Being a Young Black Man & Living in America: A Dangerous Combination

Young, Trayvon Martin, Black, 17, a Miami-Dade resident visiting his father in Sandford,Florida was sent to the store around 7:00p.m., during half-time of the NBA All-Star Game to get some snacks from a nearby 7-Eleven. It sounds like it should have been an uneventful trip to the store and back, especially since the store is within walking distance.

Martin, dressed in jeans, a gray hoodie and White Air Jordan’s made it to the store without incident, purchased Skittles candies and Arizona Iced Tea for his 13-year-old stepbrother.

However, his sense of peace would not last. On the way back to the gated community [The Retreat at Twin Lakes] where his father lives, he was spotted by George Zimmerman, 28, on crime watch patrol.

Zimmerman armed with a concealed weapon permit and carried a Black Kel Tek 9mm semi-automatic, reported a “suspicious person in the area,” to the police and began to follow young Martin in his SUV.

What exactly was Martin doing to arouse suspicion from Zimmerman? Was he caught selling or buying drugs? Was he caught trying to break into someone’s home or car? Did Zimmerman witness Martin keying someone’s car? Was he caught soliciting a prostitute? What? Or was Martin just caught trying to make it back home from 7-Eleven while being Black?

The police dispatcher told Zimmerman that a squad car would be dispatched and that the police would handle it.

Moments later, several calls would come into the 911 station, telling police that two men were fighting and shots; [more than one] had been fired. When Officer T. Smith arrived at the scene, he found Martin’s body lying face down on the grass, with a fatal wound to his chest, 70 yards from his father’s home. Martin had $22.00, Skittles candies and a can of Arizona Iced Tea in his pockets.

Subsequently, George Zimmerman gave the officer a statement and was free to leave. Leaving Martin, 17, Black, bleeding to death on the grass.

Trayvon Martin’s family has hired attorney Benjamin Crump, who filed a lawsuit Friday to get public records on the shooting, said “the neighborhood watch was supposed to protect Martin, not kill him.

And yet another young man loses his life while living in America and being “BLACK!”

Trayvon Martin’s funeral was held March 3, in Miami. More than 1,000 people, including classmates and friends, showed up at his viewing.

Photo Credit: dailymail.com