The people of Ferguson seem to be sitting on a tinderbox. Apparently the grand jury tasked with investigating officer Darren Wilson, who shot Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, is not going to hand down an indictment. And the Ferguson police has said Wilson could be put straight back to work. Black residents are upset and frustrated with a criminal justice system that doesn’t seem to work for them. According to people I have talked to, black residents are bent on staging protests, which can often spill into rioting and looting. To make things even worse, the knuckleheads from the KKK have said they will use deadly force to stop rioters. In addition, there has been a surge in gun sales.
Things are looking ugly and some people are talking about a potential race war. I just hope cooler heads prevail and the police and the National Guard are able to quell any violence. Having said that, I have no faith in the Ferguson Police Department. During the first spate of protests, there were several incidents where the local police pointed guns at journalists who were simply trying to do their jobs.
It’s hard to tell what’s going on the ground in Ferguson. I get the impression there are a lot of angry black people who don’t know where to focus their anger. A friend of mine told me she had heard that black protesters plan to boycott Black Friday and shut down a highway. This is sad, because it shows the protesters don’t seem to be focused on the right places. The people protesting the Ferguson shooting need to have a strategic plan. Here are some suggestions I came up with.
● Get political. The problem of the Ferguson PD and its treatment of black people is a political one, not an economic one. Protesting at Wal-Mart won’t do a damn thing, because Wal-Mart doesn’t have a say in what happens in Ferguson city government. If you want to affect what goes on in the city of Ferguson, you have to deal with the city council. Although Ferguson is about two thirds black, the city council currently only has one black member. The Ferguson PD isn’t much better. It only has three black officers out of a total of 53. The Ferguson police chief has to answer to the mayor and the city council. If you have a complaint, it needs to be directed to them. (Here is a linkto the city council.) Protesters can also direct their complaints to elected state officials and the governor’s office. This has also become a federal issue and protesters can write to the Attorney General’s office. All this information is available on the Internet and I would be happy to create a form letter, which can be copied and pasted into an email. Protesters also need to state that if the issue of police brutality are not tackled, they will fund and vote for an alternate candidate who will address these issues.
● Get digital. If there is something I can’t stand it[s watching black people march when they are fighting injustice. Marching was a great tool in the 1960s, but that was about 50 years ago. The only thing marching does is raise awareness, which is stage one of protest movement. Chances are Jesse and Al will show up for the cameras, but nothing actually changes. In the 21st century, it’s time for black people to use different tools to effect political change and the Internet is a great weapon. Bombard elected officials with emails and flood their offices with phone calls. This is stage two of a protest movement. That is often more effective than a simple march. Protesters can also set up blogs and Facebook pages, to provide unfiltered reporting on the issue. You can also set up a Change.org petition to drive political action. (Much of this is already being done.)
● Get legal. It looks like the grand jury is not going to indict Wilson, so we might have to turn to the Department of Justice to weigh in with possible civil rights violation charges. If that doesn’t work, I am sure there is an army of personal injury lawyers who are lining up to sue the city of Ferguson. Maybe when the city gets hit with million-dollar settlements, it will force them to clean up their police department. However, it should be noted that this has not worked in Maricopa County, Arizona where Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s abysmal department regularly pays huge legal settlements for bad policing and abuse of jail inmates.
● Get organized. In order for you to work through this list of suggestions, you need to divide up the duties. Some members are going to stage protests, some members need to make phone calls, others need to send emails and do social media. Protesters also have to be willing to stick to their guns to the point where the elected officials get tired of seeing their faces, getting their phone calls and seeing their emails. And protesters should have a list of reasonable demands they want met. That could be hiring more black officers to the Ferguson Police Department, tracking the number of police encounters with black residents or requiring officers to wear body cameras. You might not get all of those demands met, but at least you have a starting point.
I realize people are angry, but Ferguson protestors need to focus their energy in the right places. We have a system for addressing grievances in this country — it’s called the ballot box. Unfortunately, many people complain, never bother to vote, then wonder why nothing changes. The New York Times stated that only 12 percent of Ferguson’s population voted in the last mayoral election. That means the mayor was likely elected by six percent of the population. Violent protests don’t work. All rioting does is turn public opinion against people with genuine grievances. If you want real change you have to show up at the polls. Unfortunately, it seems more people are interested in casting a stone instead of casting a ballot.
