Free Republic

Consider the very first interactions: A cop and young black male interact on the street, and both give the other a bit of attitude. The officer gives some attitude because he's tired of getting attitude from other young men, and the young man gives some attitude because he's tired of getting attitude from other cops. Now, who's at fault? This, as simple as it sounds, is how it starts. Once the infection begins, it grows quickly. If you want to say the cop's at fault because he's the adult with training, you are right. And if you want to say...

Last year, George Zimmerman was acquitted of murdering 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. But before that decision was handed down the public got the chance to hear from the young woman who was the last person to speak with Trayvon before he died, his friend Rachel Jeantel. As she testified during the case, Rachel became a public figure as the media and audiences bullied her with harsh criticisms and unfair labels. As a result of the humiliating ordeal, Rachel received an overwhelming amount of support to better her own needs and accomplish her dreams as a young woman. Now, just one year...

From voter ID laws to broken immigration detention centers, the U.S. is not the model democracy it fancies itself. Watching Israel’s brutal treatment of Palestinians in Gaza over our TV screens makes it easy to forget about the human rights abuses taking place right here on American soil. Sybrina Fulton and Ron Davis, whose sons were killed in what many believe were racially motivated attacks, are using their children’s deaths to remind Americans that human rights are being violated right here in the United States. More than a year after George Zimmerman killed Trayvon Martin, Fulton felt the humiliating pendulum...

A new Trayvon Martin cartoon is causing controversy because it portray efforts to impeach President Obama as being similar to the actions of George Zimmerman. As might be expected, Republicans and conservatives were upset, but should even some Democrats and progressives be calling foul? In a related report by The Inquisitr, the civil rights movement led by the NAACP believes that so-called Trayvon Martin gun control laws should be implemented and the Stand Your Ground laws repealed even though Zimmerman’s defense team only used standard self defense. Zimmerman’s lawsuit against NBC is attempting an appeal, with his lawyers claiming...

The word stunned might best describe how U.S. citizens, particularly blacks, felt after hearing that a six-member jury, following two days of deliberation in a Florida courthouse last July, found George Zimmerman not guilty in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. One year later, with increased cases in which defendants have used the “stand your ground” law to avoid prosecution, civil rights leaders and activists have ramped up efforts to challenge a criminal justice system that often treats blacks and women as second-class citizens. “Blacks seeking justice must continue with protests, pressure and patience,” said Benjamin Crump, the civil...

Police: Acquitted killer was there 'as a friend'George Zimmerman, the man who shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford in February 2012, was in DeLand over the weekend, providing security for Pompano Pat's on South Woodland Boulevard, the DeLand Police Department said. And reports of his presence prompted threats of violence against the business and its owner, a store employee said. Pompano Pat's, which sells guns and motorcycles, is owned by DeLand mayoral candidate Pat Johnson. Johnson is challenging incumbent Mayor Bob Apgar in the Aug. 26 election. Three hours after the story broke online, Pompano Pat's issued a press release...

Although he's not a hired security officer, George Zimmerman has been "patrolling" outside a Volusia County gun shop after it was recently robbed, according to the store owner. Pat Johnson told Local 6 that Zimmerman is not an employee of his DeLand store Pompano Pat's, which sells firearms, ammunition and motorcycles. Johnson said that Zimmerman, on his own accord, has been spotted outside the store since the robbery earlier this month. The thieves stole rifles worth up to $5,000 and two mini-bikes, according to Johnson. Johnson added that although he knows Zimmerman, he has not hired him as a security...

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — George Zimmerman has filed a notice to appeal the dismissal of his defamation lawsuit against NBC Universal and three reporters. The appeal notice was filed Tuesday with the Seminole County Clerk of Courts. Judge Debra Nelson on June 30 dismissed Zimmerman's lawsuit, saying the former neighborhood watch leader had failed to show the network acted with malice.

Trayvon Martin never lived to see his 18th birthday, but the slain Florida teenager is slowly becoming one of the most important figures in the modern civil rights era. Martin was walking to his home in a gated Florida neighborhood in 2012 when neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman mistook him for a burglar. After a brief struggle, Zimmerman shot and killed Martin, an act that a jury later deemed justified. The case aroused racial tensions and immediately became a cause celebre among activists who believed that police did not follow through on charging Zimmerman simply because Martin was a...

