A Senate bill to alter Stand Your Ground is still alive with limited bipartisan support. It would clarify the role of neighborhood watch groups and allow civil suits in some self-defense cases.
The House bill to repeal Stand Your Ground is dead after an overwhelming committee vote. That outcome is unsurprising. Republicans who control the Florida Legislature cite the right to bear arms and argue people should be able to defend themselves without fear of punishment.To even get hearings on Stand Your Ground, the Dream Defenders protested at the Capitol for a month. One of the aims of the Florida-based student group is to "end the criminalization of black and brown youth." Ciara Taylor is the group's political director.
"The Legislators were actually able to hear the voices of people from their communities, and that doesn’t happen very often", Taylor said. "I mean, that’s the most important thing the Dream Defenders are trying to teach our communities: that they matter."
Taylor says the Dream Defenders will continue educating society about prejudice and voting power. The group is also working with lawmakers on bills to stop racial profiling and end the school-to-prison pipeline.
She says the Senate bill on Stand Your Ground is a good start. Someday, she says, voters will force legal reforms that protects teens like Trayvon Martin.