We’ll see how it goes.
Update: Twenty minutes after commenting was reopened, the first comment out of the gate included the words “savages” and “niggers” – how charming. And thank you for proving my point that although there has been progress in the last 40 years, racism is alive and well. I can see that my prayer list is going to grow exponentially if I leave comments open.
Anybody have thoughts on whether I ought to publish identifying information for comment policy and specifically Jena 6 comment policy violators?
Just a quick visit to say hello. I have missed reading your stuff this summer and am so glad to be back.
An interesting site. I don’t blame you for moderating comments, as I do on both of my blogs. It is too bad you received the negative comment mentioned. I have people that disagree with me on my blogs but I have only been told off once in 3 years and I left the comment as a negative example of what will not be tolerated.
Cheers,
Russ
thekingpin68
satire and theology
Welcome back, Brad – hope you had a great summer!
Russ – I actually turned off comments for a while because after a few months of hateful invective (from both sides), personal attacks on me and other commenters, and threats, I was just tired of playing referee. A fairly innocuous comment – in comparison to the others that never got published – was the last straw. I actually rather enjoy disagreement, but I have a strict comment policy because just leaving it wide open seems to be more trouble than it’s worth. Lately this blog has been almost exclusively Jena 6, but I’m trying to get away from it. I checked out your blog – very interesting! I bookmarked it.
As of today Sept. 15 I saw on the news there are new developments in the case. Im from Canada and from the get go I was really upset regarding the young man’s sentencing. Not being from US I’ve sent a letter to Oprah to Dr. Phil asking them to help the kid. Very nice of people trying to say this is not a
” racist case ” but it clearly is. Find me a white kid who got the same punishment for the same acts ….you won’t be able to. Ian white or light beige and some days light yellow … It hurts me so much when I see 2 kinds of justice . I will end this saying what I say to family members who are racists ….won’t you be surprised when u get to heaven and God greats you with his darker skin and his white smile …I’ll be the white girl waving at the back saying …….don’t ask me why but my job on earth was to be against racism and do something about it. Yes I am a grain of salt on this earth but when I see injustice I act on it .This case was unfair and thank GOD it moved 2 Countries and people didn’t let it go by ….bless U and thank you
Hello Laura,
Have you considered (or do you have the ability here) allowing comments only by registered users? I don’t blog but do administer a discussion forum or two. We allow guest reading, but would never allow guest posting. IMO, it would do wonders for you to switch to such a system. Then troublesome posters can be banned. Now of course there are ways to be a pest in such a system, but it’s better than leaving it wide open.
The reason for the traffic on Jena 6 is because your site is prominent in Google searches since recent events have brought the case to the forefront on a more national stage. I hope to pop in from time to time to read about other topics. Hopefully I can rehab my straw status
~ER
Dear Pursuing Holiness,
I am from Jena, Louisiana. Although I am not in the exact heart of this matter, but me and my family are affected by it. I am white, but I am not a racisit by no means. I have black friends that I would trust before any white person and vise versa. Nevertheless, I do not look at color when it comes to a crime. I look at the facts.
The now infamous “Jena Six” has been trouble makers since them and my child was in grade school. I have heard stories through the years where these boys would try to intemidate white and BLACKS. You heard me right, blacks. In their own neighborhood nonetheless. They have been a menace to their own people. That makes me say that to people that are not hearing those kinds of details because the media and select people are trying to make this solely a race issue.
While I am here to tell you there is racicim in Jena, but it is not just whites against blacks. I graduated 20 years ago from Jena High and let me tell you it was the same then as it is now. You have some whites and blacks that are just mean and hateful. Back when I was in school, there were fights between the two and I have seen a gang of black people jump on just one white person before. The black students tried to intemidate whites even back then. I could go on and on about the intemidation between the black and white but we don’t have that much time. But I will say this, it is true today as it was 20 years ago that black boys like the white girls and they make sexual advances toward the white girls. In turn the black girls get very angry about that and cause trouble for the white girls that have no control over what the black boys do.
Moving on to this current issue. My step-son was an eye witness (standing right there) to the beating of Justin Barker. He was threatend by the 6 by stating “you’re next” just after beating Justin. What could the statement “you’re next” mean. These boys had a plan to beat several white boys up, but after the beating of Justin they were arrested. I have documentation of an order of protection for my step-son against the 6 boys. Yes he was threatned by the boys as soon as they finished beating someone. Word was sent that my house was going to be burned because my step son got the order of protection and made a statement to the sherrif concerning what he saw during the beating.
I am not understanding how anyone can say that the hanging of nooses punishment can in anyway compare to the punishment of 6 students beating somone unconsious. The nooses were horribly wrong, and I agree that the boys who did it did not get the punishment deserved. Justin Barker had nothing to do with any of the incidents that took place prior to his beating. Oh the taunting comment. Well let me tell you “sticks and stones can break my bones but words can never harm me”. No wait a minute, Justin may or may not have said anything, I don’t know, but if he did he’s the one that got the “sticks and stones”. So what if he said anything to them. If you recall the Virginia massacare, that man claimed to have been taunted. Did that give him the right to blow 30 plus people away?
