Minnesota governor Mark Dayton believes that Philando Castile was killed because he was a black man. The governor made his point of view crystal clear in public statements given on Thursday. Would this have happened if those passengers, the driver were white?  he asked.  I don t think it would have. Dayton said he has spoken with Minnesota s senators, Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, and the area s House representatives and would be demanding a Justice Department investigation. I can t say how shocked I am and deeply, deeply offended that this would happen to somebody in Minnesota,  Dayton said grimly.  No one should be shot in Minnesota for a taillight being out of function. No one should be killed in Minnesota while seated in their car. Castile was shot and killed in the city of Falcon Heights after he was pulled over for a supposed broken taillight. As his girlfriend sat in the passenger seat and his 4-year-old daughter sat in the back, the police officer shot into the car. According to his girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, Castile complied with the officer s demands as he approached the vehicle.Castile told the cop he had a license to carry a concealed weapon, but was killed before he could produce it.In the video the cop can be seen freaking out, immediately after the shooting.The aftermath of the incident was streamed on Reynolds  Facebook Live account, and sparked protests in Minnesota and elsewhere in America on Thursday. President Obama highlighted the case, along with the shooting death of Alton Sterling.The cases have brought the Black Lives Matter movement back to the front burner, though for black Americans the forever present threat of death from police officers has never gone away.Despite their advocacy in favor of concealed carry laws, the NRA has refused to comment on Castile s death. The organization has often been silent about gun crimes with black victims.Featured image via screen capture