Ferguson

Ferguson

© 2014 Rick Adamson

By Rick Adamson 8.21.14

I have been watching the news concerning Ferguson, Missouri in recent days and there are a few things that I do not understand. This is a City with 21,203 residents almost 70 percent of which are African American (according to the 2010 census). At the same time, the Mayor and most of the City Council are white. The police chief is white and 50 members out of 53 on the police force are white.

Back in 1990, 75 percent of the population was white, so there has been a dramatic change in terms of racial makeup of the City.



One would expect that our system of government would result in elected and appointed officials that are representative of the population of the community as it's composition changes over the years. Not so in Ferguson, however.


Many of the protesters have expressed distrust of the elected officials and, in particular, the criminal justice system and the police. Some feel that their only recourse is to take to the streets in protest. Of course, every American has the right to protest as they so choose, as long as it is peaceful.

I have a suggestion that might help solve some of the issues surrounding representation and distrust. Vote! The turnout for the last Mayoral election was only 12 percent! At last count, votes are color blind but they must be cast to count.

Becoming active in the community and voting would be a more productive endeavor for the Citizens of Ferguson because, the truth is, unfortunately their interests will not be looked after if they do not look after them themselves.

And That’s that!