Since first hearing and reading about the "Jena 6" incident over a month a half ago, it has always struck me as an open-and-shut case of racism, especially in terms of the operation of our criminal justice system. My first major source of information was the Internet and a couple of websites devoted to a defense of the six black teenagers charged in the case. It seemed incredible that they were initially charged with attempted second degree murder for a schoolyard fight. And the white students who had started everything by hanging nooses from the tree after a black student sat there, not to mention a couple other confrontations initiated by whites, got treated relatively leniently. I selected a YouTube video to show the class which gave a four-minute summation of the incident complete with flashbacks to the KKK and lynchings, Rosa Parks, and Dr. King marching to reinforce the seriousness of the civil rights issues involved. But after seeing this video a few more times and some class discussion about it, I began to question some aspects of it and wondered how objective it had been and whether this was indeed such an open-and-shut case of racism in our criminal justice system.
On Thursday evening (9/20/07), CNN aired a one-hour special entitled, "Judgment at Jena," which reviewed the facts of the case as well as interview the black student who first sat under the tree, the parents of some of the defendants, a couple of white residents and students (although the interviewer acknowledged the difficulty of getting whites to talk about the case), and some of the thousands of protestors who had gathered in Jena. Although I will be the first to admit that TV specials on such incidents often leave much to be desired, and this one left me with some questions, I appreciated the balance and learning more about the case which made me feel a bit manipulated by the YouTube video.
A couple points stand out. First, I learned that one of the defendants, Mychal Bell, had two prior convictions for battery. Whether he was provoked or not by the white student Justin Barker, this record seems to suggest that he had a problem controlling his temper, and given that record the district attorney was somewhat justified charging him with a stiffer offense. Second, the injuries to Justin Barker were apparently more serious, and he was kicked even after he was unconscious. The initial charge was still inappropriate, I believe, but I don't know if I would characterize the incident as a mere schoolyard fight.
I had to agree with the black federal prosecutor who refused to press hate crime charges against the three white students who hung the nooses. It did not seem warranted. And I believe he made the single most insightful comment in the whole program. Near the end, he observed that perhaps the biggest failure in all this was the failure of school officials to use the noose hanging as an educational moment -- to involve black and white students and parents in a dialogue about race and prejudice and to underscore how serious this symbol of nooses hanging was. Rather, they chose to let things slide and merely suspended the white students and let then let the animosity fester on both sides of the racial divide until it exploded in acts of violence.
The few whites who were interviewed generally denied that Jena, Louisiana was a racist place. They also seemed to suggest that there was more integration than was apparent given the fact that for the most part blacks lived on the "other side of the tracks" from whites and they did not seem to mix socially. I believe these few whites fit the description Dr. Bonilla-Silva (blog post #2) gave of whites' attitude toward race these days.
Finally, the lesson I would draw from my reflections above is that when it comes to improving race and ethnic relations and eliminating the last vestiges of racism from our society, we need to approach such incidents with candor and objectivity and not fall into the trap of just picking sides and naively believing that truth and justice is all on one side or the other.
For 3 activity points, I want you to compose and post two paragraphs on the "Jena 6" which should include some comment or criticism on my reflections, as well as stating what you believe is an important lesson to be drawn from this case. You are welcome to refer to other classmates' comments, but be sure that you connect with some aspect of what I have posted above. Also, be sensitive to grammar and clarity of expression. Don't just post some incoherent, stream-of-consciousness blurb. The deadline for this is a week from this Friday, which would be Friday, October 5th.
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27 comments:
I feel that this case is certainly more than just an open and shut case, specifically after learning of the finer details related to this incident. I will say first that I think that this issue has been made into something bigger than it actually is, but I am not saying that is bad thing. I think as a country, we needed an incident like the Jena 6 to uncover what so many people have been trying to shield out of their lives for so long now. I believe that since the civil rights movement the country has attempted to brush off the past 200 years or so of racism and segregation to make the reputation of America shine brighter. The problem here now is that this incident has sparked the fire and the flames are roaring now. Considering how heated this case has become I think it is fair to say that the case may never be shut and if it should be it would be a long time from now.
