Related Data

• In the 162,000 cases that U.S. attorneys have prosecuted between 2009 and 2010, grand juries did not find probable cause in only 11 cases. (Bureau of Justice Statistics) Note: The evidence from Michael Brown’s death was brought by a state prosecutor before a grand jury, so the comparison is not perfect, but the fact remains that it is extremely rare for grand juries not to return indictments.
• Whites make up 29% of the residents of Ferguson, MO. Five of the six city council members are white and six of the seven school board members are white. The mayor is also white. (“Ferguson’s lack of diversity goes way beyond its cops,” Zachary Roth, MSNBC, August 14, 2014)
• Young African-Americans are 4.5 times more likely to be killed by police than other people of other races and ages. (“The fourteen teens killed by police since Michael Brown’s death,” Nina Strochlic, The Daily Beast, November 25, 2014)

Sample Frame

It’s nice to see everyone after a brief rest with our families—I hope you were able to get in some relaxation amidst the eating, shopping, and family time.

Amidst the gratitude that I felt during Thanksgiving, my heart has been heavy since the decision of the grand jury in Missouri came down about whether or not to indict Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson. This heaviness that I feel is familiar now—recalling only recent history with Tamir Rice, Trayvonn Martin, Eric Garner, Oscar Grant, and so many other black males killed by police in the last few years. As with most things that happen in our country, there is an equity perspective to this that I think is important for our work.

Here are some things that I understand to be true about this situation, based on my conversations with some lawyer friends, the trusty New York Times, and various other commentators. Every time someone is arrested, either a judge or a grand jury needs to determine that there is probable cause to believe that the person may be guilty in order to formally bring charges and indict the person. When a district attorney brings charges to a grand jury, they normally try to convince the grand jury to agree with those charges by making a convincing case with the available evidence. It is extremely rare that a grand jury does not return an indictment. In the 162,000 cases that federal attorneys have prosecuted between 2009 and 2010, grand juries did not find probable cause in only 11 cases. In this case, Bob McCulloch, the St. Louis county prosecuting attorney, didn’t even bring charges to the grand jury. He presented evidence and let the grand jury decide if they thought that charges should be filed and which charges. Let’s remember that grand jurors are regular people like you and me. Maybe it’s akin to putting a non-educator into a classroom and saying, “Teach some common core standards—you decide what standard to teach.”

The laws and legal system have been and continue to be tools that our society uses to achieve certain ends. Ideally, the outcome is justice, but we know that the outcome is often not justice when a black male is involved. In this case, there are middle-aged white men who are in control of the tool that is the law. Jay Nixon, the white governor of Missouri could have forced Bob McCulloch to recuse himself given his complicated history with race and police shootings. Bob McCulloch is a white man who has never indicted a police officer in his 23-year career as the St. Louis prosecuting attorney. Older, white men, in control of the essential decisions, effectively silenced the legal discourse in this criminal case. There will be no trial. There will be no cross-examination of Darren Wilson. There will be no chance for Dorian Johnson’s testimony to be heard and cross-examined. I’m worried that this is yet another situation of white people using the legal system to silence black people, to preserve power and privilege, and to silence a larger discussion about race, policing, and the law.

The silencing of the legal proceedings and the subsequent announcement sparked protests across the country—some of which turned into riots. Much of the media coverage focused on the rioters. Speaking to this issue of silencing, Charles Blow, a New York Times columnist, quoted Dr. King last week and went on to comment, “The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ‘A riot is the language of the unheard.’ King, a great champion of nonviolence, wasn’t advocating rioting, but rather honoring hearing. Even long-suffering people will not suffer forever. Patience expires. The heart can be broken only so many times before peace is broken. And the absence of peace doesn’t predicate the presence of violence. It does, however, demand the troubling of the comfortable. When the voice goes unheard, sometimes it must be raised. Sometimes when calls for justice go unmet, feet must meet pavement. Sometimes when you are unseen, you can no longer remain seated. Sometimes you must stand and make a stand.” While no one, including us, condones the few violent reactions last week in Missouri and Oakland amidst all of the peaceful protests, we must hold the protests and riots in the context of African Americans being silenced through the legal system and the very long and painful legacy of that oppression.

When President Obama spoke last week about this issue, I discerned in his voice, demeanor, and comments a heavy and weary heart. Among some of my black colleagues and friends, there is a very sad resignation that this is yet another example in such a long history of these examples. President Obama said that we should tackle this problem block-by-block, step-by-step. What does that mean that we should be doing?

When our students become adults, they can be in positions of power to ensure that all voices are heard. They can control the legal and political tools in place that currently and historically have served to silence a people. We are in the business of preparing our students for that future. That preparation is going to have to look different than ours did…

• by making sure they are conscious of the history and current reality of oppression and social justice, not just in February for Black History Month or September and October for Latino Heritage Month, but as part of our curriculum and instruction every day,
• by teaching them effectively so that they have the foundational skills they need to be the leaders of their communities—as teachers, politicians, lawyers, judges, police officers, whoever they want to be, and
• by inspiring them to be active in the political process so that they use their vote as one expression of their voice and ensuring that they understand actions they can take between elections to hold their officials accountable.

Right now, here are some immediate steps we can take:

• We must be clear and transparent with our students about what is happening and how it connects to a pattern in our history. We cannot shy away from this conversation with students. Bring it up! Don’t wait for them to bring it up. Help them understand what has happened. If you don’t feel equipped to do this, please ask for help. This week, be willing to help another teacher during your prep period, if possible.
• LISTEN to them. Create space for their reactions and feelings, however radical, complacent, ignorant, militant, whatever.
• Look at every one of our students as a person with the potential to be a revolutionary change-agent and act accordingly.

Make space for this work, please. But remember that we are also responsible for teaching the standards each day that prepare our students for their futures—we have to do both. What we do in school with our students matters every single day. As with most of our society’s issues, we are the place