Why is America so outraged by the incident with Michael Brown? I read one report where there were two fatalities a week in America from 2006 to 2012 with incidents similar to that of Michael Brown. Why so much national attention for this case?
Well in retrospect I think there is one main underlying reason, the familiarity of the name. A search for how many people there are with the name Michael Brown in Missouri returned a count of 2,269. Personally in my lifetime right here in Hampton Roads I have seen numerous people named Michael Brown. Michael Brown is the name of someone a lot of people have lived next door to, went to school with, went to Church with, were best friends with. Michael Brown is an every day All-American name.
I think every time we hear the name "Michael Brown" in the news it pulls at the heart strings. What is even more daunting is that the names used separately impacts the familiarity even more with people we know as Michael and don't even let me get started with Brown. Brown is not only familiar as a last name, it is familiar as a crayon color we learned as early as two years of age. What color is this? Brown. Brown is normally one of the first colors on the color palette that children get right. The brown dog, the brown bag, there have been numerous children books written for toddlers which heavily use the word "brown". Heck there is even a sitcom now which is very popular entitled "Meet the Browns."
We have seen a lot of cases in the news of horrific proportions but normally they are attached with names that are sometimes difficult to pronounce. Furthermore a lot of times it is hard to recall the first and last name. Even a two year old will probably be able to pronounce and remember the name Michael Brown.
For decades we have had some very famous Michael's who we grew up with. I remember as a child watching good times and how I adored how the young "Michael" and the affectionate way his mother on the show always said "Michael". One of the young civil rights activist I had ever witnessed. And how he would strut around with his chest held out proudly and stood up for what he believed in.
Also, thinking of the name Michael brings to mind the nickname commonly associated with Michael, Mike. Now who doesn't know at least one Mike? Do you see where I am going with this.
When I heard the results of the second autopsy report today it brought tears to my eyes. It seems as if the young man was killed execution style. Now there is a third autopsy being ordered. The first autopsy they acted like they couldn't count. The second autopsy they acted as if they couldn't count accurately. My heart goes out to the friends, family, and acquaintances of Michael Brown because this third autopsy I feel is going to cause more heartache than the previous ones.
The plan for more leaders to show up in Missouri on Wednesday is a great idea. The people in this town need a voice to deliver a message that the people are not alone, the police force is not alone, this is and should be one united country which upholds the freedoms of all its citizens.
I am praying that justice is served to the point to comfort the fears, souls, and spirits of all those who are enduring this injustice first hand. I pray they receive the healing they need to move on and choose peace over violence so they will be around to enjoy justice when it is served.
My heart goes out to the Mother of the victim, Michael Brown, and the father too. I hope they are made whole from this tragic loss of their son and it eases the pain which is clearly on their face. If pain had a face I think it would look a lot like the pain on this mother's face and the heartache which shows on the fathers face. How horrific to know your son was shot down in the street like a wild dog that had mauled someone.
As a mother I wonder what was her last conversation with her son was like. I wonder did they hug and say have a nice day. Did he give her a kiss on the cheek and say "I love you Ma!". Did she encourage him to get out her house because he was getting on her nerves. Did she challenge him jokingly to go and stay gone? Can you imagine interacting with your son and later finding out it was the last interaction you would have with him on this earth. How much more did she want to hold him, how much does she wish she was there to console him, how come the things which seemed so big when he was living like cleaning his room, making his bed, taking out the garbage, getting good grades mean so little now.
The opportunities to spend more birthdays, more holidays, more mother son days together will no longer transpire on this earth. Questions like whether or not to leave a plate at the table for him. Do you leave his room in tact or box it up. Do you live in the same complex where your son was shot down or move on. A child brought into this world by the grace of God and lost to the world at the disgrace of man.
What if they bickering about something really petty. Could you imagine the pain and hurt from a last moment not being a lasting moment you want to remember? All I can say is My God, My God, My God.
God help us all because it really seems America is at war with itself. I thought we had come a long way with race relations. When incidents like this occur it makes me wonder how far have we really come in regards to race relations.