What I think we, as Americans need to take from this incident is that racism is still very much alive and that instead of covering the issue up, we must face it and endure the animosity. To me, it seems as if we need a handful of strong leaders to make it a real point to address this issue and work towards creating political agendas around racism. I think that the Jena 6 came at a good time considering we have an election rolling around the corner. I feel candidates need to address Jena and assess what can be done and let the issue become a part of their platforms. There is no ‘quick fix’ here but the Jena 6 has certainly stirred up some opinions, so we need learn from what has happened here and utilize the right people to begin the solution.
Watching the YouTube video in class was the first time I had heard about the Jena 6. Just as many students thought this would be an open-and-shut case, I also thought this. I was convinced that the school board, DA, and judges were completely out of line in their sentencing of Mychal Bell and his five peers. However, now that more details of the case are unfolding, such as Mychal’s two previous battery charges and the severity of Justin Barker’s injuries, there seem to be a more reasonable explanation of the sentencing.
As far as the black federal prosecutor refusing to press hate crime charges against the three white students who hung nooses, I believe they should have been charged. Pressing charges on these three young men is very justified in my opinion. They are old enough to know what is right and what is wrong, and their actions were completely wrong. But, I also agree with Professor Ginocchio that this “failure” should have been turned into a positive educational moment to explain why this is hurtful to others and the meaning behind it. “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance -- it is the illusion of knowledge.” Just as Daniel Boorstin’s quote explains, many people are not open to change or discovery because they believe they know it all, not because they are ignorant. This is where education and instruction of the past and the present should be implemented. Only with education can we grow as a town, as a state, or as a nation and accept and embrace everyone’s differences, whether racially or not.
The first time that I had heard of the Jena 6 case was from the YouTube video in class that day. When I watched it I was astonished at the outwardly racist actions of the white citizens of Jena. I couldn't believe how the administration of the high school downplayed the events and how the judicial system heightened the punishments of the defendants seemingly because they were black. However after reading your points, I realize that there are underlying factors that were not described in the short YouTube clip. Although I still do not think the charges against the defendants are entirely appropriate, these new points make them seem less unrightfully accused. With some important points left out in this video, I wonder what, if any other points were left out in other demonstrative reports.
Learning of the defendant, Mychal Bell’s, two prior charges for battery changes my opinion of the charges he received for beating up his provoker, Justin Barker. Before I thought that he was a victim of a racist judge, but now I realize that he probably deserved the ruling considering his past record. In addition, learning of the severity of the injuries of Justin Barker also changes my thoughts. The YouTube video made it seem like his injuries were very minor, whereas in reality he was knocked unconscious. Although the white citizens of Jena that were interviewed said they did not believe Jena to be a racist town; that does not sway my opinion much farther. They probably contribute, subconsciously if not consciously, to the racial divide. However, the whites are not the only ones to blame as some blacks may still aid the lingering racisms as well. With so many opinions involved and the racial tension, this will not just be an “open-and-shut case.” No matter the conclusion there will always been an unhappy party that may attempt to reopen the case later.
The first time I had heard about the case of the Jena 6 was when we were shown the you tube video in class one day. After i had watched the video i was distraught and speechless. However, I was not surprized. Race is a huge part and influence in our society whether we want it to be or not. At firsr I saw the Jena 6 case just as another instance of people hating others just because of the color of their skin. When i saw it once again on TV I realized how big the case had gotten. I thought it was great for the general public to finally get to know what was happening in Jena, Louisiana. I will note that as i followed the case on TV as well as reading what Dr. G. had to say, my attitudes have changed a little. It was not as cut and dry as I thought. I did know of the prior arrests of one of the defendants as well as of the kicking of the boy when he was unconscious on the ground. After hearing this commentary I believe both sides are to blame and also the school is for not using the nousses hanging from the trees as a time to talk to the students about the racist actions, instead of merely suspending them and fueling the fire in a sense. However the case ends up going, I just hope that justice is served and that people will learn that certain actions are not acceptable in our society and that race is not a valid reason to perform them.
Watching the youtube.com version of Jena 6 was the first I had heard of this incident. Now that I have heard more information, I feel like the youtube.com was pretty misleading. But the fact of the matter is that these individuals were wrong in what they have done and deserve proper punishment, all of them. The school should have taken more action in the situation to try to stop it before something serious happend. Thats in the past now though, everyone in that town, and the world, should take this incident and learn from it.
