President Barack Obama speaks during a town-hall meeting about the importance of community involvement on March 6, 2015, at Benedict College in Columbia, S.C.Rainier Ehrhardt—AP
President Obama seemed to affirm both sides of the divisive debate over the shooting last year of an unarmed black teen by a police officer in Ferguson, Mo.
At a town hall-style appearance at Benedict College, a historically black college in Columbia, S.C., Obama said the Department of Justice was right to not bring federal charges against former office Darren Wilson in the killing of Michael Brown, noting that it conducted an “objective, thorough, independent” investigation.
“You can’t just charge anybody because what happened was tragic,” Obama said.
In the same breath, though, Obama said another report from the Department of Justice this week that showed there was systematic racial bias within Ferguson Police Department affirmed what those who protested Brown’s death and the subsequent decision not to bring charges had been saying all along.
“I don’t think what happened in Ferguson was typical,” Obama said Friday. “But, what happened in Ferguson is not a complete aberration.”
Obama called the situation in Ferguson, where officers used traffic stops to generate revenue and targeted African American residents for stops, searches, and fines, “oppressive and abusive.” He also noted the release of a recent report by a task force set up in response to Ferguson and a handful of other high-profile killings of black men by police officers. The President said that report includes specific ways to help restore trust in law enforcement within communities.
“Our goal should be to stop circumstances like Ferguson from happening again,” Obama said.
Obama’s appearance in Columbia comes just one day before he travels to Selma to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the events on Bloody Sunday, when peaceful protestors were attacked by state and local police officers in Alabama while marching for voting rights. At a commemorative event on Saturday, the president is expected to talk about the events in Ferguson and the effect younger generations can have on making change.
Witness Tension Between Police and Protestors in Ferguson, Mo.
A man backs away as law enforcement officials close in on him and eventually detain him during protests over the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager killed by a police officer, in Ferguson, Mo., Aug. 11, 2014. Whitney Curtis—The New York Times/ReduxRiot police force protestors from the business district into nearby neighborhoods in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 11, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesA child uses a rag to shield his face from tear gas fired by riot police, who used it to force protestors from the business district into nearby neighborhoods in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 11, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesPolice officers keep watch from an armored vehicle as they patrol a street in Ferguson, Mo., on Aug. 11, 2014Mario Anzuoni—ReutersPolice officers ride an armored vehicle as they patrol a street in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 11, 2014.Mario Anzuoni—ReutersA demonstrator raises his hands in front of of a police officer in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 11, 2014.Mario Anzuoni—ReutersRiot police lock down a neighborhood in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 11, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesPeople raise their hands in the middle of the street as riot police move toward their position trying to get them to disperse, in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 11, 2014.Jeff Roberson—APDemonstrators raise their hands and chant "hands up, don't shoot" during a protest over the killing of Michael Brown on in Clayton, Mo. on August 12, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesCivil rights leader Rev. Al Sharpton speaks about the killing of teenager Michael Brown at a press conference held on the steps of the old courthouse in St. Louis on Aug. 12, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesPolice take up position to control demonstrators who were protesting the killing of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 12, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesDemonstrators protest the killing of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on August 12, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesDemonstrators protest the killing of teenager Michael Brown outside Greater St. Marks Family Church in St. Louis on Aug. 12, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesPolice stand watch as demonstrators protest the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 13, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesA demonstrator throws back a tear gas container after tactical officers worked to break up a group of bystanders on Chambers Road near West Florissant in Ferguson on Aug. 13, 2014. Robert Cohen—St. Louis Post-Dispatch/MCT/Zuma PressPolice officers work their way north on West Florissant Avenue clearing the road of people in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 13, 2014. Robert Cohen—St. Louis Post-Dispatch/APDemonstrators protest the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 13, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesPeople run through smoke in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 13, 2014.Jeff Roberson—APA protester takes shelter from smoke billowing around him in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 13, 2014.David Carson—St. Louis Post-Dispatch/APAn explosive device deployed by police flies in the air as police and protesters clash in Ferguson, Mo., on Aug. 13, 2014Jeff Roberson—APThousands of demonstrators