I am an invisible man.
No, I am not a spook like those who haunted Edgar Allan Poe; nor am I one of
your Hollywood-movie ectoplasms. I am a man of substance, of flesh and bone,
fiber and liquids- and I might even be said to possess a mind. I am invisible,
understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you
see sometimes in circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by
mirrors of hard, distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my
surroundings, themselves, or figments of their imagination- indeed, everything
and anything except me.
-Ralph
Ellison, Invisible Man
George Zimmerman, a twenty-eight-year-old resident of Sanford, also sought sustenance when he departed from his home and hopped into his car on the evening of February 26. According to an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Zimmerman intended to drive to Target to purchase groceries.[1] Although Zimmerman was running a personal errand, he was ever-mindful of his duties as a volunteer neighborhood watchman. The area of Sanford in which he lived had experienced eight burglaries in the previous fourteen months; additionally, “Twin Lakes residents said dozens of reports of attempted break-ins and would be burglars casing homes had created an atmosphere of growing fear in the neighborhood.”[2] Therefore, Zimmerman did not hesitate to dial 911 when, in the course of his travels, he witnessed a meandering black teenager engaged in seemingly strange behavior. It was a scene he had witnessed before; over the past year, Zimmerman had registered five calls to 911 to report suspicious activity involving black males.[3]
“Hey, we’ve had some break-ins in my neighborhood and there’s a real suspicious guy,” Zimmerman intoned to the 911 operator. “This guy looks like he’s up to no good, or he’s on drugs or something.”[4] When the teenager began to run, Zimmerman pursued him despite the 911 operator’s caution to avoid such action. Once he lost sight of his target, Zimmerman endeavored to return to his vehicle to await the arrival of the police. Before he could arrive at his car, though, the neighborhood watchman was intercepted by the suspicious teen and, after a physical struggle, Zimmerman shot the young man once in the chest.
Since a bullet from George Zimmerman’s gun has forever silenced Trayvon Martin, we do not have access to his mindset during his brief encounter with Zimmerman. However, one might reasonably infer from his actions that the teen was perturbed by the man in the car who was tailing him. Understandably, he ran. Understandably, he initiated a physical confrontation when the man exited his vehicle to continue the pursuit. Without a doubt, Martin’s actions are perfectly justifiable in the context of self-defense.
Yet I am not interested in trying to justify the actions of Trayvon Martin on the night of his demise; nor do I intend to conduct a trial-by-blog of George Zimmerman. Rather, I would like to focus squarely on Zimmerman’s decision-making process on the fateful evening of February 26. Specifically, I would like to explore why Zimmerman deemed Martin suspect in the first place, for it exposes a dangerous racial dynamic that stubbornly continues to exist in American society.
According to a Reuters article, Zimmerman grew quite concerned about the rash of burglaries in his community, a number of which were committed by black males. Earlier in the month, Zimmerman had spotted a serial thief named Emmanuel Burgess “peering into the windows of a neighbor’s empty home.”[5] A few days later, a resident’s home was burglarized and Burgess was arrested as the culprit.[6] Consequently, the ambitious neighborhood watchman remained on heightened alert and reported any untoward behavior to the police. When he spotted Trayvon walking in the rain, Zimmerman had already rendered his judgment: this young man was up to no good. “These assholes, they always get away,” he lamented to the 911 dispatcher who fielded his call. Trayvon was already guilty in Zimmerman’s estimation, but why? Because he was wearing a hoodie? Because he was walking outside during a rainstorm? Because he was a teenager? Because he was black?
Zimmerman might not admit it, but Trayvon’s race played a significant role in the watchman’s decision to pursue the teen and call the police. Zimmerman’s perception of Trayvon and his behavior was informed by the actions of Burgess and the few other African American males who were engaged in illicit activities in Sanford. Sadly, Zimmerman’s rationale serves as a microcosm of a much larger problem: in the minds of a disconcerting number of American citizens, the entire African American race is defined by the actions of a few. An erroneous link has been established between blackness and criminality, as if the act of being black renders one more likely to commit crime. In a sense, we cannot blame Zimmerman for his error in judgment, for he has been conditioned to think in this fallacious way. If you disagree, simply watch a local newscast in a racially diverse media market. These local news reports fixate on crimes committed by minorities and unintentionally (at least one hopes) echo an ancient fear spouted by Southern racists at the conclusion of the Civil War: that black men, once freed from the chains of slavery, would pose an existential threat to civil society. It’s a fear that has generally dominated the white man’s perception of his black brother and has stunted the social and racial progress of our nation. Moreover, it is a fear that exposes the absurdity of the notion that America has entered a “post-racial” era.
We see what we want to see. And when George Zimmerman observed Trayvon walking in the rain, he saw a deviant. He saw Emmanuel Burgess. Thus began the chain of events that ended with Trayvon Martin lying on the ground, dead of a gunshot wound.
We ought to ask ourselves why Trayvon and other African Americans are not accorded the same privilege of individuality we extend to others. After all, I'm sure happy that people in my neighborhood don't base their impressions of me on the actions of some of the white guys my age who deal drugs, engage in fights, slash tires, and generally act like jackasses. Why am I able to transcend the actions of the few bad people in my neighborhood who share nothing in common with me except age and race while Trayvon Martin was forced to wear the actions of Emmanuel Burgess like an albatross?
If
we truly seek to create a “post-racial” American utopia, we have much more work
to do. Most importantly, we must begin to narrow the communication gap that exists
between the white and black races. In order to accomplish such a feat, we must
stop wilfully wallowing in ignorance and truly confront our troubled racial
history (more on this topic in a future post). We must cease fearfully erecting fences and instead begin fearlessly
building bridges. We must reject fear and embrace empathy. Above all, we must
begin to truly see African Americans-
as individuals, not as one menacing, monolithic mass. These actions might enable us to understand one
another better and truly start healing the racial scars that have disfigured
our nation.
[1]
“Exclusive: George Zimmerman breaks
silence on ‘Hannity’,” Fox News. Accessed 18 May 2013. http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/hannity/2012/07/18/exclusive-george-zimmerman-breaks-silence-hannity?page=1.
[2]
Chris Francescani, “George Zimmerman:
Prelude to a shooting,” Reuters, 25 April 2012. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/25/us-usa-florida-shooting-zimmerman-idUSBRE83O18H20120425
[3]
Matthew DeLuca, “George Zimmerman’s History of 911 Calls: A Complete Log,” The Daily Beast, 22 March 2012. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/22/george-zimmerman-s-history-of-911-calls-a-complete-log.html
[4]
The audio of George Zimmerman’s February 26th 911 call can be accessed here: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/videogallery/68871920/News/George-Zimmerman-911-call-reporting-Trayvon-Martin
[5] Francescani, “George Zimmerman: Prelude to a shooting.”
[6]
Ibid.
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