HOODED DAY
On November 17, 2023, the opening day of SUNY New Paltz Department of Theatre Arts production of Hooded, or Being Black for Dummies is asking for your participation in honoring Trayvon Martin, who inspired the story of Hooded by wearing a hoodie on campus.
WHY A HOODIE?
On February 26, 2012, Trayvon Martin (born February 15, 1995), an African American teen walking home from a trip to a convenience store, was fatally shot by George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer patrolling the townhouse community of the Retreat at Twin Lakes in Sanford, Florida, where Trayvon was visiting his father. Zimmerman later claimed to have shot the unarmed teen in self-defense after calling the police to report what he believed was suspicious behavior due to Martin wearing a hoodie. Trayvon never made it home, never had a second to enjoy the iced tea and the bag of Skittles he purchased moments before he took his last breath. So, to honor a teenager whose journey was cut short, we ask that you wear a hoodie on November 17, 2023.
ABOUT THE PLAY
Hooded, or Being Black for Dummies, is a dark comedy materialized with the power of long-traditional effects of racism and the fears, pain, confusion, and wasteful global loathing it leaves behind. Centering the duality of identity through the gaze of a 14-year-old Black teenager named Marquis, Hooded explores the cycles of racism, gun violence, and the murder of unarmed Black Americans, particularly those in the middle passage of their adolescence, beginning with Trayvon Martin; this masterpiece reminds us, one is too many, and it takes a village to save a village but most importantly justice is still due!
A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR
“You will laugh, you will cry, you may be angered and confused, but you will go through. We have crafted a show that cares for everyone who opens their hearts to witness it. This community of cast, crew, and production team are mountains of paramount talent loving this necessary story to understanding.” - Lester Mayers '19 (Theatre Arts), Director.
RECORDED TIMELINE
FEBRUARY 26, 2012
George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain in Sanford, Florida, calls 911 to report “a suspicious person” in the neighborhood. He is instructed not to get out of his SUV or approach the person. Zimmerman disregards the instructions. Moments later, neighbors report hearing gunfire. Zimmerman acknowledges that he shot Martin, claiming it was in self-defense. In a police report, Officer Timothy Smith writes that Zimmerman was bleeding from the nose and back of the head.
FEBRUARY 27, 2012
Martin’s father, Tracy Martin, files a missing person’s report, telling authorities that his son hasn’t returned from going to the store the previous evening. Police show Martin a picture taken from the crime scene, and he confirms the dead teenager is Trayvon.
MARCH 12, 2012
Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee says that Zimmerman has not been charged because there are no grounds to disprove his version of the events.
MARCH 13, 2012
Sanford Police Department’s homicide detective Christopher Serino recommendsZimmerman be charged with manslaughter. Zimmerman “failed to identify himself”as a concerned citizen or neighborhood watch member on two occasions that night. Serino reports that he thought Zimmerman’s head injuries were “marginally consistent with a life-threatening episode, as described by him, during which neither a deadly weapon nor deadly force were deployed by Trayvon Martin.”
MARCH 14, 2012
The case is turned over to Florida State Attorney Norm Wolfinger.
MARCH 15, 2012
In a letter to the Orlando Sentinel, Robert Zimmerman, George Zimmerman’s father, writes that his son has been unfairly portrayed as a racist, and that he is Hispanic and grew up in a multiracial family.
MARCH 16, 2012
Authorities release seven 911 calls from the night of the shooting. In one of the 911 recordings, Zimmerman, against the advice of the 911 dispatcher, follows Martin. In one of the recordings, a voice screams, “Help, help!” in the background, followed by the sound of a gunshot.
MARCH 19, 2012
The Justice Department and the FBI announce that they have launched an investigation into Martin’s death.
MARCH 20, 2012
A lawyer for the Martin family, Benjamin Crump, holds a news conference, telling reporters that Trayvon was on the phone with his 16-year-old girlfriend at the time of the shooting. The girl, who wishes to remain anonymous, says she heard someone ask Martin what he was doing and heard Martin ask why the person was following him, according to Crump. The girl then got the impression that there was an altercation in which the earpiece fell out of Martin’s ear and the connection went dead.
MARCH 22, 2012
A petition on Change.org calling for the arrest of Zimmerman, created by the parents of Martin, surpasses 1.3 million people.
MARCH 22, 2012
Sanford Police Chief Lee announces he is stepping down “temporarily” as head of the department, which has been criticized for its handling of the fatal shooting.
MARCH 22, 2012
Florida Gov. Rick Scott announces he is appointing Angela Corey of the 4th Judicial Circuit as state attorney in the investigation, replacing Wolfinger, state attorney for Florida’s 18th District, which includes Sanford, Florida.
MARCH 23, 2012
President Barack Obama speaks out publicly for the first time on the growing controversy over the shooting of Martin, saying that the incident requires national “soul-searching.”
MARCH 26, 2012
Exactly one month after Trayvon Martin’s death, rallies take place in cities across the country, including Sanford, Florida, where the City Commission holds a town hall meeting on the incident and its aftermath. Martin’s parents speak at the meeting.
APRIL 2, 2012
FBI agents interview Martin’s girlfriend, who was on the phone with him shortly before the fatal confrontation.
APRIL 11, 2012
Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder.
APRIL 20, 2012
Zimmerman’s bond hearing is held. Judge Lester sets Zimmerman’s bond at $150,000. During the hearing, Zimmerman apologizes to the family of Martin for the loss of their son.
