The story of Trayvon Martin has not only outraged many of us, it has also unraveled our hope that racial prejudice in America is ending. The fact that a 200 pound white Hispanic man exited his SUV, followed and eventually gunned down an unarmed teenage black male pedestrian without facing any legal repercussions whatsoever baffles us. Trayvon Martin, with his baby-face and scrawny 140 pound adolescent frame, was a victim of what seems to be a mucky cocktail of racism or prejudice, vigilantism and just plain tragedy. Many of us are disgusted that George Zimmerman, our fellow American, appears to view boys who look like Trayvon Martin as "suspicious" "assholes" who "always get away." However, fewer of us are taking this opportunity to examine our own prejudices.
George Zimmerman's supporters are working feverishly to say that race-based prejudice has nothing to do with the case. George Zimmerman's father has stated that George Zimmerman "is a Spanish-speaking minority with many black family members and friends." A black female neighbor has publicly stated that George Zimmerman was the only person, black or white, who welcomed her to the community. Two black children say that George Zimmerman is their mentor. Various friends, family members, and neighbors are stating these facts about Zimmerman, as if having some friends, family members, or child mentees, who are black, make a person fundamentally incapable of having a disdainful suspicion of teenage black boys when they are walking around mixed neighborhoods. This, in my view, reflects a deep misunderstanding of the intersection of the race-based, age-based and class-based prejudices that many of us harbor.
As an adult, I have always known that criminals and perverts come in all colors, races, religions and socio-economic backgrounds. But that knowledge did not prevent me from expecting to have an interesting cultural conversation about South Asian politics and the Sikh religion one night when I entered the gypsy cab of a skinny, 60-something, South Asian cab driver with a turban on his head. I was shocked when the cab driver started discussing pornographic video scenes in graphic detail, told me that his penis was ten inches long and then looked at me and said, "so what are we going to do right now" while driving 50 miles per hour on the Belt Parkway East. I could not believe what was happening. I tried to recall guidance that I had learned in Women Studies courses in college about what to do in case of a potential sexual assault. I yelled, "Nothing! We are not doing anything! Let me out of this car!" I proceeded to ramble out my entire life history which included the year of my birth, my education and my family background in hopes that something would connect with the conscience of the cab driver. It worked. He told me that one of his daughters was born in the same year that I was born and that we were both twenty-five years old. He apologized and said that he thought I was like the 17 year-old black girls that he pays $5 to "suck his dick." He was most likely referring to the significant number of African-American teenage girls who are victims of sex trafficking in New York City. He got off the highway and let me out of the cab.
I was prejudiced. I saw a skinny and old South Asian man with a turban and thought that he would be harmless and culturally interesting. He was prejudiced. He saw me, a young black woman at a train station at night, and immediately thought that I was a prostitute despite the fact that I had on a knee-length wool coat, stockings, professional black pumps, and a large briefcase. In reality, I was returning home at a late hour from my job as a telecom equity research associate at a boutique investment bank because I stayed at work to study for the GMAT and LSAT.
I am sure that many readers have similar stories of being prejudiced or encountering prejudice.
One of my brother-in-laws used to live in a fancy high-rise apartment building in Manhattan. One evening, a white-female neighbor was walking towards the apartment building. My brother-in-law was behind her walking home too and when their eyes met he smiled and waved because he recognized her from seeing her countless times in the elevator, halls and laundry room of their building. She immediately became nervous and started running towards the doorman. In between her huffs and puffs, she told the doorman "that man is following me" and pointed to my brother-in-law. The doorman responded, "No, he is not following you. He lives here too."
The white-female neighbor was embarrassed. My brother-in-law, a foreign-born black man, attributes her behavior to the anonymity of city-life. He believes that she did not recognize him because people don't really get to know their neighbors in Manhattan. As an American-bred black woman, I suspect that her behavior reflected race, gender and age-based prejudice against young black men. She probably has black male friends and colleagues. She may even have black mentees. But none of those facts would necessarily prevent her from being scared and "suspicious" when she sees a young black man walking behind her at night. It is remotely possible that certain older African-American adults, who are privy to the same biased media that stereotypes young black males as thugs and gangsters, have found young black males "suspicious" for no objective reason.
