The Trayvon Martin case has just about everybody talking, and according to Dr. Kushal Bhardwaj, an adjunct professor in the African American Studies department, history seems to be repeating itself.
In 1955, Emmett Till, a young man from Chicago, was visiting his relatives in Mississippi when he allegedly whistled at a woman. As a result, he was beaten so savagely that his face was unrecognizable. He passed away, and his mother chose to leave his casket open at his funeral - she wanted to show the kind of horror and tragedy that had happened.
It happened right at the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. Till was a 14-year-old black male, the woman was white, and a lynch mob was responsible for his murder.
Just over a month ago, Martin, a 17-year-old black male, was shot to death in his neighborhood in Florida. His alleged killer, George Zimmerman, is a 28-year-old white and Hispanic male.
Bhardwaj, who teaches a Hip-Hop and Social Issues class at UB, spoke to The Spectrum about Martin's case and its effect on students and society.
Q: What do you think the campus thinks about the Trayvon Martin case, and how is the campus affected by it?
A:It's surprising to see how many students absolutely did not even know of the incident or his name. The question in much of the community is: Is Trayvon's murder a moment or a movement? And going to a bunch of rallies and seeing them on TV is vastly different, some civil rights leaders are saying, if nothing comes of this.
It is such a litmus test for how very unjust society is. So many students don't even know what has happened with the case, which has yet to even lead to an arrest. Obviously in my class, Hip-Hop and Social Issues, it's so significant given the hip-hop generation, given that it's our generation that rocks the "hoodies." Are you not safe rocking a hoodie? There's so much involved there.
Q: With how it's exploded in the media, and especially on social media, how do you think that's affecting the case in this generation?
A:What's important is that anybody is not tried in the media; you need to be tried in a court of law. And that's important that awareness regarding the incident and the case is raised through social media, but again, it needs to be tried in a court of law.
The question is, and it's been asked by many people involved, if the roles were reversed - if a white dude got shot by a black person, and the black person was on the phone with the cops who told him "don't follow that person," would he not even be arrested? Most people have very clear positions on that issue.
The social media, it raises awareness, and perhaps it can spur us into social action. It's been over a month since his murder, and the arrest has not been made. I think that raises a lot more questions and concerns for society to chew on.
Trayvon's personal history, as well as Zimmerman's personal history, is being scrutinized in the media, and once it becomes a case, we'll see how famous of a case it remains...A Pew research poll revealed that a certain demographic thinks they have heard enough about the Trayvon story. This is interesting because [people are] hearing about it and people [are] having rallies, [but] the alleged killer has still not been arrested. If it's annoying and we're tired of hearing about it, imagine how much that community must be tired of living it.
Q: How do you bring the incident up in your classes? How do you connect it to different types of students?
A:I specialize in making connections. In my pedagogical approach, it has to be analyzed with the "so what?" factor. So what? Do citizens have the right to be judge, jury, and executioner? It cuts directly to the question: How are black males perceived in society? A historical paradox of the fear of black men - how does it tie in my class? Clearly, with hip-hop clothing, language, fashion, and all these things, it provides the direct connection.
Here on campus, I'm sure many professors across disciplines cannot avoid bringing up this case and bringing up this issue. Every professor who touches this on campus, they analyze it through the lens of their discipline. A history professor can chew on it through history - what common threads have we seen regarding the fear and murder of black men, whether by black men themselves or non-blacks?
It's very important to notice - Zimmerman - it's the whole issue of is he Hispanic, Latino, or is he white? Would it be different if Zimmerman was a black person in his own community - all of these important scholarship and intellectual discussions raise questions. And the best professors on campus facilitate the raising of questions regarding this issue.
Anthropologically, professors can dissect it with cultures. Legal scholars are obviously going to look at precedents and other cases that are similar to this - whether it's vigilante justice or criminal watch programs, there's so many questions that are raised by Trayvon's killing.
When something happens to someone, there seems to usually be a pursuit of "did they deserve it?" and character defamation and things of that nature. And I think as a professor, this is the most racially diverse Hip Hop and Social Issues class that I've ever taught. More questions, generative questions are raised. Who is Trayvon to you? Is it like Obama said - is Trayvon your son? Is Trayvon that guy you would date at UB or that guy who's in your physics class? Who is Trayvon to you? Does it resonate with you? Can you identify with the issues being raised?
Q: The case has been described as "racial profiling." Do you think we can really define that, and do you think this case should be described as racial profiling?
A:It's nearly impossible to remove the issue of racial profiling from the Trayvon Martin murder. The facts are that he is a young black male in the "wrong neighborhood," according to reports. And just the idea of a young black man in a hoodie. Am I any less of who I am depending on my garb or my costume? I think it's important to think about, whereas many youth can wear this "hoodie costume," it seems that black youth cannot take off the costume when convenient. It seems to be a treatment in society.
