EDITORIAL: America needs to pull together

The marking of the anniversary of the death of Michael Brown Jr. in Ferguson, Mo., was an example of both how a protest is best handled, and how easily one can get out of hand.

Brown’s death has been a focal point across the nation after he was fatally shot by a police officer. The circumstances of what led up to the shooting have been lost in the ensuing national debate, which has focused on the issue of how African Americans are treated by law enforcement compared to the way white people are treated.

The anniversary of Brown’s death was observed Sunday with a peaceful protest that included a march by those who believe that there is an underlying racial bias in the U.S. justice system. Whether you support or disagree with that position, there should be no argument that those who participated were exercising their rights in bringing the issue to the public.

If you believe something is wrong, you have the right — many would argue, the duty — to point it out. “Black Lives Matter” has been the prevailing theme of the protesters in the wake of Brown’s death, and that is something we should all take to heart. Black lives should and do matter, though we would add that all lives matter, regardless of race.

Sadly, as night fell Sunday the streets of Ferguson turned violent. Police say two groups began shooting at one another, with at least 40 shots fired. One of the gunmen was shot and critically injured when he ran across a parking lot and fired at four police detectives who confronted him.

During the night of turmoil, two teens were injured in a drive-by shooting, three police officers were injured, property was damaged and individuals were robbed, including a local journalist, in the area where Brown was killed last year.

Violence is not free speech. Those who engaged in the nighttime violence were not protesters. They were, pure and simply, criminals. And their actions, like those who violently reacted to the grand jury’s determination that the officer who shot Brown should not face criminal charges — the Obama administration’s Justice Department would later determine the officer had acted lawfully — do nothing but hurt innocent people by injuring them and destroying their property and means of making a living. They also obscure what should be the main issue — race relations in America and how to improve them.

Under the best of circumstances, that is a tough issue to tackle. There is a great deal of healing needed the United States. Government, particularly in a democratic republic, only functions with the trust of those who are governed. The political discourse of our nation has gotten so shrill and mean-spirited that the basic concept of debating an issue and finding common ground that can lead to improvement have been lost in a cacophony of anger, denouncement and blame. We could do with a lot more listening and a lot less talking.

Frankly, our leaders in Washington and elsewhere aren’t showing the gumption to do much about it. There’s little reason for optimism given the tenor of the current field of Republican and Democratic presidential candidates and their respective supporters, but America is in desperate need of a leader who doesn’t draw a line in the sand, but instead wipes those lines away.

America needs to pull together, else it risks pulling apart.