Shooting of Unarmed Black Teen Sparks Call For Peaceful Gatherings Nationwide

[madokie]

Organizers hope nationwide moments of silence will help heal communities angry over the fatal police shooting of Mike Brown.

Less than a month after the choking death of Eric Garner by an NYPD officer, police in Ferguson, Mo., shot 18-year-old Mike Brown to death in broad daylight. Many in the black community were still in shock over Garner's death when photos of Brown's body lying on the pavement began circulating on social media.

Feminista Jones, a community activist and blogger, is organizing what she's calling National Moment of Silence 2014 gatherings (or #NMOS14) across the nation, so people can mourn the killings of black people at the hands of law enforcement. In less than 24 hours, Jones' efforts have led to more than 30 vigils being organized around the country, set to begin the same time Thursday at 7pm EST.

Jones told AlterNet that the frustration unfolding in the St. Louis area needs to be channeled into calm spaces where people in disenfranchised communities can network and move forward with constructive ways to heal and take action against the injustices that have affected them.

"We understand that tensions are high," Jones said. "We understand that people are reacting and we understand that, during several points in history and across the world, people have revolted and they have rebelled and they have rioted. But we also know that the most effective resistence was planned. It was organized. People got together, whether it was non-violence, whether it used violence and aggression, it was still organized. And when you are able to organize, you are able to come up with tactics that can minimize the risk of injury and harm to the people involved. It can coordinate efforts, so that people are standing strong in numbers and it can lead to sustainability. We cannot sustain any kind of resistence if all of our people are being locked up in jail."

http://www.alternet.org/activism/shooting-unarmed-black-teen-sparks-call-peaceful-gatherings-nationwide