Brace yourselves, Nation: George Zimmerman is not guilty. Now, this in no way means he is innocent, nor does it mean he should not spend a significant amount of time in jail. But he probably won't. Because he's not guilty.
I know this doesn't feel right: An unarmed young man, Trayvon Martin, was shot and killed by Zimmerman, an overzealous wannabe-cop, who claims that Martin "attacked" him. The fact that Zimmerman was following Martin around, despite being told by a 911 dispatcher that they (the authorities) "didn't need him to do that" certainly weakens Zimmerman's claims of self-defense. At the same time, though, the fact that Florida has a by-now-well-known "stand your ground" law--which enables people to claim self-defense despite, essentially, not needing to defend themselves--makes a successful prosecution difficult--particularly when the victim is no longer around to provide his side of the story.
Were George Zimmerman's actions right? Absolutely not. Were they illegal? Under Florida law, probably not. The fault lies not with the prosecution--nor even entirely with George Zimmerman--but with the benighted state of the criminal justice system in the redneck South.
Perhaps, if and when Zimmerman is acquitted, a federal civil rights case could be filed against him. I don't know all the technicalities involved in such a prosecution, but I do know that such things have been done before.
Of course, if acquitted, Zimmerman will need to be careful. After all, the stand-your-ground provision states that anyone "who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in any other place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself." Given Zimmerman's proven propensity to use deadly force at the slightest provocation, wouldn't anyone in his vicinity have the right to stand his ground and defend himself accordingly?
Showing posts with label Travyon Martin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Travyon Martin. Show all posts
Friday, July 5, 2013
Friday, March 23, 2012
Standing on Principle
Have you seen this picture:
That's LeBron James (just right of center, I believe) and the rest of the Miami Heat participating in the "I am Travyon Martin" protests that have been going on over the last few days across the country (see post of March 21 for a recap of the case). In solidarity with the Martin family and in protest against the Sanford, Fla., police department's supposed "inability" even to arrest George Zimmerman for the highly questionable shooting of an unarmed teenager, the Heat and others have pulled up their hoodies to replicate the "suspicious" look of Travyon Martin before he was killed.
This picture is a particularly provocative and powerful image: Even though these professional basketball players probably all reside comfortably within the rarefied precincts of the "one percent," the sad reality is that, under the right (or, more accurately, "wrong") conditions, they, too, could easily find themselves confronted by a, shall we say, overzealous neighborhood watchman, and the result could be tragic. We are all Travyon Martin; some of us more than others.
I've been down on LeBron ever since his infamous "I'm taking my talents to South Beach" press conference, but I'm impressed by his willingness to take a stand on this issue. Some might argue that this is a minor gesture, but, frankly, it's rare for professional athletes to take stands on controversial issues; it's even rarer for prominent African-Americans to take stands on racially-charged controversial issues. Michael Jordan, for example, was often criticized for not speaking out about racial injustice.
By participating in this kind of protest, LeBron has nothing to gain and potentially something to lose. Yes, he gets some good press--particularly among the lefty liberal crowd--but the lefty liberals are not necessarily the ones who sign his paychecks or ink him to eight-figure endorsement deals. Potentially alienating corporate titans is not necessarily a smart move financially. Don't get me wrong: I don't think LeBron James is in any particular danger of heading to the poorhouse. Still, it's nice to see a prominent athlete taking a stand for what he believes in, even if it might cause him some problems down the road.
I'll bet he even gets some applause in Cleveland for this. Okay, maybe not.
That's LeBron James (just right of center, I believe) and the rest of the Miami Heat participating in the "I am Travyon Martin" protests that have been going on over the last few days across the country (see post of March 21 for a recap of the case). In solidarity with the Martin family and in protest against the Sanford, Fla., police department's supposed "inability" even to arrest George Zimmerman for the highly questionable shooting of an unarmed teenager, the Heat and others have pulled up their hoodies to replicate the "suspicious" look of Travyon Martin before he was killed.
This picture is a particularly provocative and powerful image: Even though these professional basketball players probably all reside comfortably within the rarefied precincts of the "one percent," the sad reality is that, under the right (or, more accurately, "wrong") conditions, they, too, could easily find themselves confronted by a, shall we say, overzealous neighborhood watchman, and the result could be tragic. We are all Travyon Martin; some of us more than others.
I've been down on LeBron ever since his infamous "I'm taking my talents to South Beach" press conference, but I'm impressed by his willingness to take a stand on this issue. Some might argue that this is a minor gesture, but, frankly, it's rare for professional athletes to take stands on controversial issues; it's even rarer for prominent African-Americans to take stands on racially-charged controversial issues. Michael Jordan, for example, was often criticized for not speaking out about racial injustice.
By participating in this kind of protest, LeBron has nothing to gain and potentially something to lose. Yes, he gets some good press--particularly among the lefty liberal crowd--but the lefty liberals are not necessarily the ones who sign his paychecks or ink him to eight-figure endorsement deals. Potentially alienating corporate titans is not necessarily a smart move financially. Don't get me wrong: I don't think LeBron James is in any particular danger of heading to the poorhouse. Still, it's nice to see a prominent athlete taking a stand for what he believes in, even if it might cause him some problems down the road.
I'll bet he even gets some applause in Cleveland for this. Okay, maybe not.
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