Biden urges US police reform, calls ‘white supremacists’ most lethal threat to America

US President Joe Biden has called for police reform amid a disconcerting surge in deadly US police violence against Black Americans and members of minority groups.

Biden urged Congress to pass a police reform bill in the name of George Floyd, an African-American man killed under the knee of a white police officer last year.

"We need to work together to find a consensus," Biden said in his first joint address to Congress on Wednesday night. "Let’s get it done next month, by the first anniversary of George Floyd’s death."

He said Congress needs to restore trust in law enforcement, end racism in the criminal justice system, and give meaning to the words of Floyd's daughter, who Biden said told him "Daddy changed the world."

"After the conviction of George Floyd’s murderer, we can see how right she was – if we have the courage to act," Biden said. "Now is our opportunity to make real progress."

“We have all seen the knee of injustice on the neck of black America; now is our opportunity to make real progress,” the US president noted.

“To rebuild trust between law enforcement and the people they serve, to root out systemic racism in our criminal justice system and to enact police reform in George Floyd’s name that passed the House already.”

The US president also called for broader efforts are required to combat “systemic racism,”  saying that delivering “real equity” would mean providing “good jobs and good schools,” affordable housing and clean air and clean water to all Americans.

He also pointed to the rising tide of homegrown and violent extremism and nationalism in the US, saying that while the “terrorist threat” had been “degraded” in Afghanistan, local white supremacist groups now pose the most “lethal” threat to the “homeland,” citing the word of US intelligence agencies.

The issue of far-right and white supremacist groups was brought back into focus following the deadly attack on the US Capitol by supporters of former US President Donald Trump in January.

Biden also insisted on the need to stop what he called an “epidemic” of gun violence in the US, urging Congress to reimpose a 1994 ban on “assault weapons” and high-capacity magazines.

“We need more Senate Republicans to join with the overwhelming majority of their Democratic colleagues, and close loopholes and require background checks to purchase a gun,” he said.

The issue of gun control in the US continues to be one of the most divisive issues in American politics.

With about 121 firearms in circulation for every 100 residents, the US is by far the most heavily armed society in the world, according to the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey, a research group.

The Second Amendment of the US Constitution enshrines the "right to bear arms," which the country’s apex court says allows individuals to keep handguns at home for self-defense.

The free access to guns and little control over them has paved the way for a spree of mass shootings in the US in recent years, promoting global concerns.

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