SSN Commentary

Will Mayor Ella Jones Be Able to Turn Around Ferguson?

Policy field

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Tulane University

Originally published as "Will Mayor Ella Jones Be Able to Turn Around Ferguson?" The St. Louis American, June 16, 2020.

I just knew black folks were going to vote Ferguson Mayor James Knowles III out of office in 2017. People resented him. I know because I documented the Ferguson uprising. I accounted for the will of the people, their interactions and determination in resistance. 

We had been in direct action for many months uninterrupted, with black citizens fighting for social change. Ferguson’s local government was supposed to be part of that process, especially following the “no indictment” decision for Michael Brown’s killing.