# Do violent protestors in Ferguson actually care about racism? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 16, 2014, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709 "2014-08-16T21:19:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![JustBecause14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9d8465/32.png) [@JustBecause14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustBecause14)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/41 "2014-08-20T21:02:38Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > You’re not kidding. :eek: (Hopefully he/she will be banned soon) Banned why? Because they have a differing opinion & worldview? ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/42 "2014-08-21T14:08:22Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > D’oh! > > Typing fast. I meant to type “capital crime” not “crime”. > > Besides, as the police admitted in their next press conference, the office who shot Brown had no idea about this robbery. “In all honesty, the last three I accidentally backed over with my car. Fortunately they turned out to be drug dealers.” -Frank Drebin 😃 > [@Really Not All That Bright](#): > > No. When an unarmed man is shot, members of the community protest what they perceive as unnecessary police brutality. Some other criminals take the protest as an opportunity to riot and loot. It does seem like when an unarmed black suspect is shot attacking the police or resisting arrest, the black community expresses outrage. When a white suspect is shot doing the same thing, we think “dumbass”. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/43 "2014-08-21T15:03:48Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > It does seem like when an unarmed black suspect is shot attacking the police or resisting arrest, the black community expresses outrage. When a white suspect is shot doing the same thing, we think “dumbass”. Kelly Thomas was white and his killing sparked a lot of outrage. Black people are generally outraged more, of course, but that is because they are so often treated outrageously by police. I literally have never in my life known a black male who was not at some point unfairly treated by the police. I, conversely, as a white male have never in my life been mistreated by the police, and most white guys I know can say the same. Do you get routinely pulled over by cops for “checks” that don’t seem to have any probable cause or visible purpose? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/44 "2014-08-21T15:04:05Z")
> [@](#): > > It does seem like when an unarmed black suspect is shot attacking the police or resisting arrest, the black community expresses outrage. When a white suspect is shot doing the same thing, we think “dumbass”. Perhaps. But we seem to have a much broader conception of what “resisting arrest” entails when a black guy does it. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/45 "2014-08-21T15:32:09Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Black people are generally outraged more, of course, but that is because they are so often treated outrageously by police. I literally have never in my life known a black male who was not at some point unfairly treated by the police. I, conversely, as a white male have never in my life been mistreated by the police, and most white guys I know can say the same. > > Do you get routinely pulled over by cops for “checks” that don’t seem to have any probable cause or visible purpose? Truth be told, the only time I’ve been ever stopped by the cops (as a white guy) was when I was in my teens or 20s. Basically hanging out drinking or otherwise acting in a manner where the cops might want to let us know that we haven’t done anything illegal yet and should keep it that way. My experience is from having mostly grown up in predominantly white, affluent communities. Most of the black (and Hispanic) people lived in the nearby cities like Bridgeport, Hartford and New Haven. We had a couple black guys I went to school with, but for the most part, they were treated the same as everyone else. Except they were really good at basketball or football and you knew not to use racially insensitive jokes around them. Most of what we “knew” about black people came from what we saw in the news about nearby Bridgeport. Gangs, high crime, poverty, drugs. The only time there was interaction between our town and theirs were sporting events (which often seemed to have a higher than average number of “incidents”) or stories of either suburban kids going to Bridgeport (typically to get drugs or booze) and getting into trouble or Bridgeport kids making their way out to the suburbs (shopping malls in particular) and starting trouble. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/46 "2014-08-21T15:45:05Z")
