Sam Krausz

SOC-1002

December 1, 2014

Ferguson: Is Anyone Right?

#HandsUpDontShoot

#BlackLivesMatter

The two hashtags above represent the two largest points of controversy in the United

States right now. Not the fact that those are true statements that we should be working toward

that is true - but whether or not the context for the argument is appropriate. What we all know

about the Ferguson case of Michael Brown is that he robbed Ferguson Market and Liquor by

overpowering the store owner, was told directly afterward by a police officer named Darren

Wilson to step off of the street and get on the sidewalk, then a struggle of some sort went on

between Wilson and Brown wherein Brown was at some point in the front seat section of Wilsons

police vehicle and unarmed at all times, and then Browns body was found in the middle of the

street four and a half hours after being shot by Wilson six times in the arm, chest, and front of the

head. Besides that, what does anyone in the general public actually know? The amount of tangible

educated-opinion-forming fact readily available to the public is about enough to fill a tablespoon.

Because of the muddy nature of the Michael Brown incident in Ferguson, Missouri, the protests

taking place in St. Louis and across the country could either be every bit as meaningful as they are

aiming to be, or one of the largest ironies that the United States has seen in quite some time.

A Meaningful and Needed Protest

If some of the eyewitness accounts of the incident are found to be true and Michael Brown

was actually killed in an unjust way by Darren Wilson, then these protests are exactly what

America needs to listen to and take heed of. One of the facts that we know about this incident was

that Browns body lay on the ground in the glaring sun for four and a half hours. Of that, we all can

be assured that someone made a bad move somewhere. EMTs should have been on scene in less

than an hour, no excuses.

This has been a large part of the peaceful protests that have gone on throughout the city,

especially at the St. Louis Galleria, which lies five minutes away from my house, where Black

Friday was shut down at 2pm because of the protestors Die-ins, which means that large groups of

them would lay down all over the floor for four and a half minutes at a time to signify the four and a

half hours that Browns body lay dead on the street. Truthfully, no matter the situation, county

services should have at least acted like they cared about a black mans body lying in the street.

Browns life matters. Black lives matter. This sentiment can also be transferred to the incident

itself. Wilson should have at least acted like Browns life mattered by not shooting his unarmed

person six times, especially because according to some eyewitness accounts Brown had his

hands up in a gesture of surrender when Wilson shot him. That circulated story sparked the

hashtags that begin this essay. Those hashtags need to be heard. There is without a doubt a

concentration of people in the country who do not see the fallacies of our law enforcement system

and who see minorities as lesser to themselves, and those ignorant people must come to see the

logistical problems with their viewpoints and change their sentiments appropriately if this country

can ever hope to eradicate unjust social inequality.

A Dreadful Irony

If the evidence of the incident matches up with Darren Wilsons personal account of the

situation just as the jury has (arguably) already ruled it does, then the protests and riots trying to

avenge Michael Browns death are not just meaningless, but they radiate irony. One of the facts that

we know about this incident, and that we have photo evidence to prove, is that Michael Brown

robbed Ferguson Market and Liquor by overpowering the storeowner before coming into contact

with Darren Wilson. This sheds a negative light on this entire situation for the Brown side of the

argument in two ways: 1. If Brown was stupid enough to rob a convenience store for cigarillos and

use his truly imposing size to overpower the owner of that store without any attempt to hide his

identity to the video cameras, then talking back to and instigating a stupid fight with a scrawny cop

is not such a far-fetched possibility. 2. The rioters made complete idiots of themselves by looting

and trashing the very convenience store where the only proof of Michael Browns wrongdoing was

fully present. A powerful video of the storeowner standing in his wrecked lifes work after a night

of looting shows its audience the most cheated and defeated man in this whole mess. This man is

the perfect example of why violence and rioting is never the answer: because innocent fellow

citizens lives are ruined for the sake of ignorant rage. But I will turn my attention away from the

rioting, as that can be dismissed as a shameful act of instigation by Michael Browns stepfather when

he jumped on top of a car and shouted Lets burn this b**** to the ground! and by the multitude

of national media trucks that showed up to St. Louis with the expectation of a good show.

Now peaceful protests have taken over from the rioting, and with it, chants of the two

hashtags found at the beginning of this essay. These groups are denouncing police brutality by

saying Hands up, dont shoot! and denouncing institutionalized racism by saying Black Lives

Matter. Again, I would like to state that I agree with these statements to the fullest extent, but if

the case of Michael Brown actually transpired in the way that Darren Wilson described it, a way

that does not contradict any of the evidence currently available to the general public, then this is the

wrong case after which to be protesting for these ideals. According to Wilson, Brown initiated a

brawl with him, climbed into his car, tried to steal his weapon from him, insulted his masculinity

by betting Wilson that he would not shoot, then ran away from the car with Wilson following him

just as any cop is trained to do. Brown turned after Wilson yelled after him, put one of his hands

into his waistline as if possibly reaching for a concealed weapon, and started charging Wilson, who

then fired two warning shots before shooting Brown in the arm (to no avail against Browns

determination), and then the chest (he at that point started to fall, but kept stumbling on with the

possibility of pulling out a gun and shooting with his free hand before collapsing), and then the

head. The irony of all of this is that if Wilsons side of the story is true, the current protests of

Hands up, dont shoot are completely in vain because if Browns hands had been up, then Brown

would most likely be alive and there would be no protesting. The other irony of this is the Black

Lives Matter saying. Let me word this very specifically and carefully: The American system of

justice centers around the individual rather than group harmony. This is not so in some communist

states of the Orient. They will sacrifice the happiness or the life of one individual in order to make a

good statement and keep group harmony. In America, and in this specific situation, justice does not

come to all black people or all white people at once. Justice comes to Michael Brown and Darren

Wilson, and those two people only. So yes, black lives certainly matter, but if Darren Wilson acted

completely in his rights in this specific situation, then we cannot forget that his life matters too.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I am the first to admit that I do not know nearly enough about this case to

decide which side of this essay I want to side with, and that is why I wrote it. In real terms, we may

never know what happened. We will never get a criminal trial, and Darren Wilson will never be

pressured to make a confession if has one. You can either look at that fact as a huge bummer and a

fallacy in our judicial system or as the most painless way to let all of this unrest pass quickly. A trial

might only serve as a prolongational tool for protesting and rioting around the country, especially if

a not guilty verdict were to be returned after all of it. As far as I am concerned, no side of this

mess is without fault. Brown shouldnt have robbed the store or picked a fight with a cop. Wilson

shouldnt have excessively fired his gun or left Browns dead body on the street for four and a half

hours. Eyewitnesses shouldnt have been so contradictory with their stories. McCulloch should

have stepped down and let a special prosecutor take his place. Protestors should have listened to the

entirety of the indictment announcement instead of tuning out right after the decision was stated.

Wilsons stepfather shouldnt have instigated riots. The national media shouldnt have figuratively

poked Ferguson with a stick trying to get it to put on a display that could get ratings. Protestors

should not be ruining local businesses for their cause, and the general public should not be claiming

to know all that the twelve members of the grand jury know about this case. What is saddening

about all of that is that there is no way for America to admit to itself that almost everyone is in the

wrong and therefore the entire argument is all for naught. Instead, everyone wants everyone else to

pay for what they did wrong. But oh the irony when we finally realize that everyone has paid but no

one has gained or lost.