There's probably only a few of us here that haven't heard of the Zimmerman trial, but for their benefit, I'll quickly recap. These particulars are as I understand them, so feel free to correct if I say something wrong.
George Zimmerman, a Hispanic man, was out patrolling his neighborhood one night as a self-appointed watchman following a tring of vandalism in the area. He spotted an African-American teen named Trayvon Martin walking down the street in a hoodie. Zimmerman didn't recognize him and considered him suspicious. He called the police and reported it, and then got out of his car and followed Martin on foot. They ended up having a confrontation in which they fought and Zimmerman shot Trayvon, killing him.
Initial public reaction was divided from the beginning, with many condemning Zimmerman immediately and others calling for acquittal. After a very public trial, a jury decided that he was not guilty of murder. Basically, he acted in self defense.
This tragedy has set off a firestorm of peaceful protests, not so peaceful riots, and lots of death threats against Zimmerman.
I didn't follow the trial closely enough to know all the facts, so I'm hesitant to make a judgement call about the verdict fulfilling justice or not. My feeling, though is that a teenage kid is dead that was unarmed at the time. I have a hard time believing that even a manslaughter verdict is not justified, but that's just gut feeling rather than a factual or legal basis.
A poll I recently read had 41% of Americans agreeing with the verdict and 41% disagreeing. 81% of African Americans are not happy with the verdict while 51% of Caucasians are. I suspect that the vast majority of those that are upset are ones that have condemned Zimmerman from the beginning and no amount of argument or evidence could convince them otherwise.
The media is, of course, capitalizing on this. More disturbingly, President Obama has weighed in on the verdict, comparing himself to Trayvon Martin and commenting on racial profiling. That disturbs me because it seems inappropiate for a President, the face of the federal government, to make disparaging remarks about a state level verdict. It undermines the decision that was made and seems inflammatory. I respect his opinion as an individual, but as President I'd hope he'd be putting out fires instead of pouring gasoline on them.
Here's a few stories from CNN if you want more info:
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.co...-over-zimmerman-verdict-poll-finds/?hpt=hp_t1
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/15/justice/zimmerman-verdict-protests/index.html?iref=allsearch
http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2013/07/19/pres-obama-couldve-been-me/?iref=allsearch
Interestingly, Zimmerman was in the news recently again. This time he was helping a family out of an overturned SUV.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/22/us/florida-zimmerman-vehicle/index.html?iref=allsearch
I'm curious about how others here feel about it. As always, lets keep the discussion respectful and civil.
George Zimmerman, a Hispanic man, was out patrolling his neighborhood one night as a self-appointed watchman following a tring of vandalism in the area. He spotted an African-American teen named Trayvon Martin walking down the street in a hoodie. Zimmerman didn't recognize him and considered him suspicious. He called the police and reported it, and then got out of his car and followed Martin on foot. They ended up having a confrontation in which they fought and Zimmerman shot Trayvon, killing him.
Initial public reaction was divided from the beginning, with many condemning Zimmerman immediately and others calling for acquittal. After a very public trial, a jury decided that he was not guilty of murder. Basically, he acted in self defense.
This tragedy has set off a firestorm of peaceful protests, not so peaceful riots, and lots of death threats against Zimmerman.
I didn't follow the trial closely enough to know all the facts, so I'm hesitant to make a judgement call about the verdict fulfilling justice or not. My feeling, though is that a teenage kid is dead that was unarmed at the time. I have a hard time believing that even a manslaughter verdict is not justified, but that's just gut feeling rather than a factual or legal basis.
A poll I recently read had 41% of Americans agreeing with the verdict and 41% disagreeing. 81% of African Americans are not happy with the verdict while 51% of Caucasians are. I suspect that the vast majority of those that are upset are ones that have condemned Zimmerman from the beginning and no amount of argument or evidence could convince them otherwise.
The media is, of course, capitalizing on this. More disturbingly, President Obama has weighed in on the verdict, comparing himself to Trayvon Martin and commenting on racial profiling. That disturbs me because it seems inappropiate for a President, the face of the federal government, to make disparaging remarks about a state level verdict. It undermines the decision that was made and seems inflammatory. I respect his opinion as an individual, but as President I'd hope he'd be putting out fires instead of pouring gasoline on them.
Here's a few stories from CNN if you want more info:
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.co...-over-zimmerman-verdict-poll-finds/?hpt=hp_t1
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/15/justice/zimmerman-verdict-protests/index.html?iref=allsearch
http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2013/07/19/pres-obama-couldve-been-me/?iref=allsearch
Interestingly, Zimmerman was in the news recently again. This time he was helping a family out of an overturned SUV.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/22/us/florida-zimmerman-vehicle/index.html?iref=allsearch
I'm curious about how others here feel about it. As always, lets keep the discussion respectful and civil.
