As Zimmerman Jurors Deliberate, Angry Protests Outside Courthouse

While jurors deliberated inside the Seminole County Courtroom in Sanford, Florida, a small but vocal group of protesters made speeches, chanted and handed out fliers in the designated “free speech zone” as the media swarmed around them. All the protestors called for “Justice for Trayvon”–but they were also discussing a variety of other radical causes, including reparations for slavery.

The five dozen or so protestors showed up at the courthouse about an hour after the jurors went into deliberations. Some were from organized groups like the New Black Panther Party or the International People’s Democratic Movement, a group formed by the African People’s Socialist Party. Other protestors were citizens who felt strongly about the Zimmerman case and other issues.

The tenor of the Justice for Trayvon protests was strident and clear: they want to see George Zimmerman convicted of second-degree murder, and nothing less. A number of protesters said Zimmerman was guilty of first-degree, premeditated murder. The protestors were making many of the same arguments that the prosecution team was making, such as claiming that Zimmerman pursued Martin because he was racist and that Martin had a right to defend himself from Zimmerman’s aggressive behavior.

There were no protestors supporting George Zimmerman.