Analysis Of ' The Homicides Of Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, And Michael Brown Essay

“Between the World and Me”, by Ta-Nehisi Coates, is a letter written to his son about what it means to be black and how tough it is to be a part of this race in the United States of America. In this book, Coates talks about his life in the black community, starting from childhood memories all the way to present day. Coates also tries sends a message, which is that his son should not lower his guard and be completely confident about who he is, instead he should be afraid about what the world is capable of doing to a black man. In this work, Coates disagrees on what it means to be black or white in America.

Although there was significant progress made in the 60’s Civil Rights Movements, African American lives still find themselves the subjects of racial profiling and police brutality cases. Specific incidents have brought the controversies to the public eye through social media and backlash from social movements. The cases of Trayvon Martin and Sandra Bland led to the controversies and feelings of judicial injustice; these events and public outrage sparked and fueled the movement “Black Lives Matter”, which was established to challenge and combat racial discrimination and police brutality. Since then, the movement has gained momentum and continues to gain followers and validity. Social media has also been a main contributor to the cause, as the

Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a loosely‐coordinated, nationwide movement dedicated to ending police brutality that rose to prominence in late 2014. It takes its name from a hashtag started by three Black feminist activists Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi but the movement and the hashtag are not identical (Freelon, McIlwain, & Clark, 2016). BLM has achieved national reputation through their online and offline organizing, obtaining extensive news media coverage and glowing references in music and entertainment television. Based on a horrendous incident that sparked a concern for a lot of Black people across the world, the sudden need for a social movement was born called BLM. Black Lives Matter is a national organization working for the validity of Black life and also working to rebuild the Black liberation movement. Black Lives Matter broadens the conversation and highlight the incidents around state violence to include the ways in which Black people are intentionally left powerless at the hands of the state. This referring to the ways in which Black lives are deprived of basic human rights and dignity. According to the article The Murder of Walter Scott, which talks about race and class, “African Americans are less than 13% of the U.S. population yet they are nearly 50% of those killed by the police. North Charleston has a population of 104,000, 47% Black and the police force is 80% white (Miah, 2015)”.

Between the World and Me has been called a book about race, but the author argues that race itself is a flawed, if anything, nothing more than a pretext for racism. Early in the book he writes, “Race, is the child of racism, not the father.” The idea of race has been so important in the history of America and in the self-identification of its people and racial designations have literally marked the difference between life and death in some instances. How does discrediting the idea of race as an immutable, unchangeable fact changes the way we look at our history? Ourselves? In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns of a father for his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful new framework for understanding our nation’s history and the current crisis. Americans have built an empire on the idea of “race,” a falsehood that damages us all but falls most heavily on the bodies of black women and men—bodies exploited through slavery and segregation, and, today, threatened, locked up, and murdered out of all proportion. What is it like to inhabit a black body and find a way to live within it? And how can we all honestly reckon with this fraught history and free ourselves from its burden? Between the World and Me is Ta-Nehisi Coates’s attempt to answer these questions in a letter to his adolescent son. Coates shares with his son—and readers—the story of his awakening to the truth about his place in the

Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases are examples of federalism-civil rights debate and government-sanctioned discriminatory treatment

Even though America is the world dominating superpower and is known to intervene on behalf of the violation of human rights internationally, it fails to acknowledge and correct the flaws its legal and justice system present against its own citizens. African Americans have long been targeted by the police force and have been oppressed by the government before, as we are familiar with the Civil Rights Movement that occurred in 1955 due to segregation and discrimination. The system has justified racial profiling, specifically against African Americans, and granted those with authority the right to incarcerate or punish those they deem dangerous. The actions of the American government have given way to the increase incarceration of African Americans and have allowed white privilege to prevail in the justice system. The social movement Black Lives Matter, although recently acknowledged or recognized, is not based on a new issue but rather an old issue that is quickly reviving due to the injustices Black Americans are facing. In short, social movements are known as politics through other means. They occur when people take to the streets in order to have their voices heard by authority and feel as if they are unable to

It seems as if since the murder of African American teenager, Trayvon Martin, there has been a major resurgence of the issue of race relations in the United States in the mainstream media. The “Black Lives Matter” movement began in 2013, advocating against the violence towards black people and has found its way into pop culture, social media and the presidential election.

