WATCH:

President Obama:

" Trayvon Martin Could Have

Been Me 35 Years Ago"

 

 

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Washington (CNN) -- In unscheduled and unusually personal remarks, President Barack Obama tried Friday to explain why African-Americans were upset about last week's acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin while lowering expectations for federal charges in the case. "Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago," Obama told White House reporters in a surprise appearance at the daily briefing.

His remarks, which lasted about 20 minutes, escalated a nationwide debate on the verdict that has prompted protests, including some that turned violent. A Florida jury acquitted Zimmerman last Saturday in Martin's February 26, 2012, shooting death, inciting anger among many who considered the incident racially motivated murder. Obama issued a written statement on Sunday, noting that the jury had spoken and urging calm and reflection.

Despite some calls for him to speak about the case, the nation's first African-American president had made no further public comment until Friday. Speaking without a teleprompter, Obama noted a history of racial disparity in law as well as more nuanced social prejudice that contribute to "a lot of pain" in the African-American community over the verdict. "There are very few African-American men in this country who have not had the experience of being followed when they are shopping at a department store. That includes me," the president said. "There are probably very few African-American men who have not had the experience of walking across the street and hearing the locks click on the doors of cars. That happens to me - at least before I was a senator," he continued. Read the full transcript of President Obama's remarks "There are very few African-Americans who have not had the experience of getting on an elevator and a woman clutching her purse nervously and holding her breath until she had the chance to get off. That happens often," he said.

Saying he didn't intend to exaggerate those experiences, Obama added that they "inform how the African-American community interprets what happened one night in Florida." "The African-American community is also knowledgeable that there is a history of racial disparities in the application of our criminal laws, everything from the death penalty to enforcement of our drug laws," he said. "And that ends up having an impact in terms of how people interpret the case." African-Americans feel the context of the Martin killing is little known or denied, "and that all contributes, I think, to a sense that if a white male teen was involved in the same kind of scenario that, from top to bottom, both the outcome and the aftermath might have been different," Obama said. (read rest of article)

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WATCH:
President's Powerful Comments
on Trayvon Martin case:


" IF I HAD A SON,
HE'D LOOK LIKE TRAYVON "

WATCH:

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- For the first time since the controversy erupted on the national scene, President Barack Obama weighed in on the killing of Trayvon Martin, calling it a tragedy, urging cooperation among law enforcement and declaring that "some soul searching" was needed throughout the country.

"If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon," Obama said, underscoring how the issue affected him on a personal, and not just a political or legal, level. "I think [Trayvon's parents] are right to expect that all of us as Americans are going to take this with the seriousness it deserves, and we are going to get to the bottom of exactly what happened."

The statement by Obama came after he introduced Dartmouth President Jim Kim to be the next head of the World Bank during an appearance in the Rose Garden. He took only one question before heading back into the West Wing -- signaling that both he and his press handlers were feeling pressure, coming from black activists and others, to make a public comment on the Martin case.

Obama was careful not to get too far ahead of events. He said he was wary of "impairing" an ongoing legal process but praised the fact that federal, state and local law enforcement are now working together on Martin's death.

"Obviously, this is a tragedy," he said. "I can only imagine what these parents are going through, and when I think about this, I think about my own kids, and I think every parent in America should be able to understand why it is absolutely imperative that we investigate every aspect of this and everybody aspect of this, and that everybody pulls together -- federal, state and local -- to figure out exactly how this tragedy happened."

He went on.

"I think all of us have to do some soul searching to figure out how does something like this happen," said Obama. "And that means we examine the laws and the context for what happened, as well as the specifics of the incident."

The latter point may, in the end, be the most politically consequential. George Zimmerman, the man who shot Martin in late February, has avoided arrest by evoking the Stand Your Ground law in Florida, which allows individuals broad latitude to claim self defense in wielding a firearm. Florida is one of 21 states with such laws, which have since come under intense scrutiny even by previous supports. Prior to that law being passed in Florida there were 13 "justified" killings in the state each year. Since then, there have been 36.

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