Race and Coverage of the Jena 6: The Elephant That is Never Leaving the Room

Earlier this month, I received an email forward that, unlike most others, stopped me in my tracks. This particular message was from colourofchange, an African-American lobbying group, and was not the usual invitation to attend a swanky fundraiser or join a junior board. It recounted that disturbing tale of the Jena 6, whose responses to racial hate crimes and subsequent criminal sentencing is reminiscent of the Jim Crow era.

Unless you were glued to CNN or MSNBC Thursday afternoon, your response to this question before today would have probably been the same as mine. Who are the Jena 6?

The Jena 6 are six African-American high school students from Jena, Louisiana who were arrested and charged with attempted second degree murder and conspiracy to commit second-degree murder after their alleged involvement in an assault on a white student. That the students were charged for what amounts to a schoolyard fight is news in itself, but what is more troubling is that the District Attorney, Reed Walters, chose to charge the students as adults.

Jena 6 is a story of tenuous race relations in a town that the Civil Rights Act forgot. At the beginning of the first semester last year, a black student at Jena High School asked for permission to sit under the a tree that had traditionally been a meeting place for white students. He was told that he could sit wherever he wanted. The following day, students arrived to see the tree adorned with three hangman's nooses, each painted in the school colors.

The story then follows an all too familiar path. Black students protest nooses at school. White students attend a nearby school as punishment while their actions are dismissed as a silly prank. Black student tries to enter largely white party. When white students attack and beat him, the student who breaks bottle over his head is charged with a misdemeanor and given probation.

White student threatens black students with a gun in a grocery store. Black students wrestle gun away from him and are charged with second-degree robbery. White student taunts black student about his beating with racial epithets. Black students beat him and he suffers bruising and concussion. Black students are charged as adults for attempted second-degree murder.

From the email, the Jena case appeared to be a textbook account of racial disparities in criminal justice. I immediately perused the New York Times website for a tell-all article. I found no mention of the Jena 6, Jena, Louisiana or any Jena at all, unless you count the young actress Jena Malone. The Grey Lady, the true bastion of white, liberal, middle class intellectualism had chosen to sit this one out? The Washington Post was a little better. However, among national dailies, only the Chicago newspapers gave the Jena 6 their just due with regular, thorough updates. Other than that, the real scoop was to be found in blogs, political websites, and the organized grassroots of NPR podcasts. Have we become so complacent about the lethal cocktail of race and crime bubbling at the surface of this country's justice system that the Jena 6 is not worth significant newspaper space?

Perhaps news editors and the American public are just "raced out". The Jena story comes after the Duke lacrosse debacle, Don Imus' gross display, and the disgusting torture of Megan Williams. Even the most optimistic may reasonably question the elimination of the specter of race from the face of criminal and public justice -- and frustrated, may try to dismiss it, as the elephant that is never leaving the room. On Thursday, I wore black in support of the Jena 6, and turned on CNN's webstream in my office so that I could quietly watch the thousands who gathered in Washington and Jena, Louisiana at rallies in support of the Jena 6. They served as a fervent reminder of the realities of criminal injustice across racial lines, even if The New York Times didn't.

Comments

[rroy]

I am an old codger who has been around for many years,most of them in a big city like Chicago.I have also done two stints in the military,I mention this just to illustrate a broad experience in relating to people of various races and ethnicities.

One of the things I find repugnant is the persistant exploitation of racial and ethnic differences,by demagogues, that,although they still exist they exist to a far lesser degree than in the past.

It is reaching the point where our society has a very substantial protective system against extremes of the past,thanks to people of a Liberal political bent-of which I am one-,liberal politicians,and liberal organizations like ACLU,etal!

I,personaly, find it disgusting and very disruptive to be constantly subjected to the exploitation of situations that may have superficial racial nuances,by people like the so many self annointed "Reverends",that have this uncanny ability to pop up whenever these things take place!

It's a shame people can't let the law take it's course,and restrain from jumping to unfounded opinions until then!

[acanthus]

The fact is that "the reverends" entered rather late in the game. The opposition to what happened to the Jena 6 was lagrely started by grass roots groups, black media, and especially, the black blogosphere. Frankly, "liberals", generally speaking, paid next to no attention to this situation. Don't misunderstand- that's not really a complaint. One of the great things to come out of the not so great situation in Jena is that it afforded us an opportunity to prove to ourselves that we don't need white liberals to get things done, and done well. That's a great thing.

