I vividly recall driving home after watching the undertaker zip my Dad into a black bag and wheel him away. Everything was wrong with the world that day. I bet Trayvon's parents felt the world shift, too. It seemed absurd to me that cars gathered for a kid's football game nearby. The mall parking lot was overflowing - it was Black Friday and stuff was on sale! Didn't they realize what just happened?! My sweet little Dad just died, and people were freaking shopping?
Grief does that. It closes in on you.
So, in a weird way, I'm grateful that Trayvon's parents have all this....because when it's the person you love that's gone, it feels like the whole world should be screaming with you. Trayvon deserves it. His life mattered.
Did he deserve justice? Hell yes. But all our voices speaking up for Trayvon count for a hell of a lot, too.
Trayvon Martin: how a teenager's death sparked a national debate
Issues of race and gun law came to the fore thanks to civil rights leaders, protests and the influence of social media
Trayvon Martin so nearly went to his grave unnoticed, his death barely recorded among the grim statistics of gun violence involving African American youths.
SANFORD -- Dozens gathered at Trayvon Martin’s memorial Friday in the Historic Goldsboro neighborhood, lighting candles to remember the 17-year-old who was shot and killed.
SANFORD, Fla. -- Demonstrators protested in SF, Oakland and LA to denounce the acquittal of George Zimmerman in shooting of Trayvon Martin.
Police did not offer crowd estimates and there no immediate reports of violence.
Protesters March in D.C. After Zimmerman Acquittal Marchers took to the streets of D.C. early Sunday morning to protest George Zimmerman's acquittal in the death of Trayvon Martin.
"Trayvon was murdered," the marchers chanted as they walked up U Street from 9th in the Northwest, a few carrying signs or placards. Other times, they chanted, "No justice, no peace."
I hope Trayvon can rest in peace, but even more, I hope his family can live in peace someday. These are the last photos taken of Trayvon. This is how I want to remember him, as a typical American kid going horseback riding with his family.