael Jordan,
Mark Twain or Thurgood Marshall. Michael King, Jr. was the birth name of the civil rights leader born in Atlanta, Georgia.
The birth date of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was January 15th, 1929 and that date became a holiday in some American cities and states in the years
after he was assassinated. But when legislation was signed in 1983, making Martin Luther King, Jr. Day a Federal holiday, it was scheduled to be
observed on the third Monday in January. And it`s been that way since the first national observance in 1986. Both Federal employees and many other
Americans don`t have to work on Martin Luther King Day. The U.S. government recognizes this as a day of service. A day on, not a day off with the goal
of encouraging Americans to volunteer to improve their communities.
It`s usually marked by speeches, marches and other events attended by civil rights leaders and U.S. political figures. Dr. King, an American Baptist
minister, felt that peaceful events like marches were the best way to achieve civil rights for African Americans. He founded the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference in 1957. He led the March on Washington in 1963 where he delivered his famous, "I Have A Dream" speech and he was
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize the next year. Historians have recorded a number of controversies associated with the civil rights leader but the man
who in 1963, famously said that segregation and discrimination had kept black Americans from being free was himself awarded the Presidential Medal
of Freedom nine years after his assassination in 1968.
And in honor of his civil rights accomplishments, we have a special feature on Martin Luther King starting right now. CNN 10 is collaborating with the
AT&T Youth Voices Collective to help amplify youth voices. So today, in commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we`d like to welcome the
students of the Harvard Diversity Project to share portions of some of Dr. King`s most famous and influential speeches. The Harvard Diversity Project
based in Dr. King`s own hometown of Atlanta is a pipeline program that recruits, trains and matriculates highly motivated black youth into a
summer debate residency at Harvard. Let`s hear from the students.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American
dream. We cannot walk alone and as we walk, we must (inaudible) that we must always march ahead. We cannot look back. There are those who are
(inaudible) right and (inaudible) satisfied. No, no, no, we are not satisfied and will not be satisfied. If the justice rolls down like water
and (inaudible) like a mighty stream.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How long will it take? Somebody`s asking. How will prejudice blind (inaudible)? However difficult a moment, however
frustrating the hour, it will not be long because truth (inaudible) will rise again. How long? Not long because mine eyes have seen the glory of the
coming of the Lord. He has trampled out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored. He is losing the faithful of lightening of his terrible
swift sword. His truth is marching on. He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall call retreat. He is sifting out the hearts of man before his
judgment seat. Oh, be swift my soul and to him be jubilant my feet. Our God is marching on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Somewhere we must come to realize that human progress never rolls in on the wheel of inevitability. It comes through the tireless
efforts and the persistent work of dedicated individuals who are willing to be co-workers with God. And without this hard work, time itself becomes an
ally of the primitive forces of social stagnation and so, we must always help time and realize that the time is always right to do right.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We mean business now and we`re determined to gain our rightful place in God`s world and that`s all this whole thing is about. We
aren`t engaging any negative protests or any negative arguments with anybody. We are seeing, we`re determined to be men. We`re determined to be
people. We are saying -- we are saying we are God`s children and that we are God`s children. We don`t have to live like we are forced to live. Let
us rise up tonight with a greater readiness. Let us stand with a greater determination and let us move on in these powerful days, these days of
challenge to make America what it ought to be. We have an opportunity to make America a better nation.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of it`s creed. We hold these truths to be
self-evident that all men are created equal. I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former
slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day Mississippi, a state weltering with the heat of
injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four little
children will one day live in a nation where they are where they are not judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I
have a dream today.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And when we allow freedom to ring --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We let it ring from every village, from every hamlet - -
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: From every state and every city --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We will be able to speed up the day when all of God`s children, black men and white men --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jews and Gentiles --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Protestants and Catholics --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old negro spiritual --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "Free at last, free at last.
ALL: "Thank God Almighty, we are free at last."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AZUZ: Well if you`ve ever thought man, I know we have the machine to wash dishes, but I really wish there were a robot that could load them. The
electronics company Samsung may have your solution. It was unveiled at this year`s Consumer Electronics Show. It`s called the "Bot Handy" and not only
can it load the dishwasher, it can load your laundry too. This robot arm is still being developed and we don`t know how much it will cost. But if
you`ve always thought it was a chore to lift clothes and dishes, well think of the freedom.
If getting dishes to their "swishes", is a chore that you find "vicious" after a meal that`s delicious. And your one and only "wish" is to have that
a hand to lend a hand like a "handyman" to clean the "pan". Just raise your "hand" and the money to hire a brand new "botler". I`m Carl Azuz. Before we
part for the weekend, we are visiting Washington Park High School. It`s in Racine, Wisconsin. It`s great to have you subscribing and commenting on You
Tube. We will off the air Monday for the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. So, we will see you again on Tuesday the 19th. That`s a wrap for this
week`s CNN.
END
