Disinformation is dangerous except when Democrats spread it. That appears to be the logic Democrats hold themselves to based on the recent tweets of Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Cori Bush (D-MO). Both tweeted out egregious untruths about the 2014 death of Michael Brown on Wednesday. It’s the latest example of how Democrats believe in lying to the public so long as it benefits them, even if it stokes racial tension and political violence.
Recently, Democrats have spent a lot of time stressing the importance of truth and rhetoric in politics. They’ve emphasized how government officials lying to the public threatens our democracy. Yet, they never hold themselves to such standards, especially regarding Michael Brown’s death. Despite numerous investigations proving otherwise, Democrats continue to repeat the lie that police officer Darren Wilson murdered Michael Brown. It was false in 2014, and it is false now, and any elected official who repeats this falsehood is unfit for office.
Jayapal and Bush were the latest to repeat this baseless claim. On Wednesday, Jayapal tweeted, “Today marks eight years since Michael Brown was murdered by police in Ferguson, MO. We need to honor Michael’s life with action. Let’s keep fighting to dismantle white supremacy, so we can ensure racial justice for all.” This was so egregious that even Twitter, long known for censoring conservative Republican content, labeled Jayapal’s tweet false.
Today marks eight years since Michael Brown was murdered by police in Ferguson, MO.
We need to honor Michael’s life with action. Let’s keep fighting to dismantle white supremacy, so we can ensure racial justice for all.
— Pramila Jayapal (@PramilaJayapal) August 9, 2022
Additionally, Rep. Cori Bush tweeted, “8 years ago today, Michael Brown Jr. was murdered, so we took to the streets for over 400 days. We were maced, tear-gassed, & beaten by police — all for saying that Mike’s life mattered. Our fight for justice will not stop. We do this for Mike Brown.”
8 years ago today, Michael Brown Jr. was murdered, so we took to the streets for over 400 days.
We were maced, tear-gassed, & beaten by police—all for saying that Mike’s life mattered.
Our fight for justice will not stop. We do this for Mike Brown. ✊?
— Cori Bush (@CoriBush) August 10, 2022
Repeating this disinformation is horrific, and it does nothing but brainwash the public to think things that aren’t true about the country. If things are as bad as Democrats claim regarding racism and social justice, then there wouldn’t be any reason to lie about Michael Brown’s shooting. The fact that they continue to resort to such dishonest tactics is further proof that conditions are nowhere as bad as they claim. Such inequalities and injustices only exist in their heads and on their political platforms.
Of course, for Democrats like Bush and Jayapal, perpetuating a fiction that causes nationwide violence and destruction is perfectly normal so long as it adheres to their political ideology. Unfortunately, they are not the first Democrats to do this. In fact, it’s been custom for Democrats to take to Twitter to repeat this long-standing myth. Consider some of the tweets over the years by prominent Democrats.
In 2019, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) tweeted:
“5 years ago Michael Brown was murdered by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Michael was unarmed yet he was shot 6 times. I stand with activists and organizers who continue the fight for justice for Michael. We must confront systemic racism and police violence head on.”
5 years ago Michael Brown was murdered by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Michael was unarmed yet he was shot 6 times. I stand with activists and organizers who continue the fight for justice for Michael. We must confront systemic racism and police violence head on.
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) August 9, 2019
Then-Sen. Kamala Harris also tweeted in 2019: “Michael Brown’s murder forever changed Ferguson and America. His tragic death sparked a desperately needed conversation and a nationwide movement. We must fight for stronger accountability and racial equity in our justice system.”
Michael Brown’s murder forever changed Ferguson and America. His tragic death sparked a desperately needed conversation and a nationwide movement. We must fight for stronger accountability and racial equity in our justice system.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 9, 2019
In 2020, then-candidate Joe Biden tweeted: “It’s been six years since Michael Brown’s life was taken in Ferguson — reigniting a movement. We must continue the work of tackling systemic racism and reforming policing.”
It’s been six years since Michael Brown’s life was taken in Ferguson — reigniting a movement. We must continue the work of tackling systemic racism and reforming policing.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) August 9, 2020
Democrats should not be allowed to get away with this; all of these claims are false. Brown was not the victim of systemic racism. Instead, he was the victim of attacking a police officer and reaching for his gun. Numerous investigations proved this, including a federal investigation by the Obama-Biden Department of Justice. This investigation concluded that there was not any evidence to show that Darren Wilson did anything other than act in self-defense after Brown attacked him.
Jayapal knows this. As does Bush. As did Warren, Harris, and Biden. Yet, they do not care. Everyone knows this. A political party so concerned about telling the truth has zero problem lying to the public about Michael Brown and other police shootings. They have lost all credibility on anything they say and must be held accountable for their roles in spreading lies, racial division, and civil discontent.
