American Morning
From sex abuse victim to legal advocate
By Allie Brown, CNN
Vershire, Vermont (CNN) - Armed with a law degree, an SUV that serves as a mobile office and her own harrowing personal history, 58-year-old trucker-turned-lawyer Wynona Ward navigates the back roads of rural Vermont.
Her mission: to aid victims of domestic violence.
Ward is the founder of Have Justice Will Travel, a group that works to end the generational cycle of abuse by giving free legal representation and support services to isolated - and often desperate - low-income people and their children.
"For domestic violence victims in rural areas, it can be very devastating," Ward said. "They're out there on these back roads, with no access to in-town services. Many do not have telephones; some do not have a driver's license or automobile. So we go to them." Read the full story »
Do you know a hero? Nominations are open for 2010 CNN Heroes
The 'new Thomas Edison'
Dean Kamen has been called the new Thomas Edison. He's invented more than four-hundred medical devices.
Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta recently traveled to Kamen's idea factory – his home in New England – to check out his latest innovations and to hear some interesting ideas about health care reform.
Program Note: Watch Sanjay Gupta MD, Saturday & Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET on CNN.
Muslim-American says she's victim of religious profiling
Editor's Note: Anyone who took to the skies over the holidays will tell you that security has been tighter since a Nigerian man was arrested for allegedly trying to blow up a commercial airliner. But Muslims in the United States and Canada say they are being targeted. Is it racial profiling? American Morning's Alina Cho has the story of two women who say it happened to them.
By Alina Cho, CNN
Nadia Hassan is a frequent flier. Imagine her surprise when she arrived at the security checkpoint at Washington's Dulles International Airport Tuesday and encountered what she calls, "racial, religious profiling."
The 40-year-old Michigan-born Muslim-American, headed to Los Angeles, says she was singled out for what she calls a "humiliating" full-body search.
When she asked why this was happening "the gentleman who was working there specifically told me that the reason I'm being put through this type of search is because I'm wearing a head scarf. … He actually came out and told me that that's the reason why you are being targeted."
She's not alone.
On Monday, a Muslim-Canadian woman says she was made to feel like a terrorist because she was wearing a headscarf. She says she was berated and banned from boarding a flight to the United States – all because of her faith.
Are airport body scanners a health hazard?
300 full-body scanners will soon be inside airports around the country, but should passengers be concerned about dangerous radiation exposure?
Our Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta joined us on Friday's American Morning to answer your questions about the new security measures affecting your health.
How animals are coping with the cold
The extreme weather much of the country is dealing with isn't just affecting people and crops, but animals too.
For example, when iguanas get cold they go into hibernation mode and drop out of trees. Our John Zarrella tells us how some exotic animals are staying warm.
Skilled labor in high demand, short supply
By Carol Costello
In the 80’s movie, "Flashdance," Alexandra Owens couldn’t wait to leave blue collar work behind. It wasn’t long before she said “goodbye blowtorch,” hello “fame.” Yes, it’s old fiction, but it neatly sums up where we are today.
Kim Barbano graduated from the University of Miami in 2008 with a degree in public relations. She has yet to find a job, yet the thought of taking this time to learn a trade is incomprehensible. “I think there is a lot of pressure to go to college and get a typical day job. And that isn’t working with your hands,” she said.
Let’s face it, there is little real passion for becoming electricians, manufacturing engineers, high-tech welders, plumbers or custom construction workers.
“There are still hundreds of thousands of jobs in manufacturing, but unfortunately people who are looking for jobs don’t necessarily have the skills to get into this field now,” says Chris Kuehl, with the Fabricators and Manufacturing Association.
According to a June, 2009 study by Deloitte LLP and The Manufacturing Institute, manufacturing topped the list of seven key industries as most important to the US economy, but only 17 percent of young Americans desire a job in manufacturing and only 30 percent of parents said they would encourage their children to learn a trade.
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