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| Obama calls for peace at Dallas memorial service for five police officers | Obama calls for peace at Dallas memorial service for five police officers |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Barack Obama on Tuesday paid tribute to the five officers killed in Dallas last week, as he insisted that racial discrimination still existed in the US and protesters against police violence could not be dismissed as “troublemakers or paranoid”. | Barack Obama on Tuesday paid tribute to the five officers killed in Dallas last week, as he insisted that racial discrimination still existed in the US and protesters against police violence could not be dismissed as “troublemakers or paranoid”. |
| Angry citizens, for their part, must acknowledge the dangers police face on the job, the president said at an interfaith memorial service for Michael Smith, Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Patrick Zamarripa and Brent Thompson, the officers killed by Micah Johnson at a rally against police violence on Thursday night. | Angry citizens, for their part, must acknowledge the dangers police face on the job, the president said at an interfaith memorial service for Michael Smith, Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Patrick Zamarripa and Brent Thompson, the officers killed by Micah Johnson at a rally against police violence on Thursday night. |
| Obama called for action to stop the conflict between police and protesters and black and white, admitting previous approaches, including his own, are failing. | Obama called for action to stop the conflict between police and protesters and black and white, admitting previous approaches, including his own, are failing. |
| “I’m not naive. I have spoken at too many memorials in the course of this presidency,” Obama said. “I’ve seen how inadequate words can be at bringing about lasting change. I see the inadequacy of my own words.” | “I’m not naive. I have spoken at too many memorials in the course of this presidency,” Obama said. “I’ve seen how inadequate words can be at bringing about lasting change. I see the inadequacy of my own words.” |
| He added: “I understand how Americans are feeling. But, Dallas, I’m here to say we must reject such despair. I’m here to insist that we are not as divided as we seem.” | |
| Speeches following a mass shooting have become, in some ways, the hallmark of Obama’s presidency. A month ago he spoke in Orlando, Florida, following the massacre of 49 club-goers there. Last year, after a gunman shot nine people dead in a church in Charleston, South Carolina, the president sang Amazing Grace. Following the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting he told the nation: “We’re going to have to come together.” | Speeches following a mass shooting have become, in some ways, the hallmark of Obama’s presidency. A month ago he spoke in Orlando, Florida, following the massacre of 49 club-goers there. Last year, after a gunman shot nine people dead in a church in Charleston, South Carolina, the president sang Amazing Grace. Following the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting he told the nation: “We’re going to have to come together.” |
| The president faced a doubly difficult task in Dallas, however, as he navigated two intersecting social fault lines: gun violence in America, and the rising confrontation between police and the people they are meant to protect, particularly African Americans. | The president faced a doubly difficult task in Dallas, however, as he navigated two intersecting social fault lines: gun violence in America, and the rising confrontation between police and the people they are meant to protect, particularly African Americans. |
| Those problems, alongside drug addiction and mental illness, are beyond the capabilities of police, he said. He | Those problems, alongside drug addiction and mental illness, are beyond the capabilities of police, he said. He |
| drew a long and loud round of applause when he agreed with a sentiment expressed previously by Dallas police chief David Brown: “We ask police to do too much,” Obama said, “and we ask too little of ourselves.” | drew a long and loud round of applause when he agreed with a sentiment expressed previously by Dallas police chief David Brown: “We ask police to do too much,” Obama said, “and we ask too little of ourselves.” |
| The foe, he said, was not people who held opposing views or attended protests. But rather, “business as usual. Inertia. Old habits. Expediency.” | The foe, he said, was not people who held opposing views or attended protests. But rather, “business as usual. Inertia. Old habits. Expediency.” |
| Those tendencies, he said, lead to “oversimplification that reduces whole categories of our fellow Americans not just to opponents but to enemies.” | Those tendencies, he said, lead to “oversimplification that reduces whole categories of our fellow Americans not just to opponents but to enemies.” |
| The oversimplification cut both ways, he said. Police must acknowledge that every institution, include police departments, is vulnerable to racism and bigotry. At the same time, he said, people on the other side of the argument must recognize the nature of policing dangerous neighborhoods where officers are required to make instant decisions. | The oversimplification cut both ways, he said. Police must acknowledge that every institution, include police departments, is vulnerable to racism and bigotry. At the same time, he said, people on the other side of the argument must recognize the nature of policing dangerous neighborhoods where officers are required to make instant decisions. |
