Columbus Short pens open letter about Trayvon Martin

theGRIO REPORT - Although it has been over a week since George Zimmerman's acquittal was announced, many people across the nation are still reeling from a verdict that left them feeling stunned, confused and infuriated...

Luther Vandross was outed as gay after his death.

Although it has been over a week since George Zimmerman’s acquittal was announced, many people across the nation are still reeling from a verdict that left them feeling stunned, confused and infuriated.

Actor Columbus Short has expressed some of these same emotions in an open letter he wrote in the aftermath of the verdict and he provides possible solutions to deliver the justice he believes was wrongly applied.

The actor stars as the witty Harrison Wright on ABC’s Scandal, one of Olivia Pope’s (Kerry Washington) most dedicated team-members who works hard to solve some of D.C.’s most intense dilemmas.

Short – who has also appeared in Stomp the Yard and its sequel, Stomp the Yard 2 – now joins a list of celebrities who have spoken out about their thoughts on the Zimmerman trial.

In his letter, he writes:

As I have sat and listened to debate after debate, in depth analysis and tempered opinions on “The Verdict” I couldn’t help but feel helpless, frustrated, hurt and yes, angry. As I plummet into the labyrinth of my mind in search of answers, solutions, or a way I could help subdue the burning desire for things to change, my only recourse was to start writing.

Presume we step back and take pause for a moment. Pause to take a cultural and personal inventory on where we have come as a people. As oppose to being blinded by the present emotional and economical condition of our nation, our community. What if we begin by acknowledging some of the triumphs, rather than becoming consumed solely by the injustice? I ask these questions for one reason being, that if I reflect and remember just how far we’ve come, instead of sitting and stewing over what has happened, I am now ensuring that I am not going to allow this “Decision” to stifle me as a human being nor as a black man in America.

It may seem quite pretentious and easy to hear coming from my heart. However, I assure you I experience the same profiling and discrimination daily regardless of what I happen to do for a living. We must recognize that if we allow this particular ‘lost battle’ in the continuing war, that is ‘Race In America,’ to take us backwards, we will be backtracking and negating the progress that we have already made to date.

Short goes on to express his gratitude to predecessors who fought for the freedom of black Americans today.

He acknowledges that without their efforts, his co-star Washington may have had a more challenging time becoming one of TV’s biggest breakout stars and headlining one of the most-watched shows on television.

“Without those blistered hands and feet it wouldn’t be possible for a black woman to be the lead of a television series on network TV,” he writes. “Without those afraid, yet valiant, warriors, Oprah wouldn’t be one the wealthiest business icons in the world. Tyler Perry wouldn’t have been able to go from homelessness, to providing jobs for a multitude of unrecognized actors and actresses.”

In a somewhat lengthy response, Short suggests alternate ways to speak out against the verdict and discourages engaging in “self sabotaging behavior by looting and rioting.”

“Trayvon was a victim of racial profiling but we are the survivors and always have been survivors. We shouldn’t let Trayvons death be in vein, but rather use this time to do a cultural evaluation into how we can unite in a way that will force our voices to be heard and undenied by our government and politicians,” he writes.

He concludes his note with this statement: “May this letter bring someone out there hope, and a desire to rise up and help lead us to change. We have work to do. But nothing we can’t handle.”

Follow Lilly Workneh on Twitter @Lilly_Works

SHARE THIS ARTICLE