A new six-part documentary series about the life and controversial death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin has pitted the man who was acquitted of the unarmed Florida teen’s death against the venture’s producer.
Claiming that the production team and film crew have harassed friends and family members, including his parents, George Zimmerman, the volunteer neighborhood watchman that gunned down Martin during a February 2012 encounter, has turned his sights on music and entertainment mogul Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter.
In a statement made directly to the website The Blast, Zimmerman threatened both Jay-Z and the series’ executive producer, Michael Gasparro. “Anyone who f***s with my parents will be fed to an alligator.” He followed up the sentiment by crassly referring to the incident that led to his infamy, “I know how to handle people who f*** with me, I have since February 2012.”
The documentary, which has the working title “Rest In Power: The Trayvon Martin Story,”
is based upon two books written about the Trayvon Martin shooting. The film is based on three sources, one of which was written by Martin’s parents, which centers around the life and death of their son.
Originally the project was a collaboration between Roc Nation and Harvey Weinstein. Jay-Z, who is the founder of Roc Nation, severed ties with Weinstein amid the Hollywood icon slew of sexual harassment allegations.
Multi-platinum award winning artist Snoop Dogg took to social media to respond to Zimmerman, where he posted on Instagram: “If one hair on jays hair is touched that’s when the revolution will be televisedWe one And to thank the system let the B**** a** mutha***** get away with murder try it againTrayvon Martin Gone but not forgotten.”
Zimmerman alleges that he was offered, and declined, $100,000 to appear in the documentary but said his ex-wife was paid and interviewed. He is countering Jay-Z with his own documentary and book titled “Sheepdog Nation: The Manipulation of the Masses by the Mainstream Media.”
Trayvon Martin was 17 years old when he was fatally shot by Zimmerman. While Zimmerman claimed he acted in self-defense, Martin was unarmed, carrying only Skittles and iced tea. In the weeks after the incident, Sanford police continued to refuse to arrest Zimmerman. As a result, the case drew national attention as civil rights leaders, including Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., traveled to Sanford and led activists in protest.
