Obama uses N-word and proclaims America is 'not cured' of racism as he advocates new gun laws following Charleston shootings

• President told Marc Maron: 'Racism, we are not cured of it. And it's not just a matter of it not being polite to say n****r in public'
• He also claimed slavery was 'still part of our DNA that's passed on' 
• A previous push for greater gun controls was stymied by the National Rifle Association's 'grip' on Congress, he said
• The politicians' inability to act following the Sandy Hook massacre was the closest Obama came 'to feeling disgusted', he added

President Barack Obama says the United States is still infected with racism and dropped the N-word in an interview released this morning to make his point.

'Racism, we are not cured of it,' Obama said. 'And it's not just a matter of it not being polite to say n****r in public. That's not the measure of whether racism still exists or not. It's not just a matter of overt discrimination. Societies don't, overnight, completely erase everything that happened 200 to 300 years prior.'

The president, who was born to a white mother and a black father 53 years ago, said that attitudes about race have improved significantly since he was born to a white mother and black father. But the nation's history of slavery 'casts a long shadow and that's still part of our DNA that's passed on.' 

Obama made the remarks in the context of last week's massacre at a historical black church in Charleston, South Carolina.

Echoing his Thursday statement on the shooting, the president said the nation must determine how it can respect the rights of firearm owners while keeping weapons out of the hands out of  the mentally unstable.

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VIP guest: The president arrived Friday at Marc Maron's home in the Pasadena suburb of Highland Park - close to where he attended Occidental College as a young man - for an hour-long interview for Maron's WTF podcast

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The Friday interview took place just after a shooting in South Carolina at a historical black church and Obama spent much of the interview reflecting on race relations in America and gun culture 

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Strong language: While discussing racism in America in light of Wednesday's massacre, Obama said: ‘Racism, we are not cured of it,’ Obama said. ‘And it's not just a matter of it not being polite to say n****r in public'

President Obama uses the N-word talking about racism

'The question is just is there a way of accommodating that legitimate set of traditions with some common-sense stuff that prevents a 21-year-old who is angry about something or confused about something, or is racist, or is deranged, from going into a gun store and suddenly is packing, and can do enormous harm,' the president said, ostensibly referring to Dylann Roof, the 21-year-old South Carolinian accused of carrying out the shooting.

The added, 'And that is not something that we have ever fully come to terms with.'

Roof is in police custody and has been charged with the deaths of nine congregants at Emanuel AME church in Charleston following last Wednesday's rampage.

The interview with comedian Marc Maron for his podcast, WTF was recorded on Friday but was not uploaded online until this morning. 

The president lamented how often he has to speak to the country 'about a devastating loss,' and said, 'It's not enough just to feel bad.'

'There are actions that could be taken to make events like this less likely,' he said. 'And one of those actions we could take would be to enhance some basic common sense gun safety laws that by the way the majority of gun owners support.'