Miami Heat carry the Trayvon Martin justice campaign; Father thanks athletes – NBA Update
The surge to seek justice for Trayvon Martin’s death has gripped the NBA, especially Miami Heat. In a show of solidarity, the Miami Heat players personified as Martin and displayed their pictures wearing the same attire (hoodie)
on Facebook and Twitter recently.
On February 26th, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh of Miami were participating in the All-Star Game just few miles from the site when this gruesome incident took place. Dwyane Wade, father of two sons himself,
displayed his picture wearing the same hooded sweat shirt saying 'I am Trayvon Martin'. Hours later, James displayed another picture of the whole Miami team wearing Hoodies, their heads bowed and hands in the pockets.
The move is bold and powerful especially in the wake of an event that has been directed toward a particular ethnicity. Players belonging to African-American community usually refrain from publically denouncing such events but James
and Wade decided that it is about to do something about it.
Wade protested against the negative stereotypes associated with the African-American Youth.
"This situation hit home for me because last Christmas, all my oldest son wanted as a gift was Hoodies. So when I heard about this a week ago, I thought of my sons. I'm speaking up because I feel it's necessary that we get past
the stereotype of young, black men and especially with our youth."
The 17 year old boy was shot in cold blood by a self appointed neighbourhood watch volunteer, when he was returning home with ice tea and skittles. He was unarmed and the only thing that alarmed George Zimmerman was his colour
and attire. Zimmerman, 28, is now hiding behind the controversial "Stand Your Ground Law", which permits a person to use deadly force in case of self defence.
The 911 call records show that he had been clearly directed to abort his pursuit but he did otherwise and riddled the youth with multiple shots from his 9mm automatic weapon. In terms of civil rights and multiculturalism this is
a huge blow for the American Society compelling the people to protest and claim justice for the deceased teen.
The move by the Heat has initiated a ripple effect, and players from other franchises have joined in the cause. LeBron’s close friend and New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony tweeted a photo of himself in grey hoodie saying “I
am Trayvon Martin”.
Whether the uprising will result in denouncing of “Stand Your Ground Law” remains to be seen, but it has certainly brought some comfort to the grieving father. US President Barrack Obama also spoke out recently on the issue, calling
the incident as a tragedy.
"If I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon. I think they are right to expect that all of us as Americans are going to take this with the seriousness it deserves and we're going to get to the bottom of exactly what happened,"
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