I must admit ever since this tragedy and abortion of justice has happened, I wanted to look closer at Sanford and it's own little world of hatred. The results were astonishing
from a long history of racism.
I missed this diary in 2012 that was spotlighted and I wish we had demanded this prosecutor change the venue.....I am linking it here again.
http://www.dailykos.com/...
I knew it was like most small towns in the south but never realized it had this kind of hatred.. Jackie Robinson and Sanford..Robinson, who actually paved the way into the civil rights movement had quite an ordeal there.
Jackie Robinson in 1946 On October 23, 1945, the Brooklyn Dodgers announced that they had signed Jackie Robinson assigning him to their International League team, the Montreal Royals.
Branch Rickey, Brooklyn Dodgers General Manager believing he "knew" Florida, thought his team could train there ruffling as few feathers as possible. Robinson and his wife were instructed by Rickey not to try to stay at any Sanford hotels. He and his wife didn’t eat out at any restaurants not deemed “Negro restaurants." He didn't even dress in the same locker room as his teammates.
As soon as the citizenry became aware of Robinson's presence, the mayor of Sanford was confronted by a "large group of white residents" who "demanded that Robinson...be run out of town."
On March 5, 1946, the Royals were informed that they would not be permitted to take the field as an integrated group. Rickey was concerned for Robinson’s life and sent him to stay in Daytona Beach. His daughter, Sharon Robinson, remembered being told, "The Robinsons were run out of Sanford, Florida, with threats of violence."
In his 1993 book, "A Hard Road to Glory: A History Of The African American Athlete: Baseball" tennis great Arthur Ashe wrote in response, Rickey "moved the entire Dodger pre-season camp from Sanford, Florida, to Daytona Beach due to the oppressive conditions of Sanford."
This info came from Wikepedia and then I looked at the demographics and no one can convince me that There were no black jurors available ? Please...tell me where this AA population is...Are they all locked up or just living in fear and don't vote? I don't know but here is the chart.
2010 53,570 39.9%
Est. 2011 53,926 0.7%
2010 census
2011 estimate
Sanford Demographics
2010 U.S. Census Sanford Seminole County Florida
Total population 53,570 422,718 18,801,310
Population, percent change, 2000 to 2010 +39.9% +15.8% +17.6%
Population density 2,333.4/sq mi 1,367.0/sq mi 350.6/sq mi
White or Caucasian 57.3% 78.2% 75.0%
Black or African-American 30.5% 11.1% 16.0%
Hispanic or Latino 20.2% 17.1% 22.5%
Asian 2.8% 3.7% 2.4%
Native American or Native Alaskan 0.5% 0.3% 0.4%
Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian 0.1% 0.1% 0.1%
Two or more races (Multiracial) 3.3% 2.9% 2.5%
Other 5.4% 3.6% 3.6%
And more about Sanford and it's beautful fair city (snark)
Sanford sits near the northern end of the I-4 Corridor between Daytona Beach and Orlando. The Central Florida GreeneWay (officially Seminole Expressway or simply SR 417 along its Seminole County portion) begins in Sanford at Interstate 4 and forms the Eastern Beltway around Orlando ending at Walt Disney World. When it opened it was the most expensive toll road in the United States costing $5 one way end-to-end.
Now don't tell me that the State Prosecutor did not know this history.. She , Angela Corey had to know this history. She did not ask for a change of venue. Now I am even more angry. Charlie Grapski posted on his FB last night that Tallahassee and Angela Corey's office along with every state, local and federal legislator's office needed protestors to be visible and peacefully descend upon these offices to peacefully protest and in every meeting of city councils to try and make Florida get right. A huge presence would make some folks look at SYG and other hate filled aspects of the state.
CNN now has posted an article about the past and it's tensions..
http://www.cnn.com/...
I would think some folks are wondering more and more about The St. Johns river. I am. How many of Sanford's black citizens now occupy that river with this kind of hate.
Sanford reminds me of Bull Conner's Birmingham and Florida is now competing with the hate of Alabama in the 60's. This is not broadstroking... That juror last night expressed her feelings of the prominent citizen George Zimmerman when she said, " He has a good heart". Words to that effect. Too bad, Trayvon Martin had his shot up with a 9 MM.