Ferguson’s recovery hit by resurgent violence

THE violence that returned to Ferguson‚ Missouri‚ this week threatens a recovery as the town of 21 000 struggles to rebuild after two spates of racerelated unrest last year.

The shooting of two police officers and a subsequent manhunt on Thursday have relit tension that erupted in the St Louis suburb after the fatal shooting of unarmed black teen Michael Brown by white policeman Darren Wilson in August last year.

The shooting came as local businesses and homeowners were showing the first timid signs of hope that Ferguson can recover‚ seven months after demonstrations over the Brown shooting highlighted a litany of issues in this poor town‚ many arising from alleged racial bias.

The going is slow‚ but bulldozers are tearing down stores destroyed by fire and largely abandoned after vio- lent protests and looting in November. More than $650 000 (about R8.1-million) in state and private funds have made their way to businesses that were looted‚ damaged and threatened with closure.

“[Thursday] night shows that things aren’t over‚” said Sonya Roberts‚ a shop owner. “Quiet came to the city‚ but then the DOJ [Department of Justice] announcement and the resignations came.”

Tension flared anew with the release of a Justice Department investigation into alleged bias in Ferguson’s law enforcement, detailing what it called systemic racial bias in the force and the “toxic environment” it created. Ferguson police chief Tom Jackson has since stepped down.

Despite the turmoil‚ there have been improvements, with damaged businesses receiving zero-interest loans and relief funds. —