The death of Missouri teen Michael E. Brown reverberated through not just the mostly black community of Ferguson, but the entire United States of America last Saturday by proving that racial tensions are not just an unfortunate piece of our nation’s past.

Brown’s alleged murder was carried out by an officer in the Ferguson police force whose race and identity have remained under wraps for security purposes. According to his friend Dorian Johnson, the two were simply walking down the street when the officer confronted them, raising his gun and started shooting at them. They’d gotten on their knees, but he reportedly still shot at them, even when Brown had tried showing him that he didn’t have a weapon on him.

Of course, this case is being heftily disputed between two separate parties who are basically contradicting each others’ stories, but according to Police Chief Tom Jackson, there is “plenty” of physical evidence and eyewitness testimonies to get to the bottom of this tragedy.

Michael was just 18-years-old and had just graduated from high school. The FBI has decided to open a probe on his case as of  last Monday (August 11) — the day that he would’ve started his first day of college.

The bureau will be investigating alongside the St. Louis County police, following evidence that Brown was inside of the police car at his time of death. There is evidence of a struggle between Brown and the officer who shot at him; while this is pertinent, the reason for the struggle is still unfounded. At least one shot was fired by the officer during the struggle, however, with multiple others fired before he’d even stepped out of the car.

Despite the wild controversy surrounding the case that is sure to get thousands around the country riled up, Brown’s mother, Lesley McSpadden, is urging all involved to handle this situation in a non-violent manner. By her and his father, Michael Brown, Sr.’s side is none other than Benjamin Crump, previously known for his work on the infamous Trayvon Martin case back in 2012.

In a recent interview, McSpadden had these potent words to say on her son’s passing: “We can’t even celebrate him going to college. Now we’ve got to plan his funeral.”

Regardless of the specifics, Brown’s death will forever be an utter tragedy. Though I extend my condolences to his family, friends, and everyone involved in this tragic situation as more details are uncovered in the coming days, I cannot help but think about the kind of crude awakening this type of event has on the American public.

Everything going on currently shows that while we’ve made progress, we’re not totally out of the woods yet with the issue of racism. #IfTheyGunnedMeDown is a great Twitter campaign that depicts this situation from a totally true angle.

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