| “We know there is evil in his world,” he said. “It’s why we need police departments.” | “We know there is evil in his world,” he said. “It’s why we need police departments.” |
| But centuries of subjugation, of slavery, of Jim Crow segregation, did not stop in the 1960s, he said. “Race relations have improved dramatically in my lifetime,” he said. “Those who deny it are dishonoring the struggle. But, America, we know that bias remains. We know it … We have all seen this bigotry in our own lives at some time … If we’re honest perhaps we’ve heard prejudice in our own heads or felt it in our own hearts. We know that.” | But centuries of subjugation, of slavery, of Jim Crow segregation, did not stop in the 1960s, he said. “Race relations have improved dramatically in my lifetime,” he said. “Those who deny it are dishonoring the struggle. But, America, we know that bias remains. We know it … We have all seen this bigotry in our own lives at some time … If we’re honest perhaps we’ve heard prejudice in our own heads or felt it in our own hearts. We know that.” |
| And some feel to a far greater extent “discrimination’s sting”, he said. “No institution is entirely immune. And that includes our police department. We know this.” | And some feel to a far greater extent “discrimination’s sting”, he said. “No institution is entirely immune. And that includes our police department. We know this.” |
| He added: “Study after study shows that whites and people of color experience the criminal justice system differently.” | He added: “Study after study shows that whites and people of color experience the criminal justice system differently.” |
| Dismissing those who point that out as “a symptom of political correctness or reverse racism” – “it hurts ... Surely we can see that – all of us.” | Dismissing those who point that out as “a symptom of political correctness or reverse racism” – “it hurts ... Surely we can see that – all of us.” |
| “Even those who dislike the phrase Black Lives Matter, surely we should be able to hear the pain of Alton Sterling’s family,” Obama said, or appreciate that Philando Castile’s life “mattered to people of all races, of all ages”. He was referring to two black men shot dead by police last week in Louisiana and Minnesota. On board Air Force One en route to Dallas on Tuesday, the president phoned relatives of the two men. | “Even those who dislike the phrase Black Lives Matter, surely we should be able to hear the pain of Alton Sterling’s family,” Obama said, or appreciate that Philando Castile’s life “mattered to people of all races, of all ages”. He was referring to two black men shot dead by police last week in Louisiana and Minnesota. On board Air Force One en route to Dallas on Tuesday, the president phoned relatives of the two men. |
| He called on listeners to worry less about which side they were on and “more about joining sides to do right”. | He called on listeners to worry less about which side they were on and “more about joining sides to do right”. |
| The president also paid tribute to each of the dead officers, sketching out personal details about each one. | The president also paid tribute to each of the dead officers, sketching out personal details about each one. |
| Ahrens “bought dinner for a homeless man” the night before he died. Krol “came a thousand miles from his home state in Michigan to be a cop in Dallas”. Smith was a churchgoer who played softball with his two girls. Zamarripa had “dreamed of being a cop” and liked to post photos with kids on social media. Thompson was married two weeks ago, his and his wife’s “whole life together waiting before them”. | Ahrens “bought dinner for a homeless man” the night before he died. Krol “came a thousand miles from his home state in Michigan to be a cop in Dallas”. Smith was a churchgoer who played softball with his two girls. Zamarripa had “dreamed of being a cop” and liked to post photos with kids on social media. Thompson was married two weeks ago, his and his wife’s “whole life together waiting before them”. |
| “Like police officers across the country, these men and their families shared a commitment to something larger than themselves,” the president said. | “Like police officers across the country, these men and their families shared a commitment to something larger than themselves,” the president said. |
| When anyone thinks “all police are biased or bigoted, they undermine those people who are acting for our safety”, he said. And those calling for violence against the police “do a disservice to the cause of justice they claim to promote”. | When anyone thinks “all police are biased or bigoted, they undermine those people who are acting for our safety”, he said. And those calling for violence against the police “do a disservice to the cause of justice they claim to promote”. |
| He praised Dallas PD as a department that had been at the forefront of improving relations between police and the community, and said that in the aftermath of the shooting, Mayor Mike Rawlings and police chief Brown, “a white man and a black man, with different backgrounds, working not just to restore order … but working together to unify the city, with strength and grace and wisdom”. | He praised Dallas PD as a department that had been at the forefront of improving relations between police and the community, and said that in the aftermath of the shooting, Mayor Mike Rawlings and police chief Brown, “a white man and a black man, with different backgrounds, working not just to restore order … but working together to unify the city, with strength and grace and wisdom”. |
