Presidential candidate John Edwards has spoken of two Americas. Perhaps America is in need of a remix of that speech. Not since the 1950’s has the United States’ ugly secret of racism been flaunted so blatantly. The day after the march in support of the Jena 6, racist white Americans in Louisiana continue to moon the rest of America by not releasing Mychal Bell.
Some people say that Justin Barker, the white student beaten by blacks, is being overlooked. Those same folks fail to consider that Justin attended an event only hours after leaving the hospital for his injuries. Those same folks are either unaware or choose to ignore the fact that Jena 6 defendant Robert Bailey was attacked by whites at an all-white party only days before the Barker incident. A white convenience store clerk also pulled a weapon on black youths. Is the media talking about that? I don’t think so.
It’s time for the federal government to step in and do what Louisiana governor Kathleen Blanco has failed to do --- investigate the Louisiana judicial and educational systems. What is most disturbing about the Jena 6 case is how quickly law enforcement and education officials dismiss the display of nooses by whites as pranks yet feel justified in charging black teens with attempted murder for attacking a white teen and not filing any charges when a black teen was assaulted by whites. Come on, people, completely ignoring the ethnicity of the folks involved --- that’s just wrong.
This is the America that dictators like Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez like to talk about. This is the America that Al-Qaeda cites as examples of the hypocrisy of democracy. If you didn’t know it before, you know it now: blacks are still terror victims in America today.
Don’t get it twisted; the America in which we live is the same America in which Republican candidates for president feel comfortable in alienating not just blacks, but Latinos also.
Undeniably there has been progress in the U.S. regarding race relations but when folks charged with meting out justice, flagrantly deny the rights of American citizens without any recourse, America has lost its way.
I'm 40 years old, I grew up going to completely integrated schools in the deep south. Therefore, I am familiar with situations of racial tensions that are very common in the public schools of the south.
First, I believe the consideration of one's race has no place at all in seeking justice, with the exception of hate crimes specifically perpetrated because of race.
In this situation, if race is not considered, then you have one person who was attacked from behind by a group of 6 people. This means without a doubt that the attackers had premeditated their attack which is demonstrated by their surprise attack with greatly overwhelming numbers. It is my understanding that the victim was quickly rendered unconscious and the attack continued whereby the attackers kicked the unconscious victim repeatedly.
There is no question this was a very malicious premeditated attack with intent and capability to do great bodily harm, to include death. I personally know of a person who was knocked unconscious and then kicked until he died, so "a shoe" is a deadly weapon when used in this circumstance.
So, with race out of the picture there is an attempted murder to seek justice for.
Has there been justice for this attempted murder?
Oh, but you say race must be considered. Ok, then this was clearly a hate crime where these 6 blacks attacked and tried to kill this one white, so the much heavier penalties associated with hate crimes must be levied.
To suggest the incident with fake nuces being hung out of a tree somehow justify this attack is the very same thing as saying that because Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. exercised his right to free speech it was justifiable to murder him! That’s crazy right? Well that’s this case in reverse.
We all know how it works, there will be no justice here or anywhere Al or Jessie chose to spin the truth. They have done more in their life time to increase racial hatred than any other people I can think of. You can not seek equality and justice by perpetrating the exact opposite.
Ever since those race riots in California after that drug-head had his run-in with the police, things have been skewed dangerously allowing inequality and injustice to go unchallenged. OJ's free, Mayer of DC was a drug-head, the Duke Lacrosse team was wrongly prosecuted, and now this victim is laid on the alter of vanity that stands at the feet of these so called "civil rights leaders" who only seek the spotlight for their own glory. My question is this: How is it that so many black people care so little for truth? With the turnout at the Jena march it suggests there is a huge disparity in understanding that exists between the black population and the rest of America.
America needs to wake up and say enough, the 60's are over, let's get on with life, racial favor for any reason is over. A person stands on their own merit, and answers for their own actions.
Posted by: Average American | Friday, September 28, 2007 at 12:10 PM