Degrees of Whiteness

Abstract

On February 26, 2012, George Zimmerman shot and killed Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old African American who had been walking back to his house in a gated community in Sanford, Florida. The crime was seen by the public as being motivated by racial vigilantism, a white guy protecting the community from hoodie-clad African American high school student. Zimmerman, a member of the local neighborhood watch group, had followed Martin on his way back home from the local 7-Eleven store. He called 911 to alert them of a suspicious-looking individual and asked for guidance. Although the 911 operator told Zimmerman to walk away, he did not, and Martin ended up dead. Claiming self-defense, Zimmerman left the crime scene a free man. Florida, like roughly 30 other states in the union, has a “stand your ground” law which protects individuals from arrest if they are able to prove that they acted in self-defense.¹ When it became apparent that Zimmerman would not be charged under “stand your ground,” the country erupted. Protests and rallies, like the Million Hoodie March, were staged and millions signed petitions calling for Zimmerman’s detention. Six weeks after Martin’s death, Governor Rick Brown ordered that Zimmerman be arrested. When he was finally tried in July 2013, more than a year later, he was found not guilty.