Miami Road to be Named After Trayvon Martin

A woman holds a sign as she attends a rally honoring Trayvon Martin organized by the National Action Network outside One Police Plaza in Manhattan on July 20, 2013 in New York City. Demonstrators have gathered in various cities across the country to protest the acquittal of neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman and press for his federal prosecution in the shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin.
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 A Florida road will be named after a Black teenager whose death by a neighborhood watch volunteer in 2012 catalyzed a movement for racial justice.

The Miami Herald reports Trayvon Martin’s name will be added to section of an avenue that leads to a high school he attended in Miami.

Members of the Miami-Dade County Commission approved the motion unanimously this week. Commissioner Barbara Jordan, who sponsored the resolution, said the teen had mechanical skills, knowing how to build and fix dirt bikes and wanted to go to college.

The portion of the county-owned road will be called “Trayvon Martin Avenue.” Officials say the new signs should be ready within a few weeks.

Martin was shot dead in Sanford, Florida, at 17 while on a visit with his father. The teen was unarmed and walking back from a convenience store with candy when he was shot by George Zimmerman.

Zimmerman was acquitted under Florida’s controversial self-defense law. The Black Lives Matter movement emerged after a Florida jury decided to clear Zimmerman in the shooting death in July 2013.

Copyright The Associated Press
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