Jena 6 is a great example of how big of a factor of race still exists today. Everyone, blacks, whites, reds, yellows, purples, everyone, judges people based on the color of their skin before they even know the person. We all have our own opinion about the differents races and why people act and think the way they do. What it comes down to is one thing. We created race and we are the only ones who can destroy it.
The youtube video on Jena 6 was an effective tool in gaining support for the Jena 6, but the truth behind it does seem to be blurred if favor of winning support. In today's media-driven society, it is often difficult to discern the true nature of events as the truth too often becomes hidden behind catchy graphics, music, and shocking images. As Dr. G said, after applying some discernment to the video, certain key issues seem to arise. The strong bias of the video played more to the viewers emotional reaction to the history of racism in America, than to the viewers mental capacity to weigh the facts and make a well founded opinion on the case.
The previous convictions against Mychal Bell certainly deplete the credibility of the video in my mind, where he was depicted more as an innocent victim to the cycle of racism than a hot-tempered teenager. If my memory is also correct, the video also did not mention that the prosecutor who did not press hate crime charges was black. Maybe I was victim to the slant of the film, but this omission leads the viewer to assume the prosecutor was white and this town was based on white-black politics. It is also to see the relation between the Federal Housing Act we've been discussing and the association that the whites interviewed made to this by saying that the blacks lived "on the wrong side of the tracks." Who are they to decide which side of the tracks is wrong?
After having time to reflect, the movie on Youtube seemed to clearly be biased in their filming. They tried to make it out to be that all the black students were victims and that this should be a clear case of racism. I don't think that anything is really every clear cut. There are always two sides to a story and the youtube feed definitely only showed one side of the story. They did not interview or show anything about the white students that were involved. As a society we need to try to go into things with an objective opinion and not let our emotions of one side sway our judgement.
I agree that the school needed to do a better job of handeling the situation. When the students hung the nooses from the tree, that would have been a great opportunity to have a serious discussion on racism and things that fall along those lines instead of just suspending them and letting things get heated from there. Things like learning about one of the students two battery charges do change some things in my opinion. This means that a person has a history of violent mannerisms and needs a stiffer punishment. Now I don't totally buy the comment of the white students saying how there really is not racism in their town. It seems to me that they are just saying that because thats what everyone wants them to say. Racism is definitely evident in this community and officials need to step up in order to make some changes about that.
Just a quick comment in response to Emily's observations. The black federal prosecutor I refer to is not the local district attorney or prosecutor who brought the charges. The local DA is white. Also, whites did not use the phrase "other side of the tracks" to refer to where blacks in Jena lived. That was my way of characterizing the housing situation based on the CNN reporter's description.
Using the noose hanging as an educational moment would have been an effective way of addressing and attempting to deconstruct the race issues in the area. The choice to act blind to signals of mounting racial clashes amongst Jena’s youth was undoubtedly a significant factor in the outcome, we, as a class, and members of the general public, find ourselves dealing with. However, just as there exist people refusing, on a daily basis, to acknowledge the existence and issue of race, there also exist those afraid of being labeled as racists if they choose to “side” against the black teens. It was wrong and foolish for the education officials to coldly sidestep the issue of race, but we should not let indignation to allow us then to ignore the point of view against Bell and the other members of the “six.” I think an important lesson for us not directly associated with the case is that the issue is not just about black against white sympathies or vice versa; compassion for the unfair charges against the black teens should not allow us to ignore Bell’s past convictions.
Yes both groups have suffered some degree of violence, but they have also inflicted violence. It shouldn’t simply be a matter of picking a “side” when the support stems from racial affiliation and not what is just. Yes, race is definitely a significant contributing factor to the Jena issue, but the solution does not lie in simply meting out punishment, or pointing fingers and assigning blame, or realizing who has had the deeper grievance set against them. The issue is also not a simple matter of crossing a definitive line from white to black. Wanting a clear cut decision of who’s “in the wrong” should not make us insensitive to biases, nor should it outweigh the value of attacking the racial issues themselves.
