The fatal police shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed teenager, on Aug. 9, 2014, in Ferguson, Mo., sent a shockwave through the country. Seemingly overnight, the phrase #BlackLivesMatter became a part of everyday conversation, and communities around the country were forced to have difficult conversations about racism within the justice system. The ripple effect of that moment has continued over the last decade.
Below, Clarissa Rile Hayward, a professor of political science in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis and an expert on political power and social movements, explains why this particular moment was so powerful and how it inspired a generation of activists and political leaders.
Why do you think Michael Brown’s killing became such a pivotal moment in history?
I’ve thought a lot about this, and I think it was a perfect storm. For starters, at every point, local law enforcement handled the situation poorly: the disrespect shown to Michael Brown and his family by leaving his body in the street for four hours, the disproportionate response to the protesters, and the unwillingness to condemn police officer Darren Wilson’s actions.
It was more than just that, though. St. Louis has a long history of organizing, especially around civil rights. So, the organizational structure was already in place to support these efforts.
Another important factor was the young activists’ savvy use of social media. They did a good job of communicating with audiences around the world through videos and Twitter. They made people pay attention to what was happening in Ferguson. And then the traditional media got behind this trend and started publishing their social media posts.
Despite calls for peaceful protests by the family and activists, many will remember the violent and disruptive turn the protests took. How did that impact the cause?
I have thought about this in some of my research on the political work that disruption performs, where I focus on disruptive tactics that perform an agenda-setting function. They make people pay attention to a political issue, in this case police violence against Black people. Disruption can be useful politically. The Ferguson organizers disrupted traffic and staged die-ins, for example.
But, of course, it can also generate backlash. For example, in cases where media coverage focuses on property damage, that makes it harder for the activists to control the narrative, in this case, keeping it focused on police violence.
Are we in a better place than we were 10 years ago?
I’ll say that we’re at an interesting moment because it feels like, shortly after the Ferguson protests, we experienced a rightward swing in American politics. Backlash is not uncommon after periods of social upheaval, so that is not unexpected.
That said, the aftermath of Michael Brown’s killing was a defining moment for our country, which brought about some important changes.
Law enforcement agencies around the country were forced to grapple with problems of police violence and structural racism. Some cities have made important changes. For example, here in St. Louis we created a Civilian Oversight Board that reviews cases of alleged policy misconduct, and in both the city and the county, we elected progressive Black head prosecutors. In addition, the Ferguson Commission report was important in identifying priorities for advancing racial equity in the region.
As a political scientist who studies political movements, and as a faculty member who works with young people, the most exciting thing for me to witness has been the uptick in activism and political engagement, especially among the younger generation. My sense is that today, compared with ten years ago, young people feel more empowered to protest and make their voices heard.
I’m inspired by young leaders like Kayla Reed, who is the co-founder and executive director of Action St. Louis, a grassroots racial justice organization that focuses on building Black political power. And or course, other Ferguson protesters — like Rasheen Aldridge, who is an alderman in the city, and my congresswoman, Cori Bush — have gone on to serve in local and national government, working within the electoral system to enact positive change.
