Thousands marched through the streets of New York City on Wednesday night in memory of and to protest the death of Florida teen Trayvon Martin, in what organizers called the “Million Hoodie March.”
The march was galvanized by an online petition, created by Martin’s parents, calling for a criminal investigation of their son’s killer, neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman. By the end of the event, 937,065 signatures had already been recorded.
Martin's murder has struck a nerve across the country, as thousands participated in a virtual protest that spread through Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and other social networking mediums. Many involved with the protest posted pictures of themselves with hoodies on, an act of collective solidarity that shed light on the fact that it still doesn't take much for innocent Black males to be considered lethal threats.
Some have argued that Trayvon Martin may be this generation's Emmitt Till, a person whose unjust murder serves as a breaking point for those fed up with injustice; a symbol for the Black community to rally around. Will Martin's murder have that same lasting and transformative power on us?