Although there is a great deal of suffering, the Buddha says, one should not be gloomy, angry or impatient at it because it does not remove it. In fact, it adds more to one’s troubles. So what is necessary is not anger or impatience, but the understanding of the question of suffering, how it comes about, and how to get rid of it, and then to work accordingly with patience, intelligence, determination and energy to eliminate it. This Buddhist concept can easily be applied to the race and ethnic tensions that are present today. In terms of the Jena 6 incident, I agree with Dr. Ginocchio that “we need to approach such incidents with candor and objectivity.” If we don’t, we may create even more hatred or ‘repugnance,’ a principal evil in life according to Buddhism. Repugnance is explained as ‘ill-will with regard to living beings,’ its primary function is to produce a basis for unhappy states and bad conduct. One must avoid being sucked into this whirlwind of hatred and contempt. The YouTube video was designed to arouse a type or repugnance or hatred and therefore it is only vital that one is careful and cautious when s/he is presented with any type of information.
As for the black federal prosecutor who refused to press hate crime charges against the three white students who hung the nooses. I believe that they should have endured a harsher punishment because anyone that participates in an act that promotes hatred, enmity, disunity and disharmony among individuals or groups of people violates a basic ethical code of conduct. Hence, the chances of a happy and harmonious life for both the individual and society are disrupted.
I knew that there had to be some other information that the first interview did not reflect. It just seemed like there were a fair number of gaps in certain places, like Dr. G. pointed out. And as my family, the black family, pointed out, it was very odd that the interviewer was in the city, focusing on such a hot topic situation and didn’t even get a local resident to comment on the situation. I’m glad CNN cleared some things up.
As far as what lessons could be learned from all of this and what should have happened, I think CNN, Dr. G, and the Southern Poverty Law Center all make good points when they talk about opening a dialog instead of downplaying the situation as “a prank” or whatever. I agree that a simple meeting to air grievances or raise public awareness of the bias could have at least calmed some of the seemingly growing tensions around the issue. I think the Southern Poverty Law Center would agree with me in saying that the school should have recognized that the tensions were very serious on both sides. It still shocks me that the only school meeting about the situation was to almost threaten the black students when it seems to be the white students and their tensions with the black students that brought much of this up. The red flag should have been thrown and a meeting held, addressing both groups about the issue, at the very first signs of trouble. I believe this was when the black student felt the need to ask to sit under the tree. But the fact that flags were not raised swiftly after the noose incident shows me that the high school was missing key signals of danger way before it got too far out of hand.
I was also able to watch pieces of this documentary on CNN. It was very insightful and provided a lot more information that most media. I am always interested in finding out both sides of the story. The media through which I had previously been receiveing information was to some extent one sided, but also provided hard facts. I enjoyed reading Patterson's article because it provided very eye opening facts about Black America. I do believe we should take action against the injustices against blacks in the legal system, but I also beieve that we should do all we can to decrease the number of blacks that have to be processed by the legal system. Patterson hit the nail on the head when identifying, single parent homes and lack of discipline in black homes as a prime culprit for the high prison rates among black males.
Back to Jena, I often wondered why these events were able to reach the manitude that they did. Why did people have to come from across the country to do the work that a few determined locals could have accomplished? I often asked myself this question. Who was at fault? Were the parents of the black community at fault or were the local black leaders in Jena at fault? I did read somewhere that the parents of the black students attended several school board meetings, but were never given the opportunity to speak and voice their concerns. With this in mind, I cannot get past the idea that maybe the members of the Jena community could have been as effective as the 70,000 protesters who visited the town for a day.
As I read this critique of the Jena 6 situation, the deeper problem of institutionalized, socialized, and naturalized racism stuck out in my mind. Racism cannot be erased until the roots of racism are erased. Hammond captures this dilemma with his statement: “Race is a human invention. We made it, we should be able to unmake it.” The school should have turned the situation into an open discussion about race and racial relations in Jena, Louisiana. Despite the denial by Jena residents that racism exists in this region, it clearly played a role in this case. How big of a role may still be up in the air, but race motivated both the white kids and the black kids to act out against each other. I recently heard that the “white tree” in the schoolyard has been cut down. Just chopping down or covering up a problem is not a step in the right direction. This action just fuels the naïve notion that today’s society is colorblind.
