Dec 14, 2014 2 min read

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Marchers in Pennsylvania joined protests across the nation aimed at calling attention to the deaths of unarmed black men at the hands of police.

More than 100 people gathered Saturday at the Capitol in Harrisburg calling for changes to state, local and national police policies.

The protesters referenced the deaths of Eric Garner in New York and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, according to PennLive.com. But they also cited the 2006 death of Adeleno Oliver-Horton, who was shot after a struggle with an officer who thought Oliver-Horton was reaching for a weapon rather than a cellphone.

“A cellphone is straight, not pointy like a gun,” said Oliver-Horton’s 8-year-old son Jamar, who had not yet been born when his 26-year-old father was killed and who attended the march with his mother, Channelle Neal.

The county district attorney ruled out charges against the officer involved, saying the officer believed he was at risk of death or serious injury.

Neal said she fears for the safety of Jamar if he is profiled by police.

“I didn’t even want to come today. The whole situation gives me anxiety,” Neal said.

Caiden Fratangelo said he joined the protest because he believed police need to operate without using deadly force, but people must have open conversations about the issue.

“I think you can appreciate cops and still see what’s wrong,” Fratangelo said. “I’m in support of justice.”

In Philadelphia, more than 100 people marched silently around and through City Hall, handing out black cards that each bore the name of someone killed in an encounter with police over the past few decades. Others carried signs.

The marchers filed past crowds gathered at the recently opened plaza and families bringing children to see the Christmas tree in the center courtyard. Several dozen staged a die-in outside the building, stretching out prone on the ground.