The Acquittal Of George Zimmerman For The Death Of Trayvon Martin

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

This paper will be covering the controversial case of the shooting of Trayvon Martin at the hands of George Zimmerman. This was a polarizing trial for it pitted gun rights activists against gun-control activists and people who were generally against the new gun rhetoric that is in Florida. George Zimmerman was the neighborhood watch for the gated community and would always do his job diligently. However, one night he witnessed someone in a grey hoodie walking on the sidewalk wearing a hoodie. Zimmerman thought this person was suspicious and continued to follow him. After Zimmerman called in that he was following this individual, he was told not to leave his vehicle. Instead, he followed the person into who knows where and the rest of the story is up for debate. The defense team stated that Trayvon had jumped out of the bushes and begun to attack Zimmerman violently to the point where he felt that his life was in danger. The prosecution believed that Zimmerman had initiated a fight with Trayvon and he was at the mercy of Zimmerman at gunpoint for a significant amount of time.

Throughout history, black people have been hurt and battered physically, mentally, and emotionally by white people and those who believe they are superior. From the beginning of the 19th century to the ongoing 21st century, black identity has evolved in accordance to the struggles African Americans are facing at the time. From the abolitionist movement to the Black Lives Matter movement, the evolving issues facing black identity in the struggle for equality and constitutional rights can be seen through the literature and writing by the black leaders of the time.

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.

Benign black in America, how that sounds? People talk bad on your culture even when you are around. They say we are all equal, but how? The struggle of benign African American in America, goes a long way. From the Civil Rights Movement, where we just wanted equal opportunity to the Little Rock Nine, just a group of nine African American students enrolled in the Little Rock Central High School, they just wanted an education. They might of mention Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. several of times, but did they mention how Emmett Till was an 14 year old African American boy who whistled at an 21 year old white women, but she was unclear that he did it and her husband and his half-brother beat and shoot Emmett Till and put his body in the river and the

The BLM movement initially emerged in 2013 via social media in the form of a #BlackLivesMatter hashtag. This hashtag was created in direct response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the case concerning the killing of Trayvon Martin, a black 17-year old teen. Martin was killed by Zimmerman, a member of the local neighborhood watch, who claimed he shot the teen in self-defense. After three weeks of testimony, the jury agreed that Zimmerman could have been justified in shooting Martin because he feared great bodily harm or death. The following year, the movement grew after the death of two unarmed black men– Michael Brown of Ferguson and Eric Garner of New York City.

the main point of Black Lives Matter isn't to suggest that black lives should be or even are more important than all other lives. Instead, it’s promptly pointing out that black people's lives are very much undervalued in our country especially. This hashtag was formally known in 2012 after the final verdict over George Zimmerman; Trayvon Martin was pronounced dead publicly, he was only 17 he lives in Florida. He was shot and brutally murdered by an alleged neighborhood watch volunteer. A group of Woman made this movement they were Patrice's Cullors, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi.

The BLM movement initially emerged in 2013 via social media in the form of a #BlackLivesMatter hashtag. This hashtag was created in direct response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the case concerning the killing of Trayvon Martin, a black 17-year old teen. Martin was killed by Zimmerman, a member of the local neighborhood watch, who claimed he shot the teen in self-defense. After three weeks of testimony, the jury agreed that Zimmerman could have been justified in shooting Martin because he feared great bodily harm or death. The following year, the movement grew after the death of two unarmed black men– Michael Brown of Ferguson, Missouri and Eric Garner of New York City.

The above narrative is just a mere glimpse of the hurt, anger, and pain in the black community after George Zimmerman was acquitted of charges of second degree murder against seventeen year old Trayvon Martin. These emotions were the stepping stones of a highly significant movement, the Black Lives Matter movement. The Black Lives Matter movement is a response as well as a stance against police brutality against African Americans, which uses the tragic deaths of teenagers Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown as a head for its cause. Many people on social media know the black lives matter movement or refer to it #blacklivesmatter, especially on twitter. The Black Lives Matter movement was founded by Patrisse Cullers, Opal Tometi, and Alicia Garza. Which is defined as 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.”

