Exclusive: Loretta Lynch says police issues are this eraās civil rights struggle
The explosions of violence that have marked a broken trust between U.S. law enforcement and communities of color across the country echo the painful clashes that marked the early struggles of the American civil rights movement, Attorney General Loretta Lynch said in an interview with USA TODAY Sunday.
āI really think the world is watching how we deal with these issues,āā Lynch said in the wide-ranging interview here where she had traveled to commemorate Martin Luther King weekend events.
Lynch is preparing to leave office following a tumultuous 20-month tenure, also punctuated by a string of deadly mass shootings, a disputed investigation of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and ongoing concerns about the extent of Russiaās interference in the U.S. elections. But her legacy will likely be defined by the Justice Departmentās aggressive oversight of more than two dozen police agencies across the country.
Lynch said technology, specifically the speed of digital media and video-enabled smart phones, accelerated the recent scrutiny of police operations in ways that many had not anticipated. āPolicing became front and center, because technology put it front and center,āā Lynch said.
In much of the country where encounters between police and the public have not been in the forefront, "itās been a real eye opener.ā
(Photo: Brynn Anderson, AP)
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