Amidst the news of Panda leaving us for Boston and having an aneurism over my Fantasy Football game yesterday, I caught wind that the grand jury in Ferguson did not indict Darren Wilson for the death of Michael Brown. Soon after, news of it began to flood all of my social media feeds, and coverage of the riots interrupted my attempt to catch up on Sons of Anarchy. I bowed my head in silence for a moment, and braced myself for inevitable. Then, I continued to watch Charlie Hunnam’s fine ass put in work.
A part of me felt insensitive and shallow for Tweeting about JLo and her AMA performance, knowing that there was a #blacklivesmatter hashtag trending. And as a writer, a part of me felt guilty writing about anything NOT the Ferguson verdict. Still, I refuse to.
The truth is, I did not follow the trial as much as I should’ve. Therefore, I do not have enough information about the issue for me to formulate a substantial opinion about it. To some, this may reflect poor character. However, I rather not form an opinion solely based on a sensationalized media or what I’ve seen on my FB feed from others that don’t even know the difference between a “jury” and a “grand jury”.
But I will say something. A few things actually. I will not say “Fuck the police” just because I feel obligated to as a young minority. I will not say all cops are pigs either, because it also allows me to assume that all men of color in baggy pants are criminals. I will not support violence with violence, especially when it doesn’t solve anything and affects the innocent. If there is anyone that deserves an “eye for an eye” pass, it’s Brown’s parents. Instead, they are requesting that you keep protests peaceful.
I have never experienced racism from a white person or been a victim of police brutality, so I cannot relate. But I don’t need to because as naive or ignorant as this may sound, I don’t see the MAIN issue being a race issue. I look at this as an unarmed kid who was shot to death. If it were a Michael Bautista as opposed to a Michael Brown that had been shot, it wouldn’t make the issue any less or more important to me.
I don’t have a son, so I cannot even begin to imagine the pain Brown’s parents must be feeling. It’s completely understandable if they wanted to hurt people and break things. I would too. But at the end of the day, it won’t bring Michael Brown back. Furthermore, it won’t prevent something like this from happening again. It will add fuel to the wrong fire.
So if you’re going to make noise – whether it be by breaking into a Foot Locker or standing on a soapbox, just please make sure that people actually listen.
