I'm happy OSU won the national championship.  I'm white.  Now that I have those disclaimers out of the way I think I agree with the this article which details how we, as a people via discourse and media coverage, frame riots in America and our hypocrisy in doing so.

In Columbus there were 89 small fires started (couches, trash cans, etc) and "jubilant" fans who were celebrating were blocking emergency crews from reaching some of them.  There were also various acts of vandalism.  Some pepper spray was used to control and disperse the crowds.  There is an ongoing investigation into the use of the tear gas.

In Ferguson Mo the citizenry gathered to protest after the shooting death of Michael Brown.  One fire, that destroyed a store, was started.  I have no idea how much tear gas was used the first night of the riots there.  I haven't found evidence that there is an investigation into the use of tear gas there.

I do know that the OSU fans have not been labelled as thugs who are destroying their own community while I often saw or heard that same type of descriptor used for the people of Ferguson.  Perhaps this is because the OSU event just lasted the one night, or maybe because it was in celebration and not protest, or perhaps it has to do with the racial make-up of the crowds, or, maybe, it is a combination of the.  

Should the motivation, cultural makeup, or duration of the riot have anything to do with how we label the rioters?  Should we let celebrators off the hook when we try to hold those fighting for social justice accountable?    It seems that, perhaps, we should be more forgiving of those who feel they are aggrieved by discrimination or corruption than we do those who take a sporting celebration too far.  At least the former are attempting, in their own way, to improve our society while the later are just forgetting, albeit momentarily, what it means to be part of society.