February 26, 2012 was the day that my generation understood that "liberty and justice for all" didn't include you if you were Black. As a 13 year-old, the news of Trayvon Martin opened our eyes to how Black people are treated by law enforcement. Our parents have seen this before. Seeing the name Trayvon Martin was just like seeing the name Rodney King, only Rodney lived to tell his story.
I vividly remember having discussions in my 8th grade, middle school class about the entire ordeal. It now dawns on me that I would not have those kind of discussions again until I entered college. We talked about Trayvon and all of the moments leading up to his death, we also discussed George Zimmerman, and how much of a punk, and other p-words that he was for deliberately messing with a child who was minding their own business.
Of course, once this case went to trial, I, in my very naive mind, though that Zimmerman was going to jail and was going to be locked up for good. Obviously, once the news broke, I was heartbroken and distraught. My step-dad wasn't surprised. I told y'all, our parents aren't new to this, they're true to this. They have seen this time and time again, but for me, who was now 14, I was astonished and couldn't believe that a non-Black person was acquitted of killing somebody Black. To the courts, and mostly to Zimmerman, it seemed as if Trayvon didn't even matter. Like he deserved it. Like he was asking for it. Even though Zimmerman was the one to pursue Martin. Let's not even talk about the fact that Martin's jury consisted of 6 white women. Jury of one's peers my ass. All of the eligible Black people in south Florida, and this is the best they could do.
Thankfully, Jay-Z along with Martin's parents are making sure that his name never dies, and that his legacy lives on forever. Watch the trailer for Rest In Power: The Trayvon Martin Story below,
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