R.I.P. Trayvon

I followed the televised Florida court case of the State of Florida vs. George Zimmerman. I did this beginning with the selection of six jurors, five whom I later realized were moms, five who were Caucasians and one who was of "an unknown minority." They were trying Zimmerman for taking your life over a year ago when you were walking into a gated community one evening, to visit your dad. You were barely 17 years old when you were shot in the heart and your life was snuffed out. Your killer claimed self-defense, even claiming that you brutally attacked him and left him with no option but to defend himself from your vicious attack. Your killer even claimed that you made a weapon of the concrete sidewalk and used it to bash his head, over and over and over. When I learned of the demographic of the six jurors, I did not know what to think. You were Black and most of them were Caucasian; it is unclear what minority the sixth juror was. I know that there are many people who declare that the case against your killer had nothing to do with race. The Judge in the second-degree murder case against your killer would not permit any racial debate to enter into the trial. That meant that she ruled against the many calls your killer made to the authorities that involved Black people, especially teens like you. Your killer was what we often call "a wanna-be cop" who was zealous about fighting crime in his gated community. There is nothing wrong with wanting to fight crime and being the eyes and ears for his law enforcement (LE). But when this person seemed to focus his suspicions on the Black community and went so far as to end your life that rainy evening, I question his motives and especially his attitude toward the Black community.

The case against your killer would never even have led to him being arrested for his actions that rainy night, had some 2,500,000 plus of us had not signed a Change.org petition. Your killer would never have been placed in police custody had many individuals not staged peaceful protests calling for your killer to face charges for ending your life that rainy night. The recent trial would never had happened! The trial? Your killer sat in there, day after day, looking smug and sure that he would be set free. I saw your parents in the front row and I saw them and your older brother when each of them was called to testify. I saw their amazing grace, strength, dignity and courage throughout the entire trial. This spoke much about what kind of family you came from and what kind of kid you very possibly were. We saw you, in court and certainly in the media, maligned as a violent "thug" and a "scary kid." In the media, those of us who use social networks read articles where you were portrayed as a troubled teenager who used drugs, was aggressive and a "gang-wanna-be." Articles surfaced that you were trying to buy a firearm. An app was created called "Angry Trayvon" that was a game. So many of us angrily reported this app that it was recalled. Your killer's supporters went to great lengths to make sure that we saw you in the worst light possible. Even if there is some truth to these rumors that have circulated about you, you were a teenager and a victim. Your killer was the adult and the "neighborhood watch co-ordinator" who should have known better.

It is disheartening how the case against your killer has so bitterly divided a nation and led to so many ill feelings and expressions of hate and rage. This divide has been roughly along racial and political lines. People who have supported your killer claim that the case against your killer has nothing to do with race. But is this true? Your killer was known to make many phone calls to authorities involving Blacks. I heard that 911 tape, over and over. Your killer described you as a "suspicious person" and also called you a "suspect." He used expletives so bad that they were bleeped out. He made racial slurs and declared that "they always get away." He described you as "walking slowly." You were "suspicious" because you were wearing a hoodie and were of the skin color that your killer apparently did not trust. So many people who support your killer claim that there "is no evidence" that you were a victim of crime or that your homicide was unjustifiable. Nor that you were racially profiled. They point to the fact that your killer mentioned your race only when he was asked by the Dispatcher who took the call, that you supposedly appeared out of nowhere to viciously attack your killer , and that your killer was a good man and neighbor who "would never do such a thing unless he had no choice." Your supporters have held that you were racially profiled and base this on the 911 tape and on the prior 911 calls made by your killer, that involved suspected young Blacks, that you were defending yourself with your fists and that you were a victim. As for one Defense witness choice, I was dismayed at the choice of the young mom, Olivia, who testified at your killer's trial that her home had been invaded by two Black teenagers and that she had understandably feared for her life and that of her children. She testified that your killer had helped her and showed her caring. To me, this sent the jury (and the listening public) a silent message about how young Black people are often seen as scary and "guilty until proven innocent." This is only ONE EXAMPLE of many, many such.

Throughout the trial itself, your killer was humanized and the Defense selected many witnesses who spoke glowingly of your killer and what he meant to them. Your killer sat in court, day after day and the six ladies who were to decide his fate, got many chances to bond with him and see him as a real, flesh and blood person. We kept seeing the wounds on the back of your killer's head and on his nose. The six-women jury kept seeing those photos. Your heartbreaking autopsy photos, on the other hand, seemed to have been shown less to the jury. In court, your mom, dad and brother did testify in your behalf. But the State did not call anyone as "character witnesses" to speak of who you were, as the Defense did for your killer. I was saddened that the "star witness" for the State," your friend Rachel, was trashed by so many people on the two days that she testified. She did say how you mentioned that you felt that you were being stalked by a "creepy ass cracker" and at one point, begged your killer to "Get off of me, get off!" She spoke to you minutes before you were killed. On social media and the Internet, people vilified Rachel because of her physical appearance and because of how she spoke. She was criticized because she admitted to lying in a court deposition, about her age and why she could not bring herself to attend your funeral. Overall, though, it seems that your case was doomed from the very beginning, since you were found dead on the grass that terrible night. The LE believed your killer's account of justifiable self-defense and dropped initial charges against him. You were not properly identified, An initial investigation was not properly done and crucial evidence that could have brought your killer were lost forever. Sadly, the State, therefore, was not able to put on your case as they would have liked and in a way that would have brought your killer to justice. The jury selection consisted of a non-diverse group of women except for a woman of unknown minority.

