Jena 6

The facts, as I have gleaned from a variety of magazines and news articles, are as follows:

• A black student asked permission of a person in authority (one article said the principal, another the v-p) for himself and some fellow black students to sit under a particular tree on the high school campus that a particular group of white kids usually sat under. They were told they could sit anywhere they liked. They arrived the next day to see three hangman nooses on the tree. The white children responsible were punished for the prank.
  

• The white students in question took to taunting the black students and possibly threatening the black students. Some minor scuffles occurred on both sides, both on and off the school grounds.
  

• At one point, one white student is alleged to have shown a concealed firearm to a black student/group of black students (articles I've read disagree on the number).

• Possible escalation events between white and black students occur outside of school, at parties, and other non-school events around town. Most appear to have dealt with at the time in an appropriate way and in appropriate measures on both sides of the racial lines. I'm seeing variations and inconsistencies on which are related and which are not in the various sources I'm reading.

• A group of six black students, one 16 and the rest 17 years old, then cornered one white student, who may have been the one who showed the gun or may have just been part of the group of white students who sat under the tree, and beat him unconscious in what is most often termed a "school-yard fight."

• The six black students were arrested for attempted second degree murder and conspiracy to commit second-degree murder and the first was tried as an adult and found guilty by a jury of all white people. Unfortunately, that student was 16 at the time of the alleged assault and should (likely) not have been tried as an adult (in Louisiana the age of majority is 17, so only the other five should be tried as an adult unless it is deemed that the 16 year old should be tried as an adult as a special circumstance).

There are a lot of rumors of other behaviors and actions by both sides, but I cannot find more than one source for any of those. The above seem to be what the articles I've read agree on as the main facts of the case. What is most telling is how hard it is to find accurate information on the case; many traditional news sites have surprisingly little on the case and so many articles seem to disagree over the facts.

It seems like the white students were acting stupidly and probably should have been pulled aside by school authorities and given a stern talking to, for sure, but nothing I can see they did was more than threats and intimidation factors, with the possibility of some minor scuffles. The one child alleged to have carried a concealed weapon is the only one who has committed a true crime, and that depends on the LA carry/concealed laws, of course, but it is at best a misdemeanor that is punishable by a fine and some sort of community service and probation.

The black students, however, allowed themselves to be provoked to the point of beating a child unconscious. No matter their ages, this is a much more serious crime than those by the white students and is being charges in a more serious way. Now, I'm not certain that it rates "second degree murder and and conspiracy to commit second degree murder," but when you beat someone unconscious it should be a serious matter.

Why is the black leadership of this country purporting racial bias by the police in Jena, racist treatment by the courts, and a racist result by the jury?

The best I can tell is that the black leaders are wondering why, for what amounts to nothing more than a school-yard fight gone bad, these black kids are being sentenced to such a severe crime and being charged as adults. I'm not sure that you can claim racism in this, although it is a bit fishy. However, it seems like the police may have just wanted to stop any further violence before it started by coming down heavy on the first truly violent escalation in this ongoing disagreement between these groups of students. All the other alleged events were minor skirmishes, taunts, and intimidation on both sides. This was a serious beating by a group against an individual.

Also, some news reports indicate that the white public defender for the first black child charged in this crime did not call any witnesses in the defense of the child and did a crappy job of defending the boy. His are the only actions that strike me as possibly racist; however, he could also be an idiot, or he may have felt that the evidence against his client was overwhelming and he wanted his client to plead guilty to a lesser crime and didn't do the best job he could when the child did not take his advice. He could have been under pressure from his superiors in the law firm  (including, but not limited to, racism on their part). Also, why didn't he fight harder for a jury that was not all-white?

Also, why did this case take so long to reach the mainstream news? Why were so few newspapers, blog news sites, and TV news reporting on this until the black leadership got involved and started alleging racism?

There are a lot of troubling aspects to this case, but I am not certain that any or all of them can be attributed to racism in America. Poor decisions, stupidity, and ignorance seem like just as likely culprits to me. It is a case I am trying to keep my eye on, though. It will be interesting to see how it plays out over the coming weeks.