What Ferguson Can Teach Us

To the dismay of many, gun violence against youth—be it at school or on the streets—is a common theme in American culture. As the occurrences of these gruesome shootings become more frequent, Americans grow even more anesthetized to the events. Even President Obama has indicated that shootings do not affect him as they once did; “Somehow this has become routine. The reporting is routine. My response here at this podium ends up being routine” (Bailey 2015, 1). As Americans become less shocked by school shootings and death, they become numb to violence in other aspects of society—like shootings of black males and shootings of law enforcement officers. Yet, nothing has galvanized the country as it relates to police tactics, black deaths, race relations, and criminal justice techniques more than the death of Michael Brown. The fatal shooting of l Brown by Officer Darren Wilson, a 28-year old white policeman, occurred on August 9, 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri, a suburb of St Louis. The circumstances of the shooting, which continue to be debated and discussed, resulted in an escalation of existing tensions between the citizens of Ferguson and the institution charged with protecting them and the country as a whole. This book provides a more comprehensive examination of the events surrounding the shooting of Michael Brown by Officer Wilson and the events that followed. It uncovers the lingering questions surrounding the events of August 9, 2014, and will serve to generate an on-going dialogue about the role race and class play in the criminal justice system, the importance of recognizing the impact of public policy initiatives and laws at the local level when measured through the lens of criminal justice and judicial equity, and the role the media plays in shaping the public agenda. This book does this by exploring the relationship between established historical cultural norms that have propagated classism and racial division and the public policy initiatives that allow the continuation of these problems.