Last Saturday night, we heard the verdict, which only deepened the bitter divide that has exist over the case from the beginning. I had been feeling positive and hopeful when the jury had brought the Judge a question concerning the lesser charge of Manslaughter. However, when about an hour later, the verdict was quickly read. Your parents, who had been there daily as their show of support for you, did not show up at the reading of the controversial verdict. When I heard the "Not Guilty" verdict that set your killer totally free, with all his liberties restored to him, like so many others, I was profoundly affected. Your killer did not even get Manslaughter, much less Second-Degree Murder. As a result, there are peaceful protests all over the US. I understand that "Justice4YTrayvon" vigils are to be held in 100 cities, all over the US tomorrow alone. Over a million of us have signed a Change.org petition calling on the Justice Department to investigate your case and to see if your killer can have hate crimes charges brought against him. The Attorney General, Eric Holder, is now looking into this matter and your killer's gun, used to end your life, has been turned over to them. Yes, there have been some race riots but for the most part, people have been said to be peaceful. I saw your parents interviewed yesterday and again, they have shown the same strength, dignity, grace and courage they showed throughout the entire trial.

Your killer? He may be innocent in the eyes of the law. He may be free in the legal sense. But free emotionally, spiritually, or even physically? No. Many, many expressions of anger, ill will and hate have been expressed all over the Internet and on social networks. He, his family and those on his legal team have received death threats and they are said to be many, coming in daily. I saw a Facebook page set up called, "I Hate George Zimmerman." A Black group has set up a $10,000 bounty to capture your killer, to "get him." So your killer remains guilty in the eyes of many in the public and this will be unlikely to ever change. Your tragic, untimely young death has sparked many national conversations about race relations, gun laws, the inequities in the criminal justice system and the need to prevent violence in our neighborhoods. So while a Florida jury of six women have set your killer free, have stated that your death is a justifiable homicide, and that you were not a mere victim but were responsible for your death, they do not have the last word. Your parents are committed to devoting the rest of their lives to preventing and ending violence, in your name and in your honor. Many people are calling for changes in some of our gun laws that made it almost impossible to convict your killer of any crime in your tragic death. People see you as a symbol of the inequities in the criminal justice system and many bad attitudes that are rampant throughout our society, toward anyone who looks, walks, talks or acts differently and is more likely to be seen as "suspicious" and a "danger to society."

Rest in peace, Trayvon. You have not died in vain.

The Trial That Is Dividing A Nation

There is a case and a trial, currently in its final stages. It involves a deceased 17 year old teenager and the man charged with second-degree murder in his death. Each one of us who knows anything about this case, and especially if we follow it, have strong emotions about it and what we think happened. This case has spawned demonstrations and peaceful protests all over the US. It has inspired a Change.org petition which over 2,500,000 people signed. This petition was to the Florida Attorney General to charge the defendant in this case with murder in the death of an unarmed teenager that he shot. The defendant, from the very beginning, has claimed self-defense under the "Stand Your Ground" law in the State of Florida. The defendant was the Neighborhood Watch volunteer and the eyes and ears of his neighborhood. One rainy, dark night, a 17 year old boy was walking through this neighborhood, with headphones, Skittles, iced tea and his cell phone. The defendant, who carried a gun and a flashlight, contacted Law Enforcement (LE) about this teenager, got out of his vehicle and, in the course of time, a fight began. It is unclear what happened during this fight. It is clear that the teenager involved is dead and that his killer, who shot him in the heart, is claiming self-defense, as a result of what happened in the course of this fight.

This case would not ever have become a case unless there had been nationwide protests and millions of signatures on a Change.org petition. All of this was a result of anger that the defendant in this case was not even arrested or charged with any crime, because LE believed his story about self-defense. Why is there so much passion surrounding the case of Trayvon Martin, the shooting victim, and George Zimmerman, the shooter? I know that many want to pretend that this case has nothing to do with race, but it would be intellectually dishonest to pretend that. The Judge in this case has omitted racial profiling in putting forth evidence in this case.  But of course race is a HUGE part of this debate! This is because, frankly, the shooting victim was Black and the shooter is Hispanic-Caucasian. We know that the criminal justice system, with its many flaws, has failed the Black community. Studies show that Blacks are overrepresented in our prisons and jails, in proportion to their numbers. I may be wrong, but it is unknown that there is one Caucasian defendant who has been sent to Death Row for murdering a Black person. Yet there are quite a few Black people on Death Row. We have to face the fact that had George Zimmerman been Black and Trayvon had been a Caucasian teenager, we would not have this kind of passionate debate on this case. Zimmerman would have been arrested and that without nationwide protests or a petition with millions of signatures on it. The defendant's charges may have even been first-degree, not second-degree murder. Let's face it. We have a Black US President but racism is far from dead. We have made much progress, as we have in so many things, but we have far to go.