The pervasive nature of race and age-based prejudice and stereotyping do not in any way excuse George Zimmerman's behavior. When such prejudice evolves from a thought in one's mind to the fatal shooting of an unarmed teenager, athlete, student, son, brother and child of God, then we clearly must demand that all facts are brought to light so that justice can be served. We must keep up our activism because precious lives are at stake. But I personally can't cloak myself in absolute moral superiority because I am not yet able to observe all others in a completely neutral fashion without ascribing some negative or positive values to them based on the combination of their race, ethnicity, age, religion, clothing and or other characteristics. To the extent that George Zimmerman has come to represent prejudice then "George Zimmerman" dwells within me. Does "George Zimmerman" dwell within you?
"having some friends, family members, or child mentees, who are black, make a person fundamentally incapable of having a disdainful suspicion of teenage black boys when they are walking around mixed neighborhoods"
Really? You really think that somebody would have black friends and take the time to mentor black children, if they were disdainful and suspicious of blacks? Why on earth would somebody do that? You aren't making sense.
As a matter of fact, yes, I DO think that it is extremely unlikely for a person who has friends and child mentees who are black to be a racist or to even have biased suspicions of blacks.
Not because he could be possibly innocent, but that the very same means they use to defend him...
Were the very same means the people who abused, tortured, and assaulted me as a child are being used now.
If this had been a teenage white girl, this would have been plastered on international news from day one. Nancy Grace would have had twice hourly updates running on her shows, police would have had the suspect in custody and awaiting trial. Christian families would be holding candle-light vigils and praying infront of Cable news tv camera's from the first night.
Yet a young black kid in a gated community, a young man walking home while on the phone with his girlfriend? He gets stalked, hunted if you will, confronted and gunned down... An then blamed for his own death by everyone around him.
Are we in the 21st Century? Or Are we sitting in Selma, Alabama 1960? This IS a racial issue, not because of George Zimmerman.. But because of how we are handling this situation.
The Zimmerman case is not just about what he perceived. It is also about the aggressive acts he felt were justified by his perceptions.
At what point did everyone's right to perceive everyone else according to their prejudices become the right to armed pursuit or other aggressive behaviour based on those perceptions?
I'm reminded of the scene in "Do The Right Thing" regarding the pictures on the pizzeria wall.
Police only need probable cause for an arrest and, in fact, they can and do arrest individuals without probable cause. In such cases, they are under strict requirements to get it in short order of release the suspect.
NO ONE IS SUGGESTING THAT ZIMMERMAN BE ARRESTED AND SENT TO PRISON W/O DUE PROCESS; A TRIAL.
DOES ANYONE ACTUALLY THINK THAT A BLACK ZIMMERMAN COULD HAVE KILLED A WHITE TEENAGER UNDER THE EXACT SAME CIRCUMSTANCES AND BE ROAMING AROUND FREE; INSTEAD OF IN JAIL PENDING TRIAL?
BASED ON EVERYTHING THAT I'VE READ; GEORGE ZIMMERMAN IS AT FAULT HERE. HE HAD NO RIGHT TO FOLLOW OR APPROACH TRAYVON MARTIN.
HE SHOULD HAVE CALLED POLICE IF HE THOUGH THE KID WAS SUSPICIOUS; SOMETHING THAT SMELLS LIKE RACIAL PROFILING. THE FBI WILL INVESTIGATE FOR A RACIAL SLUR.
INSTEAD, HE CHOSE TO KILL A KID AND RUIN HIS LIFE. HE MUST NOW SUFFER THE CONSEQUENCES!
IN THE UNITED STATES; ONE IS NOT EVEN REQUIRED TO ANSWER A POLICE OFFICER. SURE, YOU CAN BE ARRESTED BUT YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SAY ANYTHING.
YOU CERTAINLY DO NOT HAVE TO COMPLY WITH SOME STRANGER WHO IS STALKING YOU FOR NO REASON.
IF ANYTHING, TRAYVON MARTIN WAS THE ONE THAT WAS FEARING FOR HIS LIFE; RIGHTFULLY SO.
