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Banks Warned They Risk Prosecution If They Follow Obama Admin Guidance on Marijuana http://static.infowars.com/bindnfocom/2014/02/021514obamasigning.jpg
Obama’s “guidance” for banks to follow will only ensure their prosecution by the DOJ and the Treasury Dept.
Bankers should beware of the Obama administration’s newly issued green light for banks doing business with the legal marijuana industry, according to the head of the Colorado Bankers Association.
Memos released Friday by the Justice Department and Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network were intended to give banks leeway to open accounts for marijuana businesses in states like Colorado and Washington that have legalized retail pot. Instead, the guidance “only reinforces and reiterates that banks can be prosecuted for providing accounts to marijuana related businesses,” said the CBA in a Friday statement.
“In fact, it is even stronger than original guidance issued by the Department of Justice and the Treasury,” said CBA president and CEO Don Childears. “After a series of red lights, we expected this guidance to be a yellow one. This isn’t close to that. At best, this amounts to ‘serve these customers at your own risk’ and it emphasizes all of the risks. This light is red.”
The owners of a Christian bakery who refused to make a wedding cake for a lesbian couple are facing hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines after they were found guilty of violating the couple’s civil rights.
The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries said they found “substantial evidence” that Sweet Cakes by Melissa discriminated against the lesbian couple and violated the Oregon Equality Act of 2007, a law that protects the rights of the LGBT community.
Last year, the bakery’s owners refused to make a wedding cake for Rachel Cryer and Laurel Bowman, of Portland, citing their Christian beliefs. The couple then filed a complaint with the state.
“The investigation concludes that the bakery is not a religious institution under the law and that the business’ policy of refusing to make same-sex wedding cakes represents unlawful discrimination based on sexual orientation,” said Charlie Burr, a spokesman for the Bureau of Labor and Industries.
The backlash against Aaron and Melissa Klein, owners of the bakery, was severe. Gay rights groups launched protests and pickets outside the family’s store. They threatened wedding vendors who did business with the bakery. And, Klein told me, the family’s children were the targets of death threats.
The family eventually had to close their retail shop and now operate the bakery out of their home. They posted a message vowing to stand firm in their faith. It read, in part:
“To all of you that have been praying for Aaron and I, I want to say thank you. I know that your prayers are being heard. I feel such a peace with all of this that is going on. Even though there are days that are hard and times of struggle we still feel that the Lord is in this. It is His fight and our situation is in His hands….Please continue to pray for our family. God is great, amazing and all powerful. I know He has a plan.”
Under state law, the complaint against the bakery now moves into a period of reconciliation. If they can’t reach an agreement, formal civil charges could be filed and the Kleins could face hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.
Last August, Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian told The Oregonian, their desire is to rehabilitate businesses like the one owned by the Christian couple.
“Everybody is entitled to their own beliefs, but that doesn’t mean that folks have the right to discriminate,” he told the newspaper. “The goal is never to shut down a business. The goal is to rehabilitate.”
Aaron Klein told me there will be no reconciliation and there will be no rehabilitation. He and his wife will not back down from their Christian beliefs.
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President Obama wants the House to vote on a “clean” spending bill that would reopen the government. Speaker John Boehner insists there aren’t enough votes in the House to pass such a measure. To which Obama says let’s have the vote and see who’s right.
The rest of the country is no less petulant. A fresh national survey by the Pew Research Center paints a polarized citizenry. A total of 44 percent of Americans want the Republicans to give ground, but nearly as many — 42 percent — say it is the president who should make the first move by agreeing to changes in his signature healthcare law.
Obama said that the reason Boehner hasn’t called a vote is “because he doesn’t apparently want to see the government shutdown end” unless “he’s able to extract concessions that don’t have anything to do with the budget,” according to The New York Times.
The two leaders are speaking past one another. “We’re not going to pass a clean debt limit increase,” Boehner told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.
“My goal here is not to have the United States default on their debt. My goal here is to have a serious conversation about those things that are driving the deficit and driving the debt up. And the president’s refusal to sit down and have a conversation about this is putting our nation at risk of default.”
The Speaker has no plans to schedule that vote, and Congressional Republicans are holding firm, The Hill reported.
Even if a bipartisan majority does exist, as some media reports speculate, for now it is unlikely centrist Republicans will defect to join with Democrats in forcing a vote on a clean continuing resolution, The Hill said.
Across America, in principle, there is broad support for compromise. In practice, partisanship is entrenched. Pew found that — even if it were the only way to resolve the shutdown — a majority of Democrats do not want Obama to delay the Affordable Care Act. Similarly, a majority of Republicans oppose any deal that does not target Obamacare.
