Trayvon Martin passed away in 2012, but his memory is kept alive today by the African-American community and celebrities like Jay Z.
On Saturday in Miami, the 48-year-old rapper attended the 6th Annual Trayvon Martin Peace Walk and gave an inspiring speech to honour the late teenager.
Back in 2012, the 17-year-old was shot in his gated community by George Zimmerman, 34, a neighborhood watch volunteer who controversially claimed to have killed the adolescent in self-defense.
Inspiring: Jay-Z gave a powerful speech during the 6th Annual Trayvon Martin Peace Walk in Miami on Saturday to honour the late Trayvon Martin
Center stage: The Brooklyn star began by saying: ‘It’s very important—the support you guys are showing and the strength that Sabrina and Tracy and the family are showing’
The Brooklyn star began by saying: ‘It’s very important—the support you guys are showing and the strength that Sabrina and Tracy and the family are showing.’
The Family Feud rapper continued: ‘And we want to make sure we stand in support and we never forget that Trayvon served as a beacon of light to all the people out there—so you guys would never have to go through the pain and hurt that these guys went through.
‘His name will sit alongside some of the greats who lost their life to push our culture forward.
‘The Martin Luther Kings, the Ghandis, that’s the intention that we set, that his name serves as a beacon of light and hope to push us in a better direction.’
Natural speaker: Jay Z took the podium at the 2018 Pre-Grammy Gala and Grammy Salute to Industry Icons in New York during January
Jay Z has been a staunch supporter of the Martin family, and has frequently taken initiative to shed light on their experience and advocate on their behalf.
He and his wife Beyoncé demonstrated their loyalty to the Martin family by attending an earlier rally for the adolescent during 2013 in New York.
The Grammy Award-winning artist announced in 2017 that he would be producing a documentary about the late teen called, Rest In Power: The Trayvon Martin Story.
In loving memory: Jay Z and his wife Beyoncé showed their support by previously attending a Trayvon Martin rally in New York City back during 2013
Controversial: George Zimmerman was acquitted by a Florida jury for the death of Trayvon Martin during his court trial in 2013
Young boy: Martin was only 17-years-old when he was shot to death in his gated community by Zimmerman
The rally comes three months after the late teen’s father, Tracy Martin, got a tattoo on his back to memorialize the young man. Martin was inked by Chicago 9 Mag tattoo artist, Van Johnson, and the session was featured on VH1’s Black Ink Crew Chicago during December.
The portrait features the 17-year-old drawn out like a pharaoh. The adolescent’s father told the artist on-camera: ‘I just thought how my son galvanized the country. To me, he’s a king. And he was my king before his situation happened.
‘I thought it would be fitting to take it back to Ancient Egypt. Like the sphinx is one of the wonders of the world. Trayvon was my wonder of the world.’
In loving memory: Martin’s father Tracy decided to honor his son’s legacy by getting a tattoo from Black Ink Chicago star Van Johnson; the tattoo artist shared this on Instagram in 2017
Johnson shared an Instagram photo of the memorial tattoo and wrote: ‘This piece tonight on Black Ink Chicago for Tracy Martin, FATHER OF TRAYVON MARTIN, thank you Brother for this amazing experience…
‘I’ve overcome so much adversity, so much hate, so many critics trying to bash me, but listen here… You m*******s think you can stop me when GOD got me out here making history lol I’m laughing to the bank baby BELIEVE DAT… #RIP #trayvonmartin
‘THE WORLD LOVES YOU BUT POP LOVES YOU MORE AND I GOT HIM RIGHT FA YOU YOUNG KING I DONT FIGHT FOR OWNERSHIP I FIGHT FOR MY TEAM.’
Happy teen: The young African-American teen was frequently pictured smiling on social media