Reaction from Asian American civil rights groups and leaders remains overwhelmingly negative to the grand jury decision not to prosecute Officer Darren Wilson in the killing of Michael Brown (Photo by Debra Sweet).
Many called for a national dialogue on racism and a Department of Justice inquiry into the matter.
“We continue to urge the Department of Justice (DOJ) to robustly pursue its investigation into Michael Brown’s death, as well as the Ferguson Police Department’s policing practices,” said a statement from South Asian Americans Leading Together. “The importance of reforming the DOJ’s guidance on racial profiling has never been more urgent, and we continue to call on DOJ to swiftly reform the guidance to meaningfully protect all communities against law enforcement profiling.”
The Council on American Islamic Relations or CAIR called for a national dialogue on race.
“The tragedy in Ferguson makes it imperative that Americans of all races and backgrounds initiate national action to address the issues of systemic racism and police profiling that the shooting brought to the surface.
“We urge all Americans to contact their elected officials to urge passage of the End Racial Profiling Act (ERPA) and any similar legislation that addresses unconstitutional actions by American law enforcement.”
Vincent Pan, Executive Director of Chinese for Affirmative Action, offered his personal thoughts and said it was important to validate people’s anger about the grand jury decision.
“I think it is imperative to validate the frustrations that millions of Americans across the country are experiencing at this moment,” Pan said. “Sometimes anger is not only justified, it is morally required. I believe that this is one of those times.
“We have an obligation to be angry because the death of Michael Brown and the failure of the grand jury to indict his killer, Darren Wilson, must be understood in the context of racial discrimination and oppression in the United States.”
18 Million Rising is backing an online petition launched at colorofchange.org demanding the DOJ arrest and prosecute Officer Wilson.
“The hard reality that must be changed is that, in the United States of America, police can kill black people with zero accountability,” said 18 Million Rising Executive Director Samala. “We need real, systematic, institutional change. We need it now.”