Union addressed the shooting of Trayvon Martin and stated, "When you have influence I think it's the responsible thing to do, to speak out on an issue when you see injustice. I'm still fighting for Trayvon [...] we all should." In the months following Martin's death, Union supported a petition that called for Florida District Attorney Norman Wolfinger to bring charges against George Zimmerman. After Zimmerman was acquitted of charges in Martin's death in July 2013, Union remarked, "Apparently walking while black is a crime punishable by death." Union was angered by Todd Akin's position on abortion, which he explained as a woman not being able to get pregnant in the case of "legitimate rape".