geoff: good evening. i'm geoff bennett. amna: and i'm amna nawaz. on the newshour tonight. los angeles school workers go on strike for better wages and working conditions, shuttering classes for more than 400,000 students. geoff: new video shows multiple sheriff's deputies forcibly pinning down a man at a virginia mental hospital leading to his death. we speak with the man's lyfa.mi twenty years later, iraqis reflect on how the united states' invasion and its aftermath changed their lives. >> we thought the americans will come, that they will free us from saddam, the finally we will get i rights, but we haven't seen any benefit.

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♪ >> and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. ♪ >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> i'm vanessa brewer's in for stephanie sy with newshour west. it has been a day of dueling diplomacy in russia and ukraine. janice president met with

russian president vladimir putin for a second day as the two nations appeared to strengthen ties. the state visit by the chinese leader featured all the ceremony and trappings that moscow could muster. xi and putin attended a lavish ceremony and presented a united front against the west. later, putin talked up china's 12-point peace proposal for ukraine. >> we believe many points of china's peace plan are in sync with russian approaches and could form a basis for a peaceful settlement, when the west and kyiv are ready for it. but so far, we see no such readiness on their side. putin accused western powers of prolonging the war, saying -- quote -- the west intends to fight russia to the last ukrainian. meanwhile, japan's prime minister fumio kishida made a surprise visit to kyiv -- meeting with president zelenskyy and offering what he called unwavering support for ukraine. his trip also included laying flowers at the site of a

massacre in bucha. the town outside the capital has become a symbol of russian atrocities. russia's military appeared to respond by flying two strategic bombers over the sea of japan for more than 7 hours. the u.s. is playing down plans for taiwan's president to stop in the u.s. during an upcoming visit to central america. tsai ing-wen will transit through new york and los angeles, but mainland china is already condemning the plan. at the white house today, national security council spokesman john kirby said -- in effect -- it's much ado about nothing. >> there's no reason for china to overreact. heck, there is no reason for them to react. this is something that, as i said, is commonplace. it has happened before. it will likely happen again. it's personal, it's unofficial, there should be no reason for beijing to react in any way to this. vanessa: during her stopovers, tsai is expected to hold unofficial meetings with u.s.

officials and lawmakers. in haiti. u.n. officials say rampant gang violence killed at least 187 people from late february into early march. more than 150 others were hurt. video out today showed people fleeing their homes in the capital -- port-au-prince -- on monday. farmers have also had to abandon their fields. gangs have increasingly taken over haiti since the president was assassinated in 2021. back in this country -- treasury secretary janet yellen says the turmoil in banking is stabilizing. but that regulators will do more to guarantee bank deposits if need be. they've covered all deposits for silicon valley bank and signature bank -- eclipsing the previous $250,000 limit. in washington, yellen told the ameran bankers association that it's critical to ensure public confidence. >> our intervention was necessary to protect the broad u.s. banking system.

and similar actions could be warranted if smaller institutions suffer deposit runs that pose the risk of contagion. vanessa: also today, leaders of the nation's major banks began a 2-day, regularly scheduled meeting in washington. they're expected to discuss their $30 billion rescue of first republic bank, based in san francisco. another storm rocked california today leaving at least one person dead and over 125,000 pg&e customers without power. on the central coa, wind gust reached 80 miles per hour. president biden announced the establishment of two national monuments protecting over 500,000 acres of public land, including a former military training range in texas and a desert mountain in southern

ns sd. aca biden moved to create a nearly 800,000 square mile national marine sanctuary around the pacific remote islands. the basketball world is in mourning tonight for nba hall of famer willis reed. he led the new york knicks to their first title in 1970 -- playing injured in game 7 to beat the los angeles lakers. today, the knicks tweeted the iconic image of reed walking on to the court, moments before tipoff for that game. he won another title in 1973 and was also a 7-time all-star. willis reed was 80 years old. and -- the white house hosted some of the nation's leading musicians, actors and writers today. president biden presented bruce springsteen with the national medal of the arts. he also honored julia louis-dreyfuss and fellow actor mindy kaling among others. and national humanities medals went to 10 writers, historians and more. >> the work of our honorees is as diverse as the nation that

