“Don’t Shoot!”

August the 9^th 2014, Ferguson, Missouri. An Afro-American eighteen years-old boy, Michael Brown, is killed by a bunch of shots, fired by Darren Wilson, an American cop. Apparently the boy was disarmed and the few witnesses report contrasting descriptions about the dynamics of the tragedy. The main version of the story, as read on several newspapers, says that Michael Brown was suspected of having stolen some cigars in a local shop some minutes before his death, but this version isn’t confirmed. The Afro-American community of the city of Ferguson is giving all its support to the family of the unfortunate boy and has started protesting and demonstrating against the police, accused of having excessive, crazy reactions against offences and minor crimes committed by black people. The reaction of local authorities against these protests looks disproportionate as well: massive deployment of military forces, numerous arrests, flying ban all over the “hot” zone, estrangement of journalists and reporters, establishment of a curfew. Only the day of the funeral, the protests turned into the quiet, respectful presence of hundreds of people with their hands up, as a symbol of surrender. This episode can be considered emblematic, like many before, but the fact is that in the USA a situation of social inequality persists, it is a time bomb exploding in disorders and violence. Would we be here discussing if, ceteris paribus, the alleged thief was a white guy? Would have the cop shot six bullets with no hesitation? Maybe some Americans still consider their Afro compatriots inferior beings. This looks crazy in a country with a black president, but some old ignorance is still rooted somewhere, somehow.