Ignoring race a mistake in Zimmerman trial  July 20, 2013   In a
misguided attempt to avoid a discussion of race in the criminal
case against George Zimmerman, the State of Florida created the
conditions for a miscarriage of justice.  Race was an important
factor in Trayvon Martin’s death, not just factually but legally
as well. The state’s attempt to de-racialize the case made it
impossible for the jury to determine properly Zimmerman’s
criminal liability for Martin’s death. Florida’s Stand Your
Ground law was not the principal problem.  Self-defense is a
fundamental right, universally recognized in every American
state. Generally, the principle underlying this right is that
when a person is threatened unlawfully with imminent harm, he
has a right to use whatever force is necessary to defend
himself; if the unlawful threat is deadly, the person threatened
has a right to respond in kind.  Stand Your Ground laws alter
these principles by eliminating any need for the person
threatened with unlawful harm to retr