Yesterday evening, a grand jury decided not to indict Officer Darren Wilson [1] in the killing of Mike Brown, an unarmed, African-American teenager, in Ferguson, MO [2]. Overnight, Twitter exploded with reactions about the decision and the resulting protests, as you can see in this visualization.
The jury's decision catapulted a larger conversation about race and violence, and the hashtags #Ferguson, #BlackLivesMatter, and #MichaelBrown began trending on the social media site. Ahead, you can see some of the most powerful tweets and images that will be hard to forget anytime soon.
"A system cannot fail those it was never meant to protect" - W.E.B. Du Bois #BlackLivesMatter [3] #BlackTwitter [4] #WEBDuBois [5]
— Celine (@ice_g0ld) November 25, 2014 [6]
Outside the #Ferguson [7] police station pic.twitter.com/Fr8Cr5gejd [8]
— #Ferguson (@FergusonToday) November 25, 2014 [9]
This is deep #Ferguson [10] pic.twitter.com/xudhDux8mY [11]
— Hisham (@LilDark) November 25, 2014 [12]
Unforgettable. RT @bustle [13]: This is quickly becoming the most iconic image from #Ferguson [14]: http://t.co/pkANw5XDdj [15] pic.twitter.com/iVYTKCZhvL [16]
— Femi Oke (@FemiOke) November 25, 2014 [17]
Choking on tear gas . Milk on face. I'm choking too police warned then fired the canister #Ferguson [18] pic.twitter.com/JAsqW7gV8e [19]
— Sara Sidner (@sarasidnerCNN) November 25, 2014 [20]
Meet Terrence Williams, the 23-year-old who has been cleaning up in #Ferguson [21] since 7 am today. (via @ryanjreilly [22]) pic.twitter.com/lhMMKZqjEj [23]
— Sons & Brothers (@sonsandbros) November 25, 2014 [24]
Here's how newspapers across the U.S. are covering #Ferguson [25] pic.twitter.com/LkKoPX9U8W [26]
— Alexandra Zaslow (@AlexandraZaslow) November 25, 2014 [27]
In #Ferguson [28] pic.twitter.com/vNr1pxt3FS [29]
— Tim Walker (@timwalker) November 25, 2014 [30]
I can't participate in the protests so I brought awareness to my school... #BlackLivesMatter [31] pic.twitter.com/KTkudfUuvq [32]
— Azuri (@FATJUDASSS) November 25, 2014 [33]
PHTOOS: Protests erupt across America after the #Ferguson [34] grand jury announces its decision. http://t.co/OxrSVK3kJz [35] pic.twitter.com/vcb7XSlWVg [36]
— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) November 25, 2014 [37]
Nearly 20 people outside University Baltimore chanted Hands up Don't Shoot at 11:51 am & hit the ground #Ferguson [38] pic.twitter.com/UbbcLdlrBx [39]
— Justin George (@justingeorge) November 25, 2014 [40]
hundreds of students sit in silence at southwest high school in mpls because #BlackLivesMatter [41] pic.twitter.com/HFrONGxwYe [42]
— maeve (@sheribaee) November 25, 2014 [43]
Shot this at 14th and U last night. I feel like this image will stick with me for a good long while. #Ferguson [44] pic.twitter.com/nwg3gj3hHQ [45]
— Pablo Maurer (@MLSist) November 25, 2014 [46]
As a society how do we do better and stop things like this happening time after time!! I'm so sorry to… http://t.co/VTe0rwXeek [47]
— LeBron James (@KingJames) November 25, 2014 [48]