No indictment by the grand jury. I hate to say this, but I kind of figured that was going to happen. I feel like this was one of those “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” type situations. Even if Officer Wilson had been indicted there would be an argument over what his punishment would be. What is a life worth to the citizens of that community? What’s a black life worth? I shed a few tears last night while watching that coverage. I got angry, said a few expletives, and cried. This has happened too many times.
Now there are those who say that this isn’t solely a race issue, and I agree it isn’t, but I’d be lying if I said that that wasn’t a big issue. Those names above are just a drop in the bucket, and it’s sad. President Obama said something last night about the tension and distrust between law enforcement and “communities of color”. Not every white cop is racist, not every black person apprehended or assaulted by an officer is a criminal, but it’s hard to see that when you see so many incidents of stuff like this happening. I have a pretty good understanding of the law and know why a grand jury would choose not to indict someone, but I feel like the grand jury was wrong here. They wouldn’t have had to sentence him, and I’m not sure if that’s what made them hesitate on filing charges, that would be up to the judge. But it felt like Wilson isn’t being punished at all and he killed a person. Say what you want, but those didn’t look like self defense wounds to me. I know officers who have gotten more than just a slap on the wrist for even pulling their gun before exhausting all other options. This man was allowed paid leave, over $400k in tax free money through a charitable fund and now he walks away with only public shame. What about Marissa Alexander who’s facing 20 years in prison for firing warning shots at no one to keep her abuser from attacking her again? I know that these are different instances in different states, but the punishments don’t fit the crime. At all.
His family issued the following statement after it was announced that Wilson wouldn’t be indicted.
President Obama also said something similar, calling for people to respond peacefully. I agree with them on this. I understand that people are angry, shit I’m angry, but that doesn’t mean that we should take to the streets and destroy places of business and other people’s property. At the end of the day that only hurts the citizens of Ferguson more and it gives the media what they want. Don’t do that!
Don’t fuel the fire. Media outlets are going to show what gives them good ratings that’s Black people running around rioting and looting and not people doing a sit in in front of a police station or standing in front of the capital shouting “Hands up, don’t shoot”. I need people to realize that our words have power. Walking out and protesting is great, but we live in a digital age and we can make just as much as a difference writing blog posts and posting educated messages on social media (or sharing them). Use your words! And for those of you who are saying that you’re boycotting Black Friday sales, that’s fine with me. Those retail deals have nothing to do with this, but that means more items for me to buy.
What do y’all think about the situation? Did you watch the announcement last night? Pres. Obama’s speech?
