How does one get an objective report on the "Jenna six."?

Question

I've been watching CNN's report on the 6 black students that beat up on the white kid in Jena La. They keep saying this was a "fight" in school but a fight requires both sides to throw punches. I, like most, would like to get a true picture of what happened there. No, news organization has reported that the white kid was "attacked" or "assulted." Like most Americans, I think the local DA went way beyond what was required to seek punishment for the black kids, but can't find out what really happened via any media source? Got a link that is not slanted one way or another? What did witnesses say? Who stopped the beating & what did they see?

christian.rene:
Anyone that refers to a beating where the victim never throws a punch as a fight is feeding me slanted journalism... period. If you are too dense to see that, something is wrong with you!

Lisa:
Sorry about your school problems, but that is not helpful in this situation. That is your point of view... wonder what the other side of the story is?

Queen:
That was some good information thank you. No one else in the media mentioned that Baily was a punk on probation for previous violent assults.

Imgram:
Yes, the whole state seems to be stuck in the past... nothing that happens there should surprise me, but this harkens back to 1963 doesn't it?

Stan:
Agreed, Jackson & Sharpton use any excuse to cry racism... they are still upset about not being allowed to lynch the Duke LaCross players.

Veggiefootballqueen:
Thanks for a different perspective... I agree that nothing makes it OK for 6 people to beat & stomp another person.
Some adults there seem to be a childish as the kids or they'd have stopped this stuff long before it came to that.

b45rad:
Thanks for your perspective... I agree that racism is alive & well in rural La towns.

Coop 366:
Yep, further review of Bell's (the black kid said to be the instigator) record indicates he was on probation for a battery case in Dallas, Texas (4 prior convictions). This was the 4th time he'd been involved in beating someone... couldn't get details on the other offenses. However, he's been in jail for more than 9 months. Certainly long enough for this incident.

Benjamin:
You got a source on that? Granted the DA sounds like he had an ax to grind & went way overboard on the charges here (looks racist to me.) Still I've found no evidence any white kids were near enough the attack to see it clearly & none of the black kids will admit to seeing or doing anything... Chuckle, the white kid just fell down to hear them tell it! Don't Snitch?

Scorch_22:
Yeah, the more I search, the more confused I am on what happened. I see the worst elements of both groups at work here. Both sides of the arguement have their racist agendas.

Rebbeca:
I am slowly concluding this is an attack on free speach by those wishing to control what can be said. The nooses are only symbolic to the media & hate organizations of both sides of the equations... someone seems to have used those to incite a bunch of impressionable kids on both sides of the equation.

All:
Can we agree that the DA is an idiot that should be sent packing? None of the kids involved in the noose thing is still in school.

I've concluded this black kid "M. Bell" will eventually kill someone & spend the rest of his life in jail. One of his 4 previous convictions was for punching a 17 yr old girl in the face. I find it hard to understand why he was not in jail prior to the incident in Jena? Thanks for the assistance in forcing our "yellow press" to release some real information on the situation. I suspect some racist motivation on the part of the DA, but find the sensationism on the part of the media & conduct of the black students sickening. It seems the press will seize upon any straw to justify criminal behaivior. Disliking some symbol or speach doesn't justify violet action & mob attacks.

Answer 1

There are some really blind and stupid people in this country. No matter what someone does it is NEVER OK for 6 individuals to beat, kick, and stomp 1 person for anything. I grew up in Jena (pronounced Jee-na, not jenna like the porn star). Jena is a great place to live and most of the community gets along great. High schools across the country have this sort of racial tension all the time. The white kids that hung the nooses should have been expelled for the get go and none of this would have happened. Hanging the ropes from the trees does not in any way shape or form give the 6 kids in question the right to brutally stomp the white kid and they should be held accountable. Please do not believe everything you see and read.

