Michael Brown memorial called ‘trash’ by police spokesman

This video from the USA says about itself:

Burning of Michael Brown Memorial Leads to More Ferguson Protests

24 September 2014

Yesterday, it was reported that a memorial built for slain teenager Michael Brown burned down overnight in Ferguson, Mo. Brown, 18, was shot and killed by officer Darren Wilson last month. The memorial was rebuilt yesterday, but the incident has resulted in more protests in the St. Louis suburb.

From BuzzFeed in the USA:

Ferguson Police Spokesman Calls Michael Brown Memorial “Trash,” Gets Unpaid Leave

Officer Timothy Zoll made the comments to The Washington Post Friday after a street memorial for Michael Brown was destroyed by a driver.

Dec. 28, 2014, at 10:01 a.m

Jim Dalrymple II, BuzzFeed News Reporter

A Ferguson, Missouri, police officer has been placed on unpaid leave after calling a memorial for Michael Brown “trash,” then misleading his superiors about the statement.

Officer Timothy Zoll made the comment Friday when The Washington Post asked about the destruction of an improvised-but-longstanding memorial in the street where Michael Brown died.

“I don’t know that a crime has occurred,” Zoll told the Post. “But a pile of trash in the middle of the street? The Washington Post is making a call over this?”

The department subsequently investigated the comment, and during the investigation Zoll admitted “that he misled his superiors when asked about the contents of the interview,” according to a statement BuzzFeed News received Saturday from the city of Ferguson.

Zoll has now been placed on unpaid leave while “disciplinary proceedings” begin, the statement added. It did not elaborate what might happen to Zoll or the potential duration of his leave.

The statement goes on to say that Zoll’s remarks “do not reflect the feelings of the Ferguson Police Department and are in direct contradiction to the efforts of city officials to relocate the memorial to a more secure location.” It also states that “even after the officer’s initial denial of his statement, the police chief continued the investigation until the truth was discovered.”

The memorial sprang up shortly after Michael Brown was shot on Aug. 9, and has been a focal point for both mourners and rallies ever since.

People at the scene of the memorial tweeted early Friday morning that it was destroyed when someone drove over it.

However, within hours the memorial had been rebuilt.

See also here. And here.

The funeral Saturday for New York policeman Rafael Ramos, attended by an estimated 25,000 police from all over the United States, was a carefully orchestrated political event. With a list of speakers that included not only New York Governor Andrew Cuomo but also Vice President Joseph Biden, its purpose was to exploit the December 20 killing of two New York City patrolmen to mount a counteroffensive against the upsurge of popular anger over police brutality and murder. It provided an opportunity for a display of force aimed at intimidating and delegitimizing opposition to the wave of lethal police violence: here.

Rare images from an unpublished 1950 Life Magazine project by Gordon Parks record the legacy of racial segregation: here.