St. Louis City / County Officials and Brown Family Ask For Community Restraint

FERGUSON, Mo. - Nov. 13, 2014 - PRLog -- The mood of Ferguson is likely to change over the next few days as the Grand Jury decision in the Michael Brown Shooting is made public.  Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson, a white police officer fatally shot Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old black young man. Protesters have taken to the streets daily in the nearly four months, often clashing violently with officers.

Slivers of earlier tension have continued to hover, but there has been no loss of life in the ares since, and that is the fear that both the protesters and the police have right now. When the decision is announced, will that condition continue?

The citizens of Ferguson may be struggling to understand how and why the shooting of Michael Brown could occur and why such a terrible thing could happen. An even as the Grand Jury decision is forthcoming, there may never be satisfactory answers to these questions. Without question, this incident has drawn lines in the small community, and in some cases simply knocked the dust off others that have been covered by decades of hidden tension, crooked smiles, conversations under breath, and unspoken innuendo.

Regardless of the tensions, both the city officials and lawyers for the family of Michael Brown appealed for restraint from both demonstrators and police when a grand jury announces its decision on whether to indict the officer who shot Brown to death in August.

“We do not condone any acts of rioting, looting or violence,” said Anthony Gray, one of the lawyers. He implored law enforcement officers not to repeat the “excessive behavior and agitation” of the turbulent summer in Ferguson, Missouri.

In all tragedies, communities deal with immense and unexpected grief, loss, and uncertainty about the future. It is important for the citizens of Ferguson, who although will be angered of both sides, to help one another after a tragedy by talking, listening, and peacefully expressing their feelings and concerns.

St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and County Executive Charlie Dooley further echoed the sentiments saying "violence and looting would not be tolerated in any way."

"Regardless of what the grand jury's decision is, what do we want our community to be?" Dooley said. "We are asking everyone to calm down, take a deep breath, step back, don't buy into hysteria, and instead channel the energy into building a better and more positive community."

Feeling angry and grieving are normal reactions to loss. However, sometimes tragic events such as the potential news of a non-indictment can trigger more serious and potentially violent reactions. "This case has created an extremely volatile atmosphere in the area, and although there has been loss and damage of property in some cases, there has been no additional loss of life associated" stated Chief Jon Belmar of the St. Louis County Police Department.

Belmar added "depending on the decision that is announced, we do anticipate some civil unrest, but hope that the citizens will allow cooler heads to prevail in either way, and we will not have any violence. Nothing positive can come of violence, and the preserving life is of the utmost importance."

Emotions are normal reactions to living through a very abnormal situation. For most people, anticipated outcome is that there will be no indictment of Officer Darren Wilson, those emotions which are tied to this situation are unfortunately violent ones which hopefully will dissipate over the weeks to come. Perhaps the most essential part of the initial recovery process is reuniting individuals with the City of Ferguson itself and significant others in a supportive environment, where the process of beginning to share difficult experiences and healing can begin.

Although there is no clear cut answer to this situation, a good rule of thumb is whenever negative emotions cause impairment in an individual’s ability to function non-violently, always act to preserve life. Let us hope that is at the forefront of everyone's thought process.

John Parker is a senior public relations and marketing professional, and President of Parker Public Relations in St. Louis, MO. He is well experienced in crisis, situational, and executive communications, and public affairs with over 15 years of diverse experience in media relations, political campaign operations and connecting individuals and corporations with the world through communications.