NEO•GRIOT

Over the weekend, I began to feel incredibly sad and hopeless about the case of Trayvon Martin’s murder. Although the facts seem extremely cut and dry, the fact that Trayvon’s killer, 28-year-old George Zimmerman, still remains free, not having even been arrested, made me angry.

I began thinking about all of the people who were–just a week ago–tweeting, Facebooking, and donating millions of dollars to find LRA leader Joseph Kony, and why they weren’t doing to same to bring Trayvon’s killer to justice.

I mean, I get it.

American black boys and girls aren’t an “exotic” enough cause for some, and when they come up murdered and missing no one but their families seem to care. Just as many don’t the names of Oscar Grant, Aiyana Jones, Danroy Henry, Ramarley Graham, and Jordan Miles, I’m not surprised that most still don’t know about Trayvon.

But instead of remaining helpless, I decided to act.

Faced with these emotions, I took a page from the Kony 2012 playbook. I felt that if more people knew about Trayvon’s story, we could apply pressure to Florida authorities to handle the case fairly. As I began to think of ways to spread the word, it clicked: Use social media.

I took to twitter Friday night and asked all of my followers to tweet their favorite celebrities and urge them spread the word about Trayvon. Although I have just over 1,700 Twitter followers, I figured, if we all spread the word we could potentially reach millions.

Friday night I feverishly tweeted, retweeted, and shared links and other information about Trayvon. With the help of my fellow tweeters, we began gaining traction and caught the eye (and retweets) of celebs like rappers Chuck D, David Banner, and Talib Kweli. Others like Boris Kodjoe, NFL player Dezmon Briscoe, Samuel L. Jackson and John Legend also began spreading the word.

I was amazed. Even though I’m one person, it was clear I can touch someone else and they can touch someone else until out reach grows exponentially.

Because of many in social media keeping Trayvon’s story alive, mainstream news outlets are now covering the case, and it has even gotten the attention of the White House.

So what does this mean for you?

Many of you, like me, were probably disturbed by this incident and inspired to act. But where do you get started? Whether you simply post about Trayvon on your Facebook page, tell people in your neighborhood or begin volunteering with organizations that combat violence, it all helps.

But in case you want more concrete ways to get involved, here’s 3 things you can do today to help get justice for Trayvon Martin:

Hit the tweets: Join me in urging celebs to sign and share the petition to get Florida officials to arrest and prosecute George Zimmerman. They have millions of followers and can quickly spread the word.

• Tweet: Pls sign & RT the petition to bring #TrayvonMartin’s killer 2 justice. His family deserves answers http://chn.ge/xc4oze

Write a letter: Many around the web have decided to start a letter writing campaign, and some have even said they will send empty Skittles wrappers to Chef Bill Lee. Send a letter to Sanford police chef Bill Lee to express your concern about his department’s handling of the case.

• Bill Lee, Chief of Police
• Bill.Lee@sanfordfl.gov
• 407.688.5070 – Office
• 407.688.5071 – Fax

Stay informed: Knowing the facts and educating others about them is key to continuing to spread the word about Trayvon Martin. Visit JusticeforTrayvon.com for more details.

Do you have ideas about how we can mobilize to get justice for Trayvon Martin and other victims? Share!