Racist Prank or Clever Costume? Vineyard Woman's Facebook Photo Ignites Outrage

From the Vineyard to the Smoking Gun, outrage is spreading over a Facebook post (since taken down) by a Martha's Vineyard woman extolling the Halloween costumes created by her brother and another man who dressed as Florida residents George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin, the black teen Zimmerman fatally shot in a high-profile "Stand Your Ground" case that resulted in Zimmerman's exoneration.

Over the weekend, the post and the story went viral, spurring comments and "public shaming" of the three people in the photo, identified as former Island resident Greg Cimeno, 22; Caitlin Cimeno of Oak Bluffs, who posted the images on her Facebook page; and William Filene, 25, of Florida.

Described as "by far the most politically incorrect and funniest costume of the year" by Greg Cimeno in a Facebook comment that concluded "F--- yeah," the image causing the most outrage shows Caitlin Cimeno flanked by the two men, one in blackface with an hoodie sweatshirt bearing a bloody splash on the front and the other in a "Neighborhood Watch" shirt, aiming his fingers gun-style at the other man's head. All three are smiling.

"I find it truly disturbing, and if you look on Twitter, I am not alone," wrote one Patch user in an email to editor Louisa Hufstader. "What a sad representation of the beautiful island."

More responses to the images from around the internet:

• "Meet The Florida Men Who Got Dressed Up As George Zimmerman And Trayvon Martin" on The Smoking Gun
• "'F**king Hilarious'?: Two Costumes You Won't Likely See on Halloween Night (But There's Always Facebook)" on The Blaze
• "Daily Kos: This is Jim Crow Hate..and should be reported to someone !" on Daily Kos
• "This Man Wore Blackface And Dressed As Trayvon Martin For Halloween" on Buzzfeed.com