Memo from St. Louis to the rest of the world: We’re fine. Really. So far, anyway.
We are not in great spirits. We are saddened by the death of Michael Brown. He was shot to death by a police officer Saturday. As of yet we know almost nothing of the circumstances of that shooting. For that matter, we know little about Michael Brown except that he graduated from high school and planned to go to Vatterott College. That is not the profile of a dead-end kid. He had ambition. He had plans.
His death was a tragedy, very possibly a crime.
What has happened since is more of a dark comedy. A farce.
First, we had riots. People smashed windows and stole things. Liquor and shoes were popular. We were told there was a certain nobility in this. It wasn’t looting as much as it was protesting. Columnist Leonard Pitts Jr. explained that the looting was a scream from the people of Ferguson.
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Of course, Pitts is from Miami and probably couldn’t find Ferguson. That is not meant as a criticism. Many people in St. Louis couldn’t find Ferguson. We have something like 100 municipalities in St. Louis County. Ferguson is not even one of the larger ones.
That’s something you should realize if you see pictures of the rioting on television. It is not widespread. In fact, I visited a friend in Ferguson the other day. He has a nice house in a middle-class neighborhood. He was out of town last weekend and when he saw news of the rioting on television, he called his wife. She didn’t even know about the storm raging four blocks away.
So don’t worry too much if you have relatives in St. Louis. They’re probably fine.
You would not think that if you watch national news or read the big papers. I am not blaming the national reporters. Their job is to cover significant stories, and by gosh, they will do their best to make things significant. We had two of them arrested Wednesday night — Wesley Lowery of the Washington Post and Ryan Reilly of the Huffington Post. Police asked everybody to leave a McDonald’s restaurant, and the two reporters did not comply. Or at least not quickly enough.
It was foolish to arrest them, I’d say, but it gives them some status. Fifty years ago, they would have stood up to Sheriff Bull Connor and his dogs and his fire hoses in Birmingham. It is not their fault they are reduced to loitering too long at a fast-food restaurant.
Also arrested was Antonio French. He’s one of the brightest of our aldermen — faint praise, actually — and I always figured he’d run for mayor someday. Now I think he might be gunning for Congress. He has elevated himself these past few days.
I can’t say the same for Jon Belmar. He is the new St. Louis County police chief. Very first thing he did when the county got handed the investigation was say something to the effect that the Ferguson chief had asked him to take over and that indicated the Ferguson chief had nothing to hide. Why voice your support for the Ferguson police department when you’re supposed to be an honest broker?
Besides, Belmar looks a lot like the Ferguson police chief, Tom Jackson. Perceptions matter. Two heavyset white guys with silver hair expressing their faith in each other does not inspire confidence with a skeptical young black audience.
Then a total shutdown on information made things worse. How many shell casings were found at the scene? “More than a few.” How many times was Michael Brown shot? “More than just a couple but I don’t think it was many more than that.”
Thanks for being so straightforward, Chief Belmar.
Four days into the investigation, Jackson announced that the still unnamed police officer who shot Brown suffered facial injuries and was taken to a hospital. Four days to learn that? What’s next?
Then, too, there is the heavy show of force on the streets. That seems to rev up the sense of confrontation. Angry crowds come out at night, masked young men spoiling for a fight. It’s hard to blame the cops who have been put into this position, but the tactics haven’t been successful.
I’d be amiss if I didn’t mention my colleagues. They’ve waded into the midst of things to get their stories and their photos. Some really great photos, too. My favorite was of a guy with sagging pants jumping through a store window with a bottle of wine in each hand.
As Pitts would say, it was a portrait of Ferguson screaming.
Tragedy then farce. That’s been our story. We’re fine, but nervous. So far, the riots have been confined to a very small area. The longer the national spotlight is on us, the more nervous we get.