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Indybay Feature
Hundreds March Against “Legal Lynching” Free the Jena 6
The “Jena 6” are six Black students who face the possibility of going to prison for many, many years because of a schoolyard fight. This story began on September 1, 2006 in the small town of Jena, Louisiana. A group of Black students sat under a “whites-only” tree in the schoolyard. Racist students responded immediately and the next day nooses were hanging from the tree for all to see.
The “Jena 6” are six Black students who face the possibility of going to prison for many, many years because of a schoolyard fight. This story began on September 1, 2006 in the small town of Jena, Louisiana. A group of Black students sat under a “whites-only” tree in the schoolyard. Racist students responded immediately and the next day nooses were hanging from the tree for all to see.
Tina Jones, the mother of Bryant Purvis who is one of the Jena 6, told Revolution what it was like hearing about the nooses hanging on the tree:
“I was like, what? [My son], myself and a lot of family members were really upset about that because to Black people that is offensive because you know over the years Black people were hung in trees. So I mean we felt like the white people were saying, ‘Well if you sit under this tree, we’re going to hang you.’ That’s how us as Black people felt, even though the white people said it was a prank. How could it be a prank when something like that was done to Black people over the years? And then they walk under this tree and then you hang nooses. And you know what that represents and that means to us -- if you go under this [tree] we’re going to hang you. I mean there’s no other way to look at that, and there’s nothing funny about that.”
Soon after the nooses were hung, most of the 93 Black students (out of a total student enrollment of 546) at Jena High School stood together under the tree, in a courageous act of protest. After this, a school assembly was called where a white district attorney told the Black students to keep their mouths shut about the nooses. He told them if he heard anything else about it, he “can make their lives go away with the stroke of his pen.”
When racist white students jumped a Black student, one white student got probation. But when a fight broke out that sent a white student to the hospital for an hour, the law came down on Mychal Bell, Robert Bailey, Theo Shaw, Carwin Jones, Bryant Purvis, and an unnamed minor--arresting these youth, who are now known as the Jena 6, and initially charging them with attempted murder. (see “Free the Jena Six! Jim Crow Injustice in Jena Louisiana,” Revolution #96).
Mychal Bell has already been convicted of second degree battery and conspiracy to commit second degree battery and could be sentenced to up to 22 years in prison. And the system is trying to make good on the threat to ruin the lives of the other five youth who still face serious charges. Many people still do not know about this tremendous outrage. But a nationwide struggle to free the Jena 6 is beginning to grow--and MUST get much bigger. The next court hearings for Mychal Bell and the rest of the Jena Six are scheduled to begin on September 4. Bell’s sentencing is scheduled for September 20.
“We Want the Entire World to Hear”
On July 31, some 300 people rallied in support of the Jena 6 at the courthouse where Mychal Bell was scheduled to be sentenced. People came from all over the country, including people from New Orleans fighting for justice in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. And a massive stack of petitions, which organizers said contained 43,000 signatures, was delivered to the Assistant District Attorney of Jena. On August 5, Al Sharpton spoke at a church in Jena. And while the story of the Jena 6 has been way downplayed in the mainstream media, these events helped get more national and international coverage.
Mychal Bell has now been sitting in jail since December 4 and was not able to graduate. His trial was a complete outrage, with the court-appointed lawyer not even calling any witnesses! Now, a group of lawyers from Monroe, Louisiana have come forward to take up Bell’s case. Bell’s new legal team says their goal is to overturn Bell’s conviction. Bob Noel, one of the lawyers now on the case, said they got involved not only because Bell came to them, but because it was the right thing to do. "The interest of justice cried out [for us] to get involved," Noel said.
The weekend before the July 31 scheduled sentencing of Mychal Bell, the “whites-only” tree in front of the high school was cut down. NPR reported that “Jena High School had the big shade tree in the courtyard chopped into firewood.” But the tree disappearing hasn’t in any way lessened people’s anger and their determination to spread the word about this case and build the struggle to free the Jena 6.
Talking about the significance of the July 31 rally, Caseptla Bailey, mother of one of the defendants, Robert Bailey, Jr., said, "This is a beautiful thing that I’m seeing here today— all types of browns, seeing all types of blacks, all types of whites. We love that, people coming together." And Khadijah Rashad, representing Lafayette’s Community Defender television show, said, "We must remember that the entire world is watching… When there is going to be sentencing again, we need to flood this area with as much people as we possibly can. We want the entire world to know” (thetowntalk.com).
