Spontaneous demonstrations are taking place in cities across the United States in solidarity with Travyon Martin’s family’s demand for justice. Many of these actions have been modeled after the “Million Hoodies for Trayvon” actions in New York and Los Angeles, with participants wearing hooded sweatshirts as a sign of solidarity. Following are a few reports from Liberation News reporters from the streets:
San Jose
At noon on April 5, some 100 students and community members, many wearing hoodies, formed a large circle in front of the larger-than-life statues of 1968 Olympic champions John Carlos and Tommie Smith on the San Jose State University campus for a rally “to raise awareness about the Trayvon Martin case.” The audience included about 30 students from nearby Notre Dame high school.
The event, organized by African American student Tierney Yates of the Cesar Chavez Community Action Center, featured two impressive speakers: Aku Bundu, an African American Studies professor at SJSU, and “Uncle Bobby,” whose 22-year-old nephew Oscar Grant was killed by a Bay Area Transit cop on New Year’s Day 2009. Both speakers gave highly educational presentations focused on the scourge of racism, with Uncle Bobby sketching out the many similarities between the cases of Oscar Grant and Trayvon Martin.
On the ground in front of the speakers, a body outline made of Skittles had been constructed that included a hoodie and a can of iced tea.
Following the presentations and a brief open mic, the audience gathered for a group photo in front of the statues.
School Without Walls, Washington, D.C.
About 350 students marched out of the School Without Walls high school on March 27 in support of Trayvon Martin. They wasted no time marching out of the school, guided by their principal and maintaining control of the street (not the sidewalk) as they marched down Pennsylvania Avenue and immediately formed a circle once they reached the White House.
Public reaction was positive.
This protest was notable because it was the school that encouraged the students to walk out in protest of a national issue of racism and because of the diversity of the crowd. Young people of all races were out in force, showing the same anger and seriousness of purpose at yet another in a series of 21st century lynchings.
Baltimore
Well over 2,000 protesters gathered on April 2 in downtown Baltimore to demand justice for the racist murder of Trayvon Martin. The crowd consisted primarily of young people and was very multinational. People amassed before 5 p.m. during rush hour traffic at McKeldin Square chanting and carrying placards as traffic honked in support.
At 5:30, demonstrators took the streets, shutting down traffic, and marched to the downtown Baltimore Police Station before heading to City Hall for a rally. During the march, protesters energetically chanted, “No justice, no peace!” and “Trayvon Martin, Emmett Till, how many more youth will they kill?!”
Numerous leaders within the community spoke at the rally, while the crowd maintained a militant position regarding the racist nature of Trayvon’s killing as they demanded that Zimmerman be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Rev. Cortly “C.D.” Witherspoon, president of the Baltimore Southern Christian Leadership Conference chapter, made the connection between the slaying of Trayvon Martin and a local incident involving a 15-year-old Black young man being racially targeted and assaulted by members of a neighborhood watch group, Shomrim of Baltimore. (Read more about the incident : https://www.liberationnews.org/news/teen-beating-shomrim-baltimore.html)
At the end of the evening, protesters dispersed, but vowed to continue fighting until the Martin family sees justice.
Seattle
On March 28, hundreds of people braved intermittent rain to rally at downtown Westlake Park to demand justice for Trayvon Martin. Speakers included Cedric President-Turner, a high school senior from Tacoma and cousin to Trayvon Martin; James Bible, president of the Seattle NAACP; Jane Cutter of the ANSWER Coalition; Asha Mohammed, a leader in the Somali community; and many others. The mood of the predominantly Black crowd was serious yet spirited. Members of the Party for Socialism and Liberation distributed a statement by Peta Lindsay, PSL candidate for U.S. president. Members of the crowd were interested and receptive to this information. The rally came on the heels of a local march held a few days earlier.
Chicago
From March 23 to 26, four marches were held in Chicago to demand justice for Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old Black youth who was killed by a racist vigilante in Sanford, Florida on Feb. 26.
In Chicago, over 500 people marched from Channel 7 news to the Chicago Tribune building and back on March 23 in a “Million Hoodie” march. They came out despite rainy conditions. The most popular chant was, “Justice for Trayvon! Arrest Zimmerman Now!”
The next day, many hundreds more again descended on downtown Chicago where there was a militant rally and march. The protests, which were organized mainly through facebook, were largely African-American. However, the protest was also significanlty multi-national and young.
Other signs at the protest read, “It’s not a crime to be Black!” and “Wearing a hoodie is not a crime!”
Contributing to this report: Romeo Hillman, Jane Cutter, Andrew Castro, MerryJessica Fuerst, Jon Britton, John Beacham
