A conversation on the Jena 6 Part 3 - 9.21.2007.4

Continued from A conversation on the Jena 6 Part 2...

I mentioned to my friend what he thought about a situation. I said, ‘Does a case where an individual got away with murder for 43 years before being brought to justice deserve national airtime?’ The answer was yes. I went on, ‘If that person committed 2 murders, and the local police covered up the case knowing who committed the crimes, and it took 43 years, does that deserve coverage on the national cable news channels?’ Again yes. ‘Does it matter the race? And how much time do you think it deserves? 5 minutes? 3?’ he answered that it doesn’t matter, that is does need to be covered, and should have at least a couple of minutes. Then I asked him if he knew who Jonathan Riches was and how much time his case got on national news. He had no idea. Check the link if you want to find out.

America is afraid to address the roots of the problem. We want to turn a blind eye to the Jonathan Riches in the nation. The major news media ignores the Jena 6’s that occur. The media wants to emphasis OJ Simpson, and gloss over Ms. Megan Williams of West Virginia. And when this willful detachment of facts reaches critical mass and we have events like the Rodney King riots, everyone acts shocked.

I’m tired of the feigned ignorance. I’m tired of the propped up ‘leaders’ and politicians that seek to puff up their election chances and political clout with contrived concern over issues that have been ongoing for some time prior to their sudden involvement when the television cameras roll.

I deserve better. We deserve better. America must do better.

National news media needs to do their job. They need to investigate the roots of the problems in these cases. Then need to promote discussion on what is not changing in this nation. They need to shine the spotlight, which bloggers like me cannot yet do, on the shadows of the past of America that remains with us today.

The Jena 6 case is a problem. It’s racial, unjust, and reminiscent of a separated ignorant violent past of America that really wasn’t long ago. In the history of America it was just yesterday that African American were still being lynched for being in the wrong place or looking at a member of the wrong race. It was just a few months ago, in that historic clock, that slaves became free. And if America does not, as a whole nation, move forward to a better way, we will always carry the past on our collective backs.

This is what I think, what do you think?