[Feature] Unraveling Ferguson

After the Michael Brown shooting, protests and civil unrest erupted in the city of Ferguson, Missouri. Communal unrest began immediately the day after the incident. A memorial for Michael Brown started off peacefully with an evening candlelight vigil on August 10. However, some crowd members became unorderly during the ceremony. Some began confronting police officers, vandalizing vehicles, and looting nearby businesses in the city. In the first day alone, twelve businesses were looted and vandalized, along with a burned-down QuikTrip gas station. The violent protests led to over 30 arrests with many businesses forced to close the following day.

The incursions continued the next day. On August 12, several hundred protesters in Ferguson carried out protests, with their trademark gesture of holding their hands in the air while shouting out and carrying signs that read “don’t shoot!”, a reference to Mr. Brown alleged act of surrender before he was shot dead. Although these incursions started as peaceful protests, police reported that some protesting members threw bottles at police officers at the scene. According to officials, the police and the SWAT team had to disperse the crowd by force, using smoke bombs, flash grenades, and tear gas in the process. Ferguson protesters became aggravated and threw projectiles, such as Molotov cocktails pushing the police officials to resort to more forceful measures.

Unruly disruptions continued in Ferguson after the clash between the police force and protesters. On August 15, riots broke out in the Ferguson Market & Liquor store where Mr. Brown had reportedly robbed cigarillos before being shot by the police. A local group of peaceful protesters gathered at front of the pillaged store to prevent further theft from the aggressive protesters. However, further looting and robbery continued onward at nearby stores and businesses down the road.

On August 25, Mr. Brown's family requested the supporters to suspend protests for one day out of respect for Brown’s funeral. Brown’s father said, "All I want tomorrow is peace while we lay our son to rest. Please, that's all I ask." Thousands of people gathered and attended the funeral ceremony, with 2,500 people filling the sanctuary and additional 2,000 attendees gathered outside the church.

Several hundreds of protesters gathered on September 23, after Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson released a video apology to the Brown family. Protesters demanded Jackson’s resignation in front of the police headquarters. Jackson showed up at the protest, explaining that charges were to be underway for Officer Wilson involved in the shooting of Mr. Brown. However, the presence of the Police Chief only seemed to stir up even more public unrest and police officials had to protect the chief and disassemble the protesters.

The decision made by the grand jury on November 24 inevitably set the course for a second wave of demonstrations. The grand jury decided not to charge Wilson for the death of Brown, a decision that caused outrage in the Ferguson region and eventually nationwide. The general public displayed various responses to the announcement by either initiating peaceful protests or violent rioting. At least twelve buildings were burned down, as firefighters were not able to approach the scene past the armed demonstrators for their safety. In South St. Louis, the protest was relatively peaceful, with protesters marching on highways and business districts, forcing all traffic to be shut down in the region.

The local protests that started from Ferguson in response to the grand jury decision have continuously been spreading nationwide and internationally. In more than 170 cities in the United States, thousands of people rallied to protest the verdict of the grand jury. On Black Friday, the Friday following Thanksgiving marking the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, various regions of the US displayed Boycott for the quasi-holiday. In the city of St. Louis, hundreds of demonstrators disrupted the shopping area at the Saint Louis Galleria, West County Center, and Chesterfield Mall, forcing temporary closure. On November 25, more civil unrest occurred at Oakland, California where hundreds of people gathered on Interstate 580, blocking traffic lanes for hours before being forced off by the police. Arson, looting, and vandalism occurred as well, leading to over 90 arrests. Protests also took place internationally, with demonstrations held in several major cities in Canada and in London.

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