My Thoughts on the Trayvon & Zimmerman Show

A lot has been said and posted concerning the Zimmerman verdict, some like and some do not. I think this will always be the case when we have a society that is trained to be polarizing. The media worked overtime to make sure the American public had a tainted view of the case. Starting with the edited 911 call to make Zimmerman sound like a racist, to the photo used of Trayvon and not forgetting that they created a new race category just for Zimmerman, White-Hispanic or better yet, self-proclaimed Hispanic. And as predicted, Americans fell for it, our dependency on main stream media and there left leaning agenda has been a disservice to all, but mostly to the left. They have disgraced the media, and made all left leaning politically minded people seem like nut cases. They have turned a tragedy, the death of a young man and the demise of another, into a circus. They have dishonored the memory of Trayvon and ruined the life of Zimmerman and have made any advancement in race relations have just been pushed back 20 years.

And this helps Trayvon how? This Helps Zimmerman how? This helps America how?

All three are valid questions, and all three deserve equal attention, but as things are in the this country, with the media the way it is, only the Trayvon questions will get asked, and sadly it will get asked in all the wrong ways.

It will get asked in the light of hatred and political agendas and not in the light of love and humanity, it will be asked by an uninformed media that sees only ratings and not people with souls. It will be plastered on our TV’s and blasted through the radios in voices and images of intolerance and make-believe. Fairytales will be spun and grandiose stories will be told. But in the end Trayvon will still be dead and Zimmerman will still be persecuted, and nothing, nothing will have changed, for the better.

What happened was a tragedy, for both, two people in the wrong place at the wrong time. Do I think Trayvon was up to no good, no, I don’t think so, but I was not there. Do I think Zimmerman was out to kill, no, I don’t think so, but I was not in his head at the time. What do I think, I think both men, and yes Trayvon was a man, not the 12-year-old often shown, I think both men reacted badly. Who started it, I don’t know, I was not there, but I do know it ended badly, for both, one is dead and the others life has been taken from him.

Some would argue that its ok the Zimmerman’s life is, for all practical purposes, taken from him, he is a killer and lucky to be free at all. But according to Florida law, he is not, and as far as I understand law (trust me, I don’t) the jury did the right thing.

Many have argued that Zimmerman was at fault because he followed Trayvon, and if he did not follow him, he would not have killed him. True, bad judgment on Zimmerman’s part, yep, but bad judgment and following someone are not breaking the law. Some would also argue that Trayvon should have just kept walking home, not turn around and confront Zimmerman, bad judgment on Trayvon’s part, yep, and sadly it got him killed.

Both men are at fault here, neither broke the law, but both made stupid decisions, and both have paid a price. Yes the loss of a young man is tragic, and I mean no disrespect for Trayvon, but in the end, their own choices defined what happened to them. Should Zimmerman have been convicted, no, the law in Florida is clear, should Trayvon have died, no, his life has/had meaning.

I read a lot of comments on Facebook from ignorant people, on both sides of the issue, some calling for vigilantly style justice, calling for the death of Zimmerman, and some claiming that Trayvon was nothing but a punk-ass kid looking for trouble. Was Trayvon a punk-ass kid, got me, I didn’t know him, does that mean he deserved to die, absolutely not. No more than Zimmerman deserved to be hunted down and killed vigilantly style.

I have heard it said the Zimmerman is racist, the facts don’t prove it out, I have heard it said that Trayvon was totally innocent in this, the facts don’t prove it out. Emotions are high and the rhetoric from the talking heads on main stream media is in full swig, can we expect truth from them, no, but what we can expect is more spin and political agendas, how is this honoring Trayvon? It’s not, its disgracing him and our nation. Want to honor Trayvon, set up a anti-violence campaign in his name, set up a scholarship fund, perform community service to better the lives of our youth, do something constructive and not destructive.

You want to help race relations, stop making up race issues, we have enough real ones we don’t need to fabricate them. Stop labeling people as White-Hispanic (whatever that is), African-Americans, Black, White or Yellow, we are all Americans, labels only divide, they do not unite. Ask yourself this, Is President Obama the first Black President or the first  1/2 Black 1/2 White President? And really, does it matter the color of their skin, or is it the character of their souls? Race relations will never improve if we keep injecting race into the equation when we find it convenient. To me President Obama is just American, I disagree with his polices not because he happens to be 1/2 black, but because I don’t like socialistic policies. Different political views does not make me a racist, it makes me American.

In the end, no one really wins in the Trayvon & Zimmerman show except TV networks and the ratings they will receive. The outcome of the fateful night will not change, a young mans life was cut short, his family will always suffer the loss of Trayvon and Zimmerman’s life will forever be altered, he and his family will never be the same. No winners in this, only tragedy, for Trayvon, Zimmerman and America… Sad… So very sad…

Lets hope and pray that cooler heads will prevail in the days, weeks and months to come…

 

God Bless

Paul Sposite

Guided Insight Life Coach