Zemir Begic. Did you ever hear that name? Maybe yesterday or today?
In case you did not, let me tell you who he is…or, more exactly, was.
Zemir Begic was a 32 year old man – a Bosnian national who came to this country at the age of 14, to escape the violence and bloodshed there.
At about 1:15AM Sunday morning, Mr. Begic was in his car, when a group of “youths” attacked it with hammers. When Begic got out of his now-damaged car, these fine young men decided to use the hammers on him. He was beaten to a bloody pulp, and brought to Saint Louis University Hospital, where he died from his injuries.
According to Joel Currier\’s article in the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch:
St.Louis Bosnians outraged about a deadly hammer attack in the city\’sBevo Mill neighborhood spilled into the streets Sunday night to voicefrustrations over violence touching their community.
The article goes on to say that about 50 people briefly blocked an intersection near where Mr. Begic\’s horrific murder took place.
Not much of a comparison with what happened in Ferguson, is it?
Further on, we have this:
St.Louis police Chief Sam Dotson spoke with residents at the streetprotest Sunday night. He said he was sorry about what happened andsought to reassure people the killing did not appear motivated byrace or ethnicity.
And why was such an assurance – whether or not it was in any way credible – made by Chief Dotson?
Because, in the 21st paragraph of the story – just four paragraphs from the end – we find out, in passing, that
(Begic\’s sister) said she knows some Bosnians are upset over her brother\’s deathbecause they believe the suspects, who are black and Hispanic,targeted Begic because he was Bosnian. She said she wants people toknow her brother would not have judged them because of their race; hehad friends of many racial and ethnic backgrounds.
Elsewhere in the article, we find that the two suspects picked up so far – those upstanding young men who were out on the street, with hammers in hand, damaging the cars of at least two men at 1:15 AM – are 15 and 16 years old. Both, therefore, are years younger (and I am betting far less physically imposing) than Michael Brown.
You may have noticed that the previous paragraph mentioned a second man. His name is Seldin Dzananovic – also Bosnian and White – and he, too, was attacked with hammers at that location. Dzananovic got away with injuries, but is still alive. Lucky him.
Now, keeping in mind that this occurred 36 hours ago in Saint Louis – the same metro area where Michael Brown was shot, and where protests, rioting, looting, arson and general anarchy have reigned for almost 4 months…..
….and keeping in mind how the racial composition of suspects and victims have been “reported” in the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch and other venues (illustratively, cnn.com, which can\’t put out enough about Michael Brown but gave the Zemir Bejic story all of 141 words; ditto for NBC News, with nonstop news about Brown, but 187 word coverage for Begic)…..
…..do you have any opinion about differences in the way these two stories are being treated? And why?
Think about it.
