Ferguson Unrest Essay

             Ferguson unrest started after the death of an unarmed Black American teenager, Michael Brown, in the hands of a police officer, Darren Wilson on August 9, 2014. He had suffered seven gunshots and lay on the streets for four hours before his body was taken away.  Michael was in the company of his friend Dorian Johnson. It is not clear as to what exactly happened since the story told by the police is entirely different from what Johnson said. What followed was an event of protests and more killings, but it was evident that all these are race oriented. The Black American community feels discriminated upon and not safe in their communities, and want change in the police force so that they can have a better representation. (News, 2015)

Ferguson Unrest Essay

Ferguson is one of the cities that have been faced with major racial discrimination, just like Chicago and Baltimore. When the Michael Brown died, it was like the last blow and the people could not take it anymore. They marched to the streets for days, especially after the grand jury refused to charge Officer Darren Wilson with murder. They were not protesting for just the death of Michael, but also for other people that had died in the hands of the police and their plan of making the system better. A federal report had been released which showed overwhelming racial bias in the town’s policing. Following the report, the US authorities vowed to do everything they could so as to reform the police force, even if it meant dismantling it. (News, 2015)

It is not easy to know the exact numbers of people that die due to police brutality since most of them are not given many highlights. In some cases, police are not to be blamed, since they also have a right to protect themselves from danger. Still, a lot needs to be done concerning the rising cases of innocent deaths. Even after the promises made during the protests after Michaels death, two years down the line it’s clear that people are still bitter. To commemorate the anniversary of his death, people held a peaceful demonstration in his owner. After an accident involving one of the protestors and motorists, things got serious ending up in gun fights. The accident was not intentional, but for the way people behaved it’s clear they are not yet comfortable or safe and feel the need to fight back every time there is a problem since there is no one to fight for them. (Giegerich, 2016)

Ferguson Unrest Essay

The question now remains why Black and White Americans find it hard to live together, despite legal segregation ending years ago. It is hard to face the problem of police brutality and racism when the two groups cannot even live together. The study shows that in some cities like Ferguson, Chicago, and Baltimore, segregation is very much active. Black and White Americans do not live together, and their children attend different schools. The white Americans live in more expensive areas, and the Black Americans are left in the poorer areas, and not that they cannot afford better housing. When looking for houses, the agents only show them houses from specific areas, and for those who manage to move to the better areas, the White people in the area move for fear of their property losing value. That already creates a negative rift between the two groups, and therefore when there is an altercation between a white police officer and a black American it is evidently concluded that it’s something to do with police brutality, even if that is not the case. (Vaidyanathan, 2016)

Ferguson Unrest Essay

News, BBC. “Ferguson Unrest: From Shooting to Nationwide Protests.” BBC News. N.p., 10 Aug. 2015. Web. 08 Nov. 2016.

Giegerich, Steve. “Car Hits Protester, Gunfire Briefly Erupts at Ferguson Protest.” Stltoday.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 08 Nov. 2016.

Vaidyanathan, Rajini. “Why Don’t Black and White Americans Live Together?” BBC News. N.p., 8 Jan. 2016. Web. 08 Nov. 2016.

Vaidyanathan, Rajini. “Has Obama Been Able to Change Anything since Ferguson?” BBC News. N.p., 12 July 2016. Web. 08 Nov. 2016.