President Obama On Fatal Police Shootings: “These Are Not Isolated Incidents”

President Obama spoke out about the police shootings that left two Black men dead earlier this week, saying these were not "isolated incidents. As ABC News reported, the president, who is in Warsaw attending his last NATO summit, instead said that the deaths of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota were "symptomatic of a of a broader set of racial disparities." Obama went on to say that "all of us as Americans should be troubled by these shootings," because "we have seen tragedies like this too many times." Castile's death marked the 123rd time a Black person has been shot and killed by the police in 2016.

The president could not give specific details of either incident, both of which were caught on video and are now being investigated by the Department of Justice. He did, however, provide statistics that he felt would explain the outrage many across the country are feeling including that Black people were shot at "more than twice the rate of whites." “When people say black lives matter, it doesn’t mean blue lives don’t matter,” the president said, adding that “to be for these issues is not to be against law enforcement." But, he does say these shootings are “about us recognizing there is a particular burden placed on a group of our citizens.” "This is not just a black issue," he said. "This is not just a Hispanic issue, this is an American issue that we should all care about." This message was one the president similarly expressed on Facebook, writing that this is a time for everyone, no matter what color their skin or their political affiliation, to come together. "Let's come together as a nation," Obama wrote on Facebook. "And keep faith with one another, in order to ensure a future where all of our children know that their lives matter."

Obama is not the only one speaking out about the shootings. Drake posted an emotional open letter reacting to the death of Sterling, writing that "No one begins their life as a hashtag. Yet the trend of being reduced to one continues." Beyoncé also posted a note to her website that urged everyone to stand up against police brutality.