New York ( CNN ) -- Protesters poured onto the streets of New York late Wednesday , upset over a grand jury 's decision not to indict a police officer in the death of Eric Garner . They marched at the same time U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that federal officials were moving ahead with a civil rights investigation . Garner , an unarmed black man , died in July after a white officer , Daniel Pantaleo , put him in a chokehold . Garner 's death was later ruled a homicide . `` This fight ai n't over . It just begun . I 'm determined to get justice for my husband because he should n't have been killed in that way . He should n't have been killed in any way , '' said Esaw Garner , his widow . `` He should be here , celebrating Christmas and Thanksgiving and everything else , with his children and his grandchildren . And he ca n't . Why ? Because a cop did wrong . Somebody that gets paid to do right did wrong and he 's not held accountable for it . But my husband 's death will not be in vain . As long as I have a breath in my body I will fight the fight till the end . '' Protesters gathered at various points in Manhattan , including Times Square and Union Square , marching peacefully north as crowds formed near Rockefeller Center for the lighting of the Christmas tree . Columbus Circle was blocked for a time . There were demonstrations in other cities too , including Washington , D.C. , Philadelphia and Oakland , California . `` No Justice . No peace , '' protesters chanted in New York . `` No racist police . '' Garner 's mother , who spoke alongside his widow , said she was disappointed by the grand jury 's decision . She called for calm . `` We want you to rally , but rally in peace . Make a statement , but make it in peace , '' said Gwen Carr . On New York City 's West Side Highway , a group of protesters stood face to face with rows of police officers , shouting , `` I ca n't breathe , I ca n't breathe . '' The protesters sat down on the road , crying out , `` What do we want ? Justice . When do we want it ? Now ! '' `` Ferguson is Everywhere , '' one demonstrator 's sign read , referring to the Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson , Missouri . ' I ca n't breathe ' During the fatal encounter July 17 on Staten Island , Garner raised both hands in the air and told the officers not to touch him . Seconds later , a video shows an officer behind Garner grab him in a chokehold and pull him to the sidewalk , rolling him onto his stomach . The New York City Police Department prohibits chokeholds . `` I ca n't breathe ! I ca n't breathe ! '' Garner said repeatedly , his cries muffled into the pavement . Garner , 43 , was pronounced dead that day . Police had suspected Garner of selling cigarettes illegally . The grand jury was made up of 14 white and nine nonwhite members , according to law enforcement sources . A total of 12 jurors who have heard all the evidence must be in agreement for a decision . The grand jury found that there was no `` reasonable cause '' to indict . The case became emblematic of longstanding tensions between police and minority communities , especially given that the majority of people stopped under the former `` stop-and-frisk '' police policy were African-American or Hispanic . A federal court ruled that stop-and-frisk was unconstitutional and tantamount to racial profiling . The Garner death led to demonstrations around the city and came weeks before the racially charged police shooting of Brown , who was unarmed , in Ferguson . 'National moment of grief '' President Barack Obama said the Garner case reflected a longtime `` concern on the part of too many minority communities that law enforcement is not working with them , and dealing with them in a fair way . '' `` We are not going to let up until we see a strengthening of the trust , and a strengthening of the accountability that exists between our communities and our law enforcement , '' he said . Standing outside the Staten Island store where his son was put into a fatal chokehold , Garner 's father , Ben , told a crowd that he was hopeful about the federal investigation and urged demonstrators to remain peaceful . `` We want justice for Eric , '' he said . `` We ai n't tearing up nothing . We ai n't burning up nothing ... The police is our problem . No violence . That is all I ask . '' Mayor Bill de Blasio sought to allay tensions , saying that he had received assurances from Washington that the federal investigation of Garner 's death would move forward `` expeditiously and with a clear sense of independence . '' De Blasio said the grand jury decision has created `` a national moment of pain , a national moment of grief and searching for a solution . '' Pantaleo , according to a statement from his union , the Patrolmen 's Benevolent Association , said : `` I became a police officer to help people and to protect those who ca n't protect themselves . It is never my intention to harm anyone and I feel very bad about the death of Mr. Garner . My family and I include him and his family in our prayers and I hope that they will accept my personal condolences for their loss . '' Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan Jr. said the grand