Thursday, September 20, 2007
Gov Candidates stay mum on Jena
Again from the
DP, we learn of this AP news report on the
President's reaction to the events in Jena:
He told reporters at the White House today that the events in Jena (JEE'-nuh) have "saddened" him. He says he can "understand the emotions."
Bush also says the FBI is monitoring the situation, and that everyone in America wants to see "fairness when it comes to justice."
Have any of the major Gubernatorial candidates publicly said as much about Jena? The President has commented, but what do Jindal, Boasso, Foster, Georges... etc think? And why have they not expressed themselves thus far?
Senator Mary Landrieu has
called for "reconcilation and clarity", as well as a review by the Dept. of Justice. I guess that's something.
Governor Blanco made a lame
statement deploring "racism in any form" in a press release, and saying she doesn't have authority to do much other than tell AG Charles Foti to keep an eye on it. By the way, have you seen Blanco's scintillating
blog?
(It's the best blog by a Louisiana "Blanco", but that's not saying much.)
Senator Vitter is
too busy acting busy to concern himself with matters relating to Jena-- unless they involve blocking Indian casinos to suit Jack Abramoff's treasured
clients.
Labels: "Race", Boasso, crime, Jindal, Mary Landrieu, Queen Bee, Vitty-cent
12 Comments:
Maybe it's time to bring civil rights back to the forefront of American politics, then again, maybe not.
However, I have close ties to Jena and know folks who personally know the Jena 6. These are not poster-boys for civil rights. They're a bunch of thugs that are headed for prison.
Plus, the media hasn't done us any favors on this story. Most of what you read is either fable or falsehood. Probably the most unbiased, factual background can be found at the Alexandria Town Talk at http://www.thetowntalk.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070920/NEWS01/709200327/1002
That's not to say that racism isn't a problem. We're all racist to some degree and knowing that helps us deal with it, talk about it, and hopefully learn from it. However, the Jena 6 aren't viable subjects for a number of very good reasons.
Here's why what's happened in Jena qualifies as racism and demands opposition.
This is a classic example of the power of the state being brought to bear in a racially biased and massively overreaching manner against one party in what is essentially a schoolyard brawl.
Granted, it's a particularly nasty schoolyard brawl that took place under very nasty circumstances but it's certainly nothing that warrants an attempted murder charge against a 16 year old.
The obvious need to enforce school conduct is another matter entirely.
It doesn't change the fact that you have a criminal prosecution being employed as a tool of intimidation in an already ugly racial dispute. That is textbook racism.
It is unfortunate that our current and aspiring political leaders are too cowardly to speak out against it.
But what really burns me about this "fact sheet" are the following facts:
Jena High School officials ban "Free the Jena Six" T-shirts.
Way to go, douchebags. Blame the shirts!
and
Jena High School reopens four days after the fire, with classes held in the undamaged wing of the school, library, band room and the home economics cottage.
"Home economics"? What freaking century is this?
Louisiana abounds with racism...I have pictures of a fight where the sidewalk is covered with blood....a group of White boys attacked this White guy who happens to live with this interracial family--the man is black and his wife is white, kids are bi-racial, black and white--talk about blended...I called the cops to inform them that they were fighting....Later that night these same four white guys showed up in a different vehicle (a car instead of the truck they were driving earlier) tried to hurt my dog who was on her tie down leash and then one jumped out the car and accosted me.....I plan to keep racism and the rest of Louisiana's blight in the forefront of Congress and your Senators can tell you that I will....I didn't mail over 5,000 letters to Congress for my health.....Feeling the white "thugs" would show up again I stepped outside just in time or the guy could have easily wrapped the tie down cord around my dog's thoat and strangled her.....I grabbed my phone and told them I was calling the police again and that I would press harassment charges on them....Knowing this they took off so fast before I could get their license plate of the car....But they had already been questtioned by the police earlier that day so they knew who they were and yes I did go to the police department and tell next time charges will be pressed.....Louisiana has deep pockets of racism and as a black single mother with a bi-racial son and a mother who is college educated with 2.5 degrees and an ARmy veteran with 8 years active duty military service I ain't going to stand for it because I have live outside this state and I have seen much better and Louisiana had better be ready to change--like it or not....You can't violate civil rights and at the same time hold your f'ing hands out for the Federal government's money and I plan to let Congress be aware of just the case.....I do have pics to send Congress of what went on unlike the Jenna Six.....
i know people who know people who know the guy that was hit by the jena six. this guy is no poster boy for southern gentlemen. he was headed to get his ass kicked. couldn't tie a noose to save his life. his beard is all splotchy when he grows it for the civil war reenactments, and i think he drinks Canadian whiskey. he deserved what he got.
paw paw, the romans thought Jesus was a thug.
Mark C.'s comment is an example of why I can't join the chorus on this one, unless he was making a joke I didn't get. Believe me, I'd love to, for two reasons. One, I know that Sharon's right about racism in Louisiana. Two, I'm a white who calls a black mayor a crook -- at least one commenter has called me a racist.
But, it was a high school kid who got beaten up, and now I'm hearing about some drunk, bearded, red-neck civil war reenacter. I know that injustice is being done when a tennis shoe is called a weapon, but I get the feeling that we're hearing a lot of bs. I don't understand the need for the exaggeration. Or, maybe it was necessary to get attention, but I don't like being lied to.
Not calling Mark C. a liar, saying that the "Sounder" stories so exaggerated as to border on lies.
Actually, it looks like the original accounts of Justin Barker's beating were somewhat exaggerated, but I get the impression that most of the racism deniers who think the protesters are ignoring the original crime are no quicker to believe what they want to believe than the people on the other side. I haven't heard any effort to reconcile the conflicting reports, other than he went to a ring ceremony.
I was at the protest in Jena today.
Check out
wecouldbefamous.blogspot.com
for a couple of pics and the story of the mobilization.
i was making a bad joke, sorry. i'll keep quiet.
bayoustjohndavid,
I don't think the DA ever intended to go forward with attempted murder charges; he was just using the charge to charge them as adults. Once he had them in an adult criminal proceeding, he quickly dropped down to aggravated second-degree battery. This is the strategy frowned upon by the Third Circuit.
As for calling their tennis shoes "deadly weapons," their's actually case law that backs him up on that. The Second Circuit ruled in a very similar case in the mid-1980's that tennis shoes can be considered deadly weapons for purposes of an aggravated battery conviction. It wasn't a novel idea; really, virtually *anything* can and has been considered a deadly weapon. An "aggravated" charge is a given for anything outside of a fistfight.
As for Justin Barker, I know his injuries consisted of being knocked unconscious against the pavement, a concussion, a few cuts and bruises, and having his right eye was swollen shut from kicks to the head. It was hardly the worst beat-down ever, but it could have been worse.
There's no doubt the DA went after these kids with both barrels blazing to get adult convictions. That might have been justified with Mychal Bell given his priors, but it was probably overkill with the others (unless they have similar records).
My main point is that since most don't seem to care about the discrepancies in the reporting, I can only assume that I most people don't care about the facts.
"He (Bush) told reporters at the White House today that the events in Jena have "saddened" him."
Are we entirely sure he didn't think the guy said "Jenna" rather than "Jena"?