| Earlier, Brown was cheered and given a standing ovation as he recalled how as a teenager he would try to communicate with girls using Stevie Wonder lyrics, and then recited the lyrics of Wonder’s 1977 hit As, telling the mourners: “I’ll be loving you until the rainbow burns the stars out in the sky … I’ll be loving you always.” | Earlier, Brown was cheered and given a standing ovation as he recalled how as a teenager he would try to communicate with girls using Stevie Wonder lyrics, and then recited the lyrics of Wonder’s 1977 hit As, telling the mourners: “I’ll be loving you until the rainbow burns the stars out in the sky … I’ll be loving you always.” |
| “Chief Brown, I’m so glad I met Michelle first, because she loves Stevie Wonder,” responded Obama to laughter and applause as he took the lectern. | “Chief Brown, I’m so glad I met Michelle first, because she loves Stevie Wonder,” responded Obama to laughter and applause as he took the lectern. |
| Former president George W Bush, who lives in Dallas, struck a note of conciliation and hope in his speech, and offered a word of admiration for law enforcement. | Former president George W Bush, who lives in Dallas, struck a note of conciliation and hope in his speech, and offered a word of admiration for law enforcement. |
| “Their courage is our protection,” he said. The police of Dallas, he said, have been “mighty inspirational to the rest of the nation”. | “Their courage is our protection,” he said. The police of Dallas, he said, have been “mighty inspirational to the rest of the nation”. |
| Several times Bush compared Dallas and Texas to one enormous family. “Most of us imagine that if it were called for we would risk our lives for a spouse or child,” he said. The difference for police officers, he said, is that they risk their lives for strangers. | Several times Bush compared Dallas and Texas to one enormous family. “Most of us imagine that if it were called for we would risk our lives for a spouse or child,” he said. The difference for police officers, he said, is that they risk their lives for strangers. |
| Bush called for more public unity, decrying the state of conflict between activists and police, right and left, black and white. “Argument turns too quickly into animosity,” he said. | Bush called for more public unity, decrying the state of conflict between activists and police, right and left, black and white. “Argument turns too quickly into animosity,” he said. |
| The crowd got to its feet and applauded when he said, “We judge others by their worst examples, while judging ourselves by our best intentions.” | The crowd got to its feet and applauded when he said, “We judge others by their worst examples, while judging ourselves by our best intentions.” |
| First lady Michelle Obama, former first lady Laura Bush, vice-president Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden all also attended the memorial. | First lady Michelle Obama, former first lady Laura Bush, vice-president Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden all also attended the memorial. |
| Obama will also meet the families of the policemen and others who were wounded, the White House said. And on Wednesday he will host a meeting with law enforcement officials, activists and civil rights leaders to discuss ways to repair “the bonds of trust” between communities and police. | Obama will also meet the families of the policemen and others who were wounded, the White House said. And on Wednesday he will host a meeting with law enforcement officials, activists and civil rights leaders to discuss ways to repair “the bonds of trust” between communities and police. |
| The memorial will be one of a series throughout the week in Dallas. Before Obama’s arrival, the citizens of Dallas turned out in their thousands on Monday night to pay tribute to the five dead officers. | The memorial will be one of a series throughout the week in Dallas. Before Obama’s arrival, the citizens of Dallas turned out in their thousands on Monday night to pay tribute to the five dead officers. |
| Obama told senior law enforcement officials on Monday that he saw the Dallas shooting as a hate crime, or one motivated by bias, said Jim Pasco, executive director of the National Fraternal Order of Police, who was in the closed-door meeting at the White House. | Obama told senior law enforcement officials on Monday that he saw the Dallas shooting as a hate crime, or one motivated by bias, said Jim Pasco, executive director of the National Fraternal Order of Police, who was in the closed-door meeting at the White House. |
| Pasco said Obama drew parallels between the actions of the Dallas shooter and the Charleston killings, which prosecutors have said were perpetrated by a man who espoused white supremacist beliefs, Dylann Roof. Johnson, who was black, said that he wanted to “kill white people”, particularly police, according to a police account of their unsuccessful negotiations with him. | Pasco said Obama drew parallels between the actions of the Dallas shooter and the Charleston killings, which prosecutors have said were perpetrated by a man who espoused white supremacist beliefs, Dylann Roof. Johnson, who was black, said that he wanted to “kill white people”, particularly police, according to a police account of their unsuccessful negotiations with him. |
| White House officials on Tuesday did not dispute Pasco’s account of the meeting. | White House officials on Tuesday did not dispute Pasco’s account of the meeting. |
| Reuters contributed to this report | Reuters contributed to this report |