I have held my tongue (or my typing fingers) long enough on this one, and although I have written extensively on this on Facebook, I haven't done it here yet.
Until now.
Just exactly what is George Zimmerman guilty of?
Yesterday, Zimmerman was in the courtroom for his shooting of Trayvon Martin, the teenager who Zimmerman followed and killed several weeks ago.
After much debate, the state of Florida filed second-degree murder charges against him.
Zimmerman has claimed from the outset that Martin attacked him as he turned away and was headed back to his vehicle. He claims he acted in self defense.
Zimmerman sits in jail now, awaiting future trial. His lawyer has not asked for bail, probably because at this point in time, the safest place for his client is in jail, away from the public as well as being secluded away from other prisoners.
The brouhaha that this incident has caused has been something incredible, fanned by the media's desires to propel this story to front pages around the country, as well as other opportunity seekers' needs to see their names featured prominently in those stories.
Zimmerman is public enemy No. 1 to some people, but quite frankly, I want to know exactly what he is guilty of--and we will find that out when his trial takes place, a few months down the line.
I believe he was at least guilty of one thing: as part of the neighborhood watch of his community, he saw Martin in a gated community, and didn't believe he belonged there. He called the police, as is procedure, and the police told him not to pursue the teenager, that they would take care of it.
He did so anyway, and that he is guilty of, that is obvious.
Beyond that, everything is pretty fuzzy, even though to some people, it is pretty clear.
What happened between Zimmerman and Martin is where the crux of this case stands, and Zimmerman will have his day in court to explain everything that happened, at least from his standpoint.
Did Martin attack Zimmerman? Did Zimmerman feel threatened? Did Zimmerman attack Martin? Was this all a dreadful accident?
That is what we will all find out somewhere down the line.
However, there is a lot of racism in this country, and I am not just talk about the "traditional" type.
I am talking about behavior that is anti-social, anti-human, and really anti-everything this country stands for.
Race mongers--yes, people profiting off of such a virulent act as this one--have already convicted Zimmerman of this crime. They would even lynch him if they could, and they have basically done that with their words over the past few weeks.
People like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson (yes, I have removed the Reverend from their names, because they are more "men of the sloth" then men of the cloth) and Spike Lee have become their own judge and jury in this case, and the scary thing is that so many people have backed these fools in their quests for attention.
Sharpton and Jackson are long-time rabble rousers who know an opportunity when they see one, and they have clearly seen one here.
They point fingers without knowing any facts, and their rants and raves (yes, in lower case) are racism and bigotry at their worst.
Where were they when a mob murdered Yankel Rosenbaum in Crown Heights some years ago? I guess Rosenbaum wasn't the proper "persuasion" for Sharpton and Jackson to get involved.
And let's not forget Sharpton's Tawana Brawley fabrication and Jackson's "Hymietown" comment.
These guys are out for themselves, and let's not forget that.
And Lee is the worst of the bunch. He actually had the gall to be giving out Zimmerman's supposed home address on Twitter so that people could visit Zimmerman, and he didn't give it out so visitors could have tea with the man and his family.
The problem is that it wasn't Zimmerman's address; it was the address of an elderly couple who had nothing to do with this incident.
Lee should have been jailed for his actions, but a lot of hush money kept the elderly couple away from the courts.
I want to hear what Zimmerman has to say. Sure, it will be his story, and not Martin's story, and not Sharpton's or Jackson's or Lee's story.
But let's hear what he has to say before we rush to judgment.
I thought that in this country, you were innocent until proven guilty.
Yes, personally, I think that Zimmerman will get the book thrown at him for some guilt in this incident. He went against what the police told him to do, so to a certain extent, he created the situation that ensued.
But what happened after Zimmerman decided to pursue the teenager is extremely important, and there is no way anyone can convict this man to the fullest extent of the charges until what happened comes out at the trial.
And those looking to lynch Zimmerman prior to hearing his side of the story are no better than those who lynched others, simply because of the color of their skin, throughout our country's history.
Hate is hate, no matter what hue it takes on.
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