While all the details may not yet be known concerning that fateful encounter between a
Days of protest followed, mostly peaceful, but also including some looting and counter-violence of a “few bad actors” against the police.
Ron Johnson, a Black man himself and head of the Highway Patrol, came and walked with the protesters. Understanding what the community was feeling, he seemed to be part of a successful effort to calm the angry crowds, but the latest news (as of Aug. 17) indicates that after peaceful protests, flare-ups are continuing even as a midnight curfew is being implemented.
And so it goes: from a legal or forensics approach much more can and will be said about the case; the latest news concerns the autopsy report which will no doubt add fuel to the fire and increase tensions and become itself controversial. What can be done?
The protesters, the good people of Ferguson , should come up
with a specific list of demands.
Otherwise, the people will have nothing to focus their energy on achieving. Here are a few suggestions:
- The hiring of more Black police officers: a minimum
number to be established.
- Respect the parents’ wishes: peaceful protest only; no looting. Honor Michael Brown’s memory by peaceful and dignified marches and demonstrations.
- A fund to be set up in his name to create a
scholarship for others.
- Develop community policing with more officers on foot
and bicycles so they can interact with the citizens of
- A Citizens Review Board to investigate allegations of
police misconduct.
- The Mayor creates a Commission on Diversity and
Tolerance.
- The city convenes inter-racial meetings with respected business and religious leaders of the community to discuss proposals for making their city better.
- A legal fund for the parents who may wish to file a wrongful death civil suit if no legal action is taken against the police officer or proves inadequate in scope.
- A Memorial planned to honor and remember what happened: a statue, a park, a room or building that tells the story of this tragedy for future generations to see.
- Convening meetings of concerned citizens so that the
community can explore ways to have a greater say in the participatory
democracy of
These are just a few suggestions; surely there are others, best understood by the people of Ferguson themselves. Such goals help bring positive sunlight to the dark night of tragedy surrounding us; it is not easy but it is possible, and desirable, to try.
The shooting, however, is also a double tragedy. If we pull back from the specific incident and the protests that followed, it is worth noting that the nature of our society played an important role, as always.
Oftentimes in the heat of the moment we look only at the latest episode and forget to consider education, employment, and housing. Some may say: what does that have to do with Michael Brown’s death?
Immediately, in the short term, perhaps nothing—but if we wish to prevent the deaths of more Michael Browns in the future, these fundamental underlying social issues must be addressed, too.
Oftentimes,America ’s
minorities feel left out of the progress everyone else is supposed to be
making. When their opportunities for
education are weaker, then fewer Blacks will be able to use the Education
Ladder to climb up and succeed.
It will be harder for them to earn substantial salaries in successful careers that will make life easier for themselves and their families. And there will be fewer role models for the younger kids coming up.
When the doors to employment are not to be relied upon, the unemployment rate will remain much higher among minorities than the national average, especially among the Black, Brown, and Red: African-Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans.
When housing is inadequate and inferior, there are fewer opportunities for children to develop a strong sense of having a safe secure home from which to engage the world around them.
No jobs can lead to eviction and neglected rundown housing; unemployed youth will “hang out” and be tempted to engage in illicit dealings to make a quick dollar; the cycle of poverty, discrimination, and unemployment continues; the jails fill up, not the colleges.
And, quite frankly, we can go beyond the vicissitudes of everyday life forAmerica ’s
minorities and the various forms of inequalities they face, be they
institutionalized or de facto, that prevent progress for so
many communities and individuals.
In truth, such incidents as theFerguson
shooting frequently grow out of and reflect the long history of brutality,
exploitation, and racism that Black people have endured for generations.
Even if we start with post-Civil War history (not to mention the 250 years of Slavery that preceded it!) we see a century and a half of often agonizingly slow progress for Black people.
True, many have succeeded; many have become educated and entered careers as professionals. There is a Black middle class; there have been individual Black people highly honored in nearly every field one can imagine.
