During the past few weeks, it has been impossible to turn on the news without hearing an update on the Trayvon Martin case. What started out as a local killing in Florida has exploded into a national outrage and discussion about race, justice, and 2nd Amendment rights.
On February 26, when the killing occurred, George Zimmerman was brought to a police station, pleaded self-defense, and was not charged. Martin’s family called for the arrest of Zimmerman, but not much progress was made towards that effort during the two weeks after the shooting. Martin’s parents started an online petition on Change.org, a website with the function of promoting social change through the use of petitions, calling for the prosecution of Zimmerman and justice for Trayvon’s death, on March 8. However, there wasn’t significant public awareness of the case until March 16 when celebrities like hip-hop icon Russell Simmons, director Spike Lee, and actress Mia Farrow began to use social media outlets like Twitter to spread awareness.
Soon after, support for Zimmerman’s prosecution skyrocketed. As of right now, over 2,250,000 people have signed the online petition started by Martin’s family. Director Spike Lee is reported to have “tweeted” about the case around 300 times within twelve hours.
Public opinion of the shooting in general is one of disgust and outrage. For example, a comment by Fox news reporter Geraldo Rivera, stating that Trayvon’s attire, a hoodie, made him look like a “gangsta wannabe” and was partly responsible for his death, sparked a torrent of public animosity towards Rivera’s ignominious statement. In response to Rivera’s statement, pictures of people wearing hoodies flooded Twitter and Facebook, and the hoodie has become the unofficial symbol for the movement. House representative Bobby Rush of Illinois was escorted off the house floor on March 29 when he wore a hoodie in the chamber, thus violating the House’s no-hat policy.
Had a similar shooting occurred twenty years ago, the story would have received minimal coverage and most people would never have heard about it. At best, the story would have appeared in a local newspaper and been forgotten by the general public within a few weeks. However, we now live in an age where information can reach any person with an Internet connection. Because social media sites like Twitter and Facebook now have a strong presence in our culture and a profound influence on our worldview, celebrities with thousands of followers and fans are becoming a greater force in politics than ever before. As a result, it must be determined which group will have the greater control over politics and information, news organizations like CNN and Fox, or some famous individual on a laptop.