A Riot Last Night In St.Louis.

[Aferni 2381]

Well as a resident of St Louis, I attended a riot last night. The riot was because of the unjust actions of a police officer murdering an un-armed teen. The riot lasted for 5 straight hours. Walmart,Boost-Mobile,The Chinese  food restaurants,Bank's and The quiktrip Gas Station was looted, and then burned down. The riot went on from 9pm to 1:30 am. These actions were committed out of engagement for lack of Justice. I support what happened only because of the reason it happened. Call me crazy, or a dumbass. Pardon my french. But I feel as though a revolution is what is needed to fiannly get justice.

 

 

 

[Original Saku 1593]

Moved to the appropriate sub-forum.

[JukaForever 758]

Yeah....no, rioting doesn't do much justice for one death. Definitely not, if it means losing thousands of dollars for business which now jeopardizes the livelihoods of business owners. Also, the city will probably have to spend more money on repairs which will take money away from potentially more useful use of the money. While you can feel a sense of empowerment, the consequences won't justify it.

[Aferni 2381]

Yeah....no, rioting doesn't do much justice for one death. Definitely not, if it means losing thousands of dollars for business which now jeopardizes the livelihoods of business owners. Also, the city will probably have to spend more money on repairs which will take money away from potentially more useful use of the money. While you can feel a sense of empowerment, the consequences won't justify it.

In St.Louis, if something like this happens the business isnt replaced, it's just shut down. Also I understand what you are saying but still, if justice isn't served, people tend to take matters into their own hands. They will force the law into the act of justice by any means necessary even if it means looting and burning. The officer who murdered the teenager has not gotten any penalty whatsoever and if they were peacefully protesting it would have went on for months without justice or action and would have blown over. I myself wouldnt approve of the actions preformed last night but if that is what it takes for justice to be served then I have no problem with it.

[Zeus 7997]

So when was the teenager's death avenged? Before the brick through the window of the Chinese food spot or after enough people walked out of Wal-Mart with brand new televisions? I'm all for holding the actions of police officers accountable as I have to deal with the NYPD, stop and frisk policies, and watching people get arrested, beaten, and occasionally shot for being black on a daily basis. But never get it twisted: no justice was served. The riot will not affect the sentencing of that police officer in a positive manner. The people at that Chinese food spot did nothing to that teenager, yet now they have to deal with the aftermath. Wal-Mart didn't assist the police officer by supplying him bullets, yet now they have to clean up after the riot. Neither did the bank, or the gas station, or whatever else was caught in the crosshairs. How many thousands of dollars did the riot cause in damaged property? How many businesses now have to shut down?

All that was accomplished was the successful destruction of a neighborhood.

[Aferni 2381]

So when was the teenager's death avenged? Before the brick through the window of the Chinese food spot or after enough people walked out of Wal-Mart with brand new televisions? I'm all for holding the actions of police officers accountable as I have to deal with the NYPD, stop and frisk policies, and watching people get arrested, beaten, and occasionally shot for being black on a daily basis. But never get it twisted: no justice was served. The riot will not affect the sentencing of that police officer in a positive manner. The people at that Chinese food spot did nothing to that teenager, yet now they have to deal with the aftermath. Wal-Mart didn't assist the police officer by supplying him bullets, yet now they have to clean up after the riot. Neither did the bank, or the gas station, or whatever else was caught in the crosshairs. How many thousands of dollars did the riot cause in damaged property? How many businesses now have to shut down?

All that was accomplished was the successful destruction of a neighborhood.

I never looked at it that way. Seeing as how they looted just about everything in walmart and other stores I'd say 9000$ Plus. You're right about the owners of the store having nothing to do with it and I agree with your statement a hundred percent, but from my perspective something had to be done. May it be riot or not, I may seem like an Idiot for that statement and ideology  and I apologize if I come off as Ignorant or plain idiotic but that's just my view. True the Riot was uncalled for,but if a stand is to be made you must preform an action to have your statement heard. You must speak aloud. No I do not approve of stealing and burning down businesses but if it will bring vindication then so be it.

[Zeus 7997]

I never looked at it that way. Seeing as how they looted just about everything in walmart and other stores I'd say 9000$ Plus. You're right about the owners of the store having nothing to do with it and I agree with your statement a hundred percent, but from my perspective something had to be done. May it be riot or not, I may seem like an Idiot for that statement and ideology  and I apologize if I come off as Ignorant or plain idiotic but that's just my view. True the Riot was uncalled for,but if a stand is to be made you must preform an action to have your statement heard. You must speak aloud. No I do not approve of stealing and burning down businesses but if it will bring vindication then so be it.

