Trayvon Martin, George Zimmerman & The Decline of Racism & Violence in America

Trayvon Martin will not go gently into that good night, and the poor kid's ghost can and will haunt us, it seems, until justice is done.

His shooter, the neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman, has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder, so the wheels of the legal system, however slowly and imperfectly, are grinding forward.

But we can't shake the death of 17-year-old Trayvon. That's partly because it was senseless and avoidable. And also in part because his shooting is being ridden like Seabiscuit by everyone to benefit their respective political sides and agendas.

Figures such as Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton want to use the Martin shooting to say that when it comes to race, little to nothing has changed in America over the past 20, 30, or 50 years. Gun control advocates want to say that the shooting proves that America is awash in the blood of gun violence egged on by Second Amendment fundamentalists.

But neither of those things is true.

While there's still a lot of work to be done, race relations are getting better, as is clear from the majority of black, white, Latino, and other respondents in poll after poll. Electing Barack Obama as president doesn't give us a free pass on the nation's ugly history, but it's a pretty good indicator that things aren't the way they used to be.

And gun violence in every way is way down from where it was just a few decades ago, when most states and localities started to allow more people to own and carry guns. That's true even in Florida, which liberalized its gun laws years ago, leading people to worry it would become "the Gunshine State." In fact, Florida's death rate from guns is average for the country.

I'm saddened by Trayvon Martin's death. I don't think that George Zimmerman should have pursued him and confronted him after calling the cops.

But I also think that we can only negatively compound the tragedy if we insist on making it embody trends that are actually moving in positive directions.

About 2 minutes.

Produced by Joshua Swain. Camera by Jim Epstein. Written by Nick Gillespie and Kennedy, who also hosts.

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[heshnfreshqc]

This has been blown way out of proportion. A black thug got shot, gee who woulda guessed. If he were white there would be not outrage and protests. Your right racism is alive and well, racism against whites. Did you notice the media called zimmerman a white Hispanic? So would that make Obama our black white president? I think not

[Dave Holster]

Trayvon Martin was a POS thug. Made Good by Zimmerman.

[jcarr954]

*committed

[jcarr954]

Racism is still alive and well today. However, you cannot blame racism for every crime commuted against members of other races. Here's a staggering statistic, did you realize that 93% of the homicides of Black people are commuted by Black people. 84% of the homicides of White people are commuted by White people. How would anyone know this, since the media, Public figures and Government has become fixated with racism?

[OhNoYouCant]

The No_Limit_Nigga is just another dead punk gangsta wannabe. Since he was put down earlier this year, thousands of his ilk were likewise shot like dogs, mostly by their own kind. The funny part is that the punk gangsta wannabes are killing themselves... makes it easy for the rest of us.

MLK Jr. is rolling over in his grave. Here's a note to the black community: Keep idolizing the punk gangsta lifestyle and your youth are doomed. The biggest threat to the black community.... is blacks.

[666TheSatanix]

idiots

[SittingMoose Shaman]

...it's only 'fuel' for your "Not-See" editors...no different in scope than Berlin Bettys' editorial staff...History simply roils in circles w/only 4 or 5 forms of human governance...1 being of any [*We the People] 'good'.

"Propaganda", '...by any other name would smell..'

*Every 'race'(?) colour & creed. 'at's America: Th' whole frikkin' World of Man. Sure we have a shitty history: Everyone came here from -or through- shitty nations/autocracies/experience­s. 'cept Indians. They were simply here.