[JustinAddison]

The poster who describes South Africa as "progressive" has given all of us the laugh of the day! Crack a book and read about current race relations in South Africa and you'll have a different view.

Although Bell and the other attackers were obviously motivated by race hatred, I think the district attorney is saying that the punishment itself should not be influenced by race. Why would you disagree?

[areyouami]

What this blogger/columnist wants is equal justice for all. The melanin challenged (aka cream people or whites) were getting what amounted to slaps on the wrists compared to the "book being thrown at" the melanin enriched (brown people or blacks). Beating up people is not a good move no matter what and should be punished, but said punishment be distributed fairly with equal access to defense. This doesn't happen and our prisons are fine examples of this injustice. Essentially, if you are poor and black, you're phucked more than if you're just poor.

Black people financed this country's early economy by their stolen freedom and labor, by their very lives. They've been treated like "we're doing them a favor" for every right that's been granted. Like you're some sort of "hero" for doing the right thing. Equal rights should be a given, to actually have to fight to be treated fairly is required (even now) but it sucks that you have too.

Eve was a black woman! Africa is the seat of humanity.

Melanin challenged (half Asian) signing out ;-)

[Gangbuster]

Obviously you've read that totally unhistorical pap that has been long discredited. Eve was formed in Mesopotamia, which makes her Asian. But it's irrelevant anyway, since at the time there was no Africa, the earth was all one land mass called pangea.

[areyouami]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitochondrial_Eve

In that area of the world, the humans had darker skin to protect from the sun. The farther north, less pigment was required. Unhistorical pap... seriously.

[Gangbuster]

Equal justice doesn't mean the exact same penalty. What determines penalty is previous record, the seriousness of the crime. Sometimes there are mitigating factors, sometimes there are exacerbating ones. People not on the scene have no business telling those who were what is just because they have no clue.

[spot759]

This post is a good illustration of why some of us who believe we support the concepts of equality and justice for all, sometimes feel contempt for the “civil rights” movement.
1) If she thinks six guys stomping on the head and face of an unconscious person is just a “schoolyard fight”, her sense of justice is never going to agree with mine.
2) Hate crimes are defined as crimes in which the victim is chosen specifically for belonging to a particular group, not for feeling or expressing hate. As nasty as the nooses were, they were free speech; hurting someone’s feelings or insulting them is not a crime. The perpetrators were disciplined for their disruptive, anti-social behavior.
3) As for the black kid at the white party, forcing your way into a private event where you are not welcome is asking for trouble. As a kid, I was at a party where a group of uninvited guys arrived and started hitting on our girlfriends. They were told to leave by the owner of the house and when they didn’t, we kicked there asses and through them out. Everyone involved was white.
4) Then the gun incident. The three black kids confronting the one white kid obviously made him feel threatened. He probably over reacted, but it is unlikely the black kids were innocent in the situation.
5) This Bell kid is reaping what he has sown. With his record and the viciousness of the crime, trying him as an adult was clearly warranted. Maybe it should have been attempted manslaughter, but this kid’s destiny is clearly to be a guest of some prison somewhere.
6) And then there is the lack of “public outrage”. We all saw the wide spread, though clearly not universal, joy that erupted amongst blacks when Simpson was acquitted, by a predominantly black jury in the face of overwhelming evidence, of murdering two white people. I don’t think most black people realize how much of an impact that had.
The “Jena Six” are vicious, cowardly thugs and get no sympathy from me.

[uheardme]

You don't support equality, so stop lying.

[nihilon x]

As usual, the finger is pointing at the "black" kids who acted out in anger, but nary a word is spoken about the racist actions of the white kids -- and white authorities as well -- who played a big part in provoking this confrontation.

Little to nothing is said about the nooses and the "white tree" that started this nonsense; little to nothing is said about the white kid pointing the gun at the black students; little to nothing is said about the white D.A. who threatened to make the lives of the the black students "disappear" for engaging in a PEACEFUL protest; little to nothing is said about ANYTHING that the white students and authorities did to provoke this beating.

No matter what the level of guilt of the Jena Six, there is simply NO REASON why NOT ONE SINGLE WHITE PERSON WAS HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR HIS OR HER ACTIONS AFTER THE NOOSE INCIDENT.

Those who wish to argue against the Jena Six can do so all day, but there is a SERIOUS problem when those same people don't hold the "white" kids up to the same standards and scrutiny as they do the "black" kids in this case.

[Rumplestiltskin]

Then make those arguments instead of supporting 6 thugs that were stomping another kid because of his skin color.

