Zimmerman was a neighborhood watchman.
Trayvon Martin is dead.
George Zimmerman is free.
This is what we know.
The passion for this case is like little I've seen in my lifetime. Young and old have donned hoodies, staged protests, participated in rallies, and vented vehemently all over social media.
Professional athletes have shown their support.
Politicians have stood up for the "movement".
Of course, the usual gamut of black leaders and intellectuals have grabbed the mantle and bullhorn and shouted for justice and blood at the same time.
The New Black Panther Party has offered a one-million dollar reward for bringing Zimmerman to justice.
"I am Trayvon Martin" has become the new "Yes We Can!"
Even the president of the United States made a personal connection to the tragic shooting by stating, "If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon."
But as more and more time goes by without "justice" and George Zimmerman walks the street, probably wearing a hoodie to conceal his identity, I have one question:
What happens now?
I still see some Facebook profile pictures and t-shirts around. But inevitably, the cycle remains the same. People prefer sprints to marathons, any day. The case has taken the backseat to Whitney Houston autopsy reports, Dwight Howard's antics in Orlando, and Beyonce bikini pics.
Okay, I lied. I have another question.
What is the aftermath? If George Zimmerman is arrested and convicted, where does the energy and fervor go? Is the mission accomplished? Is the activism no longer necessary? Does everyone go back to their insular, ego-centric lives until the next tragedy can be found in a Google search or twitter feed?
Trayvon Martin was killed and that is a deafening tragedy. But all of the rallies and protests and changing of Facebook profile pictures cannot help Trayvon. It has drawn international attention and hopefully, something positive will come out of the situation, but it cannot change the situation. However, there are millions out there that look just like Trayvon that can still be helped.
People traveled miles and miles to attend rallies, but how many would drive around the corner to volunteer at a school or offer their time to mentor a child in need?
In 2010, the graduation rates for African-American males was 47%. In Florida, the state in which Trayvon martin was killed, the rate is only 37%. THIRTY-SEVEN PERCENT!!! HELLOOOO? That means almost two-thirds of the black males in Florida DO NOT GRADUATE!
Failure to graduate exponentially increases a person's chances of living in poverty, committing a crime, and going to prison. That sounds rather tragic to me. Where are the rallies about that? Where are the good Reverends shouting about that on TV?
If a fraction of the energy, passion, and resources were put into finding solutions for this crisis, there would have to something done. Lebron's "every 26 seconds" commercial is a start, but why isn't a Congressman sitting in the house with a dunce cap and handcuffs on?
Don't get me wrong. I am by no means belittling this tragedy. Trust me, as a black man growing up in the South, I've experience more than my share of "situations" that could have resulted in my death. But I also know that without the help of some key people in my life, people that extended themselves for my sake, I wouldn't be where I am today.
On a daily basis, I see hoards of young men and women simply lost. They have no direction and are being raised by Nicki Minaj and Twitter. I wonder if the parents of these children are the same people protesting and rallying but not attending their own child's parent/teacher conference.
These children need you. They need their parents, uncles, aunts, cousins, neighbors, deacons, community members, politicians, activists, entertainers, and anyone that gives a damn about the future to stand up and make some noise.
They need you to care, because if you don't care, we will lose so many more than Trayvon. We will lose 63% of them.
Now, tweet that!
4 comments:
As always, I appreciate your perspective. I don't believe you're diminishing the importance of the 'situation'. Given our society's addiction to the "next big thing", when it comes to the news and access to social media, most have developed a kind of technology ADD. Almost like a boy getting overly excited during his first 'encounter.' The thrill of the moment is gone in the blink of an eye. Every fire needs that 'spark' and the fast burning kindling, but it's those slow burning logs that make the difference. There are many groups out there, like Stop the Violence, but if we target that 53-63%, there'd be a lot less violence to stop. Keep doing your part, Mr. D. 1% at a time :-)
Precisely. But how many people are really willing to put the work in? They would just rather hold up a sign and follow the "trend" of activism when everyone's looking. Clicking "Like" on a facebook status or "signing" an electronic petition doesn't make you an activist.
I agree with you 90something%, not everyone was meant to be an activist or at the forefront of things. And switching your profile pic to a shot wearing a hoodie doesn't give anyone "activist" status. But, no matter how well-versed Martin and Malcolm & any other person was/is, the masses added to the message. So, some were meant to be kindling, and others, logs. It's that 80/20 principle, but maybe in this case more like a 98/2%. I'm not one to criticize/question anyone's motives. I don't wear hoods, but I did sign an online petition. And, I've used this as another opportunity to open up meaningful conversations with both my sons and my students.
I don’t even know where to start. My frustration and disappointment around this case continue. I am most angered by the fact you mentioned…an unarmed black boy was killed and his killer remains free. Bringing up other pertinent issues and important questions do not take away from this case. I do think, though, that if this is the catalyst, the ‘thing’ that has gotten people to feel, get off the couch, off the internet, to protest, rally, speak up, then I am fine with this involvement…it’s still positive. It may be the only way many people know how to get involved, feel a part of something, feel a sense of belonging, etc. What I have learned is that most people do care about something. It is in getting people to rally behind what you think is the most pressing issue to address first. Then you almost have to ‘sell’ why it will affect them personally. I am in 100% agreement with you when you mention graduation rates and parental involvement in schools. When you mention the importance of lending someone a hand or volunteering at a local school, yes, this is so true and so needed. The sad reality is that most people do not know about many issues such as institutionalized racism, disproportionate graduation rates or suspensions based on race, white privilege, or even the fact that minority groups in the USA can be racist against one another. And many do not see that we all have our own biases and stereotypes. My question to you is: how can we best use media, twitter, Facebook, movies, images, athletes, music, something going ‘viral’ …to get people to really SEE and really take action in a manner that will result in real change? Btw, what you do with you students is AMAZING. It's people like you who are making a difference every day. Thank you.
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