I'm a walking contradiction when it comes to this forum, it seems. I realize I am extremely passionate about this issue, and at times, I become a total jerk about it. It's not my intention, and for that, I truly apologize. I can't decide whether or not I'm going to keep posting here, because honestly, this forum makes me insane. On the one hand, I'm so happy there are so many of you that care about what's happening to this itty bitty town in Missouri that most people had never even heard of prior to August 9. On the other hand, the misinformation makes my blood boil. People tend to WANT to believe the residents of Ferguson are horrible people, and that literally, truly breaks my heart.
Here are some of the things I want to set the record straight on:
1. The rioters were not residents of Ferguson. They were criminals, opportunists who saw a chance to steal for their own selfish reasons, and knew that due to circumstances, they'd be able to blame the community of Ferguson for their actions. There are businesses in Ferguson that the community needed that will not reopen because of the crimes these outsiders committed. The crimes themselves are unforgivable. That they were committed in the name of Ferguson makes it even worse.
2. 99% of the people posting about Ferguson on Twitter are simply instigators. If anyone is interested in some Twitter handles that are accurately reporting the work that is being done both on behalf of the city and by the residents and authorities of the city, let me know. I can provide lots of resources. Like the looters, most of these imposters are not residents of Ferguson, nor do they represent the best interest of the city.
3. This was alluded to this morning by another poster- people question why those of us who really want to do good things in Ferguson are not speaking out against these "instigators" that do not represent us. The fact is, we are trying. Really, really trying. Registering voters, educating people about the local political system, teaching people how to use their voices in a responsible manner is EXTREMELY important, but unfortunately, totally unsexy. The media would much rather report on the 20 people who were at Busch Stadium last night (even though those people do NOT represent us) than report on the hundreds of people that were at UMSL during the same time, speaking with Claire McCaskill, Attorney Connie Rice, Gwen Ifill, the chief of the Cincinnati police department and Alderman Antonio French. That's where the REAL "protesters" were. And there were lots of us there. Watch the PBS special this Friday night, and you'll see. So many people came that they had to open an overflow room in another building to accomodate them. I was lucky enough to get there in time to get a seat in the main forum. Please know that we do contact the media in an effort to set the record straight. We do try our best to dispute what others are saying about Ferguson, but people don't seem to want to hear it. There are people in this forum who don't seem to want to hear it.
4. Like any other touchy and controversial situation, there will be imposters pretending to represent what Ferguson is all about. It has to be very difficult for those not from the area to get a grasp on what is truly the voice of Ferguson, and what isn't. The bottom line is, as another poster already stated, these problems were ongoing well before Mike Brown was shot. His death was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. It didn't start with him, and it will not end with him.
5. Ferguson has given birth to a generation of young black activists. While that's extremely inspiring in so many ways, some of these young men are terribly misguided. They are distrustful of a system they have been taught to believe is against them, they have years- and in some cases, generations- of anger towards "the man" and towards any authority figure. This includes teachers, police officers, local officials, store owners- anyone and everyone they feel represents a system that does not represent or care about them. Now, not everyone has to agree with them, but they were not born angry. Their experiences do matter. I will NEVER condone violence- I have cut many people out of my life since Mike Brown's death, because they supported violence as a way of being heard. What I won't do, however, is discount their feelings. There is a reason such a huge swatch of our population is angry and desperate. Some of the responsibility for that lies within the black community itself. Some of it lies within a school district that isn't even accredited anymore. Some of it lies with public officials that do not care about the poor and disenfranchised. Some lies with LE. All I'm saying is that there is plenty of blame to go around. This will never be resolved, progress will never be made as long as people refuse to acknowledge the very real pain that resides in this community. It is real. At least TRY to understand it, if you can.
6. To the poster that wondered whether we are merely registering people to vote, or if we're also educating them, the answer is we are educating them. Again, the process isn't sexy. Most of the elected officials on the ballot do not reflect the population of Ferguson, and have run unopposed for many years. We have to change that. Getting people registered to vote is only one step. Getting them passionate enough to show up to the polls is another step. Getting people who truly represent the community on the ballot is yet another step. We are working hard- day in and day out- to do these things.
7. While instigators are doing crazy things online and at Busch Stadium, real work is being done in the local churches. There are many youth programs and outreach groups that are working with the hundreds of young AA men who really do want to affect change in Ferguson. As locals, we are not paying any attention to the few that instigate with banners at Busch Stadium. We are focusing on the men who WANT to make a difference, who don't care about their 15 minutes of fame, who want to make their community better.
Hopefully that clears some stuff up. Again, the vast majority of Ferguson wants progress. Please do not assume that people in front of a camera, simply because they say they represent us actually do. 99% of the time, they don't. The people that are working towards positive change don't have TIME to go to a ball game and raise a ruckus with 19 other people. We are too busy actually DOING it. We have full-time jobs, we have families, and we're trying to do a lot of work in the community too. We are simply too busy making a difference in a positive way to worry about the negative. We rely on many of you to call BS where you see it, so we can keep working.
Sorry about the novel.