[MaxD]

I've said plenty about the noose. And how offensive it was. There is plenty of wrong to go around here. However, that doesn't make the Jena 6 heroes.
Furthermore, I am fine with nailing the white kids who commit the same crimes.
How did the victim provoke this beating exactly?
Answer he didn't. He had nothing to do with the nooses, or other fights. He may have been making fun of one of his assailants for getting beat up earlier in the week, but that doesn't justify a six on one beat down.

[mckinley]

The outpouring of support for these defendants is reminiscent one of the 1992 LA Reginald Denny beating acquittals -- sadly, violence from African-American men is accepted, expected, in the public eye...

[MaxD]

I've always thought this was a weird double standard. Moreover it is such a condescending attitude to have.
But the Reginald Denny beating is illustrative of the extreme danger of group beat-downs. They hit Denny with a brick, laughed, even shot at him with a shotgun. And he gets to sport the slurred speech and damaged motor control for the rest of his life. Attempted murder? Certainly warranted in that case.
However I can't remember if they were acquitted.

[vejzagic]

You are naïve if you expect from media to cover this story more closely. How many times have you seen on TV that somewhere there’s a blond girl missing? Now ask yourself the same question about any other race. By the way I’m white, but that doesn’t stop me from seeing right and wrong.

[seamunky]

Racism is alive and well, and rearing it's ugly head higher and more openly than it has in many years since the Bush Administration starting setting the examples regarding justice, tolerance, and truth. Katrina is another elephant standing in the room that has been ignored. I hope self-absorbed Americans will wake up to the fact that our news is carefully disseminated. Wake up before it is too late! I've been following the Jena Six and I hope they prevail, for the sake of us all.

[Doug]

They stomped on the kid's head while he was unconscious. Hopefully they will go to jail for hate crimes and attempted murder... for the sake of justice.

[AnneThropologist]

My husband and I were traveling through the south last year and stopped at a truck stop near Jena. He is black (south african) and I am white, and we had our 5-month-old daughter with us.

The "truck stop" was - in reality - a local watering hole. The parking lot was filled with rusted-out trucks, and the inside was absolutely filthy.

When we stepped inside, EVERYTHING stopped. Forks stopped in mid-air. The waitress stopped wiping her dirty rag across the sticky countertop. Every eye in the place turned on us. No one spoke. The waitress did not offer us a place to sit. She just ... stared ... completely motionless.

The hostility in the air was completely indescribable if you haven't experienced that environment. I felt like I'd stepped into an episode of the Twilight Zone, and I was literally afraid for my family's safety.

After endless seconds of being caught like a deer in headlights, we slowly backed out of the restaurant and got back in the car. I made my husband drive until we were almost out of gas before I let him stop again. I was afraid, and I was shaking.

I live in Missouri, which is not exactly a state known for great race relations. I had absolutely NO idea that anything like the attitude I felt near Jena existed. I think most Americans don't realize how bad it really is there.

I'm not surprised by what happened in Jena. Sad, yes ... Surprised, no...

[EnzoAntonius]

I live in the South. I'm Latino and my wife is a very dark Iranian with black kinky hair. No one has ever treated either of us in a racist manner.

I guess you see what you want to see based on your preconceptions.

[paul195]

Exactly, I'm a white guy married to a puerto rican woman. I've heard many more comments from Puerto ricans towards me, then she has heard from white people about her.

[AnneThropologist]

I've traveled all over the South and not had a problem with racism EXCEPT near Jena. My family's experience near Jena occurred the year before the incidences with the "Jena 6" started. I am not blaming the entire South for racism, nor am I saying that the entire South is racist.

I am saying that I have personally experienced extreme racism (that made me feel physically threatened) in Jena's neighborhood.

Are you saying that my experience didn't happen just because you didn't personally experience it?

[uheardme]

I've never seen a polar bear. So, I guess they don't really exist.

[MysticInd]

Excellent example. I'm sorry you had to live it.
It is disgusting to realize that progress has not been made or a better term might be that enlightenment has not happened. When are people going to understand we all have something to offer no matter what part of life we come from. Blessings to those that do understand like yourself.

