At town hall, Obama confronts race issues bigger than police

WASHINGTON (AP) — The son of the Louisiana man shot dead by police wants President Barack Obama to help end world racism.

The mother of a policeman pleads for ways to keep her son safe. A single mom who has sent her son away from a rough Baltimore neighborhood worries over how to keep him safe when he's home on the weekends.

America's fraught debate about tensions between blacks and police spilled over today into hang-wringing about societal problems beyond any one person's capacity to fix – even the president. At a town hall meeting recorded to be broadcast in prime time, Obama cautiously offered suggestions, but no surefire solutions.

The good news, Obama said, is at least people are finally talking about the problems. Calling for "open hearts," he urged Americans not to cloister themselves in separate corners.

"Because of the history of this country and the legacy of race, and all the complications that are involved with that, working through these issues so that things can continue to get better will take some time," Obama said.

More time than Obama has left in office, he readily conceded.