Forty-seven percent say it is “absolutely essential that the federal debt limit be raised to avoid an economic crisis” looming as early as Oct. 17, while 39 percent believe “the country can go past the deadline for raising the debt limit without major economic problems,” Pew found.
The National Security Agency (NSA) widely monitors international payments, banking and credit card transactions, according to documents seen by SPIEGEL.
The information from the American foreign intelligence agency, acquired by former NSA contractor and whistleblower Edward Snowden, show that the spying is conducted by a branch called “Follow the Money” (FTM). The collected information then flows into the NSA’s own financial databank, called “Tracfin,” which in 2011 contained 180 million records. Some 84 percent of the data is from credit card transactions.
Further NSA documents from 2010 show that the NSA also targets the transactions of customers of large credit card companies like VISA for surveillance. NSA analysts at an internal conference that year described in detail how they had apparently successfully searched through the US company’s complex transaction network for tapping possibilities.
Their aim was to gain access to transactions by VISA customers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, according to one presentation. The goal was to “collect, parse and ingest transactional data for priority credit card associations, focusing on priority geographic regions.” In response to a SPIEGEL inquiry, however, a VISA spokeswoman ruled out the possibility that data could be taken from company-run networks.
The NSA’s Tracfin data bank also contained data from the Brussels-based Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), a network used by thousands of banks to send transaction information securely. SWIFT was named as a “target,” according to the documents, which also show that the NSA spied on the organization on several levels, involving, among others, the agency’s “tailored access operations” division. One of the ways the agency accessed the data included reading “SWIFT printer traffic from numerous banks,” the documents show.
But even intelligence agency employees are somewhat concerned about spying on the world finance system, according to one document from the UK’s intelligence agency GCHQ concerning the legal perspectives on “financial data” and the agency’s own cooperations with the NSA in this area. The collection, storage and sharing of politically sensitive data is a deep invasion of privacy, and involved “bulk data” full of “rich personal information,” much of which “is not about our targets,” the document says.
Violent storms have marked the end of a three-week heatwave with thunder and lightning hitting the UK overnight.
Train services out of Manchester’s main railway station have suffered major disruption after a lightning strike hit the signalling system.
About 6,500 homes in Gloucestershire lost power overnight, which has now been restored.
The change in weather comes after the hottest temperatures in seven years – which peaked on Monday at 33.5C.
The temperature – recorded in London – marked the hottest day since July 2006.
Flash floods
Network Rail said trains out of Manchester Piccadilly would be delayed by at least 60 minutes, with no details about when they would be back to normal.
Passengers have been told that all services have been suspended out of Piccadilly.
Tram services have also been hit in Manchester after a lightning strike affected signalling for the city’s Metrolink service.
A lightning strike at Stechford, near Birmingham, has affected services in and out of Coventry, Birmingham International and Birmingham New Street.
Storms hit England and Wales overnight and will last intermittently throughout Tuesday and Wednesday, coupled with torrential rain and the risk of flash floods.
Caught fire
A number of properties in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, were damaged by lightning, with firefighters called just before 06:00 BST. A car in the town also caught fire.
Denise Walton, who lives on Stuart Street, where a house was struck, said: “I heard an almighty bang and a flash, the whole street seemed to light up.
“Then I looked through the window and I could see smoke coming into the sky, I didn’t know where it was coming from.
“Within 10 minutes the fire brigade was here and then all hell let loose. It was frightening. Shocking, actually.”
In Wiltshire firefighters tackled a blaze in the roof of a house on Stonehenge Road in Durrington at about 18:30 on Monday.
Wiltshire Fire and Rescue said they received “many” lightning-related calls overnight.
‘Be aware’
About 50 firefighters and eight fire engines attended a fire at a farm on Elsthorpe Road, Stainfield, in Lincolnshire.
In Kent a house in Lympne caught fire at 02:00 after a lightning strike and a property in Gillingham was struck about 04:30. No-one was hurt in either incident.
Fire crews also had to pump water out of a house in Sandgate when it became flooded because of heavy rainfall.
London, Essex and Cambridgeshire have also been affected. In Market Bosworth, Leicestershire, 21mm of rain fell in less than an hour, the BBC Weather Centre said.
Water on Newfoundland Street in Bristol city centre closed one lane of the M32, with traffic queuing for about six miles.
Greater Manchester Fire Service had to rescue drivers from two cars after they got stuck driving through water on Crossley Road, Burnage.
Overnight, Stansted Airport in Essex suffered a power cut causing passenger information services and screens to fail.
A spokesman for the airport said flights were arriving and departing on schedule and a normal service was expected to continue.
He added: “Passengers are advised to come to the airport earlier than planned in case the situation changes.”
‘Surface water flooding’
A power cut affected about 6,500 properties in Alderton in Tewkesbury and Marle Hill in Stroud in Gloucestershire. Western Power said the supply was restored at 08:20.
