5 years later, celebrities put their hoodies up for Trayvon Martin

"Our hoodies are still up and the movement is still strong."
 By 
Ariel Bogle
 on 
5 years later, celebrities put their hoodies up for Trayvon Martin
Credit: Michael Nelson/Epa/REX/Shutterstock

On Feb. 26, 2012, an unarmed teenager carrying iced tea and candy was shot and killed on a Florida street.

His name was Trayvon Martin, and five years on, the movement inspired by his death lives on. Left for dead by a Neighborhood Watch volunteer, the fate of Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin's son fanned the flames that became the Black Live Matter movement.

An image of Martin dressed in a hoodie was seared on the American conscience, and the act of "putting your hoodie up" became a protest against a culture that makes instant criminals of black boys.

On the fifth anniversary of his death, celebrities and public figures shared photos of themselves wearing a sweatshirt emblazoned with his name on social media. Using the hashtag #OurSonTrayvon, Kerry Washington wrote "5 years later our hoodies are still up because the movement is still strong!"

Other celebrities, including Issa Rae, Gabrielle Union, Tracee Ellis Ross, Alan Cumming and Siedah Garrett, also took part.

The hoodies were made by activist clothing brand Liberated People, which says it's donating 15 percent of all sales to the Trayvon Martin Foundation. Set up by Martin's parents, the organization seeks to end gun violence.

Director Ava DuVernay, who was nominated for an Oscar for her documentary about race and mass incarceration, 13th, also took a moment to remember Martin on Twitter before the ceremony. The hoodie was not the only political statement she made Sunday -- DuVernay also chose to wear a gown by Ashi Studio, a studio based in Beirut, Lebanon, as a statement of support for the Muslim community.

"Our hoodies are still up and the movement is still strong," she wrote.

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Ariel Bogle

Ariel Bogle was an associate editor with Mashable in Australia covering technology. Previously, Ariel was associate editor at Future Tense in Washington DC, an editorial initiative between Slate and New America.

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