Sunday Night With John: Ferguson, It’s More Than A Hashtag

My heart aches, as over the last couple of months Ferguson, Missouri has boiled over and become a sad historical marker. For me, it revealed a lack of progress that we have made as a country. I read a Facebook post recently announcing that “it was time to get off Facebook, - too many racists.”  But racism doesn't go away if we ignore it.  I also saw someone “like” an article that basically stated, “hey Ferguson the system worked, accept the answer you were given.” But I had to ask myself if the system we trust in, is sometimes corrupt? I had a conversation with a friend who was convinced that this was the end of sophisticated civilization because our society hasn’t grown from moments like these in the past.  I have also heard “F**k the police!” But in the back of my mind I have compassion for police because I know they have to deal with some of our toughest citizens. In the midst of this confusing situation, I do know that many of us have spouted opinions, formed conclusions, and refuse to listen to each other over an event that is still unfolding.

I don’t know what this means for society in the grand scheme of things because we haven’t seen what will rise from the ashes of Ferguson.  What I do know is that two lives were intertwined that fateful night and their courses were altered forever.  Michael Brown’s life was cut short and his voice silenced while his family is left to grieve their loss and navigate their emotions for the rest of their lives.  On the other side, Darren Wilson held fate in his hands as he took the life of another human being.  He is left to live his life in the face of public ridicule and carries with him a label of inequality. The situation is murky to say the least. But I must remind us as a global and online community that as we rush to our conclusions, and share our false iron- clad answers we cannot forget to stop and listen to each other before sending or posting.

We are constantly exposed to social media and 24-hour cable news.  It is easy to want to join in on the conversation, which is only one click away.  But as we receive news in real time and express our emotions in real time, are we really taking an opportunity to learn more, consider all the facts and just be silent until all information has been shared?  Are we really listening deeply to each other before we comment or share? If society is going to rise from the ashes of Ferguson we must converse through pain and anger, in a way that we all can walk away better people. 

A complex situation like this is more than a like on an article, more than a stereotype, and more than a two-minute segment on Fox News. This is a situation that is rooted in our difficult history with race and our struggle to live up to our founding fathers idea of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. If you leave Facebook over the racism it will still persist and if we think our justice system is perfect we will get what we’ve always gotten. If we continue to think the police are always the bad people, we will never find the correct balance of protect and serve.  It is our job as citizens to challenge the system because the world continues to change and grow.  We must be advocates for ourselves and the rights of our fellow citizens.

Ferguson revealed where we are as a society and it revealed that we still have room to grow. Unfortunately, it showed that there is still ugliness around us that needs to be confronted. It also revealed that we haven’t fully adopted the attitude that everyone is equal. No one ever said this was easy and we aren’t going to fix it with sound bites or stubborn 30-second clips and posts. We are going to have to have difficult conversations and we are going to have to be open to changing our opinions. We are going to have to listen and not just wait for our turn to talk.

I most certainly don’t have all the answers and neither do you, but together in conversations and actions we can move forward from Ferguson into a better place where we can value each other.