Cardin: Michael Brown did not need to die

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) called on Congress to pass his bill that aims to end racial profiling.

“Racial profiling is un-American,” Cardin said on the Senate floor Wednesday. “We can begin to reduce the racial disparities that plague our justice system.”

{mosads}The End Racial Profiling Act, S. 1038, would provide training to educate law enforcement officials in the differences between suspect descriptions and racial profiling.

Cardin’s speech came after an unarmed black teenager was shot and killed in Ferguson, Mo., last month. He said Michael Brown “did not need to die.”

Cardin said Congress should also review federal programs that give surplus military equipment to local law enforcement. Some equipment was used this summer against protesters in Ferguson.

On Tuesday, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held a hearing on the topic, where some lawmakers blasted the program.