The Unacceptable Death of Trayvon Martin in 2012

In Memoriam:  Trayvon Martin.  Age 17.

We ARE Trayvon Martin's legacy now and it is our shared duty to seek justice for him and his surviving family.

I join my voice to those demanding justice for Trayvon.   My heart is full of sorrow for his family, for his mother and father who loved him and who were raising a good son.  I recognize the injustice of Trayvon Martin's murder.  I am not a mother, I've never been with child, so I cannot begin to imagine the depth of pain Mrs. Martin and her husband feel over the loss of their son and the way their dreams and aspirations have been ripped away.  I recognize the injustice of Trayvon Martin's murder.  

I've listened to the tapes that were released yesterday and there is no doubt this young man was murdered.   There is no doubt in my mind that Zimmerman had no intention of letting Trayvon Martin live.  "These assholes always get away."  Zimmerman complained to the 911 operator after being told to stand down and back off.  I'm convinced in that moment, Zimmerman had committed to murdering Trayvon Martin.

Lets look at this.  Zimmerman is not a cop.  He was a neighborhood watch type of guy.  Not a cop.   Some people think he helped protect their property.  But others experience of him was as a guy who liked to throw his weight around, to impose himself on them.  And Zimmerman acted anyway.  He knew better than the police.  He "knew" the kid was "on drugs or something".   Bullshit.  That part of his statement to the 911 operator was part of the set up because he had already determined he was gonna throw his weight around with Trayvon and that he was gonna kill that teenager - who was, to all who knew him a good kid - did decently in school, was handy and, like my own beloved husband, liked fixing things and understanding how to make things work.  One report said he aspired to be a pilot.  In other words, Trayvon Martin was on his way to being a builder, a creator, within the larger community.  A person whose work builds and helps sustain others.  His life was stolen by a wannabe cop with a past record of assault on a cop.  How fucked up is that?

I join my voice in demanding justice for Trayvon Martin.

Killed by a white man for walking while black.

Killed by a white man who believed he had the right to interfere with Trayvon's coming and going AFTER being told by the 911 people to back off, to leave well enough alone.

Killed with Skittles candy and soda in hand.

We all know if the shooter was black, and if Trayvon were white, the shooter would be in jail and already under indictment.   History bears that out again and again and again.   I'm white, but I still see, I still witness, that justice in America is biased.  Particularly against young black men.   That is why today, on March 17th, 2012, George Zimmerman is has not been arrested.  That is why George Zimmerman has not been charged.  That bias, that prejudice is exactly why the Sanford police and the Seminole County sheriff's department have done nothing.

Why else would the Sanford police "blow off" witnesses who contradict Zimmerman's story?

Why else would the police "correct" a witness trying to make a statement?

Shame on them.

There are legions of comments defending Zimmerman.  They are shameless and self serving at best and deeply racist at worst.  Those defenses are nothing short of excuses for perpetuating racism and inequality.  Some of Zimmerman's defenders cite his being part Hispanic therefore the murder couldn't possibly be racially motivated.  Still others say if you're white and defend young Mr. Martin, you do so because of your own racial self-hatred.   I do not accept those defenses.  I don't buy it.  Simply put:  the defenses are insupportable.

Shame on them.

We know.