Bell’s father, Marcus Jones, agreed: “Justice, that’s the main thing we want. He’s still in jail, and we want justice for him and the other boys. And now the whole world sees the wrong done to these boys.”
Bell’s mother, Melissa Bell, told The Town Talk (a paper in Alexandria, Louisiana) that the actions on July 31 should send a message to the community: “We are serious, and everyone is serious about freeing these kids.”
Confronting Reality in Jena and Beyond
School starts on August 17 and the school board is already setting a repressive tone and atmosphere. A “Resource Officer” from the La Salle Parish Sheriff's Department will be at Jena High School this year.
Meanwhile, an editorial in the local Jena Times, attacked the “outside” and “liberal” media for supposedly distorting the situation in Jena, saying, “The ‘racial unrest’ that has continually been reported simply does not exist here.” (“Outside Media has transformed Jena” 8-8-07) Things in Jena are very polarized—right now, there are very few, if any, white people who are even speaking out against the nooses on the trees or the unjust way the Jena 6 are being treated--let alone, taking a clear stand against white supremacy. And this reactionary editorial gave voice to those backward whites in Jena who continue to claim, “We’re good people. This is a good town”--which really amounts to defending the racist status quo.
In contrast to what anyone might declare about how nice a place Jena is, we’ve heard stories which show how the hanging of nooses on the tree at Jena High School and the violent enforcement of white supremacy afterwards is not an exception but is consistent with day-to-day reality in Jena. Black people say they cannot get their hair cut at the barber shop in Jena. Someone showed us photos of nooses that had been put on an offshore oil rig, laying about, and hung up in a bathroom--meant to intimidate Black workers. One parent told us that she overheard white people talking about how the “n*ggers“ who were relocated to Jena from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina “are worse than the n*ggers here in Jena.” This is the ugly history--and present reality--of not just Jena, Louisiana, but the USA.
At the same the whole struggle around the Jena 6 is shaking things up, forcing a lot of white people to think about the reality of relations between Black and white people in not only Jena, but this whole country. We walked in on a discussion going on among four Jena residents who were taking a break at the office where they work. One Black person was openly talking about how what was happening to the Jena 6 was outrageous—and bringing out the history of resistance and rebellion against racism and injustice, like the 1992 L.A. Rebellion. The white people were listening—one somewhat reluctantly, another with some interest nodded his head in agreement. A third said, “I don't think Jena's racist, it's not racist is it, do you think it is?” This shows how people fighting back and sharply polarizing things creates the basis for a realignment in society.
The significance and stakes of this struggle go far beyond Jena. Alan Bean, an attorney who works with the group Friends of Justice, recently wrote: “You probably won’t find 'white trees' and nooses in New York and Los Angeles—that’s a Southern thing. But you will find the same kind of racial profiling regime that insures that young black males are disproportionately watched, hassled and arrested by the police; and you will discover that the over-prosecution of young black males is just as rife in our coastal paradise as it is in our southern purgatory. That’s what Friends of Justice calls ‘the New Jim Crow’; and it ain’t just a Southern thing. Jena is America.”
Spreading Resistance
People need to seriously ask: Why are the school and local authorities, courts, and federal officials all working together to ruin the lives of these six Black youth? Is it because they got into a schoolyard brawl where another kid was (not very seriously) injured? Or is it because these youth and nearly every other Black student at the school went and stood under the “white only” tree in defiance of the openly racist threat of the nooses on the tree? In the eyes of the system of white supremacy, these students crossed the line, they “forgot their place,” and must be punished.
Black students at Jena High have been talking about what to do on August 17, when school begins. One idea they have been thinking about is all wearing “Free the Jena 6” t-shirts on that day. And as people across the country learn about what’s happening in Jena, many are outraged and feel compelled to act, to stand with the Jena 6. In Cambridge, Massachusetts the City Council passed a resolution, going “on record in support of the young men and their families in Jena in their pursuit of justice” and stating that “This frightening example of racism calls to mind an earlier time in the United States in which segregation and the ‘lynching’ of African-Americans was common practice.” Some people in New York City who have heard about the case have put a call out to others to help organize support for the Jena 6. On August 14, Al Sharpton is scheduled to return to Jena, along with Martin Luther King Jr. III, to voice support for the Jena 6 with a service at Antioch Baptist Church and a town hall meeting.
