Scenes from the 'Million Hoodie March' for Trayvon Martin
The family of Trayvon Martin joined thousands of demonstrators, who teamed up with Occupy Wall Street, to march across New York City last night to protest the shooting death of the Florida teenager.
The family of Trayvon Martin joined thousands of demonstrators, who teamed up with Occupy Wall Street, to march across New York City last night to protest the shooting death of the Florida teenager. The "Million Hoodie March," as it was dubbed, was organized to show support for the Martin family and call for the arrest of the George Zimmerman, the man who shot and killed Martin last month, but has not been charged after claiming self-defense. Martin's parents spoke to crowd to thank them for their support and continue to push for chages to be filed against Zimmerman. Martin's mother Sabrina Fulton told the gathered protesters that "My son is your son."
Photo of Trayvon Martin's parents via Reuters
After the formal demonstration ended, the protest — buoyed in part by the Occupy Wall Street supporters angry over recent clashes with the NYPD — evolved into a general anti-police rally. Much of the anger surrounding the Martin case has shifted from the shooter to the Sanford, Florida, police department that seems to have let him off the hook.
The protesters marched from Union Square to Times Square and back, where they encountered a massive police prescence, with lines of NYPD officers and barricades blocking off most of the park. Despite the ominous and aggresives stances from both the police and the protesters, the night ended calmly with no major confrontations.
Mother Jones has a good recap of the evening, and below are some of the images captured by those on the scene.
Photos via @MegRobertson via Flickr
Photo via @JoshHarkinson/Mother Jones
Photo via AP