I\’m glad that Michael Brown\’s father called for peace. And I wish that were the only thing that was said by Brown\’s family members.
But it wasn\’t, and the media venues claiming so are lying to you.
Here is a CNN video, which I pulled from an article at mediaite.com. If you watch the video, you will find that…
…it shows Brown\’s biological mother, Lesley McSpadden, (at about 1:43 on the video) screaming “I don\’t do nothin\’ to nobody. Anybody say so, they a liar. A damn liar” (please note that, last month, Ms. McSpadden had an altercation with Michael Brown Sr\’s mother in law, Pearlie Gordon, in which Ms. Gordon, who was selling “Justice for Michael Brown T-Shirts alleges McSpadden punched her and stole $1,500 worth of merchandise and $400 cash. The matter is under investigation)….
…and then (at about 2:35) shows Brown\’s stepfather, Louis Head, screaming to the crowd that they should “Burn the bitch down!!” – a cry that was emphatically picked up by others, after which much of Ferguson was set ablaze.
You can make a good argument that this was the result of extreme emotion on the part of Ms. McSpadden and Mr. Head.
But, whatever the circumstances surrounding their words, you cannot make a good argument that they were saying anything designed to keep the peace.
I\’m not asking much. Only that media report what is happening, rather than a narrative they\’ve cooked up which they intend to present to their viewers regardless of actual events.
CNN did just that, and should be commended. Now how about the others?
