"Turn The Music Up For Jordan Davis" by Michael Skolnik

Turn the music up. Turn the lights down. I’m in my zone. Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop. Pop. 8 shots. Maybe 9 shots. The police still don’t know how many shots the white man fired. Thank God for granting me this moment of clarity. This moment of honesty. The world will feel my truths. From my Blueprint beginnings. To thatBlack Album ending. Listen close, you’ll hear what I’m about. But a 17-year-old young black man has been shot and he ain’t gonna make it much longer, so I’ll write fast.

His clique. His crew. An Iverson invention. Love for his crew. Like Drake got for the Weeknd. Love for his clique. Like Kanye got for Jay and Big Sean. Four of them sit inside a red SUV, Jordan Davis in the back seat. Jacksonville, Florida. Friday night. The hand on the clock is somewhere between seven and eight. The bullets that are fired are somewhere between eight and nine. The red SUV gets riddled with bullets, but Jordan’s the only one hit. Two shots make contact, but still breathing. Barely. Trying to hold on. DAMN! He’s only 17. The music still makes the car bump, but the bullets muffle the mind to the point that the lights get turned down. Hov. Ricky Rozay. Wayne. Nasir Jones. Drake. Meek Mill. Wiz. Kanye. Maybe even Chief Keef. Blasts out the speakers, like every other car full of teenagers that ride around America that night. The red SUV is the only one that takes bullets for the music, though. Or was it really the loud music that caused the bullets to lose their life too? 

He doesn’t make it. He doesn’t take another breath. He doesn’t get to finish high school. He doesn’t get to go to his prom. He doesn’t get to experience his first day on a college campus. He doesn’t get to marry the love of his life. He doesn’t get to have children. He doesn’t get to grow old. He doesn’t get to die in peace. Stereotypes of a black male, truly understood. Sorry Biggie, this time it ain’t all good. Jordan Davis died when he got to the hospital. He was just 17. Shot by a man who didn’t like his loud music and who said that someone in Jordan’s SUV pointed a gun at him, so he felt “threatened.” No gun was ever found, except for the one that took Jordan’s life.

When I was 17, I listened to a lot of loud rap music. I grew up in the suburbs of New York City, only 40 miles away from where realities were being spit on cassette tapes by young, black men who didn’t think they would make it past 21. 17 years later, unfortunately this is still the reality. The lyrics might have changed, but the beat still bangs hard. From Jacksonville to Brownsville to the ville in Chicago, 21 is still that hopeful age. Mothers stay awake at night, praying their sons make it home from that friend’s birthday party. Fathers sit by the phone hoping that their sons call if they ever find trouble. And other 17 year olds attend way too many funerals of other 17 year olds. However, the beat that still bangs hard gives us a moment of clarity. A moment of honesty. Another moment to feel our truths.

Truth be told, when Trayvon Martin died, we knew it would happen again. We rallied. We marched. We protested. We signed petitions. We put our hoodies up. But in the back of our minds we knew that it would happen again. There is no comparison between the deaths of any seventeen year old, as every life is sacred and the families deserve to have their own periods of mourning. So don’t confuse this with thinking that I am comparing the two, but something is happening in this country that has to come to an end. We don’t want the fear that some have of young black men to be a disease our country cannot cure.

We must fight everyday to build a more compassionate America. A more generous America. A more tolerant America. This is the make-up of our generation’s DNA, the bloodline of our future. We know that this vision of a new America will not be accomplished quickly, so we must continue to make the beat bang. Slavery did not end without many lives lost. A woman’s right to vote did not come easily. The Civil Rights movement lasted over two decades. The gay rights movement finally has caught some traction. So, if we are to believe that our country can be that beacon of hope, then we must continue our journey towards justice. And not be afraid to turn. the. music. up! 

RIP Jordan Davis. Our prayers are with your family and friends.

(Source: thechanelmuse)

Mark O'Mara, George Zimmerman Attorney: Race Is Not The 'Elephant In The Room' In Trayvon Martin Case

brashblacknonbeliever:

Now, this whole article is “interesting” but this part stuck out the most to me.

In a hearing scheduled for Oct. 19, O’Mara will seek a delay of Zimmerman’s trial and request access to Martin’s school records and to the teen’s social media posts, the latter of which will likely spark more talk of race in the case.

Why do they want Trayvon’s school records? Why are they so interested in his Facebook and Twitter accounts? Are they seriously going to try to put Trayvon on trial for his own murder? Are they seriously going to go into a court of law and blame this child for his own death? Are they really going to do that or is there some other reason that I’m missing why that information would be relevant?

None Of Trayvon Martin's DNA Found On Zimmerman's Gun

justice4trayvon:

DNA tests show none of Trayvon Martin’s DNA on the gun that was ultimately used to kill him; DNA tests on the holster have not yet determined DNA status.

As if we didn’t already know that…

cursivedream:

The world will hear your cries of help,

We will hear them,

And most importantly they will echo for an eternity..

off the eardrums of the one that silenced them momentarily,

Making it home safe must be overrated nowadays,

I didn’t know standing your ground..

involved running down,

A 17 year old armed with skittles and iced tea,

Messing around with weapons of mass destruction I see,

I really don’t blame you Trayvon, for trying to flee,

Or fighting back for that matter,

But what does the most,

Is that you are not here anymore,

How is a dead teen supposed to chase his dreams of one day becoming the mechanic of planes that soar so high?

Well now you can soar Trayvon,

Soar high over the jets you wanted to one day modify.

