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Right Wing Media Takes Aim At Trayvon Martin And His Supporters
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 27, 2012
Modified Mar 27, 2012
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By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 27, 2012
Modified Mar 27, 2012
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Just as Rush Limbaugh tries to explain away the senseless death of Trayvon Martin, the unarmed Florida teen who was killed by a neighborhood watch volunteer last month, the NY Post goes for the jugular by featuring NY State lawmakers on its front page with the headline, "TRAYVON HOODWINK," and subheadline, "Tragedy hijacked by 'race hustlers.'" Of course, if you actually read the Post's story, you'll see that the lawmakers aren't the alleged hustlers—actually former NAACP leader Rev. C.L. Bryant told conservative site The Daily Caller that Martin's death was being exploited by Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson.
Bryant also said, "The epidemic is truly black on black crime... The greatest danger to the lives of young black men are young black men. Why not be angry about the wholesale murder that goes on in the streets of Newark and Chicago?" Well, of course, part of the outrage about Martin's death is that the Sanford, Florida police didn't even investigate the possibility of a crime when they found his dead body. Neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman claimed he was acting in self-defense, and because of Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law , he still hasn't been charged. Some witness accounts—plus Martin's girlfriend—who was talking to him on his cellphone in the moments before his death—contradict Zimmerman's claims.
If you roll up your sleeves and delve further into the Post's article, you'll see other notable politicians (like Mayor Bloomberg) are aghast at the tragedy. ThinkProgress is keeping a tally of the attacks in the smear campaign, including, "Prominent conservative websites published fake photos of Martin" and "Without any evidence, prominent right-wing bloggers suggested that Martin was a drug dealer." TP points out, "Ultimately, whether Martin was a perfect person is irrelevant to whether Zimmerman’s conduct that night was justified."
In the wake of the controversy, New York State Senate Democrats have asked Republican State Senator George Maziarz to withdraw his proposed "Stand Your Ground" bill, "This legislation has the effect of justifying murder because of a perceived threat, even in cases where that perception appears to be based more on racial stereotyping than on any real danger," noting that the bill's language is exactly the same as Florida's.
State Senator Eric Adams (D-Brooklyn), a former NYPD officer, wore a hoodie in Albany yesterday and said that Martin's death stems from NYC's aggressive policing, "It was born here in New York City and now it was cascaded all the way down to the southern coast of Florida. The stop-and-frisk policy gave birth to not only police officers believing that a person of color is automatically a criminal; now it has grown into the civilian patrol units," adding that the incident is “horrific... It happens every day in the City of New York... His death was a tipping point."
At least Geraldo Rivera has apologized for his idiotic comments about Martin's hoodie killing him. Well, sort of: "I apologize to anyone offended by what one prominent black conservative called my ‘very practical and potentially life-saving campaign urging black and Hispanic parents not to let their children go around wearing hoodies."
That's little comfort for Martin's parents. This is from a Miami Herald article about the teen:
Trayvon was 6-foot-3, 140 pounds, a former Optimist League football player with a narrow frame and a voracious appetite. He wanted to fly or fix planes, struggled in chemistry, loved sports video games and went to New York for the first time two summers ago, seeing the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty and a Broadway musical, The Addams Family. He hoped to attend the University of Miami or Florida A&M University, enamored by both schools’ bright orange and green hues.
Tagged
george zimmerman
geraldo rivera
nypd
right wing
shooting
stand your ground
stop and frisk
tragedy
trayvon martin
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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