Give me a break. Those boys knew fully well what they were doing because rumors were already floating around that they were going “bust some heads”. And I don’t think it mattered if anyone was involved in the prior events. Speaking of bust some heads, not much has been said about this but a innocent young freshman boy was walking through the hall and was hit in the back of his head by a black student and had to go to the hospital to get stiches.
Come on people the race card is being played to the fullest here in Jena. There will always be racisim and not just in Jena and not just white against blacks. I have been treated differently by blacks before that I believed was racism but I can’t do anything about it. That is their personal problem and I am not going to go whinning about it to the white supremacist and cause havoc for a small town.
The media loves this kind of controversy and are running with it for ratings. Let me tell you the white people are worried about the safety of their children and just as a black parent would do the white parents will protect their children at all cost. Why should the innocent children of this community (black and white) have to suffer for what these trouble makers have done.
I saw your post about “what if the past criminal history of Mycheal Bell was bogus”. Well they are true. People that do not live here are only getting part of the story and they need to quit looking at what the media is saying and deciding that Jena is racist. Again, racism does exist but not on the scale that the media has put forth.
Why is it that the states attorney, who is black, came here and even said that he did not find any evidence that racism played a part in the events that have occured here and that is still not good enough for the black community.
Just because Mycheal Bell and the five others were good football players and had a good future ahead of them, does that mean we should turn our heads to all the crimes they have commited (some have priors, some do not)? If people think so, let them loose and they can take them to their neighborhood and let them live there. Speaking of priors, did anyone hear of when some of the 6 boys were caught stealing in a store. They were got out of jail and were still allowed to play football? Yes,that is true also. Heads turned away for these boys before, but now that their violent tendencies have come forward they are being punished. Crime = time in my book and I don’t care what color you are.
And to make another comment about the nooses, my daughter and step-son were wittnesses to the nooses. They were one of the first to arrive that morning along with some black students. As they stood there, one black student was joking and laughing and not only that, he stuck his head in one of the nooses (why I don’t know). Most of the kids were ok and didn’t take it to heart. It was the black parents that have caused the noose issue to blow way, way, way out of proportion. Again I do not think that the punishment was not harsh enough for the boys who did that, but we cannot say “well those boys didn’t get the punishment they deserved so we’ll just let the beating go and you boys can go on and be football stars”. Give me a break there too, because if these boys aren’t stopped now, I am here to tell you trouble awaits!
Goodbye for now,
Ellen
Ellen, I appreciate your comment, but stories of the Jena 6 past misdeeds are so far just that, stories. We’ve been round and round on that issue in other comment threads. Nothing proved, and also let me tell you that when I was in grammar school and up, certain kids got punished and others didn’t. I have no way of knowing what the circumstances were even if the stories are true, so I don’t really put a lot of stock into that. Nor am I willing to just write kids off based on previous bad behavior. If you knew more of my history, you’d understand why – it so easily could have been me.
Donald Washington is in the Department of Justice, he’s not a states attorney. I’ve written a good deal about him, and while I have no idea what motivates him, I’ve established that he didn’t perform a serious investigation – that’s not why he was sent. He’s not even in the right department for that. He correctly pointed out that pretty much all of this falls within the purview of the state of Louisiana. He said himself that his opinion was based on photographs – while there are plenty of interviews by people presumed to be responsible – a school board member, and teachers, specifically – who said that black kids are not treated the same as white kids.
I am NOT against the Jena 6 being punished at all. No matter the provocation, beating Barker was a crime and they should pay for it. However, I think these specific charges were way over the top, and I’m glad they’re going to be charged as juveniles. I think that is appropriate. For some, this is their last chance. I believe they should have it.
It is ridiculous to say that black parents blew the nooses way way out of proportion. I don’t know how old you are, and maybe you weren’t “blessed” with a Klan member in your family, but I can tell you that a noose is no joke. It’s a threat. There’s a *reason* why those boys chose to hang nooses as opposed to doing something else; at some level they knew what it meant. A prank is filling a locker with shaving cream, hanging underwear from a flagpole, sending a stupid instant message to a cell phone… nooses are not a prank.
As to whether these boys need to be stopped now before they get into more trouble – I understand where you’re coming from as a parent, and there have been times I harshly punished my daughter for that very reason. But that’s NOT how our justice system is intended to work. A justice system like that CAN’T work – the only thing the government can do is punish people for what they’ve actually done, not what they might do in the future. And for these specific charges, attempted 2nd degree murder, tennis shoes as weapons, charging them as adults, was in my opinion way over the top.
I would like to post these links that shed some light on the situation http://www.thejenatimes.net. This stie gives a time line with some details on thigs that have transpired. Another site, http://www.ncjj.org is a site that gives statutes on juveniles and how they can be tried as adult instead as juveniles in the state of louisiana. Louisiana statute states that if a juvenille has committed proior violent crimes (and is age 15 which Mycheal Bell was 16) such as aggravated battery it is left up to the state as how to proceed with trial. This is how the DA here in LaSalle parish was able to charge and send it to adult court. He should have took the deal because now if the proceeding is sent to juvenile and he is convicted there he can be sentenced to stay in a juvinile facility until age 21. The judge here in LaSalle parish probably would not have gave him any prison time. He probably would have gotten little or no time and put on probation. Now, if put in the juvenile system everything that he has been charged with before can definitely be used to the fullest. It’s a shame he couldn’t just stay out of trouble period!
