The Boogie Man

Is Alive

To the Editor:

After reading the opinion piece “Fanning The Flames Of Racial Division,” [Letter Hive, 4/27/12] I felt compelled to respond as I found Mr Narel’s perspective disturbing on several levels.

It is not a question of whether the murders of Robert and Nancy Strait were more or less tragic than that of Mr Martin; and consequently, more or less deserving of media coverage. The media coverage spotlights the fact that despite the indications of a post-racial America, the boogie man is alive, and living under the bed. Mr Narel says as much in his letter, but divorces this basic fact from the issue at hand.

I am a black man, and I live on a dead-end road. I walk for exercise and I own several hooded sweatshirts. If Connecticut had a similar law, and I happened to be walking home behind someone who had a destination on my street, that person would have a right to kill me if he felt threatened by my presence. That bothers me.

I believe that the crimes committed by Tyrone Woodfork and George Zimmerman should both be fairly prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. For Mr Woodfork, this ranges from a sentence of life imprisonment to the death penalty (and rightfully so). Mr Zimmerman has a much wider range of options. If the incident is deemed proper, under the stand your ground law, Mr. Zimmerman will not serve any jail time. Even if the second degree murder charge stands, Mr Zimmerman’s attorneys will likely use the excusable homicide defense. Ironically, if I were a juror on Mr Zimmerman’s case and charged with determining innocence or guilt based on the letter of the law, and in the absence of any other pertinent information, I would likely vote ‘Not Guilty,” because that’s the law. And that’s the problem.

For the record: President Obama did not state that he would like a son like Trayvon Martin, he said “If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon.”

Konrad K Miller

72 Forest Drive, Sandy Hook                                          April 29, 2012