Junior Randa Hinton led a prayer gathering at Fluor Fountain Tuesday at 9 a.m. for 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was killed Feb. 26 near his Florida home.

Hinton said she read on Twitter that people were calling for a national day of prayer for Martin.

“I wanted to be a part of this movement and knew the best way that I could do that was through prayer. In the end, God is in control and I know he hears his children,” Hinton said.

The prayer meeting was held to bring awareness to Martin’s death. As Martin was walking back to his father’s home on Feb. 26, the Los Angeles Times reported Martin was shot by neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman. Zimmerman said he reacted in self-defense and that Martin looked suspicious, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Bringing attention to injustices in America

The video of Joseph Kony circulated rapidly when it was released last month, but awareness of issues occurring in America should take priority, Hinton wrote in a recent opinions article for The Chimes.

“American injustices happen all of the time and I believe that we don't give them as much attention. … And I would say Biola students can get more involved by stepping out of the Biola Bubble, … reading the news and of course prayer,” Hinton wrote in an email.

Biola’s multi-ethnic programs raised awareness through an email about the prayer meeting at Biola and as a result they found out that there would be people praying in Texas at the same time, according to Shonette Reed, a sophomore journalism major and vice president for the Black Student Association.

She does not know Martin personally, but her feelings are more about the attack itself, Reed said.

“I feel that this issue needs to be spread … Honestly, I feel that this event is just as big as any event that has shaken the nation. This event shows that racism is still prevalent and stereotyping is at a high point,” Reed wrote in an email.

Hinton closed the morning prayer meeting by praying for Martin’s family. Awareness and prayer is key in order for students to spread the story of Martin’s death, both Reed and Hinton expressed.

“Prayer is a way for people to feel safe. There has been a lot of people wondering how to react to this case and wondering what they could do and feeling limited. However, everyone can pray,” Hinton said.