By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
With leaders from all sides of the political spectrum coming together and calling for a Grand Jury investigation into the senseless slaying of teenager Trayvon Martin, surely there has to be one wacky voice. And who better than Fox & Friends contributor, Geraldo Rivera. On the show, Rivera recently blamed Martin’s hoodie as the culprit for the fatal attack:
I believe that George Zimmerman, the overzealous neighborhood watch captain, should be investigated to the fullest extent of the law, and if he is criminally liable he should be prosecuted. But I am urging the parents of black and Latino youngsters particularly to not let their children go out wearing hoodies. I think the hoodie is as much responsible for Trayvon Martin’s death as George Zimmerman was.
Rivera had opened the bidding with an equally inane column styled, “Trayvon Martin Would Be Alive but for His Hoodie.” There, after deriding low slung pants, he admonishes parents to take the hoodies off their kids too, imploring them, “don’t let your child go out into the hard cruel world wearing a costume that is really a sign that says ‘shoot me.’” Fleece as fomenter? Really?
That stupidity brought immediate comment from the saner and hipper side of the planet. “i didn’t even know geraldo still did stuff ppl listened to. damned if i listen to him now. but #BEATEMDOWNhoodies ARE on sale for $25,” media personality Bomani Jones tweeted. “Dear Geraldo Rivera: I’ll use small words so you can follow me, okay? Hoodies don’t kill people. Paranoid racists with guns kill people,” tweeted Wil Wheatonof Los Angeles. “That’s like saying Martin should not have left the house while being Black. As the Million Hoodie marches emphasize, there is nothing inherently devious about hoodies. It’s our culture’s racist stereotype for “suspicion” that makes hoodies worn by people of color — not soccer moms or Anderson Cooper — an act that could be met with violence,” journalist Kristen Gwynne wrote on AlterNet.
With President Obama saying that if he had a son he’d look a lot like Trayvon Martin, and Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum both calling for a Grand Jury inquiry into the matter, and calling the case a “tragedy” and a “horrible case,” respectively, Rivera looks like an old gum-shoe newsman looking for a story and some notoriety.
Clothing manufacturers must have thought the same thing. American Apparel, who makes the popular outerwear, noted its product is bought by “every type of person you can imagine—pink hoodies to toddlers, black and navy hoodies to businessmen and successful entrepreneurs, as well as plenty of college students of all backgrounds and everyone else in between. We even sell hoodies for dogs.” Creative Director Marsha Brady (no, not that Marsha Brady) added, “To say that this classic garment implies that its owner is a dangerous criminal to be ‘feared’ is absolutely ridiculous. We’re incredibly sorry about the young man who was shot while wearing one, and feel very strongly that oversimplifying the discussion by criticizing the victim’s clothing does the country, Trayvon Martin, and all those who support the end of crimes such as this one a massive and dangerous disservice.”
So it seems the journalist who brought us the underwhelming mystery of Al Capone’s vault on live TV, and who regaled us with wild claims about a million Satanists lurking among us and raping children during secret rituals, now finds himself saddled with another self-inflicted wound.
Blaming a hoodie for a shooting? If that’s true, innocent African-American kids and other hoodie affectionadoes like New England Patriots football coach, Bill Belichick, had better look out.
Source: msnbc
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Curiously, he doesn’t take the obvious tact of suggesting that Martin should have armed himself. Indeed, none of the wingnuts have done this even though it is the obvious rejoinder to the intent of the law. Of course, they’d also have to get beyond some obvious racism–that Zimmerman is Hispanic doesn’t do much to alter this.
Bdaman,
What’s your point? Are you defending Zimmerman? Do you think his killing of Trayvon Martin was justified?
mespo,
Following along Rivera’s logic, women who wear short skirts, shorts, tank tops, etc., are asking to be raped.
*****
Geraldo Rivera Blames Trayvon Martin (Or His Parents) For Wearing Hoodie
His race is a hoodie, according to Herr Raw Doh …
White vs Caucasian
White and Caucasian are terms that have been widely termed as the same. But it is only a misconception. A White is never called as Caucasian whereas a Caucasian can be called as white.
When comparing the two races, Caucasian is a larger race when compared to the other. The Caucasian race consists of North Africans, Arabs, Whites, Somalians, some people in India and Ethiopians. On the other hand, white are mostly people who belong to Europe.
On the other hand, white are mostly people who belong to Europe.
On the other hand, white are mostly people who belong to Europe.
On the other hand, white are mostly people who belong to Europe.
On the other hand, white are mostly people who belong to Europe.
http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/difference-between-white-and-caucasian/
Quote
George is a Spanish speaking minority with many black family members and friends. He would be the last to discriminate for any reason whatsoever. One black neighbor recently interviewed said she knew everything in the media was untrue and that she would trust George with her life. Another black neighbor said that George was the only one, black or white, who came and welcomed her to the community, offering any assistance he could provide. Recently, I met two black children George invited to a social event. I asked where they met George. They responded that he was their mentor. They said George visited them routinely, took them places, helped them, and taught them things and that they really loved George. The media portrayal of George as a racist could not be further from the truth.
