Monday, December 1, 2014

Obama to meet with civil rights leaders after Ferguson - BBC News

Members of the St Louis Rams football team raised their hands in protest of events in nearby Ferguson





US President Barack Obama is holding a series of meetings at the White House to discuss "mistrust" between police and ethnic minorities.





Issues raised by protests in Ferguson, Missouri, will be discussed with civil rights leaders, police and politicians.





The Midwest town was rocked by riots last week after a grand jury failed to charge a white police officer in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man.





Protests spread across the US over perceived policing injustices.





The officer at the centre of the storm, Darren Wilson, resigned from the force over the weekend.





The White House said the president will meet with civil rights leaders to discuss "mistrust between law enforcement and communities of colour".





He will also speak to law enforcement and government officials to determine how to strengthen neighbourhoods.











Ferguson day at the White House


  • Obama discussing with his Cabinet the federal programmes that provide military-style equipment to police

  • young civil rights leaders talking over "mistrust" of police with Obama

  • government, law enforcement officials and community leaders discuss with the president how to strengthen neighbourhoods






Meanwhile, police officers in the Missouri city of St Louis have called for black members of a professional US football team to be disciplined following a public demonstration on Sunday.





The members of the St Louis Rams team stood with their hands raised - in perceived solidarity with shooting victim Michael Brown - prior to a game.





One day earlier, the officer who shot Brown announced his plans to leave the police force to avoid putting his colleagues at risk.





Mr Wilson, 28, had been on administrative leave since the 9 August shooting in St Louis suburb.







Protests sprung up in Missouri following a grand jury decision not to indict a police officer





The decision not to charge Mr Wilson days earlier triggered a nationwide debate over relations between black communities and law enforcement.





Ferguson's Mayor James Knowles later said that Mr Wilson had resigned without receiving any severance payments.





Last week, Mr Wilson told US media that before the shooting, Brown had pushed him into his police car, hit him and grabbed at his drawn gun, and he said that he felt "like a five-year-old holding on to [US wrestler] Hulk Hogan".





The policeman said he had feared for his life.





Brown's supporters said the teenager was attempting to surrender when he was shot. Some witnesses said the 18-year-old, who was unarmed, had his hands up.







An undated family snapshot of Michael Brown





Many in the African-American community had called for Mr Wilson to be charged with murder, but after three months of deliberation a Missouri grand jury - of nine white and three black members - made no recommendation of charges.





The family of Mr Brown have said they felt "crushed" by the decision.





The state prosecutor said physical evidence had contradicted some of the witness statements.





The decision means Mr Wilson will not face state criminal charges over the shooting. However, the US justice department has launched a federal investigation into whether Mr Wilson violated Brown's civil rights.











The scene of the shooting








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