Jena 6

This is some background on the Jena 6 story which I have been following but haven't written about until now. These stories are so painful when they surface but so crucial for us to move through the chasm to the new reality. Racism still exists in America. We all know that. But do we know to what degree it does? If you are white like I am- do you really, truly know that it still exists? The Light is shining on many areas where we need to see TRUTH and need to realize the work that needs to be done. Don't just SEE it. Take action and speak up in whatever form you feel called to. What's most startling to me is in this day and age of internet technology that here we are a year later hearing about this because of activists and bloggers. Keep that in mind as we wade the Emergence waters folks. Good media true journalistic sources are BBC, Democracy Now and FreeSpeechTV.

This from www.whileseated.org

In September 2006, a group of African American high school students in Jena, Louisiana, asked the school for permission to sit beneath a "whites only" shade tree. There was an unwritten rule that blacks couldn't sit beneath the tree. The school said they didn't care where students sat. The next day, students arrived at school to see three nooses (in school colors) hanging from the tree. (Please note, the tree above is not the tree, but a tree at Jena High School.)

The boys who hung the nooses were suspended from school for a few days. The school administration chalked it up as a harmless prank, but Jena's black population didn't take it so lightly. Fights and unrest started breaking out at school. The District Attorney, Reed Walters, was called in to directly address black students at the school and told them all he could "end their life with a stroke of the pen."

Black students were assaulted at white parties. A white man drew a loaded rifle on three black teens at a local convenience store. (They wrestled it from him and ran away.) Someone tried to burn down the school, and on December 4th, a fight broke out that led to six black students being charged with attempted murder. To his word, the D.A. pushed for maximum charges, which carry sentences of eighty years. Four of the six are being tried as adults (ages 17 & 18) and two are juveniles.

Yesterday, I was in Jena for the first day of the trial for Mychal Bell, one of the Jena 6. The D.A., perhaps in response to public pressure, tried to get Bell to cop a plea. Bell refused, and today, jury selection began. After today, we'll know whether or not the case will be tried in front of an all-white jury. Jena's 85-percent white, and it remains to be seen whether or not the six can get a fair trial.

Both off-the-record and on, Jena residents told me racism is alive and well in Louisiana, and this is a case where it rose above the levee, so to speak.

In the next few days, I'll be posting a few photos from Jena that are related to the case, as well as linking to a multimedia piece I'm working on. CNN began reporting on the story today, following the lead of the BBC, who crafted an excellent hour-long documentary that can be found on P2P networks.

Update: Mychal Bell, the first of the Jena Six to face trial, was found guilty of aggravated second-degree battery and conspiracy to commit the same on June 28th. A comprehensive look at the case, the trial and the verdict was published on July 2nd at friendsofjustice. Plus, Democracy Now did a full story. To send a letter to Governor Blanco, please visit Color of Change.

Welcome, BoingBoing and Kottke readers. For more information about the Jena Six, please see this youtube video and the following links:

http://www.whileseated.org/photo/003244.shtml