Ferguson Police Dept Routinely Violated Civil Rights

[Tobias Funke]

I think this deserves a thread:
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/just...civil-rights-investigations-ferguson-missouri

 

[alw34]

I'm not so sure most of us can add much of anything useful. Liberals will likely think the Justice Department is not going far enough, conservatives will likely think Justice is overreaching by far. For example, Mayor DeBlasio and former Mayor Giuliani of NYC would likely see the situation, whatever it is, vastly differently.

If most of the Ferguson establishment is Democrat, residents should think about changing that via elections if they don't like the outcomes so far. Of one thing you can be sure: the establishment, those in power, regardless of party affiliation have secured for themselves nice lives. Why would those in power change that just for the benefit of voters if the voters don't exercise their rights at the ballot box?

For comparison, look at the Republican establishment, currently scared to death about Trump. Consultants, media types, strategists, party leaders,the 'power brokers' are all at risk since Trump has not only not paid any of them, even worse, he is so far out polling all the 'best and brightest'.

Public service has become a grab bag of goodies and about all we peons can do is follow the money trail to see whose stealing the most.

 

[Tobias Funke]

I agree about not being able to add much that's useful, which is why I didn't really try. The purpose is mainly to vindicate those who have been saying for some time that situations like this are not uncommon, specifically the constantly smeared BLM movement. I guess I should add that the evidence has always been there and it's not as if this report is groundbreaking in terms of content---it's just harder to ignore. Probably the most famous recent analysis is Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow, and it's striking how perfectly she describes exactly what's happening in Ferguson.

 

[mheslep]

Reporter Radley Balko wrote what must be the definative in-depth article on the small town corruption in the St Louis area, published Sept '14. Real, old school investigative journalism. Someone referenced it in the original Ferguson PF thread. Conditions were not far from that having to pay the local mandarins for permission to cross the king's road.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...t-louis-county-missouri-profits-from-poverty/

I don't think racism at the root of the Missouri problems. The fundamental problem is the installation of thieves as local magistrates, and in such a case those at the economic bottom are always the first victims.