Baltimore street artist Justin Nether composed this mural, depicting
Trayvon Martin, at East Baltimore and Caroline streets.
Two demonstrations, one in Springfield, Mass., and one in Sanford, Fla., brought protesters together Saturday around one theme, justice in the case of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed 17-year-old shot to death by George Zimmerman, a self-appointed neighborhood watch volunteer who ignored a police dispatcher's warnings and violated key rules in the official Neighborhood Watch Manual, including a prohibition against carrying a firearm while on patrol.
He was questioned for hours by police on the night of the Feb. 26 shooting, his 9mm pistol and clothes impounded. But the state prosecutor for the county refused to charge him despite the fact that the lead Sanford Police Department investigator in the case did not believe Zimmerman's claim that he had been defending himself after being injured from an attack by Martin and was in fear for his life.
In Sanford, the central Florida city where the shooting took place, an NAACP-organized march and rally, variously estimated at one thousand to several thousand protesters, included fiery speeches by the Rev. Al Sharpton and the Rev. Jesse Jackson NAACP President Benjamin Jealous. They helped carry a large yellow banner inscribed with the words: "Justice for Trayvon."
Marchers chanted: “We want an arrest. Shot in the chest."
Protesters, including the Rev. Al Sharpton and the
Rev. Jesse Jackson, march in Sanford, Fla. (Reuters)
"Because of the age of the young man and because of the circumstances of his death, every community can identify with that," said Bernard Simelton, president of the Alabama state conference of the NAACP. "We've had things like that happen in Alabama where somebody gets killed and the police just sweep it under the rug. It just touches everyone."
In Springfield, an estimated 1000 protesters, many dressed in hoodies,
gathered at city hall for the 1,000 Hoodies Walk:
State representatives Benjamin Swan and Cheryl Coakley-Rivera, D-Springfield, were among those who joined in the practice at the Massachusetts House of Representatives and were joined by state Sen. James Welch, D-West Springfield, who wore a bright green hoodie on Saturday.
"The ultimate message is people need to be judged on who they are and how they treat people, not what they wear or how they look. You don't need to be of any particular race to receive that message," Welch said.
There were also marches, among other places, in Massachusetts and Milwaukee.
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Because Trayvon was wearing a hoodie at the time he was shot and television news personality Geraldo Rivera embarrassed himself and his own son by telling young people of color they should not wear hoodies because to do so risks getting mistakenly shot as gangsters, the garment has become a symbol in the fight against stereotyping and racial profiling.
Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) was ushered off the floor of the House of Representatives for protesting racial profiling after taking off his suit jacket and flipping up the hood of the hoodie he was wearing underneath. In California, legislators of the black, Latino and Asian Pacific Islanders caucuses donned hoodies at the state capitol in Sacramento to draw attention to both the shooting and the broader issues:
"I know thousands of Trayvon Martins," said Assemblyman Steven Bradford (D-Gardena). "I know thousands of African American and Latino young men and boys who are victimized every day in America simply because of the color of their skin."
The lawmakers weren't the only ones to protest wearing hoodies. The Miami Heat did so as well, posting the photo on a Facebook page, and so did thousands of parishioners in churches across the country last Sunday.
Since Martin's death, outrage and speculation over the circumstances of what happened that night between the row houses of the gated community where the shooting occurred have brought accusations of racism, police incompetence and misconduct, and a call for justice from not only Trayvon's family, but also celebrities and everyday citizens of every color.
Amateur sleuths have pored over witness statements, details and partial details of official reports and phone calls and digital videos as they are released by the police, leaked by people with access or unearthed by reporters of the traditional media and bloggers of the new media.
Timelines are constructed of Zimmerman's recorded call to the police and the unrecorded call between Trayvon and his girlfriend "DeeDee" during the moments leading up to the confrontation and shooting. Every clue is given a thrice-over review and theories are drawn up, shredded and reworked based on the public evidence available until the completion of the investigation by special prosecutor Angela Corey, appointed by Republican Gov. Rick Scott after he finally got the message that the firestorm over the case was not going to go away.
Meanwhile, with the speed that the Internet and social media have made possible, the case has not only touched a racial and political nerve, it has also become a pop culture icon:
...the impact on American culture has been passionate and broad, from musicians and poets who believe justice has been denied to a major Hollywood studio making changes to the advertising campaign of a movie in which the trailers are eerily parallel to the moments before the teen was killed. [...]
