Original article by AP: here

I understand that our judicial system was created based upon the guiding principles that our country was built on.  We are a country that strives to protect the civil liberties and individual freedoms of its people.  We are assumed innocence until proven guilty, protecting those who may have been wrongly accused.  We should feel lucky for that, and for the fact that we, as citizens, have right to a fair trial.

And I understand that we are people with biases and imperfections, so how can our justice system be completely without it?

But it doesn’t mean we should stop striving for it.  It doesn’t mean there aren’t still some serious problems within the system.  And in that respect, I feel like there is a lot more to be done.

Whatever your opinions on the Zimmerman verdict — whether you think it’s about race or not about race, gun control or not, or a combination of several issues:  A child was shot to death, and that should not be OK.

As a country, we should be able to cooperate and come together to fix this.  I care more about this never happening again than what ever may happen to Zimmerman.  Working towards change is the best response to this tragedy.  That is how you cherish the memory of those who have passed.  Rest in peace, Trayvon Martin.

Artwork by Demar Douglas

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

–Martin Luther King, Jr.