Incident in Jena,La.

[CutCreator]

[ QUOTE ]
Midge, are you just joking around here? Or do you really not understand ANYTHING about America and United States law?

You are seriously coming off as completly clueless. Is this how all people outside the USA act with regards to matters IN the USA? A quick jump to conclusions without understanding anything about anything, and then sticking with that conclusion no matter what anyone says?

Let me break it down for you, a little bit, if I may?

In the United States it is not illegal to be racist.
In the United States it is illegal to physically assault another person.
The white student did not physically assault the black students.
The black students physically assaulted the white student.
The black students committed a crime.

I don't know how it can be made any clearer than that.

As for reperations, that is a seperate issue. If you want to create a thread about that, another issue which you clearly know very little about, do it; don't muddy up this thread with it.

[/ QUOTE ]

when was the last time you heard of kids getting 30 years for jumping someone?

it is reported that the victim went to the hospital and then went to a party later.

these kids should be charged with something, but if you think a 30 year sentence is justified you are just as clueless as midge.

im not on either side, i am in the middle. the bottom line is, the kids should be given a punishment that fits the crime. what has gone on so far there is outrageous and its sad if you cant see that. hopefully you just are unaware of the details.

[CutCreator]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Are you saying that in the USA it is alright to have "whites only" trees or any areas?

I don't know how it can be made any clearer than that.


[/ QUOTE ]

This was not an official, or even unofficial school policy. This is simply the way the students chose to act. Whites would hang out under the tree, the black kids would be wherever they hang out.
If the white students choose not to spend time with the black students, or vice versa, that is there decision, it isn't government endorsed segregation. Another example of this, from the same incident; apparently when the students were called into an assembly, the white kids sat together, and the black kids sat together. You cannot force people to spend time together.

And before you go calling me a hick or a racist, I've lived in two places in my life; New York and Philadelphia. I have several friends that are black, and some 2+2 members could attest to that.

Edit: By the way, Jesse Jackson said he totally endorses Obama, and doesn't question his "blackness" on CNN this morning.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree with this. The problem here is while there needed to be more media coverage of this, once Jackson and Sharpton get involved it becomes a circus and the attention gets puts on other issues that are not as important.

i make it a point to ignore sharpton and jackson so i am not aware of what they are saying. i assume they are outraged over the district attorneys charges. the racial thing is a fact of life and im not sure what they can do about it.

racists are un-evolved ignorant morons. i do not associate with racists. however its not illegal to be racist and while i disagree with racism, people should have the right to believe what they want to in this country, even if its stupid.

[CutCreator]

[ QUOTE ]
@Taso

The outrage (at least my outrage) has nothing to do with these young men being arrested for beating another young man. Regardless of what the victim said, I hope we all agree that a beating is not justified and the perpetrators should be punished. The problem is in the apparent inequality in punishment meted out to black and white people in this town.

<ul type="square">[*]Black student attack white student = attempted 2nd degree murder[*]White man pulls gun on black students = theft of a fire arm by the black students[*]White students/townsfolk beat black students at a party day(s) before white student is beaten = no action taken[*]16 year old black student found guilty of attempted 2nd degree murder in adult court by a jury of all white "peers"[*]Reports of intimidation by DA toward black students[/list]Maybe we're just getting one side of the story. Maybe a town with a white's only shade tree is progressive enough that it's justice system doesn't have underlying threads of racism. Maybe the town uses nooses as decoration all the time and this symbolic act was simply misconstrued by the black students. Obviously we'll never know absolutely all of the details, but this smacks of prejudice that pervades to all levels of this town's society and that is more than enough evil for me to become upset.

[/ QUOTE ]

EXACTLY ON POINT. These are the real facts and issues. I'd be interested to see anyone justify these charges.

[Taso]

I am not insane, lol. I was specifically talking to Midge, in regard to his claims that everyone who disagreed with him was racists and a hick, and basically he wasn't giving any fault to the 6 people who committed the crime.

