And its name is racism. Pure and simple. I lived in the St. Louis area for 20 years prior to moving here to the Florida panhandle. I've seen lots of racism in my time there as well as here but it truly seems to be spiraling out of control in Missouri. Perhaps because it is finally being exposed to the light for all to see and that has the racists angry. One would think a former St. Louis Cardinal star would at least get some respect but nah...Follow me below for this outrageous story.
So, Curt Ford a former St. Louis Cardinals baseball player thought he would get some gas while black. Apparently that was a bridge too far for 37 year old James Street who was arrested for the assault after video footage showed him punching Ford in the face for no apparent reason.
The incident began at about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday as Street and Ford approached the same gas pump from different directions. Ford backed up and proceeded to another pump while the second vehicle continued through, past the pump and pulled into a parking spot directly in front of the store, police said.
When Ford exited his vehicle, Street got out of his car and began shouting racial slurs. Street then entered the store, and Ford tried to avoid a confrontation, police said. Ford then walked toward the front of the store to pay for his gas. Street was exiting the store when he approached Ford, and unprovoked, punched him in the face, and drove away.
Prosecutors charged Street with one count of assault motivated by discrimination in the third degree, a class D felony.
A police source said the man told Ford, "Go back to Ferguson you (racial slur)."
Now I guess we just wait to hear how Ford somehow asked for all this and the media and right wing bigots can figure out a way to thuggify him properly so we can all be sure he absolutely needed to be punched in the face. I'm really at my wits end with this shit. Really. As for Ford, he's thinking of leaving St. Louis and I can't blame him for that but I'm not certain that will fix things. The whole country needs to take a good long look in the mirror and figure a way to do better.
"I'm going to let the authorities handle this situation, but I've had enough of St. Louis," Ford said in a phone interview Thursday. "You hear about this kind of stuff happening, and I always knew it existed because of my previous experience working here in St. Louis, but you try to keep away from it and there is just no way you can do that unless you stay inside like a hermit.
"I just want justice. It's all I want."