This past Saturday marked the tenth anniversary of the killing of Trayvon Martin. By now the story of his death is well known around our country and the world. At the age of seventeen, he was visiting his father in Sanford, Florida. Walking back to his father’s home after buying ice tea and Skittles at a convenience store, Trayvon was pursued by local vigilante George Zimmerman who reported that the Black teenager “looked suspicious” and was “up to no good.” Ignoring instructions not to pursue the teenager, the vigilante initiated a struggle and shot Trayvon to death. Under Florida’s “stand your ground” law, Zimmerman was released and eventually acquitted of second degree murder charges. Amid their overwhelming grief, Trayvon’s parents made sure to publicize the story of their son’s killing. On March 12, 2012 there was the “Million Hoodie March” to protest Trayvon’s killing and the failure to prosecute his killer. This tragedy was not an isolated event but part of an ongoing pattern of deadly violence against unarmed Black people. In the ten years since Trayvon’s death, a growing number of names from around the country have been added to this horrific list including but not limited to Michael Brown, Alton Sterling, Eric Garner, Sandra Bland, Philando Castile, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and George Floyd.
With all the daily reports of violence and tragedies from around our nation and the world, it is easy to forget or ignore the names and stories of those whose lives were cut short because of racial violence. Yet it is essential to remember their names as precious children of God and as a call to change the systems that enable the devaluing and killing of Black people to continue. Ten years after Trayvon, that call continues. Take a few minutes to watch the video posted below. It reflects both the personal impact of these killings as well as the movement to challenge and change structures that perpetuate racial violence. As the Church begins the season of Lent, may we use this opportunity to look deeply into lives as individuals and as Americans and repent of our nation’s “original sin” of racism and its ongoing legacy. Such repentance is the foundation for greater openness to the nonviolent self-sacrificial love of God revealed in Jesus that leads to healing and justice for all.