On February 26, 2012, a horrible hate crime occurred. Trayvor Martin, only 17-years-old, was murdered when he came back from a convenient stop with a bag of snacks. He was a good kid, a loved son, but had black skin. The killer was a self-appointed watchman of the community that Martin lived in. The watchman is named George Zimmerman, age 28, which carried a concealed weapon without any permit or authority. He killed Martin because he claims that he was acting “suspicious”. This so said “suspicious” was just a shield for his racism. The teenager was walking in the night with items in his hands and was clad by a hooded sweat shirt.
This was a complete act of racisms because just because a black kid was walking in the night with a hooded sweat shirt it doesn’t mean that he is going to do something bad. It is believed that Zimmerman had chased Martin around the neighborhood before he shot and killed him. Zimmerman also claims that Martin possessed suspicious items with him. When he was found the only things he had in his property were a bag of Skittles and a can of ice tea. It is evident that there is no evidence that Zimmerman had any reason to shot this kid that showed no danger to a member of the community where he lived. This is a hate crime and the police can’t just let Zimmerman free because he promises that he did this in self defense.
This case clearly shows that prejudice has led to injustice. This was not only a small injustice; an innocent boy was killed and the killer is out in the streets not feeling the least bit of regret. I ask you this; if your kid was killed because you are Latino wouldn’t you want the killer to go to jail? If your kid was killed because you are poor wouldn’t you want to see the killer in jail? Imagine if you child was killed because of the smallest stereotype and the killer was left free, wouldn’t you be mad and demand for justice? Martin’s parents have felt like this because their precious son was killed. They are demanding for justice which will most likely be the same thing you will d it this happened to you.
It is our responsibility as civilized people that we are to protect the innocent; however, we strive to attack the innocent instead of the bad. We have to attack someone- which has caused humanity lots of conflicts that could he fixed other wise or would had never happen. If we call ourselves civilianized people in that case why are we killing people of our own race without any apparent reason? Elephants march in a group and enclose in a circle the small offspring for them to be protected of the depredator that trey to eat the small. Shouldn’t be better that any other animal? Shouldn’t we protect the innocent and the helpless as other animals do? Jails were made to incarcerate people that are a threat to society away for no innocent life to be affected. Killers are put in jail because what they have do is wrong and they can be a rick to innocent people. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee in page 103 Atticus, the father of the children, tells them that if they are going to shoot birds that it is okay if they shoot at a blue jay but that it is a sin to hit a mockingbird. Later in the chapter another character explains the children why it is considered a sin to shoot a mockingbird; mockingbirds don’t do anything bad to society and in occasions sing for the people. This part talks about how people that are pacific and that don’t do anything bad to society are unfairly treated. Martin was the mockingbird and Zimmerman committed a sin.
I believe that in a way Zimmerman killed Martin because he didn’t understand how a black kid could be in the night dressed like that and not be doing something bad. He probably was instructed differently about blacks in his house when he was small and that may had motivated him to do such a horrible things. I am not explaining his act and he should still be punished but he was instructed one way and that motivated him. When humanity finds out about something that they don’t understand we tend to freak out and respond in violent of weird ways. For example when I was in the Wolf room and Lucas Wubochen spray blue hair paint on m hair I didn’t understand and reacted in a weird way and punched him. It is natural from a human to react differently when he doesn’t understand something but that doesn’t means that the person shouldn’t be punished.
The main thing that actually influenced this injustice was that Martin was stereotyped by his gender- being black. Lots of problems and human reactions happen when we encounter people and judge them by their way of being. Some women may think a man is a rapist if she is walking in the dark and a man in hooded sweatshirt walks to their direction. Someone may think that someone is alcoholic or drug addict if he or she is homeless and poorly dressed. We judge people when we see them and it is something that is very bad but in a way it is a protection because it tells us when to be ready to defend ourselves. Zimmerman felt that Martin was up to no go and that is why he killed him but that was an exaggeration. We have the instinct to judge someone to for us to be ready to defend them but he didn’t defend himself because Martin never did something bad. This are the reasons why I be live that Zimmerman should be taken to trial under the charge of carrying a concealed weapon and murder in the second degree were he will be in jail for 25 to life- I hope it is for life.
