The death of Florida teen Trayvon Martin has sparked a national debate, marches, and also has brought racism to the forefront of our discussion as a nation. Despite my anger toward the situation and how much it reminds me of the progress that needs to be done, I don’t believe in fighting hatred with hatred.
As hard as it may be to admit that racism still plays a major role in American society, despite decades of progress and the election of the first African-American president, racism is alive and thriving. I, like many Americans, felt disheartened by the tragedy of Martin’s death. George Zimmerman, the admitted shooter, has yet to be brought to justice because of the “Stand Your Ground” law that Florida has in place. The law allows individuals to defend themselves using deadly force. However, I don’t think we are helping to change perceptions or dispel stereotypes when we begin to use racial slurs against white people.
Many people are using Twitter and Facebook to post and refer to Zimmerman as a “cracker,” adding fuel to an already heated racial discussion. As a Latino, I have to wonder what harm occurs when we only hold white people accountable for what is considered politically correct. The truth is that it is not considered politically or socially correct for a white person to use the “N” word, yet in the midst of arguing about racism in America, blacks and Latinos are spewing hatred and bigotry.
This is a sad story ignited by what many believe to be racism but the truth is that only Zimmerman knows exactly what caused him to pull the trigger. While I believe racism played the indicating factor, I don’t think we are helping our community or anyone else by continuing the cycle of prejudice. We need to stop feeding into perceptions, change our cultural language and make racism a thing of the past. Change starts with all of us taking responsibility for the hatred we put out.
Bigotry was the cause of Martin’s death, but it won’t be the solution to the greater issue at hand—to put an end to racism, we need to end the hate within ourselves and help educate others to do the same.
Mark is a gay activist who works with young African-Americans and Latinos who are a part of the LGBT to educate them about a variety of social issues. He majors in Communication and Women's & Gender Studies at William Paterson University of New Jersey. You can email him your comments at markedblogs@gmail.com
