Dear DMX,
Its Trayvon’s birthday.
Trayvon Benjamin Martin.
That’s right. Today – February 5th – would be Trayvon Martin’s 19th birthday had he not been cut down by a bullet fired by George Zimmerman. As you already know, the unarmed Trayvon was minding his own business, heading to his Florida home, when a self-proclaimed neighborhood watch dog Zimmerman decided to harass him, follow him and then kill him. Most people feel that justice was not served and that Trayvon was murdered in cold blood. Then, his killer walked out of court a free man, protected by a mix of legal red tape, a society that still stereotypes Black man and apparently the backing of gun lobbyist like the NRA.
X, I know there are no papers signed, but on behalf of millions of people, I’m asking that you completely withdraw from fighting George Zimmerman in this proposed “celebrity boxing” match.
I’m not here to judge. I don’t know your financial status. I don’t know your reasoning for considering this “fight.” In fact, all I know is you are still mad as hell that George Zimmerman killed Trayvon – like most in our community. According to reports, you want to “beat the living s**t” out of Zimmerman. Understandable.
To keep this simple and plain, here is a list of 10 reasons why you should NOT get in the ring with George Zimmerman.
1) Zimmerman is clearly making a play at being a celebrity villain, deeming this a celebrity boxing match. There is only one celebrity and that’s you. He’s the killer of a 17-year old boy.
2) We don’t yet know how Trayvon’s family feels about this. If they don’t approve, we don’t approve.
3) The “die slow” theory, is one that I first heard from you. Don’t give Zimmerman a shot at opulence and prosperity. You could unwittingly be jumping off his career. Let him remain a pariah and allow his legacy to disintegrate into dust.
4) Don’t be party to this sick clown’s media circus.(Read about George Zimmerman’s drug habit.)
5) Zimmerman PICKED YOU. He had The Game and didn’t want any parts of your Compton brother. He tried to get Kanye West, who he definitely thinks he can beat and who offers more attention. He wants to fight you, because he sees you as somebody that he can beat. At LEAST, you are somebody that won’t make him look bad.
6) Zimmerman is trained in mixed martial arts. He looks portly and out of shape, but please believe he’s got some skill sets that trump street fighting.
7) This is deeper than Hip-Hop, but this “celebrity boxing” event makes a mockery of it too.
8) Your first record was “Born Loser” and this could solidify that notion, effectively ending your career.
9) You should focus on the music you still have to create, not on this degenerate that wants to use you for his own ends.
10) Had George Zimmerman killed you X, there would be very little overarching outrage – even unarmed – and you better believe he would have killed you, given the chance. The detractors wouldn’t know what’s in your heart, which your fans know is very big. All the masses would lock in on would be your “rap sheet,” the headlines and would feel justified in the notion that that the streets now have one less n***a on it. We know that “they” think about us.
RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: DMX Rep Says Boxing Match Against George Zimmerman Not Confirmed
So, what if you beat up Zimmerman?
What changes? Nothing. Trayvon does not get justice. Zimmerman makes money. You make money. Some charity makes a couple of faux bucks. At the end of the day, nothing changes with this bout. We just get a brief, pointless media high seeing the bad guy take a frivolous loss. If he wins, then we all collectively have to watch this guy and his smug face guffaw about how he claimed victory once again over one of our warriors. This reeks of “Django Unchained,” where the enslaved engage in “Mandingo fighting,” a disgusting, dehumanizing form of gladiator entertainment. Earl Simmons, you have bigger victories to claim, in life and entertainment. You know that.
But, here’s what you do, X, should you decide to continue with the fight.
Walk in the ring.
Pull out a gun – a gun with no munitions in it.
Let an unarmed Zimmerman for a brief moment feel what Trayvon felt as he approached the end of his life.
Ahh..better yet, just don’t show up. We all want justice, but there are a myriad of better ways to honor the life of Trayvon Benjamin Martin.
Happy birthday, Trayvon.
Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur is the co-founder of AllHipHop.com. He’s a business man, cultural critic, pundit and trailblazer that has been featured on National Public Radio (NPR), BET, TVOne, VH1, The E! Channel, MTV, The O’Reilly Factor, USA Today, The New York Times, New York’s Hot 97 FM and like a zillion other outlets. Follow him on social media at @ChuckCreekmur.
