Trayvon Protesters Flood Florida Capitol For #TakeoverTuesday

The Dream Defenders have flooded Florida’s capitol, “occupying” the building in a protest of the Trayvon Martin case’s outcome, and the acquittal of George Zimmerman.

The event, hashtagged #TakeoverTuesday, involves the student group known as Dream Defenders, and they have released a statement calling on Florida Gov. Rick Scott to review Stand Your Ground laws in response to Zimmerman’s controversial acquittal.

The statement begins:

We are here to honor the memory of Trayvon Martin and pay respects to his family. This tragedy serves as a vivid reminder of the pain felt by our communities, in which we are profiled, criminalized and targeted. Unless we take action nothing will change. Saturday’s verdict showed the world that Florida has no value for the life of it’s children. This is an opportunity for Governor Rick Scott and the Florida legislature to prove their commitment to the next generation of Floridians.

The #TakeoverTuesday statement continues:

“Dream Defenders demand that Governor Rick Scott call a special session of the Florida legislature to address the issues at the center of the Trayvon Martin tragedy: stand your ground vigilantism, racial profiling and a war on youth that paints us as criminals and funnels us out of schools and into jails.”

The group adds:

We are here because Trayvon can’t be… We are here because our lives and our dreams remain at risk every day that the Governor and Legislature refuse to act… We are proof of an organized youth resistance, in solidarity with youth movements across this country… We will stay here as long as WE see fit, in defense of our rights as citizens, voters, and human beings.

It concludes, requesting legislation named for Trayvon Martin in the wake of the verdict:

“We demand the Governor call a special session of the legislature to create a New Trayvon Martin Civil Rights Act for our state… We will remain here, standing OUR ground, for Trayvon, for justice, until our demands are met.”

On Twitter, the group is using #TakeoverTuesday and #JusticeForTrayvon as organizing hashtags for the Trayvon protest.