As thousands thronged downtown Atlanta streets Saturday in a public show of remembrance for Florida teen Trayvon Martin, Brendon Robinson identified more with the personal than the political.
“Trayvon felt scared,” said Brendon, an 11-year-old who attended the rally with a friend and his mother. “Some people judge you. I would have been scared. I would have run.”
Organizers hope to tap into emotion like that from crowds in Georgia and across the nation to call for federal action against George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain found not guilty last week in the shooting death of 17-year-Martin in 2012.
Although Zimmerman did not invoke Florida’s “stand your ground” law, opponents of the acquittal want a reassessment of self-defense laws in light of the verdict.
Georgia is among states with stand your ground laws, which allow people to claim self defense in a number of scenarios. At least one state lawmaker had pledged to file a bill in the upcoming legislative session to change or neuter the law here.
The rally is also designed to spark a dialogue among people of all races and opinions about the verdict, said Damien Conners, executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
The SCLC plans a forum on nonviolence training later this week, to help show youth like Brendon and others how to maintain civility when having tense discussions.
“We are at a moment in time to have that conversation in this country - about race, about economics, about politics - if we come together respectfully from both ends of the spectrum,” Conners said. “We have to think about that opportunity.”
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