“It’s important for those who support, like I do, immigration reform and pathways to citizenship for those who are here not to assume everyone who has trouble with the current immigration system is automatically a racist,” he said during a roundtable Monday at the University of Chicago

“And for those of us who are concerned about undocumented workers coming in, whether it’s across the border or more typically, these days, overstaying visas, it’s also important for them to also appreciate the degree to which these are overwhelmingly families just looking for a better life for their children.”

During Obama’s initial presidential campaign, he called for comprehensive immigration reform. But an attempt to pass a bipartisan plan fell short in 2013, when the House refused to take up a bill that passed through the Senate that year.