On Aug. 9, 2014, Michael Brown Jr. was shot and killed by a white Ferguson, Mo., police officer.
Brown's body laid in the street for hours before protests erupted in the north St. Louis County town and around the country. The moment was a flashpoint, sparking renewed calls for justice against police brutality and an emphasis on supporting Black communities.
Michael Brown Sr. and his wife Cal Brown founded the Chosen For Change Organization to turn their pain into purpose.
The nonprofit has a slew of community programming to support the families of those who have lost a child.
Lezley McSpadden, Brown Jr.’s mother, also founded The Michael O.D. Brown We Love Our Sons & Daughters Foundation in the wake of her son’s death.
On Friday, Brown Sr. led a multi-mile unity march from Normandy High School — where Brown Jr. graduated 8 days before he was killed — to Canfield Drive, the site of his son’s death.
“I’m not gonna never let the world forget about my son,” he told St. Louis Public Radio on Friday. “We wanted to show what he did in his life before the hashtag.”
For its 20th anniversary, the DC Jazz Festival featured performances throughout the Washington, D.C., area culminating in a weekend jam-packed with performances stretched across several venues at The Wharf in Southwest Washington.
Reporters for NPR traveled across North and South Dakota to see the challenges older adults in rural areas face when they need medical care — and to see what it's like for the people trying to help.