About 800 homes in Bedminster, Bristol were left without power from 04:26-04:42 and another 800 homes in Emersons Green, Bath and Taunton had intermittent problems overnight.
In Essex power has been restored to 3,000 homes after a lightning storm caused a fault during the night.
UK Power Networks engineers are working to restore supplies to 238 customers in the Charlotte Avenue area of Wickford who remain without electricity.
A spokesperson said: “We appreciate how difficult it can be to lose power and want to assure customers we are doing all we can to restore normal supplies.”
Yellow warning
The Met Office’s Yellow warning for Tuesday predicts “thunderstorms or longer spells of thundery rain during the course of Tuesday, with some torrential downpours in places”.
It also warns of a risk of localised disruption to travel and surface water flooding.
In Wales, Natural Resources Wales said heavy rain was likely to cause roads to flood and drains, ditches and small streams to overflow.
BBC Wales weather presenter Behnaz Akhgar added: “The worst of it is in England now. We had some thunderstorms overnight and lightning strikes over parts of south east Wales.
“The only place we could continue to have lightning strikes is north east Wales in the Wrexham area.”
A further yellow warning of rain has been issued for Wednesday, affecting eastern parts of England and parts of Scotland, in particular the north-east of the country.
Philip Avery, from the BBC Weather Centre, warned that further storms could affect England during Tuesday.
“They [the storms] lie in an arc from Antrim to Scotland, over the Midlands and East Anglia and will push through Scotland during the day,” he said.
“Following behind from the Midlands to East Anglia there could be isolated storms. There’s an extensive yellow warning because of the intensity.
“We will stay on the muggy side and that could be the case again tonight and we don’t see any significant freshening of the atmosphere over next few days.”
Have you been affected by the thunderstorms? Send your stories using the form below.
Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you canupload here.
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Nichole Mitchell wipes away tears during the sermon at a youth service at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church in Sanford, Fla., Sunday, July 14, 2013. Many in the congregation wore shirts in support of Trayvon Martin following the acquittal oif George Zimmerman, who had been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Demonstrators march in Union Square Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Tabatha Holley, 19, of Dawson, Ga., chants as demonstrators march in protest as a police cruiser follows at right the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square in New York Sunday, July 14, 2013 during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of demonstrators from across the country — chanting, praying and even fighting tears — protested a jury’s decision to clear George Zimmerman in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager while the Justice Department considered whether to file criminal civil rights charges.
Rallies on Sunday were largely peaceful as demonstrators voiced their support for 17-year-old Trayvon Martin’s family — and decried Zimmerman’s not guilty verdict as a miscarriage of justice. A march in Los Angeles had minor unrest when a group threw rocks and batteries at police.
The NAACP and protesters called for federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who was acquitted Saturday in Martin’s February 2012 shooting death.
The Justice Department said it is looking into the case to determine whether federal prosecutors should file criminal civil rights charges now that Zimmerman has been acquitted in the state case. The department opened an investigation into Martin’s death last year but stepped aside to allow the state prosecution to proceed.
The evidence generated during the federal probe is still being evaluated by the criminal section of the Justice Department’s civil rights division, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Middle District of Florida, along with evidence and testimony from the state trial, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama and religious and civil rights leaders urged calm in hopes of ensuring peaceful demonstrations following a case that became an emotional flash point.
Sunday’s demonstrations, held in cities from Florida to Wisconsin, attracted anywhere from a few dozen people to a more than a thousand.
At a march and rally in downtown Chicago attended by about 200 people, some said the verdict was symbolic of lingering racism in the United States. Seventy-three-year-old Maya Miller said the case reminded her of the 1955 slaying of Emmitt Till, a 14-year-old from Chicago who was murdered by a group of white men while visiting Mississippi. Till’s killing galvanized the civil rights movement.
“Fifty-eight years and nothing’s changed,” Miller said, pausing to join a chant for “Justice for Trayvon, not one more.”
In New York City, hundreds of protesters marched into Times Square Sunday night, zigzagging through Manhattan’s streets to avoid police lines. Sign-carrying marchers thronged the busy intersection, chanting “Justice for! Trayvon Martin!” as they made their way from Union Square, blocking traffic for more than an hour before moving on.
In San Francisco and Los Angeles — where an earlier protest was dispersed with beanbag rounds — police closed streets as protesters marched Sunday to condemn Zimmerman’s acquittal.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti urged protesters to “practice peace” after the rock- and bottle-throwing incident. Police arrested one man.
Rand Powdrill, 41, of San Leandro, said he came to the San Francisco march with about 400 others to “protest the execution of an innocent black teenager.”
