Zimmerman trial verdict sparks national protests

Trayvon Martin supporters stand in front of a lighted American flag in Times Square after marching from a rally for Martin in Union Square in Manhattan on July 14, 2013 in New York City. George Zimmerman was acquitted of all charges in the shooting death of Martin July 13 and many protesters questioned the verdict. Demonstrators held noisy rallies in US cities including New York, San Francisco, Boston, Detroit and Chicago.

Trayvon Martin supporters rally in Times Square while blocking traffic after marching from a rally for Martin in Union Square in Manhattan on July 14, 2013 in New York City. The angry protests highlight simmering racial tensions after a jury found volunteer watchman George Zimmerman not guilty of murdering 17 year-old Trayvon Martin.

People gather at a rally in support of Trayvon Martin in Times Square while blocking traffic after marching from a rally for Martin in Union Square in Manhattan on July 14, 2013 in New York City.

Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images

Demonstrators angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin protest in Los Angeles, California July 14, 2013. Thousands protested in US cities overnight as President Barack Obama appealed for calm following the acquittal in Florida of a man who gunned down an unarmed black teenager.

Trayvon Martin supporters march through the streets of Manhattan blocking traffic after a rally for Martin in Union Square on July 14, 2013 in New York City.

Demonstrators angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin protest in Los Angeles, California July 14, 2013.

Police prepare to confront demonstrators angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin, on the 10 Freeway, in Los Angeles, California July 14, 2013.

Demonstrators angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin are confronted by police as they protest on the 10 Freeway stopping traffic, in Los Angeles, California July 14, 2013.

Americans angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of black teen Trayvon Martin protest in Los Angeles, California July 14, 2013.

Demonstrators hold a peaceful rally at the Torch of Freedom in downtown Miami a day after the verdict to the George Zimmerman murder trail on July 14, 2013 in Miami, Florida.

Photo credit should read STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images

A man makes a chalk drawing on the ground during a demonstration in New York on July 14, 2013. Protests were held one day after a US jury found George Zimmerman not guilty of murdering unarmed black teen Trayvon Martin on February 26, 2012, in a racially charged trial that transfixed the country. The trial aroused strong passions among those who believed that Zimmerman -- a volunteer neighborhood watchman whose father is white and whose mother is Peruvian -- racially profiled and stalked Martin, and those convinced he acted in self-defense.

People sit during services honoring Trayvon Martin at Middle Collegiate Church in Manhattan on July 14, 2013 in New York City.