i'm soledad o'brien. welcome to matter of fact, today

we're letting history be our guide. first, college students are finding themselves at the center of the political fray over dei diversity, equity and inclusion. they will make the change because the bottom line is education and money. we visit former nfl player tony mcgee. he was kicked off his college team in the 1960s after asking to participate in a peaceful protest. his message for today's students. plus she was the first baby born via in vitro fertilization in the united states. just because i got here a little bit differently, i'm just like everybody else. why? she says. more than 40 years later, many of us don't fully understand ivf and how it fits into lives and laws. and a san antonio organization wanted to help the homeless. so it researched what more than 200 shelters across the country had done in the past. they're not just sleeping here at night. they're working on the root cause of that homelessness. we visit the resulting one stop

campus for helping people get on their feet. those stories right now on matter of fact. as the political fueled rollback of dei diverse city equity and inclusion programs continues across the country, some states are codifying that rollback into law. that includes florida, where dei initiatives are now banned at public colleges. the university of florida recently announced it would eliminate its program to comply with the law. that move triggered pushback from the naacp. it put out a letter urging black athletes to avoid attending any public universities in florida. this is far from the first time college students have found themselves at the crossroads between athlete and activist. our special correspondent joey chen traveled to georgia, where super bowl champion tony mcgee shares how his activism as a student almost cost him his career.

miami, 27, air force 18. and what could have been a standout season for the wyoming cowboys is. it was a call off the field that cost a young tony mcgee and 13 of his teammates everything. so that destroyed people's academic careers, lives, their football careers and their futures. exactly. in the fall of 1969, number 12, wyoming dominant defense included tony mcgee, third year tackle out of battle creek, michigan. were you pretty proud to get that? yeah. yes. and you know, even though i thought of other schools, i knew the tradition. but days before a game against brigham young, wyoming's black student alliance urged the team's african-american players to take a stand against racist policies of the mormon church. mcgee and some others wanted to highlight onfield mistreatment. they planned to ask their coach permission to wear black

armbands, but they never got a chance. he came out and before we said anything, he said, uh, tell you as it now, you no longer a member of the wyoming football team. he kicked you off? yes. no explanation, no discussion, nothing. the protests that never actually happened cost all of the black 14 players their scholarships. none of them got offers to play for other highly ranked schools. the nfl snubbed most of them. mcgee was one of only two who made it to the pros, as sports columnist kevin blackistone says, the fate of the black 14 is just one example in a history of sacrifice that was a price that they had to pay for, for trying to bring change about at the university of wyoming in terms of being sensitive to black students, isn't that an awfully high price? it is. but like fred hampton with the black panthers said, you know, peace if you're willing to fight for it. and unfortunately, in this country, marginal people, people

of color have had to put their necks on the line in order to make gains. and blackistone highlights others like texas high school coach willie ray smith, ordered his players, including his son, the great bubba smith, to steer clear of southern football powerhouses as the syracuse eight players won concessions for their program after their boycott and more recently, a missouri players boycott forced the university's president to resign. that's to name just a few proof. blackistone says that black athletes have the power to tackle the assault on dei. when those athletes understand their role on campus, their role in terms of generating tens of millions of dollars in revenue, and i think that they they are in a great place to wield power. i mean, is it fair for them to have to carry that burden? it may be a burden, but when

they can wield their power and understand their agency, it's it's quite a thing to witness. given his experience with the black 14, mcgee's advice to young athletes is more nuanced. you got to do what works for you first. if you can make a difference, you do that. but number two, let's be realistic. do not do something, whereas you do not go to school because you're giving up that education option. you have to really look between the two things and which one is the most important to you. and this is my armband, the only one still here from the black 14 at the college football hall of fame in atlanta. the 14 are finally being recognized. a lot of players had to give up, a lot, and a new generation, including mcgee's own grandson, christian, are learning about their sacrifice. will you do it again? why? after all i've done what? i do it again. yes. you know why? why?

because i felt it was the right thing. it was something that has changed the course of football, not just for my college, but the next year, byu got their first african american player. so right there, i knew we were doing the right thing. a play that led to victory on the sidelines and beyond. in atlanta. i'm joey chen for matter of fact. next on matter of fact, she had her first press conference at three days old. this was a big deal. the nation's first ivf baby. on why she's now meeting with lawmakers. plus, this new mom needed help. just trying to make sure i wasn't out on the streets with my daughter. the unique assistance that's helping her and others get a fresh start. and most americans now live in a state where marijuana is legal. how could that landscape change after the general election? a breakdown of cannabis on the

