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STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama -- who once famously declared "there is not a black America and a white America" -- is again feeling his way through a volatile debate over race that offers fresh evidence of the nation's enduring divisions.

The first African-American president is confronting the delicate issues of justice and discrimination after renewed violence this week in Ferguson, Missouri, sparked by a grand jury's decision not to indict a white police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown, a black youth, this summer. These issues refuse to fade for Obama, despite hopes that his election would lead to a post-racial era.

On Tuesday night in his hometown of Chicago, Obama tried to master a balancing act that has become all too familiar during his nearly six years in the White House, reflecting on the African-American experience while standing by the legal system. He offered comfort to those angered by the grand jury's decision while identifying with the horror of looting and burning businesses in suburban St. Louis.

Complete coverage of what's happening in Ferguson

"If any part of the American community doesn't feel welcomed or treated fairly, that's something that puts all of us at risk," Obama said.

But he added that "nothing of benefit results from destructive acts. For those who think that what happened in Ferguson is an excuse for violence, I do not have any sympathy for that."

It was not quite the rhetoric of the transcendent political figure who spoke eloquently about race during his first campaign, nor was it the impassioned president who reacted so personally in the aftermath of Florida teenager Trayvon's Martin's death. Instead, Obama pledged to lead a national conversation on race and address the deep rooted belief in many communities of color "that our laws are not always being enforced uniformly."

Obama: 'No sympathy' for violence in Ferguson

Obama's remarks reflect his reluctance to take sides or cast judgment on the grand jury's decision and an attempt to avoid adding to the racial turmoil. But they also show his struggle to talk about race in a way that connects with all Americans.

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Obama's balancing act on race

Ever since a Missouri grand jury decided not to indict a white police officer who killed an unarmed black man, President Obama has been under pressure to use his bully pulpit to criticize the outcome and take the lead in a national conversation about race in America.

But on Monday, he met with law enforcement officers, young activists and politicians, and mostly avoided talking publicly about the case. Instead, he focused more broadly on the tensions between police and those theyre sworn to protect, proposing a three-year, $263-million spending package to expand training and increase the use of body-worn cameras for monitoring officers interactions with the public.

Ferguson laid bare a problem that is not unique to St. Louis or that area, and is not unique to our time, and that is a simmering distrust that exists between too many police departments and too many communities of color, Obama said.

His comments came amid a debate among White House officials about whether the president should address Ferguson head-on, perhaps with a major speech on race or a trip there, advisors say. Although Obama hasnt ruled out traveling to the town, he has concluded so far that theres not much he can say about the shooting of Michael Brown, 18, by Officer Darren Wilson that would bridge divisions, according to a senior administration official familiar with internal discussions on the matter.

The facts in Ferguson are too disputed to address, with eyewitnesses offering divergent views about what led to the Aug. 9 shooting, according to the prevailing view among Obamas aides.

The White House is also mindful not to appear to be meddling in a federal civil rights investigation of the shooting, nor to let Ferguson consume Obama's agenda as he eyes the legacy-forming steps he'll take in his final two years in office.

Obama opted for bureaucratic moves focused on law enforcement in general. As part of his broader spending plan, he proposed $75 million to outfit officers in police departments with body cameras. He also directed his staff to come up with a new executive order within four months to require additional training for local police who get military equipment from the Pentagon.

He believes that policy changes can take hold in the long run and help solve larger social problems, one aide said. Although Obama acknowledged that previous commissions and task forces have not solved the problems, this time will be different, he said, because the president of the United States is deeply invested in making sure that this time is different.

The policy response drew mixed reactions.

Jim Bueermann, president of the Police Foundation, a nonpartisan nonprofit that studies policing, applauded the indication that Obamas executive order would encourage greater civilian oversight of what equipment local agencies could obtain.

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Obama seeks $263 million for training, body cameras for local police

Click photo to enlarge

President Barack Obama, right, seated with Charles Ramsey, left, Commissioner Philadelphia Police Dept., speaks during his meeting with elected officials, law enforcement officials and community and faith leaders in the Old Executive Office Building on the White House Complex in Washington, Monday, Dec. 1, 2014. Obama said that in the wake of the shooting of an unarmed 18-year-old man in Ferguson, Missouri, he wants to make sure to build better trust between police and the communities they serve. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama said Monday he wants to ensure the U.S. isn't building a "militarized culture" within police departments, while maintaining federal programs that provide the type of military-style equipment that were used to dispel racially charged protests in Ferguson, Missouri.

Instead, the president is asking Congress for funding to buy 50,000 body cameras to record events like the shooting death of an unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown and look for ways to build trust and confidence between police and minority communities nationwide. He announced the creation of a task force to study success stories and recommend ways the government can support accountability, transparency and trust in police.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced on Monday new Justice Department plans aimed at ending racial profiling and ensuring fair and effective policing.