And how is what I'm asking. How does looting stores avenge this teenager? It doesn't. There's no connection at all. Just anger and violence.

You want to take a stand? Go down to the police station and protest until he is fired. Start a class action lawsuit against the police department while stressing racial issues. Do anything other than start a riot. The only statement that was made is that you all are dangerous and need to be monitored further.

And if you absolutely must start a riot, how about you fuck up the police station instead of innocent businesses for a start? Direct your rage towards the actual perpetrators.

[JukaForever 758]

And if you absolutely must start a riot, how about you fuck up the police station instead of innocent businesses for a start? Direct your rage towards the actual perpetrators.

 

I was going to recommend this as well but they got guns down there.

[Aferni 2381]

I was going to recommend this as well but they got guns down there.

We dont have many Gun stores here.

[Aferni 2381]

And how is what I'm asking. How does looting stores avenge this teenager? It doesn't. There's no connection at all. Just anger and violence.

You want to take a stand? Go down to the police station and protest until he is fired. Start a class action lawsuit against the police department while stressing racial issues. Do anything other than start a riot. The only statement that was made is that you all are dangerous and need to be monitored further.

And if you absolutely must start a riot, how about you fuck up the police station instead of innocent businesses for a start? Direct your rage towards the actual perpetrators.

 

I agree with you there. 

[JukaForever 758]

We dont have many Gun stores here.

The cops don't have guns? Amazing

[Aferni 2381]

The cops don't have guns? Amazing

They do, obviously. But what I mean Is as in the number's of gun store's are few.

[JukaForever 758]

Yea and my point was it was a bad idea to riot and try to tear up the police station as they have the guns. They have the right to defend to themselves....the irony

[relentless 254]

What happened in Ferguson last night was a disgrace on all sides involved. It was pathetic. It was horrendous. It was grotesque. It was fucking stupid.

 

 

There was an instance where a teen (black teen as this is no doubt, the focus of the entire issue) was shot by a cop, and protests began.

 

 

WHAT happened -- We do not know as there are several conflicting reports (one side says Brown was shot with his hands up, the other said the kid made a grab for an officer's gun with a friend before trying to run away).

 

 

HOW did it happen -- We do not know as there are several conflicting reports (see above)

 

 

 

With that in mind, this group (there's no beating around the bush, all Black) were angered and sought justice for what they believed happened -- so they began a peaceful protest at the sight of the shooting. Soon after, officers (some with K-9 units) entered the scene as is customary of police to do in the states. Oddly enough, though there is the freedom of speech, there are pathways you have to go through in the legal system to get approval for a rally / demonstration (were there? Not to the best of my knowledge). It just so happens that due to a larger group gathering at the scene, more officers had to be called in. With the increased violence against police, you can understand why lots of cops show up even when apprehending just one subject, let alone an entire gathering of people. 

 

Soon after police were present, SOMETHING happened.

 

 

WHAT happened -- We don't know as there are conflicting reports (see above)

 

 

 

What happened after, what we do know, gets worse. An officer beaten outside of a Taco Bell, several stores (numbered ~14) were broken into, vandalized (one set on fire), and robbed for all of their merchandise. Multiple gun shots, helicopters shot at, rocks thrown at police, etc. Afterwards, these groups kept moving through Ferguson with just a few reports of break ins happening shortly after the mob moved out at around 3 AM.

 

 

 

 

This demonstration, originally built as a peaceful protest demanding justice for the kid shot, turned into a free-for-all "take everything you can" (as quoted from one member of the mob, female) that had nothing to do with Police, and had nothing to do with the kid that was shot. This becomes even more clear when a large group of the "protesters" (i.e. mob) were people coming out of town well after the riot broke out.

 

 

 

 

 

So what does this all mean?

 

 

 

Is this a "revolution"? Is this Blacks fighting for equality? Is this "The Man" stepping on minorities and preventing them from living free? The short answer, to all of those, is no.

 

 

 

 

"Is this a revolution?" - The ignorant (yes, ignorant) seem to think so. One look on Twitter (#ferguson) reveals a whole shit load of justification for the incredibly stupid acts that transpired last night. "We are standing up for ourselves", "Only violence can end oppression", (various quotes from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.), etc. The problem though, IS WHAT PART OF A FUCKING REVOLUTION INVOLVES BREAKING INTO A LOCALLY-OWNED RIM SHOP, AND LOOTING 1 SINGLE 22" RIM FOR YOURSELF? AND IN THE PROCESS, DESTROYING ALL PROPERTY IN SAID STORE JUST TO GET THE MERCHANDISE? With the family of Mike Brown speaking out AGAINST the riots, this paints a different picture. This wasn't a "revolution", this was a mob that got out of control and decided to take matters into their own hands.

