Trayvon Martin, a 17 year-old boy, was tragically killed by George Zimmerman on suspicion of murder. In Rashwan Ray’s essay, “If Only He Didn’t Wear the Hoodie.,” he examines the tragic case of Martin and the significance of the piece of clothing he was wearing in this fatal encounter. On this day, Martin was wearing a hoodie that aroused Zimmerman’s suspicion of him at first glance, which Ray points out how some might speculate, what would have occurred that day if Martin was not wearing the hoodie? It is insinuated by people that if you see a man with their hood on at night stay away. Therefore, it becomes instilled in this generation, and to every upcoming generation, that the man with the hood on at night is a threat. However Martin was …show more content…
They would stereotype me as insecure, but it wasn’t a stereotype, they were right. I become the person making the stereotype the truth and consequently make it true for everyone else around me. Knowing these stereotypes, why do we allow hoodies to deceive our perception of people? In the essay, “Generation why?” by Zadie Smith, there is mention of how humans tend to “reduce” themselves in various forms. It is clear that there is a prevalent case of people wanting to reduce themselves to a certain character or acceptance, as talked about throughout the essay. Smith explores this by going into the ideas of Jaron Lanier in which they express an interest “in which people “reduce themselves” in order to make a computer’s description of them appear more accurate” (Smith). Smith mentions this because people will often lessen themselves in order to be approachable and likable. Similar to what Smith was saying, a hoodie will reduce a person to a stereotype, whether that be on purpose or not. People will purposefully modify their character into a singular description, which will only reveal a specific aspect of the person's character, not the full …show more content…
We diminish our brains to only think as far as the stereotype, and therefore restrict our thinking to go beyond it. Billie Eilish had influenced the stereotype that anyone who constantly wears hoodies is depressed and insecure because she herself had come out and expressed her phase with baggy clothing and poor mental health. In another case, we have Trayvon Martin who, although he was wearing a hoodie and said to have looked dangerous as a result of it, faced racial profiling. People like them are illustrations of how destructive our society is. I come to wonder why people judge, but my thinking comes across a wall when I realize we can not prevent our human nature from thinking and forming opinions. Humanity becomes caged to ideas popularized through ancestors and media, that it makes people wonder whether any of their ideas were original to begin with. I ponder whether my opinion on a topic is actually mine or if I followed everyone else's opinion. For instance, do I really like a show or do I force myself to like it because everyone else does? It's astonishing how I can think something and find out how another person has thought the same
This source was published a few weeks after the news took off on the Trayvon Martin case. At this point, the case is buzzing with excitement from opinionated viewers. Barack Obama, Lebron James, The National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People, and The New Black Panther Party have all made statements supporting Martin. The "stand your ground" law is also being mentioned as a big factor in the case. The "stand your ground" law says that someone in Florida can be excused for using
Apart from the 2012 Martin shooting, Zimmerman has had other encounters with the law, including two incidents in 2005, five incidents in 2013 and other incidents in following years. When Zimmerman was 21, he was arrested after shoving an undercover alcohol-control agent while a friend of Zimmerman 's was being arrested for underage drinking in July 2005. Also in 2005, Zimmerman 's ex-fiancée filed a restraining order against him, alleging domestic violence. On September 9, 2013, in Lake Mary, police
Trayvon Martin was shot and killed on February 26, 2012 in Sanford, Florida by George Zimmerman. Zimmerman was the neighborhood watch coordinator. The laws regarding Stand your ground was only applying to Mr. Zimmerman and he was acquitted on July 13, 2013. Why did this law only apply to George Zimmerman and not Trayvon Martin? Debate Final The night of February 26, 2012 Trayvon Martin was visiting with his father, he had been suspended from school for a third time. He had troubles in his junior
set of three or four traits. A stereotype creates a preconceived notion of how an individual belonging to a certain group should look, act, dress, and even speak. A prime example of this would be the very recent happenings in the case of Trayvon Martin. Trayvon Martin was a seventeen year old African-American male, profiled as a criminal. Unfortunately, young black males are already the victims of a barrage of negative stereotypes. These young men are labeled as thugs, “gangstas”, menaces, and criminals
