Barack Obama admits there is 'more work to do' on race relations in US
President says US has 'more work to do' as grand jury decides not to indict white police officer
President Barack Obama has admitted the United States has "more work to do" on race relations as he appealed for calm after a Missouri grand jury decided not to indict a white police officer in the fatal shooting of a black teenager, a decision that sparked riots across the nation.
In a late-night appearance in the White House, Obama urged Americans to understand that much work remained to be done to improve relations between black Americans and police and called on communities to accept the jury's decision.
About a dozen buildings in Ferguson, Missouri, burned overnight and police fired tear gas at enraged protesters after the grand jury determined there was no probable cause to charge officer Darren Wilson in the shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown.
Obama said there were still many parts of the country where a deep distrust existed between urban blacks and mostly white police forces, and that steps must be taken to improve the situation, such as increasing the number of minorities in police ranks.
He warned that violence would not heal the rift, adding "That won't be done by throwing bottles. That won't be done by smashing car windows. That won't be done by using this as an excuse to vandalise property," he said. "It certainly won't be done by hurting anybody.
"Those who are only interested in violence and just want the problem to go away should realise that we have work to do here.
"Some of this is the result of racial discrimination in this country and this is tragic because nobody needs good policing more than poor communities with higher crime rates. The good news is we know there are things we can do to help," he added.