celebrates with them today. but common threads weave them together in many ways. the very fabric of america -- the pursuit of excellence, the drive to create, the yearning to connect, the boldness to be truth tellers, bridge builders, and change seekers. vanessa: the honors were actually for 2021, but had been delayed by the pandemic. there's lots more about the medal recipients on our website, pbs.org/newshour. still to come on the newshour. the u.s. and south korea hold military exercises while the north ramps up missile testing. the outgoing director of the world food program on how to address growing global hunger. and actor randall park discusses his directorial debut and asian american representation in hollywood plus much more. >> this is the pbs newshour from

weta studios in washington and in the west from the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. geoff: a massive strike has shut down schools today in the los angeles unified school district and it is focused on higher wages and better working conditions. this school strike was not initiated by the teachers, who are still under contract, but by some of the district's lowest paid employees. class was canceled in the nation's second-largest school district. school support staff took to the picket lines in the l.a. rain to demand higher wages and better staffing. >> today, thousands of seiu local 99 members are on strike, fr the bus yards to the school yards, to the kitchens and warehouses. geoff: the union seiu local 99 represents custodians, bus drivers, special education assistants and other essential school workers. many of them live below the poverty line on account of low

wages unlimited work hours made worse by inflation and l.a. us -- l.a.'s high cost of living. that is why they are pushing for a 30% salary increase -â“ along with an additional $2-per-hour for the district's lowest paid works. demonstrations began at a bus yard at 4:30 this morning around , the same time bus drivers would typically report to work. tens of thousands have now walked off the job. they have the backing of parents like jenna schwartz. >> we have some of our most underpaid workers doing some of the most challenging jobs on our campuses. the majority aren't receiving health care, they've been negotiating for years. geoff: the district offered a 20% wage increase over a multiyear period along with a 3% bonus and expanded health benefits. its superintendent accused the union of refusing to negotiate. >> despite our invitation for a transparent, honest conversation that perhaps would result in a

meaningful solution that would avoid a strike, we were never able to be in the same room or at the same table to address these issues >> the onus is on the district. geoff: union leaders and many teachers support the strike, calling out the school district for ignoring workers' demands. >> superintendent alberto carvalho, give respect to the education workers that keep our schools running and our ildren safe. geoff: the walkout is affecting some 420,000 students, disrupting not just class, but meals, counseling and other social services. >> i think it's not good that we are having a strike because it shuts down school for a few days which prohibits some kids from learning. geoff: the strike is expected to last for three days. for students that are in need of food assistance, the district has set up two dozen locations

throughout los angeles county where students and families can grab breakfast and lunch. for the latest on the strike and the impact, i'm joined by sequoia carrillo who covers education for npr. she joins us fm los angeles. thanks for being with us. the union says the average salary of its members and the district is $25,000 a year with many of these employees now on strike have worked part-time. you have been speaking with them today. what did they tell you about how it would improve their lives. >> so many people had truly heartbreaking stories about working for the district and the sacrifices they have had to go through. working multiple jobs. just due to the fact that there is an in season and an off season and an off-season for a lot of this employment. rent does not work like that.

if you are working part-time, you don't get the summer vacation. or some are even working far less hours than that. but they love what they do. these are people that are really passionate about what they do and they want to keep doing what they are doing, but at this level, they can't sustain themselves. >> the unionist ending a 30% increase. why is with the school district proposing, why isn't that sufficient for the union? >> the union from what i can understand from talking to union members and leadership, they really see their demands as almost the bare minimum. they feel like they have been arguing and negotiating over this contract for years at this

point and with inflation and the economic downturn looming. they really don't see much wiggle room. they have also had a tenuous relationship with the district and negotiations recently. i think this strike is their last straw. they don't want to budge on their position. >> it creates a real hardship for working parents. p the superintendent told us today that 75% of kids in the l.a. school district are at or below the poverty line. tell us more about how the neediest students are going to be accommodated? >> this is something that the superintendent was very passionate about trying to lessen the impact as much as possible on those students that he is worried about.

