Righteous anger has erupted in Ferguson, Mo., and cities across the country after the sham grand jury announced no indictment of Officer Darren Wilson for the murder of 18-year-old Mike Brown, an unarmed African American youth who was shot seven times and killed on Aug. 9, 2014.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation stands with the people of Ferguson and all those protesting this latest racist outrage. Mike Brown was another victim of an epidemic of police abuse and murder that has claimed the lives of hundreds of African American, Latino, other people of color and poor people in general over the past year.
When, following the non-indictment of Wilson, the people in Ferguson tried to protest in a street where they were told by the authorities that they could “peaceably assemble,” they were immediately confronted by heavily armed, extremely aggressive riot cops using mace and tear gas. While the police claimed that “gunshots” compelled firefighters to leave the area where some Black-owned businesses were on fire, there were no reports of gunshot wounds, leading many to believe that the police themselves fired the shots.
It is a well-known fact that grand juries almost universally: 1) Do what the prosecutor wants them to do; and 2) Indict the person being charged. In 2010, the last year for which there are records, out of more than 162,000 cases heard by federal grand juries, only 11 did not return indictments!
Why was there no indictment to find “probable cause” to put Officer Wilson on trial? Because bigoted St. Louis County prosecutor Robert McCulloch—while pretending to take a “hands-off” approach—actually arranged the evidence so that Wilson would walk free. Instead of an investigation to determine if Wilson should be indicted, the grand jury proceeding was turned into a trial of Michael Brown. Reality was turned upside down, with the shooter, Wilson, made to look like the “victim” and Michael Brown, the deceased, made to appear the aggressor.
Even as McColloch was announcing there would be no indictment on the evening of Nov. 24, thousands were already gathered in New York City, Los Angeles, Washington, San Francisco, Oakland, Chicago, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Salt Lake City, Seattle and many more. In New York, three bridges were shut down; I-44 in St. Louis and I-580 in Oakland were closed.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation has joined with and helped organize many of the ongoing protests. Everyone who is opposed to racism and policy brutality needs to be in the streets today and in the days that follow. Only the people can bring an end to injustice. Join us—the time is now!
