What began as a peaceful demonstration over a week ago in Ferguson, Missouri, following the fatal shooting of an 18 year-old African-American man, quickly descended into violence and vandalism as protests turned into riots. On Saturday, August 9, Officer Darren Wilson confronted Michael Brown. The incident led to the shooting death of Brown, which sparked protests calling for an investigation of the confrontation. On Sunday August 10, however, the demonstrations turned to chaos as crowds began looting and vandalizing parts of the town, drawing national attention. Leaders of Ferguson's many religious congregations have called for unity and an end to the violence, and citizens have stepped in as well to give assistance and support to the troubled town. Ferguson, Missouri is historically a very faith-based suburban community, with 57 percent of its 21,000 denizens belonging to an active church – seven percent higher than the national average. In the face of the chaos and upheaval, these congregations and church-leaders have risen to the challenge of bringing peace and calm to the town in the wake of recent trauma. …show more content…
However, as the backbone of the religious community, local leaders such as Pastor Karen Knodt of the Immanuel United Church of Christ and Reverend Steve Lawler of St. Stephen’s Episcopalian church will be the people who local residents look to for leadership on the ground. In the weeks and months to come, the people of Ferguson will be left to deal with the fallout of the recent unrest as the news cameras and popular figureheads move
Obviously, there is unfinished business from the civil rights movement era. Yet, what role the Divine Nine will play? Today, many of the new voices and faces fighting inequality and injustices on the national and local scene are not affiliated with a Divine Nine organization; this was unheard of 40 years ago. The old guard leadership of the NAACP, nor church elders with the possible exception of a few players no longer pilot the rallies, protesting age-old inequalities and injustices in cities like Ferguson, Baltimore, New York, and Philadelphia.
Brown continued to show aggressive force towards the officer in which Wilson, the officer, fired shots killing Brown. Officials decided to not arrest the officer and suspended him with pay until an investigation was complete. To the population, Browns death was seen as another result of a hate crime and the news spread quickly around the St. Louis area. But this time things were different (Edwards, pg10). Citizens decided to take matters into their own hand. Rioters swarmed the streets and began burning cars, destroying local businesses, and stealing goods. It was like a scene from the Rodney King riot that took place in 1992. Rioters went on a rampage for days burning down nearly 25 buildings, 2 police cruisers, 12 cars, and over 80 arrests made (note: many of the personnel who were arrested did not reside in the state of Missouri, meaning others traveled to St. Louis just to partake in the riots). Overall, $4.6 million in damages were caused. Protesters flooded the streets for nearly a year in hopes of getting justice for Mike Brown (Edwards, pg11-13). And On March 4, 2015, another court decisioning ruled in favor of the
During the past couple months a controversial case was brought to the grand jury in Ferguson. The jury decided to not indict Officer Darren Wilson, who shot Michael Brown. This major decision caused uprising, riots, protests, and lootings in the town of Ferguson. Many protesters feel this is a race issue, when clearly it is not. The grand jury did the right thing to not indict Officer Darren Wilson in the killing of Michael Brown. Michael Brown was guilty because he assaulted a police officer, the actions Michael Brown took apart in, and
Ferguson police arrested around 150 protesters in Missouri after violence erupted amid peaceful demonstrations on Tuesday.
After the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed, 18 year old black man by a police officer of Ferguson Missouri, the community took to the streets in a movement to protest a pervasive racial tension that some believe may have caused the shooting. Amidst riots, marches and other public demonstrations, Ferguson mayor James Knowles has given statements and interviews to the press to address both the tragedy and the allegations of racial conflict and profiling in Ferguson being at the root of the tragedy. Among these press appearances was an interview on the Steve Malzberg Show, four days after the shooting, wherein Mayor Knowles’ efforts to perform PR damage control give insight into how he views the town, and how some authority figures
Walking around West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Mo., the past nighttime, seeing the moderate retreat of that evening's dispute walk, I was sharply clobbered by a racial generalization that hit me right in my social heart.
Some Ferguson protesters burned stores and threw rocks and Molotov cocktails at heavily armored police, who fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds — all under the lens of live, national media coverage. The protests again turned violent when a Missouri grand jury decided not to charge Wilson. And similar riots broke out in Baltimore in April following the funeral of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who died after being injured in police custody.
