Beneath the Rage in Ferguson by Christina Y. Vogel “You took my son away from me. You know how hard it was for me to get him to stay in school and graduate? You know how many black men graduate? Not many. Because you bring them down to this type of level, where they feel like ‘I ain’t got nothin’ to live for, anyway. They gonna try to take me out, anyway.’” -Lesley McSpadden, mother of Michael Brown The wind was absent and the sweltering sun smacked the skin of the attendees as they filed into the Ferguson Police Department parking lot for the prayer vigil on Sunday afternoon. The prior day’s events and Sunday morning’s police press conference hung heavily in the air as conversations buzzed among the people. Underneath the still, humid air and the bright and broiling sun simmered a stew of unspoken tension. The ingredients of frustration,betrayal, desperation, and pain swirled in a pot full of rage, quietly bubbling, ready to spill and boil over. This tension had been simmering on low heat for decades, not just in Ferguson, but in many other neighboring municipalities in North St. Louis County. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch released statistics showing disproportion between traffic stops for whites and blacks, but black citizens in North St.Louis County never needed statistics. We always knew our place in the eyes of the police: the lowest of the low, expendables, objects to be used for profit through the traffic court system. When the very people who are supposed to serve and protect the community from bad guys are incapable of distinguishing the bad guys from law abiding citizens, because in their minds all black people are the same, then nobody within that community is safe. The proof of this is in the blood that trickled between the double yellow lines of the street in the Canfield Green Apartment Complex; the proof is in the events that happened immediately afterwards. Videos taken by Canfield residents show a growing crowd surrounding the yellow tape as witnesses relay to the onlookers that the victim had his hands up right before he was shot. This angers the crowd and causes them to question the police’s actions. In response, the police officers refuse to cover Mike Brown’s body, leaving him face down on the concrete as the sun beat down on him for hours. The message to the residents was clear. This could be you. This will be you. Don’t question us. We have power over you.This was a modern day lynching. Strange fruit fallen to the ground. What is one to feel when this message is given so clearly by those that took an oath to keep you safe? What is one to do in that situation? When you are already given limited options in life, when you are already considered worthless by society, and you are staring at what you know could be your own destiny, what is one to do? Go back inside the house and shrug? Thank the police officers for only killing one of you? Would you do nothing? Those who embraced their anger that Saturday afternoon knew that their lives had more value and worth, they knew that Mike Brown’s life had more value and worth than he was given, and they chose to express their discontent with the actions of the officers that were supposed to work for them. This would have been a perfect opportunity for the police chief to step in and repair some of the damage which was done by promising the community that the matter would be investigated thoroughly, denouncing the actions of the officer and those that refused to cover Mike’s body, and suspending the murderer without pay until further investigation was done. He could have held a press conference later that night addressing the situation and ensuring the community that they were still safe. Had anybody within the police department seen the angry crowd as actual human beings with legitimate concerns and justifiable anger, that would have happened. But agents of oppression are never meant to console or deescalate a tense situation, so instead, the police chief of Ferguson called in the riot gear, SWAT, and the police dogs. He quickly militarized the neighborhood. The line had already been drawn. To the Ferguson Police Department, the ability to oppress by any means necessary is more sacred than to serve and protect. Intimidation became the tool used to maintain and reinforce control. When Sunday morning came, the community listened intently with a tiny glimmer of hope that questions would be answered. Instead, they heard a story ridiculously void of any sense and full of stereotypical implications. Typical: no good thug bent on violence and destruction fights a police officer and tries to grab his gun. Anybody who refuses to acknowledge black people as individual human beings would readily devour that story, but most of us knew better. Mike was college bound, he had volunteered to act as a big brother to two younger kids, he wrote a rap song to inspire youth to get involved in voting. He had dreams and aspirations, and those who hold dreams and aspirations do not shove a police officer for no reason and reach for his gun. This was strike three. The already thin string of trust was now officially cut. In recent weeks, social media has exploded with footage of black men being murdered by their own police force for no reason. Eric Garner. John Crawford III. And now, Michael Brown. The nightmare had finally reached home. What is a community to do when they know without a doubt that they can no longer rely on law enforcement to protect them? When they see that their lives can be so easily snuffed out at the will of a badge wearer that can’t wait to play Commando? Do they submit to this and simply accept it? They cannot. When a community sees blatant evidence that their lives are worthless to those who are supposed to serve and protect them, the only proper response in order for them to survive is to demand that the police department be held accountable for robbing them of innocent life. Therefore, when 3pm on Sunday rolled around, the frustration, betrayal, desperation, and pain was already churning. People wanted answers. People wanted action. Goals. Change. And while there was peace after the prayer vigil, even after people shut down traffic and stood and sat in the middle of Florissant Road to display their disgust, the unrest, the righteous indignation was always present, and it grew at the protests by Canfield Green Apartments. As the sun slipped into bed,the unrest continued to rage and boil. CNN recorded one police officer egging on the protesters, saying, “Bring it, all you f***** animals. Bring it!” Bring it, all you f***** animals. Bring it. Ah, there it is. There is the key to understanding the hostility between the police and black citizens. Mike Brown’s life was expendable because he was not a real human. The justifiably angry crowd on Saturday had to be intimidated, not reasoned with, because they are not real humans. How can a community have any hope when they know that their lives are not valued? What happens when one is completely stripped of his hopes, dreams, and aspirations? James Baldwin wisely stated that the most dangerous creation of any society is the man who has nothing to lose, and Sunday night was evidence of that. The anger, the desperation, the hopelessness, the pain raging on the inside simply has no direction to go, and destruction is the only viable answer for one who has nothing else to live for. Anger can be destructive and counterproductive, or it can be used to your advantage. Be angry for Mike. Be angry for his parents. Be angry about your second-class citizenship. But this anger must have direction, and we must direct this anger back to its source. The Ferguson Police Department and its neighboring departments must be held responsible for their actions. Not only have they attempted to strip the community of its dignity and worth, but they violated the Constitutional Rights of peaceful protesters to assemble by unlawfully arresting demonstrators on Monday and Tuesday afternoon. Police have been shooting tear gas into crowds that are peacefully assembling. They shot tear gas into the backyards of protesters. Police have escalated tensions by continuously treading on the community’s Constitutional Rights. That cannot be overlooked or forgiven. This relationship between the citizens and the police departments will never be able to heal. We must call for a change within the North County police departments. If you want justice for Michael Brown, the protests and marches must include demands that both Tom Jackson and Jon Belmar step down. Demand to be involved in the selection of the replacements by placing pressure on the mayors. People who view you as animals and will treat you as such have no business patrolling your streets. Demand that the officer that called the protesters f***** animals be removed. Demand that the standards for admitting police officers be changed. There must be a way to measure whether those who take an oath to protect and serve the communities value all of the lives of those within the communities. Demand that the police departments implement a program that will help foster positive relationships between police officers and citizens, and especially with the youth. A positive relationship with the police will allow police to more effectively remove the criminal elements while ensuring that our children can walk down the street without fear of being gunned down. Take control back of your streets, of your communities. Your lives and the lives of your children depend on it. Let us keep the rage from the injustice of this tragedy burning inside of us. Mike Brown wanted to inspire positive change within his community, and we can honor his life by giving purpose to his death and bringing that change.
Posted on: Wed, 13 Aug 2014 21:37:03 +0000
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