Congregants wear hoodies during a morning sermon at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta on Sunday. Churchgoers were invited to wear hoodies to services to show support for justice in the case of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teenager who was wearing a hoodie on the night he was killed by a Neighborhood Watch captain in Florida.Some Chattanooga community leaders are joining a national outcry against racism and violence that many believe left a Florida teen dead and his killer uncharged.
The Rev. Leroy Griffith of Renaissance Presbyterian Church said Sunday’s services celebrated the feast of the Annunciation. He emphasized God’s decision to send Jesus to a humble family and mused, “God chooses the poor and oppressed to bear witness to God. Maybe the slaughter of this young man will encourage people to seek out justice.”
“It’s a tragic event. There’s no way you can have a whole system that allows it,” added the Rev. Paul McDaniel of Second Missionary Baptist.
It’s been a month since 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot by Neighborhood Watch volunteer George Zimmerman, who is white and Hispanic, while walking home from a store through a gated community.
Zimmerman, 28, has not been arrested. He said he used deadly force to defend himself under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law.