[I agree, it is a shame. Still, I have some hope for him. Further, whether I have hope or not is immaterial. I was always in favor of appropriate punishment. I just don't think 22 - or 15, now - years is appropriate. I know people who served less than 5 for worse crimes. If the juvie system locks him up until 21, so be it. While people under 18 CAN be tried as adults, I think they should not be. If the juvenile system is inadequate for some crimes, change it so it's better, don't shunt kids off into adult prison. Also, thanks for the links. I seldom go to jenatimes anymore because as a web developer, the way the site is set up gets on my last nerve - iframes all over the place and graphic text galore. Yergh. I'd redesign it in a heartbeat with better navigation and archiving.)]
Laura
Maybe you will be more likely to believe ELLEN she is quite a bit more politically correct than I am. Never the less same thing I have told you from the beginning.
[It's funny to think of being politically correct as a criteria, considering how much I hate the restrictions on our freedom of speech by the PC police. There were times in the past where, when the comments were flying around, that I was hasty and too sharp in my tone. I intend to re-read all of those posts/comments to see if apologies are warranted and if so, you'll get a good one- not a "if you were offended" style apology. I've always tried to have room to move on this issue because even though I still feel there is an injustice being done, I also don't trust the media. (But I do trust them more than strangers on a blog, because there's at least some measure of accountability.) However, I may have a lead on new information, and if so, my opinions will no longer be based mostly on what the media says about the case. - Laura]
Laura,
I am glad to know that you do not think that the boys should go free. What aggravates me the most is that only a few black people (mainly the family of the accused) and the rest of the world will decend upon Jena (my home town where I have to live, shop, and send my children to school) on the 20th and demand that “all charges be dropped and the Jena six let go”. I am baffled that they are asking the law to just turn their heads and let them go.
I know the Barker family personally and they are the nicest kindest people I know. What kind of justice whould it be for Justin and his family to know that the persons that could have killed Justin are just set free.
I don’t think I would be so upset about the rally being held if it did not seem as if JJ and AS and who ever else is coming was not trying to strong arm the law. They have stated “just simply let them go and we won’t have to march”. To me that sounds very threatening.
I also understand what you are saying about not punishing people for what they might only for what they have done. But if the black community (mostly outside of Jena) has their way the six boys will just go completly free.
I also agree that there was nothing funny about the nooses. My personal belief is that is was racial. Some say it was geared toward a game between Jena and another team (I think The Mustangs not quite sure about that) But my bet is racial. Nevertheless, the racial comments go back and forth between the white and black students. Words such as “cracker” and “honky” have never made much sense to me. The boys who hung the nooses no longer go to JHS. Two are home schooled and one graduated May of 2007. It is also my understanding that the boys who are being home schooled cannot walk with their class at graduation in May of 2008. As I said in another post, the punishment was not harsh enough. I think they should have gotten infront of the whole community and apologized for what they did no matter if they meant it racially. But what they did still did not constitute what happened to Justin Barker.
The point I am trying to make is racism is not a one way street and I am so tired of select black people making it sound like ALL WHITE PEOPLE ARE RACIST.
You also stated that the history of the jena six is just that stories and are unfounded. Well the stories of one black student being beat up by five whites is also unfounded. Rumors always have some truths to them and I would say only 25% truth. I just know that my kids have came home and told me about the intimidation and the trouble that some of the same six boys have caused in the past.
I believe that both the black and white students have caused trouble. It is time as parents (black and white) to stand up and raise the children of today to understand respect of one another not color of skin.
I am tired of my stomach being in knots worried if my kids are ok. Threats have been made over and over. A text was sent to my daughters phone from a black girl that a group of black girls was going to beat up Jessica Hooter (a wittness that testified) just because she testified. Now is that not intimidation? That is not rumor I saw the text with my own eyes and yes it was turned over to the sherrif. They tracked the text and have proof that a wittness was being threatened.
Anyway, I am requesting that all Christians join together in prayer that these boys will get what they deserve. What they deserve is a new heart in Jesus name and will not produce any more trouble. I also pray that people that have a racist mind will have a revalation that black and white will not be an issue in heaven but only streets of gold to walk on and in hell only firey red. I hope to see gold. What about everyone else?
