So having ruminated on the subject of Trayvon Martin's murder by a White Citizen's Council member calling himself a "Community Watchman", I just had to write a commentary on the general climate in America as it pertains to the black man.
As I've noted in various discussions, the role of white terrorist groups like the Klan was not to explicitly kill black people. Rather the intention was to keep niggers in their place. Their place being wherever those whites in power decided it should be. If you read any of the insider reports of policing in any urban area today, you will see that such attitudes are still common among those who are charged with "keeping the peace".
While John White of Long Island was arrested, tried and convicted of killing a white teenager who, in a drunken rage, showed up on John White's property threatening to kill both his son and wife, the murderer of Trayvon has so far escaped so much as being arrested.
True to the American spirit, Zimmerman, like many a white man before him, claimed to be defending himself. This is the typical excuse given by entitled white men who have taken the life of a black man. Those who killed and maimed Emmett Till were "defending" the white race and the honor of white women. Indeed, in many places in America, killing black males who were in the wrong place after sundown, was a common practice.
And so the tradition continues. A jury failed to convict those police officers who, while in "fear of their lives", shot and killed Diallo who was fishing for his keys while entering his place of residence. A jury apparently thought that an unarmed black man entering his residence with his keys is enough proof of "mortal fear" among supposedly highly trained undercover police officers.
Similarly, Sean Bell who at worst was drunk, presented such a fear to the officers of an NYPD under cover unit that they saw fit to follow this man, who had committed and who had not threatened to commit a crime. Sean Bell, having started up his vehicle saw men with guns pointed at his car yelling. Sean Bell was the only person on the scene acting in self defense as any of us would if someone with a gun pointed at our vehicle would do.
There we have officer Michael Oliver who emptied two full clips into Bell and Guzman, who were, I remind you, unarmed and trying to get away from armed men. His excuse? He was firing in self defense against Guzman who was "raising his arms".
Oscar Grant, laying face down and handcuffed on a train platform. An officer shot him in the back. His excuse? That Oscar Grant was being threatening. The officer intended to only tase Oscar Grant. A jury convicted this fellow but he received less time for his crimes, than Michael Vick caught for dog fighting.
Just this past Febrary members of the NYPD ran up into a home and shot Ramarley Graham. There was no legal reason for officers to enter the home much less shoot Ramarley who was, like all the other cases, unarmed. Also, like all the other cases, the white aggressors made claims of self defense citing weapons that were never present.
And so we see that the case of Trayvon is not in the least bit unusual. It is not surprising that yet another white male has been, so far, allowed to walk around after killing a black man who supposedly had a gun. When the system allows the killers of innocent, unarmed black men to go unpunished, then what is to stop any other "concerned citizen" from making the same claim?
Let's make it plain. Trayvon was walking home minding his own business. Zimmerman took it upon himself to declare that Trayvon had no business walking in his neighborhood. Zimmerman, despite being told to wait for actual law enforcement who supposedly have more and better training (I've already established that this cannot be assumed), decided to hop out of his car and threaten Trayvon. You'll note that I did not write "confront". I wrote "threaten" because if a man pops out of his car demanding you ID yourself and whatnot, while you are minding your own business, you are being threatened. Trayvon, in defense of himself, perhaps told Zimmerman to step off. He probably told Zimmerman to get out of his way. He probably tld ZImmerman he wasn't identifying SHIT. He probably asked Zimmerman who the fuck he thought he was. AND Trayvon would have been completely right to be offended that some random white man was challenging his right to walk down the street in peace.
At some point there was a physical struggle. Remember, it is Trayvon, who was minding his own business and walking down the street who was being threatened by Zimmerman. Only Trayvon is defending himself. Zimmerman is the aggressor here. Zimmerman, perhaps losing the fight, decides to shoot Trayvon "in self -defense". This is bullshit. This would be like a man grabbing a woman's handbag and when she grabs it back, he shoots her claiming to defend himself. No sir. The aggressor is not acting in self-defense.
Perhaps the State Attorney will see fit to charge Zimmerman for the crimes that he committed but the damage is done. That Zimmerman is walking around free with a bloody dead body is in a morgue, no evidence of a weapon and clear evidence of disregarding the instructions of 911, is yet another example of the continued Dred Scott law that operates in America.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
(17 years of informed commentary)