And yet, even these great and wonderful successes of so many incredibly gifted Black Americans also reveal—by glaring contrast--the lack of success in "moving up" for tens of thousands of others, including Black youth in places like Ferguson, Missouri.
Given the historical legacy, the ongoing social inequality, and the confusion and suspicion inherited by both sides, we see that such tragedies will only become truly preventable when these larger issues are solved.
The causes of inequality must be addressed and not just their tragic aftermath!
Even today, the death of Michael Brown shows us that we must continue to deal with the many misunderstandings that are recycled generation after generation around the sensitive issue of race and race relations.
Thus, we see the shooting of Michael Brown as a Double Tragedy: certainly, on one level it appears to be an unnecessary fatal encounter between a police officer and a Black youth.
Yet, on another level, it is also a tragic example of what centuries of oppression can produce and what the long history of racism has done to undermine the faith of people inAmerica as a land of justice and
equality.
The long shadow of past racial oppression is cast out farther and farther upon the land and unless we all come together to find positive ways to proceed we might as well resign ourselves to living in a country where such tragic episodes will repeat themselves time and time again.
He is neither “first” nor “last” but “another.” Aye, and that’s the real tragedy of the shooting of Michael Brown.
The shooting, however, is also a double tragedy. If we pull back from the specific incident and the protests that followed, it is worth noting that the nature of our society played an important role, as always.
Oftentimes in the heat of the moment we look only at the latest episode and forget to consider education, employment, and housing. Some may say: what does that have to do with Michael Brown’s death?
Immediately, in the short term, perhaps nothing—but if we wish to prevent the deaths of more Michael Browns in the future, these fundamental underlying social issues must be addressed, too.
Oftentimes,
It will be harder for them to earn substantial salaries in successful careers that will make life easier for themselves and their families. And there will be fewer role models for the younger kids coming up.
When the doors to employment are not to be relied upon, the unemployment rate will remain much higher among minorities than the national average, especially among the Black, Brown, and Red: African-Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans.
When housing is inadequate and inferior, there are fewer opportunities for children to develop a strong sense of having a safe secure home from which to engage the world around them.
No jobs can lead to eviction and neglected rundown housing; unemployed youth will “hang out” and be tempted to engage in illicit dealings to make a quick dollar; the cycle of poverty, discrimination, and unemployment continues; the jails fill up, not the colleges.
And, quite frankly, we can go beyond the vicissitudes of everyday life for
In truth, such incidents as the
Even if we start with post-Civil War history (not to mention the 250 years of Slavery that preceded it!) we see a century and a half of often agonizingly slow progress for Black people.
True, many have succeeded; many have become educated and entered careers as professionals. There is a Black middle class; there have been individual Black people highly honored in nearly every field one can imagine.
And yet, even these great and wonderful successes of so many incredibly gifted Black Americans also reveal—by glaring contrast--the lack of success in "moving up" for tens of thousands of others, including Black youth in places like Ferguson, Missouri.
Given the historical legacy, the ongoing social inequality, and the confusion and suspicion inherited by both sides, we see that such tragedies will only become truly preventable when these larger issues are solved.
The causes of inequality must be addressed and not just their tragic aftermath!
Even today, the death of Michael Brown shows us that we must continue to deal with the many misunderstandings that are recycled generation after generation around the sensitive issue of race and race relations.
Thus, we see the shooting of Michael Brown as a Double Tragedy: certainly, on one level it appears to be an unnecessary fatal encounter between a police officer and a Black youth.
Yet, on another level, it is also a tragic example of what centuries of oppression can produce and what the long history of racism has done to undermine the faith of people in
The long shadow of past racial oppression is cast out farther and farther upon the land and unless we all come together to find positive ways to proceed we might as well resign ourselves to living in a country where such tragic episodes will repeat themselves time and time again.
He is neither “first” nor “last” but “another.” Aye, and that’s the real tragedy of the shooting of Michael Brown.
No comments:
Post a Comment