NAACP

by Jeremy Leaming

The tragic slaying of a Trayvon Martin, an unarmed 17-year-old in Florida, is drawing scrutiny, albeit far too late, of public policy that celebrates a Wild West mentality.

The law, enacted in 2005, dubbed “stand your ground,” provides great legal protection to those who kill others outside their homes, claiming they used deadly violence in self-defense. Under pressure from outraged citizens and public interest groups, such as the NAACP, the U.S. Department of Justice said earlier this week it would investigate the killing of the young African American.

Part of the mounting pressure included 911 recordings that revealed that George Zimmerman, a “watchman” for a Sanford, a community near Orlando, was ordered to stay put as police had been dispatched to the area. The 911 recordings also reveal that Zimmerman, a large, 28 year-old, refused to heed the 911 operator’s plea, responding, “They always get away,” before leaving his car to pursue the youngster.

In a piece for The Nation, Bryce Covert says the so-called stand your ground laws, which have been adopted by 20 other states, are not only rooted in romanticism of a “cowboy-esque” mentality, but also in a “deep distrust in the police force.”

“Beyond emboldening individual actors,” Covert continues, “this distrust has real consequences on police forces’ ability to ensure protection and justice. It weakens and distorts the force itself.”

As noted recently by The New York Times, the Florida law was pushed by the National Rifle Association. Likely not terribly surprising was the involvement of the conservative lobbying group, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).

Writing for Media Matters for America, Matt Gertz notes that Florida’s law is “virtually identical to Section 1 of ALEC’s Castle Doctrine Act model legislation as posted on the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD). According to CMD, the model bill was adopted by ALEC’s Civil Justice Task in August 2005 – just a few short months after it passed the Florida legislature – and approved by its board of directors the following month.” 

By Hilary O. Shelton, Director, NAACP Washington Bureau & Senior Vice President for Advocacy and Policy

In January, communities throughout the United States join together to commemorate the life and contributions of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  It is around Dr. King’s birthday when many schoolchildren embrace the Civil Rights Movement, recite parts of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, and truly understand that they can be whatever and whomever they want to be.  

Most of us know the tragic tale of Dr. King’s assassination on April 4, 1968, but far too many people don’t know that Dr. King’s final legislative victory is one of his most enduring but largely ignored achievements.  Much of his work during the Chicago Freedom Movement in 1966 was an initiative to ensure just and equal access to quality housing for African-Americans. Dr. King’s historic march in Marquette Park laid the groundwork for our nation’s fair housing laws.  One week after Dr. King’s death, Congress passed the federal Fair Housing Act, a law that protects us from discrimination in housing based on race, religion, color, sex, national origin, familial status and disability. 

The Fair Housing Act codifies the affirmative responsibility to end segregation and promote integration throughout the United States.  The National Fair Housing Alliance’s (NFHA) issue brief released this week by ACS, “The Promise of the Fair Housing Act and the Role of Fair Housing Organizations,” discusses Dr. King’s quest for fair housing and how fair housing organizations do their part to keep The Dream alive. 

Today, the Fair Housing Act is a well-crafted tool that must continue to be sharpened in a nation that continues to grow and diversify.  Census projections indicate that in less than 30 years, our nation will be made up mostly of people of color. Yet, the nation our children grow up in today remains strikingly similar in some respects to the nation Dr. King was trying to change.  At the end of every school day, most children of all backgrounds return to segregated neighborhoods.  In neighborhoods of color, there are significantly fewer opportunities for children to reach their true potential.