While our children are being raise in a quaint suburban location (in a state that many don’t even know is the first state), and seem to be far removed from the profiling that happens to many of today’s young black men, the rumblings from the senseless killing of Trayvon Martin have permeated conversations over the past week. I first heard of the story on the Michael Baisden show a week before it gained national attention. I pride myself in not always slapping the black card on the table, so my first reaction was to looked at the nature of the Neighborhood Watch patrol and the carelessness of turning a storied tradition of protection your own community into a moment of unnecessary vigilant activism. As the story unfolded, I couldn’t help but be like much of this nation look at this as another case of senseless racial violence.
My husband and I take great pride in trying to educate and inform our children about some of the injustices and century-old disparities that may indeed impact them as they grow into adulthood, but I shudder to think that we now have to be even more transparent about the thin line between being young, black and male in today’s society. Sure, we do things covertly, like not buy trendy hoodies, or too much clothing with brand name embellishments on them; wouldn’t you? How often have you heard on the news Black male wearing dark jeans and a white shirt with such and such on the front or have seen the ‘alleged perpetrators’ mug shot dressed in the latest gear, etc.? It’s sickening but true. Unfortunately, even if your young black son doesn’t ‘look’ the part, there are still people out there that will judge them and think the worse.
Even more alarming has been the fact that law enforcement seems reluctant to enforce the law. Didn’t George Zimmerman break the law by not following the rules as they relate to the Neighborhood Watch program which he was involved? Are Neighborhood Watch patrols licensed to carry a weapon as a part of that volunteer role? Not according to the National Sheriffs’ Association, which oversees nearly 20,000 Neighborhood Watch programs in the US. I am no legal scholar, but I beg to think that nowhere in the Florida gun law does it make it possible for citizens to go beyond protecting their own private property to the point of brandishing weapons under the guise of a Neighborhood Watch program. And what about the Stand-your-ground law? Is Zimmerman covered by that? Well some Florida lawmakers have already begun to question whether the Florida law is too broad, saying that future legislation should redefine the grounds under which self-defense could be claimed.
I can’t help but feel like I should be seeing footage of people banning together in communities across this country in support of this child, signing petitions, etc. and showing the world that even though they may not be there in Florida that they want and end to this and they want their voices hear. I can’t help but ask where are all the activists and celebrities that rise to the challenge of an international cause? Where are their voices? Don't they see something unjust and worthy of fighting for in Trayvon Martin? As a mother, this makes me feel somewhat helpless. From my point of view, regardless of how academically astute or financially secure our son’s futures may be because of the hard work we are putting in now, they will still face some challenges because of the color of their skin. They will have to be conscious about what they wear, where they are, what time of day it is and who they are with. They will have to have this psychotic sense of paranoia because no matter how high they may climb up the corporate ladder, no matter what profession they choose, whether they are in the limelight or live a quiet, suburban life there will still be those who look at them through lenses so clouded by societal stigmas.
The profiling and subjugation of any minority has to stop. It's a sad state of affairs when we have to fight this hard to get 'them' to see the wrong. It’s time for us to stand-our-ground and make sure that our children grow up in a world where their thirsts for knowledge, life and success can be quenched without the burden of their race holding them back.
I pray that I will never know what Trayvon Miller’s parents are feeling at this moment.
A part of every black male’s soul has been wounded,
A cloud looms over the heads of young black males unborn,
Everyday a mother’s soul cries out “Lord protect my son.”
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