God bless for now,
Ellen
I am white. So what, it’s a skin color, it’s not a soul color. I believe when we get to heaven there will be no skin color. God is not like us. We are built in his image, not his color. He is pure, nothing evil, like the matters over skin color. I have a very important question and complaint. Why is it when some white people say the “N” word it’s all bad and racist. And then you turn around and hear some black people say it like it’s nothing. I don’t care if it’s a “black thing” or not. We don’t go around calling ourselves “honky” all the time or “white boy”. I was in Wal-mart not too long ago with my 4 year old and 2 year old in the buggy and a little black boy about 8 or 9 years old was passing by and talking to another black boy and said “Wait up nigga” Now how is that okay? Especially them griping about whites saying it and then them saying in front of very young children, that’s just teaching them that it’s okay. Why do “some” black parents permit their children to say the word if they don’t want to hear the word from other colors of people? I don’t agree with that at all. I think of it as a bad word. It sounds pretty ugly, like the the “F” word. But, to me “honky” is just a stupid word and means nothing to me. A black person could call me honky all day and I won’t budge. It just doesn’t rub me the wrong way. Some black people are like “hypercondriacts”. In that sense I mean they’re constantly looking for “racist trouble”. And some white people are the same way. Why is color such a big deal? It makes no sense to me, when God made us all. I believe we started out one color with Adam and Eve and when the tower of Babylon started was when God seperated us and we spoke different languages and I think that’s where skin color came from. To seperate the people who were building the tower to heaven. I don’t understand why the whites way back in the old days did all those horrible things. But I know that not only whites are hateful. Things have changed a lot and I am so glad I wasn’t part of the evil deeds that took part way back when. It’s by the grace of God only that we are all here. And everything happens for a reason, whether we like it or not. Those who do evil will be punished by God and it will be just, no matter what color the person is. I just pray that people start re-thinking about the way they feel. No one should be hanging nooses and no one should be getting beat up. Even if someone is being racists with their vocal chords, they shouldn’t be punished by a beating. These kids “black and white” and all other colors as well, need to really be taught respect for each other. Parents these days aren’t teaching their children to respect others no matter what the color. They do what they grow up in, most of the time. There are cases where children grow up in a christian environment and turn out to be murderers. But there’s something wrong with them. I think blacks and whites have grown up in racism. But not all. But there aren’t many children out there that are being taught the right way. And by the right way, I mean the one and only way. There’s but one path to Heaven and that’s Jesus Christ. Amen.
Ellen and Laura from Jena (if those are your real names) -
Are you all reading and watching the same events unfold in your own backyard that I and all the world is?
I am not there in Jena, yet, when I read the first blog posted June 26th, 2007 (you should read it to) on this very website, it is very, very clear that this started with the white students in this school. First of all, this sacred tree that only white students are allowed to sit???? What is that about? Did I step back into 1955? I know kids can be mean, but as parents you all are responsible for raising Christian children that don’t worship idols (like a special tree) and those children CAN influence the others to do what’s right.
That’s the bottom line. This all started with your white students not wanting to share a tree. A tree that doesn’t belong to anyone, anywhere – it was planted, nourished and survived by God. Yet, because those students took ownership of it, black students had to ask the school administrator PERMISSION to sit there. Which says that the students weren’t provided a free open atmosphere to join the white kids under that tree.
When the school administrator said you can sit where you want, they did and were welcomed the next day by the nooses at the tree. The decision to overturn the administrator’s punishment of the kids (the white kid who was beat up – those were his friends by the way) was handed down by YOUR all white school board. Black families weren’t even allowed to speak at any of the school board meetings surrounding the issue. Is that fair? Is that just? You spend a lot of time talking about how these black kids are really troublemakers and how they almost killed the white boy, but you don’t see the correlation and how something like hanging nooses could ignite a fire with memories of horror and pain that black people in a past period of time had to see neighbors, friends, relatives MURDERED that way daily???? How could expulsion serve as the best thing for these kids? That is evil – that is only taught from the PARENTS and those kids shouldn’t be allowed to live life as normal either.
They might as well have put on white sheets and burned crosses in front of the nooses as well. That would be REAL wrong, right? But I believe you all would say, oh, well they are “just kids”.
As Christians we have to be fair and just with everyone. Don’t get defensive and angry and have your mind clouded by only the facts you want to see. For example, a protest was planned by the black kids affected by the noose incident and an assembly was called immediately – where the District Attorney Reed told black kids to stop protesting now or with this pen, I’ll take your life away”. Is that fair? Is that just? EVERY AMERICAN HAS THE RIGHT TO DEMOSTRATE – not just white folks. Another example? How about after that incident, a group of white people attacked Mychal Bell, the one you stated has been a “troublemaker”. Did he deserve to be jumped on and hit across the face with a glass bottle???? Do you see what I just wrote – “HIT ACROSS THE FACE WITH A GLASS BOTTLE”…and then hit and kicked, by the white boy that was beat up in the next incident, along with other whites and namely one white ADULT man.
Then, another white man (or perhaps the same white ADULT – their names are being protected, big surprise) pulls a gun on this group of black kids. At no point during either of these confrontations I’ve just named were these kids doing anything to warrant this type of response. Is that fair? Is that just? Come on now, you read the Bible, you go to church, you pray to your God…what does your spirit say about that? How would you feel if this last two events happened to your precious, innocent children – bad or not? I submit that your response would be extremely, radically different. And not defensive about black people calling something what it is – an injustifiable wrong (if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, ma’ams its a duck), but you’d be defensive for your children’s rights and safety too.
These white people listed above in the previously mentioned confrontations, attacks/beatings were not even charged attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon (BROKEN GLASS). Not even the white ADULTS. Is that fair? Is that just? Is that right? So the black kids should get what they deserve but the white people shouldn’t?????