Secondly, I agree with the above blog comments that recognize media as a major source of confusion regarding the actual facts and sequence of events in Jena. Now that this case has become highly politically and racially charged, the outcome is going to hold immense weight for future cases and for our current system of values. When this story was first brought to my attention in the news, the reporter left out the detail that Mychal Bell already had several charges against him. His initial punishment was undoubtedly too extreme, but the misrepresentation of fact created huge ripples of anger, that could have been better informed. It would be very beneficial to see a complete breakdown of the events day-by-day with interviews from both sides, because I fear that we are missing part of the story or have exaggerated other parts.
I had heard of the Jena 6 incident a littile while before we watched the YouTube video in class, but the information I would hear would be from someone trying to garner support for the cause so it was pretty much biased. I was lead to believe that it was completely unjust for the severity of the sentencing. The injuries of Justin Barker were downplayed. I had no idea he was beaten unconscious and afterwards.
Once I began hearing news that wasn't skewed I began to retract my belief of it being just an open and shut case. Mychal Bell's record proved to me that he wasn't judged only by his race in this matter, although I do not agree with the severity of his charge. I agree with the prosecutor by not charging the three white students with hate crimes. I do not believe they would act out any crime of such but it was meant to be a joke. They should have been suspended and the school should have some type of orientation dealing with the incident instead of letting it go by the wayside, which had a hand in building up animosity amongst the black students seeing that it wasn't handled seriously. I agree with Alex, the actual situation was not as big as it seemed but it is good that it has been done. Now people can see that when people continue to believe racism and race is no big deal and turn a blind eye to it, there can be serious repercussions. Ignorance only prolongs the issue.
I believe that there is a lot more to this case than we will ever understand as outsiders. This case is being magnified and is turning into somewhat of a spectacle. At first nost people around the country virwed this strictly as a case of racism and how Blacks wer ebeing mistreated but of course now the records of the Black children involved is coming into wquestion as it so frequently does in situations like these. Yes, the one boy who has been charged with battery twice before has a temper but in a situation such as this one I can not really blame him for his actions. I am not saying that they should go unpunished but the justice seems to be being administered unfairly. The Jena 6 should be punished but this jail time can increase the tensions in that area and instead of improving realtions it could worsen them.
Finally I think the Jena 6 can be used as an example to show the rest of the country what happens when you try to sweep tensions under the carpet. I agree with Profeesor Ginnochio that if there had been an open dialogue then this might not have escalated to this point. Racism is still prevsalent today whether we want to acknowlege it or not, but I am just not so sure that this is a case of racism. Everything spiraled out of control with no one trying to stop it.The most important thing that we can do is learn from what happened and try to make sure an incident like this one doesn"t happen again. This could have been stopped much earlier but it was ignored and now 6 young boys will pay the consequences.
There is no such thing as "simply black and white" when it comes to the law. This became clear once the little details related to the Jena 6 case became known. The United States has tried to get rid of the idea that racism still exists here because of it's past and the fight against racism. However, racism still exists today. I have friends and they are not racists, they are generally "good" people, but they also clench their purses a little tighter sometimes in the mall when they see a group of African American men walking through and "being loud and obnoxious" like they described it. I would not consider them to be racist, but their fear has to come from something, and in this case, they were actually robbed by a group of African American men several years before. That is not to say that this case was not drawn up to be a bigger issue then what it started as, becuase it was.
The Jena 6 situation andcases have proven that racism still exists today and that the American people first must be able to admit it to themselves in order to solve the problem. If they refuse to acknowledge that it still exists, they can never allow it to go away. I feel that the issue of racism be discussed in classrooms, from 8th grade to college, and that the current politicians (especially the ones running for office) address the issue of racism and specifically the Jena 6. We cannot rewind time, and we certainly cannot wave around a magic wand or snap our fingers to make racism or the current issue (Jena 6) disappear, but we can start educating people from the beginning to help get rid of this, from both a racist and a criminal perspective.