In Ta-nehishi Coates’ novel entitled Between the World and Me, the author argues how blacks are oppressed and the privilege of whites. Coates pens this novel in the style of a letter to his son about police brutality and the separate reality of blacks and whites. Coates themes regard the exploitation of black people and the controversy of an American’s democracy, considering there was never such a thing. There is an example of when President Lincoln announced the United States being ruled by a government of the people, but the irony in that because Blacks were not considered as people then. The message in Between the World and Me is for African-Americans find their dignity, compassion and authority, and accept the responsibility of sharing

“Black Lives Matter” —an intended progression in society without a hierarchy, merely marching forward by spur of the people. Started by three sisters who continue to keep the organization a chapter-based, left wing social justice operation, it can best be described as “Not a moment, but a movement” by those that follow it. The case that began this outcry involved a man —George Zimmerman— whom, according to Lizette Alvarez and Cara Buckley (2013), “was found not guilty [of] second-degree murder [and] was also acquitted of manslaughter, a lesser charge.” (para. 1). Since its initial start in 2013, the movement follows and protests against police brutality and civil injustice towards individuals of the Black minority; however, this is a prime example of hate breeding hate as the movement, has opened a new floodgate full of antipathy aimed towards the White-community and Law Enforcement Officials. In short, the initial idea of “Black Lives Matter” —which is to bring civil justice to the Black-community— is a good concept, but the execution by its adherents are, ironically, bigoted; the movement needs to either evolve its state of thought or disperse before it further segregates America.

The Civil Rights Movement caused many positive effects; For example the Birmingham clashes prompted President John F. Kennedy to push for passage of new civil rights legislation, African Americans that were affected by discrimination benefited from the act with jobs, schools and universities across the country were integrated, and the success in Montgomery had sprouted civil rights organizations in cities everywhere.(Civil Rights Movement 1. ) Martin Luther King;s famous “I have a Dream” speech informs us about how racial inequality causes many tribulations to minorities and makes them feel unwanted and unappreciated. Today in society, African Americans are currently fighting for justice against police brutality. Black Lives Matter is an activist movement in the United States which was formed in July 2013 due to the shooting of an innocent African-American teen Trayvon Martin killed by George Zimmerman in Florida. The Black Lives Matter movement campaigns were made for justice of innocent unarmed african americans being killed by police daily and getting no recognition from news. African Americans are constantly stereotyped as  “thugs” and “criminals” and media dehumanizes them as whole. “We are buried up to our necks in a history of violence and brutality against people of color. I refuse to be silent anymore.” - (Riley, Meg. Up to our

Movements, such as Black Lives Matter, have come into inception in recent years mostly in part to injustices they see in the judicial system, the way they see law enforcement’s treatment of African Americans, and to rebuild the powerful movement that was existent in the civil rights era.

In 2013, Trayvon Martin’s life suddenly ended. This moment sticks out in my mind clearly- a black teen carrying Skittles and a can of Arizona tea was murdered in cold blood by a police officer- and outrage was rising. The key word there is black, as in black lives matter. A social media movement formed out of that one moment, that outrage, in 2013, but I didn’t really understand it at the time (After all, shouldn’t all lives matter? Why are we singling out black people?). That understanding came to me a year later- the year of police brutality.

Throughout history, African Americans have found numerous ways to cope with the inequalities that society has dealt to them. One example of this is the Black Power movement. The Black Power movement was a political movement that helped African Americans achieve their civil rights. This movement was ran by the Black Panther Party and they justified the use of violence in the “accomplishment of black justice” (“Black Power Movement”). Today, African Americans are still dealing with the same inequalities that they dealt with in the 1960s and 1970s. African Americans are still being treated unequally in the work force and society in general. African Americans now have better jobs then they did before but, they are not getting paid the same as someone who identifies with being Caucasian. African Americans are getting sent to prison or getting shot to death because of the color of their skin and that they “looked like a thug.” In 2013, a new movement began among black people; the Black Lives Matter movement. The Black Lives Matter movement is an ideology and is bringing light to the injustices and inequalities that society has given to them. “Black Lives Matter is an ideological and political intervention in a world where Black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. It is an affirmation of Black folks’ contributions to this society, our humanity, and our resilience in the face of deadly oppression” (“Black Lives Matter”). In this essay we will be looking

When Sam Cooke sang the legendary song, “A Change Is Going To Come” in 1964, the transformation of how Americans viewed race was only beginning. The Black Lives Matter movement addressed the implications of slavery and racism that are still in effect today, due to police brutality accusations. The death of Trayvon Martin and Keith Lamont Scott demonstrated to me that silence is a luxury I cannot afford; I could be next. It is my duty to attend every rally, speak to every person, and voice in every argument that black lives do matter.

To combat current discrimination, many black empowerment groups have formed, including the “Black Lives Matter” movement. The movement started in 2013 when police officer George Zimmerman shot an unarmed black teen to death and faced no consequences. A black activist inadvertently