#FergusonFiasco: The Killing of #MikeBrown: A Reader

#FergusonFiasco: The Killing of #MikeBrown: A Reader March 4, 2015

On Saturday, August 9, police officer Darren Wilson, in Ferguson, Missouri shot and killed 18 year old Michael Brown. The shooting of yet another unarmed black person frustrated many people and have some wondering what can be done to stop all forms of police brutality. Here at R3, as usual, when stories such as these break, we collect some of the editorials and opinion pieces that examine the shooting of Brown. If you have a piece you would like for us to include, please send it to us at rhetoricracereligion@gmail.com.  

*Read previous Readers here


1. #MichaelBrown: The Devaluation of Black Bodies Continued 
2. Michael Brown shooting: ‘They killed another young black man in America’ 
3. The Michael Brown Case 
4. Thinking about Michael Brown and the African Burial Ground 
5. The True Stereotypes Behind Michael Brown’s Death 
6. What White People Can Do About the Killing of Black Men in America 
7. How “Reasonable” Should the Public Be About the Mike Brown Shooting? 
8. Missouri teen shot dead after jaywalking; witnesses say with hands in the air 
9. How the Media Missed the Mark in Coverage of Michael Brown’s Killing 
10. HRC Joins National LGBT Organizations in Letter of Support for Family of Michael Brown 
11. In Michael Brown case, race rears once again for President Obama 
12. Michael Brown and Anti-Black Violence 
13. Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Renisha McBride and Public Lynchings: Have Times Changed? 
14. In Ferguson, Washington Post reporter Wesley Lowery gives account of his arrest 
15. America Is Not For Black People 
16. Rage Is The Right Response To Cops Executing Citizens 
17. Black Kids Don’t Have to Be College-Bound for Their Deaths to Be Tragic 
18. What Are Black Politicians Doing—or Willing to Do—About Police Killing Black Folks?  
19. A Letter to America 
20. Is Rioting And Looting Ever Valid?
21.To My Unborn Son: On Mike Brown, Police Brutality and the Fears of Black Motherhoo
22. Things To Stop Being Distracted By When A Black Person Gets Murdered By Police  
23. An Open Letter From God to the U.S. on the Event of Ferguson 
24. From Watts in 1965 to Ferguson today, lessons on race left unlearned 
25. From Michael Brown to the Central Park Five, race changes how victims are portrayed 
26. This Looted QuikTrip Represents St. Louis’s Racial Inequality 
27. The Ferguson Shooting and the Science of Race and Guns 
28. Why Ferguson Looks So Much Like Iraq 
29. Losing Michael Brown 
30. Michael Brown and Black Men 
31. The True Stereotypes Behind Michael Brown’s Death 
32. On Being Fed Up: Blackness, Resistance, and the Death of Michael Brown 
33. The Death of Michael Brown
34. The Death of Michael Brown and the Search for Justice in Black America 
35. Michael Brown’s Death Was Shocking. So Are the Racial Profiling Stats We’ve Been Ignoring.
36. Resurrecting Apartheid: White Police and Politicians are Waging War on Black America
37. The Racist Soil of Ferguson MO
38. Ferguson’s weaponized cops and America’s long, ugly history of police violence

39. “He is a hero”: Why the KKK is raising money for Ferguson police officer who shot Michael Brown

43. Why did the Michael Brown shooting happen here?
44. A Movement Grows in Ferguson
45. Eyewitness: ‘The Police Force in Ferguson Is Lying, and I Am Bearing Witness’ (PHOTOS)

47. Black Women Are Killed by Police, Too

56. How to Deal With Friends’ Racist Reactions to Ferguson

58. Rapper Releases “I Am Mike Brown” In Response To Ferguson

60. Ferguson Violence Again Puts Obama in the Spotlight on Race

62. T.I. Pens Open Letter To America In Wake Of Ferguson Turmoil
63. An Invitation to Disruption: A Call to White Churches

