Michael Brown’s Family and Chosen for Change Foundation Prepare for Five-Year Commemoration

Organizers at the Chosen for Change Foundation which honors Michael Brown, the unarmed 18-year-old Ferguson teenager gunned down by a police officer in August 2014, plan to call for the reopening of the case during a weekend of events commemorating the five year anniversary of the incident that ignited worldwide protests and triggered civil unrest that had not been witnessed for decades in America.

The family is “calling for the case to be reopened to give Mike, Jr., the fair trial that he deserves,” said Jana Gamble, Vice-President of Chosen for Change.

An international moment of silence, a community day, and recognition for other families impacted by police violence are scheduled for the three-day commemoration which starts on August 9^th. Volunteers of all ages are being recruited to join members of the family, including Brown’s siblings, and friends to help during the roster of events.

Gamble explained, “We have volunteers from the St. Louis area, some of whom grew up with Mike Senior. Over a dozen volunteers are coming from Rhode Island from a school that Mike Senior spoke at during a speaking tour. And, a large group is coming from the organization, Young Voices in Action, here in St. Louis.”

Michael Brown’s death in 2014 at the hands of a Ferguson police officer occurred three weeks after Eric Garner took his last breath while a New York City officer gripped him in a chokehold, a violation of department policy and an act that resulted in the coroner ruling the cause of death as homicide.

Earlier this week, just one day before the five-year anniversary of Garner’s death, the Department of Justice announced its decision not to file federal charges against Daniel Pantaleo. In what seems like a replay of 2014, protesters took to the streets after Garner’s mother, daughter, and Al Sharpton met with Mayor Bill DeBlasio at his home to call for Pantaleo’s firing. They were met by a row of officers as they left and several protesters were arrested.

This latest disappointment in New York City was felt in Ferguson in November 2014 when a grand jury did not indict Darren Wilson, the officer who shot and killed Brown. Several months later the federal government also declined to file charges against Wilson.

Looking for justice outside the courtroom, Ferguson residents were encouraged to seek change at the ballot box. And, they did so. The prosecutor who handled the case was defeated at the polls by a Black attorney who was elected to the Ferguson City Council after Brown’s death.  Since 2014, voters have elected several African American city officials, and there have been two Black police chiefs, the most recent of whom took the job in June.