Washington, D.C. – Members of the Project 21 black leadership network
are analyzing the legal aspects of the George Zimmerman verdict and
commenting on the implications:
Horace Cooper
“While I’m thrilled with this outcome, it should never have come to
this. This case should never have been brought forward. The grand jury
should never have been bypassed and Judge Nelson should never have
allowed this case to get this far. There’s a reason the investigating
officer refused to support an arrest, there’s a reason the state’s
attorney refused to prosecute and there’s a reason the grand jury was
bypassed. There was no substantial evidence corroborating the state’s
case and a whole heck of evidence supporting Mr. Zimmerman. The rush to
arrest and indict Zimmerman merely to appease the media or race-based
interest groups not only jeopardized Mr. Zimmerman’s rights and liberty,
but the precedent suggests that all of our rights could be infringed.”
-Cooper, the co-chairman of Project 21, is a former law professor and former congressional leadership staff member.
Darryn “Dutch” Martin
“It goes without saying that a 17-year-old child is dead, and this
verdict – though just and correct in my view – will not bring him back.
My heart goes out to his family and loved ones. But it needs to be
understood that the case against George Zimmerman for the death of
Trayvon Martin was not supposed to be about race. It was always about
self-defense. Zimmerman’s defense team proved this and the jury
concurred. Justice has been served. Now, let’s pray that cooler heads
prevail.”
-Martin, a member of Project 21, is a former member of the American diplomatic corps.
Lisa Fritsch
“Despite a not guilty verdict, we must remember that George Zimmerman
is not truly free. This trial will forever remain in his mind for his
remaining days. Our hope should be that this trial and verdict will
unite the Florida community and this country and be a healing testimony
to what happens when we think the worst of one another first. In this
case, it felt as if our very country were on trial for racial prejudice.
The not guilty verdict should make us reflect on what it means to give
the benefit of the doubt before judging harshly and deciding one’s
actions are racially motivated. The final question for every community
is how we can protect our youth from a system of violence and a
lifestyle that nearly guarantees they will find trouble. Zimmerman,
Trayvon Martin’s family and more urban Americans will hopefully use this
case and verdict as an opportunity to correct that system.”
-Fritsch is a member of Project 21 as well as a tea party activist, author and talk radio host.
Hughey Newsome
“Everything about the verdict can be wrapped up by considering the
post-verdict comments of Zimmerman attorney Mark O’Mara. While many may
feel that O’Mara’s comment about charges not being filed against
Zimmerman if Zimmerman were black may seem insensitive and oblivious,
his subsequent comments about the need for a civil rights discussion in
regards to African-American males are timely despite his feeling it is
irrelevant to this case. Those saying the value placed on an
African-American male is diminished in today’s society must now ask
themselves, if this is believed to be true, what is causing this
phenomenon? So many in the media and entertainment industries seem to
profit off perpetuating the image of the African-American male as
violent and sexual animals, but this is then ignored in order to
complain about overt racism that is mostly marginalized in today’s
society. This gets us no closer to solving the problem at hand.”
-Newsome, a Project 21 member, is a financial expert and also the
Washington representative for the Move-On-Up.Org black political
organization.
Emery McClendon
“We must stop looking at issues from a racial context and stand
together as one America – with God as our strength. To use a familiar
phrase these days, let’s not stay ‘stuck on stupid’ and move on to heal
our land. We have so much to be thankful for. For too long, people such
as the NAACP’s Ben Jealous and Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson have spoke
out in hate and ignorance and found placement in the media. It’s time to
stop the madness. We must turn the tide. If we put as much time into
restoring our Constitution as we did into the Zimmerman trial, America
would be a better place for all of us.”
-McClendon is a Project 21 member and tea party activist.
Project 21 was formed in 1992 when the riots following the
verdict in the Rodney King case revealed a need to highlight the
diversity of opinion within the black community. For over 20 years, the
volunteer members of the Project 21 black leadership network have
provided conservative and free-market perspectives that, until that
time, were largely unknown or ignored by the establishment media.
During the course of the Zimmerman trial, which was heard in the
Seminole County (Florida) Circuit Court, Project 21 members provided
commentary and continue to be available for interviews about the case
and the issues surrounding it. Project 21 regularly issued press
releases featuring quotes from its members on the breaking news about
the trial and the controversies surrounding it.
Project 21, a leading voice of black conservatives since 1992, is
sponsored by the National Center for Public Policy Research
(http://www.nationalcenter.org).
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