While I am not a citizen of America and I didn’t grow up here, I live here now and what I see frightens me for the future of society in this country on so many social levels.
The verdict came down on the Trayvon Martin case last night after 18 hours of deliberation, I didn’t watch the case, I only saw snippets. I only know what the media wants me to know. The only people who really know the truth are George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin, but Trayvon’s dead, his life snuffed out by an over zealous neighbourhood watchman. Or was Trayvon an enraged teen and Zimmerman acted in self defense.We’ll never know. George Zimmerman will live out his life and he only he can know the truth of that night. But why did he not heed the advice of the 911 operator to wait for police, why did he think Trayvon was a threat in the first place. We live in a world unfortunately where if you act a certain way, look a certain way then you are a threat, even if you’re not. The idea of shoot first ask questions later is scary. Citizens being armed is scary. You can’t make rational decisions in a split second of life or death. This boy, and he was a boy, lost his life because he went to buy some candy and a drink in the dark in an unfamiliar neighbourhood. He could have been anyone. George Zimmerman did what he thought was right, did he act with a jaded view of young black men? Was he racial profiling, would he have done the same if Trayvon was white or Latino? We will never know and while advocates insist this is not a race case and he was found not guilty from lack of evidence, the facts are a young black man is dead because he was walking alone with his hood up in a neighbourhood where he was not known and was assumed to be a threat.
The law is complicated and flawed. It can be manipulated to serve a purpose and doesn’t always follow a moral code. How does Zimmerman get off and a black woman gets 20 yrs for firing a gun in the air to warn an abusive husband, who already had a history of violence against her? How do the police get acquitted for killing Sean Bell in New York? How do they get away with beating Rodney King in LA? Why are these men being targeted? Why does being black automatically put you on the wrong side of the law?
This case, while supposedly not about race, is so very much about it. Hundreds of people a day are murdered by guns, that doesn’t make International news.It doesn’t even make national news. Why this case? Would he have been acquitted if the races were reversed? If Zimmerman was black and Trayvon latino? Would it have happened in the first place? Again we’ll never know. And while the law says he is innocent until proven guilty and if there’s reasonable doubt about it he must go free.
The facts remain that Trayvon is still dead and Zimmerman still did it. Is that really justice? I think not.
The worst part… every black mother worries a little more for their sons tonight, every wife and girlfriend of a black man worries a little more for their husbands and every white person fears retaliation a little more which worsens race relations.
In a land where all men a created equal, equal is still defined by the colour of your skin.
America has regressed tonight and for that NOBODY wins.
Comments 34
Very well written. Interesting food for thought. I haven’t kept up with this case at all, because I don’t watch TV. All I can say is YIKES!!
Author
Thank you!
Like you, I’m not an American, so I feel a bit constrained from commenting on this, but I agree with you: racism is still very much alive, and when judgments like this come down, everyone suffers.
Author
Sure do! Thanks for commenting.
Very well said, Molley. Nobody wins, and a young man is dead. Just a sad situation no matter what your opinion is.
So many unanswered questions and a horrible precedent set for our legal system. I wish we could move forward in this country instead of backward.
Author
Yep.
All true. There is something very very wrong in our country when something like this can happen.
Author
Such a terrible thing. We had protests and helicopters practically all night here.
I’m also not American, but from what I’ve read of this case around the blogosphere, much has been called into question about the way the media have presented it, as well as the way the entire case was managed.
It seemed to be presented as ‘white guy kills innocent young black boy’ and yet not one part of that is true. Bar the killing, which did happen and should have justice served as a result.
*sigh*
Author
Unfortunately the statistics of black killing white in jail every time and white killing black getting off regularly is a reality here.
Well said, on all counts. You know if you’ve read any of my commentary on this how absolutely disgusted I am with this verdict. A jury made up of six white suburban women cannot and will not ever deliver impartial justice where the death of a black teenager is concerned.
As I am a white suburban woman, I reject the notion that i could NOT, would NOT make an impartial judgement based on the facts given JUST because he is a black teenager. I am not naive and I know that racism is alive and strong between ALL races/ethnicities. I am doing my very best to raise my two young children to be respectful to all people regardless of race, religion and partner choice etc. Unfortunately change won’t happen until our attitudes change.
Author
Agree wholeheartedly. As someone else mentioned today in something I read. There is ‘white guilt’ because we will never have to teach our children how to stay safe in these kinds of situations for fear of being shot because of the colour of their skin.
They’re terrible statistics and I hope the American legal system is one day thoroughly ashamed of itself 🙁 Terrible amount of injustice.
I am with you in the fact that I only know what the national media wants me to know and that is half the problem with this whole case!! It should never have been national news. My heart breaks for Trayvon’s parents having lost their son, their baby, their hope for the future. I also feel bad for Zimmerman who despite being found not guilty, has no hope of living a normal life. A life where he will constantly fear for his own. And it’s sad that we will never know what really happened. I will say if you look at Trayvon’s recent photos from FB and not the 12yr old child photos the media loved displaying, you may see a very different person. This person was no “child”. Double middle fingers, a gun and smoke from his mouth. I obviously don’t feel he deserved to die because of the photos I saw, it just plays back to the media mind warp of “let’s see what can make the best story”.
It’s nice to finally read an intelligently written opinion about this very tragic case. I agree with you 100%
No offense intended to the people in this group. I just wanted to illustrate my belief that the lack of racial and cultural diversity in the jury led to an unfair verdict.
No true offense was taken, Daniel, and I appreciate your follow up comment. I do understand your point and personally thought the jury should have been more diverse. I just wanted to bring to light that there are many of us out here, even white suburban women, trying hard to raise well rounded, respectful kids.
This is yet another heartbreaking case, and although I do not know many details, you make so very many valid points in your post Molley. We like to think we’ve come so far as a society, then these stories remind us of how much work still needs to be done. I think here in Canada, we may be sheltered from the reality of the situation a bit more – perhaps with our gun control laws. It still needs to be addressed. Wonderful post.