Thanks! Reem M. Talebagha
I think that the atmosphere in most of America these days is that racism is something that happened in the past. People don't realize that it is still going on, and that acting like it isn't is not going to make it go away. Using the noose as an educational tool would have perhaps opened people's eyes to an ongoing issue, and perhaps motivated more education about ongoing racism, which would help prevent more incidents like this from happening.
I think the main thing we need to take from this case is to not jump to conclusions. In regards to the Jena case, this means not taking everything we hear about it to be truth. there are many points of view and endless speculation about the case, but none of us but those involved actually know what happened. The truth needs to be told, but we need to be careful about taking things that aren't factual as truth.
I was aware of the Jena 6 case before we talked about it in class. And like many others, my first thought was that all the events that took place were racially motivated. The YouTube video just convinced me further of the black and white divisions of the case. It wasn't until I did more research into it (internet searches and the Jena 6 night special) that I found the case couldn't completely be considered a racist act. Like others have stated previously, the harm done to Justin Barker was pretty severe. I do feel, however, that the three white boys who hung the nooses weren't properly punished for their actions. It's because we let things like that slide that it continues to happen all the time. Because of all the media coverage on this particular hate crime, the news is swarming with stories about recent acts of racism. Just today, CNN covered a story about a young boy that attends the Model Secondary School for the Deaf, who was held down against his will while 6 other boys (5 white and 1 black) drew KKK all over his body. The president of the school is telling authorities that it started off as "horseplay". Something like that will probably go unpunished simply because everyone thinks it's a joke. I think that's a problem. You can't joke about things like that. One girl at the University of Louisiana-Monroe thought it would be funny to make a video re-enactment of the Jena 6 incident. She videotaped some of her friends jokingly beating up someone, while others ran around with nooses. Now, she aplogizes and is completely embarassed. She should be. The president of that university took that opportunity to use such an incident as a learning experience. I completely agree with the words of Ma'ya Blount, a ULM junior:
"Racism doesn't get resolved when people hush up about it and sweep it under the rug. It only gets resolved when we talk about it in an educated manner ... As long as we continue to do this, maybe 10, 20 years from now, race won't be so much of an issue. We need to talk about it in a positive manner. We can only learn from this."
I too, just as Tye had mentioned, first heard about the Jena case when we watched the Youtube video in class. I also believed at first, as did Dr.G., that this was a clear case of racism. To me it seemed like just a series of hate crimes with most of the blame falling on one side. I also had no prior knowledge of the former charges against Mychal Bell, but after hearing about this bit of information it made me call into question just how much I believed what I first heard about the case. I also was not aware of the seriousness of Justin Barker’s injuries, I had just assumed that the injuries he had sustained were of equal seriousness as the previous fight. I will not lie, I did not get a chance to watch the “Judgment at Jena” on CNN, but I did hear a little about the content of the program the next day. I can no longer say that I place all the blame on the racist beliefs of the government in Louisiana, but rather I will say that neither side plays the role of the victim or the bully because it seems that in a way both sides are to blame for this incident.
I have to agree with both the black federal prosecutor and Dr.G. in that the biggest failure was in not addressing the hanging of the nooses when it first happened and discussing what was becoming of them as moral human beings. Instead of nipping this thing in the butt, it was allowed to simmer and wait for things to boil over in violence. I firmly believe that this issue could have been avoided had maybe the school board not have been so slack and put their foot down. The board should have taken the time to convey to the students, faculty and residents of Jena just what they have become. They had become a nasty product of their own subtle/hidden views and prejudices. Both sides were not acting as moral human beings, but as a lackadaisical horde (if I may be so bold). I just seemed to me that neither side wanted to reconcile what was happening. I think the take home message from this incident is that we, as a human race, should be more conscious about what the real problem is about. This meaning that we should not focus on what someone said or did but what we, as a society, did to create this problem and ways to fix it.
The first time I heard of the Jena 6 was in class when we watched the YouTube video. At first I thought that it was an open-and-shut case seeing that all I knew about the case was that whites discriminated against the blacks. After reading about the finer points of the case such as the other battery charges, I now believe that the case is not open-and-shut. The intensity of the sentencing makes a little more since now that I have learned new information. Yet, I believe that the case may have been blown out of proportion in a good way and the details revealed to the public were not as accurate leading the public to believe that the reason for the sentencing was just based upon the discrimination of blacks.