 

 

"Blacks fighting for equality" - This tends to happen when a black teen is shot, or when any member of the Black community is at the mercy of a police force. Though institutionalized racism is still very much a thing, this matter is completely unrelated. This has nothing to do with workplace discrimination, or discrimination in education, or in the government offices. This has to do with a teen that was shot in an altercation with police (whatever the instance was). It pisses me off that people are so quick to make a racial divide in a matter when it isn't called for. People wanted answers to what happened. But instead of sticking around and asking the serious questions, they robbed convenience stores and walked out with handfuls of liquor and food.

 

 

"The Man" - This is the most intriguing part, and one that I feel has SOME merit, even when as a whole it doesn't. This very well could be an instance where a cop was quick to gun a kid down, and IF THIS WAS THE CASE, then the peaceful protestors in Ferguson are absolutely right to want answers. An investigation (regardless) should be done, and those accountable should be held accountable. BUT, what if the police reports are true? What if (after FBI investigation and third-party investigation has finished) Mike Brown DID make a move for an officer's gun? Then what does that make of the actions of those involved (remember: many rioters were coming from out of town, NOT rioting because they were upset at police, though some were).

 

 

And don't even get me started on this MLK bullshit. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a man that taught to avoid doing EXACTLY THIS. It makes me sick that people are now hiding behind his quotes to reason something he would never have stood for in the first place.

 

 

 

 

What transpired the other evening was not a revolution. it wasn't right, it wasn't justified, and it sure as hell was not going to help the cause taken up by the peaceful protesters.

 

 

 

What this did. What the rioters HOPED it would do, will have the opposite effect. People will not turn to the cause of what happened in Ferguson, of anarchy, of robbing CHICKEN PLACES, of robbing SPORTING GOODS STORES, and say "THAT IS AN IDEAL I STRIVE FOR" No. Whenever a group of people resort to barbarism, they instantly lose any credibility to their cause when there are outlets to access to bring those accountable to justice.

 

 

What the Rioters (they are NOT protestors) did last night was fucking pathetic.

 

 

 

 

EDIT: and perhaps the most fascinating point of all. Police did not shoot and kill one Rioter. If this was truly a "revolution" rising up against oppression, those cops would not have hesitated to shoot. Yet they didn't. Not once. Suspects were taken into custody.

[Aferni 2381]

The Galleria has been closed down today due to the Riot and because there was a fight and theft in the Galleria.

[Peace Heavy mk II 7200]

Since the, riot things have been a hot mess there, it would seem.

[relentless 254]

It doesn't look like it's going to get any better, that's for sure. it seems like the National Guard needs to get involved to deescalate the situation seeing as how police look clueless.

[kai_desu 340]

You can also thank the media for highlighting events like this, because they know it will cause a shit storm allowing them to have higher ratings. If something happens to someone who is not white, they have to fucking HIGHLIGHT it like it's the reasoning behind the event. If the kid were white, it would have been reported as "local teen shot by police after a dispute" rather than "cop shoots unarmed white teen".

 

Many others have already said it before, but this rioting is bullshit and is not an answer to anything. It's just an excuse for people to steal shit and cause mayhem due to what's called deindividuation and disinhibited behavior.

 

Read about it.

[sai 868]

Jesus Christ, you guys should see Tumblr right now. Thousands of white teenage special snowflakes making posts about how all white people are racists and at fault for this, and how all police officers should be murdered. According to them the protestors did absolutely nothing wrong, no looting, nothing. The posts lack all form of reliable sources so I'm not wanting to believe anything I'm reading on there until I have an actual source.

 

It's actually refreshing to read relentless' post, it's well constructed and not too biased. It was an excellent read, thank you!

[Aferni 2381]

Jesus Christ, you guys should see Tumblr right now. Thousands of white teenage special snowflakes making posts about how all white people are racists and at fault for this, and how all police officers should be murdered. According to them the protestors did absolutely nothing wrong, no looting, nothing. The posts lack all form of reliable sources so I'm not wanting to believe anything I'm reading on there until I have an actual source.

 

It's actually refreshing to read relentless' post, it's well constructed and not too biased. It was an excellent read, thank you!

