Local Residents React To Zimmerman Verdict
By Syma Chowdhry
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - People rallied at the Municipal Services Building at 15th Street and JFK Boulevard in Center City Saturday night, only an hour after George Zimmerman was found not guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.
While there, participants chanted "No Justice, No Peace."
"What does this say to the youth in this country?" asked Daryle Lamont Jenkins of One People's Project.
For activists like Jenkins, there are major issues to address.
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"What makes people upset this time is that we are not talking about a cop killing a child now we are talking about an ordinary citizen. So what does this say for our future?" he said.
In addition to this concern, demonstrators say the not guilty verdict shows there is a problem when it comes to racism.
"It's no wonder you have situations across the country that say black lives aren't worth anything," said Jenkins. "We do have to deal with the racism issue and, in particular, deal with the racists in this country."
While supporters stood at the Municipal Services Plaza holding signs saying the jury was "wrong," others across the country rallied together to show their outrage.
There were demonstrations on the streets of San Francisco and Los Angeles. In Oakland a small group of protestors blocked traffic and smashed the window of a police car.
But Jenkins says the protestors in Philadelphia, are expressing themselves in a peaceful manner.
"The notion that after the verdict there was going to be riots? There are no riots. Nothing is going on. People are angry, people are upset, but we are going to be calm about it," he explained.
There will be another rally at Love Park at 6 p.m. Sunday.