If you all are Christians – then I suggest you do some soul searching, get ALL of the information and pray before you type another response to me or anyone else on this blog. People will be there to March on Thursday. But I don’t see any of you welcoming these black people into your homes or businesses. Because of you people’s closemindedness cloaked by a type of fake Christian conservative attitude – I expect the National Guard to be there and police with dogs, huge water hoses and sticks planning on beating black people into submission claiming it as “Crowd Control” just like the 1950s and 60s.
I will pray however, that it doesn’t get to that level – but not for your little country town, but for the black kids whose voices have gone unheard until now.
Be obedient to God’s voice and direction and He will always direct your path and influence your thoughts and ways.
[Zena, I'm perplexed why you're including me in with people from Jena. I'm not from Jena, and I've never been there. I'm very familiar with that first blog post, having written it. Please go back and read my archives for my positions on the Jena 6. I *haven't* spent a lot of time pointing out that the black kids were troublemakers, other than taking note of Mychal Bell's criminal history, which is pertinent because it affected why his bail was so high. Also, I believe you're confusing Mychal Bell with Robert Bailey at the Fair Barn. I know well that Justin Barker is friends with the noose-hangers, I've written it repeatedly and it doesn't speak well of him at all that he chooses to associate with them. Certain things have come into dispute since my original posts, like details on what happened at the Fair Barn and the Gotta Go. I'm hoping to have verification on those things soon, and because of that I'm reserving a bit of skepticism. The whites names are NOT being protected, it's pretty well known that Matt Windham, Justin and Jesse Sloan, and others were involved. I can't remember the names of the noose hangers off the top of my head, but they have also been named even though they are juveniles. The school board is NOT all white. There is one black member, which makes the school board racial makeup proportionate to Jena's demographics. He has been quoted saying that blacks and whites are not treated equally in Jena. I understand that you're upset about this case, but you also don't seem to be very well informed about it.
As to not wanting the white people punished - I absolutely condemn racism, and wish that they would be shunned for it, and I said from the beginning if the noose-hangers had been punished appropriately it would have ended there. The DOJ decreed that the nooses were not a hate crime, so the only punishment available to the noose hangers was at the school level, and I think their punishment should have been much harsher, and I also think that their parents should have made them apologize publicly. BUT no verbal or other non-physical provocation excuses violence. I think the 2nd degree attempted murder charges were completely ridiculous, and I think it was very wrong to try them as adults. But I do think some punishment is warranted if they are found guilty, and I think the juvenile courts, preferably in another part of Louisiana, not LaSalle Parish, are the appropriate place to determine whether they are guilty.
I also think, given recent editorials in The Town Talk and the Jena Times, both local newspapers which advise welcoming the protesters and affirm their right to protest, that your fears of National Guard, police dogs, water hoses and sticks to beat black people, are unwarranted. If you read those local papers, you'll find quite a few people in Jena are ready to welcome the protesters - this is their chance to prove they are not racist, and furthermore everyone's money is green. They are fearful of trouble, and I think that is reasonable. Your intentions are admirable, but even you don't really know much about the case. Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of people who are not necessarily well informed about this case are about to descend on them with expectations of trouble, and sometimes those "prophecies" are self-fulfilling. When the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail, so when all these people come to Jena expecting it to be the most racist town in America, every white in it is going to look like a racist. Doubtless some are. Maybe even many. But just as every young black man is not a criminal, neither is every soul in Jena a racist. Everyone is hoping for peaceful demonstrations, but yes, they're afraid too, just as many of the protesters will be. Further, I've read on several white supremacist/Klan message boards (I like to see what the enemy is up to) that they're coming to counter-protest - this will add to the picture of Jena as racist, even though these people are posting from Ohio, Michigan, Texas, and other states. Those people are evil, and they're looking for trouble. And that makes for a powderkeg. So whatever law enforcement you see in Jena - currently they've only asked for backup from other parts of the parish, as far as I know - don't assume it's *all* about the protesters. Those people are evil, and they're looking for trouble. - Laura]
Who is the ruler of this world? What race holds supreme in this world? Who rules them?
Don’t get me wrong, I;m not saying blacks are holy–no race is. God does not judge by color–but racism against anybody not white is on a grand, worldwide scale rooted in pride and haughtiness and sponsored by the ruler of the world.
The answer is not to get involved in these worldly racial squabbles but trust in Jesus. Those young black men should have let that white boy alone. They knew full well where they were and who and what ruled that town. If they didn’t know, their parents should have instructed them to give white racial squabbles a wide berth. Seventy-five years ago they’d be dead already.
Right is right, you might say and we have a right to speak up and protest–but this is how we have survived as a race. We used to trust in Jesus and he carried us through as a race in this country while other peoples were nearly utterly destroyed by Satanic forces. Most native American languages are dead languages–nobody left to speak them.
Now our families are disintegrating and so many of our black men languish in prisons, our women alone. It is because we have left Jesus as a people and left ourselves open to destruction.
