Hands Up
Michael Brown was college-bound.
Just 18 years on the planet and now he's dead.
What happened in the moments before he was shot to death is in dispute and there's a whole lot of anger in a suburb of St. Louis.
The town of Ferguson, Missouri is two-thirds black and the people who police the area are mostly white.
That's really a recipe for disaster as people are protecting and looting and vandalizing their own neighborhood as they protest the circumstances of Brown's death.
The whole thing is really, really sad and I'm tempted to make a bit of a joke here because I heard Jessie Jackson speak on the matter, but I have no idea what Jessie was saying.
Jesse really needs to be captioned.
Yet none of it is anything less than disturbing to me because the death of Michael Brown will now be simplified into a black versus white thing.
People who don't know the first thing about blacks will talk about why Brown was automatically a suspect.
Blacks who hate whites will now have good reason.
And that's not even getting into the whole...cops are pigs debate.
Yet I feel for the police officer in the case as well. I can't imagine going out to do my job wondering if it might be my last shift because who knows who wants to do what to me.
Being a cop isn't for the feint of heart, and there's just a split-second to make a decision.
Of course, the stories coming out of the two communities are completely different. The account from Brown's family and friends goes something like this:
Brown was unarmed. Brown had his hands in the air. Brown was left on the sidewalk for hours. Brown was murdered.
From the police officer's side:
Brown was a real threat. Brown was armed. The officer feared for his life. Brown was not surrendering.
I have a bad feeling here.
This will truly escalate before the wounds heal.
Here's hoping there's a unification of sorts and that the family of Michael Brown finds some peace.
But if you somehow get on one side or other of this matter, do me a single favor, before you sling hatred one way or the other think of one simple thing:
An 18-year-old man died.
His life shouldn't end in a cloud of dust that is fueled by hatred.
Give Michael Brown that much.
We can't just throw our hands in the air and refuse to bridge the wide gap in race relations.
We certainly need peace.
41 Shots by Bruce Springsteen
41 shots, and we'll take that ride
'Cross the bloody river to the other side
41 shots, cut through the night
You're kneeling over his body in the vestibule
Praying for his life
Is it a gun, is it a knife
Is it a wallet, this is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
41 shots, Lena gets her son ready for school
She says, "On these streets, Charles
You've got to understand the rules
If an officer stops you, promise me you'll always be polite
And that you'll never ever run away
Promise Mama you'll keep your hands in sight"
Is it a gun (is it a gun), is it a knife (is it a knife)
Is it a wallet (is it a wallet), this is your life (this is your life)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
Is it a gun (is it a gun), is it a knife (is it a knife)
Is it in your heart (is it in your heart), is it in your eyes (is it in your eyes)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
41 shots, and we'll take that ride
'Cross this bloody river to the other side
41 shots, I got my boots caked with this mud
We're baptized in these waters (baptized in these waters)
And in each other's blood (and in each other's blood)
Is it a gun (is it a gun), is it a knife (is it a knife)
Is it a wallet (is it a wallet), this is your life (this is your life)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in your American skin
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
Just 18 years on the planet and now he's dead.
What happened in the moments before he was shot to death is in dispute and there's a whole lot of anger in a suburb of St. Louis.
The town of Ferguson, Missouri is two-thirds black and the people who police the area are mostly white.
That's really a recipe for disaster as people are protecting and looting and vandalizing their own neighborhood as they protest the circumstances of Brown's death.
The whole thing is really, really sad and I'm tempted to make a bit of a joke here because I heard Jessie Jackson speak on the matter, but I have no idea what Jessie was saying.
Jesse really needs to be captioned.
Yet none of it is anything less than disturbing to me because the death of Michael Brown will now be simplified into a black versus white thing.
People who don't know the first thing about blacks will talk about why Brown was automatically a suspect.
Blacks who hate whites will now have good reason.
And that's not even getting into the whole...cops are pigs debate.
Yet I feel for the police officer in the case as well. I can't imagine going out to do my job wondering if it might be my last shift because who knows who wants to do what to me.
Being a cop isn't for the feint of heart, and there's just a split-second to make a decision.
Of course, the stories coming out of the two communities are completely different. The account from Brown's family and friends goes something like this:
Brown was unarmed. Brown had his hands in the air. Brown was left on the sidewalk for hours. Brown was murdered.
From the police officer's side:
Brown was a real threat. Brown was armed. The officer feared for his life. Brown was not surrendering.
I have a bad feeling here.
This will truly escalate before the wounds heal.
Here's hoping there's a unification of sorts and that the family of Michael Brown finds some peace.
But if you somehow get on one side or other of this matter, do me a single favor, before you sling hatred one way or the other think of one simple thing:
An 18-year-old man died.
His life shouldn't end in a cloud of dust that is fueled by hatred.
Give Michael Brown that much.
We can't just throw our hands in the air and refuse to bridge the wide gap in race relations.
We certainly need peace.
41 Shots by Bruce Springsteen
41 shots, and we'll take that ride
'Cross the bloody river to the other side
41 shots, cut through the night
You're kneeling over his body in the vestibule
Praying for his life
Is it a gun, is it a knife
Is it a wallet, this is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
41 shots, Lena gets her son ready for school
She says, "On these streets, Charles
You've got to understand the rules
If an officer stops you, promise me you'll always be polite
And that you'll never ever run away
Promise Mama you'll keep your hands in sight"
Is it a gun (is it a gun), is it a knife (is it a knife)
Is it a wallet (is it a wallet), this is your life (this is your life)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
Is it a gun (is it a gun), is it a knife (is it a knife)
Is it in your heart (is it in your heart), is it in your eyes (is it in your eyes)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
41 shots, and we'll take that ride
'Cross this bloody river to the other side
41 shots, I got my boots caked with this mud
We're baptized in these waters (baptized in these waters)
And in each other's blood (and in each other's blood)
Is it a gun (is it a gun), is it a knife (is it a knife)
Is it a wallet (is it a wallet), this is your life (this is your life)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in your American skin
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
41 shots (you can get killed just for living in)
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