While we stay here trying to repair ourselves,

And our definition of suspicion,

And our knowledge of the differences between a handful of skittles and a weapon,

We will not let your death be in vein,

Let your soul reveal the fire of racism still very much alive today,

Over the beautiful rainbow you cast here on this world, and in our hearts.

Trayvon,

We will not let this go,

Trayvon I promise you, we will get justice for your soul,

I pray you made it home safe through heavens gates.

-Raymond Rojas III

For full story of the Trayvon Martin murder, please click on the following link below.

I pray for the piece with his family and justice for his soul. 

http://www.thecowl.com/world/the-life-and-death-of-trayvon-martin-1.2853691

�

(NEWSER) – Prosecutors release the tapes of six phone conversations George Zimmerman had with his wife while in jail, in which they conspire over how to hide the mountains of cash supporters sent in for his defense. Prosecutors say the couple had access to at least $130,000, the Orlando Sentinel reports. 

http://www.newser.com/story/148358/tapes-reveal-zimmerman-gloating-about-donations.html (via genericjamie)

This dumb ass bitch and her bitch ass husband. I hate the b-word, but it’s very fitting right now.

(Source: jamiejoyaknow)

tpmmedia:

Authorities said Shellie Zimmerman was arrested Tuesday and charged with perjury for allegedly lying on the witness stand in her husband’s case of second degree murder in the killing of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin.

Read more…

� Chris Rock via Facebook

(Source: nosaucepartdeux)

thepoliticalfreakshow:

1. George Zimmerman’s new bail hearing is set for June 29, when his lawyer will again argue for his client’s release from jail before trial. Zimmerman had previously been freed after posting 10% of his original bail, set at $150,000. However, last week, a Florida judge revoked Zimmerman’s bail, due to the fact that Zimmerman lied about the finances that they had to get a lower bail. [Reuters]

2. The parents of Trayvon Martin will deliver a petition with 340,000 signatures next week to the first meeting of the Stand Your Ground task force that is reviewing the legality of the controversial law. Trayvon’s parents will deliver the petition, which is “calling for reform or repeal” of the Stand Your Ground law. The group that sponsored the petition (Second Change on Shoot First) is a national organization that combats the states that currently have “Stand Your Ground” laws on their books. [Orlando Sentinel]

3. George Zimmerman spends $100 in the Seminole County Jail on snack food, underwear, and toiletries in ONE DAY!!! According to an inventory obtained by NBC under the Open Records Act, Zimmerman has been spending dozens of dollars on snack food, pens, toiletries and underwear. During his past stay at the Seminole County Jail, Zimmerman ordered extra-large briefs instead of medium-sized briefs. Zimmerman’s snacks of choice are: White Cheddar Cheez-Its, Fritos, Big Grandma’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, animal crackers, Twix candy bars, Peanut M&Ms and Strawberry Pop-Tarts. Ironically enough, he doesn’t seem to like Skittles and Arizona Iced Tea. [Daily Mail]

4. Zimmerman’s defense lawyer, Mark O’Mara, has reported a death threat to the Orlando police. Last month, O’Mara called the police and calmly described the threatening call. The caller used profanities and said “You’re gonna die…and things like that.” The start day of the George Zimmerman trial is August 8^th. [Irish Central]

75 year old white man murders 13 year old black male neighbor in front of his mother as he brings in the trash

christel-thoughts:

• white man had been burglarized
• white man accuses black child in the neighborhood
• white man “confronts” black child with gun
• black child denies it (apparently, he was in school at the time)
• unarmed black child is murdered (shot in the chest)
• neighbors say the white man was a good neighbor and just seemed to be “frustrated” with the break-ins
  
  

does ANY of this sound familiar to you?

here’s the video of the news segment

(via strugglingtobeheard)

eclecticspectrum:

Let’s hope he doesn’t get bail the second time around so he can just sit in the slammer.

(Source: ahenfo)

Judge revokes George Zimmerman's bond

breakingnews:

George Zimmerman’s bond has been revoked in the Trayvon Martin shooting case, the Orlando Sentinel reports. In a motion filed today, prosecutors accused Zimmerman and his wife of lying to the judge during a bond hearing about money they collected for his defense.

The judge has ordered Zimmerman to surrender within 48 hours.

BREAKING: George Zimmerman Could Be Charged With Federal Hate Crime

karnythia:

stfuhypocrisy:

The FBI announced today that George Zimmerman could be charged with a federal hate crime, a charge that would mean Zimmerman could face the death penalty if convicted. The FBI made the announcement shortly after Zimmerman’s lawyers received the list of witnesses and evidence materials, which included never before seen accounts of the shooting from witnesses, new footage and new 911 call recordings.

State Prosecutors made the case that Zimmerman, who admitted to fatally shooting 17 year old Trayvon Martin, profiled and stalked the youth prior to a confrontation, which lead to Martin’s death, something that has prompted the FBI to investigate the possibility of raising the charge from second degree murder to a federal hate crime.

From WFTV News:

FBI investigators are actively questioning witnesses in the retreat at the Twin Lakes neighborhood, seeking evidence for a possible federal hate crime charge.

Martin was unarmed when he was shot to death, police said, and some accuse Zimmerman of targeting the teenager solely because of the color of his skin.

WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer said federal prosecutors would have to prove the hate crime to charge Zimmerman, though.

Welp…

(Source: stfueverything, via foxyj26)

Stop the sales of gun targets that resemble Trayvon Martin!

wibblywobblynina:

Link is a Change.org petition.  You do not need to display your signature publicly, so please, there are no reasons for you not to sign!

Sign now!

(Source: thetinynina)