[Read page one: Occupying Ferguson… and page two: Conquering Fear] Although I was absolutely willing to put my life on the line, it wasnt time yet. I wasnt ready to die on the front lines […]

[Read page one: Occupying Ferguson]
At that time in 2014, I was tangled deep into the black web of Tumblr. The power of online social justice warriors stretched its arms wide and kicked its feet under the nose of the sleeping giant that has become this country. Organizers posted meetings, discussions, lived feeds, think pieces, poems, dates for secret protests and marches, historical context for our pain and links keeping the community that was #woke, informed. The biggest march in Atlanta was to circle around Centennial Olympic Park just across the street from the headquarters of CNN.

Three years ago, today, I was driving in heavy stop-and-go Atlanta traffic. Per usual, I expected to reach maximum frustration after 90 minutes when I could make the final left turn into the parking lot of my workplace. That Monday, August 10, 2014, V-103’s DJ Frank Ski stopped all the music on the station to report a story of a young man visiting his family over summer holiday. This young man, Michael, was going to become not only the first of his family to go to college, but one of the few in his community. That Monday, the 10th, would have been his first day at his college campus.