The first thing that I learned from the Jena 6 is to do more research on the topic before forming my own opinions about the actions that need to be taken. However, I believe that an important lesson is that Americans keep trying to hide racism in their own towns. These problems need to be moved out into the open so that they can be dealt with immediately. The sooner these things happen, the sooner we can forget about the different races and live as a whole country and world united together as one.
he first time I heard about the Jena six case was when we watched the Youtube video in class. I was immediately struck by how terrible the situation was down in Louisiana, but there was a nagging feeling inside me that felt like we were not getting all the facts. I was extremely interested in finding out the whole story so the second I got back from sociology class that day, I googled more information on the case. The more I read the more I realized we got a slightly biased view of the situation down in Jena by the video.
Still, I believe there was a definite problem in the way the school handled this case, and I also find it sad that there is still such blunt racism in this country. It is even sadder to me that it was in the south because I feel like there is such a stereotype that all southerners are racists. Now I bet the rest of the country is still going to see us as uneducated racists
This case is obviously not as open and shut as I thought when we first watched the YouTube video. I agree that Bell's previous record is an important factor in the severity of his sentencing. Although it seems ridiculous for him and the others to be charged with second degree attempted murder he definitely should not bet getting off scot-free.
I think that the school officials should have recognized the significance of the noose incident when it happened. I'm not positive that even with the school addressing the issue all the tension would have dissipated but it surely would not have hurt for them to try.
I think that the Jena 6 shows that racism is still very much evident despite many of our attempts to deny this. After watching the You Tube video and reading both articles, the case still upsets me by the way things were handled. The idea that nooses hanging from a tree can be looked at as a "childish prank" is not rational to me and makes me very skeptical of the school board and its superintedent. There were obvious signals leading up to this situation that if handled correctly would not have let the situtation become out of control.
I also think that its interesting that most people were not aware that Jena was a racist area. It seems Jena was a situation in which subtle racism snowballed into outward racism within the community. If anything I believe all communities should take this example and re-evaluate their own community.
After learning more on the Jena 6 incident, it became more clear that the YouTube video, while representing truthful information on the background of the Jena 6 incident, was still misleading in its presentation, and it is obviously a tool in order to gain support for six black students. There are several things about the Jena 6 that I do not agree with. While I agree that Mychal Bell’s prior behavior warrants a higher sentence from the judge, charging him with second degree murder for a school fight is a bit harsh. In addition, I agree with the federal prosecutor’s decision to not charge the white students with a hate crime. But they should have received either stiffer punishment from the school system or at least some knowledge on the meaning of hanging a noose.
It is obvious that race still plagues our nation. The Jena 6 case is not only a problem occurring in Louisiana, but throughout the country. For this reason I believe it makes since to make an example out of this situation as a means of exposing racism in our justice system. Hopefully, more exposure of these controversial cases will serve to diminish the level of racial bias in our court systems and society in general.
When first watching the YouTube video in class, I thought that the Jena 6 case was an open and shut case. However, after hearing further details of all the incidents, I can clearly see why the issue has been drawn on so long. I do not think that anyone is incorrect for feeling that some of these charges placed on the Jena 6 are completely inappropriate. When Mychal Bell's sentenced is mentioned, people fail to leave out his previous convictions; it is right for him to get a harsher sentence than the rest because he does have a history. I don't necessarily think it should be as severe as it is. It is no doubt obvious that what the Jena 6 did was wrong, but it is also obvious that there is a fine line in deciding what is to be rightfully done.
In the case of the white students that initially began the chain of actions by hanging the nooses, I think they should have been punished more severely. I agree with many others when they say that the simple punishment they received only allows for people to continue these acts. If you don't get punished correctly for something, you will do it again. With that being said, I agree with Daniella and have to go against Professor Ginocchio: I think that it would have been right to charge the students with a hate crime. It isn't anything that can be changed, so we should try to learn from the mistakes. I think the Jena 6 should be a lesson learned for all; it allows America to see how prevalent racism is still within our society. We can only hope that this incident serves as a building block for America to try to correct this.
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