The year was 2012, a year where in which the Black Community was filled with hatred as news spread around the country of the death of a young Black child to the hands of an adult male. The story interrupted every scheduled program on each news station as breaking news and was a news headliner for almost a week. According to the defendant, the young man and himself got into an altercation in which resulted in the defendant retrieving a weapon from his waistband and shooting the young man to his death. From here, the US took a turn for the worse. Multiple police brutality and death cases rose against the Black population. It was becoming a domino effect. But this was not the issue. The real issue lye within each of the cases, the victims were …show more content…
“The Black Lives Matter Global Network is a chapter-based, member-led organization whose mission is to build local power and to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes. They are aiming to work for a world Black lives are no longer systematically targeted for demise. The call for Black lives to matter is a rallying cry for All Black lives striving for liberation (Black Lives Matter, 2012).” The organization consist of 21 chapters with 7 directors and lead, all of which range from Coast to Coast. The group attracts its members by building its foundation around its core principals. Those principals are: diversity restorative justice, globalism, queer affirming, unapologetically black, collective value, empathy, loving engagement, transgender affirming, black villages, black women, black families, and intergenerational. Upon setting these principals, the foundation was set and the organization received its calling. “Black Lives Matter began as a call to action in response to state-sanctioned violence and anti-Black racism. Our intention from the very beginning was to connect Black people from all over the world who have a shared desire for justice to act together in their communities. The impetus for that commitment was, and still is, the rampant and deliberate violence inflicted on us by the state (Black Lives Matter, …show more content…
Martin was walking home in a Florida suburban neighborhood when a neighborhood watchmen, George Zimmerman, sought the young man out to be a theft as he wondered the streets of a prudentially White neighborhood. With the racial assumption racing through Zimmerman’s mind, he confronted Martin and the two began to wrestle amongst each other according to . At some point Zimmerman got free from Martin and a firearm was drawn. When cops arrived to the scene they found Martin lying dead on the ground and Zimmerman with a discharged firearm. The first issue in this scenario was that one of the parties involved in the feud lied dead. Second, Mr. Zimmerman did not have a permit to carry a firearm (Edwards, pg 57). Third, police recovered an audio recording between police dispatch and Zimmerman in which Zimmerman was instructed to leave Mr. Martin alone (Edwards, 2016). Last, Zimmerman claimed that his actions to shoot Mr. Martin was out of self-defense, however, Zimmerman was 28 years of age and weighed fifty plus more pounds that Martin. Zimmerman was not arrested but was taken into custody for questioning. Released, Zimmerman was a freeman until April 11, 2012, when Zimmerman was charged with second-degree murder. He later was released on bail and was a free murdered until a trial date was scheduled. On July 13, 2013 the trial of the State of Florida vs. George Zimmerman
M-The case of Trayvon Martin vs. George Zimmerman. This was a case where a 17 year old African American, male was shot and killed within 70 yards of the home in which he was residing in at the time, located at Retreat at Twin Lakes Gated Community in Sanford, Florida, by George Zimmerman. George Zimmerman was a 28 year-old Hispanic male, who was a neighborhood watchman for the Retreat at Twin Lakes Gated Community in Sanford, Florida.
On February 26, 2012 a 17 year old black teen was wondering around a neighborhood in Sanford, Florida wearing a hood over his head was gunned down and killed by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman. The evening of February 26, Martin was heading back to his father’s townhouse from a convenient store when Martin decided to cut through a neighborhood that had been riddled with multiple robberies that year. Zimmerman saw Martin with his hood over his head and Zimmerman decided to contact the Sanford Police Department on account of suspicious behavior. However, before the police were able to arrive on scene an altercation occurred between Zimmerman and Martin which resulted in Martin being shot in the chest where he died on the scene.