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the united states might never have existed if it weren't for in vitro fertilization and that includes my guest, elizabeth carr. in fact, she was the first person born in the united states as a result of ivf. that was 42 years ago. since then, carr has used her platform to advocate for ivf treatment and for its protection by law, something that became a national headline following the recent alabama supreme court ruling. in that ruling, a judge declared that the frozen embryos created through ivf should be considered children. elizabeth carr, nice to have you. thank you for talking with me. thanks for having me. of course. when did you learn first that

you were an ivf baby? when i was about 6 or 7. uh, we had a mother's day reunion at the clinic where i was born down in virginia, and we were screening a nova documentary of my birth. and that's when it really hit me. oh, so this was historic. this was a big deal. take me back to your parents decisions. what led them to ivf? so my parents, they wanted a big family when they started trying, they found out very quickly. my mother could get pregnant but not stay pregnant. and she had something called an ectopic pregnancy, which is a tubal pregnancy. she had three of those in a row and so on. the third one, the doctor said to her, we need to take your fallopian tubes. and so after the surgery, she's recovering. she goes into her obgyn gyn and he says, well, i just came back

from a conference where i learned about this thing that was successful in england called ivf. maybe it's something you should explore. so when you heard about this alabama judge's ruling around ivf, what were your first thoughts and what were your biggest concerns? i was on vacation with my family. we're relaxing. i'm reading the news, as i always do, and i see the news about alabama. and my first gut instinct was to read this aloud to my family, to start to process this, and we all kind of took this collective of, oh my goodness, this is one of the worst things that could happen. and then in the same breath, i looked at my husband and i said, but i'm not shocked. you've been talking about this for a long time. explain for people why you were throwing up red flags. so in this creating ivf, we had

some protection under roe v wade for the things that are necessary in ivf, whether it's medically necessary abortion or freezing these embryos. so when the dobbs decision came down, myself and other people that have been following this very closely really realized, oh my goodness, this is this is something we have never had to deal with before. most people really don't have a clear idea of the overlap with ivf and abortion law, and what it really means for parents who want to have a kid or not. that's the fundamental issue. the one thing i saw when i was down in dc talking with all these lawmakers, was that there was still some lack of knowledge of what ivf really entails and what it is. so do you think congress needs to step in to protect ivf? do you think that's actually going to happen? so there is a bill that is currently in committee that would essentially protect ivf on a national level.

and i am cautiously optimistic that we could get that passed. what's making you optimistic? because sometimes i think that even people who say they support ivf, f aren't necessarily willing to fight for it politically. ivf doesn't care what your politics are. it affects 1 in 6 people, and it doesn't just affect those who are going through infertility treatments. it affects people that are building their families that are lgbtq. it affects people who want to do genetic screening. it affects people who want to freeze their eggs to preserve their fertility. before going through cancer treatment. it's an issue now that affects so many more people. i think that's important that people continue to see who are the people using these technologies to build their family and just regular people. exactly. elizabeth carr, so nice to talk to you. thanks for coming in. thanks for having me coming up with homelessness on the rise, a

texas shelter is taking a new approach to why the shelter's organizers say their business model is the key to their success. plus support for the legalization of marijuana is the highest it's ever been. a look at where voters will get an official say this november. homelessness in america has

i thought i knew a lot about our irish roots; i was surprised to learn so many more things. there's the family name. 1892 wow. that one here is the boat they came over on. yes. wow. reached a disturbing high. a new report by the u.s. department of housing and urban development found that on a single night in 2023, more than

