Hundreds of protesters gathered in New York City Wednesday for the “Million Hoodie March,” a memorial of sorts for Trayvon Martin—the teenager gunned down by a neighborhood watch volunteer in the Orlando, Florida suburb of Sanford. Some carried Skittles and iced tea, as Martin did that night. “My son is your son,” Martin’s mother, Sabrina Fulton, told the crowd. “This is not about black and white—this is about right and wrong.” Tim McDonnell and James West were on the scene, and Josh Harkinson joined the march later on, after it merged with an Occupy Wall Street contingent. Here’s what they saw, in video, photos, and tweets.
James‘ photos of the Million Hoodie March:
The crowd filled Times Square, chanting and mic-checking.
Nysheva Starr after leading the crowd in a passionate speech (see video).
The march made its way down Broadway, a large police contingent always nearby.
Most protesters wore hoodies, the garment that neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman said made him suspicious of Martin.
Among the chants: “We Are All Trayvon Martin.”
Later in the evening, the march headed toward Union Square, where a contingent of Occupy Wall Street protesters had already settled in. Josh Harkinson explains:
On Saturday, the 6 mo anniv. of #OWS, the police kicked protesters out of Zuccotti and they marched to Union Sq, where they spent the night.
— Josh Harkinson (@JoshHarkinson) March 22, 2012
What followed was a four-day occupation of Union Square, where there’s apparently a loophole in which a part of the park is open 24 hrs
— Josh Harkinson (@JoshHarkinson) March 22, 2012
But then police moved in anyway last night and kicked #OWS, leading to arrests
— Josh Harkinson (@JoshHarkinson) March 22, 2012
The #trayvonmartin march apparently threw cops off guard. It was a new crowd and hot-button issue. They backed off for much of today.
— Josh Harkinson (@JoshHarkinson) March 22, 2012
The #trayvonmartin march apparently threw cops off guard. It was a new crowd and hot-button issue. They backed off for much of today.
— Josh Harkinson (@JoshHarkinson) March 22, 2012
But this evening they’ve cleared most of the park, except for an area that’s basically a wide sidewalk
— Josh Harkinson (@JoshHarkinson) March 22, 2012
This pretty much sums things up right now twitpic.com/8zmgmn
— Josh Harkinson (@JoshHarkinson) March 22, 2012
