The sadness of Rachel Jeantel's testimony

[KurtNYC]

10. I was almost hoping she would just come out and say "I don't read well"

or something to that effect but I can only imagine the pressure of being in the middle of this with half the country watching. She is 19 and will start 12th grade in the fall.

The defense got her to say "creepy ass cracker" four times in the space of 60 seconds so they certainly are jumping on that but to me it just makes her testimony seem 100% honest. TM was the one being stalked so I don't find it surprising that he uses generally derogatory terms to describe Zim and it is an environment where race is the first thing people notice about a stranger. It is not TM who volunteered to drive around the neighborhood and call 911 every time he sees a person of a different skin color. Using a racial slur and running away from that person is VERY different from using a slur and chasing that person (with a gun no less).

It also seems like both TM and the young lady knew immediately in their gut that something was very wrong. She immediately thinks that Zim is "a rapist" to which TM responds, perhaps nervously, "don't play."