Obama meeting with civil rights leaders at the White House

The meeting took place prior to a Black History Month reception hosted by the president and Michelle Obama, scheduled to start at 4:40 p.m. ET.

Mckesson tweeted that he and the president were joined by Obama Administration senior adviser Valerie Jarrett, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Vanita Gupta, Cecilia Munoz, Neil Eggleston and Roy Austin.

“I could not, with any integrity, participate in such a sham that would only serve to legitimize the false narrative that the government is working to end police brutality”, wrote Pulley.

Black Lives Matter organizers have shown reluctance in the past to discuss issues with politicians.

Local organizers have become increasingly prominent as police-related controversies have piled up, particularly those of Servin; Officer Jason Van Dyke fatally shooting teenager Laquan McDonald; and Officer Robert Rialmo fatally shooting Quintonio LeGrier and Bettie Jones.

“I respectfully declined the invitation to the White House to discuss criminal legal reform and to celebrate Black History Month”, Pulley wrote, adding that she assumed the meeting was meant to bring about a “genuine exchange on the matters facing millions of Black and Brown people in the United States”. “A meeting arranged to carry this out is one that would be worthy of consideration”. FBI Director James B. Comey has said he believes the protests over police-involved shootings are causing police to be less aggressive in their policing tactics, contributing to the rise in violent crime – a suggestion the White House disputes.

President Obama makes a face while talking about the U.S. Congress, before signing an Executive Order in the South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington, July 31, 2014.

“We will continue to engage with the many organizations and individuals who chose to participate in this meeting in ongoing discussions about how to strengthen our communities and move our country forward”, the official said.

“And nearly to a person they say, ‘Would you want to get into this profession today with every time you do something, somebody is standing there with a video camera taping you and then showing portions of it?”