Answer 2

Thats the problem I have read 10 different stories on it and all 10 of them say something different, one says that basically it was all made up by Al Sharpton, another says that the black kids didnt really hurt the kid, yet others say he was knocked out. The only thing I know for sure is that the Noose incident happened up to a year before the rest of it did. The Noose is being used as a symbol, even though its clearly has nothing to do with why things happened. Thats the only thing that I am pretty sure is fact, is that the noose incident was a long time before the rest of it, it wasn't like it was a direct response.
The extent of violence toward the black students is also not clear according to some sources one white man threatened the black student with a bottle because he was an uninvited guest, and that other black students were there and not kicked out, and then another source says that it was a white kid only party and that they got some magical invitation by someone too dumb to know it was a "white party only" and a whole mob of white kids beat him up and threw bottles at him, I mean its just a joke, there is nothing reliable or trustworthy to go on the media should be punished for their coverage of this.

Answer 3

Ok, I really wish that people had the same experience as I did last week. Then you would know the truth. Luckily I was able to speak with some of the residents and hear all of what the media is not telling you.

The first punch was thrown by someone wearing a green jacket according to witnesses. When the police searched Bell and his locker, there was no green jacket found. When Bell was tried, his attorney didn't even call witnesses to the stand.

Secondly, there were many incidents prior to the tree and the fight at the school. They include one of the Jena six boys being jumped at a party, others being harassed at a mini mart and having a gun pulled on them only to wrestle it from the perpurtrators hands and then being charged with robbery and possession of a firearm. Who knew that the black section of Jena High School was burned down?

Don't think that the white boy who was beat on was innocent. That is hardly the case. There were more than just the 7 of them in the fight. It was the 6 black boys, the white boy and many others. And the deadly weapon is a gym shoe!

Answer 4

The biggest argument here is that the black community and some members of the white community feel that the Jena 6 received harsher punishments than the white students who put up the noose. Well, the white students didn't have prior records, nor did they physically attack someone from behind then stand on his head and kick and beat him. As they've discovered recently, the incidents were independent of the other.

Witnesses say that the white kid was saying racial slurs to the 6 boys. Does that give them the right to beat him up? No. Mychal Bell has prior assault charges on his record. What they did to that student was an action defined as a state crime. It's not illegal to burn a cross, or a flag or hang a noose. Amoral is another story entirely. But the moment you cause someone harm in anyway, that's a problem. As it should be.

Lousiana has got to probably be one of the most racially tense places outside of Los Angeles in the 90's. DA is probably sick and tired of seeing hate crimes in his state regardless of whom it's directed at and wanted to make an example out of these boys. Six months before the story broke he probably said to himself or someone standing around him "the next case that comes across my desk like this, I'm gonna hang em. Doesn't matter who it is, I'm sick of this crap".

Answer 5

I find that everything that can be used as a race issue is used as a race issue. Any way to bring the plight of the people to national attention is used. If the shoe is on the other foot it makes only a blip on anyone’s radar. My white daughter was attacked by a black basketball teammate in 7th grade. Her black female coach took the knife and disposed of it. The coach then told the team to forget about the incident and not tell anyone. My daughter told me. We filed charges at the local police station the next day. The coach refused to answer questions without a lawyer. When she did answer questions the girl was expelled from school and charged with assault with a deadly weapon. The day after the expulsion my daughter was chased down by a large group of black youngsters, she fled to the office. They sent her home because they could not guarantee her safety. This same thing happened numerous times over a three week period. Black teachers refused to help her and one substitute actually told her she had to go and face the music. She transferred out of the school. The attacks and threats continued at our house and in our neighborhood. We had to move to insure the safety of our children. My daughter is still having problems because of this unwarranted attack and the young lady who attacked her was allowed to plead to a lesser charge because of the missing knife. We have had major financial difficulties because we had to move before selling the house. Where was the picketing and outpooring for her civil rights? Sorry we have none we are white. I used to be really big in helping the underprivileged but no more. I had no help. And you bleeding heart liberals need to understand that six on one is most definitely attempted murder. One on One is a fight and would still have been considered assualt. What exactly does everyone expect? Oh it was okay for them to do that because someone hung a noose in a tree. Was anyone hanging from that noose? Was an effigy hanging from the noose with someone’s name on it? Was anyone threatened? I’m sorry but I find that it is all way to much over a group assault. They did the crime. If five white boys had done the same thing they would have been charged. We would still have picketing from civil rights groups because it would not have been enough. People expect it. Stop expecting it. It needs to stop. They are charged with a crime but hey we are going to picket and if they actually get convicted we are going to cause a race riot, because we can make sure we intimidate the jury by doing this. It has worked before and it will work again. They fear us in numbers so regardless of whether this was right or wrong let’s make sure that we get the outcome we want. Watch. They will get the outcome they want.
And no you will not find an unbiased account of what really happened. Go for the freedom of information act and request a transcript of the trials after they are over, that is the best way to get the real story or at least the part that the judge will allow.
Oh and I am from Michigan. I used to have no prejudices. I am 43 years old. I don't think anyone should be allowed to beat anyone else regardless of race.

