 |
| Ferguson protestors locking arms twanasparks.org |
I would like to take a moment to talk about the Grand Jury decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson and the aftermath. First of all, I would like to commend the Grand Jury in Ferguson for taking on this monumental task. It was not easy to sift through all the conflicting evidence and testimony but the men and women who sat on the panel should be commended for accepting this responsibility. Having said that, I do not think that the decision not to indict Officer Wilson was the wisest. Officer Wilson should face the consequences of his action. Officer Wilson's disproportionate response to an unarmed young man demonstrated a callous disregard for human life. This is something that Officer Wilson will have to live with for the rest of his life. He says he's sorry and his conscience is clear. There was absolutely no reason for him to shoot Michael Brown twelve times. There was no reason to shoot him at all. I would also like to address my comments to those individuals who believe that vandalism and violence is a healthy form of expression. You, too, will have to live with the consequences of your actions. The damage you cause will adversely affect innocent bystanders for years to come. If you loot a store, you deprive a business owner of his livelihood. If you set fire to a car, you deprive someone of the ability to go to and from work or take their child to school. My point here is that choices were made in the heat of the moment that resulted in lasting repercussions. Officer Wilson chose to discharge his weapon twelve times, taking the life of someone's son. Protestors who choose to commit acts of violence and vandalism will have to live with the fact that they deprived someone of a right to a livelihood and property. Whether you believe the shooting was justified or not, the consequences of this one decision will last a lifetime.
No comments:
Post a Comment