As the jurors reached a non-guilty verdict for George Zimmerman around 10 p.m. Saturday, the town of Sanford, Fla. — along with others nationwide — staged rallies immediately after the result for Trayvon Martin, the unarmed 17-year-old teenager Zimmerman killed last year.
Garry Jones — born and raised in Kinston — has been among those rallying for Martin, although he wasn’t able to make it to Sanford until Sunday. Jones — who lives in Atlanta — had been protesting silently outside of Sanford’s Seminole County Courthouse since June 11 before heading back home on July 9 to take care of personal business. He was back in Florida on Sunday, protesting with others who were displeased with the jurors’ decision.
“After a verdict, people have a tendency to let things go, but I had a feeling it would be different and the rallies would continue (when I came back),” Jones said. “The people who rallied after the verdict had the same passion on Sunday.”
Before flying back to Sanford, Jones took in a sermon entitled “Don’t Quit, It’s Working” by Pastor Aaron Parker of Zion Hill Baptist Church in Atlanta. President and CEO of Advocate 4 Justice Vikki Hankins released a statement to The Free Press on Monday, which said “… this sermon gave Garry Jones confirmation that being involved in this case surrounding Trayvon Martin is the right thing to do and that he should continue to fight for justice in this incident.”
While the case was going on, Jones was able to go in the courtroom twice by way of the Supervisor of Elections in Seminole County. Seeing the trial unfold didn’t shock Jones when he heard the verdict back home.
“Even though I was very hurt with the decision, it didn’t come as a surprise because of what I had seen in the courtroom,” Jones said. “When the defense had their witnesses on the stand, I noticed that the jury wrote notes, but were nonchalant when the prosecution put their witnesses up. That was the moment I knew George Zimmerman was going to get a not guilty verdict. I said to myself ‘the jury’s minds are made up and they’re going through the formalities’.”
Jones also heard something in the courtroom that truly stuck with him.
“The thing that stood out to me the most is when the defense asked Trayvon’s mother if she thought her son was responsible for his own death,” Jones said. “You could hear a pin drop at that moment. Everyone in the courtroom watching felt that was an insult for asking that question.”
For now, Jones plans on being in Sanford for another week, where he’s scheduled to go on a local television show on a panel and do interviews in the area. Jones also said he will attend another rally, done by a local church.
“The rallies help heal the community and allow people to voice an opinion,” Jones said. “As it stands right now, nobody is letting things go. It’s going to continue to be on the Department of Justice and Civil Rights to see if Zimmerman will be charged in a civil rights case.”
Jones also wants to see individuals rallying for Trayvon, but not if their protests can’t be done in a peaceful manner.
“I encourage the people to be nonviolent,” Jones said. “If you can’t be nonviolent, don’t get into the rallies because it will make the situation worse. Don’t go to your neighborhoods and destroy it or turn over police cars. The pen is mightier than the sword and you just have to keep fighting.”
Junious Smith III can be reached at 252-559-1077 and Junious.Smith@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JuniousSmithIII.