Congressman dons a hoodie, gets kicked off House floor

Congressman dons a hoodie, gets kicked off House floor

ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)br br STORY: A national debate over the killing of a black teenager in Florida spilled into the House of Representatives when a Democratic lawmaker put on a "hoodie" - clothing that has become emblematic of those protesting police handling of the Trayvon Martin case.br br Representative Bobby Rush, a prominent civil rights activist during the 1960s, was escorted out for violating a rule that prohibits wearing hats on the House floor.br br The lawmaker shed his suit coat during a floor speech to reveal a gray hooded sweatshirt, known as a hoodie.br br Rush then placed the hood on his head, a violation of House rules. Rush wanted to make a point: that hoodies are unfairly seen by some as the clothing of troubled youths.br br "Racial profiling has to stop, Mr. Speaker. Just because someone wears a hoodie does not make them a hoodlum," said Rush.br br Trayvon Martin, 17, was shot dead on Feb. 26 by George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who claims he was acting in self-defense in shooting the unarmed youth in Sanford, a city near Orlando.br br At the time of the killing, Martin was wearing a hoodie.


User: Reuters

Views: 26

Uploaded: 2012-03-28

Duration: 01:11

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