75. America’s racial tensions are on show for the world to see in Ferguson
76. Police in Ferguson, Mo Keep on Praying and Preying
77. From Ferguson, Missouri to Manna House
78. Nothing Obama and Holder say will change racial debate over Ferguson
79. Ferguson: Why atheists should care — and what they can do 
80. I WILL NOT BE RETURNING TO FERGUSON
81. Hey, White College Kids: Can the Ferguson Police Get Some of That Kony 2012 Outrage?
82. How Ferguson could be America’s future
83. Self-Segregation: Why It’s So Hard for Whites to Understand Ferguson
84. Michael Brown and the Danger of the Perfect Victim Frame
85. How the Black Middle Class Failed Black Youth
86. It’s Time to Listen: Will White Evangelicals Ever Acknowledge Systemic Injustice? (Part 1)87. Time for another paradigm shift in policing
88. White Christians: It’s Time to Stand in Solidarity With Your Black Brothers and Sisters
89. No More Reconciliation Talk
90. Ferguson as Christological Challenge: Rethinking Jesus in an Unjust Society
91. For Ferguson, We Need Less Niebuhr and More Baldwin
92. Who killed Mike Brown? What to do?
93. Key Factor in Police Shootings: ‘Reasonable Fear’
94. Trap “Imagine” Michael Brown Tribute
95. The Prosecutor in the Michael Brown Case Must Go
96. FERGUSON UNREST SIGNALS U.S. STRUGGLE WITH RACIAL INJUSTICE
97. Michael Brown, senseless death and the weight of history
98. How Mike Brown’s death exposes US race inequality
99. Can We Picture A White Police Officer Murdering a Black Teenager Without Race Being a Factor?
100. T.I. Releases Tribute to Mike Brown: ‘New National Anthem’
101. Killer Mike on the Problems Underlying the Chaos in Ferguson
102. Was Rand Paul right about Ferguson? What Political Theology has to do with Ferguson
103. Hey Folks, Remember This: Racism is Evil resulting from Sin
104. The Ghost of Dred Scott Haunts the Streets of Ferguson
105. After Ferguson, churches must confess the sin of abandonment
106. White privilege: An insidious virus that’s eating America from within
107. Michael Brown, Son, Student ‘Thug’?
108. On Humanity, Race, and Desperation
109. Michael Brown: The Spark That Lit the Tinder of Racial Distrust
110. Michael Brown and the racial politics of teenage rebellion
111. Fuller’s President Reflects on Events in Ferguson
112. Teens Have Greater Fear of Police After Ferguson Shooting
113. Al Sharpton Does Not Have My Ear: Why We Need New Black Leadership Now
114. Liberal Clergy Want to Challenge the Religious Right’s Power in Politics
115. A Call for More than Judicial Remedies
116. Rev. Al Sharpton Delivers Michael Brown Eulogy
117. In Ferguson, Court Fines And Fees Fuel Anger
118. Tef Poe On Ferguson, His Hometown: “The Mike Brown Rebellion Has Begun”
119. The White House’s Contrasting Responses to Michael Brown and James Foley Funerals
120. The New York Times called Michael Brown “no angel.” Here’s how it described serial killers.
121. What We Can Learn From The Mothers of Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin and Sean Bell
122. Race, American Ideology, and Militarized Police
123. What are white folks to do? From Trayvon Martin to Michael Brown
124. How to Teach Kids About What’s Happening in Ferguson
125. Unity and hope in Ferguson, Mo.
126. Ferguson: No peace without representation
127. Athletes Take a Stand for Mike Brown
128. Ferguson is propaganda boon for U.S. foes
129. The Real Reasons Many White People Can’t Empathize With Ferguson, Racial Disparities, or Black Suffering
130. Emmett Till, Mike Brown, and a New Movement for an Old Law
131. The Humanity of Michael Brown
132. Michael Brown and the Ongoing Struggle to Decriminalize Black Life
133. How to save the life of the next Michael Brown
134. Portraits of Ferguson’s Most Tenacious Protesters
135. What Mike Brown’s Death means to Labor
136. Comparing How The New York Times Described Mike Brown & Ted Bundy
137. From John Brown to Mike Brown: Ferguson as a Modern Day Harpers Ferry?
138. White do-gooders, let’s get out of #Ferguson
139. NYT regrets calling Michael Brown ‘no angel,’ but was the newspaper so wrong?
140. Ferguson Protests Aftermath: Missouri Leaders Vow To Make Amends With Residents, But Change Remains Dubious
141. Now Stephen Colbert chides Fox News coverage of Ferguson
142. Is Hillary Clinton Better at Talking About Racial Injustice Than Obama?
143. Ferguson on Fire
144. St. Louis Is Growing More Diverse–Just Not in the Black Half of Town
145. Ferguson isn’t about black rage against cops. It’s white rage against progress
146. Ferguson Raises Questions of Police Accountability
147. I’m From Ferguson and I’m Tired and Fed-Up
148. Two Executions and the Unity of Mourning
149. Say What?: On Speechlessness, Racism and Respectability in #Ferguson
150. Feminists take on race and police conduct post-Ferguson
151. Negrophobia: Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and America’s Fear of Black People
152. Ferguson Fades From News Media, But Not From Social Media
153. Wake Up: For White Folks in Denial About Racism
154. Where Are the Women Police in Ferguson?
155. What divides Black America?
156.  Ferguson on the First Day?
157. Mike Brown & The 21st Century Race Riots
158. Mike Brown’s Family Must Rely on Biased Prosecutor to Charge Wilson
159. From Emmett Till to Michael Brown, a story as old as America itself
160. “I am not afraid to die”: Why America will never be the same post-Ferguson
161. Minister Farrakhan Responds to #MikeBrown Shooting in #Ferguson: A Time to Die
162. Has Ferguson Changed the Hearts of Megachurch Pastors?
163. Mike Brown’s shooting and Jim Crow lynchings have too much in common. It’s time for America to own up
164. The Price of Blackness: From Ferguson to Bed-Stuy
165. #FergusonFiasco: Doing Theology After #Ferguson-Part 1
166. America, the Walls of Ferguson Must Come Down!
167. Demanding ‘perfect mourners’ in Ferguson
168. Let Our Ears Tingle with Truth
169. The Color of Justice
170. How to Teach Kids About What’s Happening in Ferguson
171. Why Mike Brown’s Mother is my Shero
172. MICHAEL BROWN, FERGUSON AND THE PROBLEM WE’RE ALL IGNORING
173. Stop Killing Our Black Sons
174. Another (Much Higher) Count Of Homicides By Police
175. An Open Letter to the Council of Bishops from Gil Caldwell and Pamela Lightsey
176. A necessary conversation
177. A portrait of Michael Brown
178. What If Michael Brown Had Been Armed?
179. Scenes From The Ferguson We Didn’t See On TV
180. When mistakes become deadly
181. The rise of hope and a desire to change after Michael Brown’s death
182. Lessons From Ferguson
183. Get on the Bus: Inside the Black Life Matters ‘Freedom Ride’ to Ferguson
184. The Rhetoric of White Privilege in America
185. Black America Needs Its Own President
186. Ferguson’s Reach: A Shot Felt in South Africa
187. Why Race Is a Permanent Problem in the USA
188. Emmett Till, Michael Brown and the Ongoing Struggle for Racial Justice
189. St. Louis Police Shot 16 Before Michael Brown in 2014
190. The New Racism
191. “There’s a hunger to deny that race matters”: The new segregation and white America/black America divide
192. Fires rage in Ferguson
193. Post-Michael Brown Murder, We Cannot Afford To Fall Back To Sleep
194. The Birth of the #FergusonSyllabus
195. Student photojournalist on covering Ferguson riots: ‘It was a complete war zone’
196. Low Voter Turnout Didn’t Kill Michael Brown
197. What Can September 11th Teach Us About Michael Brown and the Extrajudicial Killings of Black People?
198. Ferguson’s Plan To Cut Back On Court Fees Could Inspire Change
199. 13 More ‘Michael Brown’ Police Killings We’ve Learned About In The Month Since His Death
200. ‘Should The Law Say You’re Only Not Arrested If You Kill An Unarmed Black Person?’
201. Anyone But You
202. For Michael Brown, Justice Is Not a Gift. It’s a Right
203. Black Urban Males and the Diminishing Public Deal
204. In defense of black rage: Michael Brown, police and the American dream
205. #FergusonFridays: If it wasn’t for the women…[i]
206. After Ferguson, Some Black Academics Wonder: Does Pursuing a Ph.D. Matter?
207. Michael Brown Was No Angel — Neither Was I
208. Ferguson tragedy becoming a farce
209. In Ferguson, Mo., Before Michael Brown There Was Henry Davis
210. Portrait of a protester in Ferguson, Missouri
211. The legal reason why it matters if Mike Brown was shot with his hands up
212. Ferguson and the Dilemma of Black Journalists

