Hundreds gather at J.C. Nichols Fountain in Kansas City to rally for Trayvon Martin

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The park at the J.C. Nichols Fountain was packed shoulder to shoulder Monday evening as nearly a thousand people from across Kansas City gathered to raise awareness about Trayvon Martin and fight racial profiling.

Martin, 17, was unarmed when he was shot and killed last month by George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch captain in Sanford, Fla.

Those at the rally said Martin died because of racial profiling.

"The police operator told Mr. Zimmerman not to follow the young man. He followed the young man. He approached the young man. He got a beat up by the young man? The issue is he was racially profiled and followed and then shot," organizer Andrew Nicholson said.

The crowd included students from UMKC, high school parents and students and city leaders, including Mayor Sly James.

Also in the crowd was Cheryl Ward, who brought a sign that said "my grandson looks like Trayvon." She fears what happened in Sanford could happened here in Kansas City.

"This could happen to anyone. There are people out their with guns who think the law is on their side, and it's wrong," Ward said. "It may take grandmothers to stand up and say this has got to stop."

Organizers hope the event inspired people to educate themselves because they feel that is the only way to create real change.