Following the verdict of

George Zimmerman

during the 2012 - 2013

Trayvon Martin case,

I felt a need

to raise awareness on 

the racial and social injustices

that take place in America,

or at the very least, make a statement.

I teamed up with designers Yvonne-Jewnell

to do just that. The vehicle for said statement:

their premier unisex clothing line, MADE BY BLACK.

The shoot and designs were inspired not only

by the acts against Trayvon Martin,

but also Oscar Grant, Sean Bell, Amadou Diallo, 

Dr. MLK Jr., Malcolm X, Medgar Evars,

Emitt Till, and countless brothers and fathers.

 "You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot

I said that this could have been my son. 

Another way of saying that is

Trayvon Martin could have been me

35 years ago.

And when you think about why,

in the African American community at least,

there's a lot of pain around what happened here,

I think it's important to recognize that the African American

community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences

and a history that doesn't go away."

- President Barack Obama