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Showing Original Post only (View all)Blacks Who Stand Their Ground Often Imprisoned [View all]
The recent acquittal of neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman in the shooting death of 17-year-old unarmed Trayvon Martin has led to intense scrutiny of Floridas Stand Your Ground law, which hung over the Zimmerman trial along with similar no retreat self-defense laws, and their impact on people of color.
I think the Trayvon Martin case highlighted the racial inequalities that exist in American society, said Brendan Fischer, general counsel of the Center for Media and Democracy. It is a symbol of how the American justice system devalues the lives of people of color. [And], Stand Your Ground has embedded a lot of these injustices into the system. Statistics have shown its application has been anything but equitable.
Supported by the National Rifle Association, Stand Your Ground was passed by the Florida legislature in 2005. The measure turned age-old self-defense principle on its head by allowing persons to use deadly force to defend themselves, without first trying to retreat, if they have a reasonable belief that they face a threat.
The laws template was then adopted by the American Legislative Exchange Council, a nonprofit organization made up of corporations, foundations and legislators that advance federalist and conservative public policies, authorities said. Since Florida passed the law, similar measures have been introduced in one form or another in about 30 states, usually those with state legislatures dominated by Republicans.
http://newamericamedia.org/2013/07/blacks-who-stand-their-ground-often-imprisoned.php
I think the Trayvon Martin case highlighted the racial inequalities that exist in American society, said Brendan Fischer, general counsel of the Center for Media and Democracy. It is a symbol of how the American justice system devalues the lives of people of color. [And], Stand Your Ground has embedded a lot of these injustices into the system. Statistics have shown its application has been anything but equitable.
Supported by the National Rifle Association, Stand Your Ground was passed by the Florida legislature in 2005. The measure turned age-old self-defense principle on its head by allowing persons to use deadly force to defend themselves, without first trying to retreat, if they have a reasonable belief that they face a threat.
The laws template was then adopted by the American Legislative Exchange Council, a nonprofit organization made up of corporations, foundations and legislators that advance federalist and conservative public policies, authorities said. Since Florida passed the law, similar measures have been introduced in one form or another in about 30 states, usually those with state legislatures dominated by Republicans.
http://newamericamedia.org/2013/07/blacks-who-stand-their-ground-often-imprisoned.php
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Apparently, in your world, only armed people should be allowed to defend themselves...
Humanist_Activist
Jul 2013
#7
That is wat I drew from the post. The question that looms and remain unanswered by the
bluestate10
Jul 2013
#15
According to some here black people have no right to protect ourselves from harm.
JRLeft
Jul 2013
#36
Where was the life or death struggle here, Zimmerman got a bloody nose and scratches...
Humanist_Activist
Jul 2013
#37
Sorry, Zman caused this, the right wing legislature's gun laws allowed it, a bigoted jury
Hoyt
Jul 2013
#3
If you need to attack me personally, I guess that means you can't refute the assertion.
dkf
Jul 2013
#59
Under the exact same conditions, except that Z was Black and Martin was White/Peruvian...
MrScorpio
Jul 2013
#4
Well, isn't that a tacit admission that Zimmerman's verdict was the result of a racist perspective?
MrScorpio
Jul 2013
#34
I'm saying that a Manslaughter conviction would have been appropriate regardless of the shooter
MrScorpio
Jul 2013
#42
You distort the OP's message. The message was that the law that allowed Zimmerman to
bluestate10
Jul 2013
#10
Actually, under "Stand Your Ground', you CAN beat up someone for following you, if you
ET Awful
Jul 2013
#52
It doesn't matter what YOU believe, it's what a 'reasonable person' would have believed.
Flatulo
Jul 2013
#69
I have to wonder if there's some large donations behind that star of theirs
independentpiney
Jul 2013
#68
Blacks who don't SYG also often imprisoned. Blacks who *anything* often imprisoned.
cthulu2016
Jul 2013
#8
The root is the system is racist and black folks are more likely to be under the hammer in any
TheKentuckian
Jul 2013
#29
In May Florida (surprise!) Marissa Alexander got 20 years for firing a warning shot into the ceiling
B Stieg
Jul 2013
#33
What's baffled me about this whole case from the get-go, is that Zimmerman set into
Flatulo
Jul 2013
#73
We have a tradition here on DU of posting links for stories that we refer to in our posts
MrScorpio
Jul 2013
#78