213. Was Ferguson the beginning of a new civil rights era?
214. Ferguson is the latest reminder why I’m scared for my boys
215. The story of North County: How America is in a perpetual state of reconstruction
216. Blacks and Whites Aren’t Having the Same Conversation on Race
217. Ferguson’s massive cover-up: How police departments are protecting Michael Brown’s killer
218. When All the Angels Are White
219. Ferguson Rapper Tef Poe: Barack Obama Has Forsaken Us, But We Will Not Stop Fighting Injustice
220. In Ferguson, Healing Proves Elusive
221. FERGUSON THE AFTERMATH: WHY VOTING AND VOTER REGISTRATION IS A NON-SOLUTION!
222. “STOP HITTING YOURSELF”:ON MY RIDE TO FERGUSON AND BLAMING BLACK PEOPLE FOR ANTI-BLACK VIOLENCE
223. Since You Already Forgot About #Ferguson And #MikeBrown, Let Me Give You An Update
224. The obstruction-of-justice system in Ferguson
225. Ferguson, a Month Later
226. We Are Left to Make This Moment Into a Movement’
227. Black people had the power to fix the problems in Ferguson before the Brown shooting. They failed.
228. “I Am Because We Are: Ferguson, Family & Freedom”
234. Ten Things White People Can Do About Ferguson Besides Tweet
235. Why Darren Wilson Isn’t in Cuffs
236. ‘I’ve Spent More Time In Jail Than Darren Wilson’
237. Slavery Matters More Than Ever
238. OP-ED: From Ferguson to the ballot box
239. Ethics, Accuracy and Perspectives on Michael Brown and Ferguson
240. How Did Black People Fail to Stop the Problems in Ferguson Before Michael Brown was Killed?
241. Reflections On Ferguson, One Month On: Heroism, Lessons, What Next?
242. Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson’s Urgent Announcement
243. ‘The killing of Michael Brown stung my heart’ Organizing for justice in Ferguson
244. From Slavery to Ferguson: America’s History of Violence Toward Blacks
245. Let’s Talk Ferguson
246. Ferguson Teach-In Brown University
247. Learning From Ferguson
248. #FergusonFridays: White Anti-Racism, Social Media, and the Problem of Self-Serving Allying
249. Why is Omar Gonzalez alive and Mike Brown dead?
250. Ferguson Officials Aren’t Telling You What Happened to Mike Brown
251. Steve Harvey’s emotional chat with Michael Brown’s mom
252. White Privilege on the Streets of Ferguson
253. Yeah, It Really Is About Race
254. In Ferguson, a high price for access
255. #FergusonFridays: Not all of the Black freedom fighters are men: An Interview with Black Women on the Front line in Ferguson
256. Demonstrators interrupt STL symphony singing a ‘Requiem for Mike Brown’
257. Before Ferguson, There Was Tulsa
258. The street,’ the police and Michael Brown
259. Police Violated Constitutional Rights Of Ferguson Protesters, Federal Judge Rules
260. Not All of the Black Freedom Fighters Are Men: Black Women on the Front Line in Ferguson
261. Mike Brown is a n*****
262. Michael Brown Had a Father
263. What Shall We Do With the White People? Ferguson–and America–Needs a Better Class of Racists
264. Three comments that won’t help matters in Ferguson

