Justice for Trayvon?
Photos from last year's rallies in downtown Sanford
by Erin Sullivan
Barry Kirsch, murdercityphotography.com
Almost a year and a half after he shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin to death, George Zimmerman is on trial for murder for killing the unarmed teen. The defense's strategy, it appears, will be to paint Trayvon as a thug and a wannabe gangster (see Soapboxer) – the implication is that he was somehow responsible for his own death, even though he wasn't doing anything wrong or illegal when he was walking home from the store the night his path crossed Zimmerman's. The photos on this page, all of them taken in Sanford last year, illustrate the fear, outrage sadness and more that thousands – probably hundreds of thousands – felt in the months after Martin was shot. They wanted justice for Trayvon. Zimmerman was eventually arrested, and the trial has begun – in that regard, there is some justice. But will there ever really be justice for Trayvon? His name and reputation have been dragged through the mud. His character has been called into question. His parents have been treated as if they somehow created the racially charged atmosphere that has permeated the media coverage of the situation. Many believe that Zimmerman, not the dead teen, is the one who's been victimized here. And there's certainly no justice in that.