Laura: I thank you for taking the time to have this blog and keep up with it in order for people to have an open forum to communicate and discuss issues but I think reading it has made me more pessimistic about the race problem in America. The “average” white person (not all) just doesn’t understand how it feels to be black in this country. Even the white people who seem to mean well on their postings are still blind (or ignoring) to the bigger picture of this entire case, which is, things are pretty much the same for black people in America as they have always been when it comes to the justice system. I don’t think white people realize that even today, in 2007, black people are scared of the police. Blacks are honestly scared of the ones who are supposed to serve and protect. That’s because they’ve never really served or protected black people as a whole; sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t. We live in a country where there is a “War on Terrorism”, but the KKK, a terrorist organization, is allowed to openly march and hold rallies in cities using their right to free speech. Blacks are consistently over-charged, wrongly accused, and fitting the profile. I do realize that you Laura are an exception to this but I don’t believe that there are enough people like you to make a change. To me it’s not about race. Good people do good and bad people do bad, but the problem is that some good white people don’t see the bad thing that was done in Jena. How can there be hope? I thank you for what you do and hope that there are plenty more like you. It’s a shame that you have to put up with the hateful posts but you should still keep them open to all. I guess in the new age even the idiots can use a computer effectively (scary). I think to offset your stress you should be paid. Get some sponsors or set-up a link for donations. You deserve it.
[You're very kind. I did put ads, which helps a bit. - Laura]
Hi LauraI would like to leave a comment on your site but it is rather lengthy, (2 pages type written hard copy) Is there a limit to the length? I promise it is not ugly in any way. I’m just a Christian woman like you that wants to see justice and truth prevail. I also am from Jena, not directly involved but knowledgeable of some of the facts, even those not revealed at this time. If this is O.K., I will post as soon as you give me the go ahead.Thank YouMarika
[There's no limit that I'm aware of, but you can try to submit the comment, if it doesn't work you can email it to me. I can't promise to approve it until I've read it. - Laura]
Reading the comments is very depressing. Not because of this or that incident but because I don’t think that there will ever be a bridge between the black and white races. There may be people and pockets and even communities who co-exist but it is a fragile truce that is easily broken. Umbrage is taken and outrage is spoken and the masks on both sides come off with the slightest provocation. Slavery was a sin that can never be atoned for by the whites or forgiven by the blacks and that is the tragedy of America. Both “sides” are wrong and therein lies the problem.
Thank you Laura for clearing up some of the misinformation that Zena has put forth. I would just like to ask Zena something. Where do you get your information from? CNN and other world news? I have also listened to those reports and I can understand why you are misinformed. They only tell half truths and grind the racial issue.
The black boy that supposedly was beat up and a beer bottle smashed in his face did not bother to report it to the police or go to the hospital. There is no record of such events. Yes, there was a fight but not on the scale that has been told on blogs and such. If white boys did do that, where is the proof!
As for the names of other people that have been involved in the altercations, go to http://www.thejenatimes. Their names are published and is the most accurate account of the happenings in Jena.
No one is saying that the nooses where ok. What is being said is that beating someone unconsious that had nothing to do with any of the other altercations is WRONG! So what if Justin was friends with them. I’m sure everyone has friends that does things that you don’t agree with. Does that mean you are going to go out and do what they do? NO!
So let’s take color out of this issue and give the just punishment!
Zena,
My name IS Ellen and I AM from Jena (been here for 37 years now) not Laura. In fact, this site was established by Laura and has been finding out what is fact and what is not.
You live miles away from Jena and you only know what you hear on tv. Why do you think that I have my facts wrong? Is it because I am white? I live right here in the smack dab middle of it all! I would know more about it than you because I am from Jena.
I do soul serching all of the time and I do believe I do know MORE of the facts and not just hear say that you are going on. FACT: the six boys denied beating Jusin (they claimed they weren’t even around which wittnesses including teachers and students say otherwise) in the beginning. Now, it has been proven that they infact did beat Justin up. He didn’t beat his self up. Do you believe that the boys didn’t do it at all or do you just want them to go free because you think the white boys have not recieved the punishment they deserve? I have also said that the boys did not get the punishment they deserved for hanging the nooses. I also believe that the boys who beat Justin up do not deserve to spend a long time in prison, but I do believe they need to be punished. I do believe that if in turn there was proof that a group of whites beat up one black the group of whites should get punished. I have said these things several times since I began blogging here. Crime = time. What more can I say?
What punishment could the boys that hung the nooses get that would make everyone happy? If your response is 22 years in prison, come on get real. As I said before, my daughter saw the nooses herself and she told me that no one could have hung in the nooses at all. They were small ropes that were fashioned into nooses. What I am trying to say is that if anyone tried to hang someone in them it wouldn’t get the job done. Nevertheless, I get the idea and the spirit in which they were hung and was WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. Did anyone know that the tree no longer stands in the square of JHS? It was cut down. I look at that as a symbol that JHS is not going to put up with a racial divide. The news media can’t even get the right tree on tv because I have seen a tree on tv that is infront of JHS before the school was burned to the ground by unknown individauls that still have not been caught. The tree the nooses were in was behind the main building of the school, not infront as the media has shown. But I say again, JUSTIN DID NOT DESERVE TO BE BEAT LIKE A DOG! No one deserves that black or white.