Trayvon Martin lost his life on Sunday February 26, 2012 due to a gunshot to his chest shot by George Zimmerman in Sanford, Florida while walking back home from buying an Arizona and skittles from 7-11 at 6:34 pm. George Zimmerman spotted Trayvon walking through his neighborhood and found him suspicious and decided to call the Sanford police at 7:09PM. When he called the police he told them he found him suspicious, “I’ve never seen him in the neighborhood. I know all the residents. It was raining out and he was leisurely walking, taking his time, looking at all the houses.” (Linder, 2014). Police were immediately sent to his location but suddenly Zimmerman stated that Tyron had begun to run away and Zimmerman began to go after him. The dispatcher told him not to go after him and instead to meet the officers, “The dispatcher suggested that Zimmerman meet the arriving officers near the mailboxes.” (Linder, 2014) and he agreed to. Zimmerman later stated that when he was walking back to his car Tyron came at him asking what his problem was and he replied back saying he had no problem and Tyron then punched him in the nose after stating he had a problem now. The punch was what knocked him to the grass and Trayvon continued to punch him while Zimmerman kept screaming for help, “I started screaming for help. I couldn’t see. I couldn’t breathe.” (Linder, 2014). Tyron had been talking on the phone with a friend, Rachel Jeantel,
On February 26, 2012 an unarmed black man is shot and killed by a neighborhood watch captain. Trayvon Martin, 18 and unarmed, was strolling through a neighborhood when he was then approached by George Zimmerman, an armed neighborhood watch captain. Not all of the details are clear, but it is known the two had a physical altercation. Suddenly, Martin gets shot and dies. Zimmerman claims he shot him for self defense.
George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch leader, was driving to Target to run a errand on the night of February 26, 2012 when he observed a suspicious person, leisurely walking in the rain, looking at all the houses, wearing a grey hoodie as he would tell dispatch in his 911 call made at 7:09 p.m. Moments later an altercation occurred between Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin, which left Trayvon dead from a single gunshot wound to his chest and Zimmerman with a bloody nose and a cut to the back of his head. Zimmerman asserted that the shooting was done in self-defense because he thought Trayvon was reaching for his ( Zimmerman’s ) concealed gun and he feared for his life. Eye witness accounts of the event backed his claim that Trayvon was hitting him, but Rachel Jeantel, who had been on the phone with Trayvon,
One night in a Florida gated community a young man named Trayvon Martin, was walking down the streets of a mostly white community, stopped by George Zimmerman who was a neighborhood watch resident.Mr. Martin was stopped for being “suspicious” and “up to no good” according to Mr.Zimmerman. Trayvon was fatally shot by Mr. Zimmerman out of “self defense”. Really “Self defense” he was carrying a bag of skittles and a Arizona Tea. This young man was nothing but harmless but was victimed for being African-American.George Zimmerman would rather later stand trial for the murder of Trayvon Martin was found not guilty,until April 2012 he was found guilty of second degree murder.Although there are positives and negatives of this argument, the Black Lives
Trayvon Benjamin Martin was a 17 year old African American from Miami Gardens, Florida. He was badly shot by George Zimmerman; a neighborhood watch volunteer in Sanford, Florida. Zimmerman called 911 to report that there was “suspicious person” walking through the neighborhood. He was told to not do anything, but he did anyway. As he approached Martin, he attacked him and shot him straight to the heart. According to CNN, “Zimmerman acknowledges that he shot Martin, claiming it was in self-defense.” (“Trayvon Martin Shooting Fast Facts”). When the case was taken to court George Zimmerman was found not guilty even after he
Just for wearing a hoodie, carrying an Arizona Tea and for being black he was shot and killed. In the book “Deadly Injustice: Travyon Martin, Race, and the Criminal Justice System“ the authors go on to discuss what happened that night and in the trial that preceded. It also helped me deliberate with how certain deaths are portrayed online. This being one of the biggest cases to hit the news and was brought to almost everyone in the United States attention, even the President at the time made a statement about what had happened to this young man. Social media spreaded this article like a wildfire and soon everyone knew what had happened that night in Florida. One of the main reasons why it was difficult to convict Zimmerman of this crime was because of the “Stand your ground” law After this the tension between black males and police officers rose to an even higher extent. African Americans often feel as if they are treated by police unfairly and with situations like this happening it help supported how they felt. Additionally with cases like in Ferguson and what happened in Lousivelle when four innocent teens were accused of robbing a woman with a weapon where they were later found not guilty of the
All across the nation, in the news the black community has been making their voice heard, in regards to white police brutality, and murder against the unarmed black community. Many of these brutal attacks and flat out murders of unarmed black people haven’t been largely prosecuted, some officers have even been acquitted of any wrong doing or murder. This has led to outrage in the African American community at large. The shooting of an unarmed black teen named Michael Brown caused the racial strain in this country to break.
