NAACP Chief: Zimmerman arrest a great moment for our country

WNYT-TV ^ | April 11, 2012 | Dan Levy

[2ndDivisionVet]

ALBANY - NAACP President Benjamin Jealous told an Albany Law School lecture hall on Wednesday afternoon the arrest of George Zimmerman is a "great moment for our country" even though it is long over due.

"People of Sanford (Florida) have been tortured," Jealous says, "Our country has been torn apart just waiting for the man to simply be arrested."

On that point, you'll find no disagreement from Alice Green of the Center for Law and Justice.

"It should have happened a long time ago," Green insists. "There was certainly always probable cause to arrest him and people are outraged because they understand that."

The problem for Albany Law School Professor Laurie Shanks is the perception that Zimmerman was treated differently then if the situation were reversed.

"The racial part of this is, the belief that most of us who have been working in the criminal justice system have seen, that if a black man had shot an unarmed white man, he would be arrested," Shanks said.

"If it takes this long to get an arrest, something is wrong with the entire department," opined Albany Law School Professor Anthony Paul Farley.

Farley thinks the real crime was committed by Sanford Police. He believes the case was bungled from the onset and that detectives need to be arrested.

"One fears for any black person in Sanford, Florida," he says. "One fears for anybody who knows a black person in Sanford, Florida. One fears for anyone in Sanford, Florida with a police department like that."

Also problematic, according to Jealous, is the Florida law that allows residents to carry concealed handguns and not have to worry about backing down from a confrontation.

"We parted ways with Wild West justice a long time ago in this country," Jealous says, "Unfortunately, the Stand Your Ground Law is threatening to bring it back. It has brought it back in some places."

The law school consensus seemed to be that the Trayvon Martin Case had nothing to do with Stand Your Ground. They believe it had everything to do with racial profiling.

If there is a silver lining, Benjamin Jealous says it might be that the country is having its first honest conversation about racial profiling and he's hopeful that will lead to something beneficial.

[petercooper]

bttt

[hal ogen]

The dissolution of the naacp, a racist organization, would be a “great moment for our country”.

[RoosterRedux]

Is that a civil war I see just over the horizon?

Over the horizon?

This object may be MUCH closer than it appears in your rear view mirror (or through your windshield).

[RoosterRedux]

Now that Zimmerman has been arrested, the next item on the Hate Whitey agenda is to intimidate all witnesses who try to tell the truth about what really happened.

BTW, didn't I hear yesterday that Zimmerman's two lawyers quit the case.

[Ratman83]

There are idiots, even on this thread, who don’t understand that the 2nd Amendment is for those of us who don’t fall into the category above, and even a low-life liberal Democrat, Obama supporter deserves the protection the 2nd Amendment affords.

Actually the removal of 2A rights for felons is a liberal construct without basis in the Constitution and Bill of Rights. This was done so that the government can control all the people, eventually. Make enough laws and everyone is a criminal.

[tomkat]

[backwoods-engineer]

Mr Zimmerman, should have been held in custody and certainly should not be walking free, still having a concealed weapons carry permit.

There is nothing in law that requires that.

Admit it: you don't believe ANYBODY should have a CCW permit, much less own a handgun.

[UCANSEE2]

From my reading, it seems this young man was pursued and there was no probable cause to engage him, certainly not pursue and shoot him….against the direction of the 911 responder.

I would suggest that you have not really read that much, or have only read biased sources, and you certainly do not seem to have a grasp of the facts of the case.

[backwoods-engineer]

If the citizens of this nation no longer have the right to self defense then there will be a civil war. Do you understand that?

You tell 'em! Exactly right!

[UCANSEE2]

Meanwhile; black on black continues daily and nightly in all of our major cities!

Which is why it is NOT news.

Now, let one 'white' person kill a 'black' person, and it's so rare it makes NATIONAL HEADLINES.

[Buckeye McFrog]

“....cause we finally get to put up a lynching on our side of the scoreboard”

[UCANSEE2]

I have read that the young man was in a gated community when he was not suposed to be at to begin with?

NOT TRUE.

Actually he was not supposed to be out wandering around casing houses or going to 7-11.

He was supposed to be home at his separated/divorced Dad's girlfriend's house.

[Cubs Fan]

From my reading, it seems this young man was pursued and there was no probable cause to engage him, certainly not pursue and shoot him….against the direction of the 911 responder.

It says your name is Anglian, but I'm wondering who you really are? Jesse, Al, or Malik???

[Coldwater Creek]

I live in Memphis, Tn. home of a ton of national race pimps, so I totally agree with you.

[TigersEye]

anglian has been corrected over and over on the same points he/she/it has made here again so that kind of rules against stupidity. The pattern of its posts is to mislead, misdirect, dishearten and disrupt. Pretty classic troll behavior. Answers a question with a complete non-sequitur then just drops out when called on it. #43

[FedsRStealingOurCountryFromUs]

The media will be chomping at the bit to name the jurors along with their addresses and phone numbers.

[JimRed]

CW2, comin’ at ya, after the acquittal.

[JimRed]

The dissolution of the naacp, a racist organization, would be a “great moment for our country”.

Or at least, a return to its roots and original purpose.

[gundog]

So politics and race pimping, trumping the law, is a great moment for our their Country?

I think this is what he meant.