Trayvon Martin's Mother Speaks Out Against Racial Profiling
NEW YORK CITY (CBSMiami) – After the shooting death of her 17-year old son, Trayvon Martin's mother has spoken out against the practice of stop-and-frisk and racial profiling on Sunday.
The law gives police the right to stop and question anyone, even if they aren't doing anything wrong. Critics said the stops frequently target blacks and Hispanics.
Sybrina Fulton, Martin's mother, said no one should have the right to stop someone based only on their race.
"You can't give people the authority, whether civilian or police officers the right to just stop somebody because of the color of their skin," Fulton said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Over the past decade, New York police have stopped and sometimes patted down about 5 million people. Eighty-seven percent were reportedly black or Hispanic and about ten percent led to an arrest or summons. Police find weapons a fraction of the time.
Earlier in the week a judge also spoke out about the policy, calling it racial discrimination.
Although New York City plans to appeal the law, some people feel that it is beneficial.
New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly defended the stop-and-frisk law Sunday. He said violent crimes would increase if police didn't do the practice.
"The losers in this, if this case is allowed to stand, are people who live in minority communities," said Kelly on CBS' "Face the Nation."
Fulton also said that that George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who killed her son, "got away with murder" because of Florida's self-defense law.
Protesters had been occupying part of the Capitol in Tallahassee, calling for an examination of the Florida law since Zimmerman was acquitted last month. Zimmerman claimed self-defense in shooting the 17-year-old Martin during a fight; Martin's supporters say Zimmerman profiled and followed him because Martin was black.
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