These aren’t the best of times for Ferguson; a city in St Loius county, Missouri, United states. Following the killing of an unarmed teenager Michael Brown, by a police patrolman, Officer Darren Wilson.
On what seemed like an ordinary day in August, Officer Wilson, a white police officer shot Michael Brown in broad daylight in a residential area.
In what has been a trying year for the Black community in America following the acquittal of George Zimmerman for the killing of another unarmed teenager, Trayvon Martin, tempers were understandably high to see how this particular scene would play out.
A grand jury was quickly convened and in between the deliberations, violent protests rocked Ferguson as protesters simply refused to let the killing slide. Protesters camped out on the streets as the Grand Jury took a long time deliberating.
The decision of the grand jury yesterday not to bring criminal charges against Officer Wilson. Reports indicate that there was a brief altercation between Michael Brown and Officer Wilson while the latter was in his patrol car. While the struggle was going on, the Officer’s unholstered weapon went off.
Officer Wilson then gave chase and shot Michael Brown a few more times. Officer Wilson contends that he fired in self defense,
Immediately after the grand jury announced its decision last night, protesters went into the streets and smashed windows, looted cars and set buildings on fire.
Numerous gunshots rang out in several areas prompting the fire fighters to stay away from the burning buildings. The family of Michael Brown have expressed their disappointment in a press statement “we are profoundly disappointed that the killer of our child will not face the consequence of his actions” and in the same breath urged protesters not to resort to violence.
President Barrack Obama also joined the Brown family in calling on protesters to express their frustrations in a peaceful manner. President Barrack Obama definitely showed some empathy in admitting that there were genuine reasons for concern in Ferguson; “This is not just an issue for Ferguson. This is an issue for America,” Obama said. “We do have work to do here, and we shouldn’t try to paper over it”