thepoliticalfreakshow:

On February 26, 2012, a 17-year-old African-American named Trayvon Martin was shot and killed in Sanford, Florida. The shooter was George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old white man. Zimmerman admits killing Martin, but claims he was acting in self-defense. Three weeks after Martin’s death, no arrests have been made and Zimmerman remains free.

Here is what everyone should know about the case:

1. Zimmerman called the police to report Martin’s “suspicious” behavior, which he described as “just walking around looking about.” Zimmerman was in his car when he saw Martin walking on the street. He called the police and said: “There’s a real suspicious guy. This guy looks like he’s up to no good, on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around looking about… These a**holes always get away” [Orlando Sentinel]

2. Zimmerman pursued Martin against the explicit instructions of the police dispatcher:

Dispatcher: “Are you following him?”
Zimmerman: “Yeah”
Dispatcher: “OK, we don’t need you to do that.”

[Orlando Sentinel]

3. Prior to the release of the 911 tapes, Zimmerman’s father released a statement claiming “[a]t no time did George follow or confront Mr. Martin.” [Sun Sentinel]

4. Zimmerman was carrying a a 9 millimeter handgun. Martin was carrying a bag of Skittles and a can of iced tea. [ABC News]

5. Martin weighed 140 pounds. Zimmerman weighs 250 pounds. [Orlando Sentinel; WDBO]

6. Martin’s English teacher described him as “as an A and B student who majored in cheerfulness.” [Orlando Sentinel]

7. Martin had no criminal record. [New York Times]

8. Zimmerman “was charged in July 2005 with resisting arrest with violence and battery on an officer. The charges appear to have been dropped.” [Huffington Post]

9. Zimmerman called the police 46 times since Jan. 1, 2011. [Miami Harald]

10. According to neighbors, Zimmerman was “fixated on crime and focused on young, black males.” [Miami Herald]

11. Zimmerman “had been the subject of complaints by neighbors in his gated community for aggressive tactics” [Huffington Post]

12. A police officer “corrected” a key witness. “The officer told the witness, a long-time teacher, it was Zimmerman who cried for help, said the witness. ABC News has spoken to the teacher and she confirmed that the officer corrected her when she said she heard the teenager shout for help.” [ABC News]

13. Three witnesses say they heard a boy cry for help before a shot was fired. “Three witnesses contacted by The Miami Herald say they saw or heard the moments before and after the Miami Gardens teenager’s killing. All three said they heard the last howl for help from a despondent boy.” [Miami Herald]

14. The officer in charge of the crime scene also received criticism in 2010 when he initially failed to arrest a lieutenant’s son who was videotaped attacking a homeless black man. [New York Times]

The Martin case had been turned over to the Seminole County State Attorney’s Office. Martin’s family has asked for the FBI to investigate.

This is always the case cover ups and dropped cases it makes criminals think it s okay to repeat bad behavior. We’d be naive to think that racism is dead in this country unfortunately it’s a cancerous disease.

So right

My soul belongs in Egypt

thepoliticalnotebook:

“The war is much more complex than just one man called Joseph Kony.” A Ugandan journalist and blogger named Rosebell Kagumire has posted an eloquent and detailed response video to the “Kony 2012” campaign after seeing it spread on Twitter and Facebook. She says a number of excellent, insightful things about the Invisible Children organization’s campaign and mini-documentary, like:

My major problem with this video is that it simplifies the story of millions of people in northern Uganda and makes out a narrative that is often heard about Africa, about, you know, how hopeless people are in times of conflict, that only people of this continent [referring to the Western world] can help. 

Watch the whole video: Kagumire argues this so well. And follow her on Twitter: @RosebellK

[YouTube]

rabbleprochoice:

lickypickystickyfree:

Yesh.

I mean, yeah, pretty much.

Not only do I have a bachelor’s degree, but I also know how to drive and have the right to vote. It’s like I’m a super whore because I can do THINGS and I have an education. 

WHO LET ME OUT OF THE KITCHEN?

Love,

Rabble

He’s got skills got me with “promises

He is going to be beyond famous