Image: Zeriba Media
Tracy Martin was the featured guest at a fireside conversation hosted by Fathers Incorporated’s CEO, Kenneth Braswell on Friday, August 9 at Pittsburgh Yards. Treyvon Martin, who was shot and died in Florida in 2012, is the son of Mr. Tracy Martin. In his opening remarks at the event, Kenneth Braswell said, “Many of the Black men in this city are still not awake to their strength in the community. They could be out there showing their strength by voting, mentoring, coaching, or volunteering to show the next generation the path to a better life. All these things are what we are about in helping to develop this community. We would love to know that people are equipped to do what they are supposed to do when they are out there.”
Kweku Forstall, Atlanta Civic Site director with the Annie E. Casey Foundation said, “We need every member of the community to be adding value; fathers are often excluded because of the way that the system is set up—the education system, the incarceration system, the social services. They tend to marginalize and exclude fathers. The result is that this takes power from the community, which we cannot afford to give up. We are happy to be here and see these men move into positions where they can uplift themselves, their families, and the community.”
Leading the conversation with Tracy was Fathers Incorporated’s president of the Board, Bishop Darren Ferguson. In his opening, he mentioned that he had a picture of Tracy embracing Treyvon, which has now become an iconic image. It now represents the embodiment of fatherhood as we know it in this society today. At the beginning of the conversation, Tracy stated that before 2012, no one knew who Treyvon was, but now he is woven into the fabric of society. Tracy said that his grandfather was not the most educated person in the world, but he imparted to him the knowledge that you can mentally remove yourself from your environment just by the way you look at things.
Here is what he had to say:
I had to rely on his teachings when my son was killed. I could have said, let’s tear this place up when they took my son, but sitting back and thinking about it, I thought, what good will that do, I still have other kids and family members that need support. I will be locked up in jail, and my son will still be dead. Not only that, but I’ve been providing for my family since I was eighteen years old. At that moment, hasty action was not going to solve this systematic problem. When you have a responsibility for supporting others, that changes the values that you adhere to and how you act on things. That understanding played a huge part in how I responded to my son’s killing. When the incident happened, there was only about twelve seconds of airtime on the news. I recall telling the Sanford Police, let’s get my baby back home; have the funeral, and I’ll be back.
There is this false narrative that Black fathers are not in their children’s lives. This showed up when we were selecting a jury for the trial, when a Caucasian woman said, “If you were in your son’s life, this would not have happened.” That was disturbing, as I was always in my child’s life. In reality, the statistics are very different. I joke with other brothers sometimes, saying to them, I love you Bro. We get so bottled up sometimes, and it’s just a way to get out of this shell. There is this thing where you are not supposed to show your weakness or reach out for professional help. I needed help at the time of my grief, and I encourage other men to reach out for help when they need it. Counseling really helped me a lot during those times.
My father was an ordained minister, and the element of prayer was a major player in the keeping of my sanity. Having a strong family support system was not just important, but necessary during that time. My wife has been holding me down from the hour that my son was killed all the way to today. When you evaluate the situation, some elements of my future have been taken away from me, and it’s hard to reconcile this; just having someone to support you makes a difference. I have an eleven-year-old son now, and I am an open book with him. He learned about Ben Crump from seeing him on television. He learned about Al Sharpton from me being by their side on television. Not only that, but he got more into Obama after seeing the president mention Treyvon’s name on TV. If you’re African American in America, you’ve got to have street smarts and book smarts. You can’t have one without the other. Street smart will get you home, and book smart will get you on top of the world.
Bishop Ferguson asked Tracy, “Since your grief pops up on our timeline every year around the anniversary of your son’s killing, how do you deal with grief?”
He responded, “I get calls all hours of the night, and helping others work through their grief helps me get through mine. We all have our own coping mechanisms. In this process, I will never tell anyone that I know how they feel, as we all digest this in our own way. I did not know your relationship with your child, and that leaves some missing pieces that I would not have in the emotional puzzle. The fact that Treyvon’s name is still resonating around the world with about ninety percent positivity helps me a lot.”
He went on to share, that before the killing of my son, I did not know most of the people like Ben Crump who came to my rescue. After the incident, I did not act with rage or in any reckless manner, and that opened doors for them to be able to help us through the journey to get to where we are today. With someone like Rev. Sharpton or Ben Crump, they were able to bring community energy and media attention at a time that was most helpful and needed. The more they talked, the more people heard and paid more attention to the story, and it brought in others who came in to push for the cause. As the fever for attention grew, it also brought a higher level of dislike from certain segments of the country, but it was also bringing us together as a people. There was always something that brought us together, and Treyvon was that thing this time.
Last updated on August 26, 2024
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