the district itself has set up different accommodations for the students. some schools are open and safe centers for students to go. others are serving back to meals to families no questions asked. there is also some limited childcare available, though i've been told by some parents that that has been very hard to get on the waiting list. we have also seen a lot of students at these rallies. a lot of the workers in the union, they are parents of students in lausd and they brought their students with them to protest these working conditions. >> is there any reason to think that the three-day strike will be the thing that forces the district hand? >> i really thought yesterday

there might be some resolution and then that very quickly devolved late last night. i'm not sure if he three-day strike will be what it takes or not, but i do know talking with leadership on both sides, there are a lot of people who want this to be over, who know how much this is taking a toll on the city and parents. hopefully a resolution can be reached by the end of this. >> thank you for sharing your reporting with us. >> thank you for having me. amna: new video out from a mental hospital in virginia today shows the overpowering use of force that led to the death of a 28-year-old patient earlier this month. a grand jury today indicted 10 people on 2nd degree murder

charges in connection to the man's death. william brangahm has the details of this disturbing case. and a warning -- we will show short excerpt of that video, which may be hard to watch for some viewers. william: two weeks ago, sheriff's deputies transferred irvo otieno from a local jail to a state psychiatric hospital near richmond. otieno, who -- according to his family - had struggled wh mental heah issues for years, was reportedly having a mental health crisis at the time of his arrest, following a burglary call. silent hpital video captures the final minutes of his life. multiple deputies and hospital staff hold a shackled and handcuffed otieno down on the ground, law enforcement alleged he was acting aggressively. h loses consciousness, and hospital staff try to revive him. but he never recovers. 7 deputies and 3 hospital employees have been indicted on second degree murder charges.

attorneys for at least two of the deputies have maintained they are innocent, and attorneys for some other defendants, said the release of the video could prejudice potential jurors. the man's family is being represented by civil rights attorney benjamin crump, who joins us now, along with the man's mother caroline ouko. ,thank you. i'm so sorry for what happened to your son and we are grateful to taken the time to speak with us about this. can you telesales little bit about your son? >> he was my baby. he was my baby. he was a smart young man. he grew up here in richmond. he went to school locally in richmond.

then eventually he went to college in california. he was not quick to anger. he took his time. he was like his father. he loved people. he was the peacemakein o family. ifre, he would always come in and ask us to look at it a different way as well, he always brought a different perspective to the table, he was a good listener. he loved his family, he loved me so much and i loved him that much. >> other family members have described a long struggle with

mental illness. do you have any sense of how he was on the day he was arrested and transferred to the haas it'll? >> hwas coherent. we were in the house. even when they left to taken to the hospital, he was talking and asking restaurants. you know, he was now fully gone that he was not aware of himself. he was just in mental distress. >> mr. crump, the prosecutor alleges 10 of those people that we saw on the hospital video are guilty of second-degree murder. do you believe that is the appropriate severity of these charges? >> when you watch the video and you see a young man who is

restrained in handcuffs and leg irons and he is face down and they pile on him, you see people put knees on his neck three years after george floyd, you have to scratch your head and say why in the world would you use that kind of excessive force for not one minute, but over 11 minute? they literally smothered him to death. this is not a young man who was committing a crime. he was having a mental health crisis. why is it when black people have mental health issues they aren't treated as medical issues, they are treated as criminal issues? and far too often they result in a death sentence. >> do you feel like justice is

being properly pursued? >> yes, we are in the right step and this gang of thugs, criminals, murderers they will answer my son was not a threat. but they went ahead and smothered the life out of him. >> the prosecutor alleges that other videoaken in the jail shows some being punched and pepper spray did prior to getting to the hospital. have you seen that deo? is that something you are also pursuing?

