13 Days in Ferguson

A Memoir

By: Captain Ronald Johnson, Alan Eisenstock

Narrated by: Ronald Johnson

Length: 6 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

On August 14, 2014, five days after the fatal shooting of Michael Brown ignited race riots throughout the city of Ferguson, Missouri, the nation found an unlikely hero in Captain Ron Johnson of the Missouri Highway Patrol. Charged with the Herculean task of restoring peace between a hostile African American community and the local police, Johnson, a 30-year law enforcement veteran and an African American, did the unthinkable: He took off his bulletproof vest and joined the protesters.

The 13 days and nights that followed were the most trying of Johnson’s life - professionally, emotionally, and spiritually. Officers in his own command called him a traitor. Lifelong friends stopped speaking to him. The media questioned and criticized his every decision. Alone at the center of the firestorm, with only his family and his faith to cling to, Johnson persevered in his belief that the only way to effectively bridge the divide between Black and blue is to - literally - walk across it.

In 13 Days in Ferguson, Johnson shares, for the first time, his view of what happened during the 13 turbulent days he spent stabilizing the city of Ferguson, and the extraordinary impact those two historic weeks had on his faith, his approach to leadership, and what he perceives to be the most viable solution to the issues of racism and prejudice in America.

©2018 Ronald S. Johnson (P)2019 Audible, Inc.

Raw, Honest, Real.

Captain Ron Johnson had an onerous duty thrust upon him shortly after Michael Brown. He was appointed 'Head of Security' in Ferguson.
He had to earn the trust of the citizens, law enforcement, and the very officials that placed him in that office.
Ron Johnson reads this book in a near monotone. Clearly, he is not a professional actor or reader. That being said, the powerful emotions of this highly compelling story come through. I appreciate knowing that my feelings while listening to this book were not manipulated by an actor,

more informative than national media

not being in the area I don't feel like the news coverage we got outside the area was as informative. then we add the personal touch of the author and this story becomes something else. while listening my views and my feelings where all over the place. I stopped the recording several times while listening. mostly because my feelings about the events and the people became overwhelming for me. I would get mad. I would chuckle. I cried with years running down my face many many times. At one point he states when he told his wife that he was in charge she didn't give him congrats she instead asked Why? Why did the governor choose him? After listening to this I believe the governor didn't choose him. God chose him. He just used the governor to relay the task to Mr Johnson.

the truth

luv it. it discussed a real life struggle. as a reader I could identify with the writer.

Informative and Engaging

Lots of details I never would have imagined. His story is a description of the delicate balance struck by a black man leading a mostly white establishment during a race riot.