Protests in support of slain Florida teen Trayvon Martin broke out all over the country this weekend in the wake of the acquittal of admitted gunman George Zimmerman, but nowhere were they more demonstrative than in California.
The Boston Globe reports several people were arrested across the state, including Los Angeles where approximately 80 protestors gathered on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood and eventually shut down traffic on nearby Interstate 10 for nearly an hour. A similar demonstration was held in the urban neighborhood of Crenshaw that largely remained peaceful.
More than 100 officers stormed the Hollywood area after an unlawful assembly was declared. There, according to The Globe, they clashed with protestors and fired beanbag rounds into the crowd. At least seven people were arrested.
In Oakland, cops confronted a group convened near a downtown intersection after a small crowd began spray painting businesses and breaking windows, according to the Oakland Tribune.
Again, protestors blocked traffic at a major intersection and some arrests were made after a number of cars were vandalized and several small fires were set. News reports also indicate a police squad car was damaged.
A racially diverse crowd of roughly 400 people converged near Market Street in San Francisco. Protestors banged drums, blew whistles and held signs declaring “Zimmerman: the people say guilty,” and “The whole system is racist.”
The self-appointed neighborhood watch patrolman was found not guilty of both second-degree murder and manslaughter charges after he followed and shot Martin through the heart because he told police he thought the teen looked suspicious.
“If our voices can’t be heard,” then this is just going to keep going on,” Rand Powdrill, 41, told The Globe.
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