The controversial figure of Trayvon Martin is either a civil rights icon or a thug depending on who you talk to about the issue. With the one year anniversary of the George Zimmerman trial having just passed recently, some people fear these tensions could erupt into riots in major cities. In a related report by The Inquisitr, the name of Trayvon Martin was used as a slur by one woman, and she was arrested as a result. President Obama made a controversial remark recently when he talked about black people “acting white.” Last week, some people contended that the George...

The media, which have favorites and enemies, report accordingly. The UN Human Rights Council is much the same.IntroductionThis is a re-posting of a satirical article from May 23, 2012. It mocked media coverage of the death of Trayvon Martin (the Religion of Peace personified) at the hands of George Zimmerman (Zionism personified). It also mocked and compared media coverage of Israel and "Palestine" as of that date. With few exceptions, the media coverage of Israel, particularly in connection with her current operations in Gaza, has not substantially improved since then. Mr. Zimmerman was tried and convicted in the media. However, when relevant and admissible evidence was presented in a court...

What may have started out as an ordinary evening in February 2012, ended with a dead teen-ager and a national controversy that is still unresolved. The fatal shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin and the subsequent not-guilty verdict of the shooter, George Zimmerman, on July 13, 2013, prompted citizens across the nation to question the "stand-your-ground" laws. Such laws, often criticized as being "shoot first" laws, make it hard to prosecute cases against people who shoot others and then claim self-defense. Kentucky, as well as the other states with such laws, should revise them so that the one who initiates a...

One year after being outed as illiterate in the trial, Jeantel is a changed woman after graduating from high school. She hopes to get a college degree, too.She did it for Trayvon. One year after being outed as illiterate in the George Zimmerman murder trial, Trayvon Martin's friend Rachel Jeantel is a changed woman after graduating from high school. Jeantel underwent seven hours of tutoring a day after her reading skills were ridiculed when she testified during the Florida trial last year at age 19. At the time, she had a fourth-grade reading level. "Very, very, very tough," she told...

I remember growing up and always hearing my parents and their friends talk about one pivotal moment in their lives. They remembered exactly where they were at that point. Exactly who told them the news. Exactly how they felt once it all sunk in. When President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, everyone who was alive during that time remembers. One year ago, today, was our generation’s moment. It was late on a Saturday night. Some of us were out to dinner. Some of us were home with our families. Some of us were still shopping. Some of us...

On Thursday, Crist recalled the acquittal of George Zimmerman without using his name, saying "the instigator of an event has no punishment for taking a life. There's something wrong with that."

It’s been just over a year since the world was introduced to Rachel Jeantel, the friend of Trayvon Martin’s who testified on behalf of the prosecution in the George Zimmerman murder trial, but may have ended up doing more harm than good. CNN caught up with Jeantel this week, asking her if she blamed herself when Zimmerman went free. “A little bit,” she replied. Asked if she should have said something different or acted differently on the stand, she answered, “Act different.” Jeantel said the jurors in the case didn’t take her seriously as a witness, judging her for...

Gabriel Mobley Gabriel Mobley and a friend, Jose Correa, were attacked without provocation in February, 2008, as they stood on a sidewalk outside a restaurant.    Jose had his eye socket fractured by the first punch thrown in the surprise attack.   As the first attacker danced back after delivering the blow, the second of the team of attackers rushed the victims.   Mobley said that he saw the second attacker reach under his shirt.   He drew his legally concealed Glock pistol and fired at the attackers.   Both were hit and died of their wounds.   All of this was captured on...

<p>A Sanford judge today put an end to George Zimmerman's libel suit against NBC Universal.</p> <p>Circuit Judge Debra S. Nelson ruled that the former Neighborhood Watch volunteer is entitled to no money from the media giant.</p> <p>She issued a summary judgment in the network's favor, meaning that unless an appeals court reverses her, the case is now dead.</p>

Judge Debra Nelson has ruled in favor of NBC in a defamation lawsuit filed by George Zimmerman. Zimmerman filed the lawsuit in December 2012, saying NBC aired an edited version of the call he made to 911 right before his confrontation with 17-year-old Trayvon Martin...

Judge rules against George Zimmerman in NBC lawsuit Zimmerman claimed defamation in edited 911 call SANFORD, Fla. - A judge on Monday ruled against George Zimmerman in a defamation lawsuit he filed against NBC Universal over edited 911 calls made after Trayvon Martin was shot and killed in 2012. In the ruling, Judge Debra S. Nelson said, "There are no genuine issues of material fact upon which a reasonable jury could find that the Defendants acted with actual malice."