*****
People of conscience who know about the case of the Jena 6 cannot stand on the sidelines, which would amount to a form of complicity in this great injustice.
The struggle to free the Jena 6 must be spread far and wide. And a lot more people need to learn from the Black students at Jena High School who stood stood beneath the “whites only” tree and through their defiant action, said “NO MORE.”
Right away, and especially when Mychal Bell is scheduled to be sentenced on September 20, many, many more people should come to Jena and help build the movement to free the Jena 6. And there should be rallies in many other places as well. In small towns, cities and suburbs, in colleges and high schools, people of ALL nationalities should make it clear that we will NOT tolerate white supremacy in any form and demand that ALL the charges be dropped on the Jena 6.
Everyone must take a stand. Are you for or against everything represented by those nooses hanging on the tree?
Tina Jones, the mother of Bryant Purvis who is one of the Jena 6, told Revolution what it was like hearing about the nooses hanging on the tree:
“I was like, what? [My son], myself and a lot of family members were really upset about that because to Black people that is offensive because you know over the years Black people were hung in trees. So I mean we felt like the white people were saying, ‘Well if you sit under this tree, we’re going to hang you.’ That’s how us as Black people felt, even though the white people said it was a prank. How could it be a prank when something like that was done to Black people over the years? And then they walk under this tree and then you hang nooses. And you know what that represents and that means to us -- if you go under this [tree] we’re going to hang you. I mean there’s no other way to look at that, and there’s nothing funny about that.”
Soon after the nooses were hung, most of the 93 Black students (out of a total student enrollment of 546) at Jena High School stood together under the tree, in a courageous act of protest. After this, a school assembly was called where a white district attorney told the Black students to keep their mouths shut about the nooses. He told them if he heard anything else about it, he “can make their lives go away with the stroke of his pen.”
When racist white students jumped a Black student, one white student got probation. But when a fight broke out that sent a white student to the hospital for an hour, the law came down on Mychal Bell, Robert Bailey, Theo Shaw, Carwin Jones, Bryant Purvis, and an unnamed minor--arresting these youth, who are now known as the Jena 6, and initially charging them with attempted murder. (see “Free the Jena Six! Jim Crow Injustice in Jena Louisiana,” Revolution #96).
Mychal Bell has already been convicted of second degree battery and conspiracy to commit second degree battery and could be sentenced to up to 22 years in prison. And the system is trying to make good on the threat to ruin the lives of the other five youth who still face serious charges. Many people still do not know about this tremendous outrage. But a nationwide struggle to free the Jena 6 is beginning to grow--and MUST get much bigger. The next court hearings for Mychal Bell and the rest of the Jena Six are scheduled to begin on September 4. Bell’s sentencing is scheduled for September 20.
“We Want the Entire World to Hear”
On July 31, some 300 people rallied in support of the Jena 6 at the courthouse where Mychal Bell was scheduled to be sentenced. People came from all over the country, including people from New Orleans fighting for justice in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. And a massive stack of petitions, which organizers said contained 43,000 signatures, was delivered to the Assistant District Attorney of Jena. On August 5, Al Sharpton spoke at a church in Jena. And while the story of the Jena 6 has been way downplayed in the mainstream media, these events helped get more national and international coverage.
Mychal Bell has now been sitting in jail since December 4 and was not able to graduate. His trial was a complete outrage, with the court-appointed lawyer not even calling any witnesses! Now, a group of lawyers from Monroe, Louisiana have come forward to take up Bell’s case. Bell’s new legal team says their goal is to overturn Bell’s conviction. Bob Noel, one of the lawyers now on the case, said they got involved not only because Bell came to them, but because it was the right thing to do. "The interest of justice cried out [for us] to get involved," Noel said.
The weekend before the July 31 scheduled sentencing of Mychal Bell, the “whites-only” tree in front of the high school was cut down. NPR reported that “Jena High School had the big shade tree in the courtyard chopped into firewood.” But the tree disappearing hasn’t in any way lessened people’s anger and their determination to spread the word about this case and build the struggle to free the Jena 6.
