In some of his broadest remarks on racism yet , President Barack Obama said Friday that he believes while there are `` some hidden biases that we all carry around , '' people are `` basically good '' and want to fix those problems , if given solutions . `` What I do n't think is always captured in our political debates is , the vast majority of people are just trying to do the right thing . And people are basically good and have good intentions , '' Obama said during his year-end press conference Friday . `` Sometimes our institutions and our systems do n't work as well as they should . Sometimes you 've got a police department that has gotten into bad habits over a period of time and has n't maybe surfaced some hidden biases that we all carry around , '' he added . Obama referenced Eric Garner , the unarmed African-American man who died after he was put in a chokehold by a white police officer , saying that `` this is n't a situation where people feel good seeing somebody choked and dying . '' `` I think that troubles everybody , '' Obama said . But he argued , `` if you offer practical solutions , I think people want to fix these problems . '' His remarks came in response to a question on the state of blacks in America today , which he acknowledged remains problematic . He said African-Americans still face an income gap with whites , what he called `` a legacy of a troubled racial past . '' African-Americans are `` starting behind '' because of this , Obama said , and Americans `` should be willing to provide people a hand up , not a hand-out '' to help improve those conditions . The still-fraught state of race relations in America has become a subject of national debate in recent weeks following the acquittal of two white police officers who shot two unarmed black men , in unrelated incidents in Missouri and New York City . Americans frustrated with what many see as unequal treatment of blacks by police officers have launched protests across the nation . And Obama created a task force to examine police tactics and propose what he called Friday `` concrete practical things ... to rebuild trust between communities of color and the police department . '' He said he 'll implement them however necessary when he 's given those recommendations . The events of the past month have contributed to the largest percentage of Americans saying racism is the country 's most important problem since 1992 , according to a new Gallup poll . It found that 13 percent of Americans chose racism , up from just 1 percent in November . But the president said , overall , the renewed discussion on race has `` been a healthy conversation we 've had . '' `` You 're not going to solve the problem if it 's not being talked about , '' he said .
President Barack Obama said there are `` some hidden biases that we all carry around '' He argued , though , that people are `` basically good '' and want to fix those problems . African-Americans , Obama said , are `` starting behind '' and should be given a `` hand up ''