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Trayvon Martin: Zimmerman Charged With Second-Degree Murder


UPDATE: According to the AP, George Zimmerman will be charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman is reportedly in custody in Florida.

PERVIOUSLY: According to the Washington Post:

Florida special prosecutor Angela Corey plans to announce as early as this afternoon that she is charging neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, according to a law enforcement official close to the investigation.

It was not immediately clear what charge Zimmerman will face.

We have lots of opinions about the Trayvon Martin case on our site. As we wait to hear from officials about the charges, dig in and let us know what your opinion is:

Five Powerful Trayvon Martin Cartoons

Cartoon collection: Dangerous Hoodies

Zimmerman’s Legal Counsel Withdraws From Trayvon Martin Case

Gary McCoy: Black Panthers And Trayvon

Jason Stanford: Republicans Don’t Seem Ready For A Post-Racial America

In Defense of George Zimmerman?

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Dangerous Hoodies

The Trayvon Martin case continues to be tried on cable television instead of in a courtroom. In one of the most outlandish comments involved with this whole tradegy, Fox News host Geraldo Rivera said he thought the hoodie Trayvon wore the night he was shot was as much responsible for his death as the shooter, George Zimmerman.

Rivera has since backed away and apologized for his comments, but cartoonists have already latched onto the visual imagery of the hoodie (including me). Here are some cartoons about this suddenly dangerous piece of attire:

Mike Keefe / Cagle Cartoons (click to view more cartoons by Keefe)
Adam Zyglis / Buffalo News (click to view more cartoons by Zyglis)
Jen Sorensen / PoliticalCartoons.com (click to view more cartoons by Sorensen)
Taylor Jones / Cagle Cartoons (click to view more cartoons by Jones)
Jimmy Margulies / The Record (click to view more cartoons by Margulies)
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Best Cartoons of the Week

Every Friday, we collect the best political cartoons of the week and stuff them into one big, glorious slideshow.

So just relax and catch up on a week’s worth of news with our Best Cartoons of the Week slideshow.

Pat Bagley / Salt Lake Tribune (click to start slideshow)
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In Defense of George Zimmerman?

Ever since the media latched on to the Trayvon Martin killing (view our collection of Trayvon Martin cartoons here), they seem to be certain of one thing – George Zimmerman, the neighbor watch man who shot the Florida teenager, is guilty of murder.

Most cartoonists have focused on the tragedy of Trayvon’s death, but Michael McParlane went a different direction and focused on the media’s newfound role and judge, jury and exuctioner:

I asked Michael his thoughts, and here’s what he emailed me:

Debates are rampant over whether or not the same backlash would be exhibited if this were a black on black murder. Large groups of people can effect dramatic change, but where are the current protestors, and carpetbaggers, when the crime is not deemed “racist”?

Does he have a point?

RELATED: Five Powerful Trayvon Martin Cartoons

Cartoonist Criticizes Obama for Politicizing Trayvon Martin Murder

My Trayvon Cartoon

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Five Powerful Trayvon Martin Cartoons

As the Trayvon Martin case continues to unfold, a lot of unanswered questions remain about the tragic death of the Florida teenager. As a result, cartoonists have been fine-tuning their thoughts about the shooting. Everything from hoodies to skittles have entered the fray, as well as President Obama’s comment that if he had a son, he’d look like Trayvon (which our conservative cartoonist Gary McCoy mocked as politicizing the event).

I’ve shared my own cartoon and thoughts about the shooting, so I thought I’d post five powerful cartoons about Trayvon, drawn by the nation’s top cartoonists…

Taylor Jones / Cagle Cartoons (click to view more cartoons by Jones)
Rick McKee / Augusta Chronicle (click to view more cartoons by McKee)
R.J. Matson / St. Louis Post-Dispatch (click to view more cartoons by Matson)
Mr. Fish / PoliticalCartoons.com (click to view more cartoons by Mr. Fish)
J.D. Crowe / Mobile Press-Register (click to view more cartoons by Crowe)
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Cartoonist Criticizes Obama for Politicizing Trayvon Martin Murder

Leave it to our conservative rabble-rouser Gary McCoy to rile up our readers yet again. Fresh off the heels of his Sandra Fluke cartoon controversy, McCoy’s most recent cartoon calls out the President for politicizing the murder of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin…

I’ve asked Gary to write something about the cartoon, and here’s what he sent me:

And so it goes… I do a cartoon on President Obama politicizing the Trayvon Martin death, and thousands of spastic, hyperventilating leftists reached for their inhalers in unison, collectively raising CO2 levels, and melting the polar ice caps. All the while I celebrate their anger sitting in my comfy arm chair and watching the ice melt in my glass of scotch, with a warm, smug grin on my face.

