SOME people have been having this conversation, while a lot of other people have been ignoring it, or won't even admit that there is a problem....still. It was a string of incidents along with things like bodycams and social media that have forced EVERYONE to at the very least acknowledge it. It started with the Trayvon Martin case, and then really took off with Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, and Mike Brown.. all the latter ones happened in the same year. Ferguson happened, and that's when BLM got more news coverage. This stuff was never talked about like it has been now, and if it were, it'd be pretty pathetic if decades of talk led to no changes. (there was of course Rodney King, but thats another story)
To be productive, people need to stop looking at the bullshit as the central issue here. Even if I were to just agree that Brown is 100% a scum criminal, that doesn't address what the real issue is. Just because Brown wasn't an angel, doesn't make the cop the angel. How police police is the problem. Why certain communities have higher crime and less opportunities than other communities is the problem.
I wish they didn't make Brown the face of this, it isn't helpful, but it also isn't the point. It's a not movement for Brown.
And whether or not someone stole something, or has a criminal record is not a justification for them to get shot and killed by the police. That's what these "conversations" keep getting devolved into. "He was a piece of shit/criminal, so fuck him" That's not for the cops to decide. That's why we have rights, laws, and courts.