Protesters March in Florida Over Trayvon Martin Case

Thousands of protesters from around the country attended a rally on March 22 for a black teenager who was shot and killed in central Florida.

The demonstrators rallied at a park in Sanford, a suburb of Orlando, where unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot dead on February 26.

Martin was killed by a neighborhood watch volunteer, George Zimmerman. Zimmerman claims he acted in self-defense.

Protesters are angered that Police Chief Bill Lee has not yet arrested Zimmerman. Lee has stepped down from his position for an unspecified period of time.

“While I stand by the Sanford Police Department, its personnel and the investigation that was conducted in regards to the Trayvon Martin case, it is apparent that my involvement in this matter is overshadowing the process,” said Lee during his announcement. “Therefore I have come to the decision that I must temporarily remove myself from the position as police chief for the city of Sanford. I do this in the hopes of restoring some semblance of calm to the city, which has been in turmoil for several weeks.”

The protesters, which include Baptist minister and civil rights activist Al Sharpton, want Zimmerman indicted and believe the lack of an arrest was based on racial stereotyping.

The Justice Department and fbi have opened a civil rights investigation, and the local prosecutor has convened a grand jury on April 10 to determine whether to charge Zimmerman.

For more information on this racially charged issue, read “The Race Bomb” on theTrumpet.com.