Zimmerman Jury Decision Sparks Protest in Phoenix

An all-female jury found George Zimmerman, the former neighborhood-watch captain who shot and killed unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, not guilty after deliberating for 16 hours and 20 minutes. Martin’s family was not present in the courtroom as the verdict was read.

 The jury’s decision sparked protests in several cities across the country, including in Phoenix.

Thousands took to the streets in Los Angeles and New York. Some protestors in L.A. clashed with police, resulting in one arrest.  

 NBC News reported that in New York City, thousands of demonstrators marched from Union Square to the tourist-heavy Times Square Sunday night, slowing and in some cases halting traffic. WNBC reported the area was gridlocked with people holding signs in support of Martin and calling Zimmerman’s acquittal a failure of the judicial system

 About 100 protesters gathered at 6 p.m. Sunday at the Sandra Day O’Connor Federal Building at 4th Avenue and Washington Street in downtown Phoenix. Many carried signs and some wore hoodies. They were demanding that civil rights charges by the Justice Department be brought against Zimmerman, and said that verdict exposed the racial injustice of the U.S. court system.

 Activist Revered Jarrett Maupin was one of the main organizers of the Phoenix rally. A Phoenix New Times article reported that Maupin said, “We must honor the martyred, including Trayvon, by continuing the long march towards racial equality and justice. Non-Violence is the means by which we hold the moral high-ground in this struggle.”

The New Times also reported that Cloves Campbell, the publisher of the Arizona Informant, a paper that serves the African-American community, also plans on heading up the rally, and issued a statement voicing his displeasure with the verdict.

“Regardless of whether further charges will be brought against George Zimmerman, all Americans have an obligation to Trayvon Martin’s legacy to make sure that young, Black males in particular, are not stereotyped because of their color, their clothing or where they are walking or driving,” Campbell’s statement says. “It is a national tragedy that 50 years after the famous ‘March on Washington,’ our nation is still grappling with how to assure that all of God’s children are not unfairly targeted for the criminal justice system or destined for pre-mature burial.”

 President Barack Obama issued an official statement on the decision that stated, “The death of Trayvon Martin was a tragedy. Not just for his family, or for any one community, but for America. I know this case has elicited strong passions. And in the wake of the verdict, I know those passions may be running even higher.”

The president continues, “But we are a nation of laws, and a jury has spoken. I now ask every American to respect the call for calm reflection from two parents who lost their young son.”

“And as we do, we should ask ourselves if we’re doing all we can to widen the circle of compassion and understanding in our own communities,” urges Obama, adding, “We should ask ourselves if we’re doing all we can to stem the tide of gun violence that claims too many lives across this country on a daily basis.”

Obama further notes, “We should ask ourselves, as individuals and as a society, how we can prevent future tragedies like this. As citizens, that’s a job for all of us. That’s the way to honor Trayvon Martin.”