The Day after the "Not Guilty" George Zimmerman Verdict

This past weekend in Atlanta  turned out to more meaningful than I ever thought it could be. I'd been lightly following the Trayvon Martin murder trial since it began and like a lot of viewers, was anxious for the verdict.

After hearing the non-guilty verdict, the next morning I woke up in a saddened state. I was sad that a young man wouldn't have the chance to reach his full potential because he was marked as a threat. I was upset that the prosecution didn't better prepare its star witness Rachel Jeantel for the questions from the defense team. But what I'm most disappointed and disgusted with is the media.

Do you remember how you heard of Trayvon Martin's murder? I remember briefly seeing it on the news and I vividly remember seeing the protests on Facebook. There was an immense outrage that a black teen's killer had not been arrested by the Sanford Police Department. Almost immediately, racial profiling was projected as a key factor in this case.

And even after the verdict, the media has used race as a tool to enrage its audience and instigate riots and violence. The  media is powerful, there's no debating that fact. However, the media formulates lies to gain/boost ratings and heavily influence the minds of its viewers. And what better way to ruffle the feathers of a race of people who not so long ago weren't allowed to occupy the same space as a white person than to cry "RACISM!!"

Racism is defined as one's inherent belief that his/her own race is superior to another's. The media has used racism to enrage both blacks and whites, to further divide and distract from whatever agenda needs to be pushed forward by the government.

That is why we cannot become distracted by what we're being force fed from the media. The media is all around us; its on our tv, in our movie theaters, on the internet, on the radio, etc. We cannot accept everything that is propagandized (Has anyone noticed Fruitvale Station, a movie about the fatal shooting of an unarmed black male named Oscar Grant by a police officer, just so happened to premiere around the date of this trial?? I hardly believe in that coincidence). The media doesn't represent the views of Americans as a whole. It spotlights the negative and continuously spins its fabricated truth. In this case, its role has been to put one race against another.

Although I suspected that Zimmerman would be aquitted, it was still hard to hear the not guilty verdict. From the beginning, I've thought about what if it were my brother or a male friend? I strongly disagree with Zimmerman's decision to follow Trayvon, no matter how suspicious he was. I believe that he was well aware of the "Stand Your Ground" law and knew that he'd be protected by it. Let's not forget that Zimmerman wanted a career in law enforcement and had self-appointed himself as the neighborhood watch in his gated community. I believe he instigated a fight with Trayvon and when the fight escalated and Zimmerman found himself pinned down by Trayvon, Zimmerman fatally shot him.

But the facts remain that the prosecution failed to convict Zimmerman of second degree murder. We can be angry all we want. I was upset but there is no changing that verdict. However, the day after, I was able to put things into perspective after visiting The Martin Luther King Jr.' National Historic Site.

"The Eternal Flame serves a reminder of the Kings' undying commitment to their beloved community."

 I was reminded of Dr. King's message of peace and equal rights for not only blacks, but for every race of this world. Dr. King was an Civil Rights activist who, not only understood the importance of unifying a racially divided nation, but vigorously and peacefully protested the social wrongdoings of African Americans.

Inside of the Freedom Hall, where pictures of Dr. King and Ghandi (who heavily influenced King's message of peace and nonviolence) are exhibited.

Ebenezer Baptist Church was one of the few sites that I visited. Not only has it been remodeled to its 1960s appearance, there is a sermon that Dr. King preached playing on the sound system. I was immediately humbled by the work of this courageous man, who knew that his preachings of the injustices of war and racial inequality angered not only whites but blacks as well, but continued to do so until his assassination on April 4, 1968.

Listening to one of Dr. King's sermons in Heritage Sanctuary where he served as co-pastor with his father and grandfather.

A lot of you are furious about the verdict of the Zimmerman trial. My question to you is what are you going to do about it? Are you going to put up a picture of Trayvon Martin for a couple of weeks to honor him? Are you going to post statuses that threaten Zimmerman's life and express your hatred for the legal system that set him free? And if you are, or did, what was the result? How has it helped our community? Has it proactively catapulted our nation into a civil rights revolution in which we question and rally against laws that aren't beneficial to us?

The answer is no. You're blinded by what the media is telling you is going on. We need to wake up! We need to gain a better understanding of our state laws. We need to become better educated about our legal system and then we need to actively pursue changes to our laws. That is how we fight back against social injustices. Violence is most certainly not the answer but neither is sitting back and doing nothing.

So I challenge you to channel your anger into doing some research. Stop accepting the hearsay from your friends and the media and find out the facts for yourself! We've come a long way but there's still a long way to go. Let's stay focused on the task at hand: actively striving for justice for all.The successful progression of blacks and our country depends upon it.

Sitting and reflecting outside of Ebenezer Baptist Church

I want to hear your opinions. What are your feelings towards this infamous case? Where do we go from here as a nation where racism still remains? Comment below and tell me what you think! Peace!!