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Patrice Ellerbe, Staff WriterLast Modified: 01:15 a.m. DST, 9 February 2014

Time is constantly changing. Fashion trends die down and recreate themselves, electronics get more and more sophisticated, and murderers become celebrities! And yes, you read that right; murderers become celebrities.

Rumors have been circulating, and confirmed, that George Zimmerman has been considered for the Celebrity Boxing match, by promoter, Damon Feldman. According to the Huffington Post, “Zimmerman wants to get in the boxing ring with celebrity rapper, Kanye West because of the rapper’s alleged altercations with ‘defenseless people’”; and by defenseless people, Zimmerman is referring to the paparazzi and a “fan” that screamed the n-word at Kim Kardashian, West’s finacee. Note, the “defenseless people” chose to partake in their actions. If those are Zimmerman’s examples of defenseless people, Kanye can be labeled the same. Although it has been stated that it has been confirmed Zimmerman would like to participate in the celebrity showdown, these accusations have to make you wonder if this is true or not.

On the day of Trayvon Martin’s birthday, February 5, 2014, poet, author, and activist, Olivia A. Cole, posted “10 Reasons You Shouldn’t Watch the George Zimmerman Boxing Match”. In a nut shell, Cole’s reasons included:

1. Viewers would be financially supporting Zimmerman, “the man who murdered Trayvon Martin”.

2. Viewers would be guaranteed to see Zimmerman’s face “until the end of time”; stating he would get another boxing match deal post the fight with Kanye West, creating exposure and leading to a reality show.

3. Repeats reason number one.

4. The celebrity match would be promoted by a man that was charged with “fixing celebrity boxing matches and promoting without a license”

5. Repeats reason number one and three.

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Published: 9 February 2014 (Page 2 of 2)

6. The boxing match will change nothing and bring no justice.

7. Repeats reason numbers one, three, and five.

8. By watching, viewers will be agreeing that a murderer is a celebrity, meaning he has done something worth celebrating

9. Repeats reasons number one, three, five, and seven.

10. Speaks only for itself: “And ten. This is the most important point. By watching this boxing match, by giving in to the notion that George Zimmerman is indeed a celebrity, you are accepting the subtle message that what Zimmerman did does deserve to be celebrated. By resting your eyes on the program for one moment, you are accepting that black boys who are murdered before their 18th birthdays don’t deserve justice at all, that their murderers should be allowed to profit from their crimes. By allowing George Zimmerman onto your television screen, you are contributing to a world in which the death of a black boy is one soulless scene in a shiny reality show; one meaningless event on a path to fame and fortune.”

Cole closes out her post pleading with her readers to not watch this boxing match. She explains how viewers will be glorifying a man that got away with murder, and her greatest wishes were for him to be alone in this world while Trayvon Martin is in his grave.

It is shameful that George Zimmerman, the man who was found innocent in the most controversial trial of 2013, murdering 17-year old Trayvon Martin, whom was only armed with a bag of Skittles candy and Arizona Iced Tea, would even be considered for anything within the public’s eye.

According to The Huffington Post, Damon Feldman stated, “All these rappers out here saying that they want to fight [Zimmerman]… So we’ll see who comes on board”; As if the trial was a game for Zimmerman, and he now can have fun with the outcome. How fun will it be to get in the ring with the murderer of a teen? How can the judicial system even allow such a high profile client to do something this public and drastic? There are so many questions that come to mind when reading such an article and finding out there is even a possibility Zimmerman could hold the title of a celebrity.

However, it appears that Americans have not lost all sense of decorum, and as of seven hours ago, BET and The Huffington Post among other news outlets have reported the the boxing match scheduled between DMX and Zimmerman has been cancelled following an anemic apology by Feldman in which he caveats his decision by stating "though it meant a lot of money for me, people's feelings meant more to me." Usually the first thing out of person's mouth is a true barometer of their innermost thoughts, and thus we can deduce that Travyon Martin and his family was less important to him than the money he was losing by having the cancel the match.

Check out "10 Reasons You Shouldn't Watch the George Zimmerman Boxing Match" by Olivia A. Cole

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Twitter: @nahmias_report Staff Writer: @PatriceEllerbe