Traffic is just too high for comments – in spite of the RAM upgrade it’s taking out client sites. The protest is today and CNN is giving it a lot of airtime – I think the traffic will slow down enough tomorrow to bring them back on. However, I’d like to take the opportunity to clarify a few things:

• If the Jena 6 are found guilty in a fair trial for beating Justin Barker, then they need to be punished. That’s for you commenters who say all charges should be dropped and they should be set free.
• They should be punished appropriately. Not for crimes they may commit in the future – that’s for you commenters who say they need to be “taken off the street before they do worse” and for you “hang those savages” commenters.
• Not everyone in Jena is a racist. Some of the protesters are racist.
  
• There are legitimate reasons to question whether D.A. Reed Walters engaged in selective prosecution, and whether Mychal Bell’s trial was fair.
• There are legitimate reasons to question whether the original charges were fair and appropriate.
• Justin Barker did not hang the nooses. His friends did. Even if he HAD hung the nooses, that’s not an excuse to beat him several months later. Justin Barker may or may not have called Robert Bailey a nigger and laughed at him for having his ass whipped. Even if he did, that’s not an excuse to beat him.
• The noose-hangers, Justin Barker, and the Jena 6 were all minors. Teenagers. A group not known for good judgment and common sense. The root of the problem in this situation is the adults.
• The American flag that CNN is showing that the Jena 6 protesters put where the “white tree” was is UPSIDE DOWN. That’s no coincidence. You just lost a LOT of sympathy from me, just like the illegal alien protesters did for the same disrespect to the flag.

When comments come back on, they will be registration only, in the hope that the worst of the racists, on both sides, won’t bother. Comments will still be moderated, as well. This march is certainly a crescendo, but it’s not the end of the situation, and a lot of things still have to happen before it is fully resolved. New information will come out, some of it on this blog. It is my hope that we can have a civil, and useful discussion about it.

There are literally dozens of Jena 6 posts in the archive that include every detail I could find about the case going back to the beginning. Here are a few with lots of links and info:

The Jena 6: Nooses Hang From The “White Tree” – a good place to start with a summary of the entire case.
The Jena 6: Since When Do Teenage Boys Watch Lonesome Dove? – the first Jena 6 post on this blog
Jena Six: Justin Barker Testifies at Mychal Bell Trial
Jena 6: More Testimony, Going To The Jury UPDATED – More on the testimony in the case including Justin Barkers injuries, which were NOT severe.
Jena 6: A Primer To The Racial Unrest In Jena, Louisiana – A who’s who in the Jena Six case. This has been copied and posted in many places.
Jena 6: Sentencing and Hope for Mychal Bell – The Louisiana Supreme Court overturned a conviction very similar to Mychal Bell’s.
Jena 6: Update and Background Info – How’d they get an all white jury? Was it deliberate?
Jena 6: Cross Burnings = Noose Hangings? – Prometheus 6 noted that cross burnings are illegal. Wouldn’t that also cover nooses?
Jena 6: Sentencing Delayed, DOJ Conducts Forum – the DOJ finally made it to Jena, but it was the PR division, not the civil rights division.
The Jena 6: Update on Mychal Bell – his status as of 8/19/07
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I’ve got CNN on and I’ll be blogging on some of their coverage.

2:08 – Mos Def interview. Citizen of the world? This is a national security issue? What has this guy been smoking? Oh please… maybe that explains the sunglasses. He’s mentioning the stories of the Confederate flags – it should be noted that a commenter yesterday said CNN showed yesterday that is flying in a town near Jena – not in Jena. It should also be noted that on several white supremacist message boards (I have google alerts on all topics Jena) they intended to be in Jena today as well. So all Confederate flag flying can’t be attributed to Jena residents – outsiders have come to stir up trouble. He says “the responsible thing to do” is to free the Jena 6. I object to the concept that because Justin Barker is fine today, there should be no penalty whatsoever for the attack. I believe his injuries were minor, I’ve contended that all along. But the attitude of the law CAN’T be “no harm, no foul.”

3:24 – The 3rd District Court of Appeals says that Mychal Bell needs to be brought to the LaSalle Parish courthouse for a hearing within the next 72 hours. The explanation, however, for why he is still being held is that bail was denied and the case is still under appeal, as far as the latest I’ve read. Duh. CNN should KNOW this.

7:57 – Donald Washington just said that Mychal Bell had 4 battery convictions.  WRONG AGAIN, Donald!  Good grief, is there anything this guy can get right?  Bell’s had two battery convictions.  And two convictions on criminal damage to property.  Not four battery convictions.  This guy is driving me up a wall.  He sounds reasonable, and I want to agree with him, then he either lies or makes a mistake – but the mistake is always in the favor of the prosecution.  Well, he’s entitled to his opinion but not his own facts.  No, two fewer battery convictions don’t make Bell an altar boy.  But as I’ve said repeatedly throughout all of this, the truth is bad enough – don’t dramatize it.  Or lie about it.