Both Sides are at fault, The citizens and the police force. In my opinion this isn't a "Black White" problem, it's the police and Ferguson county problem. The neighborhood itself is unsafe(especially now). In this case I'd say it is the police because just about everywhere Police are ignorant and unnecessarily "vigilant".  True the community shouldn't have looted and rioted, BUT, if not for that this case would have went on for about a month or two and then swept under the rug. As a resident of St.Louis it's absolutely unbelievable to think this sort of thing is happening just a few blocks away from where you lie down every night. Another thing, I'm sure you're aware that the precinct of the Ferguson Police Department has been hacked by "Anonymous". The police force has been receiving death threats over social media, as well as their addresses and identities.

[Aferni 2381]

Since the, riot things have been a hot mess there, it would seem.

Yea 

[Sakura Seven 593]

lol @ people defending the fucking police in this thread. do your research. they aren't your friends.

 

yeah a few idiots looted. that doesn't excuse the brutality, the militarization of the police force, the harrassment of journalists (including taking equipment), firing tear gas into PEACEFUL protest areas, the complete lack of accountability for the police officiers involved etc, etc etc. fuck off. 

[JukaForever 758]

I don't think anybody here is defending the police, if so, point out the post.

[relentless 254]

lol @ people defending the fucking police in this thread. do your research. they aren't your friends.

 

yeah a few idiots looted. that doesn't excuse the brutality, the militarization of the police force, the harrassment of journalists (including taking equipment), firing tear gas into PEACEFUL protest areas, the complete lack of accountability for the police officiers involved etc, etc etc. fuck off. 

 

 

 

 

"that doesn't excuse the brutality..." - What brutality?

 

 

"the militarization of police force" - As a whole, I think it's less about the militarization and more about the fact that "protect and serve" just doesn't seem to be a thing cops want to do anymore. (Some) feel like they have no obligation to protect citizens, and that their job is to "protect and uphold the law". That's a problem, and one of the fundamental reasons for this occurrence in Ferguson.

 

 

 

"the harrassment of journalists (including taking equipment)" - this is one of the things I have a problem with. The police are NOT intentionally firing at journalists. The problem, is that this police force looks largely unprepared for so much shit going down. They fired tear gas into a neighborhood just to make the protestors scatter. That's just dumb. There was another journalist detained in McDonald's. He made a video of the interaction with SWAT that came in evacuating everyone. The journalist was being a prick to the officer while this guy is trying to do what he was told, and evacuate people from the restaurant. Then the journalist was detained, to which it then didn't even turn into an arrest, it was said they were just "holding them for 24 hours". Again, dumb actions from the police.

 

 

"firing tear gas into PEACEFUL protest areas" - Peaceful? Not so much. Places were set on fire that night because protestors decided to start using molotov cocktails. Whether at buildings, or at police, this was the opposite of civil. A mob attacked an innocent man walking his dog last night. That's not "peaceful", that's a mob. The problem is that this is not a united movement. It is filled with people who want peace, and then a bunch of idiots that want to retaliate. I watched a livestream of one of the clashes with Police, where they fired tear gas into the crowd (others have probably seen it too). When police were firing tear gas, one man ran, grabbed a cannister, and threw it back at police. When this happened, one woman shouted "NO DON'T THROW ANYTHING" (or something to that effect), to which a guy shouted "YEAH. FUCK THE POLICE. BRING IT, IVE GOT ROMAN CANDLES TOO, BITCH". This "movement" is heavily fractured and doesn't have a leader to bring everyone together for a common goal.

 

 

 

"the complete lack of accountability for the police officiers involved etc" - this I agree with. I hope that the independent investigations do find accountability for whoever shot Michael Brown. What worried me the most was when the chief of police has openly stated that some of the police in the streets don't know what they're doing (in regards to opening fire of tear gas, and arresting the two journalists).

 

 

 

 

Essentially: This situation is so difficult because both sides are at fault, with different opinions clashing as to WHO should be blamed. Should the police be blamed for everything? Or should the rioters? How about both? Rioters destroyed property on Sunday, attacked innocent bystanders, looted, and continued the behavior into last night with MOLOTOV FUCKING COCKTAILS. The police are at fault for escalating the problem by surrounding a very timid protest group with K-9 units, swat, armored trucks, and snipers. They are also disorganized, and have been a mess when trying to detain people and get journalists to a safe location. The police force is inept.

 

 

 

Though word, the word has been that today's protest has been very peaceful even with the police presence. Looks like things may finally be calming down, now we just have to wait what the investigation yields.

[Peace Heavy mk II 7200]

Apparently anon found the policeman who started this' info (like SS, address, past addresses, etc) and shared them while threatening to come for someone else next.

 

Even if there is later evidence to prove what happened wasn't 145% the police's fault, he's completely fucked.