650,000 people were experiencing homelessness. to put it in perspective, that's the entire population of boston. in one night. so how do people in need get help? an organization in san antonio, texas, called haven for hope says it's having success by doing things a little differently. first, they focus on providing immediate basic shelter and then second, a haven for hopes. funding makes it more flexible leaning on private donations to provide services not covered by federal grants. our correspondent dan lieberman recently visited san antonio to see how it works. everything is here. tuna packs, chicken packs, electrolytes, fruit cups. pete barrera's pickup truck is a lifeline for san antonio's homeless residents in a state where outdoor encampments are against the law. barrera works for haven for hope, a shelter that says it's a one stop shop providing services

to about 7000 people a year at haven. they're not just sleeping here at night. kim jeffries is haven for hope's president and ceo. they're working on the root cause of that homelessness while they're waiting for housing. the 22 acre campus provides on site services, including child care, a medical clinic, mental health counseling and job placement. there's even a hair salon and pet care. we have two unique sides of our campus. on one side, there's some requirements. so sobriety requirements, id on that side is a dorm setting on the other side of campus. it's low barrier, so no id requirements, no sobriety requirements. most people will sleep on a six inch mat on the floor at night. jeffrey says haven's unique approach is a practical response to people's immediate need for shelter. i think that's what's missing in a lot of communities is they don't have the shelter capacity to get individuals off the streets, the focus is only on housing and if the housing inventory isn't there, there's

no place for them to go in the in the interim, not having a job. i couldn't pay the rent no more. so i got evicted. ready? go to the room. melissa smith was laid off from her job last year. was unable to find affordable child care for her daughter. haven for hope was able to help getting my daughter into the day care so that i could get a job that put me one step closer to getting out. but the average length of stay is about four months. but melissa and her now two year old daughter have been here for a year. but soon they'll be moving in into their own apartment. haven's going to help with my first month's rent. haven says it houses about a thousand clients a year, 91% of them remain in their new home. after 12 months. there is something important about that private public partnership that haven has. if we were only funded by local, federal or state government, we'd only be able to serve the people that they tell us are eligible and in the way they

want us to serve them. for melissa and her daughter, having a place like haven is just what they needed. i feel very proud that i've come so far. i'm proud that i have a job. i'm proud that i'm going to have an apartment that i can call my own. i say bye bye. for matter of fact, i'm dan lieberman in san antonio, texas. haven for hope helped 9500 people in 2023. the highest number since they opened their doors in 2010. they're also now part of a new centralized coordination program linking shelters throughout san antonio to help more people this year ahead. on matter of fact, while marijuana is still illegal under federal law, we explore the state level efforts to allow recreation and medical use at. and one of my greatest joys of matter of fact, is our ability to center people.

a personal moment and big honor for our host, soledad to stay up to date with. matter of fact, sign up for our newsletter at matteroffacttv. welcome back to matter of fact.

along with picking a president this november, voters in a handful of states will decide whether or not to legalize marijuana. right now, four states, florida, idaho, nebraska and south dakota have campaigns pushing to put legalized asian questions on the ballot. seven other states don't have citizen initiated ballot measures, so state legislators are currently considering adding it. those states thinking about it are hawaii, north carolina, south carolina, new hampshire, wisconsin, pennsylvania and kentucky. a recent gallup poll shows at least 70% of adults favor legalization, up from 68% in recent years.

in 1969, just 12% supported legalization. several factors contribute to the rise. more people say they use marijuana. there's also more support for legalization, regardless of age or political affiliation, pew research found 54% of americans live in a state where recreation usage of marijuana is legal, and 79% of americans live in a county with at least one cannabis dispensary. right now, 24 states, along with washington, d.c. and guam, have legalized recreational marijuana use. still ahead on matter of fact, we head to las vegas to share a personal moment of celebration and our commitment to you. i have moderate to severe crohn's disease. now, there's skyrizi. ♪ things are looking up, i've got symptom relief. ♪ ♪ control of my crohn's means everything to me. ♪ ♪ control is everything to me. ♪ feel significant symptom relief

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a moment for a little humble brag. this past monday, the library of american broadcasting foundation named me this year's insight award recipient, and i thought

i'd share the moment with you. i want you to know that i do not take this responsibility of educating people about the stories that matter. i do not take that responsibility lightly, and i appreciate your trust and your faith in me. the insight award is given to individuals or organizations for their contributions to helping build the public's understanding of media's role and history. previous winners include levar burton and 60 minutes. so pretty great company, if i say so myself. and while obviously it's a great honor, we're just getting started. we're going to keep digging into stories of how policy impacts people every single week. that's it for this edition of matter of fact, i'm soledad o'brien. i'll see you back here next week to watch more stories like this. any time, head to matteroffacttv.

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today on "asian pacific america," a revisit of our talk with actress kieu chen, starring with robert downey jr.