COLUMN: From the Right
You’re a racist. Don’t worry, we are all racists – subconsciously, that is.
Many studies have shown virtually all people have a subconscious positive or negative association with certain races. This doesn’t make us bad people; it’s just an unfortunate byproduct of biology. Through evolution we learned to be suspicious, even xenophobic, toward those different from us.
Those painting Trayvon Martin’s death as a racial issue might as well be protesting biology. The shooting of the black teenager in Florida is a tragedy, and I raise my voice with those calling for the shooter’s detainment, but it’s not evidence of a serious racism issue.
I’m not going to argue racism is dead in America; that’s simply not true. I do wish, however, we would step back and examine the facts before playing the race card.
We don’t know much about George Zimmerman, the shooter, but here’s what we do know: he’s Latino and has black family members. He has a criminal record that includes resisting arrest and domestic violence. He tried, and failed, to become a police officer. He joined a neighborhood watch group and took his duties “very seriously.” He sustained a broken nose and head laceration from his encounter with Martin.
Piecing all that together, does the Martin shooting sound like a hate crime? The evidence doesn’t point that direction. Instead, it paints the picture of an overzealous neighborhood watchman, a man with violent tendencies and with a thing for guns and badges, which stupidly started shooting when a fight broke out.
There is, of course, the police dispatch call in which it sounds like Zimmerman mutters a racial slur when pursuing Martin. Surely, that’s evidence of racial motivation, right? Not when you take culture into perspective.
The racial epithet may easily be more reflective of his demographic than actual racism. Studies have shown there are direct correlations between education, income, race and the use of racial epithets. This, of course, is something anyone who listens to rap music is cognizant of but may be afraid to admit.
Zimmerman fits exactly into the demographic of people most likely to use racial slurs. They aren’t used in a derogatory way or fueled by conscious racism; it’s simply the lexicon of the demographic. With the currently limited information we shouldn’t interpret the use of racial slurs to be reflective of anything but his demographic.
What I’m offering is purely conjecture. As the story unfolds it may turn out this was indeed racially motivated. My point is this: There is weak evidence, if any at all, that Zimmerman is any more racist than you are.
Race may have played a role in the initial subconscious judgment to be suspect of Martin, but that doesn’t make him any different from you or me. The poor decision making that led to the death of Martin currently looks to be the result of him being an overzealous neighborhood watchman, not a racist.
I have spoken plainly about a sensitive issue, and I do not wish to be misunderstood. There is no greater tragedy in history than when people kill each other solely because of race or ethnicity.
Racism is not dead in the U.S.; however, I do believe this is one of the most tolerant countries in the world. It’s sad when racism is the first thing we grasp for to explain events. In our anxiousness to combat racism, we sometimes have difficulty seeing past the difference of colors in a conflict.
Before we sound the racism alarm, let’s wait until the evidence is in so we aren’t guilty of premature judgments.