Hoodies up AZ: Justice for Trayvon Rally - Jenny in Phoenix

My good friend, Donna, asked me to say ‘a couple of words' about the Hoodies up AZ: Justice for Trayvon Rally in Phoenix yesterday. She should know by now that it's impossible for me to say just ‘a couple of words’ but I will do my best not to ramble too terribly much.

It was a very peaceful rally, focused on Community and looking out for each other -- looking out for the children and making sure that the young black men in the community are not putting themselves in harm's way.  Although most of the speeches were directed at our dark skinned brothers and sisters, I, as a white Anglo Saxon, was made to feel included in the community. As much as I wish I could say we are all color blind, I don't think it is realistic to say that will ever happen. That said, I wanted to focus on what happened after the rally. And, specifically, how it was presented by the media. Not that it was presented in a bad light. It wasn't. But it was definitely presented from the White perspective.

After the rally a small group of my white anglo Saxon friends and I were catching up with each other when a reporter from a local news station came up and shoved a microphone in front of my friend Sasha's face. The petite Caucasian reporter proceeded to ask her a series of questions about why she was there. Later, when I got home Sasha had posted the following status:

Reminder To Self: If you're white, and you show up in solidarity at an anti-racism event organized by people of color, you will draw news cameras to you like flies to honey. Thus, it might behoove you to either do your homework in advance so that you are on-message and don't accidentally obstruct the movement or learn how to politely but firmly redirect the interviewers toward the ENTIRE PLAZA FULL OF OTHER PEOPLE (many of whom know a great deal more about racism than you do because they actually experience it every day) for an interview instead so that white folks, as usual, are not the ones framing the issue in our media.

Councilman Michael Johnson -- read about what happened to him

Hmmm. The thought hadn't occurred to me at the time.  I commented that I'm sure they interviewed some dark skinned people as well, and it's good to show the issue from all perspectives. Well, you guessed it. I checked that stations' website this morning, and sure enough, there was only one person interviewed, and sure enough, it was my 20 something white friend. Another of Sasha's friends commented that one of the other news stations only showed an interview with a Caucasian, as well.

Yes, our justice system is out of whack. But as long as racial issues are presented only from the White perspective, can we truly make progress? Then again, maybe it takes a white person speaking against racial injustice to validate the issue for mainstream White America. All I know is this, there's lots of work to do, and it will take a community of all colors, sizes, and shapes, to balance the American scale of justice.  And maybe we need to help the media become a bit more balanced, as well.

Post Script: I went back to the local news stations' website tonight, and was pleased to see they had updated their page with a second report, including an interview with a person of color. I felt the two interviews complimented each other quite nicely.
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Jenny Jones is a wife, mother, grandmother, full time job working citizen and a fabulous friend.