Million Hoodie March: Hundreds Turn Out to Protest Trayvon's Murder

1 year ago

Parents of Martin say case isn't about race, but 'what's right and wrong'

The parents of slain Florida teenager Trayvon Martin told hundreds of protestors at the "Million Hoodie March" in New York City earlier tonight that they won't stop seeking the arrest of their son's confessed killer.

"My heart is in pain, but to see the support of all of you really makes a difference," Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin's mother, told the crowd.

Demonstrators, who descended on Manhattan's Union Square chanting "We want arrests" and "Justice for Trayvon," greeted Martin's parents with salutations of "God bless you."

The 17-year-old was killed on Feb. 26, after self-appointed neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman shot him to death. Martin was walking through a gated community in Orlando called Sanford when he was approached by Zimmerman. An attorney for the family says Martin was returning from a nearby convenience store. He was unarmed, wore a hooded sweatshirt, and was holding a pack of Skittles, when police found him dead.

Using the hoodie as the symbol of racial profiling, demonstrators took turns chanting "Am I suspicious?" Many of them wore hoodies, similar to the one Martin wore, and carried packs of empty Skittles.

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The fact that 28-year-old Zimmerman is of mixed Hispanic heritage has made this case more than just about an unjust murder. The family contends race has played a role in how Martin's case has been investigated. During the rally, however, Martin's parent didn't want race to be the overwhelming theme.

“Our son is your son," Fulton told the crowd. “This is not a black and white thing. This is a right and wrong thing.”

Zimmerman, who has yet to be arrested, will now await the results of an investigation by federal law officals, including the FBI, United States Department of Justice and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

The volume of the calls for Zimmerman’s arrest are deafening. One petition seeking his arrest had already been signed 800,000 times on Wednesday night. Several more marches and rallies have been planned all over the country, in the coming week.