Excerpts from President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address on Tyre Nichols.
Public safety depends on public trust, but too often that trust is violated.
As many of you personally know, there are no words to describe the heartache of losing a child. But imagine, imagine if you lost that child at the hands of the law.
Imagine having to worry whether your son or daughter came home from walking down the street, playing in a park, or just driving a car. Most of us here have never had to have the talk. The talk, that brown and black parents have had to have with their children.
I never had to have a talk with my children. I never had to tell them, if a police officer pulls you over, turn your interior lights on right away. Don’t reach for your license. Keep your hands on the steering wheel. Imagine having to worry like that every single time your kid got in a car.
Here’s what Tyre’s mother shared with me when I spoke to her. When I asked her how she finds the courage to carry on and speak out. She said her son was, “A beautiful soul. And something good will come of this.”
Imagine how much courage and character that takes. It’s up to us. To all of us. We all want the same thing. Neighborhoods free of violence. Law enforcement who earns the community’s trust. Just as every cop when they pin on that badge in the morning has a right to be able to go home at night. So does everybody else out there.
Our children have a right to come home safely.
Equal protection under the law is a covenant we have with each other in America.
Here’s all of President Biden’s State of the Union Address on February 7th, 2023.