To Raise a Son?

I tend to keep my political opinions to myself.  But today, I must speak.

Since losing Morgan, I've thought on more than one occasion that Baby #2 should be a boy.  I'm sure Baby #2 will have more than his/her share of issues being raised by paranoid parents who know how easily loss can come.  I also want to prevent any projections of the hopes or dreams we had for Morgan onto another baby girl.  She deserves her own hopes and dreams.  We actually just talked about why Baby #2 should be a boy yesterday afternoon.

But, today, I wonder if that's the best decision.  By now, we've all heard the "not guilty" verdict in the George Zimmerman/Trayvon Martin case.  I was not a witness to the events that night in Florida, so I'm not commenting on the verdict itself.  My comment here is on the society in which we live that allows issues such as these to come to light.

Do I want to raise a son who can be legally followed down the street because his skin is brown?  A son who can't legally follow a suspicious White man down the street? A son who is perceived as a threat because, in winter, he had his hood pulled over his ears?  It's unfortunate that we live in a "post-racial America" where justice is a one way street.  It's scary to think that despite my and my husband's best efforts, our straight A, well mannered, clean cut son will have to observe a different protocol than his White peers when pulled over by the police to avoid getting shot for pulling a gun, which is really just his license and registration.  I'm not even close to being a petite woman, and my husband is a tall, husky guy.  Any son of ours will certainly cast an imposting shadow in the dark.  Are these unwritten protocols the things we want to teach him?  It's our hope that one day, we'll be home owners.  Maybe even in a gated community with a neighborhood watch patrol.  Will our son be able to feel "at home" when at home?