To ask "Who is George Zimmerman?" -- as many are now asking -- is perhaps the wrong question. Undoubtedly, Zimmerman needs to be brought to justice in the tragic and unjust killing of Trayvon Martin.
The killing of Trayvon Martin demonstrates how insidiously pervasive racism remains in this country and reminds us how truly far we are from achieving racial justice.
A bigger question that must also be asked is "Who is Florida?" We could ask a question about the direction America is headed on race and violence but let's stick to Florida for a moment. While race is a fundamental factor in this case, and rightly stirring a national furor, I want to draw attention to levels of violence in Florida.
Florida is the fourth most violent state in the U.S. It is in America's Top 10 for most violent crimes per 100,000 people. It is also in the Top 10 for incarceration rates and police employees per 100,000 and near the top 10 for homicides per capita. In our U.S. Peace Index, it ranked near the bottom at 47th. Only Nevada, Tennessee and Louisiana are more violent. In short, there is a culture of violence in Florida that must be addressed when looking at George Zimmerman. He is not alone.
Florida does not understand how to keep the peace, despite its high numbers of police per capita. What we know from our index's strongest correlations, is that a state's ability to provide for its population in the following areas dramatically increases its capacity to lower its levels of violence: Graduate your students, insure your residents, provide access to basic services, lower poverty and inequality rates, and increase labor participation rates, and the less prevalent and pervasive violent crime, homicide, incarceration, policing and small arms trafficking will be.
Florida, then, must rethink its latest budget cuts, which have eaten away at education, health care, basic services and economic opportunity. If it wants to save money, there is another way -- by reducing violence. For example, if Florida reduced its violence by a mere 25 percent, savings would surpass $9.3 billion. Those are monies that state budget desperately needs. The equation is simple: Reduce violence, save money. But for some reason, Florida's state legislature remains undeterred in its efforts to cut policies that will ultimately prevent violence.
This tragedy must not only refocus America's attention on its pervasive racism but also refocus Florida's attention on preventing violence.
Michael Shank is the US Vice President at the Institute for Economics and Peace. Michael is an Associate at the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict, serves on the board of the National Peace Academy, and is in the PhD Program at George Mason University's School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution.
Follow Michael Shank on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Michael_Shank
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Martin was beating Zimmerman badly, appears Zimmerman was gonna die it it didn't stop.
The first point: The writer of this article obviously didn't see all the Blood pouring from the back of Zimmermans head prior to the medic's cleaning him up for the TV camera's. Did he take the time to research why Martin was staying with his grandmother instead of back in south Florida going to school like he was suppose to? Martin was a bully and caused this unfortunate incident.
Your second point: Living in Florida, you would quickly understand why there is a problem with crime in this state. Our Federal government has totally failed to protect our coastal boarders. There are so many drug related incidents that the local news media doesn’t even report on most of the criminal activity. Many times in the case of a car accident, one or both of the drivers will leave the scene because they are illegally in this country. I’ve worked here for over 50 years and never seen a INS agent at any of my jobs and there’s illegal’s working all over the place. The shame is that the local police departments can’t do anything with the illegal’s, They arrest them for crimes and then they have to let them out. They just change their names and their back to their usual.
The killing of Trayvon demonstrates no such thing, because you simply can't prove someone's intent was "racist" strictly based on him/her being of a different skin color. How do you know for sure that Zimmerman shot Trayvon because Trayvon was black? Where is the definitive proof? What about the fact that Zimmerman's good friend, a black man, stated unequivocally that Zimmerman is *not* a racist? What about the fact that Zimmerman was apparently a mentor of young black men? What about the fact that Zimmerman's neighborhood had apparently already experienced a string of robberies in the previously year or so, all committed by young black males? Is it possible that Zimmerman was using prior evidence in his suspicion of Trayvon, which is, after all, a basic human tendency--we use past experiences to help inform our present observations and perceptions.
My point is, what about the alternative explanations for why Zimmerman shot Trayvon that aren't steeped in race? Why continue to convict Zimmerman in the court of public opinion without all of the facts?
This gibberish sounds borderline-to-sociopathic.
If the witnesses are now to be believed Mr. Zimmerman acted no differently than I would......EXCEPT.....If I were told not to follow I wouldn't.....BUT....now witnesses say Zimmerman was returning to his truck when Martin jumped him...
OF COURSE Martin's family will defend him....they wouldnt be much of a family if they didn't believe the 17 yr old was good...of course there could also be a darker side to thier protests...millions of dollars in a settlement would surely motivate most of us these days...
The true villans here just may be the anti-gun people and the politicos trying to use this in an election year and claimimg racial motivations.....which I did not believe to begin with....Zmmerman may have been on a power trip from first look but it had nothing to do with race.
which will win?
not an even fight. the man with the gun had all the power.
May be these - Stand Your Ground/ALEC - Laws were requested by them/these groups/and their security people and they are the ones who most need to listen to what you have to say/read this article....??
Zimmerman did not need martial arts training, he just shot a young man, instead.