On August 9, a Ferguson, Missouri police officer racially profiled and fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown as the teen stood with his hands in the air.
His family and community members are calling it an execution.
"We can't even celebrate...we are planning a funeral."
~ Leslie McSpadden, mother of Michael Brown on celebrating his 1st day of college.
Enough is enough. Please join us in calling on federal and city officials to rigorously investigate, prosecute, and fire all officers involved.
Racially-motivated police violence has no place in law enforcement. Yet the St. Louis Post Dispatch's editorial board found that all too often racial profiling is done by Missouri law enforcement and the stats are getting worse over time. Here's what the St. Louis Post Dispatch's editorial board wrote:
"Last year, for the 11th time in the 14 years that data has been collected, the disparity index that measures potential racial profiling by law enforcement in the state got worse. Black Missourians were 66 percent more likely in 2013 to be stopped by police, and blacks and Hispanics were both more likely to be searched, even though the likelihood of finding contraband was higher among whites.
…In Ferguson, the city where Michael died, the police in 2013 pulled over blacks at a 37 percent higher rate than whites compared to their relative populations. Black drivers were twice as likely to be searched and twice as likely to be arrested compared to white drivers."
The systemic abuse of Black communities by the police in Missouri, and across our nation, must end and perpetrators must be held accountable.
To the right, is the letter we'll send to US Department of Justice and local Ferguson law enforcement officials. You can add a personal comment using the box provided.