“If our voices can’t be heard, then this is just going to keep going on,” he said.
Earlier, at Manhattan’s Middle Collegiate Church, many congregants wore hooded sweatshirts — the same thing Martin was wearing the night he was shot — in a show of solidarity. Hoodie-clad Jessica Nacinovich said she could only feel disappointment and sadness over the verdict.
“I’m sure jurors did what they felt was right in accordance with the law but maybe the law is wrong, maybe society is wrong; there’s a lot that needs fixing,” she said.
At a youth service in Sanford, Fla., where the trial was held, teens wearing shirts displaying Martin’s picture wiped away tears during a sermon at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church.
Protesters also gathered in Atlanta, Miami, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., along with a host of other cities.
In Miami, more than 200 people gathered for a vigil. “You can’t justify murder,” read one poster. Another read “Don’t worry about more riots. Worry about more Zimmermans.”
Carol Reitner, 76, of Miami, said she heard about the vigil through an announcement at her church Sunday morning. “I was really devastated. It’s really hard to believe that someone can take the life of someone else and walk out of court free,” she said.
In Philadelphia, about 700 protesters marched from LOVE Park to the Liberty Bell, alternating between chanting Trayvon Martin’s name and “No justice, no peace!”
“We hope this will begin a movement to end discrimination against young black men,” said Johnathan Cooper, one of the protest’s organizers. “And also to empower black people and get them involved in the system.”
In Atlanta, a crowd of about 75 protesters chanted and carried signs near Centennial Olympic Park.
“I came out today because a great deal of injustice has been done and I’m very disappointed at our justice system; I’m just disappointed in America,” Tabatha Holley, 19, of Atlanta said.
Civil rights leaders, including the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, urged peace in the wake of the verdict. Jackson said the legal system “failed justice,” but violence isn’t the answer.
But not all the protesters heeded those calls immediately after the verdict.
In Oakland, Calif., during protests that began late Saturday night some angry demonstrators broke windows, burned U.S. flags and started street fires. Some marchers also vandalized a police squad car and used spray paint to scrawl anti-police graffiti on roads and Alameda County’s Davidson courthouse.
In Los Angeles, police said a crowd of about 100 protesters surrounded an officer and eventually had to be dispersed by officers firing beanbag rounds.
___
Associated Press reporters Suzette Laboy in Miami, Terence Chea in San Francisco, Keith Collins in Philadelphia, Pete Yost and Eric Tucker in Washington and Luisa Leme contributed to this report.
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Nichole Mitchell wipes away tears during the sermon at a youth service at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church in Sanford, Fla., Sunday, July 14, 2013. Many in the congregation wore shirts in support of Trayvon Martin following the acquittal oif George Zimmerman, who had been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Demonstrators march in Union Square Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Tabatha Holley, 19, of Dawson, Ga., chants as demonstrators march in protest as a police cruiser follows at right the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square in New York Sunday, July 14, 2013 during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Buy AP Photo Reprints
NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of demonstrators from across the country — chanting, praying and even fighting tears — protested a jury’s decision to clear George Zimmerman in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager while the Justice Department considered whether to file criminal civil rights charges.
Rallies on Sunday were largely peaceful as demonstrators voiced their support for 17-year-old Trayvon Martin’s family — and decried Zimmerman’s not guilty verdict as a miscarriage of justice. A march in Los Angeles had minor unrest when a group threw rocks and batteries at police.
The NAACP and protesters called for federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who was acquitted Saturday in Martin’s February 2012 shooting death.
The Justice Department said it is looking into the case to determine whether federal prosecutors should file criminal civil rights charges now that Zimmerman has been acquitted in the state case. The department opened an investigation into Martin’s death last year but stepped aside to allow the state prosecution to proceed.
The evidence generated during the federal probe is still being evaluated by the criminal section of the Justice Department’s civil rights division, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Middle District of Florida, along with evidence and testimony from the state trial, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama and religious and civil rights leaders urged calm in hopes of ensuring peaceful demonstrations following a case that became an emotional flash point.
Sunday’s demonstrations, held in cities from Florida to Wisconsin, attracted anywhere from a few dozen people to a more than a thousand.
At a march and rally in downtown Chicago attended by about 200 people, some said the verdict was symbolic of lingering racism in the United States. Seventy-three-year-old Maya Miller said the case reminded her of the 1955 slaying of Emmitt Till, a 14-year-old from Chicago who was murdered by a group of white men while visiting Mississippi. Till’s killing galvanized the civil rights movement.
“Fifty-eight years and nothing’s changed,” Miller said, pausing to join a chant for “Justice for Trayvon, not one more.”