APRIL 23, 2012
Zimmerman is released on bail at 12:05 a.m. Later in the day, Zimmerman enters a written not-guilty plea and waives his right to appear at his arraignment.
MAY 8, 2012
Judge Lester accepts Zimmerman’s written plea of not guilty.
JUNE 1, 2012
Judge Lester revokes Zimmerman’s bond and orders him to surrender within 48 hours after the prosecution argues that Zimmerman and his wife, Shellie Zimmerman, misrepresented their finances when Zimmerman’s bond was originally set in April.
JUNE 3, 2012
Zimmerman surrenders to authorities and is taken into custody.
JUNE 12, 2012
Zimmerman’s wife is arrested and charged with perjury.
JUNE 20, 2012
Sanford Police Chief Lee is officially fired.
JULY 6, 2012
Zimmerman is re-released from jail after posting the required
10% of the $1 million bond.
JULY 13, 2012
Zimmerman’s legal team files a motion requesting Judge Lester step down from the case. The motion claims Zimmerman cannot get a fair trial because Lester used “gratuitous, disparaging” language in the previous week’s bail order.
AUGUST 9, 2012
A photo of Martin’s body and Zimmerman’s school records are mistakenly released by prosecutors. Special Prosecutor Corey’s office issues a statement asking reporters to “please disregard and do not use the information contained in the initial email. It was inadvertently attached.
AUGUST 13, 2012
Zimmerman appeals Judge Lester’s refusal to recuse himself.
AUGUST 29, 2012
A Florida appeals court grants Zimmerman’s request for a new judge, saying Judge Lester’s remarks in a bail order put Zimmerman in reasonable fear of a fair trial.
AUGUST 30, 2012
Judge Debra Nelson is assigned to replace Judge Lester in the Zimmerman case.
DECEMBER 7, 2012
Zimmerman sues NBC Universal for allegedly editing the 911 call he placed on the night of the tragic event. He states in the lawsuit that NBC unfairly made it appear that “Zimmerman was a racist, and that he was racially profiling Trayvon Martin.”
FEBRUARY 9, 2013
The Justice for Trayvon Martin Foundation hosts a “Day of Remembrance Community Peace Walk and Forum” in Miami. It takes place four days after what would have been Martin’s birthday.
APRIL 5, 2013
Martin’s parents settle a wrongful death claim against the homeowners’ association of the Florida subdivision where their son was killed.
APRIL 30, 2013
Zimmerman waives his right to a “stand your ground” pretrial immunity hearing. Zimmerman’s attorneys decided they would instead try this as a self-defense case. If there had been a pretrial immunity hearing, a judge would have ruled whether Zimmerman’s actions were protected under the “stand your ground” law. If the judge had ruled in favor of Zimmerman, it would have meant that no criminal or civil trial could proceed.
MAY 28, 2013
Judge Nelson rules on several motions brought by the defense. Nelson rules that Martin’s familiarity with guns, his marijuana use, and fights he may have been in cannot be brought up in Zimmerman’s trial. She also denies a request to take the jury to the crime scene. Nelson rules that jurors will remain anonymous and will be referred to by numbers only.
JUNE 20, 2013
An all-female jury is selected.
JUNE 24, 2013
The trial begins with opening statements.
JULY 13, 2013
The six-woman jury finds Zimmerman not guilty. They had three choices: find Zimmerman guilty of second-degree murder; find him guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter; or find him not guilty. The jurors deliberated for more than 16 hours total.
AUGUST 28, 2013
Shellie Zimmerman pleads guilty to a misdemeanor charge of perjury. Prosecutors say she lied during an April 2012 bond hearing for her husband when she told a judge that the family was indigent.
2014
The Trayvon Martin Foundation, a social justice organization, is established on the campus of Florida Memorial University in Miami Gardens, Florida.
FEBRUARY 24, 2015
The U.S. Justice Department announces that no federal civil rights charges will be brought against Zimmerman.
DECEMBER 4, 2019
Zimmerman files a $100 million lawsuit against Martin’s parents and others. The chief allegation in the lawsuit is that the attorney helped to swap out a reluctant witness, Brittany Diamond Eugene, for her half-sister, Rachel Jeantel, and helped prepare her to deliver false testimony. The suit accuses Trayvon’s parents, prosecutors, and state authorities of going along with the alleged ruse.
JANUARY 28, 2022
The $100 million lawsuit against Martin’s parents and others filed by Zimmerman is dismissed with prejudice in Florida’s Second Judicial Circuit Court, Leon County.
By Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm
Directed by Lester Mayers '19 (Theatre Arts)
Marquis and Tru are both fourteen-year-old black boys, but they exist in two totally different worlds. Marquis is a book smart prep-schooler living in the affluent suburb of Achievement Heights, while Tru is a street-savvy kid from deep within the inner city of Baltimore. Their worlds overlap one day in a holding cell.
Hooded, Or Being Black for Dummies is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on Behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com
Originally produced by Mosaic Theater Company of DC, Ari Roth, Artistic Director; Serge Seiden, Managing Director; Jennifer Nelson, Resident Director
*This play engages topics that may be uncomfortable for some audiences, including issues related to historical racial trauma and racism. It contains graphic language, including racial slurs and the depiction of a suicide.*
Saturday, December 2*
Sunday, December 3
8 p.m.*
2 p.m.
Parker Theatre*
Parker Theatre
