Mamie Till Bradley's heart wrenching picture came to mind when the Michael Dunn verdict was read. Dunn, had gotten into an argument with the young men about their music, had gone into his glove box for his pistol and started shooting. As the SUV tried to get away, he fired still more rounds. At least one of those rounds fatally struck 17-year-old Jordan Davis.
Dunn drove to his hotel. He did not call police. He ordered pizza. The next morning, he drove home to Satellite Beach, 175 miles south, where police arrested him. Dunn claimed he shot at the SUV because Davis threatened him with a gun. Davis was unarmed.
Michael Dunn was found guilty on four charges, including three for attempted second-degree murder, which could land him behind bars for decades. Yet there was no verdict on the first-degree murder charge tied to the death of 17-year-old Jordan Davis who would've turned 19 on February 16th.
As i'm writing this article, Trayvon Martin, Amadou Diallo,Sean Bell, Emmet Till,and Oscar Grant came to mind, and it angers me that their murderers are all free,released by a jury of their peers, cause whit fear will always be justified at the expense of black lives,and as long as Florida and other respective states don't get rid of the Stand Your Ground Law. And for those who would like to counter my post with the excuse of Blacks needing to address crime within their own community before attempting to address it outside of their community. This point of view is valid. Crime within the Black community is definitely an issue that needs to be addressed, but this shouldn’t underscore the fact that Blacks are also disparately treated in the criminal justice system and have the right to advocate systemic change. I'm concerned that it's only the beginning where people feel that they keep killing our boys just because they're scared of our loud thug music or somehow they feel threatened but the victims never seem to fire the first shot,and imagine the result of the verdict for a second if Jordan Davis was by himself.
Contains Excerpt of "Who's the real thug in the killing of Jordan Davis" By Leonard Pitts JR
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