Volume 14 Issue No. 29 July 19-25, 2013
EDITORIAL
MLK’S DREAM UNFULFILLED The outcome of the George Zimmerman trial in Florida – which saw Zimmerman cleared of all charges in the tragic death of young Trayvon Martin – has been a point of controversy since the case ended last week. Perhaps the most significant outcome of this trial is what Martin’s shooting says about race in America in 2013. It has been 50 years since Martin Luther King Jr. marched on Washington and delivered his famous “I Have A Dream” speech. In the half-century since that momentous event, what lessons have we learned? Minorities, especially Blacks, are still targeted in racial profiles. The majority of inmates in our jails are minorities. Parents of Black children must still teach them how to act in public, out of fear that their kids will be stopped by police. More often than not, what you wear, how you walk and how you answer questions from the police can determine whether you get arrested. Over the years, through countless racially-tinged incidents that have caused immeasurable amounts of pain and suffering, our leaders have called for a discussion on race, on equality, on unity and understanding. It was 1863 when President Abraham Lincoln issued his Emancipation Proclamation, with the intent of freeing 3.1 million slaves in the United States. But 150 years later, we still have questions when it comes to racial unity. After a century and a half, why have we been unable to answer these questions? Fifty years ago, King had high hopes that his children would be living in a world that was far different from his. For Trayvon Martin, that hope was extinguished over the course of one tragic evening. We were not present for Zimmerman’s trial and were not privy to all the information given to the jury who made the final decision. As such, we make no judgment on the jury’s decision. However, we do hope that the U.S. Justice Department will take a second look at the incident to determine if Trayvon Martin’s civil rights were violated. In a country built on immigration, race has always been one of the defining characteristics of Americans. It seems like it always will be. In the end, however, it falls upon each of us to ask ourselves: have we learned anything from this trial, or will we just have another discussion when the next tragic incident occurs? For more viewpoints, see page 3, 6.
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