Trayvon Martin

Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old black teenager was shot by George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old Florida man. Zimmerman was carrying a 9 millimeter handgun, Martin was carrying a bag of Skittles and a can of iced tea. Marin weighed 140 pounds, Zimmerman weighs 250 pounds. Zimmerman was in his car, Martin was walking on the street. After the shooting, he told police he shot the ten in self-defense, and police say they have no evidence to refute his story. 

Over the past 14 months, Zimmerman repeatedly called 911, and in several instances warned of “suspicious persons” who, like Trayvon Martin, happened to be black. The six newly released 911 calls, none of which relate to the Martin shooting, show Zimmerman worried more than once about unknown persons walking through the neighborhood.

It is a tragedy. I cannot imagine why Zimmerman shot Martin. Not only a kid that is much thinner than him, but also Zimmerman was in his car while Martin was walking and carrying a bag, and then, the person in the car shot the kid.

When Zimmerman pursued Martin against the explicit instructions of the police dispatcher, the dispatcher had told him they did not need Zimmerman to follow Martin.

In some degree, I think Zimmerman should be in charged.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/23/obama-makes-first-comments-on-trayvon-martin-shooting

http://www.newsmax.com/US/Zimmerman-Trayvon-Sanford-Baxley/2012/03/23/id/433671

Ending the R-word

In my opinion, the R-word is considered the way of racial slurs by most people nowadays. It seriously hurts people that  have intellectual disability. Though every one of us knows it is a demeaning word. On this point, intellectual disability still carries a subconscious cultural taboo which attaches to the word used to describe it. Obviously, the R-word is different from other words about disability.

"It starts with thinking about a word, but I want it to translate into the way people treat others with disabilities," Seidman said.
I agree with her. I think even if we translate this word into another word, the most important thing is to change the view to intellectual disability by us.

The bill changed the terms "mental retardation" to "intellectual disability" and "mentally retarded individual" to "individual with an intellectual disability." This shift made the terms more consistent with language already used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United Nations, and the White House. Currently, 43 states have passed similar legislation or have similar bills pending, according to the Special Olympics.
But policy is just one part of the strategy. The much larger goal targets social stigma and negative perceptions surrounding people with intellectual disabilities.

If the R-word is banned, it is still a English word, primarily, we should change the way that we use it and think of it.