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The Ferguson police pretty much did everything they possibly could to create the appearance of a coverup. Whether there's an actual coverup or whether the police in Ferguson are just really bad at handling things has yet to be determined.
Shot 6 times isn't going to sit well with the community. 4 shots to his right arm and 2 to the head might be considered a little excessive by those thinking the police overreacted. All the entrance wounds were to the front of the body, so the witness accounts that made the police look really bad aren't holding up to the evidence.
This happened in Missouri. In a community that has (reportedly) recently changed demographics from predominantly white to predominantly African-American. The police department has remained white, which wasn't well-received in the community, so there was some lingering distrust primed to erupt if a white-on-black incident involving the police occurred. A predominantly white police force in a predominantly black community is never a good idea. It creates the appearance of racism at the upper levels of the department, even if that does not exist.
Racism is not dead in America. Those in positions of authority need to take steps to demonstrate that racism does not exist in their organization. The Ferguson police have not done that, so they laid a perfect groundwork to cultivate an environment of mistrust. In that situation, when a white police officer kills a black teenager, you're going to have problems.
There's something I learned in a Communications class. You never have to deal with the facts. You always have to deal with people's perceptions of the facts. The Ferguson police chief would not have gotten a passing grade in my Communications class.
Shot 6 times isn't going to sit well with the community. 4 shots to his right arm and 2 to the head might be considered a little excessive by those thinking the police overreacted. All the entrance wounds were to the front of the body, so the witness accounts that made the police look really bad aren't holding up to the evidence.
This happened in Missouri. In a community that has (reportedly) recently changed demographics from predominantly white to predominantly African-American. The police department has remained white, which wasn't well-received in the community, so there was some lingering distrust primed to erupt if a white-on-black incident involving the police occurred. A predominantly white police force in a predominantly black community is never a good idea. It creates the appearance of racism at the upper levels of the department, even if that does not exist.
Racism is not dead in America. Those in positions of authority need to take steps to demonstrate that racism does not exist in their organization. The Ferguson police have not done that, so they laid a perfect groundwork to cultivate an environment of mistrust. In that situation, when a white police officer kills a black teenager, you're going to have problems.
There's something I learned in a Communications class. You never have to deal with the facts. You always have to deal with people's perceptions of the facts. The Ferguson police chief would not have gotten a passing grade in my Communications class.
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