“Since the beginning of time, when people are touched in some way, good or bad, they have expressed themselves through culture or art,’’ said Kevin Thomas, an assistant professor of advertising and public relations at the University of Texas in Austin. “What makes this case stand out is the social media aspect of it, the instant creation of a community. All the poetry, the art, the music is an opportunity to express [oneself] but also to be part of something larger. What you are seeing is actually part of the larger collective effort.’’
The photo at the top of this post is
example of the street art that has sprung up in various places. That wheat paste image appeared in Baltimore Wednesday, the work of a photographer and painter who goes by the pseudonym of Justin Nether. He plans to put up eight to 10 more in the coming weeks, all on vacant properties. "Racism still exists in America and in Baltimore even though we pretend that it doesn't," he said. "If people see these images and are affected by them, then maybe things will begin to change."
The shooting has generated a heated public discussion with moments of both profound thoughtfulness and deep-seated idiocy, one example of the latter being Fox News contributor Tamara Holder's comment to Sean Hannity: “The blacks are also making this more of a racial issue than it should be.”
The Rev. Al Sharpton speaking in Sanford, Fla.
(deben)
The political fall-out could be considerable. Lawyers and other citizens alike have argued over whether Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law is at least partially at fault for the shooting. The law gives people the okay to use lethal force if they feel their life is threatened. Twenty-one other states have similar laws. Some people, including the authors of the Florida law, say it doesn't apply in Zimmerman's case should he be indicted. Others disagree. Craig Sonner, Zimmerman's legal advisor, agrees or disagrees, depending on which day you ask him.
The debate over the law will get some attention from Vice President Joe Biden Sunday:
"It's important that people be put in a position where their Second Amendment rights are protected, but that they also don't, as a consequence of the laws, unintendedly put themselves in harm's way," Biden told anchor Bob Schieffer in an interview to air on "Face the Nation" on Sunday. [...]
"The idea that there's this overwhelming additional security in the ownership and carrying concealed and deadly weapons... I think it's the premise, not the constitutional right, but the premise that it makes people safer is one that I'm not so sure of," Biden said.
Meanwhile, the National Rifle Association continues to push the "Stand Your Ground" law in
other states:
The gun rights group urged supporters [in Alaska] to contact senators on the “stand your ground” bill, calling it “vital self-defense legislation.” A lobbyist worked the halls in gun-friendly Juneau, telling at least one senator that the highly-publicized slaying of the unarmed black teen in Sanford, Florida, is “irrelevant” to the debate in Alaska, according to Senator Hollis French, an Anchorage Democrat. [...]
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick pledged yesterday to veto a similar bill if it made it to his desk. Legislation in New York and Iowa stalled in committees as lawmakers in Georgia, Texas and other states said they would try to repeal laws already on the books. A Florida-like measure in Minnesota was vetoed by Governor Mark Dayton on March 5, before the Martin case was widely covered in the national media.
“You have to ask why they are doubling down in the face of this case,” said French, a former prosecutor and chairman of the judiciary committee, which approved the Alaska bill last week. “You are tipping the balance in favor of more shootings. There is no other way to put it.” [...]
Stories of Interest:
• Trayvon Martin's brother says voice on 911 tape is Trayvon's
• Trayvon Martin case: Old photos may be deceptive
• California lawmakers don hoodies in honor of slain teen
• George Zimmerman wins support of Quran-burning pastor
• Trayvon Martin case: Grieving a tragic death in the spotlight
• Trayvon Martin’s death stalls Stand Your Ground Laws
• Trayvon Martin’s shooting case draws partisan battle lines
• With call for sanctions, is Al Sharpton crossing a line?
• White People, You Will Never Be Suspicious Like Trayvon Martin
• Texas lawyers offer $10,000 for George Zimmerman's legal defense
Diaries of Note:
• Zimmerman was Fired from Security Job after he "Snapped" by Vyan
• Beyond Trayvon: The Shooting War for America's Soul began long ago by Vyan
• Bill Maher: Lack of gun laws led to Trayvon Martin's murder by Bruinkid
•Even if you believe Zimmerman, he lost the fight by BrooklynBadBoy
• The Rest of Zimmerman's 911 Call by Foundmyvoice
• Smearing Trayvon Martin: The True Lie that Black Men Commit More Crime than Whites by chaunceydevega
• Funeral director that prepared Trayvon for burial found no evidence of a fight with Zimmerman by Christian Dem in NC