For this I love Morgan Freeman.
"How do we stop racism? Stop talking about it. I'm going to stop calling you a white man, and I am going to ask you to stop calling me a black man" -Morgan Freeman
Like everyone, I could not help watching the Zimmerman trial. A young man was shot and killed, and another man admitted he did it, but claimed it was in self defense. A jury of 6 people decided. They found Mr. Zimmerman not guilty, meaning there was reasonable doubt about his guilt.
There is plenty of room to disagree about whether the jury got it right or wrong. Plenty of people felt that George Zimmerman shared the blame for what happened that night. I understand the argument, because a young man who just went to the store to buy some candy ended up dead. I do not usually mention my wife in my blogs because she is a much more private person than I am, but she feels George did something wrong and should be punished for it somehow. As I have said to her, I respect her opinion and I understand what she is saying. I mean that, and not just because a man should take care to respect his wife’s opinion. I actually get it. If I were Trayvon’s father I would wonder why my son had to be shot on his way home, on foot, from going to the convenience store. I am a father and I would be very upset if that were my boy.
My counterpoint has been this: we may never know the answer but the critical question here is who threw the first punch? I can understand George; there had been violence and theft and break-ins in his neighborhood. He had helped organize a neighborhood watch. He called the police, and asked them to come and check this guy out. He carried a gun because he knew as a neighborhood watchman he was, by definition, setting out to help catch the criminals who had been committing crimes in his neighborhood.
As I have already said, I understand Trayvon’s situation as well. As a libertarian I put myself in his shoes and I should have the right to walk to the store and back without someone wanting to know what I am up to. None of your freakin’ business. But by the way, I was buying some candy.
I can imagine these two when they came face to face, and regardless of what version of events you subscribe to, at some point they came face to face. George was wondering if he was confronting a criminal and Trayvon was wondering what asshole was following him and why he thought he had the right to do so. Both would have been a little self-righteous and confrontational, I think.
In my mind, it all could have been avoided if nobody had thrown the first punch. It might have turned out ok if they had had words but not resorted to violence. The police were already on their way and would have been there in a few minutes. But someone did initiate the use of force. Someone did throw the first punch. Somebody started it. And I think it matters who did that.
As for the legal side of things, the prosecution and defense agreed on a jury of 6 humans, and those six humans listened to all of the evidence and came up with a verdict of not guilty for George Zimmerman. I think that is the right verdict, although I acknowledge other people can have a reasonable disagreement with that verdict. Nevertheless the jury has spoken and that is the way we decide things in this country and it is a damn fine system. I say case closed, based on the judgement of the jury.
Not so fast, says The Reverend Al Sharpton. Say what? Not so fast, this was a race crime, say people rioting in the streets (although mostly peacefully). Jesse Jackson chimes in. Hillary Clinton chimes in. Eric Holder says it reminds him of being profiled in his youth.
Although we may have disagreed about the crime between these two men, everyone in my personal sphere is now on the same page. Race? What? NO! At least the Reverend Al brought my wife and I back onto the same page. This was not a race crime. This had nothing to do with race.
Before I get into that, I would like to offer a word about profiling. I was born in 1961, and so growing up, hair was a big deal. For me and my peers, the longer our hair the better. For my Dad, the shorter the better. He gave us crew-cuts, and he and my older brother had some very major confrontations over hair length. Dad thought hair length indicated character. Beards of any kind also indicated a lack of character. Dad was wrong in any absolute sense, of course. Hair is just hair; just like piercings or tattoos or wearing your pants around your knees to show your underwear. It is a sign of rebellion I guess, or was. I look at kids and their rebellion, whether it is hair or underwear or whatever; I see them letting their “freak flag fly”. Kids do that. Perhaps hoodies are a part of that; or perhaps it was raining, I don’t know which. But I do know that although my Dad grew up in a culture in the south in the early part of the century where racial prejudice was ingrained in him, the issue of hair and dress was not racial. We were his kids. He did not want other white adult males profiling us white kids based on our hair length or the way we dressed. He was profiling, but not for reasons of race.
When I go to a person’s house and they have not mowed their lawn, or they have trash in it, or they have not vacuumed, or there are dishes in the sink, I draw conclusions. If I see someone who has not bathed, or they show me ¾ of their underwear, or use profanity freely, I draw conclusions. Those are not racist, because it matters not the race of the person. Mowed lawn, freshly bathed, underwear covered, and dishes washed are good things. Yes, I judge people. And so do you.
I do not know what was in George Zimmerman’s heart that night, nor do I know what was in Trayvon’s. I think it matters who threw the first punch, but we can probably never prove that. But I do not see evidence of racism. Perhaps there was profiling, but that is not racism. Had Trayvon been in a suit and tie he probably would not have been noticed. Likewise, a white guy with long hair, unbathed, with a beard and hoodie may have very well elicited the same reaction. I can’t say for sure.
And neither can The Reverend Al Sharpton. Al Sharton presents a challenge for me every time he opens his mouth. As I have said I am a 52 year old white male who has long ago decided race does not matter; character matters. But every time anything happens Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson and many others run to tell me that I have a problem with black people that I need to fix. No, I do not have a problem that I need to fix. I do not care a whit about your skin pigment. Nada. Nothing. Not at all, I do care whether your lawn is mowed and if there are dirty dishes in your sink and whether you have bathed and if you are showing me your underwear. But I do not care about your skin pigment.
I wish they would stop caring about skin pigment. I wish they would grow up. Not everything is about race. As I travel around the country talking to folks, I have come to realize most folks feel like I do. They do not care about skin color, they look at character. Like my wife, we may disagree about who is guilty, but not based on race. I know some people who are truly prejudiced based on race. They are all over 75 years old and frankly I leave them alone. I confront racism in people under 70, but over 70 it is a fruitless exercise.
I get myself back on track by realizing Al Sharpton is just an idiot racist. By racist I mean someone who thinks skin pigmentation matters. I think of all of the people of all races I know who reject judging by skin pigment and I get myself back on track. I remind myself we have a pigmented President and first lady and attorney General and Supreme Court Justice and on and on and that these are just racial traces left from past generations. But I am eager for them to go away. I long for the day when nobody cares about skin pigment and the best way for me to hasten that day is to ignore the Reverend Al Sharpton and the protestors and racists and take Morgan Freeman’s advice. I just wish people would not make it so hard.
Dr. Martin Luther King’s Neice:
Alan Dershowitz on why he would have found Zimmerman Not Guilty
Mike Huckabee on race versus Grace:
I was particularly incensed at the news media pointing out everyone’s race, including the jurors.
And this commentary by Juan Williams.
This from The WashingtonTimes.
Jennifer Gratz on the Supreme Court’s ruling on racial preferences:
And this from Rachel Jeantel, who never asked for the public spotlight, and who in my view (because of my libertarian streak) is entitled to whatever muddled racist views she may possess. Just like any racist cracker. I will ignore them both and shake my head.
Finally, a little philosophy from Ayn Rand on racism, in case you were wondering.
Think what you want about the self-defense/not guilty verdict in the George Zimmerman-Trayvon Martin case. The issue has been settled by a jury and put to bed. But please (although I will defend to the death your right to freedom of speech) SHUT UP about skin pigment.
Skin pigment does not matter. Go away Reverend Al.
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