Father Michael Pfleger: Racism is in the DNA of America

As Chicagoans rallied to demand justice for Trayvon Martin on Saturday, Father Michael Pfleger of St. Sabina's Catholic Church urged Americans to "stand your ground" against racism.

"My prayer is that today the rich seed of Trayvon's life will not just be a moment of anger but a launching pad," Pfleger said, "a launching pad to a moment to change America. As I watch people of all races and creeds and ages come together and speak out, I pray that we will finally come together in unity and create a voice of black and white and brown and young and old to come together with a cry for justice and quality that nobody can not listen to in America."

The activist preacher, a prominent critic of Chicago gun violence, said the United States needed to reexamine its soul and confront racism. The country's long history of institutional racism still lingered, despite the advances of the past century.

"Let's finally have the discussion on race and racial profiling because racism is in the DNA of America," Pfleger continued.

He concluded by saying it was not enough to rally in honor of Trayvon.

"We must come here and make up our mind that the bullet that killed Trayvon woke us up, and we ain't going to back to sleep until justice flows down."

Along with Chicago, a number of other major U.S. cities witnessed "Justice for Trayvon" rallies on Saturday. Speaking at a rally in New York, Trayvon Martin's mother said it was her son rather than his killer who was on trial.

Watch video, uploaded to YouTube by the Video Catalyst Project, below: