"I Am Not Trayvon Martin" - powerful message from a 'middle class white girl'

[urgk]

6. Is the purpose of the shirts really...

..."to humanize these victims of our society by likening them to the middle class, white activist wearing it..." to "[prove] to us the arbitrariness of their deaths and, thereby, the injustice at play"?

Or, just to create an outward cohesion for those who share an inner conviction?

Either way, I can't wait until the "Hey! You're not helping the way I think you should help!" style critiques go away. Killing social momentum just doesn't seem helpful. Progressives need to learn activism judo, where we take the force generated by any movement by people whose hearts are in the right place, and just...divert it a little.

If you don't like the t-shirts, make a sign that, in context, makes them work better. Make better t-shirts. Use the energy, people, don't stifle it.