Ferguson: The Aftermath and its Effects
By: Leah Oliver
So it has been several days since the murder of Michael Brown, by the hands of police officer Darren Wilson, in Ferguson, Missouri. For some of us Ferguson has really made an impact on our attitudes towards the police in the metro Atlanta area. During the protests and riots that took place in Missouri, Ferguson police displayed how militarized that they can become. Donning tanks and more armor than an US soldier in a combat zone, the police took the streets in their effort to reclaim “peace”. As these events were broadcasted all over the world many students at Arabia changed or reaffirmed their attitudes towards the police here, in DeKalb County.
In a recent survey in which Arabia Mountain High School students participated ranging from the ninth through the twelfth grade, seventy-five percent of the students surveyed stated that since Michael Brown’s death, their attitudes towards the police has only strengthened. In this group sixty-three percent stated that the incident has only reaffirmed that the police are excessive and only bully the people that they are responsible for protecting. However, the remaining thirty-seven percent of those in this group stated that they were still going to keep their beliefs in that the police does their job and tries their best to keep everyone safe.
For those who felt that their attitudes changed since the death of Michael Brown where twenty one percent of the group surveyed. Within this group all of the students agreed that their attitudes towards the police changed for the worse. As a whole the group stated that this event has only caused for them to believe that the police only irritate and pester those that they are responsible for protecting and that the police in general should focus on how to be sensitive when handling certain situations before being allowed on the streets.
The remaining four percent of the students surveyed stated of having and indifferent attitude towards the police and feel that the police has no effect on their lives for various reasons.