Hoodies on the Hill -- PICTURES

By Julia Edwards

Updated: March 23, 2012 | 5:41 p.m.
March 23, 2012 | 2:57 p.m.

Members of various minority staff associations convened on the steps of the Capitol on Friday for "Hoodies on the Hill" in a show of solidarity for Trayvon Martin, an African-American teenager slain in February in Sanford, Fla.

Many suspect that Martin, 17, was the victim of racial profiling. Wearing a hoodie, the unarmed youth was reportedly returning home from the store when a neighborhood watch captain shot him. The shooter, George Zimmerman, told police at the time that he used force in self-defense. Although his story has been called into question, he was never arrested.

The case has since come to national attention. Many staffers and supporters who assembled on the Capitol steps wore hoodies to take a stand against profiling.

Senate Chaplain Barry Black, wearing bow tie, says a prayer at that Hoodies on the Hill rally in honor of Trayvon Martin, the Florida teen who was shot dead in Februray by a neighborhood-watch volunteer. (Chet Susslin)

Dante Pope, with Rep. Danny Davis's office, sings "We Shall Overcome" at the Hoodies on the Hill event. (Chet Susslin)

John Marshall (left), with the Congressional Black Associates, and Anthony Stevens, a Congressional Black Caucus Foundation intern, walk toward the House Capitol steps on the western side of the Capitol to attend Hoodies on the Hill, a rally paying tribute to Trayvon Martin and calling for an end to racial profiling. (Chet Susslin)

Waikinya Clanton, president of the Congressional Black Associates and organizer of the rally, holds up a pack of Skittles during her remarks at Hoodies on the Hill on Friday, March 23, 2012. The candy is the type Florida teen Trayvon Martin is reported to have had when he was killed. (Chet Susslin)

Michael Ashley, from Rep. Frederica Wilson’s office; Waikinya Clanton, president of the Congressional Black Associates; and Ifeoma Ike, with the Congressional Black Associates, listen as Senate Chaplain Barry Black speaks on the steps of the Capitol. (Chet Susslin)

A group pf young men wearing hoodies read from the poem "Justice Stands Still" at Friday's Hoodies on the Hill rally. (Chet Susslin)

A crowd gathers on the House steps on the eastern side of the Capitol for Hoodies on the Hill. (Chet Susslin)

Congressional Black Associates President Waikinya Clanton holds up a pack of Skittles at the Hoodies on the Hill event she organized on Friday. According to reports, Trayvon Martin was returning home after buying candy and iced tea when he was shot. (Julia Edwards)

Representatives from various minority staff organizations on the Hill read the poem "Justice Stands Still." (Julia Edwards)

Keenan Austin, vice president of the Congressional Black Associates wears a hoodie at the rally in a show of solidarity. (Julia Edwards)

Staffers applaud as representatives from various minority staffer organizations deliver their remarks. (Julia Edwards)

Twuan Samuel, a member of the LGBT staff association, told the crowd: "We all understand what it's like to be discriminated against. We all understand what civil rights are." (Julia Edwards)

The president of the Congressional Hispanic Staff Association, Jacqueline Eufrausino, told the crowd, "Our heart goes out to his family," speaking of Trayvon Martin. The man who shot Martin, George Zimmerman, is of Latino descent. Eufrausino said her association wants an investigation into the incident. (Julia Edwards)

Brandon Andrews, president of the African-American Men on the Hill staff association, said, "It could have been me." He once lived in Florida and said he walked the same streets as Martin. He told the audience, "We have a mandate" to end racial injustice. (Julia Edwards)

Senate Chaplain Barry Black said, "We need to do more to make justice flow like waters and righteousness flow like a mighty stream." Black said he was once profiled in San Diego, when police singled him out as being the person referenced in neighbors' "suspicious person" complaints. (Julia Edwards)

Those gathered at Friday's Hoodies on the Hill event raise their hands as the Senate Chaplain Barry Black leads them in prayer. (Julia Edwards)

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