Trayvon Martin's father discusses character 'assassination' of Michael Brown

Appearing on MSNBC's Weekend with Alex Witt, the father of slain teen Trayvon Martin discussed how a parent deals with the shooting death of a child and, in the case of his son and Michael Brown, watching their character tarnished in the press and by the police.

Tracy Martin, began by saying his heart went out to Brown's family stating, "The country stands behind them and their loss."

Witt then asked Martin about subsequent attacks on the character of the dead teenager, gunned down by a policeman in Ferguson, MO. last week.

"Michael Brown's parents have seen their son's character questioned and tarnished. Particularly with the alleged robbery surveillance video that even the governor says should not have been released," she said. "You too, saw your son's character attacked. How does that weigh on a parent during what has got to be the worst time in your life?"

"It certainly has wear and tear on a parent, just seeing the assassination of your child's character," he replied. "At the end of the day, you ask yourself as a parent, in my case, in our case, I sat back and said, Is my son on trial, or is his killer on trial? And I'm seeing the same elements in this case."

Martin offered advice for the parents of Brown, stating, "Don't let anyone assassinate the character your son's character. They have to stand up for their son. They have up for justice. We're with them 110 percent. Protests are going, protests are needed, but peaceful protests."

Watch the video below from MSNBC: