I find it odd — but not unexpected — that so many people were “choosing sides” last week in the Trayvon Martin-George Zimmerman issue based on their existing political/social narratives. The facts in the case seem to be constantly changing, so how can anyone have so much confidence about what happened to have a firm opinion about it?
It seems as though most black political leaders are absolutely sure that Martin was murdered by Zimmerman simply for being black in a gated community. They’re convinced that Zimmerman simply followed Martin and murdered him. They want him arrested and charged with murder.
Another group of people — mostly conservatives — are convinced that Zimmerman is innocent. Some of them have set up a defense fund for him and they’ve been gleeful at times to find negative things to report about Martin. To them, it’s all about gun rights, so any assertion that Zimmerman did something wrong is ignored in the name of Second Amendment rights.
I don’t know what happened. I mentioned early last week that I didn’t really have anything to say about the case yet because I didn’t know what the facts were. I still feel that way. As far as I’m concerned, it’s possible that an angry Zimmerman shot Martin in cold blood simply because he didn’t like him in his neighborhood. It’s also possible that Martin was angry at being followed and attacked Zimmerman, leading to Zimmerman shooting to defend himself. I’m sure there are other possible narratives that I haven’t even thought of. That’s the thing. I don’t know the facts. You don’t, either.
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