Come on down to Jena on the 20th and see for yourself that for the most part we do have good ole’ southern hospitallity. If businesses do close and people don’t welcome perfect strangers into their homes it is because they are fearful that their businesses and homes could be destroyed. The citizens of Jena would like to have their town still standing when the rally is overwith. I say march on if you want to. I don’t care. People are not scared that people are going to rally. They are scared that the trouble makers (black and white, from here and not from here) will desend on our small town and tear it to peices. And let me tell you, me and my family will not be any where near Jena on that day. Infact, we will be out of Louisiana entirely. And if I find out that there was riots and such, I won’t be back until things are safe. The innocient are being punished here also. Is that fair? Would you let perfect strangers into your home or business if there was a chance you could lose your life and business? Brothers and sisters in Christ no matter what color you are is welcome in my home at anytime. But I wouldn’t invite someone to my home that I think might do me or my family harm. We all hope for a peaceful rally, but we can not be sure of that. I also don’t believe that water hoses and such will be used during the rally like was used in the 50′s. I believe we have come a little further than that with stamping out racism. So if southern hospitallity is not felt on the 20th, consider the circustances.
LAURA,
What facts are you still trying to confirm? I don’t know if I can help you get the facts, but I can try.
James Black,
I take offense that you said I am politically correct at all! I am just a poor country white girl that has had some college education. LOL no just kidding I am not offended at all. Am am who I am. I have my own opinion and beliefs just as everyone else. I just do not believe that because one bad deed does not get punished as seen fit, that another bad deed be overlook just because of skin color. Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price for all our misdeeds.
God bless for now,
Ellen
Roy,
Do you mean to tell me that high black crime rates are due to institutional racism by whites? Is the condition of many black neighborhoods due to white racism?
Laura,
I can’t really understand what bothers you so much about this incident, or why you’ve chosen to give it so much coverage. Are you somehow guilty for these kids behavior as a southern white? Here’s something for you to think about, (you too, Roy)
There is a lot of racism in America. Whites are not the ones acting on it in this day and age.
PRCalDude: You present your numbers in a biased fashion. I am not going to pick them apart (no need), I just want you to understand that your inference (based on how you presented it above) is that all crimes committed by blacks against whites were racially motivated; this is not a fair assessment.
If you were not implying this, I apologize. If you are implying this, perhaps you should re-think your position; that kind of thinking is a form of racism in itself.
I’ll admit, I did not read the entire article from the link you provided above (though I plan to; it’s interesting, I’m pressed for time right now). However, I will point out that OJ didn’t “get off” because he was black; he “got off” because he had the money to assemble an allstar team of attorneys, the best in the country, just as many other wealthy white folks do. Had he been any other “ordinary” black man of “ordinary finanacial status” like the majority of black folks, his trial wouldn’t even be a footnote in the newspaper (most likely wouldn’t even have been a trial). Folks need to remember that, it makes a big difference. If anything, it shows that if you have the money (and most of us do not) you have a greater chance of getting away with virtually anything; if you don’t, then you’d better get to praying, that’s the only thing that will save you.
I guess the numbers don’t suggest a form of affirmative action against whites on the part of blacks. At the end of the day, I don’t care, nor do I particularly care if someone accuses me of racism, so knock yourself out.
The fact still remains that they commit more crimes against whites than whites commit against them in a 50:1 fashion, so whether their doing it out of racism or not is immaterial. It happens. It also happens that, after committing said crimes, blacks recruit their grievance mongers to blame whites for their crimes. As long as their committed to viewing things exclusively through the lens of their own particular race (and they are), they might as well take a look at how the incarceration rates of their particular race, as well as its other pathologies. Just to be consistent.
As far as OJ is concerned, I guess I’ll just quote OJ’s lawyer, Robert Shapiro, “We played the race card and we dealt from the bottom of the deck.”
PRCalDude: We could go back and forth for an eternity about this 50:1 number and how each of us interpret it, but it would be pointless and off-base from the central topic, nor will we ever agree. With that said, I’ll say this and be done with it:
This isn’t about “blacks recruiting their grievance mongers to blame whites for their crimes”, or blacks being “committed to viewing things exclusively through the lens of their own particular race”. There’s scores of people from ALL races who agree that these particular charges, in this particular case, even given “what has been proven in court”, were “over the top”, a lot of them white. At least in my region (I’m in southern Louisiana, not sure how close you are; don’t want to make an assumption based on your user name). I mean A LOT, a WHOLE LOT. More than what you may hear or see on whatever news channels you’re watching. You can toss race out of the entire equation (though impossible, I believe) and these charges still seem outrageous given the circumstances of the case to most reasonable open-minded folks. Everybody’s convicting the Jena 6 on what “could have” happened, instead of what DID happen. Justin Barker was so seriously injured that he attended a ring ceremony that very night? If six people darn near beat me to death a ring ceremony would be the farthest thing from my mind. We can blame the press for blowing this out of proportion all we want, but this fact alone does not sit well with a lot of people, worldwide.