The nightly protests in Ferguson, Missouri are receding. Sparked by the shooting of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown by white police officer Darren Wilson, the scenes of protest, rioting, and an iron-fisted police crackdown emerging from the St. Louis suburb shocked the world. But they shouldn't.
More protest were brought to the surface of the world after the shooting of an unarmed African American boy after he robbed the local convenience store in Ferguson Missouri, shot by a White police officer Darren Wilson, while confronting the African American boy Michael Brown Jr (Clarke, 2014). The response to the shooting went directly towards an automatic prejudice response of the police officer being racist towards Michael giving him no chance to surrender without need of weapon discharge. After the death and protest people created shirts stating “Racism is not over, but I’m over racism”, this shirt was created as a memorial shirt for the death of Michael Brown. This form of memorial seems more of a form of attention and a way to bring money into those people's pockets to which created the shirt. The pre judgement of the shooting being
Ferguson, Missouri the town where 18-year-old Michael Brown, an unarmed black man, was killed by Officer Wilson, a white police officer on August 9, 2014. Protest had begun in Ferguson, but many of the protester were nonviolent and felt the police were racially profiling black men. Three months later, the Grand Jury released its verdict to not indict Officer Wilson. The verdict led to protests that became violent quickly. The protester began to loot local business such as a McDonalds where they flat screen TV’s. People also broke into the liquor store that Michael brown stole the cigarillos from. The protesters that broken into the liquor store stole sodas, chips, and other snack food items. Not only was there looting, but there was many gunshots that rang in the town. According to Jon Belmar, the St. Louis County Police Chief, “… personally heard about 150 shots fired.” Belmar claims that none of his police officers fired shots at protesters leading to people’s conclusions that it must have been protesters shooting.
August 9th 2014, Ferguson Missouri, an unarmed black teen Michael Brown was shot, and fatally wounded by a white police officer by the name of Darren Wilson. As a direct result of deciding not to indict Officer Wilson, the black community was out raged! Riots, looting, and damage to businesses soon followed the judge’s ruling. The trial was unlike normal trials which were treated with more expedience in the process, the grand jury in Officer Wilson case met for three months and 25 days. (Buchanan, et. al. 2014)
Racial injustice against people of colour is an immense, ongoing issue that has not only targeted lives but has also taken many innocent lives. In America, these racial divisions date back to the days of slavery, where black people were denied of their basic human rights because of discrimination. In present day, some individuals view America as a post-racial environment, due to such victories as electing a black president; but the brutal, fatal and unjust events in Ferguson, Missouri prove that these divisions are still present. On August 9th, 2014, an unarmed, 18 year old black teen was shot and killed by Darren Wilson, a white police officer. The events that led to the death of Michael Brown occurred on an early morning where Mr. Wilson stopped Michael Brown and a friend after leaving a convenience store. An altercation occurred which prompted Mr. Brown to flee and officer Wilson to begin shooting. The death of Mr. Brown caused the city to stand up against police brutality through peaceful protest, looting, and even violence, to gain justice for Mr. Brown and his family. As the protests grew, the police used military tactics such as, tear gas, to “maintain order” during the unrest of the city. In recent, news the grand jury decided that Officer Darren Wilson was not responsible for the death of Michael Brown, which led to a larger public outrage not only in America, but also across the
The church is the most appropriate place for ongoing conversations on issues of race reconciliation. The context of church invites the presence of God, allowing authentic believers practice their faith in everyday life. I am prayerful that this plan of action will impact the Lawrenceville community where reconciliation actually encompasses all dimensions of peacebuilding, when it is expanded across racial boundaries to cultivate deep personal relationships.
One community that stands out the most for the conflict between law enforcement and their community is Ferguson, Missouri. On August 9, 2014 Darren Wilson, 28, a white Ferguson police officer fatally shot Michael Brown, an 18-year-old African-American male (McLaughlin). This case started one of the biggest uproar the nation has ever seen between community and law enforcement. When the incident first occurred there were many pieces of information missing to paint a scenario of how and what occurred between Brown and officer Wilson. Apparently Michael Brown was walking home late at night when officer Darren Wilson and Michael Brown got into a confrontation that lead to Wilson shooting Brown, the case goes
The Church has encouraged the parishioners to participate in the protests, offered bishops and priests as speakers, and served as an a person who takes part in the conversation for its newcomer members before congress and in other public forums. U.S. bishops have done national campaigns