Giuliani: Ferguson debate misdirected

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) on Sunday said the response to the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., has been misdirected.

{mosads}Giuliani said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that a larger issue that hasn’t been discussed as much during the fallout is the issue of African-Americans committing violence against one another.

A grand jury is expected to announce in the coming days whether it will indict the white officer, Darren Wilson, who shot Brown, an unarmed black teenager. Wilson has maintained he was acting in self-defense.

The August shooting has sparked a national conversation about the use of force by police officers in the country, as well as how police forces deal with race in predominantly African-American communities, such as Ferguson.

Giuliani sparred with Michael Eric Dyson, a civil rights author, on NBC’s “Meet The Press.”

“The white police officers won’t be there if you weren’t killing each other,” Giuliani said during the heated exchange in which the two men spoke over each other.

“Why don’t you cut down your crime so so many white police officers don’t have to be in black areas?” Giuliani asked. “Ninety-three percent of blacks in America are killed by other blacks. We are talking about the exception here [in Ferguson] … I would like to see the attention paid to that — that you’re paying to this.”

“Black people who kill black people go to jail,” said Dyson during the exchange. “White people who are policemen and kill black people do not go to jail.”

“It’s hardly insignificant. It is the reason for the heavy police presence in the black community,” Giuliani said. “Why don’t you cut it down so that so many white police officers don’t have to be in black areas?”

“Your attitude reinforces the problematic perspective that prevails in the culture,” Dyson said.

“What about the poor black child who kills another black child? Why aren’t you protesting that?” Giuliani asked.