Week 5 EOC: Ferguson and Marketing

On Saturday, August 9, 2014, Michael Brown was shot down in Ferguson, MO by police officer Darren Wilson. Michael was suspected of a store robbery, however, his encounter with Officer Wilson had nothing to do with that. Ever since the shooting, Ferguson has been the topic of the month with notable hashtags “#handsup” and “#dontshoot”. Celebrities, politicians, and activists have shown their support in this white-on-black incident. Even the Redskins, "We just wanted everybody to know that we support Michael and acknowledge what happened in Ferguson,'' (USA Today, Redskins defensive backs pay tribute to Michael Brown). In response to the riots in Ferguson, police have come equipped with military and riot apparel, a $4.3 billion gift from the Federal Government. Police were also given military-grade armor trucks. From the marketing standpoint, Ferguson is not doing so well. The only people protesting equality are the minorities and the Ferguson government only seems to be fueling the fire. The police can be seen in footage in their military gear, pointing their guns at innocent and harmless bystanders. This is a red flag, considering you aren’t supposed to point guns unless you are intending on pulling the trigger, something these officers were not trained and certainly not qualified for. An ongoing debate about whether or not military gear for a police department is necessary. It makes you wonder if they are really that fearful of the population or are they just overreacting as Darren Wilson did, shooting Michael Brown 6 times to his death? The Ferguson police force demographics are mainly white with 2 Pacific Islanders, 1 Hispanic and 5 Blacks, Mayor Jim Knowles revealed. Earlier, this year former officer, Patrick Hayes told his men to arrest specifically Black people, “Let’s have a Black day. Let’s make the jail colorful.” This only showed how much more racial issues Ferguson has had. As the mayor tried to mask the racist town by saying there weren’t any racial issues and everyone got along, it didn’t help when an interviewer asked a Ferguson resident about living there. He revealed that Blacks and other minorities are always being harassed by cops and if not physically then verbally. “Blacks are also disproportionately pulled over by police in Ferguson. Whites make up about a third of Ferguson's population but accounted for just 12.7 percent of the stops by Ferguson police.” (Huffington Post, Police Officer Caught On Video Calling Michael Brown Protesters 'F***ing Animals'). Ferguson is not gaining any reputation that involves positivity. Their police mission statement is to serve and protect, but nothing about serving and protecting has been seen. “Bring it on, you f**king animals! Bring it!” a cop says to protesters. Many police officers fail see these people as individuals and have shown why this is such an issue. “A grand jury is set to begin hearing evidence related to Michael Brown’s death Wednesday. It is still unclear whether Darren Wilson, the Ferguson police officer who shot and killed Brown, will face charges.” (Washington Post, Grand jury will hear evidence related to Michael Brown shooting through October) He probably won’t, he’s white. And yes, that is EXACTLY why!