Posted on 03/22/2012 2:15:33 PM PDT by Tailgunner Joe
Rep. John Lewis made this statement about the shooting of the unarmed teen in Sanford, Florida:
“This shooting is a tragedy. It reminds me too much of what happened in the 1930s, 40s and 50s in this country when thousands of people of color were murdered without impunity simply because their lives were thought to be cheap. The death of Trayvon Martin has a chilling effect on black parents and their children, especially their sons.
“They realize that in the 21st century they may still live in a circumstance where the law is no protection, government authorities permit the worst violence, and little is done to enforce justice. Hundreds and thousands of African American boys in Atlanta and other urban cities are killed, just disappear everyday. Of all the violence we hear about on the news, we rarely hear the stories of these boys. It’s as though no one even expects them to survive so their loss is not newsworthy.
“There are forces in America today who want to take us back. They are suppressing voting rights across the country and encouraging legislatures like that in Georgia to expand the right to carry and use violent weapons.This tragedy is a reminder to all those concerned about justice that we cannot be complacent. There is no door that closes, no wall that is built, no line drawn in the sand that prevents us from going back. The only prevention is us.
“We must get informed, know the history, be aware of current attempts to change progressive law. We must advocate and struggle against regression and injustice and march in the streets if necessary to dramatize the need for justice.”
(Excerpt) Read more at atlanta.cbslocal.com ...
Figured the guy was end stage renal...when he was tipping islands over.
Let there be no misunderstanding,I was in no way excusing or defending the 156 lynchings that occurred. As a former Atlantan who has first hand experience with Lewis, I was just pointing out that Lewis, as he so often does, paints a different and more inflammatory picture than the real one.
This is exactly the sort of commentary that gives the race-baiters ammunition with which to attack conservatives. It doesn't matter how many whites have been murdered by blacks, or how many black have been murdered by hispanics etc.
The important thing is that justice is done and that the rule of law is upheld. If some group wants to make this about the color of someone's skin (and thereby make it a symbol of their pet political cause) then they are doing the victim a grave injustice. The important thing is that somebody is dead, and judging from the facts that have been made publicly available, there is reason to think that his killing was without justification. Perhaps, after the facts surrounding the death of Mr. Martin, Mr. Zimmerman will be exonerated, and if that is the case, then so be it.
At this point though, there is a great deal of ambiguity about the exact sequence of events that led to the tragic death of a child (who by all accounts was simply going about his business) and unless there is some pretty compelling evidence that demonstrates that Mr. Zimmerman was justified in using deadly force on an unarmed child, I don't see why any conservative would defend him.
Mr. Zimmerman is not a police officer, he is a private citizen acting in an official capacity as a member of a neighborhood watch. In that capacity his role was to observe events and communicate his observations to the proper authorities and then await further instruction. He stepped outside of the role of the observer and became an active participant in the situation, and at least in my mind, in doing so he took the law into his own hands, which makes him nothing more than an armed vigilante serving up his version of street justice. Those actions make him a danger to civilized society, and I believe that as conservatives we ought to defend the rule of law above all other things.
I can't say this enough. It's not about race. There are many groups out there that would like to make this about race, and use the language of race to inflame emotions. This is about the rule of law, and the law is colorblind. We should be too.
And your post is not favorable to FR's mission, or norm.
I'd consider getting your post deleted......
“in doing so he took the law into his own hands, which makes him nothing more than an armed vigilante serving up his version of street justice. Those actions make him a danger to civilized society, and I believe that as conservatives we ought to defend the rule of law above all other things.”
Jumping to a conclusion that a man is guilty before proven so is an even greater danger to civilized society.
Innocent until proven guilty. They always make it about race. If you want to avoid that then you may, I won’t.
Innocent until proven guilty is merely a legal concept that has a meaningful context only within the criminal justice system. As a private individual, I’m certainly free to make judgments about people based on the evidence available to me regarding their actions or character, and until I see some reason to think that Mr. Zimmerman is an innocent victim in all of this, I will continue to say that personally, I think he’s guilty of terrible judgment at a minimum, and is likely guilty of homicide as well. But, of course, I am not the one who will decide his fate, that will ultimately be up to a jury, if this goes as I imagine it will. (At this point I can’t imagine that Mr. Zimmerman will not be indicted.) I will fully admit that Mr. Zimmerman is fortunate that I will not be among the jury pool.
Having listened to the 911 tapes, I have no reason at all to believe that Mr. Zimmerman was anything but what he appears to be, and that is an armed vigilante who chose to pursue a child who had committed no offense. He was told to stay put and to wait for the police, he decided to take a different course of action, and the consequences of that choice are a dead boy and a probable prison sentence for Mr. Zimmerman.
As my mother used to tell me, if you go looking for trouble, you’re bound to find it.
Innocent until proven guilty is merely a legal concept that has a meaningful context only within the criminal justice system. As a private individual, I’m certainly free to make judgments about people based on the evidence available to me regarding their actions or character, and until I see some reason to think that Mr. Zimmerman is an innocent victim in all of this, I will continue to say that personally, I think he’s guilty of terrible judgment at a minimum, and is likely guilty of homicide as well. But, of course, I am not the one who will decide his fate, that will ultimately be up to a jury, if this goes as I imagine it will. (At this point I can’t imagine that Mr. Zimmerman will not be indicted.) I will fully admit that Mr. Zimmerman is fortunate that I will not be among the jury pool.
Having listened to the 911 tapes, I have no reason at all to believe that Mr. Zimmerman was anything but what he appears to be, and that is an armed vigilante who chose to pursue a child who had committed no offense. He was told to stay put and to wait for the police, he decided to take a different course of action, and the consequences of that choice are a dead boy and a probable prison sentence for Mr. Zimmerman.
As my mother used to tell me, if you go looking for trouble, you’re bound to find it.
There. I fixed it.
That's for sure. I'm from South Florida but I lived in Hotlanta when I went to Georgia Tech. I've seen Lewis doing this sort of thing for decades...
Black is not a race either.
Since when does the Left worry about getting it right?
Methinks Lewis don’t know what impunity means.
Are you white? If so, you're wrong.
I think the genius who came up with that theory was a demonrat rep from NY, Major Owens. Listening to Rush does pay dividends.
I’m not white, more like flesh colored.
Oh lord! I’m colored, I never realized.
Mom and dad never told me.
Black = Negro
White = Caucasian
That right there is gonna cause some problems. You sayin' black folks ain't made of flesh, cracka? /s
When it benefits them.
IIRC it’s from back in the day Rush had his TV show. I seem to remember a clip of it.
You are correct.
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