The Jena Six

In a small Louisiana town, people from all over the country are gathering to protest the criminal charges placed against six young black males charged with the serious beating of one young white male. The Reverend Al Sharpton, as well as Martin Luther King III are in attendance at the rally, citing the injustice of the American Justice System. They claim that the Jena Six were charged with criminal charges after the beating of the white student because he is white and they are black. The beating is said to have come about because the Six believed he was one of three white students who hung three nooses in a tree on the high school campus. While the hanging of the nooses was disrespectful to say the least, the Six were not harmed by the nooses. They were not physically touched by them in any way. The Jena Six chose to commit the beating in retaliation. That beating was a crime. The nooses may have been a crime, as well, but certainly there was no harm done to the Jena Six by the hanging of the nooses. I have never heard of anyone dying simply because they looked upon a noose. But a six to one beating has been the cause of many deaths throughout the history of the world. All races share a group of individuals who wrongly believe that their race is the best race and above all others. Every last one of those individuals is wrong, no matter their race or color. The so-called Civil Rights Leaders of the Twety-First Century need to back up a bit and look at this situation realistically and legally and leave their emotions and their misplaced pride at home. Yes, a hate crime was committed. Six black males beat the living hell out of one white male. School property was defaced under Louisiana law by the hanging of the nooses. It was stupid. It was hateful, and it should never have happened; It did not warrant the beating. Martin Luther King III and the Reverend Al Sharpton have managed to take the stupidity of nine young males and blow it up into a media circus. Misguided protesters have now come to a town of about 3500, and caused the need for extra manpower from the Louisiana State Police, the Press, and even the bloggers, because they believe the Jena Six were mistreated in being charged with the beating, and that their being brought up on charges proves that there is a double-standard between blacks and whites in the Justice System of the United States. Louisiana is one of, if not the poorest state in the United States of America. The State cannot financially afford such bad publicity, much less the extra man hours they now must pay the State Police. Is the Reverend Al Sharpton betting that this will further his cause? Does he believe that this will get the Jena Six a free ticket out of jail? I certainly hope not. The Jena Six were arrested and charged because they committed a crime. The serious crime of the beating of one student by six others. If that student had been black, would he and his partner, Martin Luther King III be organising a rally in Jena, LA? Maybe we should ask him. A hate crime is a hate crime, no matter the race or creed of the perpetrator(s) of the crime. Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III seem to have forgotten this. They seem to believe that they can just make a lot of noise, and the Jena Six will get out of jail, and they will walk away as free young men. I certainly hope this is not the case. The three who originally hung the nooses from the tree deserve to have their parents whip them soundly. The Jena Six deserve to spend time in jail. It is severe overreactions like this to ridiculous, petty sentiment and action that help to further racial discord in this country. While some folks should be worried about the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines in Iraq and Afghanistan, they are worried about how they should feel about this or that person because of what color his skin is, and they are busy reminding their parents and grandparents of the bad old days, and spreading discontent and hate wherever they go. While they should be busy helping their neighbor who cannot do for himself, and caring for elderly or infirm family members in whatever way is appropriate for them, they are busy leaving elderly and infirm family members to the coyotes and hating their neighbor because he does not look like them. All nine of those students are wrong. All day long, wrong. Six of them committed a felony which was a hate crime. Three of them instigated the whole thing by defacing school property with three nooses. The Jena Six were angered by the white student's show of disrespect. If the Jena Six were proud young men, as they claimed to be, they would each of them been man enough to walk away from the idiocy of the nooses and ignore the obvious stupidity of their neighbors. Instead, they grabbed themselves a white boy and proved something to the entire world. They proved their own hate, stupidity, pettiness and childidshness by overreacting to something which was meant for them to become angry and react to. Now they sit in jail, looking at the world through iron bars, while the State of Louisiana spends money it can little afford , to reasonably try to contain the circus Al Sharpton and Martin LUther KIng III have begun. Perhaps Louisiana should allow them to foot the bill. It is their party, after all.