New facts come to light in the Jena 6 case (Sept '07)

All of this just strengthens my theory that the two cases should be taken as independent incidents, and that race should not be the focus here (see my last blog entry for details,)but still, much of the information is both interesting and informative.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070922/ap_on_re_us/a_place_called_jena;_ylt=ApvDj9_A_DIlgOBC1nZwOEhK2ocA

Some highlights from the article:

"The so-called "white tree" at Jena High, often reported to be the domain of only white students, was nothing of the sort, according to teachers and school administrators; students of all races, they say, congregated under it at one time or another.

Two nooses — not three — were found dangling from the tree. Beyond being offensive to blacks, the nooses were cut down because black and white students "were playing with them, pulling on them, jump-swinging from them, and putting their heads through them," according to a black teacher who witnessed the scene.

There was no connection between the September noose incident and December attack, according to Donald Washington, an attorney for the U.S. Justice Department in western Louisiana, who investigated claims that these events might be race-related hate crimes.

The three youths accused of hanging the nooses were not suspended for just three days — they were isolated at an alternative school for about a month, and then given an in-school suspension for two weeks.

The six-member jury that convicted Bell was, indeed, all white. However, only one in 10 people in LaSalle Parish is African American, and though black residents were selected randomly by computer and summoned for jury selection, none showed up."

I guess it just goes to further illustrate that rhetoric and race politics really do serve to muddy the waters far more than they have ever served to clarify matters. It also goes to show that few issues are really as polar as the media would like to portray them.

Whatever lesson you take from the matter, the indisputable fact is that press coverage has served to take an unfair and complex problem and make it even less fair by trying to simplify it.

As always, your thoughts are welcomed.