Talking about the significance of the July 31 rally, Caseptla Bailey, mother of one of the defendants, Robert Bailey, Jr., said, "This is a beautiful thing that I’m seeing here today— all types of browns, seeing all types of blacks, all types of whites. We love that, people coming together." And Khadijah Rashad, representing Lafayette’s Community Defender television show, said, "We must remember that the entire world is watching… When there is going to be sentencing again, we need to flood this area with as much people as we possibly can. We want the entire world to know” (thetowntalk.com).
Bell’s father, Marcus Jones, agreed: “Justice, that’s the main thing we want. He’s still in jail, and we want justice for him and the other boys. And now the whole world sees the wrong done to these boys.”
Bell’s mother, Melissa Bell, told The Town Talk (a paper in Alexandria, Louisiana) that the actions on July 31 should send a message to the community: “We are serious, and everyone is serious about freeing these kids.”
Confronting Reality in Jena and Beyond
School starts on August 17 and the school board is already setting a repressive tone and atmosphere. A “Resource Officer” from the La Salle Parish Sheriff's Department will be at Jena High School this year.
Meanwhile, an editorial in the local Jena Times, attacked the “outside” and “liberal” media for supposedly distorting the situation in Jena, saying, “The ‘racial unrest’ that has continually been reported simply does not exist here.” (“Outside Media has transformed Jena” 8-8-07) Things in Jena are very polarized—right now, there are very few, if any, white people who are even speaking out against the nooses on the trees or the unjust way the Jena 6 are being treated--let alone, taking a clear stand against white supremacy. And this reactionary editorial gave voice to those backward whites in Jena who continue to claim, “We’re good people. This is a good town”--which really amounts to defending the racist status quo.
In contrast to what anyone might declare about how nice a place Jena is, we’ve heard stories which show how the hanging of nooses on the tree at Jena High School and the violent enforcement of white supremacy afterwards is not an exception but is consistent with day-to-day reality in Jena. Black people say they cannot get their hair cut at the barber shop in Jena. Someone showed us photos of nooses that had been put on an offshore oil rig, laying about, and hung up in a bathroom--meant to intimidate Black workers. One parent told us that she overheard white people talking about how the “n*ggers“ who were relocated to Jena from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina “are worse than the n*ggers here in Jena.” This is the ugly history--and present reality--of not just Jena, Louisiana, but the USA.
At the same the whole struggle around the Jena 6 is shaking things up, forcing a lot of white people to think about the reality of relations between Black and white people in not only Jena, but this whole country. We walked in on a discussion going on among four Jena residents who were taking a break at the office where they work. One Black person was openly talking about how what was happening to the Jena 6 was outrageous—and bringing out the history of resistance and rebellion against racism and injustice, like the 1992 L.A. Rebellion. The white people were listening—one somewhat reluctantly, another with some interest nodded his head in agreement. A third said, “I don't think Jena's racist, it's not racist is it, do you think it is?” This shows how people fighting back and sharply polarizing things creates the basis for a realignment in society.
The significance and stakes of this struggle go far beyond Jena. Alan Bean, an attorney who works with the group Friends of Justice, recently wrote: “You probably won’t find 'white trees' and nooses in New York and Los Angeles—that’s a Southern thing. But you will find the same kind of racial profiling regime that insures that young black males are disproportionately watched, hassled and arrested by the police; and you will discover that the over-prosecution of young black males is just as rife in our coastal paradise as it is in our southern purgatory. That’s what Friends of Justice calls ‘the New Jim Crow’; and it ain’t just a Southern thing. Jena is America.”
Spreading Resistance
People need to seriously ask: Why are the school and local authorities, courts, and federal officials all working together to ruin the lives of these six Black youth? Is it because they got into a schoolyard brawl where another kid was (not very seriously) injured? Or is it because these youth and nearly every other Black student at the school went and stood under the “white only” tree in defiance of the openly racist threat of the nooses on the tree? In the eyes of the system of white supremacy, these students crossed the line, they “forgot their place,” and must be punished.