Unquote
Who is George Zimmerman? More information emerges about the shooter of Trayvon Martin
By Elizabeth Flock
3/21/12
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/who-is-george-zimmerman-more-information-emerges-about-the-shooter-of-trayvon-martin/2012/03/21/gIQA6muiRS_blog.html
Excerpts:
There are indications that Zimmerman may not have been an official neighborhood watchman, however. In a statement, the National Sheriffs’ Association said its Neighborhood Watch Program is to act as the “eyes and ears” within the community and that the “the alleged action of a ‘self-appointed neighborhood watchman’ last month in Sanford, Fla. significantly contradicts the principles” of the program.
“NSA has no information indicating the community where the incident occurred has ever even registered with the NSA Neighborhood Watch program,” it said.
*****
Update, 5:53 p.m.:
A lot of the conversation around this story has been centered on Zimmerman and his race. Zimmerman’s race is white; his ethnicity is Hispanic. Hispanic is an ethnicity category, not a race.
Should be
From George’s father’s released statement. If the people he talks about in his letter including family members ARE CORRECT, the racism charge falls apart. But don’t let this stand in your way of FRAMING IT that way.
From George’s father’s released statement. If the people he talks about in his letter including family members the racism charge falls apart. But don’t let this stand in your way of FRAMING IT that way.
P.S. most left leanning media have continuously reported “IT”S A WHITE MAN that killed this boy.
Quote
George is a Spanish speaking minority with many black family members and friends. He would be the last to discriminate for any reason whatsoever. One black neighbor recently interviewed said she knew everything in the media was untrue and that she would trust George with her life. Another black neighbor said that George was the only one, black or white, who came and welcomed her to the community, offering any assistance he could provide. Recently, I met two black children George invited to a social event. I asked where they met George. They responded that he was their mentor. They said George visited them routinely, took them places, helped them, and taught them things and that they really loved George. The media portrayal of George as a racist could not be further from the truth.
Unquote
ALEC Castle Doctrine:
CONNECTING THE DOTS BETWEEN ALEC, WAL-MART, THE NRA, AND THE FLORIDA LAW CITED BY SOME TO IMMUNIZE TRAYVON MARTIN’S KILLER
(Prepared 3-23-12 by Lisa Graves, Center for Media and Democracy, and Nick Surgey, Common Cause)
http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/ALEC_Castle_Doctrine
Excerpt;
– In August 2005, in Grapevine, Tex., NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer asked legislators and lobbyists at a closed-door meeting of ALEC’s “Criminal Justice Task Force” to adopt the Florida “Castle Doctrine” bill as an ALEC model bill. The NRA said her pitch “was well received,” and the bill was approved “unanimously.”[1][2]
– At that time, ALEC’s public-private Criminal Justice Task Force was co-chaired by Wal-Mart[3] — the nation’s largest seller of guns and ammunition.[4] ALEC’s staffer for the task force was Chris Oswald a former “State Liaison” for the NRA.
– Corporate representatives and state legislators on ALEC Task Forces have equal votes on proposed model legislation,[5] so the Florida law was ratified by Wal-Mart and its 2005 public sector co-chair, Texas Rep. Ray Allen, along with other state legislators and corporate lobbyists. It was endorsed by a representative of the Koch-funded Heritage Foundation, according to minutes of the meeting issued by ALEC.[4]
– In September 2005, that bill was adopted by ALEC’s National Board of Directors, which has a procedure to allow model bills to be approved if there is no objection. The public sector portion of the board was chaired by Georgia state Rep. Earl Ehrhart; the corporate board included Koch Industries, Altria (parent of Philip Morris), Coors, Bell South, and Verizon. (ALEC says its corporate board does not vote. Corporations and elected officials have an equal vote in the task forces, where model bills are adopted, however.)
– At the next ALEC Criminal Justice Task Force meeting, in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, in 2006, the NRA’s representative to ALEC, Tara Mica, reported on the “continued success” in securing passage of ALEC’s “Castle Doctrine” bill in other states.[4]
– In 2007, an ALEC “Legislative Report Card” boasted that the ALEC/NRA Castle Doctrine bill had been introduced or passed in numerous states.[6] ALEC also highlighted ALEC legislators who had introduced versions of the model bill, including Texas state Sen. Jeff Wentworth and Rep. Joe Driver.[6]
– To date, more than two dozen states have adopted Castle Doctrine bills with ALEC/NRA DNA.[7] Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, an ALEC alum, signed into law an NRA-backed bill with some provisions similar to the ALEC bill in 2011. Similar bills are pending in other states.
