America Renewed Its Dialogue About Racial Injustice After Trayvon Martin’s Tragic Death

Trayvon Martin celebrated his seventeenth birthday on February 5, 2012. A few weeks later an overzealous neighborhood watch captain fatally shot the teenager. The circumstances of Martin’s death broke hearts around America and renewed the conversation about racial profiling, civil rights and the murders of unarmed Black man.

On February 26, Martin, who lived in Miami Gardens, Florida with his mom, was visiting his dad in Sanford, Florida. He was headed back to his father’s after a trip to a convenience store to get some Skittles and a drink when George Zimmerman spotted Martin and called 911 to report a “suspicious person.” The dispatcher told the watch captain not to pursue, but Zimmerman ignored the instructions. A few minutes later neighbors heard gunshots. Martin had been shot by Zimmerman who said he fired in self-defense.

During the trial, prosecutors said Zimmerman stalked Martin, who was wearing a dark hoodie. At one point, Zimmerman confronted the teenager. Prosecutors say Martin was afraid for his life when he was approached by the 31-year-old Zimmerman, and the two fought. 

But, a jury acquitted Zimmerman of second-degree murder and manslaughter.  

Martin’s parents, Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, have spent years fighting for justice on behalf of other young Black Americans. They began the Trayvon Martin Foundation.

And the attorney they hired, Ben Crump, has become the legal voice for many families who have lost loved ones to injustice and police brutality.

Trayvon Martin would have been 28 years-old today.