>> One of the country's oldest civil rights organizations is urging people across the country to resist the Trump administration.

The National Urban League's new report, the state of Black America accuses the federal government of harming black in underserved communities with federal spending cuts and diversity, rollbacks.

The group says President Trump's agenda could put democracy and decades of civil rights progress at risk.

Joining us now with more is Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League Mayor.

I'm still going mayor has he worked for the mayor of New Orleans?

But I was a student there.

it's good to have you in the state for joining us So this this is an annual report.

And this year the plan had been to focus on the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Why the pivot?

We had to pivot because at the beginning of the Trump administration, became apparent.

>> That there was a determination to roll back the progress of the last 70 years.

Brown versus Board of Education and the Civil Rights era changed America profile.

It changed America African-Americans for women, for Latinos, for Asian-Americans, it changed America profoundly and it was clear and the first several days of the 47th president's administration that he was determined to roll back that progress through executive orders.

Case in point the attack on diversity, equity and inclusion is an attack on the Civil Rights Act and the way in which we enforce it and the way in which we follow it and therefore, you saw something interesting in March, you saw a record number of African-American women laid off from their jobs in last month.

You saw Africa, the African American unemployment rate tick up while the unemployment rate for white Americans take down troubling warning signs of the impact and the effect of these policies on on Black America.

I think it's so important to understand why this also undercuts American democracy.

We value the process of selecting elected officials to the voting process.

When you seek to suppress when you seek to undermine the process, it indeed anti Democratic.

So resigning early warning signal on these policies.

And I I would add to that the big ugly bill.

That's what I call it.

He's going to strip away health care, education, support for libraries, support for veterans across the board and the impact of that may not be felt today, but it's going to be felt in the fall in the spring and in the years to come talk about those policies.

Your report, you make the case for how you believe what were once you know?

All right.

Ideas they go from being fringe to being policy.

>> How does that work?

Well.

>> Many of these far-right ideas like the excessive use of executive.

Power to change policy and ignoring the role of the Congress in changing the laws is an idea that is sort of circulated in the alternative right on the far right for years.

The idea that diversity, equity and inclusion is somehow a preference program has circulated in the far right for years.

Now its got a champion in the White House and these ideas extremely dangerous because it and the cut.

What I call the general consensus that has existed in this country for years that we have to make progress when it comes to including everyone and the economic future of America.

If we do not, we can't compete with China.

We do not.

We cannot compete with India.

>> You also write that the black community has been here before in efforts to make progress.

For example, after reconstruction say more.

We're strong.

>> After reconstruction, you saw the right to vote stripped away the right to own property, stripped away, use black elected officials wiped out on a wholesale basis in the 18 80's.

It will maybe.

25 23.

24 black members of Congress by 1900.

There were none for 30 years.

Hence there are no black members of Congress from 1931.

And so the 1960's and we're only 3 of 4 African-American members of Congress, even though African-Americans with 13, 14% of voters in the Aurora, Elle eligible eligible voters in the United States voter suppression.

Voter discrimination kept African-American, some participating in the political process and they having a meaningful chance to run for office.

The Voting Rights Act change that.

Now we see and south on the Voting Rights Act.

It's being you know, led by the Supreme Court.

The Shelby case, a number of other cases undermining this very important law.

So we have to sign a warning, some what I really want people also understand is we also embracing alternative vision.

You know, there's a vision of America that talks about white supremacy, a White Christian ideology, our vision for America is a multicultural, multiracial, American democracy.

And that is what is at the heart of this battle competing visions for what the future of this country ought to be about.

>> What do you say to those people who might be disillusioned by the Democratic Party right now, especially in the way that they are responding think there's a lot of legitimacy and that I think people want from the Democratic Party that's going to be a legitimate opposition.

>> For us to be more assertive to me to be more aggressive, to be forthright.

You know, I don't represent any party even though I'm a registered Democrat.

I represent the interest of civil rights and economic opportunity in this country.

That's what we're all about.

We approach the entire public policy space se.

We have no permanent friends.

We have no permanent enemies.

We simply a permanent interest.

>> The report calls for a, quote, new resistance.

What does that look like?

And how is how is it different?

Got operate on every single front.

So there's been 250 to 300 lawsuits filed.

They've been many, many, many mass protests in the streets and these mass protests have not been cover that widely by the mainstream media.

But if you follow them online, people mobilizing all across the nation.

And then as the 2026 election cycle, which I think is going to be very important, which is going to put these policies on the ballot.

So I and now the people is to begin getting registered to begin preparing we have to get ready because we're going to need to vote in record numbers.

Those that do not support these policies have to make their voice heard at the ballot box in the streets online and also in the court that said, there are those who do support the policies of the current administration.

They're getting plenty of folks will read your report, agree with it.

But there are a lot of folks who will never read it.

And if they did, they would not have agreed with what you calling for.

A from the from the Urban League.

>> How do you reach out to those folks?

How do you bridge the divide?

I think that within the Republican.

within the conservative movement, there's silent number of people.

>> Who do agree?

With most of what we say.

And that's because there was a long-term consensus.

Look, George W Bush, a Republican president signed Voting Rights Act extension.

2000 and 6, Ronald Reagan signed Voting Rights Act.

Extension in 1982.

And I'm not going to say they will aggressive champions voting rights.

But what I will say is that there was a consensus in this country around civil rights that after 400 years of slavery and segregation, 40 years, a slave in another 100 years of segregation, that somehow 400 years a slave integration.

He was important for the nation to move in another direction when it comes to its communities of color and their treatment and their in the family's quotient that America believes in.

So I just believe that there's there's a silent.

group of people, even Republican ally who do is support this.

But he's with the polling show.

The polling shows that the majority, American people support diversity, equity and inclusion when they clearly understand it is equal opportunity.

They supported by large numbers.

If you ask people, do you believe that America's institutions as corporations, universities need to do a better job for its employees and its leadership to look like America.

The answer is yes.

So we feel and I feel strongly that while loud voices maybe against us public opinion is in our favor.

10 seconds left.

What gives you hope?

Young people.

The energy, the animation, the spirit of the young.

And thing that always gives me hope is the wisdom of the elders.

>> All right.

from from one another use to be in and he could.

were both so young people are saying we're