Last year, President Obama was heard to with in on Trayvon Martin and ended with, "If I had a son, he would have looked like Trayvon." I have read posts that suggest the President was trying to influence the outcome of this case, or intended to stir up racial unrest. I have no way of knowing what was going on in the President's mind when he made those comments. Because of the racial factor in this case but also because of the gun debate (Stand Your Ground in the State of Florida), this has been a very divisive case. Those who support Trayvon tend to be Black, tend to be child advocates, more likely to have been crime victims, and often have known some form of discrimination or marginalization. Many are simply people of good will. People who tend to support George Zimmerman tend to be Caucasian, may have had bad experiences with the Black community, tend to be Establishment people, often identify with LE, or are advocate for gun rights. Many just think, for their own reasons, that George Zimmerman acted in self-defense and is a victim of an angry teenager who attacked him. This case is unlike the Jodi Arias trial where the public overwhelmingly support Travis Alexander and opposed Jodi and most people have been sure of that defendant's guilt. There was no racial element in that trial, as both the victim and the defendant are Caucasian. However, in this Trayvon/George Zimmerman case, we clearly are split on this case and it may be reflected in the jury's verdict which may likely end up in a mistrial.

I have followed the trial on cable TV and have been struck by the expressions of hate and bullying that I have seen in one comment after another, both on Facebook and on the Internet. What is the cause of so much of this online bullying and hate? I have read many libelous articles. Some Trayvon Martin supporters have posted articles that expose George Zimmerman's past. These articles have included instances where Zimmerman molested a girl for many years and told her that it was "our secret." The Prosecution was denied permission to bring in elements from Zimmerman's past, such as when he assaulted an off-duty police officer and another time when he assaulted an ex-girlfriend (s?) and she got a restraining order against him. I have heard somewhere that Zimmerman had to go to anger management classes. The George Zimmerman supporters have made a big deal of Trayvon's marijuana usage, a past history of fighting and I read an article claiming that Trayvon had a history of burglary. I am not going to go into the name-calling on both sides as many of the names are not fit to be put in print. But I find it very offensive to trash murder victims the way that Trayvon has been trashed, complete with name-calling and libelous articles and comments. I know that victims are often trashed in trials as a part of defending criminal defendants. It was done in the Jodi Arias trial, where the defense brought forth accusations that Travis was abusive and a pedophile who was a sexual deviant. In the Casey Anthony trial, the defense brought forth molestation accusations against Casey's father George Anthony. And so on and on. But the victim trashing seems especially vicious in this George Zimmerman trial because of the very way the defendant is being tried for whether his shooting of Trayvon was justifiable self-defense or second-degree murder (or manslaughter). This of course implies that if you believe that Zimmerman is not guilty, that Trayvon caused his own death.

Emotions are running very high. Much hinges on the outcome of this trial, not only for Trayvon Martin's family and for George Zimmerman and his family, but how the justice system will handle other murder cases where self-defense is the defense. The outcome of this trial may cause racial unrest, if not racially-motivated violence and will certainly affect the public's view of the justice system. I suspect the outcome of this trial will affect the rate at which violent offenders will claim self-defense. The tension of the two sides, the supporters of Trayvon Martin and the supporters of George Zimmerman, is profound. We have two worldviews, one that leans more toward the life of the victim and the other worldview, that which values more the right to defend oneself. As I write this, the Zimmerman jury is now deliberating his guilt (or lack of it).

If we have basic knowledge of this case, we have strong and passionate feelings either for Trayvon or for George Zimmerman. It depends on our worldviews that come from our own values and life experiences. But there are facts in this case with which no person can disagree. One person is dead. His life was cut off at the age of 17. He was a teenager who was Black. He was 5'11 and 158 pounds. He was shot in the heart with a firearm. The defendant is the volunteer co-ordinator of a Neighborhood Watch in his community. He was driving in a vehicle. He had a flashlight and a gun. He is 5'8 and was 204 pounds (at the time). He made a 911 call expressing suspicion of the victim, his conversation laced with profanity. His statements to LE are laden with inconsistencies. He caused the untimely death of an unarmed teenager. He claims lawful self-defense. His life, the lives of his family and the lives of the victim's family are forever scarred by his actions on that rainy and dark night. The jury verdict will have a profound emotional impact on an entire nation.

Whatever the Zimmerman jury decides, my hope is that we will use all this to work together to change hearts, which cause what comes out of our mouths and what we do.