Sunday, March 25, 2012

Trayvon Martin: Re-opening Wounds of Racism

The shooting death of Trayvon Martin has re-opened old wounds for many in Sanford, Florida's black community, and fueled an existing distrust of police. My son, Jesse Lloyd Guma, visited the community last week to produce this segment for The Grio. It aired Friday on MSNBC


     Sanford Mayor Jeff Triplett attended a town hall meeting on Wednesday after traveling to Washington DC with a delegation. They urge the Justice Department to review the case, including why police failed to arrest the shooter, George Zimmerman. But the main source of mistrust, many residents said, is the department led by a man who wasn't there, Sanford police chief Bill Lee.
     Outside the town hall, a group of young men from a local church wore Skittles candy boxes around their necks to signal their fear that they could become victims of racial profiling, just like Trayvon. National NAACP president Ben Jealous said the fear of profiling, especially after the killing of Trayvon Martin, is not limited to Sanford.
     The Department of Justice and a Florida grand jury are investigating the police handling of Trayvon's death.

No comments: