So, a little over a year ago, I wrote a blog referencing the actions of George Zimmerman that led to the slaying of Trayvon Martin.
I've never made it any secret that I'm not a fan of guns, but at the same time, I've always maintained that responsible gun ownership is okay by me. I understand that the gun--an inanimate object--does not cause harm alone. My blog at that time specifically addressed the sad trend that some of us seem to feel that any affront justifies taking armed action.
I think many people I find myself friends with think that there has been a great miscarriage of justice in the acquittal of George Zimmerman. While I tend to agree, I also have to remember that only a small number of people actually had the opportunity to be present for the trial itself, and the presentation of all of the available and allowable evidence.
As Americans, we should all value the stipulation that our prosecutors must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
It is true that there are many instances in which our justice system fails, and innocent individuals are tried and wrongly convicted. The scales still tip heavily toward a black man going to prison largely based on color. It is still true, and will probably continue to be so a for a long time, that young, African American men are disproportionally underemployed, undereducated and overly persecuted in our nation. It's undeniable that as a nation we have made strides, but if you consider the most basic thing that all humans share--our common DNA regardless of color--we started at a grossly negative base.
This widely acknowledged lack of proportion serves to make the perceived unfairness of the Zimmerman verdict all the more outrageous to those of us who long for a day when the scales of justice balance, and the equal opportunity for every man (regardless of color), and every woman, to pursue the American dream and achieve equal rights is no longer something we have to belabor.
My husband and I live in what I like to call an "eclectic" neighborhood. Many people I know think of the area in which we live, and they think of crime and racial imbalance. It's true, as a white couple, we are a minority on our block. There are many young families with children and teenagers in our neighborhood. Many of those young people hang out in the streets at all hours of the day and night, doing whatever young people do these days. I don't worry about it very much. By the same token, we happen to have a young man in our neighborhood that in the most kind language we could use, we would classify as a total thug creeper. He happens to be white. What bothers me is knowing that if something happened in my neighborhood and a police patrol car trolled through, the thug creeper probably wouldn't garner as much attention as all of the young, black men who might happen to be outside.
And that's one of the biggest issues. A young black man in a hoodie raised suspicion in George Zimmerman's eyes. It's said that a series of burglaries in his neighborhood led Zimmerman to start his neighborhood watch. Unfortunately, many of those crimes had been perpetrated by men of color.
None of us will probably ever know exactly what happened the day that George Zimmerman took Trayvon Martin's life. None of us were there. Because of our perceptions, even witness accounts differ.
I think George Zimmerman's motivation skewed. It may be that in the beginning, his desire to lead a neighborhood watch probably was out of genuine concern for the safety of those around him and for the protection of personal property. But that motivation twisted. Like all of us, I think Zimmerman saw in this watch an opportunity to be important and to be special. Many of us think about what it would feel like to be the person "saving the day." Many of us wish for opportunities to be recognized for good works and good deeds.
And that's where Zimmerman's actions spun out of control and led to the death of a young, unarmed man. Whether Trayvon really beat the tar out of Zimmerman or not is a moot point. In the context of the moment, the prevailing perception among white Americans that a young black man is a threat won out, and Zimmerman acted out a dream of being hero. Those of us who believe that justice failed can now only hope that when he closes his eyes at night, that action has become a lifelong nightmare. Living with the guilt of taking an unarmed man's life will be the only possible punishment Zimmerman faces.
It is true that those who disagree with the verdict will not make life easy for Zimmerman, but over time, even that dog will lose interest in its hunt. Another sensational criminal trial will fill the shoes of this case, and the real injustice will continue.
The real injustice is not that George Zimmerman was found "not guilty." The real injustice is that we continue to live in a country where Trayvon Martin was seen as a threat because of his color. The real injustice is that that perception made it very difficult for witnesses to see the unvarnished truth of the events that played out. The real injustice is that as the descendants of founding fathers who perpetrated one of the greatest acts of hypocrisy--declaring that all men are created equal, while believing that only white men are created equal--the inequities of race will continue to be an issue in our nation.
Black men, women and children are no longer slaves, living in chains on plantations in America, but they are just as enslaved by the inequity of perception that is racism. We chafe at the accusation of being racist, but we seem unable to move passed the lip-service we give to racial equality, and to true racial equality--the kind where we talk about being human, not about being black, white or any other color.
As the conversation continues until interest finally wanes, it's important for all of us, regardless of how we view the verdict itself, to remember that the only way to achieve true justice for Trayvon Martin is to learn about ourselves and to recognize our own failings in the perpetuation of inequality.
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