In the wake of George Floyd’s death, former President Barack Obama has called on every mayor in the U.S. to review force policies and police reform.

“Now I want to speak directly to the young men and women of color in this country who is brown just so eloquently described and witnessed too much violence and too much debt,” Obama said in a livestream.  “Too often, some of that violence has come from folks who were supposed to be serving and protecting you. I want you to know that you matter. I want you to know that your lives matter, that your dreams matter […] and you should be able to learn and make mistakes and live a life of joy without having to worry about what’s going to happen when you walk to the store or go for a jog or are driving down the street or looking at some birds in a park.”

Over the past couple of months, a string of several racial-driven murders and assaults have occurred.

Ahmaud Arbery, an unarmed 25-year-old Black man who was fatally shot while on a jog, a white woman named Amy Cooper who called the police on a Black man, falsely accusing him of threatening her and Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman who was fatally shot by a Louisville Metro Police Department officer. 

Following the deaths and the killing of Floyd, who was asphyxiated by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, a series of protests and riots as a result of the anger of the protesters flooded the nation. 

“Even as you may feel angry because you have the power to make things better and you have helped to make the entire country feel as if this is something that’s got to change,” Obama said. “You’ve communicated a sense of urgency that is as powerful and as transformative as anything that I’ve seen in recent years.” 

The former president organized a virtual town hall with leaders among the Black community to create a conversation about systematic change.

Obama called on every mayor in the U.S. to review force policies and police reforms, which mandates deescalating situations, a ban on shooting moving vehicles, timely reporting of violent incidents and prohibitions on some forms of restraint used by the police.

“Chokeholds and strangleholds, that’s not what we do,” Obama said. 

Mayors in New York City and Chicago agreed to adopt the measures while other police departments including Atlanta are in the process of following suit. 

“I want to acknowledge the folks in law enforcement that share the goals of reimagining police because there are folks out there who took your oath to serve your communities to your countries, and a tough job and I know you’re just as outraged about tragedies in recent weeks, as are many of the protesters and so we’re grateful for the vast majority of you who protect and serve,” Obama said.

Obama said as citizens continue to raise their voices, there needs to be a clear change on where it’s going to happen and how to implement it. 

“It has mayors and county executives that appoint most police chiefs and negotiate collective bargaining agreements with police and that determines police practices in local communities,” Obama said. “It’s district attorneys and states attorneys that decide, typically whether or not to investigate and ultimately charge those involved in police misconduct. And those are all elected positions, and in some places their police monitor police.”