>> we saw that video and we think it was reprehensible how they treated this young man who was having a mental health crisis. his mother, when they first came to their home, she said he is in mental distress, he's not about person. so i treat him like a criminal? why not have humanity for him? that is what we are struggling to deal with. i know president biden had the cast of ted lasso at the white house talking about the importance of mental health. we hope that they are able to engage when black people have mental health issues, that they would treat issues affecting our loved one like medical issues and not criminal issues because that is what we see, no matter how many times -- she said he's

having a mental health crisis -- they still tend to be tone deaf and we have to do something about that, america. william: virginias governor glenn youngkin was asked about your son's death and he indicated that we as a society have to figure out a underway how to do with people who are in mental crisis as it so clearly sounds like your son was. what is it that you hope people, our society might learn from your family's tragedy? >> i hope, i hope that really and truly they can put some changes in the mental health system and have a mobile response team that when you call for help, you get the right trained personnel to come to you, to help you with your loved

one. meanwhile, i'm seeking justice for my son. i want anyone else involved in the mistreatment and my son or who played a part in his murder i want them to be found and brought to justice. >> and we don't want this to happen to anyone else in america struggling with mental health issues. if we don't change the system, it could be your loved one. william: we thank you so much and again, our condolences for what you all are going through. thank you for being here. >> thank you. geoff: tensions on the korean

peninsula are running high. the u.s. and south korea launched their largest exercises in nearly six years. and in response, north korea tested 5 missiles, part of a record number of tests over the last 15 months. nick schifrin looks at the debate over u.s. policy in the region as the exercises, and tests continue. nick: above the korean peninsula, a show of force. u.s. bombers fly alongside south korean jets, to increase what the u.s. military called wartime strategic strike abilities. and near the north korean border, american and south korean troops fire together as part 11-day-long exercises they call freedom shield, and warrior shield >> a majority of the training we've conducted today is always to ensure that we're ready to fight tonight. nick: but north korea also tried to show it is ready to fight. last week on state tv it tested an intercontinental ballistic missile it says can reach the entire continental u.s.

it was a family affair. that is north korean leader kim jong-un with his daughter and his sister on the right alongside senior officials. in the last week north korea also launched what it called a simulation of a nuclear attack on south korea, after kim reduced the threshold for preemptive strikes. and it launched a missile from a submarine, just one of more than 115 tests in the last year, the most, in north korean history. >> they have a mission to qualitatively and quantitatively advance their nuclear missile program. they are using military exercises as a pretext, as an excuse. when you look at the past history, they have only they've always conducted these kind of missile tests during the during -- the exercises. nick: sue mi terry is the director of the asia program at the wilson center in washington. she says kim jong un has no interest in diplomacy, until the u.s. accepts north korea as a nuclear weapons power. >> they emselves said so last

fall when they said, we're not coming back to talks if we are talking about denuclearization. we'll come back to the talks potentially to talk about arms control or something else. but it's not going to be about denuclearization. nick: but other nor korea experts believe kim is willing to adjust his swagger, if the us were willing to adjust exercises and sanctions. >> they're unhappy with our military exercises and they may, in fact, be unhappy with the failure of the united states to meet the kinds of expectations they have about starting diplomatic activity. nick: ambassador robert galucci is a georgetown professor, and former diplomat. in the 1990's, he was the chief u.s. negotiator of an agreement in which north korea promised to shut down its nuclear weapons complex, in exchange for energy facilities, and improved relations. that eventually failed, as did diplomatic efforts under president obama and president trump direct talks with kim jong-un.

now, the biden administration has increased military exercises and regional cooperation, but also offered north korea to meet anywhere, with no preconditions. does that strategy make sense, do you think? >> well, it would make sse if it was working, and it doesn't make sense, since it's not. it's better than having preconditions, but it's not as good as saying, look, we've thought about this and we're prepared to make some moves and we are going to begin with the fact that we have sanctions which we can manipulate. we have military exercises which we can maybe manipulate, and we're prepared to send you a nice positive signal here that we're prepared to make some serious changes. nick: should the u.s. be willing to adjust its exercises and its sanctions in order to get north korea to the diplomatic table? >> i don't think so. north koreans are not interested in returning to the talks right now. kim jong un has made up his mind to get his technical capability to a next level before they return to talks. nick: north korea's nuclear

