Sunday, September 23, 2007
Greens address Jena Six
In case you have not followed the story closely (and I have not), the Jena Six are six young black men in Jena, LA. They are accused of beating a classmate severely. Of course, there is more to the story.
As I understand it, a school assembly was held at the school, and a student asked if he could sit under a particular tree on the campus. He was told that he could.
Thereafter, several black students did sit under that tree, since cut down, and some other students hung nooses from it after school.
Over the next few days words were exchanged between students of both skin tones, and at least one white student was accused of wrong doing. The consequences were apparently not much.
This seems to me to be the critical issue. No one, no matter how offended by someone else's actions, is entitled to beat another. In this particular case, apparently, it was a six-on-one case, and while the student did receive what looks like a serious whupping, he will suffer no long term consequences. Not so the students who are accused of doing the beating. These are the Jena Six.
Now personally, I have not paid enough attention to say one way or another, but the national Green Party does not seem to be in the same boat. Apparently feeling that they have enough facts to do so, the national Green Party has called for dropping all charges against the Jena Six.
As I understand it, a school assembly was held at the school, and a student asked if he could sit under a particular tree on the campus. He was told that he could.
Thereafter, several black students did sit under that tree, since cut down, and some other students hung nooses from it after school.
Over the next few days words were exchanged between students of both skin tones, and at least one white student was accused of wrong doing. The consequences were apparently not much.
This seems to me to be the critical issue. No one, no matter how offended by someone else's actions, is entitled to beat another. In this particular case, apparently, it was a six-on-one case, and while the student did receive what looks like a serious whupping, he will suffer no long term consequences. Not so the students who are accused of doing the beating. These are the Jena Six.
Now personally, I have not paid enough attention to say one way or another, but the national Green Party does not seem to be in the same boat. Apparently feeling that they have enough facts to do so, the national Green Party has called for dropping all charges against the Jena Six.
// posted by Gregg Jocoy @ 4:58 PM 