265. Ferguson protest leaders: ‘We’ll take our anger out on people who failed us’
266. Ferguson underscores how much elections matter
267. Videos Of Deadly Police Encounters Grab The Media Spotlight, But Why?
268. The Worth of Black Men, From Slavery to Ferguson
269. Whites Protest in Solidarity with Black Youth in Ferguson
270. Justice for Mike Brown is justice for us all
271. Is the Police Shooting of VonDerrit Myers Another Mike Brown?
272. Race and Death in Police Shootings
273. The right way to protest
274. Ferguson Prepares For ‘Weekend of Resistance’ as Protests Erupt Once Again
275. Race and Militarism from Ferguson to Syria: A letter to African Americans
276. Black males 21x more likely to die in police shootings than whites
277. Red October meets #FergusonOctober
278. The Ferguson Resistance
279. ‘Terror on American soil’: #FergusonOctober stages 4-day rally as shooting anger rages
280. 5 ways to never forget Ferguson – and deliver real justice for Michael Brown
281. Protesters stage surprise sit-in at St. Louis gas station; 17 arrested
282. After #Ferguson
283. Why Every Jesus Follower Must Show Up In Ferguson!
284. Ferguson, the Murder of Michael Brown, and the St. Louis Cardinals
285. Beyond #FergusonOctober
286. The Silent Idol of Whiteness
287. Where are my white people?
288. Justice For Michael Brown: An Expanding Definition
289. Ferguson Has Awakened a Larger Struggle for Racial and Economic Justice in America
290. Youth Are on the Frontlines in Ferguson, and They Refuse to Back Down
291. Ferguson is. . .
292. The Making of Ferguson
293. THE POWER OF HIP HOP AND THE CHANGING OF THE GUARD IN #FERGUSONOCTOBER
294. Ferguson’s Marchers Have Shown Us That We’re Not Done Marching
295. The role faith leaders play in national crises like Ferguson
296. The Making of Ferguson
297. Has the Church Learned Anything From Ferguson?
298. A Moral Monday Letter to Ferguson
299. The Only ‘Outside Agitators’ Left in Ferguson
300. A Pastoral Letter to Members of the Ferguson, Missouri Police Force
301. #BiblicalJustice: Turning Tables and Snatching Wigs: A Biblical Response to Ferguson and Forney
, Part 1

