Trayvon Martin demonstration moves into Times Square in New York

By Matt Pearce

July 14, 2013 6:33 PM PT

Demonstrators protesting Trayvon Martin’s death amassed in New York City’s Times Square on Sunday night after marching about two miles from an earlier rally at Union Square.

As tourists looked on, the protesters chanted: “What do we want?” “Justice!” “When do we want it?” “Now!”

The demonstration was one of many in major U.S. cities Sunday after George Zimmerman was acquitted Saturday night of murdering Trayvon Martin in Florida.

After a protest Saturday night in Oakland turned violent, Sunday’s protests were peaceful.

Lines of police occasionally attempted to redirect the New York march as it moved through Manhattan, with cabs and trucks sometimes honking in support.

“We are all Trayvon Martin!” a speaker with a megaphone told the demonstrators in Times Square, with the rally broadcast on a live feed over the Web. “Justice for Trayvon Martin!”

Beneath the glitzy lights of the square, protesters gathered and spoke with an Occupy-Wall-Street-style “human mic,” with protestors repeating a speaker’s words in unison for others to hear.

Then the chanters shouted, “Sit down, shut it down!” and sat down in Times Square.

Here are a few photos tweeted from the march and the scene:

Longest sustained chant: “Trayvon is dead. Zimmerman is free. That’s what we call democracy.” #TrayvonMartin pic.twitter.com/Ih0jgoziZK— Ryan Devereaux (@rdevro) July 14, 2013

Cops are not letting crowd past 7th and 34th. Macy’s seems to be the last stop. Crowd chants move as one. pic.twitter.com/L9RFpSgl8R— Lola Ogunnaike (@lolaogunnaike) July 15, 2013

Hard not to have your heart broken by an image like this: pic.twitter.com/2JbYgkTMnl— Danny Gold (@DGisSERIOUS) July 15, 2013

This mom and her little boy just decided to join the march as it entered Times Square #TrayvonMartin pic.twitter.com/Ol2uiM0E96— Ryan Devereaux (@rdevro) July 15, 2013

Crowd chanting what do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now! pic.twitter.com/wPEDwlX57g— Lola Ogunnaike (@lolaogunnaike) July 15, 2013

Cry to “sit down” sweeps crowd. Protest becomes a sit-in, of sorts. Cab driver stuck in the middle! pic.twitter.com/ARPKeFd3xr— Ravi Somaiya (@ravisomaiya) July 15, 2013