Answer 6

Okay the white boy was a punk, but six guys on one is not a fight. A black man was on a show the other night and said a assault with a weapon does not include a man's shoe. If even a punk was on the ground and another kicked or stomped him, that is beyond a fight. You can kill a guy by beating him with a shoe. But no matter what the proof some people believe only what they what.

Answer 7

Here's the latest article on www.wsws.org.

This is the most thorough and journalistically ethical website in existence today.

Moreover, if you have any questions you can email the authors directly and they will respond.

It still sends shivers down my spine to think that, in the 21st century, black students could be presented with a death threat for sitting under 'the white tree'. (How do they think black students are going to react to nooses being hung in the school ground.)

I agree that Sharpton and Jackson are hardly credible, but wsws.org painstakingly explains these sorts of incidents, and how they developed, so that you can draw your own conclusions. Their reporting has left me in no doubt that anti-black racism is playing a role in the way the defendants are being treated.

Just because wsws is fair, honest reporting, it doesn't mean they mince words or tip toe around ugly truths.

Answer 8

There was a really good article on nola.com, 4 pgs, that seemed to me to be an honest account of what happened in Jena.

I don't even want to comment on the situation because there is obviously to much commentary already.

Hopefully you can find the article, I think it's just what you are looking for.

Bobby: You are a moron; plain and simple.

Answer 9

everyone involved was underage -- so most evidence is sealed to protect the white kid while the black kids go on trail for attempted murder. the only official press release ever given is that the whte kid was treated at the local hospital and sent home in a few hours. unofficial reports from inside the hospital claim the wounds were superficial at best. reports also say the kid was at a party that night. from some accounts there are stories of the kid beat up having a gun and the 6 wrestled the gun away from him -- but the press won't report it. there is lots our press wont report.

there are lots of people that should be on trial -- a da that recommends murder trials, the school superintendant who decided hanging nooses in trees should be punishable by 3 days suspension then the princapal requested expulsion.
the da apparently also threatened black students prior to the fight to stop protesting because he could make their lives disappear with a pen stroke. and that is exactly what he was trying to do with murder sentences for a school fight.

Answer 10

from what i have heard this case is odd and im sorry about i forgot his names daughter i truly am i dont have kids but id hate for my child to have to go to school sacred but anyway a noose is a direct link to slavery & the kkk so being a black man i would be very disturbed by this and idk how i would have handled it if i were in that spot also i have heard that this town is supposedly a very small back in the country type of town the boys were charged with attempted murder yet they had no weapons and the white boy only had a black eye so unless im wrong a black eye is not life threatening another thing to even say that the judical system is fair is just i dont want to say it because ppl get off who should never have gotten off and ppl who are innocent always get punished so i guess thats how it goes and but normally ppl dont pay a big deal to fights i mean normally you pay a fine go to angermangement and thats really it so idk maybe they felt that this was a different case maybe these kids needed to go to jail for fighting u know none of this even makes sense me and plz ppl dont believe the bull racism is still alive its just not as obivious as it used to be