Armored vehicles, machine guns, Camouflage: In Missouri, the police had escalated the situation after the death of a black teenager. President Obama was forced to power word.

Before daybreak on Thursday the sixth night, Barack Obama intervened. The sixth night since the death of African American Michael Brown, hit by several bullets from the pistol of a white police officer in Ferguson, a suburb of St. Louis. The 18-year-old Brown was unarmed. In the nights since then, there was unrest of the majority black population; fired from a majority white Province policemen dressed like soldiers and upgraded – and acted.

An explosive mixture in the middle of the so-called Heartland of the USA, in the state of Missouri. Would stay another night without serious consequences, without casualties? A deeskalierendes signal was needed urgently.

President Obama: “Excessive use of force”

On Thursday noon, then the President interrupted his vacation on Martha’s Vineyard at the U.S. East Coast and gave the signal “. Tranquility and peace must now stop off in the streets of Ferguson” There is no excuse for vandalism, looting or violence against the police, Obama said. So far, so expectable.

Then he criticized the local police: “There is no more an excuse for excessive use of force against peaceful protests.” In fact, gathered in more than 90 cities across the country people to remember the victims of police violence.

Unnecessary escalation must be prevented and the right to demonstrate are safeguarded, Obama said. The case of the two reporters who had been arrested the night before for no reason in a McDonald’s restaurant for a short time, he did not mention: “In the United States should the police journalists who simply make only their work, neither harry nor arrested. “Obama’s goal: to show understanding for the anger of the people, take pressure from the boiler.

Indeed, the night went to Friday quieter than all the nights before. The police held back, the crowd was peaceful, sometimes even in emotionally-festive mood.
This is probably mainly due to the de facto disempowerment of the local police authority. This was on Thursday Missouri Governor Jay Nixon led – after a phone call with

Obama. For days the man had not let look in Ferguson, but the sixth night in mind, the Democrat changed his plans at short notice. The police will now allow “freedom of movement”, Nixon announced on site at: “This operational change will provide all the air we breathe.”

Protests in Missouri:Now the highway patrol has the say

Responsibility for safety Ferguson has transferred the governor of the highway patrol. Sounds only once strange, but clever: because this authority is not local, but is subordinate to the State. Basically as a national police force. Responsible for the problem the city is now Ron Johnson, an African American who grew up in the area. Good move.

It’s clear: In the past few days has made ​​a potentially racist police-assault resulting in death, a fundamental conflict over the way the police developed with blacks. This has three main reasons:

 *Ferguson even two-thirds of the city’s population are black, but 50 of the 53 police officials of the city are white; as well as Mayor, Fire Boss,                       chief of police. For years, African Americans felt dominated. They are frequently controlled than the whites – and so often arrested twice.                             The magazine “Vox” commented police work: “We have just let those people who are supposed to protect our communities, a danger to just                       be this This is unacceptable in a democracy..”

*Lousy communication management. Since the death of Michael Brown on Saturday, the police can get little information. How many shots                        were fired? Why the dead man lay for several hours on the road? What is the name of the shooter? It is silent. And the population feels                                      deceived. Unknown, who describe themselves as part  of the global network Anonymous, have first – obviously wrong – published names and                    heat up the situation.

 *Militarization of the police. Authorities say there have been violent demonstrators on Wednesday, Molotov cocktails were flown, like shots.                      But the rabid appearance of the police – in armored vehicles, military gap and with assault rifles – does not justify: On the night of Thursday                        flew stun grenades, tear gas and  rubber bullets were used. The police themselves have thus the position pointed unnecessarily.

It is significant that Obama, Governor Nixon and the new de facto police chief Johnson have now appropriate to begin with the last point. Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill called for a “demilitarization”. Because since the Nineties’s done the exact opposite: the federal government has upgraded local authorities.

The Ministry of Defence has issued other military equipment to the churches of America – free of charge. Some armored vehicles that were previously in the operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. These machine guns, ammunition, grenade launchers. It’s no coincidence that Jay Nixon, governor, first time noted in Ferguson see it even from “as in war.” And Attorney General Eric Holder said: “Given the fact that we need to rebuild trust between the authorities and the local people, I am very concerned about the mixed message sent by the use of military equipment.”

The original idea in the nineties was to better equip U.S. police in the domestic drug war. The result is war weapons in the hands of provincial police. And who has such a device, it will also use up. This was observed in Ferguson.

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