It has been a decade since the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown at the hands of a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, ignited a national conversation on race and policing in America. The shooting, which took place on August 9, 2014, in the St. Louis suburb, became a flashpoint for widespread protests and a catalyst for the Black Lives Matter movement, forcing a deep reckoning with the often fraught relationship between law enforcement and Black communities.
Kayla Reed, a St. Louis native, was profoundly affected by the events in Ferguson. Raised in a predominantly African American neighborhood, Reed had not initially seen herself as an activist. However, the death of Michael Brown, which occurred just a mile from her new home, changed everything.
"It was like in my backyard," Reed recalls. "I don’t really feel like I considered myself much of an activist. I definitely think I had the type of Black consciousness that comes with being raised by a Black preacher and seeing Black people go through so much." At the time, Reed was working as a pharmacy technician and a part-time furniture store employee. She, like many others, learned of Brown’s death through word of mouth and felt compelled to join the growing crowd of mourners at the scene.
The sight of Brown's body, left uncovered for hours in the summer heat, was a stark and painful reminder of the racial tensions that had long simmered in Ferguson, a majority-Black city with a predominantly white police force. The officer involved, Darren Wilson, claimed he shot Brown in self-defense after an altercation, describing the unarmed teenager as threatening. However, witnesses disputed Wilson's account, with some asserting that Brown had his hands up in surrender when he was shot.
For Reed, the incident resonated on a deeply personal level. Her own family members had experienced mistreatment at the hands of local police. Despite this, she was shocked by the brazenness of Brown’s killing. "I just found myself sort of returning to [Canfield Drive] day after day, and then to what becomes the uprising," says Reed, who transitioned from a concerned citizen to a full-fledged community organizer amid the protests.
The Ferguson Uprising and Its Aftermath
The Ferguson protests, which began as largely peaceful demonstrations, were met with a heavily militarized police response. The unrest was punctuated by instances of vandalism, theft, and arson, further intensifying the tensions. Yet, the movement quickly spread beyond Ferguson, with communities across the nation rallying against police violence and systemic racism. The cry of "Hands up, don’t shoot" became a rallying call for a new generation of activists.
In the years that followed, the deaths of other Black individuals at the hands of police and vigilantes sparked similar outcries, fueling a broader movement for racial justice. This momentum has led to significant changes, both locally in Ferguson and across the country.
Today, Kayla Reed serves as the executive director of Action St. Louis, a Black-led political activist organization she co-founded in 2014. Reflecting on the past decade, Reed acknowledges that while progress has been made, the work is far from complete. "What we’ve tried to show over the last 10 years is that there is no landmark piece of legislation that we’re chasing," she explains. "What we are chasing is the fundamental uprooting of a system rooted in anti-Blackness, rooted in the form of white supremacy that has been continuously violent for over a century to our people."
A Broader Movement and Its Challenges
The death of Michael Brown was a catalyst for a broader civil rights movement that continues to evolve. The Black Lives Matter movement, which was still in its infancy at the time of Brown’s death, gained significant traction as more activists and communities joined the cause. Over the past decade, this movement has grown to encompass not only issues of police violence but also broader demands for racial equity and justice.
This movement is not limited to Black Americans. Indigenous, Latino, and Asian American communities have also mobilized against systemic injustices, often forming multiracial coalitions to address shared challenges. This collective activism is reshaping American democracy and influencing global movements.
However, the future of racial justice in the United States remains uncertain. Despite the progress made, the backlash has been significant. The ambush killings of police officers in New York City and Dallas in 2014 and 2016, respectively, led to strong condemnations of Black Lives Matter and other protest movements. Meanwhile, efforts to pass national policing reforms, such as the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, have stalled in Congress.
Ferguson Today: A City in Transition
In Ferguson, the landscape has changed significantly since 2014. The city’s police department, once overwhelmingly white, now has nearly half of its officers identifying as Black. There have been substantial efforts to improve police-community relations through training on de-escalation and community engagement. The city’s leadership has also become more representative, with Black individuals serving as mayor, police chief, and in other key positions.
Despite these changes, Ferguson remains under federal oversight due to a consent decree that mandates comprehensive reforms to the police department and municipal court system. The city has also seen economic improvements, with new job opportunities emerging from initiatives launched in the wake of the protests. However, challenges persist, and the city’s journey toward healing and progress is ongoing.
A Decade of Reflection and the Road Ahead
As the nation marks 10 years since Michael Brown’s death, the legacy of the Ferguson uprising continues to shape conversations about race, justice, and democracy in America. For activists like Kayla Reed, the work is far from over. "When people ask what have you gotten, what have you won, I say I’m in this until we actually do live in a country … where we are not weaponizing forces to harm our people," she says.
The movement that began in Ferguson has inspired a generation of activists committed to challenging systemic racism and building a more just and equitable society. The journey from protest to power is ongoing, with the ultimate goal of transforming not just policies but the very systems that perpetuate inequality. As Reed and others continue their work, the memory of Michael Brown serves as a reminder of the profound impact one life can have on a nation.