In New York City, hundreds of protesters marched into Times Square Sunday night, zigzagging through Manhattan’s streets to avoid police lines. Sign-carrying marchers thronged the busy intersection, chanting “Justice for! Trayvon Martin!” as they made their way from Union Square, blocking traffic for more than an hour before moving on.
In San Francisco and Los Angeles — where an earlier protest was dispersed with beanbag rounds — police closed streets as protesters marched Sunday to condemn Zimmerman’s acquittal.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti urged protesters to “practice peace” after the rock- and bottle-throwing incident. Police arrested one man.
Rand Powdrill, 41, of San Leandro, said he came to the San Francisco march with about 400 others to “protest the execution of an innocent black teenager.”
“If our voices can’t be heard, then this is just going to keep going on,” he said.
Earlier, at Manhattan’s Middle Collegiate Church, many congregants wore hooded sweatshirts — the same thing Martin was wearing the night he was shot — in a show of solidarity. Hoodie-clad Jessica Nacinovich said she could only feel disappointment and sadness over the verdict.
“I’m sure jurors did what they felt was right in accordance with the law but maybe the law is wrong, maybe society is wrong; there’s a lot that needs fixing,” she said.
At a youth service in Sanford, Fla., where the trial was held, teens wearing shirts displaying Martin’s picture wiped away tears during a sermon at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church.
Protesters also gathered in Atlanta, Miami, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., along with a host of other cities.
In Miami, more than 200 people gathered for a vigil. “You can’t justify murder,” read one poster. Another read “Don’t worry about more riots. Worry about more Zimmermans.”
Carol Reitner, 76, of Miami, said she heard about the vigil through an announcement at her church Sunday morning. “I was really devastated. It’s really hard to believe that someone can take the life of someone else and walk out of court free,” she said.
In Philadelphia, about 700 protesters marched from LOVE Park to the Liberty Bell, alternating between chanting Trayvon Martin’s name and “No justice, no peace!”
“We hope this will begin a movement to end discrimination against young black men,” said Johnathan Cooper, one of the protest’s organizers. “And also to empower black people and get them involved in the system.”
In Atlanta, a crowd of about 75 protesters chanted and carried signs near Centennial Olympic Park.
“I came out today because a great deal of injustice has been done and I’m very disappointed at our justice system; I’m just disappointed in America,” Tabatha Holley, 19, of Atlanta said.
Civil rights leaders, including the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, urged peace in the wake of the verdict. Jackson said the legal system “failed justice,” but violence isn’t the answer.
But not all the protesters heeded those calls immediately after the verdict.
In Oakland, Calif., during protests that began late Saturday night some angry demonstrators broke windows, burned U.S. flags and started street fires. Some marchers also vandalized a police squad car and used spray paint to scrawl anti-police graffiti on roads and Alameda County’s Davidson courthouse.
In Los Angeles, police said a crowd of about 100 protesters surrounded an officer and eventually had to be dispersed by officers firing beanbag rounds.
___
Associated Press reporters Suzette Laboy in Miami, Terence Chea in San Francisco, Keith Collins in Philadelphia, Pete Yost and Eric Tucker in Washington and Luisa Leme contributed to this report.
NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of demonstrators from across the country — chanting, praying and even fighting tears — protested a jury’s decision to clear George Zimmerman in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager while the Justice Department considered whether to file criminal civil rights charges.
Rallies on Sunday were largely peaceful as demonstrators voiced their support for 17-year-old Trayvon Martin’s family — and decried Zimmerman’s not guilty verdict as a miscarriage of justice. A march in Los Angeles had minor unrest when a group threw rocks and batteries at police.
The NAACP and protesters called for federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who was acquitted Saturday in Martin’s February 2012 shooting death.
The Justice Department said it is looking into the case to determine whether federal prosecutors should file criminal civil rights charges now that Zimmerman has been acquitted in the state case. The department opened an investigation into Martin’s death last year but stepped aside to allow the state prosecution to proceed.
The evidence generated during the federal probe is still being evaluated by the criminal section of the Justice Department’s civil rights division, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Middle District of Florida, along with evidence and testimony from the state trial, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama and religious and civil rights leaders urged calm in hopes of ensuring peaceful demonstrations following a case that became an emotional flash point.
Sunday’s demonstrations, held in cities from Florida to Wisconsin, attracted anywhere from a few dozen people to a more than a thousand.
At a march and rally in downtown Chicago attended by about 200 people, some said the verdict was symbolic of lingering racism in the United States. Seventy-three-year-old Maya Miller said the case reminded her of the 1955 slaying of Emmitt Till, a 14-year-old from Chicago who was murdered by a group of white men while visiting Mississippi. Till’s killing galvanized the civil rights movement.
“Fifty-eight years and nothing’s changed,” Miller said, pausing to join a chant for “Justice for Trayvon, not one more.”
