Associated Press
Associated Press
SANFORD, Fla.
Thousands joined a march Saturday through the Florida town where 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by a neighborhood-watch volunteer, vowing to continue protesting until an arrest is made.
Protesters carried signs, chanted “Justice for Trayvon,” and clutched the hands of their children while they walked to the Sanford Police Department from a local high school that served black students during the segregation era. The march was organized by the NAACP and was one of several taking place over the weekend.
“We live in the middle of an American paradox,” the Rev. Al Sharpton told the crowd. “We can put a black man in the White House but we cannot walk a black child through a gated neighborhood. We are not selling out, bowing out or backing down until there is justice for Trayvon.” Sharpton and other civil-rights leaders, including the Rev. Jesse Jackson, spoke during a two-hour rally after the half-mile march.
“This is not about a hoodie; it’s about racial profiling,” Jackson said. “We will use our marching feet, civil disobedience and every weapon in our nonviolent arsenal until justice is served.”