Jesse Jackson marches to protest drug sweep
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Jackson leads hundreds in a protest against the stratford High School drug raid.
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VIDEO
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CNN's Bill Hemmer talks with a South Carolina high school student involved in a police raid on her school last week. (November 10)
Some parents say what a high school principal in South Carolina did with the help of local police crossed the line. CNN's Wolf Blitzer explains
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NORTH CHARLESTON, South Carolina (AP) -- The Rev. Jesse Jackson led hundreds of marchers carrying signs and chanting slogans Tuesday to protest a school drug sweep in which police with guns drawn ordered students to the floor.
Critics say the raid appeared to have targeted black students, which police have denied.
"What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!" chanted the marchers. "Just Say No to the Police State," read one sign.
"We're going to march again and again and again," Jackson told those who rallied in front of city hall. "They will get bigger and bigger until there is fairness in the land."
The November 5 raid at Stratford High in nearby Goose Creek drew national attention after video from surveillance cameras showed students ordered to the floor while officers with guns and a drug dog searched them. About 100 students were searched but no illegal drugs were found and no one was arrested.
Besides denying any racial profiling, police have said they believed aggressive tactics were needed to ensure the safety of the officers and other students.
Two civil suits related to the raid have been filed in federal court. State and federal officials are investigating whether any criminal laws were broken by police.
"The cops burst into the school or the main hallway very aggressively and started pointing their guns at everyone as if we were criminals," Stratford freshman Carl Alexander told the crowd.
Senior Tory Richardson fought back tears as she spoke.
"It hurts. My sister still has to go through that school. I don't want her to go through the same that happened -- nor do I want anyone else's children to go through the same thing," she said.
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