To Trayvon's Girlfriend

Dearest Child,

While all of the country is standing up against the horrible murder of Trayvon, I have been thinking of the suffering and anguish you must be going through. There has been little mention of you in the news except in reference to your phone call with him just prior to his murder. I want you to know that you are not forgotten. You, too, are an innocent victim of this terrible tragedy.

I am wrapping love around you and sending you all the comfort I can muster. I cannot imagine being on the phone with my beloved and know she is trying to get away from an unknown pursuer. I cannot bear to even think about what it would feel like to hear her being accosted and have the phone go dead.  I cannot bear the thought of not knowing where she was or what happened to her for three unforgivable days, only then to learn she was shot to death because of her race. I cannot imagine how heartbroken you must be. You are so young and should never have to go through this, not now, nor anytime in your precious life.

There has been so much progress toward ending discrimination and these things make my heart heavy. I remember when I was a young girl in the 1960s we went down south for vacation. I saw signs for "Whites Only" and worse things I won't disrespect you with. I heard the racial slurs, I saw the hatred. I saw Dr. Martin Luther King help to change things. I learned about Rosa Parks bravely taking a seat in a bus. I was shocked and angered by the lynchings and the violence I read about or saw on TV. I remember learning about Emmet Till.

I know we have come so far since the days of slavery, and the murder of your boyfriend shows us how far we still have to go. There are millions of people who are outraged by this, people of all races, religions, sexual orientation, classes, nationalities. We all stand behind you and your family, Trayvon and his family. We all stand against this hatred. There was a time no one would have said a thing about this. Today millions are outraged and making their voices heard. I hope in months to come that this gives you some hope for a better future.

As we make great changes in our society and become a more tolerant and accepting nation as a whole, those who wish to remain as oppressors and bigots will become more loud because they are a dying breed. Their hatred will boil over and there will be tragedy. I don't know what to do about that.

Please know that you are not forgotten and that I and many others are sending you our deepest love and comfort. I hope that you can gain some strength from knowing there are so many people who are with you in your time of grief and sorrow. Also know that I and many others will never stop fighting for change in this land, for equality and freedom for all.

I know you will never see this letter, but I believe that simply by writing and putting it out their for others to read and share, the love will find its way into your heart. Take good care of yourself. You are the child of all of us and we love you.

With deepest sympathy,
Barb