In New York City, hundreds of protesters marched into Times Square Sunday night, zigzagging through Manhattan’s streets to avoid police lines. Sign-carrying marchers thronged the busy intersection, chanting “Justice for! Trayvon Martin!” as they made their way from Union Square, blocking traffic for more than an hour before moving on.
In San Francisco and Los Angeles — where an earlier protest was dispersed with beanbag rounds — police closed streets as protesters marched Sunday to condemn Zimmerman’s acquittal.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti urged protesters to “practice peace” after the rock- and bottle-throwing incident. Police arrested one man.
Rand Powdrill, 41, of San Leandro, said he came to the San Francisco march with about 400 others to “protest the execution of an innocent black teenager.”
“If our voices can’t be heard, then this is just going to keep going on,” he said.
Earlier, at Manhattan’s Middle Collegiate Church, many congregants wore hooded sweatshirts — the same thing Martin was wearing the night he was shot — in a show of solidarity. Hoodie-clad Jessica Nacinovich said she could only feel disappointment and sadness over the verdict.
“I’m sure jurors did what they felt was right in accordance with the law but maybe the law is wrong, maybe society is wrong; there’s a lot that needs fixing,” she said.
At a youth service in Sanford, Fla., where the trial was held, teens wearing shirts displaying Martin’s picture wiped away tears during a sermon at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church.
Protesters also gathered in Atlanta, Miami, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., along with a host of other cities.
In Miami, more than 200 people gathered for a vigil. “You can’t justify murder,” read one poster. Another read “Don’t worry about more riots. Worry about more Zimmermans.”
Carol Reitner, 76, of Miami, said she heard about the vigil through an announcement at her church Sunday morning. “I was really devastated. It’s really hard to believe that someone can take the life of someone else and walk out of court free,” she said.
In Philadelphia, about 700 protesters marched from LOVE Park to the Liberty Bell, alternating between chanting Trayvon Martin’s name and “No justice, no peace!”
“We hope this will begin a movement to end discrimination against young black men,” said Johnathan Cooper, one of the protest’s organizers. “And also to empower black people and get them involved in the system.”
In Atlanta, a crowd of about 75 protesters chanted and carried signs near Centennial Olympic Park.
“I came out today because a great deal of injustice has been done and I’m very disappointed at our justice system; I’m just disappointed in America,” Tabatha Holley, 19, of Atlanta said.
Civil rights leaders, including the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, urged peace in the wake of the verdict. Jackson said the legal system “failed justice,” but violence isn’t the answer.
But not all the protesters heeded those calls immediately after the verdict.
In Oakland, Calif., during protests that began late Saturday night some angry demonstrators broke windows, burned U.S. flags and started street fires. Some marchers also vandalized a police squad car and used spray paint to scrawl anti-police graffiti on roads and Alameda County’s Davidson courthouse.
In Los Angeles, police said a crowd of about 100 protesters surrounded an officer and eventually had to be dispersed by officers firing beanbag rounds.
___
Associated Press reporters Suzette Laboy in Miami, Terence Chea in San Francisco, Keith Collins in Philadelphia, Pete Yost and Eric Tucker in Washington and Luisa Leme contributed to this report.
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Nichole Mitchell wipes away tears during the sermon at a youth service at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church in Sanford, Fla., Sunday, July 14, 2013. Many in the congregation wore shirts in support of Trayvon Martin following the acquittal oif George Zimmerman, who had been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Demonstrators march in Union Square Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Tabatha Holley, 19, of Dawson, Ga., chants as demonstrators march in protest as a police cruiser follows at right the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square in New York Sunday, July 14, 2013 during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of demonstrators from across the country — chanting, praying and even fighting tears — protested a jury’s decision to clear George Zimmerman in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager while the Justice Department considered whether to file criminal civil rights charges.
Rallies on Sunday were largely peaceful as demonstrators voiced their support for 17-year-old Trayvon Martin’s family — and decried Zimmerman’s not guilty verdict as a miscarriage of justice. A march in Los Angeles had minor unrest when a group threw rocks and batteries at police.
The NAACP and protesters called for federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who was acquitted Saturday in Martin’s February 2012 shooting death.
The Justice Department said it is looking into the case to determine whether federal prosecutors should file criminal civil rights charges now that Zimmerman has been acquitted in the state case. The department opened an investigation into Martin’s death last year but stepped aside to allow the state prosecution to proceed.
The evidence generated during the federal probe is still being evaluated by the criminal section of the Justice Department’s civil rights division, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Middle District of Florida, along with evidence and testimony from the state trial, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama and religious and civil rights leaders urged calm in hopes of ensuring peaceful demonstrations following a case that became an emotional flash point.
