The parents of Michael Brown brought their effort to expose the happenings in Ferguson, Mo. to an international stage with appearing before the United Nations Committee Against Torture.
According to CNN, Lesley McSpadden and Michael Brown Sr. testified before the committee on Tuesday about the events in Ferguson following the Aug. 9th shooting death of their unarmed 18-year-old son by White police officer Darren Wilson. The United Nations Committee Against Torture works to prevent cruel or degrading treatment or punishment by government authorities.
McSpadden told CNN in Geneva, Switzerland, “We need the world to know what’s going on in Ferguson and we need justice. We need answers and we need action. And we have to bring it to the U.N. so they can expose it to the rest of the world, what’s going on in small town Ferguson.”
McSpadden and Brown Sr.’s testimony was held behind closed doors but the delegation that organized their trip say the couple read from a statement submitted by the Brown family and organizations such as HandsUpUnited, the Organization for Black Struggle, and Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment.
The statement notes that Brown’s killing and force used by police officers during protests that following the tragedy “represent violations of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.”
Currently the country awaiting a grand jury’s decision in the case.