Given that some protesters have tried to stop the looting (a couple of nights ago, a group of pastors locked arms trying to prevent criminals from looting, an extremely brave thing to do) I’m going to say yes, most of the protesters care about racism and are not interested in looting. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/47 "2014-08-21T15:55:37Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Given that some protesters have tried to stop the looting (a couple of nights ago, a group of pastors locked arms trying to prevent criminals from looting, an extremely brave thing to do) I’m going to say yes, most of the protesters care about racism and are not interested in looting. I’m sure that’s true. The problem is that it only takes a tiny minority to reinforce the stereotypes – and some of the troublemakers might not even be locals. To wit: Keith Boag is the respected Washington correspondent for CBC News, and [this is an excerpt](http://www.cbc.ca/news/is-michael-brown-s-shooting-death-really-about-race-1.2741251) from his take on a related question – whether the Brown shooting itself was inherently the result of racism: > [@](#): > > A young white woman in shorts and a T-shirt, who had been walking with a small group on the sidewalk nearby, paused for a moment to take a photo. She held her cellphone out between two thumbs and two forefingers, the way we do nowadays, and framed the shot. > > Whoosh! Like a trout rising to a fly, a black teen appeared out of nowhere, reached over the woman’s shoulder, snatched the phone from her fingers, and raced off into the night. > > “Nooooooo!” wailed the poor woman with a sound that began as outrage but quickly spluttered into a whimper as she accepted that the transaction was final. > > Less than a minute later, something like it happened again. The victim this time was a white man in his late twenties or early thirties. But in this case, there was no fleeting escape. Instead, there was a showdown. > > “Gimme back my cellphone!” screamed the white man. > > A tall, skinny, black man sized up his screaming complainant, then punched him in the face and walked away. Done. > > I felt my own anger rising. I wanted to thrash the thieves. Not because I deplored the crimes, though I did, but because I’d had enough of people seeming to reinforce ugly stereotypes this week … > > … We know America has race problems. We know they aren’t what they used to be but they are still worse than they should be. But we don’t quite know yet how Michael Brown’s death fits into that long and sad history. If we think the cop shot the young man because the cop was white and the young man was black, that’s a belief we have chosen. I think it’s a sad choice but the fact so many seem to have made it is the real indication of race relations in America. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/48 "2014-08-21T16:18:42Z")
> [@edeag3](#): > > OP here, I guess what made me think that many protestors may not care so much is that if you’re gainfully unemployed or productively unemployed looking for work full time then it’s difficult to go out and protest. That reasoning would apply to **any** protest, but it does not mean the protestors “may not care so much.” ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/49 "2014-08-21T16:35:57Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > I’m sure that’s true. The problem is that it only takes a tiny minority to reinforce the stereotypes – and some of the troublemakers might not even be locals. A lot of young black men grew up in racially segregated communities with no job prospects and no opportunities, largely as a result of several hundred years of slavery and Jim Crow laws. It’s only natural that they express themselves in the only way they know how - punching random strangers and robbing liquor stores. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/50 "2014-08-21T17:10:20Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > . . . and some of the troublemakers might not even be locals. “Outside agitators,” eh? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bruce\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/51 "2014-08-21T17:27:06Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > We can’t really see his face in the video. It shows someone who big’s and black and wearing a white T-shirt and a red baseball cap. [http://fox2now.com/2014/08/15/raw-video-surveillance-video-believed-to-show-michael-brown-robbing-convenience-store/](http://fox2now.com/2014/08/15/raw-video-surveillance-video-believed-to-show-michael-brown-robbing-convenience-store/) His face can be seen at around the 37 second mark. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/52 "2014-08-21T17:34:38Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > “Outside agitators,” eh? :rolleyes: According to police reports some of those arrested were from New York and California – I have no idea how the numbers stack up: > **[Michael Brown Protests in Ferguson Hijacked by 'Criminals': Cops](https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/michael-brown-shooting/michael-brown-protests-ferguson-hijacked-criminals-cops-n183671)** > > Out-of-town criminals are inciting violence and hijacking peaceful protests in Ferguson, Missouri, police said early Tuesday. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/53 "2014-08-21T23:36:32Z")
Well, sure, they’ve arrested 11 journalists. ---
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bruce\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709/54 "2014-08-22T00:32:27Z")
> **[Who Are The Protesters Getting Arrested In Ferguson?](https://www.npr.org/2014/08/21/342207432/who-are-the-protesters-getting-arrested-in-ferguson)** > > The violence at night in Ferguson, Mo., has calmed down for now. However, more than 160 people have been arrested since the protests began. Police records offer a sense of who they are. I’m sure many of the people who come to Ferguson MO to protest do so with the good intentions, but of the 51 people arrested Tuesday night/ Wednesday morning only one was a local. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-violent-protestors-in-ferguson-actually-care-about-racism/695709.md?page=2)