• Press Release

Amnesty International USA Statement on Attorney General Visit to Ferguson

August 20, 2014

Contact: Amanda Simon, [email protected], 202.680.2866, @AIUSAmedia

(FERGUSON, MO) – As Attorney General Eric Holder visits Ferguson today as part of the federal investigation into Michael Brown's death, Amnesty International USA Executive Director Steven W. Hawkins issued the following statement:

"Attorney General Holder must reassure the people of Ferguson that a prompt, thorough and impartial investigation into Michael Brown's death is being conducted. The public needs to know what measures the government will be taking to prevent excessive or unnecessary force from being used in the future – not only in Ferguson, but in every town and city in the United States."

Amnesty International USA is calling for:

  • The Attorney General to begin an independent investigation into the use of force in connection with the policing of protests in Ferguson;
  • Prompt implementation of a Justice Department-led review of police tactics, including the use of lethal force;
  • The creation of a national commission to examine the use of excessive and lethal force, the militarization of police and the United States' adherence to its human rights obligations in policing protests;
  • The collection and publication of nationwide statistics on police shootings by the Justice Department.

Amnesty International USA's human rights delegation remains in Ferguson in order to shine a light on what's happening on the ground.

Please contact Amanda Simon at 212.633.4162 or [email protected] to arrange an interview with a representative of Amnesty International.

Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 3 million members in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.