Jena: the Next Step
by Gary Younge
"Activists must leverage the attention that has been given
to the Jena 6 to raise the broader issues of social justice and racism."
This article originally appeared in The Guardian, UK.
The recent demonstration in Jena was a great success on
many fronts, but still has two important goals to achieve.
First the successes. It brought the argument to the people who needed to hear
it. I'm sure it convinced very few white people in Jena that hanging nooses is
more than a prank or that the judicial system is weighted against
African-Americans. From most of the quotes I've seen they are still in denial.
But I'm equally sure that it made any administrator, legislator, judge or
attorney there realize that much of the world does not share their standards.
This message reverberates beyond Jena. The notion that what happens in small
towns stays in small towns no longer holds. No local official wants a
"Jena" on their hands.
"The notion that what happens in small towns stays in small
towns no longer holds."
Second, it was huge and managed to galvanize a new generation of activists. One
of the noteworthy aspects of this demonstration - in contrast to many - is that
it appears to have been multi-generational. With nooses and jail time the
issues it raised linked the old Jim Crow and new quite effectively.
Third, it revealed a new network of bloggers and radio hosts (similar to the
immigrant rallies) that kept this issue alive when others would have allowed it
to die or could not keep it going.
Fourth, it was peaceful. Nothing would have been gained by violence in Jena.
The fact that none occurred left locals who had shuttered up the town, in fear
of black hordes arriving to ransack the place, with nothing to talk about but
the issues.
"The judicial system knows
the world is watching."
Now the hard part. The Jena Six remain either in jail or awaiting trial. The
demonstration did a great job of highlighting their plight. The judicial system
knows the world is watching. Now it is down to the lawyers to get them a fair
shake. That means a proportionate punishment for the alleged crime.
"Boss Tweet’s Trial V. Trial of a Freedom Fighter" is the latest from BAR's Poet-in-Residence.
Cuba hosted its international peace seminar during May Day celebrations on the island.
African Liberation Day should serve as a time to ground ourselves in the history of our people and take those lessons with us as we continue the struggle toward liberation.
Recent global and domestic events have put the United States in a defensive posture that presents an opportunity for the movement to step up.
Our future survival as a nation depends on what foreign policy decisions are made by our government