Black students at Jena High have been talking about what to do on August 17, when school begins. One idea they have been thinking about is all wearing “Free the Jena 6” t-shirts on that day. And as people across the country learn about what’s happening in Jena, many are outraged and feel compelled to act, to stand with the Jena 6. In Cambridge, Massachusetts the City Council passed a resolution, going “on record in support of the young men and their families in Jena in their pursuit of justice” and stating that “This frightening example of racism calls to mind an earlier time in the United States in which segregation and the ‘lynching’ of African-Americans was common practice.” Some people in New York City who have heard about the case have put a call out to others to help organize support for the Jena 6. On August 14, Al Sharpton is scheduled to return to Jena, along with Martin Luther King Jr. III, to voice support for the Jena 6 with a service at Antioch Baptist Church and a town hall meeting.
*****
People of conscience who know about the case of the Jena 6 cannot stand on the sidelines, which would amount to a form of complicity in this great injustice.
The struggle to free the Jena 6 must be spread far and wide. And a lot more people need to learn from the Black students at Jena High School who stood stood beneath the “whites only” tree and through their defiant action, said “NO MORE.”
Right away, and especially when Mychal Bell is scheduled to be sentenced on September 20, many, many more people should come to Jena and help build the movement to free the Jena 6. And there should be rallies in many other places as well. In small towns, cities and suburbs, in colleges and high schools, people of ALL nationalities should make it clear that we will NOT tolerate white supremacy in any form and demand that ALL the charges be dropped on the Jena 6.
Everyone must take a stand. Are you for or against everything represented by those nooses hanging on the tree?
For more information:
http://revcom.us
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I was devastated by the hypersegregation and racism I witnessed visiting Louisiana pre-Hurricane Katrina. Clearly, I thought, Louisiana has a big problem. Unfortunately, the problem is a really old one. And you know whatever is old is deep. Whatever is deep is strong. And strength is irrefutable so the problem persists for hundreds of years on every continent.
The problem helped build the United States of America. The problem helped shift the global balance of power over to Europe and America. When will the problem be recognized on the television, in the news; when will our presidents' speeches include honest and contrite dissections of the problem? When will the problem be rectified, redressed, or repaired goddamit?
I don’t have the answer and I’m afraid. I'm mad at the numbers of it. The problem cannot be repainted so it must be destroyed and the truth of it forgotten behind bars. But I don't think the world will keep blithely turning when all black and brown people are in prison, poor or dead.
The problem helped build the United States of America. The problem helped shift the global balance of power over to Europe and America. When will the problem be recognized on the television, in the news; when will our presidents' speeches include honest and contrite dissections of the problem? When will the problem be rectified, redressed, or repaired goddamit?
I don’t have the answer and I’m afraid. I'm mad at the numbers of it. The problem cannot be repainted so it must be destroyed and the truth of it forgotten behind bars. But I don't think the world will keep blithely turning when all black and brown people are in prison, poor or dead.
I believe the ones listed under the title should be fired. beginning with the superintendant.
I am quite against everything those nooses represent. Not knowing anything about what was going on in Jena, I recently wrote and article about Sandra Day O'Connor and the KKK. The Klan is a terrorist group and a Supreme Court Justice rules in their favor on cross burning. The gist is, a victim of a cross burning would have to prove that the intent of it was a threat. It is my opinion that she gave the KKK the green light to continue their terrorist activities that interfer with the general welfare of black citizens. (and others) So I became outraged when I heard nooses were considered a prank. A black child should be allowed to sit where ever they darn well please without being threatened with bodily harm. Lynching is so last century. I am frustrated in how to get more media attention focused on Jena.
For more information:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/3...
Why don't all you just stay the hell out of our town. Let our town handle this the way they see fit. I think this has been blown out of proportion on both sides. I am sick of the intruders in Jena. We were a small community unknown to most of the United States, now every time I turn around all I hear about is what a bad town Jena is. Jena IS NOT a bad town. People have made it seem that way. Just leave us alone for gods sake.