It's important to look at these figures in recent American history, whether it's Trayvon Martin or Amadou Diallo - the African American immigrant in the Bronx who got shot at 41 times, hit 19 times, while reaching for his wallet. Or Trayvon Martin with his Skittles and his iced tea. Whether its by the cops or the meta-cops - whatever Zimmerman fashioned himself to be - it cuts to the questions regarding the fear of young black men. Racial profiling - it's nearly impossible not to see threads or fibers connected to racial profiling.
Q: Is it fair to be focusing on what Trayvon was wearing, when anyone can literally choose that piece of clothing?
A:In 1903, W.E.B. DuBois wrote about the "veil," that the black man is seen in society through a veil. It was such a metaphor for "you don't see me, you see me through a veil." Is the hoodie the new veil - is it the living embodiment of the fact that you still don't see me, you see this? Everyone does wear hoodies, but it's scary to see how the person inside the hoodie is treated differently.
I think it's a very powerful thing at these rallies when people are wearing hoodies. Hoodie is short for neighborhood - I'm from the hood, that's my neighborhood. This is creating and questioning definitions of neighborhood...Whose neighborhood do we feel a part of and whose neighborhood we feel safe in? At our best, this can help bring neighborhoods together. If used incorrectly, it can divide neighborhoods further.
Q: Do you think people should go off and do their own reporting - analyzing every little bit of his life and trying to find a reason why this happened or why it's OK?
A:This is both the gift and the curse of the age in which we live - this social media age. There doesn't have to be degrees of authenticity in this blog-crazy society that we live in. When I say authenticity, I mean accuracy. Authentic and accurate information can be sketchy, at best - whether it's attacking the victim or defending the victim.
The power lies in who is projecting the image, who is casting the shadow. And if people are trying to impugn or attack Trayvon's background, the way they shine the light is going to be very decided, very deliberate. It's the blame-the-victim mentality that exists when a woman gets raped - there's the "did he have it coming?" subtext that we see a lot in society. And effective groups start to flesh out. What is this really saying about society, about us, about cops, about race, about neighborhood-watch folk, about the judicial system? Moments like this allow us to raise questions; movements result in repeated action that has concrete outcomes.
Q: If this is a movement instead of a moment, how do you think society will react to moments like this in the future? What can we learn from this?
A:I think as a society, it forces us to think about: When should a murder subject be brought in? How does the judicial system differ in its treatment of citizens? What kind of changes can be created from this moment? Legislative - what kind of laws can we have on the books? Executive - how can cops be more effective or work in conjunction with citizen groups to really ensure citizen safety? Where is the justice in this, followed by justice for whom? And it makes us ask, what about justice for all? Does a citizen deserve a just and fair trial by his peers? Do citizens, or their grieving families, deserve the legal right to have the murderer of their loved one pursued in a court of law?
This is not the first time a black man has been executed. This is not the first time a black man has been murdered, but it is one of the more public ones. For every Trayvon, there are countless stories of lynching and killing. Any worthwhile conversation about Trayvon raises generative questions - questions that ask more questions.
The way we build, as a society, is not only to ask the tough questions, but also to try to answer them - if it creates a change in society in not just how we view each other, but how we treat each other. It's that simple and that complex.
Q: How can college kids keep the conversation going? How can they change things?
A:This is what we're in college for - to study and learn more about ourselves so we can better operate in the broader world. Students doing their own research, not just waiting for classes, to start unearthing and digging into discrepancies in the criminal justice system and legislative and judicial processes.
Do some concrete research - is there any pattern that we're seeing here? What kind of society, do you as a college student, do you want to graduate into? If you have a son, whether an interracial son or not, is your kid safe depending on what "costume" he wears? Very scary questions like that.
People prefer to have opinions than get the facts, and it's easy to have that mantra do the work. We have so many different initiatives here on UB's campus - tapping the resources here on campus to be better informed and better empowered is really how we can benefit and move forward.
Q: Do you think things have changed since the Civil Rights movement?
A:In many ways, yes - we have a black president in office. But we have a black child who was murdered in one of our states. It makes you question notions of progress. It makes society wonder about it.
Q: It's been called a partisan issue - would you call it that, as it is an election year?
A:Depending on the party's motives. Two different sides can discuss the issue - citizen safety, criminal justice. Politicians have a way of manipulating stories for their own political benefit. Common threads across parties seem to be your safety and rights as a citizen. I don't think safety and justice for American citizens should be a partisan issue. Sadly, many politicians are able to manipulate prominent stories for their own political gain. It's going to be interesting to see how this case plays out in the remainder of this election year.
Email: news@ubspectrum.com
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
