( CNN ) -- In the iconic film , `` To Kill a Mockingbird , '' Atticus Finch , a white lawyer defending a black man accused of attempting to rape a white woman in the deep South , is delivering his closing argument to an all-white-male jury : `` In this country , our courts are the great levelers ... in our courts , all men are created equal , '' he says . Like the fictional defendant in the film , black America knows all too well that in this country , the promise of equal justice for all is often a hollow one . That is never more true than in cases where a black man or boy is killed by a non-black . There will be much debate in the coming days about whether the not guilty verdict in the Zimmerman self-defense trial was the right or wrong outcome . Experts will analyze the strategy , tactics and performance of the prosecutors and the defense attorneys , seeking to explain it . This , however , will miss the bigger and more important point : In truth , when black boys and men are killed by non-blacks , more often than not , justice will not be served . Many black parents will try to explain to their children , especially their sons , what to make of the verdict , and they may be at a loss for words . How is it possible that a black child , walking where he had a right to walk , doing absolutely nothing wrong , could be pursued , confronted and ultimately shot dead by a neighborhood watch volunteer -- and the killer escape punishment ? LZ Granderson : Trayvon could have been my son . White America can not conceive of such a thing happening to its children , nor can it imagine that , were such a travesty to occur , the killer would escape punishment . But for black America , Trayvon Martin is the latest name on a long list of African-American men and boys whose non-black killers escaped justice in America 's courts -- a list that runs from Emmett Till to Amadou Diallo to Oscar Grant to Sean Bell . Often , the killers are never even charged and brought to trial , which is precisely the course that the Zimmerman case would have taken were it not for the protests of African-Americans and others across the country . Waldman : Zimmerman case echoes issues of race , guns . There was a time in this nation 's history , not so very long ago , when black America looked to the courts , particularly its federal courts , for justice , and received it , most notably in the area of civil rights . The courts , particularly the Supreme Court , were places where black America 's rights were validated and vindicated . Now , our courts are places where black America 's rights are often eviscerated . Black America 's belief in the possibility of receiving justice from our legal system is eroded by every verdict that fails to hold a killer who is not black accountable for the death of a black man or boy . I was at the mall in my predominantly African-American community doing late-night shopping when the verdict was read . Like the Black store clerks who waited on me , I did not expect that Zimmerman would be found guilty , but I did harbor that hope . Brazile : Doing what 's right not just about law . Now , my heart is heavy , not merely because Zimmerman was acquitted , but also because we as a nation have yet to make Atticus Finch 's words ring true . Until we do -- until our courts are really `` the great levelers '' in which `` all men are created equal , '' African-Americans killed by non-blacks will not find justice in a system that fails to demand accountability for their lost lives . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Nicole Austin-Hillery .
Nicole Austin-Hillery : Justice in U.S. often hollow , especially for blacks killed by non-blacks . She says whites ca n't conceive of a Zimmerman-like outcome happening with their children . She says killers escaping punishment in death of young blacks has long history in U.S . Writer : Every verdict that fails to hold killer of black accountable erodes black 's trust in courts .