Dorian Johnson And The Ferguson: A Social Media Movement

The accounts of how Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager was shot dead by a white police officer, Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri are still unclear. On August 9th, 2014, Brown and his friend, Dorian Johnson left Ferguson Market and Liquor, where surveillance videos later showed the former stealing some cigarillos. Officer Darren Wilson, traveling alone in his squad car, found them walking in the middle of the street on Canfield Drive. He saw that Michael Brown fit the description of a man suspected in a convenience store theft and asked the two men to step across to the sidewalk. The recollection of the events that ensued is disparate and still a source of mystery and confusion. Dorian Johnson and several other eye witness reports say

It proved to be a crucial weapon for demonstrators to organize their protest movements. The agitations that began in Ferguson quickly spread throughout the United States of America and brought the national spotlight firmly onto the issues of police and race. #Ferguson stormed the social media sphere and in particular, Twitter to form a strong front against police violence. For instance, on the evening of August 13th 2014, there were more than 4400 tweets per minute mentioning #Ferguson. Moreover, according to data from Twitter, within 9 days of the shooting, there had been over 7.8 million tweets focused on the Michael Brown case. People were tweeting and re-tweeting messages to emphasize Brown’s death and their broader concerns related to discrimination against the black population. Twitter was abuzz with photographs and details of protest movements around the country, as the storm continued to brew. Eventually, the police had to impose curfews and deploy riot squads to maintain order. Social media proved to be the biggest boon to supporters of Michael Brown. Through this forum, they were able to reach out to millions and provide them information pertinent to creating awareness and also to ensure that people joined their cause. As such, social media was a wonderful orchestrator of the protest movements held against injustice by Ferguson

On March 3rd 1991, a similar incident took place, where an intoxicated African-American taxi driver named Mike Rodney was caught speeding and attempted to escape the police. He was eventually caught and beaten on the spot by the officers. His injuries included a broken leg, bruises and a scar from a stun gun which jolted him with 50,000 bolt shocks. This was caught on camera and a strong movement was soon organized to find him justice. The difference between this protest and that of the Michael Brown case however, is that this movement stayed confined to Los Angeles. It did not find itself a national platform for expression. The biggest change that has taken place since then has been the advent of social media. This portal has given people an arena to voice their grievances and concerns, and by spread of messages online, they find support and solidarity for their programs. The #Ferguson Movement online also found expression in a similar movement called the “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” campaign. It is envisioned that Michael Brown had his has hands up in surrender to police officer, Darren Wilson before he was shot dead. Supporters lined the streets with their arms raised in protest against police atrocities and mocked them by chanting the words “Hands up, Don’t Shoot”. Photographs of the campaigns were posted online with the captions, #Ferguson and