Obama vows to fight for young men of color beyond presidency

NEW YORK – With only about a year and a half left in his presidency, President Barack Obama’s post-White House plan is taking shape.

One of his plans is to initiate a non-profit foundation spin-off of “My Brother’s Keeper” – a program created following the controversial death of Florida teen Trayvon Martin.

During a speech at Lehman College in New York, the president addressed the importance of the initiative.

“Black boys and black men, Latino boys, Latino men, they experience being treated differently by law enforcement, in stops and in arrests and in charges and in incarcerations. The statistics are clear up and down the criminal justice system. There’s no dispute.” he said.

Over a year ago, Obama launched the initiative to address the opportunity gaps in the US with this goal: To improve and increase positive options for young minority men.

The president said, “It’s an idea that we pursued in the wake of Trayvon Martin’s death because we wanted the message sent from the White House in a sustained way — that his life mattered, that the lives of the young men who are here today matter.”

Obama addressed the policing issues in Baltimore, Ferguson and New York.

“That sense of unfairness and of powerlessness, of people not hearing their voices, that’s helped fuel some of the protests that we’ve seen in places like Baltimore and Ferguson and right here in New York. The catalysts of those protests were the tragic deaths of young men and a feeling that law is not always applied evenly in this country,” Obama said.

At the same time, Obama also honored the heroism of a Brian Moore, a New York police officer shot while on duty over the weekend.

“New York’s finest lost one of its own today. Officer Brian Moore, who was shot in the line of dutyon Saturdaynight, passed away earlier today. He came from a family of police officers. And the family of fellow officers he joined in the NYPD and across the country deserve our gratitude and our prayers, not just today but every day. They’ve got a tough job.” he said.

Obama promises to keep working on these issues, while in the White house and beyond. He says that it will remain his mission, not just for the rest of his presidency, but for the rest of his life.

You may contact Don Tagala at don_tagala@abs-cbn for more information.