NOT A BAD TOWN ???????! YOU CAN SAY THAT CUZ YOU LIVE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SPECTRUM. YOU SOUND SO INTINSIC AND ABLIVIOUS TO THIS OBVIOUS FASCIST AMBIANCES. I SUPRISED YOU CAN TYPE YOU SLACK JAWED YOKEL RED NECK. IT SHAMES ME AS A SOUTHERNER TO SEE PPL THAT LIVE IN DENIAL AS YOU SO SO PROUDLY REVEL. NOT ADDRESSING AN ISSUE NEVER HELPS IT GO AWAY
I would like to remind everyone that there is always 2 sides to every story. One side of the story is very vocal and out raged. Black or white, if you beat someone nearly to death you should be punished for your actions. Yes, there were mistakes made by all, the whites, the blacks, the athorities, but at the end of the day you have a young man beat for no apparent reason. I can assure everyone if the young man was white he would have recieved the same treatment. I am a white male and I was beat with a loaded glove while I attended JHS by a black student all because I would not let him break in line at lunch. I was hospitalized just like Justin. I got over it and asked the judge to please let this slide and he did just that. To this day me and that black guy are VERY good friends. We see each other on the streets of jena and see speak and shake hands and often bear hug. It really bothers me when I see a colored person stand up and say that all of jena is racist. I have several black friends and I am very proud of this. I believe at the end of the day justice will be served and that the parties involved will still be divided. I am very proud of Jena and my son started JHS last friday and was welcomed by police, and news media. If everyone would step back and relax and ask God to let his will be done instead of the NAACP or Jessie Jacksons will be done this would have a great glorious ending.
In response to "Be very concerned" although you and the guy who assaulted you are now good "friends", the simple fact that you refered to him as "COLORED" says something about an underlying attitude of yours. So to everyone else....indeed he is right...........be VERY concerned!
first of all the boy was not halfway beaten to death, he was treated and released and later went to a school whatever. second of all we are people of color and not colored people. you know i'm not suprised that this happened in Louisiana, white people are evil and will always be that way. but some day justice will be served.
Please go back and reread what I wrote in the first letter. I referred to colored people as people of all races. We have people of all races living in jena. I did not refer to him as colored I referred to him as black. Here we go again with jumping to conclussions and finger pointing and not getting the facts straight. I noticed you had no reply about letting Gods will be done. My bible tells me pray believing and he will answer prayers. I have been praying for peace and that his will be done. What is your prayer?
What? You're exactly the type of white racist that the article describes---the one who is content with the status quo. The white idiots in your town are so concerned with defending it's "honor" (what honor does your town have left, really?) than acknowledging obvious racial bias.
Having black "friends" (they're not REALLY your friends, I'm sure...you referred to them as colored people, come on) doesn't mean you can't be racist. You can still look down on them. The fact that you're "proud" to have black friends only makes you sound more suspicious, as it implies that you're only friends with them so you can claim you're not racist. Face it: YOU are a racist, YOUR TOWN is full of racist people, and JENA will be continuously condemned as a haven for racism, intolerance, and faulty justice.
By the way, the kid wasn't beaten to an inch of his life, he had a bloody nose and was released from the hospital within hours. Leave it to racist white people to distort the facts.
Having black "friends" (they're not REALLY your friends, I'm sure...you referred to them as colored people, come on) doesn't mean you can't be racist. You can still look down on them. The fact that you're "proud" to have black friends only makes you sound more suspicious, as it implies that you're only friends with them so you can claim you're not racist. Face it: YOU are a racist, YOUR TOWN is full of racist people, and JENA will be continuously condemned as a haven for racism, intolerance, and faulty justice.
By the way, the kid wasn't beaten to an inch of his life, he had a bloody nose and was released from the hospital within hours. Leave it to racist white people to distort the facts.
If your town had not been so closed minded about a TREE the media or anyone else would be in this little insignificate town. In american anyone can set under a tree! Be happy it was not my son or daughter, because by now all hell would have broke loose, namely the best attorney in American. I then would have sued for DISCRIMINATION ON ALL LEVELS. The town of Jena would have seen what it would be like to see a COLORED person with a little lute! Remember one thing God has the power, not man.
Do not fret because of evil men, Or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and DO GOOD; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pastures. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of you heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, The JUSTICE OF YOUR CAUSE like the noonday sun. Be still before the lord and wait paitently for him; DO NOT FRET WHEN MEN SUCCEED IN THERE WAYS, WHEN THEY CARRY OUT THEIR WICKED SCHEMES. REFRAIN FROM ANGER AND TURN FROM WRATH; DO NOT FRET It LEADS ONLY TO EVIL. FOR EVIL MEN WILL BE CUT OFF BUT THOSE WHO HOPE IN THE LORD WILL INHERIT THE LAND.
If you have never been to jena how can you make such racial slurs about the people of all colors that live there. You can call me what ever you would like. I answer to God and as you will one day. Its not to late to answer his call and turn from your evil ways. Be still by brother/sister in the Lord and he will pour out his blessing on the land.
Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body I live by faith in the son of God. Who loved me and gave himself for me.
I would love to sit down with any one involved with these comments one day in JENA and talk about the Lord and see if we can come to an better conclussion about the fine people in Jena. Yes there are a few racial people in jena, they range from whites, blacks, and people of any color. It appears to me that some of the people that have responded to my comments are racial. But it is not my place to judge nor will I take that away from the Lord. I thank God every day that he has given me another day to tell someone about him. I really wish you would pay a visit to Jena and get a spend a few days to get to know people before you judge (if that is what you would like to do).
I firmly believe Gods will, will be done. I hope these young men are not convicted with a prison sentence. Yet I hope they will be punished in another way so there lives will not be affected and they can grow up and put this behind them. Yet the Lord knows the out come of this and I continue to pray for peace and that his will be done.
If you are looking to get me upset by name calling, it will never happen. I have been all over the world including Africa. I spent a lot of time in Africa too by the way. I am still very proud to be a citizen of JENA LA even with people judging from all over the United States. I hope this comment finds you well.
If you have never been to jena how can you make such racial slurs about the people of all colors that live there. You can call me what ever you would like. I answer to God and as you will one day. Its not to late to answer his call and turn from your evil ways. Be still by brother/sister in the Lord and he will pour out his blessing on the land.
Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body I live by faith in the son of God. Who loved me and gave himself for me.
I would love to sit down with any one involved with these comments one day in JENA and talk about the Lord and see if we can come to an better conclussion about the fine people in Jena. Yes there are a few racial people in jena, they range from whites, blacks, and people of any color. It appears to me that some of the people that have responded to my comments are racial. But it is not my place to judge nor will I take that away from the Lord. I thank God every day that he has given me another day to tell someone about him. I really wish you would pay a visit to Jena and get a spend a few days to get to know people before you judge (if that is what you would like to do).
I firmly believe Gods will, will be done. I hope these young men are not convicted with a prison sentence. Yet I hope they will be punished in another way so there lives will not be affected and they can grow up and put this behind them. Yet the Lord knows the out come of this and I continue to pray for peace and that his will be done.
If you are looking to get me upset by name calling, it will never happen. I have been all over the world including Africa. I spent a lot of time in Africa too by the way. I am still very proud to be a citizen of JENA LA even with people judging from all over the United States. I hope this comment finds you well.
i am a student at jena high school. since i have been there i have not came across a racist person in there until the ropes were hung. and some how everybody assumed that the fight was racist when it actually was not. the fight was because they showed up at the boys girlfriends house for a party unenvited and the boy made him leave so he decided to beat him at school the next there was no racism linked to that. this was also many months after the ropes were hung.
You are quite right. I'm sure at least half of the student body isn't prejudice. Only when you 'saw' the nooses hung that you suspected it. That doesn't mean it's not there, just not noticed. Tell me this though. What happened to the young white male who went to assault a black male with a shotgun, only to have the gun wrestled away and then the black individual was charged with robbery of said weapon? What happened with the young white individuals who allegedly beat up on a black student? Were they charged with anything? Was the boy with the shotgun charged? My point is this, there may have been just 'minor' incidences of racism in the school, but the school officials, the district attorney (by the way were you there when the district attorney addressed the protesters at school?), the judges, even the defense attorney all committed blatant acts of racial discrimination and lets face it, the grown ups run the show.
This is a typical example of reverse racisim. Was it wrong to hang nooses from the tree, absolutely. Should those students responsible for hanging those nooses be punished, absolutely and they were. Now to say that 6 black students jumping a white student and kicking him in the face is ok, that is wrong. If it were the opposite, if 6 white students jumped a black student than the NAACP, rev. Jesse Jackson, and Al Sharpton would have had a 10,000 black people protesting a hate crime, but because it was black on white and the students responsible are being punished appropriately the black students are being treated "unfairly". Enough is enough, black, white, or purple, 15 or 50 when you jump someone 6 to 1 and you kick them in the face while there on the ground regardless of the injuries inflicted they should be punished to the full extent of the law.
The problem with racism is that white people who have been racist all of their lives, don't even realize that they are racist anymore. They don't even see how natural it comes, or how widespread it is. They have been looking down on black people so much that they step on us when we walk by.
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