Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill: Ferguson will 'thrive' again

U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill (D) of Missouri spoke candidly with theGrio.com Thursday evening at a Ferguson restaurant.

McCaskill has been on the ground in Ferguson for a few days and reached out to community residents about the situation surrounding Michael Brown’s killing by police.

“They want people to come to their businesses,” she said of several residents she’s talked to. “They want to get their insurance claims filed. They want their streets opened so they can move around and get to work without the hassle, without the stress, barricades, and frankly, a whole lot of cameras.”

The senator shook hands with other customers in the restaurant as well as the business owners. She is hopeful for the future of Ferguson.

“We’re hoping we have another good night [Thursday,] and if we do have another good night tonight, I’m hoping the fever is broken,” she said. “Maybe we can get all the instigators out of town that have been throwing rocks and shooting at police officers and have the peaceful protesters that want to be here, that allow this community to thrive.”

She believes getting Ferguson back to what it was before the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown depends on how long the community works at it. She has started a social media campaign on twitter #ShopFerguson.

“It means that the people in St. Louis need to not isolate this community because of what has happened,” she said. “They need to embrace this community. They need to be aware that the people of this community need help to get over this bump. One of the ways we help them is by coming here to eat, coming here to shop, by coming here to demonstrate that we have great confidence in the safety of this community.”

The senator was in Washington, D.C. on August 9, the day Michael Brown was killed. Because of her job, she felt it was important to be here.

“I can’t imagine representing this area and not being here,” she said. “In fact, I was supposed to travel and give a speech on the west coast this weekend. I’ve canceled that and the people I was supposed to speak to understand. I think people get it that my job is here now and I need to stay here for a while until I’m sure of the things that the businesses need, and the mothers and fathers in the community and the children in the community. I need to be responsible for them, and that’s probably going to be a while before I go anywhere else.”