advances have increased anxiety across the border in south korea where , president yoon suk yeol and other senior officials have discussed seoul building its own nuclear arsenal. oh se-hoon is an influential member of the president's party and a likely presidential candidate in 2027. >> we've come to a point where it is difficult to convince people of the rationale that we should refrain from developing nuclear weapons and stick to the cause of denuclearisation. >> i think south koreans are scared. they can trust the biden administration. but to be honest, in the future, they are concerned about what's going to happen to the united states. will we have another isolationist president who might talk about pulling troops out of south korea? [16.1] >> but right now, the alliance is becoming more unified. for years, south korea and japan had difficult relations - but last week their leaders resumed ties to help create a free and open indo pacific. >> we have agreed that under the current strategic environment strengthening japan-south korea

relationship is an urgent task. >> south korea and japan share the universal values of freedom, human rights, and law, and we are the closest neighbors and partners that must cooperate on security, economic iues, and global agendas. nick: an agenda that publicly includes countering north korea's growing missilthreat. >> north koreans are making all kinds of threats about preemptive use of nuclear weapons. but if they know that united states and south korea and japan are closely aligned, and you cannot separate these countries, i think you would have some sort of impact. nick: north korea continues to pose one of the u.s.'s most difficult challenges. and right now, the biden administration is not signaling any policy change as the test sent exercises are expected to continue. i'm nick schifrin. ♪

amna: the causes of global hunger are many and well-known. conflict, climate and cruelty. but it is the job of the world food program to push through those barriers to feed hundreds of millions in need. it's director thlast six years is david beasley, under whose leaderip the wf p won the nobel peace prize in 2020. he leaves the post early next month. welcome back. always good to see you. >> always good to see you. amna: you visitedozens of countries. you have seen firsthand. we now know millions of people are facing famine. the war in ukraine has further fueled all of this.

is it fair to say there is more work for the agency to do? >> when i took this role six years ago there were 80 million people marching toward starvation and i thought we could put the world food program out of business because we could end food insecurity around the world. unfortunately because of conflict after conflict, ukraine and the lis goes on, it is only getting worse and worse. now we are reaching 60 million people every month. it is now 340 5 million people marching toward starvation. the food inflation, devaluation of the currency and i could go on and on. the next months will be tough on the entire planet. amna: some folks have called you the money magnate.

the wfp raised $6 billion in the year you took office, last year that doubled to over $14 rs yll they raised $55 billion. how did you do it? >> you see democrats and republicans in the united states fighting over everything, but when it comes to food security, it is like the miracle on pennsylvania avenue. the republicans and democrats have come together because they understand the signifince of bringing peace through food security around the world and had we not spent that money, i can assure you that the costs would have been a thousand times more because of mass migration that would have resulted in destabilization of nations. we can't back down now, otherwise you will pay a lot more.

>> that his money from lawmakers and gernments. you have been calling for more of the world's richest people to step up and do what they have the power and the means to do. you called out elon musk and said, i can help you spend that money, you can end world hunger. as you prepare to step away, you have spoken to many of these people face-to-face. what is keeping them from acting? >> think it is several things. i think the problems we are facing is quite extraordinary. i tell them there is $400 trillion worth of wealth around the world. i need your engagement. work with us to end hunger around the world. you are putting rockets in space, you have iphones and technology doing all these remarkable things, let's use that ingenuity so that we end starvation.

that is what i want you to do because working together we can solve this problem. the fact that anyone dies from hunger, a child, shame on us. we can do better than this. >> what is one thing you wish you had known when you began that you have been able to offer your successor in the way of advice or guidance? >> it is a heck of a commitment. it is seven days a week. our transition teams are working together. there was so much that i didn't know. she comes in and knows a lot more. there is no doubt she can move the operation forward. i have no doubt she is the right

