Q&A for people tired of Ferguson protests

St. Louis Post-Dispatch ^ | November 13, 2014 | Michael T. McPhearson and Denise D. Lieberman

[rwa265]

As we approach the grand jury decision after more than 80 days of protest, we understand that some members of the community are growing tired of civil unrest. They are asking questions about how it can end. Here are the Don’t Shoot Coalition’s answers to some of those questions. Protesters may have some points to make, but why can’t they express them peacefully? The protests have been 99.5 percent nonviolent. But we are also being purposefully militant and disruptive. Change has not come through the courts, through politics or through gentle persuasion. We cannot wait any longer for whole segments of our society to gain freedom from abuse. Civil disobedience exposes tensions that already exist below the surface. Our society will not heal if we do not address issues that many people want to keep buried.

What good does it do to disrupt businesses and people’s lives, when these people are not part of the problem? Your question does not reflect the whole picture. This involves all of us. It’s wrong to simply draw arbitrary boundaries around issues like fair policing, and decide that most folks are not involved. Many people — especially white folks — feel they can ignore the problem. People who benefit from or are not impacted by this unfair system have a duty to speak up and not be complicit. Ferguson has shifted the boundary line. It is not enough to say, “I’m not racist” just because you have suppressed your conscious biases. The protests are designed to make people feel uncomfortable and spur us all to end society’s structural biases.

[hal ogen]

Hope he is prepared and stays safe.

[Mom MD]

Fortunately he is on a 2 week break starting yesterday. I really hope this happens and dies down before he has to go back.