George Zimmerman’s recent decision to auction off the gun that murdered Trayvon Martin for a lump sum shows what a horrible person he is. His ability to creep back in the spotlight with (oft-celebrated) tasteless action is exhausting and unfortunate. However, one can take pleasure that these auctions were sabotaged by trolls.
For a time, the top bidder was a user by the name of “Racist McShootface,” who artificially raised the price to an astounding $65 million. It is obvious that these bids were used to mock Zimmerman. A bidder even used the name Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old boy who was gunned down by Cleveland police officers.
There is an unfortunate side to this story. Genuine bidders defended Zimmerman and the sale of the gun with repulsive comments aimed towards the protesters. One participant in particular called the trolls “losers” and expressed a desire that their “children get murdered.”
A bidder by the name of Brez Morrell explained their rationale this way:
“Obviously the jury didn’t think it was murder. He did nothing wrong.”
The bids by “Racist McShootface” were later removed from the site and replaced with others that were deemed authentic, although at this point there is confusion over what is real. The influx of trolling has caused havoc on the auction that Zimmerman hopes will provide a lump sum to be used against the Black Lives Matter movement.
The trolling of Zimmerman’s auction offered brief comedic relief to the constant barrage of horrible racist rhetoric that he so often embodies. People of his ilk are becoming louder and more organized inside our borders, as seen through the rise of Donald Trump in the GOP. The gun may be sold while we collectively roll our eyes, but “Racist McShootface” gave a passing glimpse of hilarity to an otherwise horrifying event.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLejkN4aPF4
Featured image by screengrab via YouTube.