Often termed “The Trial of the Century”, the case of The People v. O.J. Simpson was one of the most publicized in the world. Orenthal James Simpson was born in San Francisco on July 9, 1947. Whilst at USC, he had started college football, which would lead him to have a famous career with the National Football League, which he retired from in 1979. During this time, Mr. Simpson married his first wife, Marguerite L. Whitley, and had three children. Afterwards, O.J. Simpson moved onto his acting and sport-casting career, during which he divorced his wife (“O.J. Simpson Biography” 2016). Nicole Brown, born in West Germany in 1959, had grown up in Southern California. Whilst working as a waitress in a posh club in Beverly Hills, she had met

“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.

For example, one in six black men had been incarcerated as of 2001 and today African Americans comprise of nearly “1 million of the total 2.3 million incarcerated population” and are imprisoned at “six times the rate of whites” (“About the BLM Network”). If current trends continue and the population of the African Americans increase, “one in three black males born today can expect to spend time in prison during his lifetime” (“About the BLM Network”). This happens to be the very example of what led to the start of the BLM movement and the uproar of the black population. After 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by murder George Zimmerman and was “posthumously placed on trial for his own murder,” only for Zimmerman to be acquitted, #Blacklivesmatter was created in 2012 (King). Social media allowed participants to generate “new habits that create a fresh sense of identity and a feeling of ownership,” especially when users could easily share the hashtag along with his or her own views and ideas in a tweet or an Instagram caption (Duhigg 87). This hashtag subsequently was formed into a protest and then ultimately a full-fledged movement: a movement uniting all black people to resist their dehumanization in America and creating a voice for its members through social media.

What exactly is this #BlackLivesMatter movement? It is a movement that was created by Alicia Garza, with Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi in 2012 after the murder of 17 year old Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman who was later acquitted of all charges, where with this trial we saw an innocent unarmed 17 year kid be tried and blamed for his own murder on a national platform rather than the justice that was so needed. (blacklivesmatter.com, n.d) This movement is working for the validity and affirmation of the Black life (Black queers, and those who identify as transgender and none gender conforming, those who are disabled, undocumented; and those with criminal records) by rebuilding the Black liberation movement. This movement

Originating in 2012, the political movement known under the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter has exploded in size and renown. This movement, which was initially inspired after a police officer was acquitted of all charges after fatally shooting an African American individual, seeks to diminish police brutality against African American individuals and systemic racism particularly in the United States. Sweeping the nation, Black Lives Matter has become an international movement and its influence has only increased with time. On the movement’s official website, the following was written regarding the history of the hashtag-inspired entourage, “#BlackLivesMatter was created in 2012 after Trayvon Martin’s murderer, George Zimmerman, was acquitted for his crime, and dead 17-year old Trayvon was posthumously placed on trial for his own murder. Rooted in the experiences of Black people in this country who actively resist our dehumanization, #BlackLivesMatter is a call to action and a response to the virulent anti-Black racism that permeates our society. Black Lives Matter is a unique contribution that goes beyond extrajudicial killings of Black people by police and vigilantes.” (http://blacklivesmatter.com/about/). The #BlackLivesMatter movement asserts that racism is still prevalent in modern society and exists not only in passive forms. Instead, racism apparently can be both overt and implicit.

Throughout the years, the institution of policing carried out a function that is hostile towards numerous people, particularly the most marginalized in societies. Police officers have sometimes played a role in attacking the existence of demeaned citizens, from the bathhouse raids in 1981 to Project Marie in 2016 to the continuing criminalization of individuals who are Indigenous, engaged in sex work, HIV+, trans and/or Black. Black Lives Matter is one such movement regarding this social issue which emerged in 2013 after George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch coordinator, was acquitted of shooting Trayvon Martin, an African-American teenager (Garza, 2014). The movement began on social media as a hashtag (#BlackLivesMatter) and then, it became