What better way to defuse racially-charged tension following a police shooting of an unarmed man than with a show of militarized force? Cue the tough talk from the pudgy pink police chief. Wait, scratch that, let's try bringing in a handsome African American highway patrolman who uses a soft touch and hugs demonstrators.
On second thought, let's get tougher, then bring in the National Guard. Curfew? Yes! Whoops, maybe not. Oh, and don't forget to arrest a handful of reporters along the way. This is like the Keystone Kops, except those cops didn't have grenade launchers, automatic weapons and mine-resistant armored vehicles.
The situation in Ferguson is a tragedy on many levels. An unarmed kid on his way to college was shot and killed (yes, he also apparently stole some Swisher Sweets cheap cigars and had marijuana in his system, neither of which are capital offenses). It seems like we blinked twice, and our local police forces were replaced with creepy, faceless militarized enforcers. Amidst all the flashing lights and military hardware, let's not forget that there are a lot more Michael Brown's out there. (You can find more links to stories behind the cartoon here.)
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This is a message from the Department of Post-Racial America, Emergency Alert System.
We have activated this alert system to assure you that racial strife is a thing of the past.
What matters is not the color of your skin, but the content of and the quality of .
We understand residents of are upset by the recent of an unarmed black man.
We urge you to voice your concerns through the proper channels.
Be advised that though a police department of individuals contains only African-Americans, your concerns will be heard.
Street demonstrations and intermittent Constitutional outages are in no way related to income, educational or judicial inequality.
These outages result entirely from the recent and related .
If you are a , please exercise your Amendment rights during the designated hours posted.
If curfew has been lifted, you may exercise your right of before the .
Rest assured, we will protect you-- from violence.
If you are a member of , all races, colors and creeds, must report from the .
Today's police response will be overseen by < > and will rely on the principles of < >.
The Department of Post-Racial America, Emergency Alert System, would like everyone to come together and honor the memory of
Please stand by for periodic alerts from the Department of Post-Racial America, Emergency Alert System.
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