Lecture by Michael Brown, Sr.

Tonight I attended a lecture in the Culp Auditorium by Michael Brown, Sr. I chose the lecture because it is a topic I know little about. Of course, any American who hasn't been living under a rock for the past several years has a basic knowledge of the Black Lives Matter movement and recent cases of police brutality. But beyond news outlets and rumblings on social media, my understanding of these current events is very limited. I had hoped that listening to Mr. Brown's message would help to shed some light on the situation for me.

During his lecture, Mr. Brown told the audience about the day his son, Michael Brown, Jr., was shot by an officer in Ferguson, MO with no explanation during August of 2014. Brown shared the details of how his mother had called him to tell him that she had a familiar presentiment of danger. These hunches were taken seriously within the Brown family because time and time again they proved to be correct. Shortly after, Mr. Brown and Michael's mother both received calls that their son was dead in the street. Michael's body was left in the heat of the summer day for four and a half hours and his parents were distanced from the scene by police with no answers as to why their son was dead.

Brown also shared the relationship that he had with his son, describing Michael, Jr. as his best friend. He asked audience members to envision what it would feel like to lose a child: To realize that you would never hear their voice, or support them through their goals, or have grandchildren, or see your child grow old.

For me, the most enlightening part of Mr. Brown's discussion was the Q & A section. One person asked what advice Brown would give to a white person who wanted to support the Black Lives Matter movement but did not know how. Mr. Brown told him that there are many different jobs for activists within the movement and perhaps he was simply looking in the wrong places. Maybe whites are needed behind the scenes more so than "on the ground." Another questioner asked Mr. Brown how the death of his son changed his attitude towards police officers. He admitted that in his youth he had experienced some injustice at the hands of the police and that the pain he felt from those days was multiplied by the death of his son. However, Mr. Brown acknowledged that change needs to take place among some members of the black community as well as some members of the police force.

I enjoyed hearing Mr. Brown's perspective and those of other audience members, who were predominantly black. But as I was walking back from the lecture I began to wonder why I still felt so confused about the topic. The obvious answer, and one of which I can't ignore the influence, is because I am white. But I'm also loving and compassionate. I know from past experience that I don't have to relate to another person's pain to mourn it. I believe that my lack of understanding comes from my rural American roots. Questions of police brutality usually spring up in urban cultures which I have little to no experience with. With renewed awareness of this inexperience, I hope to seek opportunities to better understand urban culture. With that piece of the puzzle in place, maybe I can decode my confusion about the Black Lives Matter movement.