Trayvon Martin Sunday

Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin's mother, was the honorary guest today at Saint Paul A.M.E Church, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where my daughter visits to sing with the youth choir once a month. While Ms. Fulton was only able to attend the first service (I was at the second), I was told she gave very brief but powerful words to the congregants.

Pastor Rev. Melvin E. Wilson had asked everyone to don a hoodie to the services in remembrance of Trayvon. I had to admit that at first I was a bit taken aback. The only times I wear a hoodie is when I'm home working on my motorcycle or other manual labor. This was Sunday, going to church with my daughter. We'd both be wearing hoodies.

The first thought in my head was, I really don't want to be DWB today, not even by chance, not with my kid in the car. But then I thought, there really isn't anything inherently wrong with wearing a hoodie. It's just the fear of becoming a target (e.g. KWB). So, I had another conversation with my daughter (at her level), about who Trayvon was, who killed him, and why he got killed. We also talked about being perceived as being a treat because of one's appearance, including skin color, and how to mitigate that.

In the service it was remarkable to see three and four generations of congregants, of all backgrounds, with hoodies. Professor Chales Ogeltree gave the word (i.e. sermon) for the second service; focusing on remembering Travyon and those before him (e.g. Emmett Till), honoring Trayvon by understanding the laws of our municipalities, to listen to and teach our children about "the rough side of the mountain", and not letting our fears keep them in the dark about the realities of life they ought to be aware of. Unfortunately, my son is too young to understand at the level of his sister. However, I've kept the church program, so we can start to have the conversation, one hoodie at a time.