Sunday’s demonstrations, held in cities from Florida to Wisconsin, attracted anywhere from a few dozen people to a more than a thousand.
At a march and rally in downtown Chicago attended by about 200 people, some said the verdict was symbolic of lingering racism in the United States. Seventy-three-year-old Maya Miller said the case reminded her of the 1955 slaying of Emmitt Till, a 14-year-old from Chicago who was murdered by a group of white men while visiting Mississippi. Till’s killing galvanized the civil rights movement.
“Fifty-eight years and nothing’s changed,” Miller said, pausing to join a chant for “Justice for Trayvon, not one more.”
In New York City, hundreds of protesters marched into Times Square Sunday night, zigzagging through Manhattan’s streets to avoid police lines. Sign-carrying marchers thronged the busy intersection, chanting “Justice for! Trayvon Martin!” as they made their way from Union Square, blocking traffic for more than an hour before moving on.
In San Francisco and Los Angeles — where an earlier protest was dispersed with beanbag rounds — police closed streets as protesters marched Sunday to condemn Zimmerman’s acquittal.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti urged protesters to “practice peace” after the rock- and bottle-throwing incident. Police arrested one man.
Rand Powdrill, 41, of San Leandro, said he came to the San Francisco march with about 400 others to “protest the execution of an innocent black teenager.”
“If our voices can’t be heard, then this is just going to keep going on,” he said.
Earlier, at Manhattan’s Middle Collegiate Church, many congregants wore hooded sweatshirts — the same thing Martin was wearing the night he was shot — in a show of solidarity. Hoodie-clad Jessica Nacinovich said she could only feel disappointment and sadness over the verdict.
“I’m sure jurors did what they felt was right in accordance with the law but maybe the law is wrong, maybe society is wrong; there’s a lot that needs fixing,” she said.
At a youth service in Sanford, Fla., where the trial was held, teens wearing shirts displaying Martin’s picture wiped away tears during a sermon at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church.
Protesters also gathered in Atlanta, Miami, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., along with a host of other cities.
In Miami, more than 200 people gathered for a vigil. “You can’t justify murder,” read one poster. Another read “Don’t worry about more riots. Worry about more Zimmermans.”
Carol Reitner, 76, of Miami, said she heard about the vigil through an announcement at her church Sunday morning. “I was really devastated. It’s really hard to believe that someone can take the life of someone else and walk out of court free,” she said.
In Philadelphia, about 700 protesters marched from LOVE Park to the Liberty Bell, alternating between chanting Trayvon Martin’s name and “No justice, no peace!”
“We hope this will begin a movement to end discrimination against young black men,” said Johnathan Cooper, one of the protest’s organizers. “And also to empower black people and get them involved in the system.”
In Atlanta, a crowd of about 75 protesters chanted and carried signs near Centennial Olympic Park.
“I came out today because a great deal of injustice has been done and I’m very disappointed at our justice system; I’m just disappointed in America,” Tabatha Holley, 19, of Atlanta said.
Civil rights leaders, including the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, urged peace in the wake of the verdict. Jackson said the legal system “failed justice,” but violence isn’t the answer.
But not all the protesters heeded those calls immediately after the verdict.
In Oakland, Calif., during protests that began late Saturday night some angry demonstrators broke windows, burned U.S. flags and started street fires. Some marchers also vandalized a police squad car and used spray paint to scrawl anti-police graffiti on roads and Alameda County’s Davidson courthouse.
In Los Angeles, police said a crowd of about 100 protesters surrounded an officer and eventually had to be dispersed by officers firing beanbag rounds.
___
Associated Press reporters Suzette Laboy in Miami, Terence Chea in San Francisco, Keith Collins in Philadelphia, Pete Yost and Eric Tucker in Washington and Luisa Leme contributed to this report.
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Nichole Mitchell wipes away tears during the sermon at a youth service at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church in Sanford, Fla., Sunday, July 14, 2013. Many in the congregation wore shirts in support of Trayvon Martin following the acquittal oif George Zimmerman, who had been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
Demonstrators march in Union Square Sunday, July 14, 2013, in New York, during a protest against the acquittal of member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested mostly peacefully in Florida, Milwaukee, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Tabatha Holley, 19, of Dawson, Ga., chants as demonstrators march in protest as a police cruiser follows at right the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, Sunday, July 14, 2013, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
Demonstrators converge on Union Square in New York Sunday, July 14, 2013 during a protest against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida. Demonstrators upset with the verdict protested in Florida, Milwaukee, Washington, Atlanta and other cities overnight and into the early morning Sunday. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Buy AP Photo Reprints
NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of demonstrators from across the country — chanting, praying and even fighting tears — protested a jury’s decision to clear George Zimmerman in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager while the Justice Department considered whether to file criminal civil rights charges.
