The Racial Problem

The disturbances in Ferguson confirm the necessity of equality policies in the United States.

Protests and disturbances that occurred after the death of a black teenager shot by police in the American town of Ferguson, Missouri, brought to light racial tensions in the United States that, even though theoretically resolved in its laws, continue to be one of the biggest unresolved issues for this major world power.

The six shots that were fired at Michael Brown, an 18-year-old black teenager – two of them in the head, according to the autopsy requested by the family – were fired by a white police officer 11 days ago and have been the trigger for a wave of demonstrations and protests which so far have resulted in dozens of arrests, deployment of the National Guard and the intervention on two occasions of Barack Obama calling for calm and reminding everyone of their obligations: for the demonstrators, to respect the law, and for the police, to use force with proportionality.

Not so long ago in 2008, when Obama became the first black president in the history of the United States, scholars, sociologists and journalists abused the expression “post-racial America” as a reflection of the North American country leaving behind an era of discrimination and prejudice. The microcosm of Ferguson serves, however, as an example that there is a questionable disproportionality in actions against the black community. While 65 percent of this town of a little more than 21,000 residents is black, 94 percent of the police are white. Some 84 percent of cars that these officers stop to request documentation are driven by blacks and 92 percent of the detainees are black. We must add to this information that 21 percent of families live below the poverty line, and in this community, it does not seem unusual that black integration is obstructed by a very longstanding feeling of discrimination. This situation, with variations, is repeated throughout the United States.

In these circumstances, there is also police behavior which on many occasions is the object of justifiable criticism due to the excessive use of force, the presence of materials used by the officers – especially in moments of tension – such as guns and vehicles previously used in the Iraq war, and a lack of political initiative in addressing racial policies that the current White House tenant has scrupulously avoided.

The United States has demonstrated that it can be the most powerful country in the world and one of the oldest democracies with a multiracial society based on immigration and a legal system that guarantees full equality to its citizens. But outbreaks such as the one in Ferguson demonstrate that there is still much to do, and ignoring problems does not make them disappear, but rather they tend to grow, sometimes disproportionately.