peacefully march to the spot where Michael Brown was shot and killed by police in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 14, 2014. Jeff Roberson—APDemetrus Washington joins other demonstrators protesting the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 14, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesDemonstrators protest outside of Greater St. Marks Family Church in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 14, 2014. Lucas Jackson—ReutersProtesters light candles as they take part in a peaceful demonstration in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 14, 2014. Lucas Jackson—ReutersMissouri State Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson (L) speaks to protesters as he walks through a peaceful demonstration as communities continue to react to the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 14, 2014. Lucas Jackson—ReutersA young child looks out from a car as demonstrators drive down West Florissant Avenue protesting the shooting and death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 15, 2014.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesA demonstrator walks through smoke launched by police after a skirmish in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 15, 2014Scott Olson—Getty ImagesA demonstrator protests on Florissant Ave in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 16, 2014. Jon Lowenstein—NOOR for TIMEChildren walk past police officers during a demonstration in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 16, 2014. Jon Lowenstein—Noor for TIMEProtestors help a man who was injured by tear gas thrown by police after refusing to disperse after the midnight curfew in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 17, 2014. Jon Lowenstein—Noor for TIMEProtestors throw canisters
in Ferguson, Mo. on August 18, 2014.Jon Lowenstein—Noor for TIMEProtestors demonstrate against the killing of Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Mo. on August 17, 2014.Jon Lowenstein—NOOR for TIMEA protestor during demonstrations in Ferguson, Mo. on August 17, 2014.Jon Lowenstein—Noor for TIMEA protestor retaliates against police in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 17, 2014.Jon Lowenstein—Noor for TIMEA protestor throws a canister of tear gas back at police during demonstrations in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 17, 2014.Jon Lowenstein—Noor for TIMEPolice wait to advance after tear gas was used to dispersed a crowd in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 17, 2014.Charlie Riedel—APA protestor holds a sign that reads "stop killing us" amid clouds of tear gas in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 17, 2014.Jon Lowenstein—Noor for TIMEPolice wait to advance after tear gas was used to disperse a crowd in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 17, 2014.Charlie Riedel—APTear gas rains down on a woman kneeling in the street with her hands in the air during a demonstration in Ferguson on Aug. 17, 2014. The "hands up, don't shoot" pose became the defining gesture of the protests.Scott Olson—Getty ImagesProtesters attempt to treat a woman who was in a cloud of tear gas thrown by police in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 17, 2014. Lucas Jackson—ReutersDemonstrators march down West Florissant Ave. during a peaceful march in reaction to the shooting of Michael Brown near Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 18, 2014. Lucas Jackson—ReutersDemonstrators march down West Florissant during a peaceful march in reaction to the shooting of Michael Brown, near Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 18, 2014. Lucas Jackson—ReutersPolice tackle a man who was walking down the street in front of McDonald's in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 18, 2014.Laurie Skrivan—St. Louis Post-Dispatch/APLaw enforcement officers watch on during a protest on West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 18, 2014. Michael B. Thomas—AFP/Getty ImagesDemonstrators cover their faces as tear gas fills the air as police fire the gas against an unruly crowd protesting the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug.18, 2014Joe Raedle—Getty ImagesA protestor wearing a gas mask stands with his hands up while facing armed police in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 18, 2014. Abe Van Dyke—Demotix/CorbisPolice fire tear gas in the direction of where bottles were thrown from crowds gathered near the QuikTrip on W. Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 18, 2014. David Carson—St Louis Post-Dispatch/PolarisDemonstrators stand in the middle of West Florissant as they react to tear gas fired by police during ongoing protests in reaction to the shooting of teenager Michael Brown, near Ferguson, Missouri, August 18, 2014. Lucas Jackson—ReutersDemonstrators protest against the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. Aug. 19, 2014. Joshua Lott—ReutersA police officer in riot gear detains a demonstrator protesting against the shooting of Michael Brown, in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 19, 2014. Joshua Lott—ReutersPolice officers in riot gear watch demonstrators protesting against the shooting of Michael Brown from the side of a building in Ferguson, Mo. on Aug. 19, 2014. Joshua Lott—ReutersTwo protesters sit with their faces covered during a peaceful protest in Ferguson, Mo. early on Aug. 20, 2014. Michael B. Thomas—AFP/Getty ImagesA man is doused with milk and sprayed with mist after being hit by an eye irritant from security forces trying to disperse demonstrators in Ferguson, Mo. early on Aug. 20, 2014. Adrees Latif—ReutersIn this photo taken with a long exposure, protesters march in the street as lightning flashes in the distance in Ferguson, Mo., Aug. 20, 2014.Jeff Roberson—AP
