Sanford protesters on Mar. 19 (photo courtesy of Creative Commons).

They carried signs, chanted “Justice for Trayvon,” and marched a half-mile from Crooms Academy of Information Technology to the Sanford Police Department, the Associated Press reported. 

The march followed a series of protests, demonstrations and public outrage over the killing of the black teenager and the Police Department’s refusal to press charges against Zimmerman, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The NAACP organized the march. Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson spoke during a two-hour rally following the march.

“We live in the middle of an American paradox,” Sharpton said to the crowd. “We can put a black man in the White House but we cannot walk a black child through a gated neighborhood. We are not selling out, bowing out or backing down until there is justice for Trayvon.”

Protesters chanted, “We want an arrest. Shot in the chest,” as they marched. Many participants wore T-shirts with images of Martin, the AP reported. Some carried handmade signs that read “Hoodies Don’t Kill People, Guns Kill People” and “Mother’s Tears Have No Color.”

Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee temporarily resigned after the shooting. The Los Angeles Times reported that a special prosecutor has been assigned to the case and the U.S. Department of Justice has launched an investigation into the shooting and its aftermath. 

“We will use our marching feet, civil disobedience and every weapon in our non-violent arsenal until justice is served,” Jackson said.

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