302. St Louis Protests: Ferguson Activists Reject Religious Leaders’ Platitudes
303. #FergusonOctober: Mass Meeting: An Interfaith Service
304. Close to Home: A Psychologist Reflects on Providing Crisis Counseling in Ferguson

305. Racism, Repression and Resistance
306. Echoes of COINTELPRO in Ferguson
307. Is it a coverup? House of Cards level corruption in Ferguson and beyond
308. Discovery, ethics and the killing of Michael Brown Jr.
309. Raw City: Inside Ferguson’s War Against Itself
310. The Post-Michael Brown Agenda Provides Goals for the Movement to End Racist, Militarized Policing
311. With Ferguson Protests, 20-Somethings Become First-Time Activists
312. How a Century of Racist Policies Made Ferguson Into a Pocket of Concentrated Despair
313.The Ferguson Report: The Smearing Of Mike Brown
314.Black Athletes In The Age of the Killing of Mike Brown
315. Race relations in America and the case of Ferguson
316. Tef Poe: The Democratic Party Is Failing Us
317. Why Jews should care about Ferguson
318. Race and Justice in Ferguson
319. Michael Brown and the deadly effects of colorism
320. Ferguson Grand Jury Decision Nears: Why The Mike Brown Shooting Case Is Taking So Long
321. Considering American Cultural Logic as We Await Mike Brown Verdict
322. Michael Brown Sr. Appeals for Calm Ahead of Grand Jury Decision
323. A COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SHOOTING OF MICHAEL BROWN BY DARREN WILSON
324. Churches to serve as safe spaces after Ferguson grand jury announcement
325. Ferguson and the African American Intellectual Moment
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/living/family/article2078348.html#storylink

Browse Our Archives