“No, I’m not an angel either, but at least I’m trying” – Beyonce
New York Times writer, John Eligon recently penned a lengthy piece on the late Michael Brown, within it criminalizing Brown, desecrating his character also calling him “no angel”. Untimely and insensitive, the article was published today, as Brown’s family buries him today in Ferguson, MO.
“Michael Brown, 18, due to be buried on Monday, was no angel, with public records and interviews with friends and family revealing both problems and promise in his young life. Shortly before his encounter with Officer Wilson, the police say he was caught on a security camera stealing a box of cigars, pushing the clerk of a convenience store into a display case. He lived in a community that had rough patches, and he dabbled in drugs and alcohol. He had taken to rapping in recent months, producing lyrics that were by turns contemplative and vulgar. He got into at least one scuffle with a neighbor.”
Brown, who was unarmed, yet gunned down by the Ferguson police on August 9, has faced harsh criticism from right-ish media, who throughout this ordeal, have placed blame on Brown for his own death. Facts are that Brown was unarmed and at the time and the offending officer had no knowledge of Brown’s alleged petty crime.
Furthermore, does being “no angel”, equate to an untimely death at the hands of the police whose job is to protect and serve? Most of us have a background with blemishes and bruises, yet even in his passing, this NYT writer has continued to illuminate those skeletons, distracting the masses from the facts and true issue at hand.
If living in a community with “rough patches”, listening to rap and “dabbling in drugs and alcohol” makes Michael Brown “no angel”, then we are ALL Michael Brown, and therefore not safe from unwarranted police brutality.
I fully expect the NYT to note that every dead person they ever write about from now on “was no angel.” #noangel http://t.co/lDwBZMc8cJ
— Greg Pak (@gregpak) August 25, 2014
The media and public has shared its outrage and disdain with the comment:
“Listened to rap music, drank alcohol, smoked weed, shoplifted, and got in fights” describes a good chunk of my white HS classmates. — Jamelle Bouie (@jbouie) August 25, 2014
Okay @nytimes, we need a rewrite on that shameful article about Mike Brown because his parents are burying him today. Shame. On. You. — Roxane Bey (@rgay) August 25, 2014
You clearly need reminding, @NYtimes, that it’s not on to speak ill of the dead. #noangel — Dan Cooper (@danielwcooper) August 25, 2014
What do you think of Eligon’s comments? Tell us what you think below.
-Chuniq / @LoveINpower