person at the right time and she has the capacity to bring democrats and republicans together in the united states. we also get great support from canada and other nations in the neighborhood, so to speak. she will be tested, but i have no doubt she will be able to do it. as i've told her, stay focused. stay focused on the poorest of the poor and the vulnerable people need and that will be a victory. amna: your background was in politics before you took the job. you were south carolina's governor. do you see yourself going back into public office? >> i've got two more weeks of this job and i'm going to stay focused on that and i'm looking forward to going home. i have three grandchildren i've really not spent any time with the last couple years so i'm looking forward to spending time and we will see what happens from there. amna: we will see what happens indeed. david beasley, the outgoing director of the world food row

graham. >> good to see you. ♪ geoff: in iraq, it is hard to find a town, a neighborhood, a street, or a family that hasn't been touched by the u.s. invasion 20 years ago, but some parts of the country were hit especially hard. the story of the last two decades through the eyes and memories of two families. >> he remembers his encounter with american troops like it was yesterday. >> the americans wanted to buy something from my shop. they attacked me and hit me here. more than four or five soldiers attacked me.

i had a broken rib. >> there is only a small scar left on his cheek, but the wounds left by the american invasion and its aftermath run deep. >> we are hoping that even if the matter ends with the occupation of the americans, there will be a semblance of security, but things only got worse and worse. >> dhahi originally hails from the sunni area of jurf al sakher, 50 miles south of the capital bag dad, part of what used to be called the triangle of death. a cauldron of frequent attacks on american forces by armed groups, including by al qaeda. >> it really was the triangle of death. you left in the morning and you didn't know if you would come back home. >> dhahi was a low level member of saddam's baath party and initially supported the sunni insurgency, before it was taken over by al qaeda. >> in the beginning, there were strong sympathy when the resistance when it wasn't yet al

qaeda because they were hitting the americans. but the americans had armored vehicles, but the ordinary civilians are in the street, so the biggest death toll was among the iraqis. >> both sunni and shia civilians were caught in the middle. further south in the town of twareej, we meet jebel abdel amir. he used to work as a minibus driver and often took passengers on the dangerous journey through the triangle of death. >> there were so many victimin this area. >> but one incident remains etched in his memory: an american military convoy opened fire on his own family while they were driving down this road. >> we were driving very slowly, the american soldier got angry at us, he waved us away, and the one behind him open fire. >> his family sustained only minor injuries. but it was another rude awakening that the so-called liberation wasn't going to simply end decades of brutality and hardship. twareej is a shia town and many members of his extended family had opposed the sunni dictator.

his wife suheila lost five relatives to saddam's repression. she shows me a picture of her brother, who was arrested and executed in 1989. >> here he is standing in the market with a friend. this was one week before he was arrested. >> suheila initially welcomed the american invasion. >> we got -- thought the americans would free us from saddam and that we would get our rights, but we haven't seen any benefit. >> regime change happened quickly, but there was no plan - -purposefully -- for the day after. >> the united states and its allies have prevailed. >> the coalition provisional authority, the american governing body that took over the country, had little knowledge of iraq. in a misguided attempt to purge saddam loyalists, it dismantled the iraqi army and other state institutions. jebel served as a soldier in the army and was fired. >> the biggest mistake the americans committed was to

dissolve the military and state institutions because those were the ones who controlled the streets and all matters. yes, it was a harsh system, but a system is nonetheless a system. >> extremists and insurgents, both sunni and shia, filled the security vacuum and mobilized against the occupiers. they soon began turning on one another. after the 2006 bombing of the shia shrine in samarra, the country descended into a violent sectarian civil war between sunnis and shias. hundreds of thousands were killed. mixed areas, like the town of musayeb, where dhahi now lives, saw the worst of it. >> if people were killed from one side, then people were killed from the other side. whether you had anything to do with it or not, you had to pay the price. >> the sectarian war begin to