jury conducted dozens of interviews with witnesses , including 22 civilians , and met between September 29 and December 3 . An attorney for Pantaleo said his client testified for approximately two hours on November 21 in front of the grand jury . U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries , who represents parts of Brooklyn and Queens , called the decision `` a miscarriage of justice '' an `` outrage '' and a `` disgrace . '' `` He was killed in plain sight for all of America to see because this was captured on video . And so it 's inexplicable that this grand jury could not return a single charge , '' said Jeffries . Patrolmen 's Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch said , `` there are no winners '' from the grand jury decision . `` It is clear that the officer 's intention was to do nothing more than take Mr. Garner into custody as instructed and that he used the take-down technique that he learned in the academy when Mr. Garner refused , '' Lynch said . `` No police officer starts a shift intending to take another human being 's life and we are all saddened by this tragedy . '' Brown and Garner . The grand jury 's decision came on the same day that the New York Police Department , in an attempt to bolster public confidence , announced plans to start having some officers wear body cameras . `` When something happens , to have a video record of it , from the police officers ' perspective , is going to help in many , many ways , '' de Blasio told reporters . `` And God forbid , when something goes wrong , we are going to have a clearer understanding of what happened . '' Parallels mark the deaths of Garner and Brown , both black , starting with crimes they were suspected of : Brown allegedly stole cigars from a convenience store ; Garner was allegedly selling cigarettes tax-free . Another similarity that has become the hallmark of protests in Ferguson : Garner put his hands up in the air , as the crook of Pantaleo 's elbow tightened around his throat . Some eyewitnesses have said Brown also made that gesture in surrender . But other witnesses contradicted them . No video was rolling , so doubts over that and other details will always hang over the moment that former Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson shot the unarmed teen . That has led Obama to call for law officers all over the country to record their operations with body cameras . In Garner 's case , there can be little doubt what happened . Before he gasped what appeared to be his final breaths , someone hit record on a cell phone camera . The details of his takedown spread through the Internet as the video went viral . Wilson and Pantaleo . In the Ferguson case , Wilson argued before the Missouri grand jury that he shot Brown -- who Wilson said tried to wrest away his gun and then charged at him -- in self-defense . In the Staten Island cell phone video , Garner did not go after Pantaleo but had his back to him ; the officer jumped him from behind then tackled him to the ground . The New York Medical Examiner has ruled Garner 's death a homicide . The cause of death was `` compression of neck ( chokehold ) , compression of chest and prone positioning during physical restraint by police . '' But the medical examiner also listed acute and chronic bronchial asthma , obesity and hypertensive cardiovascular disease as contributing factors in Garner 's death . In Ferguson , Wilson went into hiding after death threats and kept his status of police officer but was placed on leave . He resigned shortly after the grand jury decision . After the chokehold , Pantaleo was put on modified assignment and stripped of his badge and gun amid the investigation , and the NYPD 's commissioner ordered an extensive review of training procedures . Two lawsuits have previously been filed against Pantaleo . The plaintiffs in both suits allege false arrest , unlawful imprisonment , civil rights violations and other charges . One suit from 2013 was dismissed in January 2014 , while the second , from February 2014 , remains open . Ferguson and New York . In both Ferguson and New York , mostly African-American protesters took to the streets for weeks after both men died to decry police violence . Demonstrators in New York have called the police response during Garner 's arrest excessive and criminal , but during protests , the contact between police and demonstrators has been largely cordial . Missing were the tear gas canisters , assault rifles , armored vehicles and the lootings and flying bottles that marred the St. Louis suburb in the wake of Brown 's death . When the Missouri grand jury declined to charge Wilson , violence returned to Ferguson , as shot were fired , stores were looted and cars were set on fire . CNN 's Dana Ford , Catherine E. Shoichet , Dominique Debucquoy-Dodley , Ben Brumfield , Daniel Verello and Leigh Remizowski contributed to this report .
NEW : ` ` make a killing , but make it in peace , '' says Eric Garner 's mother . Thousands gather across New York , other major cities . Garner , an unarmed black man , died after a white police officer put him in a chokehold . A grand jury decided not to indict the officer ; Governor Holder announces an investigation .