My Thoughts on Ferguson
by ashanti ditaway
I am sickened not only by the lack of justice for Mike
Brown, but by the ignorance that has surrounded
this issue. First of all, people need to check their
privilege. If you’re not a black person, you CAN
NOT talk over black people when it comes to this
situation and you have no right to invalidate black
people’s anger. If I hear one more person say, “I
don’t understand why people are so angry about the
Ferguson situation” or even worse, “Darren Wilson
was well within the confines of the law,” I’m going
to vomit. These, and other ignorant statements, have
been appearing on my social media pages. News flash!
A police officer should never shoot a person unless
they feel their life is in danger. And what was so
scary about a young, unarmed black man walking home
except for the fact that HE WAS BLACK? Don’t want
to answer? It’s cool, you don’t have to because, for
once, your opinion is not the most important one in
the argument. All white people who feel like they
are experts on Black Americans—remember you will
never know what it is like to constantly be racially
profiled, leading to you being denied housing,
healthcare, and job opportunities. You will never
know what it is like to know that the police, the
government, and, most importantly, the grand jury,
couldn’t care less about you.
The verdict was a slap in the face to the very people
who built this country while in chains for more than
200 years. That’s why black people are angry. Got it?
Good. So please, stop trying to silence black people
or tell us to calm down in order to appease your own
white guilt. WE HAVE A RIGHT TO BE ANGRY. I couldn’t
care less about white people being comfortable. Wake
up and realize that the country you love so much is
just as flawed as any other. Murder is murder. When a
police officer kills an unarmed person there should
be outcry, or at the very least an investigation.
Wearing a blue shirt and carrying a gun DOES NOT
excuse recklessness, it DOES NOT excuse murder.
Darren Wilson is a murderer that is free to live his
life, while Michael Brown and so many others like
him are laying frozen in caskets, unable to open
their eyes.
Lastly, shut up about the flags. People are killing
me with this. People are complaining about black
people burning the flag when their ancestors burned
black people? I would rather see a million flags
burned than see a single innocent person murdered.
You can quote me on that racist, white, Republican
America. I’m unpatriotic? I’ll tattoo it on my
forehead. I could care less about your opinions. Why
should the people of Ferguson, or people of color
in general, care about the flag of a country that is
not interested in protecting them or keeping them
safe? STOP USING THE FLAG TO DISTRACT FROM THE REAL
ISSUE: RACISM IN AMERICA. Racism is real, and this
is a RACE ISSUE. This situation would not have been
the same if Michael Brown were a wealthy white boy.
Educate yourself on racism in America before you
speak. #racismisreal #prayingforferguson
[Editor’s note: This is reprinted from issue 4
because it’s still really f *cking important]