Why is it that my conservative editorializing rubs liberals raw like Rosie O’Donnell’s bicycle shorts? What we have here is our country’s most narcissistic president ever, unable to keep from making every major story about him if at all possible (unless it’s high gas prices, a still sluggish economy, high unemployment, etc.). The Trayvon Martin story is about a black teen that was tragically shot by a neighborhood watch volunteer. Those are about the only facts we know for certain. The shooter, Mr. Zimmerman has not been tried in any court of law to have been found guilty of anything. As of now, we do not know if he was justifiably defending himself or acting outside the rule of law. Yet every Supreme Court Justice wannabe is posting with certainty like this is the next Dred Scott case. The bizarreness of Obama stating that if he had a son, he would look like Trayvon is nearly unfathomable. Yes, Mr. President, we know you’re black (half black technically), but really, what’s your point? Mr. “let’s all come together, and not make race an issue” can’t seem to keep from waving his giant, novelty, double-laminated race card whenever he smells political opportunism wafting in the air.

I can always tell when my critics have no substantive argument to make in their defense, for that’s when the shallow charges of “horrible cartoonist” and “racist” start to fly. The latter of which is a hilarious label on a guy who married outside his race and has a bi-racial child. But I guess when you’re tutoring a kindergarten class, you’ve got to leave the slide rule at home and bring the crayons instead.

Here are what some readers had to say about the cartoon:

Betty C.: “Don’t see any humor in this cartoon! Disgusting to say the least about the content!”

Debbie C.: “This is a racist hateful cartoon…there is freedom in this country to be able to say things like this, however, this is a bad bad cartoon.”

e-socrates: “Oh no, politically incorrect speech! Time for the jackbooted boycott vigilantes to put a stomp to this! Go get ’em Blackshirts!”

Bridget R.: “I’ll play devils advocate and ask anyone to give me an example of other presidents talking in the media about a local murder case. I’ll wait.”

Tom H.: “This is one of the most disgusting cartoons I’ve ever seen. The cartoonist should be deeply ashamed of himself.”

Nomorenicksleft: “If Zimmerman had only ordered a drone strike on Trayvon without due process, Obama would have rubberstamped it.”

WhiteDawg: “Breitbart was a despicable individual, but at least he came up with some of his own material. McCoy is just trying to illustrate Rush Limbaugh’s thoughts as offensively as possible.”

What do you think of the cartoon? Let us know by commenting below, or leaving a note on our Facebook page.

 

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My Trayvon Cartoon

I hate drawing cartoons about crime, and I didn’t really want to get involved in the arguments about the shooting of Trayvon Martin, so I just drew a sad, wordless image. It is interesting how the hoodie, Arizona Iced Tea and Skittles have become so well known that no explanation is necessary.

The grander message I see in all of this is that guys who should never have guns, should never get guns; regrettably, I don’t hear many of the talking heads on TV coming to that conclusion.  See more Trayvon Shooting cartoons here.

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Cartoons

Trayvon

Trayvon © Daryl Cagle,MSNBC.com,race,african american,black,Crime,Race,Trayvon Martin,hoodie,Arizona Iced Tea,Skittles,Sanford,Florida,George Zimmerman

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Best Political Cartoons Of The Week

Every Friday, we collect the best political cartoons of the week and stuff them into one big, glorious slideshow.

So just relax and catch up on a week’s worth of news with our Best Cartoons of the Week slideshow.

Nate Beeler / Washington Examiner (click to start slideshow)
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Trayvon Martin Cartoons

Outrage over the Trayvon Martin shooting is spreading as marchers took to the streets in New York City and Miami demanding the arrest of the shooter, neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman. Three weeks ago, the unarmed Martin was shot in a gated subdivision outside of Orlando by Zimmerman, who claimed self-defense under the “Stand Your Ground” law, which expands the right to claim self-defense beyond the home in Florida…

Jeff Parker / Florida Today (click to view more cartoons by Parker)

Our own Jeff Parker, the staff cartoonist for Florida Today, drew the cartoon above about the shooting and wrote on his blog:

“Armed with Florida’s flawed “stand your ground” laws, Zimmerman remains free as police, and now the feds, sift the facts concerning the killing of a “suspicious” teen armed only with iced tea and Skittles.”

Here are some of the cartoons that have come in about this tragic event…

Bill Day / Cagle Cartoons (click to view more cartoons by Day)
Jimmy Margulies / The Record (click to view more cartoons by Margulies)
Randall Enos / Cagle Cartoons (click to view more cartoons by Enos)
Dave Granlund / PoliticalCartoons.com (click to view more cartoons by Granlund)