Rallies on Sunday were largely peaceful as demonstrators voiced their support for 17-year-old Trayvon Martin’s family — and decried Zimmerman’s not guilty verdict as a miscarriage of justice. A march in Los Angeles had minor unrest when a group threw rocks and batteries at police.
The NAACP and protesters called for federal civil rights charges against Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who was acquitted Saturday in Martin’s February 2012 shooting death.
The Justice Department said it is looking into the case to determine whether federal prosecutors should file criminal civil rights charges now that Zimmerman has been acquitted in the state case. The department opened an investigation into Martin’s death last year but stepped aside to allow the state prosecution to proceed.
The evidence generated during the federal probe is still being evaluated by the criminal section of the Justice Department’s civil rights division, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Middle District of Florida, along with evidence and testimony from the state trial, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama and religious and civil rights leaders urged calm in hopes of ensuring peaceful demonstrations following a case that became an emotional flash point.
Sunday’s demonstrations, held in cities from Florida to Wisconsin, attracted anywhere from a few dozen people to a more than a thousand.
At a march and rally in downtown Chicago attended by about 200 people, some said the verdict was symbolic of lingering racism in the United States. Seventy-three-year-old Maya Miller said the case reminded her of the 1955 slaying of Emmitt Till, a 14-year-old from Chicago who was murdered by a group of white men while visiting Mississippi. Till’s killing galvanized the civil rights movement.
“Fifty-eight years and nothing’s changed,” Miller said, pausing to join a chant for “Justice for Trayvon, not one more.”
In New York City, hundreds of protesters marched into Times Square Sunday night, zigzagging through Manhattan’s streets to avoid police lines. Sign-carrying marchers thronged the busy intersection, chanting “Justice for! Trayvon Martin!” as they made their way from Union Square, blocking traffic for more than an hour before moving on.
In San Francisco and Los Angeles — where an earlier protest was dispersed with beanbag rounds — police closed streets as protesters marched Sunday to condemn Zimmerman’s acquittal.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti urged protesters to “practice peace” after the rock- and bottle-throwing incident. Police arrested one man.
Rand Powdrill, 41, of San Leandro, said he came to the San Francisco march with about 400 others to “protest the execution of an innocent black teenager.”
“If our voices can’t be heard, then this is just going to keep going on,” he said.
Earlier, at Manhattan’s Middle Collegiate Church, many congregants wore hooded sweatshirts — the same thing Martin was wearing the night he was shot — in a show of solidarity. Hoodie-clad Jessica Nacinovich said she could only feel disappointment and sadness over the verdict.
“I’m sure jurors did what they felt was right in accordance with the law but maybe the law is wrong, maybe society is wrong; there’s a lot that needs fixing,” she said.
At a youth service in Sanford, Fla., where the trial was held, teens wearing shirts displaying Martin’s picture wiped away tears during a sermon at the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church.
Protesters also gathered in Atlanta, Miami, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., along with a host of other cities.
In Miami, more than 200 people gathered for a vigil. “You can’t justify murder,” read one poster. Another read “Don’t worry about more riots. Worry about more Zimmermans.”
Carol Reitner, 76, of Miami, said she heard about the vigil through an announcement at her church Sunday morning. “I was really devastated. It’s really hard to believe that someone can take the life of someone else and walk out of court free,” she said.
In Philadelphia, about 700 protesters marched from LOVE Park to the Liberty Bell, alternating between chanting Trayvon Martin’s name and “No justice, no peace!”
“We hope this will begin a movement to end discrimination against young black men,” said Johnathan Cooper, one of the protest’s organizers. “And also to empower black people and get them involved in the system.”
In Atlanta, a crowd of about 75 protesters chanted and carried signs near Centennial Olympic Park.
“I came out today because a great deal of injustice has been done and I’m very disappointed at our justice system; I’m just disappointed in America,” Tabatha Holley, 19, of Atlanta said.
Civil rights leaders, including the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, urged peace in the wake of the verdict. Jackson said the legal system “failed justice,” but violence isn’t the answer.
But not all the protesters heeded those calls immediately after the verdict.
In Oakland, Calif., during protests that began late Saturday night some angry demonstrators broke windows, burned U.S. flags and started street fires. Some marchers also vandalized a police squad car and used spray paint to scrawl anti-police graffiti on roads and Alameda County’s Davidson courthouse.
In Los Angeles, police said a crowd of about 100 protesters surrounded an officer and eventually had to be dispersed by officers firing beanbag rounds.
___
Associated Press reporters Suzette Laboy in Miami, Terence Chea in San Francisco, Keith Collins in Philadelphia, Pete Yost and Eric Tucker in Washington and Luisa Leme contributed to this report.
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