"Jena Is All Over This Country": Questioning Federal Response to the Jailing of the Jena Six

Justice Department attorneys presented a prepared statement to the House Judiciary Committee that offers a full explanation of the department decision no to pursue charges in the noose-hanging incident that the verbal give and take between committee members and federal attorneys. The Justice Department has posted the full text of the statement in its website at http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/speeches/joint_statement_jena.pdf Basically, the statement says that none of the charges it might have brought against the three students who hung the nooses would have resulted in a criminal conviction. The departmetn could have pursue an "abjucation of deliquency" but was satisfied by the "prompt sanctions" imposed by the school district. The three students were sent to alternative school for nine days, served a two-week, in-school suspension, had Saturday detentions and had to attend Discipline Court and be evaluated by a social worker before returning to school. http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/speeches/joint_statement_jena.pdf Even if the Justice Department had been able to bring haate crimes charges against the three students, it might not have been able to get a conviction. he three Jena High School students who hung the nooses claim they did not realize that nooses have racist connotations. They claim they were merely replicating the famous lynching scene from Lonesome Dove, in which Texas Rangers string up with outlaws. This claim has been ridiculed by just about everyone, except those who actually investigated the incident. According to the Jena Times, state Welfare Supervisor Melinda Edwards said it might surprise everyone to learn that the three students did not have knowledge of black history in relation to that hanging of black citizens in the south during the civil rights movement. “We discussed this in great detail with those students,” Edwards said. “They honestly had no knowledge of the history concerning nooses and black citizens. This may seem hard to believe for some people, but this is exactly what everyone on the committee determined.” he also said that once the historical significance of the nooses was revealed to the students and how it was considered a tremendous insult to those of the black race, they showed great remorse. “When they were told about the historical relevance of the nooses and how others would interpret their actions, they really were very remorseful,” she said. “I can honestly say that these boys regretted tremendously ever hanging those nooses.” Federal attorney Donald Washington has stated in inverview that the three students had no previous records of offenses, not link to racist groups and no disciplinary problems at school.