As for the 30 years, are you sure on that? Are you aware the charge was lessened considerably to, I believe, assault, or something of that nature?

As for your last post, look at the last post I made in this thread, I, to the best of my ability, discussed all those bullets (symbols, not ammunition)

[Uglyowl]

I am so confused... this story/ protests make no sense to me. At least they have the new OJ case next month to have school walkouts.

Maybe I am just missing a huge piece of the story.

[Low Key]

I read the AP/Yahoo report of this, and one quote strikes me in a very bad way:

"We all have family members about the age of these guys. We said it could have been one of them."

Which to me translates to:

"C'mon, it could have been ANY of our 16 to 18 year old black sons that beat some white kids to within inches of their life. These things are bound to happen!"

I think here is where I do the facepalm thing.

I will say, I'm a little confused, from what I'd heard on Bill Maher, it sounded like some white kids started a fight first, but what I'm reading now is saying they just hung some nooses. (While certainly racist and not smart, it is covered by the 1st amendment, I'd bet) So I thought this was a "white kids started a fight and got a slap on the wrist, black kids participated and got tried for attempted murder" sort of thing. Apparently not..?

[Taso]

LK, if you go back a page or two there's a good summary of the events that happened, leading up to this one.

[Low Key]

Ah, gotcha, thanks. I guess I'm not surprised that the black kids didn't go to the police about the noose incident. I seem to recall some tv show where they interviewed a bunch of rappers who basically said the worst thing you could ever do would be to contact the police for any reason. Yet another facepalm moment. But still, if people out there are taking that seriously.. yeesh. A guy trying to make an image so he can be slightly richer is no reason to screw up your own life.

[RedBean]

[ QUOTE ][*]White students/townsfolk beat black students at a party day(s) before white student is beaten = no action taken

[/ QUOTE ]

A few more details...the black victim was beaten with beer bottles by his white attackers, and the DA declined to press charges against all of them except one offender.

He was charged with MISDEMEANOR SIMPLE ASSUALT...for beating a black kid with a beer bottle.

Days later, black teens beat the white kid up, using NO WEAPONS, and are charged with aggravated assault and attempted murder.

Same DA, same town, same groups of people flaring up over the same racial tension that bore out of the noose incident.

Only they are treated vastly different on the basis of the color of their skin.

[ QUOTE ]

White man pulls gun on black students = theft of a fire arm by the black students

[/ QUOTE ]

This one was particulary ridiculous. A white adult, a Jena High alum, confronted three black Jena students with a shotgun and attempted to scare and harass them....they fought back, subdued him, disarmed him, and then fled.

The DA considered filing charges against the three youths for "stealing" the firearm.

Ludicrous.

[Taso]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ][*]White students/townsfolk beat black students at a party day(s) before white student is beaten = no action taken

[/ QUOTE ]

A few more details...the black victim was beaten with beer bottles by his white attackers, and the DA declined to press charges against all of them except one offender.

He was charged with MISDEMEANOR SIMPLE ASSUALT...for beating a black kid with a beer bottle.

Days later, black teens beat the white kid up, using NO WEAPONS, and are charged with aggravated assault and attempted murder.

Same DA, same town, same groups of people flaring up over the same racial tension that bore out of the noose incident.

Only they are treated vastly different on the basis of the color of their skin.

[ QUOTE ]

White man pulls gun on black students = theft of a fire arm by the black students

[/ QUOTE ]

This one was particulary ridiculous. A white adult, a Jena High alum, confronted three black Jena students with a shotgun and attempted to scare and harass them....they fought back, subdued him, disarmed him, and then fled.

The DA considered filing charges against the three youths for "stealing" the firearm.



Ludicrous.

[/ QUOTE ]


He CLAIMED he was beaten with beer bottles, hit in the head, etc, yet never went to a hospital or a doctor. No marks of stitches. You get hit in the head with a beer bottle, you need stitches.

And the gun situation is so clouded, the way I've been hearing it, it's hard to know exactly what happened there. But the police made their charges based on eye witness testimony.