A necessary and common fight for equality has been one that has survived throughout all of man’s existence. Due to recent racial divide and the product of racial profiling, a movement has risen up to combat these common issues. The most recent and most well-covered is the Black Lives Matter Movement. Even though it has been lauded by some media sources and individuals as the next great movement to champion for civil rights, the Black Lives Matter movement is not the same as the African-American Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s nor is it likely to be as successful. If the Black Lives Matter Movement continues with discrepancies in ideology, lack of clear leadership, and trends of hate, the movement is doomed to fail.
Racial injustice against people of colour is an immense, ongoing issue that has not only targeted lives but has also taken many innocent lives. In America, these racial divisions date back to the days of slavery, where black people were denied of their basic human rights because of discrimination. In present day, some individuals view America as a post-racial environment, due to such victories as electing a black president; but the brutal, fatal and unjust events in Ferguson, Missouri prove that these divisions are still present. On August 9th, 2014, an unarmed, 18 year old black teen was shot and killed by Darren Wilson, a white police officer. The events that led to the death of Michael Brown occurred on an early morning where Mr. Wilson stopped Michael Brown and a friend after leaving a convenience store. An altercation occurred which prompted Mr. Brown to flee and officer Wilson to begin shooting. The death of Mr. Brown caused the city to stand up against police brutality through peaceful protest, looting, and even violence, to gain justice for Mr. Brown and his family. As the protests grew, the police used military tactics such as, tear gas, to “maintain order” during the unrest of the city. In recent, news the grand jury decided that Officer Darren Wilson was not responsible for the death of Michael Brown, which led to a larger public outrage not only in America, but also across the
“Most officers involved in these killings are hardly indicted, much less convicted, for excessive use of force. The criminal justice system’s high volume of contact with people of colour”. (Burton, 2015). This is a major cause of African-Americans’ unequal proportion of deadly police encounters, as well as of larger perceptions of prejudice in the black communities. “Black lives matter” has become the accumulating social movement to bring light to the inequality and unjustifiable act and the legal system is failing to up hold the citizens right and the basic
The Black Lives Matter movement has swept across America. It 's branched out with chapters in over 31 cities and held rallies and boycotts across the United States(Sidner). The Black Lives Matter movement started with the outrage of the death of a young man. It continues to take over headlines and raise awareness on police brutality and inequality. However, the movement has met resistance from the All Lives Matter group. This group thinks that Black Lives Matter is a movement to express hatred towards other races. However, statistics, the views of fellow citizens, and the overall purpose of the Black Lives Matter movement, can prove that the movement wasn 't meant to express hate on other races and that we need to support the movement instead of going against it.
Social movements are vital to the establishment of our societies, and they way we are governed. Social movements help the less privileged band together to create a stronger voice among a sea of political correctness and unlawfully rule that the public supposedly have to abide by without question. Movements create this new form of platform that, if done successfully, are able to create a worldwide frenzy where people from across all walks of life, including politicians, academics, the less fortunate, the homeless, doctors, etc, are able to come together to create change, or to start to create change on a matter that is close to their hearts. One of these matters that has come up in recent years that has been an ongoing battle for centuries upon centuries is Black Lives Matter (Although named various things throughout time such as black civil rights). Black Lives Matter is a movement that started back in 2012 after George Zimmerman was acquitted for his crime against a 17 year old boy named Trayvon Martin, and Trayvon was then put on trial for his own murder (Garza, A. 2014, p. 1.). This crime was just the tipping point for three women who wanted to see a change in the way black lives were/are treated. Black Lives Matter is one of the most important socio-political movements of our time, and this is why it is an important movement to connect with and understand. Throughout, I will be going through the strategies and the tactics Black Lives Matter advocates and cofounders have
Black Lives Matter is an international activist movement that started within the African-American communities. This movement is organized by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi. Ever since the black people have stepped on American soil, they have continued to be victims of racism and violence. From slavery to lynching to segregation, the black people have suffered alot in this country. In the past few years, there are so many of them that have been targeted by the law enforcement authorities across the country. This movement’s goal is to raise awareness of racism and violence against African-Americans. They wants African-American to live with dignity and respect like other Americans do.