Saturday, July 13, 2013

We Are So Very Sorry Trayvon...


At this moment I don't know what to think. I am speechless. I am heartbroken. I am shocked. I am a white woman, married to a black man, and sadly, he isn't shocked at all by the not guilty verdict in the George Zimmerman case. That breaks my heart as well. Injustice is something my husband has become used to as a black man in America. When will this change? Why are we still looking at young black men in hoodies as criminals and young white men in hoodies as keeping warm? Why?

We ALL know if George Zimmerman had run into a young white man in a hoodie on that infamous Florida night, he might have glanced at him, but he would have nodded and moved on. We all know this. We do.

George Zimmerman was told by the 911 operator to wait for the police. He didn't. Trayvon Martin was carrying a bag of Skittles. George Zimmerman was carrying a gun. George Zimmerman took the law into his own hands and Trayvon Martin never had the law on his side. We can say he did. We can say a jury saw more evidence than we did. But what we can't say is, justice was done. It wasn't.

The loopholes in the law that allowed George Zimmerman, as an armed security guard, to decide not to wait for police officers and to take the life of an innocent young man, didn't allow justice to be done, the laws allowed a young man to die for no reason. The insane laws in Florida allowed another man to get away with murder. Period.

I'm ashamed of our system. I'm ashamed of our courts. I'm ashamed that attorney's are standing up and celebrating a win. A young man with an entire future ahead of him, who committed no crime, is dead! A win?!? Shameful.

Until the fear based on stereotypes and racism is erased, we will never be able to move forward. Until change is made, until Trayvon can rest in peace, until his parents can go to sleep at night knowing the right thing was done...we can't stop speaking for Trayvon. We won't. I know I speak for many when I say...we are so very sorry Trayvon.

Justice was not done. Injustice was.