Sharpton. | AP Photo/Julie Jacobson Sharpton assails NRA for 'whites only' approach to gun rights

The Rev. Al Sharpton challenged the National Rifle Association to defend the gun rights of two black men killed in police encounters last week in Louisiana and Minnesota. The victims — Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, respectively — were carrying guns when they were approached by police officers and shot. Video of the incidents sparked protests around the country last week.

“Both of them were killed by police based on ‘they had a gun,’" Sharpton said at his weekly rally in Harlem. "Now I missed the NRA coming out and defending the gun rights they legally had. Where is the NRA? Where is [NRA president] Wayne LaPierre now? Do you have a Second Amendment right or did you not get down, Mr. Pierre, to the 14th, 15th and 16th amendments? Maybe you mean the Second Amendment is for whites only.”


Sterling was approached by Baton Rouge police after they received a call from someone saying a man with a gun had made threatening remarks. Video of the incident shows Sterling on the ground with the officers on top of him. A man’s voice is heard yelling “gun” and moments later, shots are fired. Sterling’s arms are empty and an officer is seen removing an object from Sterling’s pocket.

In Minnesota, a woman videoed herself in the driver's seat of a car while Philando Castile lay bleeding in the passenger seat. The woman, Diamond Reynolds, said an officer pulled their vehicle over for a broken tail light, and that Castile told the officer he had a gun and permit, reached into his pocket retrieve the permit and was shot. The officer, seen on video standing outside the window with his gun drawn, is heard saying , “I told him to get his hands up.”

In Harlem today, Sharpton said, “Where was the gun rights for Castile? Where were the gun rights for Sterling? You came to fight for gun rights when gays were played in Orlando. But are you going to meet me in Baton Rouge to stand up for Alton Sterling?”

The comments today came a week before the second anniversary of the death of Eric Garner in a police encounter on Staten Island, which was videoed by a bystander and circulated nationally.

Sharpton said he will lead a march to commemorate Garner’s passing, and renew his call for criminal penalties for the New York Police Department officers in that case. The Department of Justice is looking into the case and the NYPD is withholding disciplinary action until the DOJ completes its probe. The officer seen putting his arm around Garner’s neck, Daniel Panteleo, has been on modified duty since the incident.

On Saturday, Sharpton said penalizing officers for misconduct is the only way to prevent such incidents from happening again, dismissing the argument made by leaders, including his ally Mayor Bill de Blasio, that training and neighborhood policing are already making a difference.

“When the video comes out, you say wait a minute, the issue is we need training," Sharpton said. "No, the first issue [is] we need justice. Because once police understand that there is a penalty if you break the law, then you have a new environment to talk about training and changing the culture. But as long as a policeman feels that no matter what he or she does, they will not have to pay for it, they will not take training and they will not take the culture seriously.”