portrays a trial influences many people’s views of the trial, such as the George Zimmerman trial. Racial profiling is based on the way a person looks or acts. The way some media portrayed George Zimmerman was as an innocent white man who shot Trayvon Martin as an act of self-defense. Other media such as NBC portrayed him as a racist. The way these two media portrayed him influenced many Americans to determine a verdict without hearing the trial. In the article “The Quiet Racism in the Zimmerman Trial”
Was the Trayvon Martin case really justified? Trayvon Martin was the spark of the unjustified killings in our generation. Trayvon’s death wasn’t justified because it was the result of racial profiling, Trayvon was unarmed during his death, and the 911 dispatcher told his killer, George Zimmerman, to stay in his car and to not follow him. Although Trayvon attacked Zimmerman first and it could be considered self-defense. It depends how you look at it with all the evidence. Racial profiling played
For the essay, I have chosen to conduct an analysis on Hoodies. Firstly I will discuss the background of hoodies, who they were originally aimed at and marketed towards. I will then move onto analysing the relationship the product has in regards to specific identities, communities, places and ideas and what types of consumer theories are specifically linked to the consumption of hoodies. Hoodies were first created during the 1920-1930’s by the US clothing manufacturer ‘Champion’ in order to protect
in society today. Steinbeck clearly makes his point in the novella by concluding that Crooks is not important to them because he is African American. This relates to society today through the Trayvon Martin Case. Trayvon was shot and killed because a Latino thought he was harmful because of his race. Trayvon and Crooks are both victims of racial profiling in society. Steinbeck clearly shows that Crooks never has any say on the ranch. No one cares about him. He’s just a “negro stable buck” (66). In
African American slaves were often looked down upon as less than human, oppressed, and discriminated while whites were powerful, influential, and had opportunities. Thus, in today’s world, African Americans would naturally be oppressed, for example, Trayvon Martin and Emmett Till’s case, because of their past history. As shown in the slave petition, slaves were deprived of social privileges and everything necessary to make life livable. That shows that slave owners had the power to treat their slaves however
shot and killed 17-year old Trayvon Martin in their gated community as Martin was walking home from a corner store. There have been many different stories and claims made about the case however, a 17-year old boy was shot and killed by George Zimmerman. The way people portrayed this tragedy in order to reverse blame triggered an uprising allowed people to witness the pain of being a victim during and after the crime. In the article from ABC news we witness how Trayvon Martin’s death triggered an
Not guilty was the decision made by the jury during the George Zimmerman vs. Trayvon Martin trial. That verdict may have been the most controversial one of recent time. Many people were upset by the decision and felt that justice was not achieved for the young victim, Martin who was seventeen years old when he was killed. This incident seems to be a tragic example of stereotyping and racial profiling. It is also an example of how a verdict, based on the strict interpretation of the law can be the
offwhite backdrop, was a young black man in a hoodie. On the street, a black guy in a hoodie is just another of the many millions of men and boys dressed in the practical gear of an easygoing era. Or he should be. This is less an analysis than a wish. The electric charge of the isolated image — which provokes a flinch away from thought, a desire to evade the issue by In a cardigan or a crew neck, this model is just another model. In the hoodie, he is a folk demon and a scapegoat, a political
express my concern of the injustice of Trayvon Martin and would like to appeal about the decision of the jury after acquitting the neighborhood watch (George Zimmerman) who murdered an unarmed teenager after claiming it was an act of defense, but i will argue against this and prove that this was a murder case and not an act of self defense. First, I would like to bring to your attention that George Zimmerman was found not Guilty of the murder of Trayvon Martin under the 'Stand your ground law' This
Trayvon parents wanted justice and they felt that justice wasn’t served. The forensic expert said that they found marijuana in Trayvon system. Professor Larry Kobilinsky stated that with the amount of THC that was found in Trayvon’s system it had nothing to do with his behavior. They also called the medical examiner
that she is wearing a black hoodie with the hood over her head. The significance of this moment is not in the fact that she is undone but rather her close resemblance to Trayvon Martin. Martin was the Florida teen that was shot in cold blood by George Zimmerman, who was later acquitted of any wrongdoing. In wearing this black hoodie it is as if Beyoncé is saying, much like Barack Obama’s sentiments, “it could have been me”, “it could have been my child”. This black hoodie has come to represent all