[cobblepot]

I guess you got your answer. The ugly nature of most of these posts convince us of the almost total lack of understanding about racial problems in this country--among whites. I have been noticing, with sadness,how little, if any, coverage the "progressive" web sites have given the jena 6. From the tone-deaf central high school school board, to the district attorney claiming that this incident "is not, has never been about race," to the threats to the black students made by the d.a., to the ALL WHITE JURY who convicted mychael bell, it all tells of the deep racism permeating this story. How many commenters have assumed that bell, a good student and football hero, had prior convictions? How many "didn't know about the gun" the boys took from the kid? How many more don't care if bell wasn't tried by a "jury of his peers"? Or that he was represented by a public defender, and that even his new attorney "can't really say" why bell is still in jail since his verdict was overturned? Why are we leaving it up to black people to march for justice in jena? It is said that since the justice and reconciliation movement in south africa, they are making much more progressive moves forward than we in america. How utterly sad and shameful.

[EnzoAntonius]

Since when is a post "ugly in nature" merely because they disagree with you? Not one of these above posts disparaged people because of their race, nor did they sling personal epithets. All I see is reasonable disagreement. And in your mind, that makes those opinions ugly?

[spot759]

South Africa is a hell hole with one of the highest violent crime rates in the world. The Health Minister is so ignorant that he doesn't believe AIDS is transmitted sexually, and won't take the best measures to fight it.
And we see how well Rhodesia/Zimbabwe turned out. Run by Freedom Fighter/Despot Mugabe it is on the brink of collapse because he thought stealing the farms from and murdering the few remaining whites is a good plan.

[MysticInd]

Good Comments. I agree there is injustice in our judical system. And Jena, Louisiana is one horrifying example!

[yourstruly]

Right you are, cobblepot. We still have a huge blind spot when it comes to race in this country. While the Warren court managed to integrate public schools, we have done little since to look at the damage done by slavery and Jim Crow laws. If anything, matters have deteriorated in the South since Republican rule began under Reagan, and now the Roberts court claims to be color-blind! When a principal declares that hanging nooses from a tree unofficially reserved for white kids is only a prank, it's clear who needs an education.

[radicalcentrist44]

"Alleged assault"? Where did you get that from? I guess the student had his friends beat him up and then blame it on a group of black students who were wrongfully convicted.

[shaggles]

There's no evidence that anyone stomped on anyones head. "Witnesses claim..." is meaningless. How many witnesses? Who are they? Are there any contradictory stories? No one knows because the police never bothered investigating it. Even if you characterize this as a gang beating rather than a school yard fight the charge of attempted murder is way out of proportion.

[Gangbuster]

Eggzackly!! You know it's all a plot.

[Doug]

Let's get some facts straight:

The noose incident was 3 months prior to the attack on the victim. It is unknown but unlikely the victim hung the nooses.

The gun incident was also 3 months prior to the attack. It involved one of the attackers and a friend of the victim (who had pulled a shot gun out of his vehicle after being chased from a convenience store. It is unknown if the victim was present at the 'gun incident'.

The victim lost sight in one eye for several weeks and sustained injuries to his face, hands, ears, and right eye. Witnesses claim the beating was stopped and did not last very long. The victim was knocked unconscious when his head was smashed into the cement. Witnesses claim that his head was being stomped on.

The victim did attend his school's ring ceremony later in the evening, but left early do to pain (his right eye was swollen shut). The victim claimed that he had been waiting years to attend the ceremony and wouldn't have missed.

--------------

My opinion

Had the beating lasted longer it would have been obvious that it was attempted murder. They were stomping on his head. One more stomp could have ended his life. Attempted murder is not out of the question.

[JustinAddison]

Of course the earlier posters are right. It is not a "fight" when six people beat a lone victim to unconsciousness. This was surely what most people call a "hate crime" since the victim was attacked because of his skin color.

The fact that the perpetrators are trying to excuse the crime because of some alleged earlier events only illustrates the likelihood that the crime was calculated and they feel no remorse.

[GitYourWarOn]

Was the fight because of the white kids skin color or because of what he was saying in the seconds leading up to him getting his ass kicked?

I think the comments here show how racially divided this country remains. People on both sides of this issue want to claim innocence for their group.

White posters ignore the fact that there was a clear escalation of events that led up to the fight, the nooses, the threats, the assault at the party, the gun, the verbal what-have-you before the fight that landed the Jena Six in jail. On the other side chants of "free the Jena six" make it seem like the African American community wants to condone or ignore what was most certainly a criminal assault.

For those of you who are having trouble understanding the reason for outrage is not that the black students were charged with a crime but that they were chared with attempted murder, a crime that will ruin each of their lives as while the crimes commited by white students were excused with what amounts to "boys will be boys". The outcry is not for exoneration but for equal protection under the law.

