Thousands of people marched from Federal Plaza to the Justice Department Friday morning in response to a recent spat of hate crimes across the nation, including the Jena Six case.
The crowd, led by the Rev. Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III, circled the Justice Department building several times to protest what they claim is a slow response from the federal government in dealing with race issues and hate crimes in the U.S.
"There are so many nooses being hung around America," King told the Associated Press. "Anytime there's a hate crime, the Justice Department should prosecute, and a noose is certainly a hate crime."
The march came days into the tenure of new Attorney General Michael Mukasey, who issued a statement Friday in response to the march.
"We hope that all can agree that it is the criminals who commit violent acts of hate that deserve the loudest protest," Mukasey said in the statement.
-PATRICIO CHILE
