Official Trailer Released For Trayvon Martin Docuseries ‘Rest in Power’

The official trailer for “Rest in Power: The Trayvon Martin Story” has been released and was shared on Paramount Network’s YouTube channel.

The six-part docuseries has been in the works for a year, and is produced by rapper Jay-Z, according to entertainment website Shadow and Act.

As the name suggests, the documentary explores the life and death of Trayvon Martin, a black Florida 17-year-old who was shot to death in February 2012 by a neighborhood watch volunteer in Sanford, Fl.  

The incident started when George Zimmerman called 911 to report a "suspicious person." Despite being instructed not to pursue or confront the person in question, Zimmerman began following him, according to CNN. A confrontation ensued between Zimmerman and Martin and Zimmerman later admitted to shooting Martin, claiming self-defense.

Following a petition started by Martin’s family, and testimony from his then girlfriend who was reportedly on the phone with him at the time of the shooting, rallies were organized in cities around the country to address police brutality against the black community. 

In 2013, Zimmerman was found not guilty of second-degree murder charges. He faced stalking charges earlier this year for reportedly harassing a private investigator who asked him if he would participate in the documentary.

Martin’s death sparked off what came to be known as the "Black Lives Matter" movement, leading to widespread conversations on police brutality and race relations in America. The movement’s mission is “to build local power and to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes,” according to its website.

The trailer features snippets from the 911 call made by Zimmerman, glimpses of protests that were sparked off after Martin’s death, and interviews from family members.

“Trayvon became the face of our community. We had to go to war for it”, says one of the speakers in the trailer.

“It took my son being shot down, to make me stand up,” says Martin’s mother Sybrina Fulton.

Jay-Z, producer of the documentary, recently spoke at a peace walk organized for Martin in Miami Gardens, Fla.

“Trayvon served as a beacon of light to all the people out here so you guys would never have to go through the pain and the hurt these guys went through, and his name will sit alongside some of the great whom [have] lost their lives to push our culture forward,” he said, according to radio station Breakfast Club Power 105.1 FM. “That’s the intention that we set to his name.”

The documentary will premiere on Paramount Network on July 30, according to Esquire.

[Photo: Protesters seen at a March 2012 press conference in New York calling for justice for Trayvon Martin. By Allison Joyce/Getty Images]