decide -- subside into thousand eight. american troops withdrew in but the forces that were 2011. unleashed in 2003 were not easily subdued. al qaeda morphed into isis and american troops returned in 2014 to take part in the war when the jihadists conquered a third of iraq posterity or he. -- iraq's territory. in the triangle of death and elsewhere in iraq, isis' brutal reign reignited intercommunal tensions. three of dhahia's cousins were kidnapped in 2014 and are still missing. he blames shia armed groups for their disappearance. >> they were kidnapped just because they were sunni. >> the repeated cycles of violence caused massive waves of displacement, resulting in enduring demographic changes. >> his family fled their 12-acre farm in his original home area of jurf al sakher, located a short drive fr here. he hasn't been back since 2006. >> if i tried to return to my

farm, i don't think i would come back alive. entry is forbidden. >> jurf al sakher is now controlled by a powerful shia armed group that mobilized against the american occupation and later fought isis as part of an umbrella of shia-led paramilitaries that have since been integrated into the state security services. dhahi cannot cross this checkpoint. we stop at a market just a few yards away. many of the men who work here are also displaced from jurf al sakher. heir fate is part of the series of incidents that can be traced back to the invasion. >> this is one of the results of the american invasion. the united states bears the responsibility. >> the armed actors who rose up after 2003 later used their military might to consolidate their grip on politics and the economy. even after the violence subsided, ordinary iraqis didn't taste the benefits of democracy.

saddam's repressive dictatorship was replaced with a dysfunctional kleptocracy and little of iraq's oil wealth trickled down to the population. >> there are huge resources in iraq, but the people are not getting their share. >> the couple had one daughter and five sons and they struggled to find jobs. two sons joined the iraqi army, the only chance to find a stable job. >> the economy was doing poorly and i didn't have a high school degree. so there was no other chance but to join the army. >> another war imposed another layer of loss and trauma. entire busloads of young men were shipped to the frontlines in 2014. the pictures of the fallen now line the streets of twareej and other cities across iraq. mohammed lost five of his

colleagues when isis attacked their convoy. >> most of my friends have died. we were 31 in my sniper unit. with one explosion, an entire humvee was taken out. >> isis was declared defeated in 2017, though sleeper cells continue to destabilize rural communities. it is why some of the shia paramilitaries say their continued presence in places like jurf al sakher is required. dhahi now lives on a much smaller plot of land he inherited from his late father. he has given up hopes of reclaiming his farm. >> the situation will not stabilize. the area was exposed to killing, dispossession and many other problems. >> for now, the guns have fallen silent. but the repeated cycles of violence have irrevocably marked this community. iraq remains a fractured nation awash in weapons and still

struggling to find peace. for the pbs newshour, i'm simona foltyn south of baghdad geoff: there's much more about the anniversary of the iraq invasion onlin including insights from foreign affairs correspondent nick schifrin about the challenges young iraqis are facing, 20 years later. that is on our tiktok account. ♪ >> since starting in the hit sitcom fresh off the boat, randallark has become a familiar face in television and in some of hollywood's biggest movies. now he can also be found behind the camera. i spoke about the power of

authentic storytelling as part of canvas are arts and culture series. now that he can add feature film director to his resume. we spoke before his directorial debut called shortcomings at the sundance film festival. how excited are you to see how audiences react to it? >> i'm terrified. [laughter] well, you put so much into something, everybody involved really recognized how special this project was and really put everything into it. >> it is based on a graphic novel of the same name. it tracks a cynical movie theater manager and want to be

moviemaker in san francisco's bay area. >> he is highly opinionated, charming, but a bit miserable. >> fifteen years ago, then a struggling actor, park discovered shortcomings in a bookstore and was immediately pulled in. >> at the time i was like, i would love to play been. >> what was it about the story that spoke to you? >> it just felt like a real reflection of my life at that time. it's not like filled with a lot of those of the common tropes thaten yer sioeena il n coasnfir you know, a trip back to the motherland. but this is really just people hanging out eating at restaurants, arguing in apartments. that's what it is. and that's the kind of authenticity that excites me the most about it. >> park says writer adrian tomine had pitched his screenplay of shortcomings soon

