Page 7 - DemoFlorida Sentinel 8-7-18

Feature
Clearwater Rally Draws National Attendees
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Features Writer
CLEARWATER – Pinel- las County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri has refused to file charges against the man who shot Markeis McGlockton after a confrontation over a parking spot.
But the matter isn’t set- tled, the Rev. Al Sharpton told hundreds gathered Sun- day at a rally at St. John Primitive Baptist Church in Clearwater.
“We’re not here asking for favors,” he said. “We’re ask- ing you to enforce the law.”
McGlockton, 28, was shot July 20 by Michael Djerka, 47, after Djerka confronted McGlockton’s girlfriend, Britany Jacobs, about parking in a handicap spot outside a Clearwater convenience store.
McGlockton is said to have approached Djerka and pushed him to the ground. That prompted Djerka to pull out his gun and shoot McGlockton. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Sheriff Gualtieri de- clined to file charges against Djerka, saying the matter falls under the state’s contro- versial “stand your ground” law that allows people to use force in self-defense without retreating.
But determining a per- son’s guilt or innocence is not the job of the sheriff, but takes place in a court of law, Sharpton said.
“Ifyougettoasceneofa crime and there’s a dead body and one man with a gun...that man should have been arrested right then,” he said.
Sharpton also decried the lack of empathy from President Donald Trump, who visited Tampa last week but “never men- tioned Markeis’s name.”
“I look at this young man and I want the world to know this Black man stood up for his family,” he said.
Meanwhile, outside hun- dreds of people gathered in a park across the street from the church. Many waved signs that read “No Justice, No Peace” and “Justice for Markeis,” while participat- ing in a call-and-response with members of social jus- tice group, Black Lives Mat- ter.
Organized by Attorney
Hundreds, led by Black Lives Matter, gathered outside the Clearwater church prior to rally inside the church. (Photo by Kenya Woodard)
Civil rights activist Al Sharpton addressed the audience at St. John Primitive Baptist Church in Clearwater on Sunday. Those in the background are wearing tee-shirts that say, “Pressure For Jus- tice For Markeis McGlockton.”
The attorney for the McGlockton family, Atty. Ben Crump with McGlockton’s girlfriend, Britany Jacobs and his 5-year-old son.
Benjamin Crump, the rally filled the church to ca- pacity with the general public and members of civil rights organizations.
Also in attendance were Sybrina Fulton and Tracey Martin, parents of Trayvon Martin.
Fulton offered encourag- ing words to McGlockton’s family, saying they are “stronger than you know.”
“I’ll tell you what I tell myself all the time: I’ll never give up,” she said.
All five Democratic gu- bernatorial candidates pre- ceded Sharpton at the lectern, each expressing a mix of condolences to Mc- Glockton’s family and call- ing for the repeal of the “stand your ground” law.
In the case of McGlock- ton’s death, justice has not been served, said Tallahas- see’s mayor, Andrew Gillum.
“I’m here because “stand your ground” has no place in civilized society,” he said.
“We have to do everything that we can...to send a clear, unequivocal message to the rest of the state that our lives matter.”
Gwen Graham invoked Marissa Alexander – the Jacksonville woman who was sentenced to 20 years after claiming the “stand your ground” defense when she fired a warning shot above her ex-husband’s head – as an example of when legisla- tors should have “taken ac- tion, but did nothing” regarding the controversial law.
In 2015, Alexander was released under a plea deal that reduced her sentence to the three years she had al- ready served plus two years house arrest.
If elected, Graham said she “will act” to change the law.
“Stand your ground” has given criminals permission to murder,” she said. “And we must repeal it.”
Former Miami Beach
Leon Russell, a Clearwater resident, Chairman of the Na- tional NAACP Board of Direc- tors.
mayor Phillip Levine stirred up the crowd with what he called “the real prob- lem.”
“Donald Trump,” he said, to raucous applause. He urged the crowd to vote in a Democratic governor in the upcoming primary and No- vember general election.
Democratic Attorney
The parents of Trayvon Martin, Sybrina Fulton and Tracey Martin were in Clearwa- ter to offer support to the Mc- Glockton family.
General Candidate Sean Shaw also weighed in, call- ing the law “misguided” at a press conference prior to the rally.
“We have to be the voice of the voiceless,” he said. “Markeis had the right to “stand his ground.” (Photos by Julia Jackson)
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