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

[magical thyme]

34. I'm on dialup and didn't have time to allow the entire thing to download. however,

I had a hard time accepting that she could be a Zimmerman.

It is one thing to have grown up in an atmosphere fear of men, especially black men.

It is quite another thing to deliberately choose to follow somebody that you have been taught to fear, first in a car and then on foot. Especially when the police have specifically instructed you to not follow them. I cannot believe that, even lacking education, etc. that she would have chosen to arm herself and follow somebody she feared. The vast majority of people, in that situation, would at most report the suspect to the police and then let them handle it. Especially given that is what they instructed Zimmerman to do.

She has less in common with George Zimmerman, a wannabe hero cop with a gun going after a "suspect," than she has with Trayvon, a young man preparing to go to college.

And there is evidence that Zimmerman was not racist. Much of what I have read about him suggests other motives in arming himself and following his "suspect," not the least of which was his desire to be a cop and failure to achieve that. I think he may have imagined he was going to be a hero, catching the neighborhood burglars, rather than a racist going after an easy, unarmed target. Delusional, and didn't wake up from his delusion until it was too late.

On the other hand, as a white woman I grew up in a white, middle class PA neighborhood in the 50s and 60s and my parents were rightwing republicans and racist. But I don't remember feeling particular fear of young black men, and in fact was good friends with several young men from Philly's inner city who used to come out our way and hang out with a friend's mother, who was a social worker.

I *have* been stalked by men in my life, and in every case but one, the man was white. The exception was an Indian in the US with an H1B.

I have *never* felt the fear of a group of young black men that I consistently feel of groups of young white men. I have never been harassed by young black men, whereas I have been by young white men.

I understand what she is saying, but I don't think it accurately reflects this situation plus I think her inexperience shines through. All imho, of course.