‘Hands up’ hurt justice
Media-perpetuated narrative on Ferguson shooting distracts from reality
Lies — News media, congressional representatives and activists perpetuated false narrative even after official report proved it to be untrue. Google Images
After the August 2014 shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black Missouri teenager, by then-police Sgt. Darren Wilson, “Hands up, don’t shoot” became the polarizing posture and mantra that defined a firestorm media frenzy under the banner #BlackLivesMatter.
The problem — it was all a lie.
“Brown never surrendered with his hands up, and Wilson was justified in shooting Brown,” Washington Post columnist Jonathan Capehart said after reading the Justice Department’s (DOJ) report of the incident.
According to the DOJ, three autopsies and multiple reports from eyewitnesses confirm that Wilson was in his vehicle and that Brown did, in fact, reach into the police SUV for the officer’s gun.
Additionally, several medical examinations confirm the report that Wilson fired only after the struggle to regain control of his gun, which was in Brown’s hands. No shots were fired at the teen’s back, as was inaccurately reported shortly after the incident.
Autopsies revealed injuries to Brown’s hand and a gunshot to his jaw, consistent with Wilson’s self-defense claim.
“(The left) knew it was a lie when they found out the size of Michael Brown,” talk-radio host and conservative commentator Kevin Jackson told the Champion. “When they found out he was a six-foot-plus, close to 300-pound guy, … that was the instant they knew it was a lie.”
But do not take anyone’s word for it. Read the report for yourself. My conclusion: many in the media threw an innocent, law-abiding police officer to the wolves.
As a free society built upon free speech and free press, the law — and the honest practice of it — is necessary. Yes, even when it does not serve to further line Al
Sharpton’s deep pockets.
Ever since the August incident, many in the media reported it as fact that Brown threw his hands up in the air, pleading with the officer, “don’t shoot,” relying 100 percent on testimony from only a couple of witnesses.
From the St. Louis Rams and “Happy” singer Pharrell Williams to a CNN panel of contributors and several Congressional representatives declaring “Hands up, don’t shoot,” the narrative continued to dominate headlines.
But not long after the shooting, reports led to the conclusion that “Hands up, don’t shoot,” most likely did not happen. But the media pushed forward.
Then, in early March, the official DOJ report was published, confirming, “Hands up, don’t shoot” never happened. But, regardless, the media pushed forward.
It was not until last week the media faced the music — the truth, that is.
According to Jackson, who described himself as “likely the most outraged participant” of a CNN panel he appeared in on the issue, businesses were looted and burned to the ground “over nothing.”
Ferguson’s local business owners, along with Wilson, are the real victims. Because of national attention in the name of “justice,” entire communities have been destroyed, with little to no hope of recovery.
The press, being the only established organization specifically mentioned in the First Amendment, has a responsibility to honesty. And it failed.
In an age when entertainment is king and activism — on any issue — is this generation’s favorite pastime, one can see why sensationalism replaces accurate and honest news.
But is it not interesting to see how dishonest sensationalism has served only to sully the great activist cause the media was determined to promote?
“‘Hands up’ is the ultimate truth, and the reason why ‘hands up’ has gone viral across the country is because it’s a posture known to black people,” Monifa Bandele, senior campaign director for MomsRising.org, said of the “Hands up, don’t shoot” narrative.
Yes — you read that right — it is the “ultimate truth,” according to Bandele.
While that perspective is most certainly poetic, it is not the media’s job to proselytize an abstract campaign touted as fact in order to go “viral.”
“Who … have you heard apologize for the nonsense that occurred in Ferguson?” Jackson said. “You’re not going to hear it.”
An entire movement was built on a lie, and the only way to reverse the damage is hold those who purported that lie accountable.
It is true, black lives matter. Every life matters. And, for life’s sake, we should give honesty a try.
GOINS-PHILLIPS is opinion editor.