Where is Michael Brown's Mother Now?

Michael Brown's mother, Lesley McSpadden, decided to run for City Council nearly five years after her son was killed by a white police officer in Ferguson. In an interview with The Associated Press, McSpadden claimed, "I wanted to go back and do something right in a place that did something so very wrong to my son, and I think that's what my son would want as well." 39-year-old Lesley McSpadden was among 3 candidates running in Ferguson's third ward: her opponents Keith Kallstrom and Fran Griffin have been active on several Ferguson boards. Michael Brown's unjust death on August 9, 2014, sparked months of protests which gathered local support for Lesley McSpadden.  In November 2014, the St. Louis County grand jury decided not to indict Darren Wilson: the officer who shot Michael Brown. This decision renewed public outrage and increased support for Lesley McSpadden. While McSpadden is new at being a candidate, she has been heavily involved in politics. Since Michael Brown's death, McSpadden has been front-and-center in the national Black Lives Matter movement. During the 2016 election, McSpadden endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. McSpadden was also part of the seven "Mothers of the Movement" who appeared on stage at the Democratic National Convention in 2016. The "Mothers of the Movement" featured mothers who lost children in police shootings, in police custody, or from gun violence. In 2016, McSpadden testified in favor of a Missouri Senate bill that would increase the use of police body cameras. McSpadden asserted that police accountability would be a top priority if she was elected, "I think they should work much harder to prove that they are there to protect and serve, because no one believed that in August 2014 and people are still skeptical." Ferguson's criminal justice system faced heavy criticism for its treatment of poor and minority residents following Michael Brown's death. While the U.S. Department of Justice did not prosecute Wilson, the agency's report of the police and municipal court practices led to an agreement requiring reforms that are still being implemented. McSpadden continued to push for reform of police practices: she aimed to improve the relationship between the police and the community, "not just when something bad happens and you're pressured to do it, but to be that civil servant in the community that you signed up to be." Despite Lesley McSpadden's efforts to combat police brutality, she was ultimately defeated in the city council election. If McSpadden had been elected, she would have had oversight over the police department responsible for her son's death.



https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/michael-brown-s-mother-running-ferguson-city-council-n989876

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/02/us/michael-brown-mother-ferguson-city-council/index.html