The parents of Trayvon Martin released a statement thanking President Barack Obama after his surprise remarks about their son on Friday afternoon.
“We are deeply honored and moved that President Obama took the time to speak publicly and at length about our son Trayvon. The President’s comments give us great strength at this time. We are thankful for president Obama’s and Michelle’s prayers and we ask for your prayers as well as we continue to move forward,” said the statement, which was read on CNN by Jake Tapper.
Continue Reading
In his comments, Obama compared Martin to himself 35 years ago. The Martin family’s statement called this a “beautiful tribute” to Trayvon.
“We know that the death of our son Trayvon, the trial, and the not guilty verdict have been deeply painful and difficult for many people. We know our family has become a conduit for people to talk about race in America and to try and talk about the difficult issues that we need to bring into the light in order to become a better people. What touches people is that our son Trayvon Benjamin Martin could have been their son. President Obama sees himself in Trayvon and identifies with him. This is a beautiful tribute to our boy.”
The statement went on to thank Obama for encouraging communities to come together with a “open and difficult dialogue.”
“Trayvon’s life was cut short but we hope that his legacy will make our communities a better place for generations to come. We applaud the president’s call to action to bring communities together to encourage an open and difficult dialogue. Our family is committed to this dialogue through the work of the Trayvon Martin Foundation. We seek a future when a child can walk down the street and not worry that others see him as dangerous because of the color of his skin or the clothes on his back. We seek a future where our children can grow up and become the people God intended them to be.”
Meanwhile, George Zimmerman’s defense team also reacted to Obama’s remarks, saying in a statement that they thought focusing on the president saying Trayvon Martin could have been him 35 years ago missed the larger picture.
”To focus on this one line misses the nuances of the president’s message, which includes comments about how African Americans view the Zimmerman case in the context of the history of racial discrimination in America,” said the statement, which was read on CNN by Wolf Blitzer.
“While we acknowledge and understand the racial context of this case, we challenge people to look closely and dispassionately at the facts. We believe those who look at the facts of the case without prejudice will see that it is a clear case of self defense and we are certain that those who take a closer look at the kind of person George Zimmerman is – something we understand the Department of Justice is currently doing – we are confident they will find a young man with a diverse ethnic and racial background who is not a racist, a man who is in fact, sensitive to the complex racial history of our country.”
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/07/trayvon-martin-parents-thank-barack-obama-94499.html#ixzz2Zc6qqbPz
No comments:
Post a Comment