HE HAD A GUN CARRYING POSSIBLY UNBALANCED PERSON STALKING HIM SIMPLY BECAUSE HE WAS WALKING WHILE BLACK.
"IF ANYTHING, TRAYVON MARTIN WAS THE ONE THAT WAS FEARING FOR HIS LIFE; RIGHTFULLY SO." --So you were inside of Martin head? You know what he was feeling? Lets just say that you are correct, let's just say that Martin was fearing for his life and that why he ran. Here is a simple question that nobody has been able to answer. Why did Martin not run home? From the time he ran, Zimmerman continued his phone call with the police for another 2-minutes. Being that Martin was, at the worst, 1-1/2 blocks away from the home, how is it possible he did not make it there BEFORE Zimmerman finihsed his phone call? Any typical 17 year, who is somewhat athletic, like Martin, should be able to run an 8-minute mile. That would mean, within 2-minutes, Martin could have covered 1/4 of a mile. He shoudl have been home, but he did not run home. Why? Did he come back? Did he confront Zimmerman. Nobody knows for sure, but it certainly sounds possible....
Now you seem to have an expectation that he continue to run and that it's perfected fine to be MURDERED because he possibly tired of running for whatever reason?
Wow... In my opinion, you appear to be racist or very biased in multiple ways.
ALL BUT ONE MINUTE IS CAPTURED VIA DOCUMENTED PHONE RECORDS WHEN HE WAS ON THE PHONE WITH HIS GF.
It makes me sick for people to try to find a way to defend the fact that an armed, misguided, and possibly racist, idiot has the power to intimidate pass judgement on and kill anyone. Zimmerman got his bravery and sense of security because he was armed, this false sense of security is responsibility for the escalation that led to what is at least manslaughter and what should be 1st degree murder.
I think you forgot this is the US; not South Africa before apartheid was eliminated!
LMAO. So he was almost 18 and deserved to be killed according to you? HE WAS 17 YEARS OLD - PERIOD, IT WOULD NOT MATTER IF HE AS 60. A man of ANY COLOR IS FREE TO WALK without being stalked and KILLED in the US.
Trayvon Martin was not doing anything wrong. Just walking while black.
I hope you do a follow-up on your piece because it bears continued discussion.
Thank you.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/06/national-review-writer-race_n_1409413.html?ref=media
http://www.forbes.com/sites/joshbarro/2012/04/06/why-national-review-must-fire-john-derbyshire/
On a different note, kudos for participating in the conversation you've engendered. Most bloggers "Post & Walk". I view that as irresponsible on a live blog.
But none of US have a gun and chased down an unarmed child.
I have tremendous respect for you. I wish so many others--myself included on my bad days!--exemplified such courage and honesty.
google it.
Sadly, there is a silence nationally about the possibility that this case is not about race but about crime and violence, and community efforts to successfully stop it. The primary cause of black youth's highg homicide rate is other black youths.
What is terribly sad, is the injustice all black youths by blaming racism, rather than criminal sub-culture coercion.
That is not prejudice. that is a national tragedy,
We need to open a discussion about why this society needs to blame, instead of to engage, challenging social problems that require as a foundation for successful intervention, truth, not political propaganda like this article.
Ms. Yawson admits this was written before the facts of the case were revealed.
Talk of racial profiling gets old, but CDC breakdowns of homocides are hard to ignore. Mr. Zimmerman was a resident of his community, where transient crime had been an issue... At it's essence, it is obvious that Trayvon Martin, who was a visitor from outside the community, should arouse suspicion from the neighborhood watch. If he was dressed as an outsider, it would tend to arouse more suspicion, rather than less.
When the Grand Jury convenes, they will have the evidence of the case before them to judge the merits of the case. We the public, only have information provided by the media, which tends to show an incomplete picture; there are too many arm-chair quarterbacks at home calling foul... Leave judgement to the jury!
I salute Ms. Yawson for challenging us to look at both sides of the issue without stereotyping. Her article is an enlightening and frank look at the city. Don't judge by looks or demographics...Judge by actions and words.