msnbc | The anger behind those protests is "rooted in
realities that have existed in this country for a long time," Obama
said. But "burning buildings, torching cars, destroying property and
putting people at risk — that's destructive, and there's no excuse for
it. Those are criminal acts."
Obama said it was
important to support people who were seeking to change the system
peacefully. To those protesters, he said: "I want all those folks to
know their president is going to work with them. And "a lot of folks, I
believe, in law enforcement and a lot of folks in city halls and in
governor's offices across the country want to work with you."
Saying it was work that
had to be done "city by city, state by state, county by county," Obama
said his administration would begin as early as next week to convene
"regional meetings" of community, faith and civic leaders to "identify
specific steps we can take to ensure law enforcment is fair and is being
applied equally to everyone in this country."