– The Florida bill that became the ALEC model was signed on April 26, 2005 by Gov. Jeb Bush, with the NRA’s lobbyist, Marion Hammer, standing alongside.[8]
– NRA President Wayne LaPierre said NRA lobbyist and former president Hammer “conceived” of the Florida bill and lobbied it into law.[9] She ridiculed opponents of the bill, calling them hysterical, and helped the bill’s co-sponsors, Florida state Sen. Durell Peaden (R-Crestview) and Rep. Dennis Baxley (R-Ocala), get it passed.
– In 2005, Peaden was an ALEC leader, serving on the Executive Committee of the “Health and Human Services Task Force.”[10]
– Baxley, a former head of the Christian Coalition in Florida, is also a member of ALEC. His legislative résumé includes sponsorship of bills creating license plates honoring the Confederacy and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.[11] Opponents of the “Castle Doctrine” bill predicted it would immunize racially motivated killers. Baxley recently said the law should not protect Trayvon Martin’s shooter.
What next, Rush Limbaugh calling Trayvon a slut? These guys have lost all semblance of human reasonableness.
Elaine M.,
You just gotta love ALEC……
Mark,
I suppose the monks have things to worry about…..if this is the rationalization……
‘surely there has to be one wacky voice’
Did anyone really think we would have to wait to long for that wacky voice to appear on Faux News?
There’s plenty of blame to go around
MSNBC
JOE SCARBOROUGH: If the city manager will not fire this police officer and hire one who will arrest this man that gunned down a seventeen year old boy, then the attorney general of the state of Florida and the governor of the state of Florida need to step in. This is an embarrassment to my home state.
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: I’d go further. I’d go further. Because if this unfolds the way it appears it’s unfolding, you know, in a country where its leader can talk about a radio host calling someone a name, we ought to be looking at ourselves and this situation really closely from the top down. And, quite frankly, it is, they’re looking at audio tapes right now of the cell phone, and there might have been a racial epithet.
Karen Finney, a Democratic strategist who was filling in for Martin Bashir on MSNBC, blamed Rush Limbaugh, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Mitt Romney for the shooting of the young African American teenager by a community watch volunteer.
http://www.examiner.com/conservative-in-national/msnbc-host-blames-trayvon-martin-death-on-free-speech
Oh, Charlie is a black lab.
ALEC Ratified NRA-Conceived Law That May Protect Trayvon Martin’s Killer
by Brendan Fischer — March 21, 2012
http://www.prwatch.org/node/11366
Excerpt:
A Florida law that may protect the man who shot and killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in February is the template for an American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) “model bill” that has been pushed in other states. The bill was brought to ALEC by the National Rifle Association (NRA), and fits into a pattern of ALEC bills that disproportionately impact communities of color.
Florida’s “stand your ground,” or “castle doctrine,” law could prevent the prosecution of George Zimmerman, the 28-year-old “neighborhood watch” vigilante who shot the unarmed Martin as the teen returned from a trip to 7-11 with an iced tea and a pack of Skittles. The law, also pushed by its supporters under the name the “Castle Doctrine,” changes state criminal justice and civil law codes by giving legal immunity to a person who uses “deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.” It also bars the deceased’s family from bringing a civil suit.
Evidence suggests a major reason Zimmerman thought he needed to use deadly force against the unarmed Martin is because the teen was black — on the recording of Zimmerman’s call to 911 (which he made before pursuing the teen), he is heard using what sounds like a racial epithet and saying “he’s a black male…Something’s wrong with him…These a**holes, they always get away.” Zimmerman has not been charged with any crime.
As Media Matters reported earlier, Florida’s “stand your ground” law is nearly identical to the ALEC Castle Doctrine Act.
From the Florida law:
(3) A person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in any other place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.
And from the ALEC model:
(3) A person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in any other place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another, or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.
Florida Senator Durell Peadon, an ALEC member, introduced the law in his state and it passed in early 2005; the NRA was behind the bill and its lobbyist Marion Hammer reportedly “stared down legislators as they voted.” After Governor Jeb Bush signed it into law, Hammer presented the bill to ALEC’s Criminal Justice Task Force (now known as the Public Safety and Elections Task Force) months later.
Some of the dogs in my dog pack wear hoodies provided for by their Pals (we never use the term owner) and usually sport them when it is raining or rain is predicted. I did notice that the dog police will pick on the hoodies and capture them first when trying to round us up and run us in to the dog pound.
The Pals of the hoodie dogs come in all persuasions and are usually women and there is no discernable race profile on this one. One lady sent Charlie out this morning with his hoodie and a bullet proof vest.
JustADogTalkin
This is analogous to the notion that women bring rape on themselves by dressing provocatively.
Analogous, and just as outrageous.
Really, seriously, this is the dumbest of the dumb and how far in advance did he write all that, including his comments on Fox and friends? Because I gotta tell ya, doing this after the deluge of social commentary about race using hoodies as symbol of solidarity with the victims like Trayvon makes him look extra-special stupid.
Ger-al-dumbo…. how many years ago did you sell your soul to the Devil????