The Economy of Racial Injustice and Fear - Assignment Example

The current American society is full of fear. Both the privileged and the under-privileged live in fear. The pecking order of race and gender determine who can walk where and when (Norton, 1). This paper discusses how the economy of fright reflects the distribution of freedoms in society. The events of the 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin, a black teenager has served as an epitome of the racial injustice that is prevalent in today’s economy. It is worth noting that the killer, George Zimmerman, a white belonging to the privileged class acted out of fear even though the level of his ‘reasonableness’ is subject to arguments.

On the other hand, the killing of Martin has left the blacks, considered underprivileged in the society with much to fear.Racialization is at the center of events surrounding the investigations of the killing of Trayvon Martin. The deliberate fencing of blacks outside the social contract by whites does not come as a surprise bearing in mind the historical path of racism (Smith, 4). However, failure by institutions to promote equality and uplift the position of blacks in society is a major issue of concern.

The recklessness with which the police officers conducted the investigations based on racial metric points to a racial oriented criminal system (Smith, 10). Florida’s stand your ground statute that Zimmerman falls back to for immunity is evidence of laws and executive agencies that are unable to express values consistent with racial equality (Smith, 7).