President Obama last week at the White House.Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times
President Obama on Friday said that he thought the pattern of racial discrimination described in a report by the Justice Department about the Ferguson Police Department was not an isolated example.
“I don’t think that is typical of what happens across the country, but it’s not an isolated incident,” Mr. Obama said on the Joe Madison show on Sirius XM.
The Ferguson report found a pattern of discrimination against African-Americans and what Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. called “a highly toxic environment, defined by mistrust and resentment, stoked by years of bad feelings, and spurred by illegal and misguided practices.â€
In the interview, taped on Thursday afternoon, Mr. Obama said that he believed that the government and communities needed to confront similar instances of problems between African-Americans and law enforcement agencies.
“I think there are circumstances in which trust between communities and law enforcement have broken down, and individuals or entire departments may not have the training or the accountability to make sure that they are protecting and serving all people and not just some,” he said.
The president’s comments were his first since the release of the report. They were broadcast as Mr. Obama prepared to head to Alabama on Saturday to mark the 50th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday civil rights march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge.
In the radio interview, Mr. Obama said that much progress had been made since that day. But he said that the situation in Ferguson and in other communities showed that more still needed to be done.
“The generation that has followed that civil rights generation has in many ways made great strides,” Mr. Obama said. But he added, “There continue to be challenges that require not just individuals living well and raising great kids, but requires collective action and mobilization.”
First Draft provides fast-paced and comprehensive coverage of politics and elections by The New York Times. Come back throughout the day for the latest news and analysis, and be part of the political conversation.
Like it? Hate it? Have a tip for us? Send any and all feedback to firstdraft@nytimes.com.
We send out a newsletter around 7 a.m. eastern time each weekday that serves as a look-ahead to the day's political events and expected stories.
Sign Up
Source: Top Stories - Google News - http://ift.tt/1A46TzQ
0 comments:
Post a Comment