Michael Brown Ferguson sign over slain SDPD officer's name causes outrage

Michael Brown sign over SDPD officer’s name causes outrage

Nov. 26, 2014 6 AM PT

The name of slain SDPD officer Jeremy Henwood was dragged into the incendiary Ferguson debate Tuesday night when a San Diego protester covered Henwood's name on a City Heights park bench with a sign supporting Michael Brown, the black Missouri teenager who was killed in August by a white Ferguson police officer.

A number of San Diegans expressed outrage at the sign placement and a debate over the finer points of protest and the cultural impact of symbolic gestures ensued when NBC San Diego reporter Steven Luke tweeted a photo of it from the Officer Jeremy Henwood Memorial Park, so named in February to memorialize a beloved beat cop and Marine veteran killed in the line of duty three years ago.

"Disgusting," wrote one person about the protest sign. "Ass-backwards," wrote another.

The emotional comments continued: "Kind of out of line no?" "Outrageous." "I'm pissed." Yes, people swore.

When San Diego CityBeat editor David Rolland asked a question about the outrage, a fierce debate ensued in 140-character bursts about life, death, race and community policing. The argument involved San Diego police Sgt. Jeffrey Jordon and officer Tom Bostedt, both of whom are directors of the San Diego Police Officers Association.

Henwood was shot and killed three years ago, ambushed in his squad car not long after one last act of kindness captured poignantly by a security camera, a white police officer buying a young African-American boy an extra cookie at McDonald's.

Those circumstances contrast with what happened in Ferguson on Aug. 9 when officer Darren Wilson shot and killed Brown. A grand jury's decision not to indict Wilson Monday has sparked two consecutive nights of protests in Ferguson and in big cities from coast to coast.

There were two San Diego protests Tuesday night with demonstrations downtown and in City Heights. Protesters in the mid-city march wound up blocking Interstate 15 and some threw bottles at police officers.

What do you think of Michael Brown's name covering Officer Jeremy Henwood's in City Heights? Read on and weigh in below.

Was it 'acceptable' or 'an outrage'?

Reaction was instant -- and visceral. San Diegans quickly began sharing the photo and the outrage.Rolland didn't share the outrage.Jordon responded to Rolland. He was later joined by Bostedt. Voice of San Diego CEO Scott Lewis sided with Rolland. Others chimed in, too, to debate the placement of this particular sign. Bostedt wasn't done. He finished by referring to Brown, whose death is wrapped in conflicting reports about whether he lunged for Wilson's gun or had his hands up, as a "thug" Rolland didn't respond. Now it's your turn. What do you think of the placement of this sign? Is it an acceptable protest or a shame?