President Obama does not regard the Trayvon Martin shooting as “a race issue,” according to a senior White House adviser, contrary to the analysis offered by Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and the New Black Panthers, among others.
“Does the president consider this a race issue?” Chris Wallace asked senior adviser to the president David Plouffe on Fox News Sunday this morning.
“No,” Plouffe answered. “He spoke I think very powerfully about this as a parent.” When Wallace asked if Obama believes “race had anything to do with Trayvon Martin being killed,” Plouffe added that “no matter the gender or race, this is a tragedy anytime when a young promising person was taken from us. And we ought to make sure there’s a thorough investigation.”
Obama took a question about the investigation into Trayvon Martin’s death on Friday. “If I had a son he would have looked like Treyvon,” the president told reporters. “I think they are right to expect that all of us as Americans are going to take this with the seriousness that this deserves and that we’re going to get to the bottom of exactly what happened.”
Jesse Jackson took a different tack, arguing that “blacks are under attack” in America, while The Washington Post said that the shooting “stirs memories of the civil rights era.” The New Black Panther Party has offered a $10,000 bounty for George Zimmerman, the reported shooter in Martin’ death.