[THERIGHTWING]

The white kid was not involved in any prior incident but was merely jumped by the 6 black kids. Now we all know that if it were the other way around you would crying hate crimes. These should be tried for hate crimes as well. Good ole Mychael there has been at the courthouse before for other problems. So how about some truth before you spew.

[MaxD]

Um gityourwaron, what led up to the assault by 6 on 1 doesn't really matter. It doesn't matter one jot what the victim, the guy who got beat, said. He could have been spewing the most vile racist hate filled speech imaginable (in fact I think he was making fun of one of the Jena 6 who had been beat up earlier that week or something). That still doesn't give you, or me, or the Jena 6 any right to attack him. If it is harassment, then the 6 could have called the cops. They didn't, they chose to beat him down, then stomp on him while he lay unconscious.
As I've said elsewhere,I am sick of this style of beating people down with a posse of your friends. I have a personal interest in this, something like that happened here in my town and it left the victim with permanent neurological damage. That was from just a two on one beating. I have no problem with the attempted second degree murder charge. I think it should be instituted anytime stomping occurs. Especially in any type of group assault.
My friend, who was just walking home, talks slower now, and will like have problems for the rest of his life. Like Doug said above, any stomp may be the last one.

[MaxD]

Gityourwaron, I am reposting this just so you will see something important:
Here is what the blogger Doug had to say.
Let's get some facts straight:

The noose incident was 3 months prior to the attack on the victim. It is unknown but unlikely the victim hung the nooses.

The gun incident was also 3 months prior to the attack. It involved one of the attackers and a friend of the victim (who had pulled a shot gun out of his vehicle after being chased from a convenience store. It is unknown if the victim was present at the 'gun incident'.

The victim lost sight in one eye for several weeks and sustained injuries to his face, hands, ears, and right eye. Witnesses claim the beating was stopped and did not last very long. The victim was knocked unconscious when his head was smashed into the cement. Witnesses claim that his head was being stomped on.

The victim did attend his school's ring ceremony later in the evening, but left early do to pain (his right eye was swollen shut). The victim claimed that he had been waiting years to attend the ceremony and wouldn't have missed.

--------------

My opinion

Had the beating lasted longer it would have been obvious that it was attempted murder. They were stomping on his head. One more stomp could have ended his life. Attempted murder is not out of the question.

[Gangbuster]

What no one has mentioned here is that school officials and possibly parents were not on the ball here. Had there been some intervention early on, it might, note might not have come to this point. The one guy is obviously a vicious criminal, and also a coward who did not have the courage to handle whatever he needed to handle one on one.

[MaxD]

Gangbuster is on to something here. Jena is an example of dropping the ball. The moment the nooses went up, much more discussion needed to be had. Community leaders might acted.
Intervention was likely key.

[Doug]

Remember, when stomping on someone's head - the next stomp could be the one that ends his life.

Attempted murder is not out of the question.

[MaxD]

Thank you Doug.

[jvarga]

So are you saying if 5-6 white kids beat up a black kid, you'd consider it no big deal since it just amounts to a school yard fight?

Apparently (based on what some other bloggers have said here) there was a fight the day before between a black and a white kid. The aggressor in that fight (apparently) was not charged with anything. That should be fixed. Those hanging nooses from a tree should be punished, I'm sure if some clever lawyer can't figure out how to tie that in to hate crime legislation that they can figure out some other law it violates.

AND THE FIVE OR SIX PEOPLE WHO BEAT UP ONE PERSON SHOULD NOT BE TREATED LIKE MARTYRS. Bizarro world: equality means when 6 black kids beat up a white kid it is ok.

[Scribe57]

"AND THE FIVE OR SIX PEOPLE WHO BEAT UP ONE PERSON SHOULD NOT BE TREATED LIKE MARTYRS. Bizarro world: equality means when 6 black kids beat up a white kid it is ok."

I don't think anyone is saying it's "ok". However, attempted murder is a bit over the top, don't you think?

[MaxD]

They were charged with attempted second degree murder, a fact with which we all ought to be quite okay with. Not first degree. I for one am sick of all this chicken-shit beat down business. If it was indeed as alleged then the Jena 6 do indeed deserve to be in jail. However, if the DA is having trouble getting the truth out of the kids and it was only a few of them by all means charge them all, scare the hell out of them and let them roll on each other.
17 year olds can, and probably should be tried as adults, especially if they are demonstrating a history of violent criminal behavior.
However, it seems that many of the details of the 6 on 1 beat down aren't in question.

[lisakaz]

If it is predicated on the white kid starting a fight with another kid and him getting backup from friends, IT IS A FIGHT.