Trayvon Martin's Mother, Sybrina Fulton, Is Running For Office

By Lauren Rearick


In 2012, 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot and killed in Sanford, Florida; his killer was later acquitted on expenses of second-degree murder and manslaughter. Since her son’s death,  Sybrina Fulton has called for an end to acts of gun violence and advocated for change on a nationwide level as an author and co-founder of the Trayvon Martin Foundation. She right now intends to continue her work in a new way; on Saturday, May 17, she reported that she’s running for a County Commission seat in Miami-Dade’s first district, the Miami Herald reports.


In an accompanying video, which formally reported her run on Monday, May 19, Fulton complex the journey that led her to run, including her past work because the General Service Administration Department with Miami-Dade’s local government. “Until recently, I didn’t visualize myself as someone who would run,” she says. “But if not me, then who? If not right now, then when?”


Her campaign manager, Willis Howard, explained to The Washington Post that some of Fulton’s work as a public speaker served because the catalyst for her to run. “She has given speeches where she spoke about, here’s a couple things you could have to do: you could have to protest. You may have to march. You could have to run for office,” he mentioned. “She kept realizing, she was speaking to herself.”


Fulton was also inspired by others affected by gun violence who pursued political careers, including Congresswoman Lucy McBath, mother to Jordan Davis; Lesley McSpadden, mother to Michael Brown; and the survivors of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Howard told CNN.


If elected, Fulton would start her term in 2020, the Washington Post reports. She intricate some of the issues she intends give attention to in her Instagram video announcement, saying, “For our future, we need new positive action on public safety and gun violence, on affordable housing, and the cost of living. We must do everything possible to increase the good class of life for everyday people.”


Fulton also plans to address mental health access for Miami-Dade county residents, particularly those affected by gun violence. “Mental health isn't looked at the same way especially in communities of color,” Howard told The Washington Post. “We wish to prepare ensure we put that in the forefront. If you’re a victim of violent crime, there really are some issues we need to deal with for the family member who survived. We need to deal with those moms and brothers and sisters who are facing these new realities. We hope to create ensure they have access to the support they need.”