07-07-2016, 07:31 PM
In the wake of a police shooting in a quiet upscale St. Paul suburb that rapidly rippled across the nation, Minnesota governor Mark Dayton said in no uncertain terms on Thursday afternoon that Philando Castile, ended up dead — at least in part — because he was black.
“Would this have happened if those passengers, the driver and the passengers, were white?” said Dayton. “I don’t think it would have. So I’m forced to confront, and I think all of us in Minnesota are forced to confront, that this kind of racism exists.”
I thought Obama's public comments on this one were appropriate as well. He essentially said that acknowledging that there is a bias (underlying or direct) in how some officers handle people of color vs. white people, which Obama supported with stats, does not equate to saying that blue lives don't matter.
“Would this have happened if those passengers, the driver and the passengers, were white?” said Dayton. “I don’t think it would have. So I’m forced to confront, and I think all of us in Minnesota are forced to confront, that this kind of racism exists.”
I thought Obama's public comments on this one were appropriate as well. He essentially said that acknowledging that there is a bias (underlying or direct) in how some officers handle people of color vs. white people, which Obama supported with stats, does not equate to saying that blue lives don't matter.