As for OJ, he’s not worth much more of my typing. Robert Shapiro can say whatever he wants. Most folks in my circle remember a 9 month circus of DNA testimony that no “lay person” could possibly tune into for 5 hours a day and really follow what the heck they were talking about, with the occasional “extended unnecessary objections” (which made many of us just say…UGHH, let’s move on!!!, this is MINOR), and the expected highlight of Mark Furmon being crucified on the stand for his past racial transgressions. From my recollection, the majority of that trial focused on DNA (too much of it, in my opinion), not on OJ being a black man and thus should get a free pass. Again, he is just another celebrity that had the wealth, means, and luck to beat the system, just as so many others have done, and will continue to do in the future. He just happened to be black this time, instead of white.
There’s countless data, from government sources as well, that prove that black offenders are often sentenced far more harshly than whites in parallel circumstances. If everyone could take 20 minues out of their busy schedules to browse the US Dept. of Justice website, (and turn our respective racial blinders off for a minute) you’ll find some interesting statistics regarding race, poverty, and crime. I’ll admit, some data has made me retract and reconsider my views on several fronts; others were just outright shocking, backed up my opinions farther than my comfort level is ready to accept to be frank. It’s amazing how our highest level of judicial oversight has the ability to compile and track such a tremendous amount of data that clearly shows a broken system on all fronts – not just racial – for so many decades, and have no feasible plan to curtail its inconsistencies. Shame on us all for being citizens of the truest democracy on the planet and allowing such injustices to happen day in and day out, for decades….It’s our duty as Americans to demand differently.
Good blogging either way. My intent was not to call you out as a racist. Whether you really are, or whether I believe you are, is neither here nor there. I’m just tired of arguing about numbers and race. REALLY. It takes too much away from gaining truth and understanding of what really happened in Jena, why it happened, and what the heck we can do to prevent this from happening again. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: THERE’S PLENTY ENOUGH BLAME TO GO AROUND. The media couldn’t sell a story that the public was not willing to buy, for whatever reason. Either everyone in Jena had it right from jump and the rest of us in the world are dillusional, or this case is yet another true depiction grave imbalance in our justice system.
Check it out, it’s worth it………..http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/
PRCalDude: I have already debated with someone on these blogs about the black on black crime problem. You’re right; blacks commit too many crimes against each other. Period! What I said before was that it shouldn’t be overlooked that whites (in general, not all) have historically been the most ruthless and cruelest people on the planet in order to get all the money and land that they wanted. When you pretty much rule the world there’s really no need to murder and steal anymore. But I’m exhausted with the whole thing. To address your question to me: I think the situation of blacks in America is partly due to the poor treatment received for hundreds of years from whites. America is such a unique case in this respect. Think about it, for hundreds of years, blacks were seen merely as animals. There was little to no regard for the value of a black life. After slavery wasn’t the best option for America anymore, blacks were left on the same land where their lives had no value. Black people didn’t move back to Africa. They stayed in a land where they couldn’t get an education, get a job, and were constantly in fear for their lives. There was no help from the government or the police. After slavery ended it took almost another hundred years for the government to put into law that blacks had the same rights as whites. Imagine if Hitler decided to free the Jews from the concentration camps and stopped killing them. Then the Jews decided to continue to live in Germany under Hitler’s rule. That’s what happened in America. And I’m not just blaming white people but the reason the black crime rate is so high because there is no American Dream for many blacks. I ran an Outreach program for three years and the majority of my kids really didn’t have much to look forward to in life as they saw it. It’s hard for white people to understand the tremendous advantages that they have just for being born white. And on the flip side white people really don’t understand the tremendous disadvantage of being born black. Here’s one example of the racial divide between blacks and whites. In the case of the Jena 6, on this blog, some people dwell on the fact that those boys did a terrible thing by beating Justin Barker. Why? No one says that it was right or justified by any means. Black people are outraged by the injustice of it all. White people should be outraged as well. One kid already has been in jail for almost ten months. But Ellen, and I’m sure she means well, feels she has to defend the fact that the boys were wrong. In my opinion getting charged for attempted murder for whooping someone’s a** in high school should never happen, especially in America. But if you’re black, who knows.
In reading some of the response I think the Jena residents are taking this personal. No one is saying that the whole town is racist, but when the nooses were hung in the tree and the boys received minimum punishment, and then to make a statement that this was only a prank shows that there is no consideration for the African Americans and their struggles with slavery. We can go back and forth about who was right or wrong but that is not the problem that concerns the African Ameircans, the problem is why when a African American commits a crime they get the maximum punishment but when a white person commits a crime they get the minimun punishiment. Here is an example, An African American W. VA woman was enslaved and tortured by six white people for a whole week. She was beaten, raped, choked, stabbed, scroched with hot water, forced to drink out of the toilet, eat dog and rat drippings, and called the N word over and over. The combined charges for the 6 people were kidnapping, sexual assault, malicious wounding, and assault during the commission of a felony and battery. Not one of these people were charged with attempted murder. Looking at their past the police have filed at least 108 crimanal charges against these 6 people since 1991. One person served only 5 years in prison for the death of an old woman after pleading guilty to a lesser charge. Do you see it, they get 5 years for murder and they are trying to give this young man 22 years for attempted murder. I am sure if we started reviewing the criminal record database we would see a pattern similiar to this. This is what the African Americans are tired of “Unfair Justed”. I think the African Americans would have responded the same way no matter what City/state this happened in.