after the graphic novel was published. there was some interest but with a caveat. >> 15 years ago, in order to make it palatable to a broader audience, characters would have had to be changed to white. >> that's what the industry was saying back then. and this is such a deeply asian-american story. it makes no sense for that to be the case. but that's the way the industry was back then. >> hollywood wasn't ready then. but park played a role in changing the face of the industry. ♪ >> after years of bouncing from roll to roll, he was cast in a network comedy as the taiwanese patriarch in abc's fresh off the boat. based on a memoir by celebrity chef, writer, and director eddie huang, it was the first network sitcom starring in asian-american family in two decades following margaret cho's groundbreaking 1994 show all american girl. while critics, including huang

himself, accused fresh off the boat of sanitizing the immigrant experience, it marked a turning for the asian-american point community, as huang told our jeffery brown back in 2016. >> we needed to get on base. there wasn't a sitcom with asians that you could watch anywhere on american television. we didn't have representation. and while a sitcom isn't the end-all/be-all of identity and representation in america, it's a big step. >> fresh off the boat ran for six seasons and turbocharged some cast members' careers. constance wu went on to star in 2018's megahit crazy rich asians. park has since become a red carpet fixture juggling a range of roles, co-writing and starring in the netflix rom, always be my may be with allie wong. >> very long time.

>> and stepping into the blockbuster superhero world with recurring roles in both the dc and marvel cinematic universes. the years of work proving there was an audience for these stories paid off. park and tomine joined forces to pitch shortcomings the movie and succeeded. >> my goal is to just tell a specific story about very specific characters and, and hope that that some people like it. >> just some people? >> or a little more than some. >> ughter] despite his many successes, park says he still sees himself as a just another working actor. is that from like an early career mindset or just the way you are? >> i think almost as a protective mechanism. don't celebrate something too much because lows are inevitable and the highs areossible, but the lows are inevitable. that is just life, i guess.

and in a way, i think it's made me dead inside. [laughter] i'm playing. no, but in a way, it has made me very, you know, very much focused on the work. >> park has directed before, including the series finale of fresh off the bout, but shortcomings, he says, was different. >> it was kind of life-changing in a lot of ways. i felt very much in my skin doing it. acting has always been a source of joy. but this was rewarding in a way that i never felt before with acting. >> starring justin h min, sherry cola, and ally, the film also features a mostly-asian-american cast. >> >> when i first started there, i, i think there was still this sense of âthercan

only be because if you looked at one. a show, there was always just one, you know, not just asians, but any kind of minority group. and now interacting with these young actors, i feel the sense of real community and camaraderie. >> there not yet dead inside. [laughter] >> they are full of life and joy. >> and they are part of a project park hopes will allow stories from the full spectrum of asian-american life to emerge. >> when you're traditionally underrepresented and there is a scarcity of narratives about your group, the instinct is we have to tell the idealized version of ourselves. you know, we have to we have to be heroes. and those stories need to be told, but i really think that, you know, when when you're being dehumanized, it's nice to show portrayals that are humanized and humanized means human, which means complex. >> and messy. >> messy, trying their best,

making mistakes, sometimes making the same mistakes over and over again, like we all do. that's what i'm most proud about when it comes to this movie. it's very real because that's a real reflection of me. you know? ♪ geoff: join us again tomorrow night where we will have a look at health care challenges in rural america. amna: on behalf of the entire team, thank you for joining us. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- >> carnegie corporation of new york supporting innovations in engagement and democratic

engagement and international peace and security. carnegie.org. and with the ongoing support of these institutions. this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪ >> this is pbs newshour west from weta studios in washington and from our bureau at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. ♪ ♪ >>

-jalisco is so many things all at once -- exciting, beautiful, classic yet innovative. but above all, it loves to hold on to its traditions. today i'm experiencing one of the oldest, and possibly one of the cutest, traditions of all -- the escaramuza. -palomas! palomas! ra, ra, ra! -whoo! -and in my kitchen, i'm cooking a meal that is somehow both a small-town mexican tradition and one of the hottest food trends here in the u.s. -- birria -- slow-cooked to perfection, tucked both into a taco and also wrapped up in a quesadilla and topped with a mouthwatering salsita. i mean, fany, look at this. and my friend fany is stopping by to teach me how to make one of my favorite childhood treats,