"In the coming days, I will announce updated Justice Department guidance regarding profiling by federal law enforcement, which will institute rigorous new standards and robust safeguards to help end racial profiling, once and for all," Holder said in Atlanta.

With protests ongoing in Ferguson and across the country, Obama spoke to reporters at the end of a White House meeting with police, civil rights activists and local leaders and acknowledged the participants told him that there have been task forces in the past and "nothing happens."

"Part of the reason this time will be different is because the president of the United States is deeply invested in making sure that this time is different," Obama said. He said he was upset to hear the young people in the meeting describe their experiences with police. "It violates my belief in what America can be to hear young people feeling marginalized and distrustful even after they've done everything right."

At least for now, Obama is staying away from Ferguson in the wake of the uproar over a grand jury's decision last week not to charge Darren Wilson, the police officer who fatally shot Brown. The U.S. Justice Department is investigating possible civil rights violations that could result in federal charges, but investigators would need to satisfy a rigorous standard of proof. Justice also has launched a broad investigation into the Ferguson Police Department.

Obama is proposing a three-year, $263 million spending package to increase use of body-worn cameras, expand training for law enforcement and add more resources for police department reform. The package includes $75 million to help pay for 50,000 of the small, lapel-mounted cameras to record police on the job, with state and local governments paying half the cost. Estimates vary about the precise number of full-time, sworn law enforcement officers in communities across the U.S., though some federal government reports in recent years have placed the figure at roughly 700,000.

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Obama: Don't want 'militarized' police culture

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama called for a "sustained conversation" surrounding the relationship between police and the communities they serve after a series of meetings with Cabinet members, law enforcement officials, young activists and others on Monday.

The meetings follow a week of sometimes violent protests that swept the nation following the decision by a grand jury last Monday not to indict a white police officer in the shooting of an unarmed black teenager in Ferguson, Missouri.

Later on Monday, Attorney General Eric Holder, speaking in Atlanta, said the federal investigation of the incident is ongoing.

"The Justice Department's investigation into the shooting death of Michael Brown, as well as our investigation into allegations of unconstitutional policing patterns or practices by the Ferguson Police Department, remain ongoing and active," he said. "They have been rigorous and independent from the very beginning."

Members of the Congressional Black Caucus also spoke out on Ferguson and broader racial tensions in the United States.

"The Ferguson grand jury's decision not to indict former officer Darren Wilson was yet another slap in our face. It was a painful reminder that just like with Trayvon Martin and Tamir Rice and so many others that law enforcement officers killed - black and brown men and boys - without repercussions," said Rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, the House floor.

"The fact that our country - the greatest country in the world - remains mired in race relations issues in the year 2014 is an embarrassment," she said. "If we are to learn anything from the tragic death of Michael Brown, we must first acknowledge that we have a race issue that we are not addressing."

The incident, and subsequent months of unrest in Ferguson, set off a national debate over the tactics and tools used by law enforcement to keep the peace, which critics said were at times too aggressive.

According to the White House press pool report, Obama told a crowd of about 50 activists, law enforcement and elected officials that the problem is "solvable," but that there needs to be an ongoing discussion of the issues uncovered by Ferguson.

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Obama targets Ferguson aftermath

By Kevin Liptak, CNN White House Producer

updated 2:09 PM EST, Mon December 1, 2014

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama, responding to concerns over the use of military-style equipment during protests in Ferguson, Missouri over the summer, is asking aides to prepare an executive order that would better track the weapons and gear flowing from the federal government to local police departments around the nation.

The order, which he's expected to preview Monday afternoon during a meeting with law enforcement and local government officials, would mandate federal agencies review the way they provide U.S. police with heavy equipment like tanks and aircraft.

A report issued by the White House found the vast majority of material coming from the Department of Defense to police departments wasn't military-style: it included office supplies, furniture and tents.

But 4% of the Pentagon's output to police departments is military grade, including 92,442 small arms, 5,235 Humvees, 617 mine resistant vehicles and 616 aircraft.

Other agencies, including the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, also provide police with equipment and funds.

The executive action, which was described by White House officials ahead of Obama's announcement, is the conclusion of a review process Obama launched in August following the heavily armed response to protesters in Ferguson. Images of tear-gassed filled streets patrolled by police in tanks sparked concern that local departments were treating citizens like enemy combatants.

Officials said following the reviews, agencies could require better tracking of the equipment that ends up with police, require training for officers, and mandate reviews following "significant" incidents in which the equipment is used.

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Obama preparing executive order on police militarization