I really thought somebody would have started a thread on this before me, but since no one has, here goes.

To me, the only fact that seems unfair is that these 6 adults and kids weren't charged with a hate crime; that seems unfair, or more like a double standard to me. Shouldn't it work both ways?

From what I read the fight wasn't even a fight - the first punch (from behind) knocked the victim out, and these six assailants jumped the victim and kicked and beat the unconscious body. Sounds like the victim was either really lucky, or big enough to take a beating like that and walk out of the ER after only three hours. I would probably have been more seriously injured.

Aggravated second-degree battery seems like a fair charge to me. Attempted murder did too (especially considering the fact the victim was knocked out before the "fight" even really started), but the reduction to battery should be acceptable to any fair observer. What does Sharpton want the charges to be dropped to nothing? Just set 'em free cause someone hung three nooses, in school colors btw (thought that was a little morbidly funny, might have also contributed to the viewing of the incident as a prank, not a hate crime), from a tree?

Will this start a new civil rights movement in the US? If so, what will it accomplish? Will Sharpton join with the gays in this 21st century civil rights movement?

If it was 6 white dudes theyed be convicted of a hate crime. I am gonna protest against the black people

Noboby started a thread most likely because the media information regarding this story is a bit sketchy and it is hard to get a handle on what actually occurred beyond what the race industry hucksters like Sharpton and Jackson are claiming.

Yes, I would think that hate crime laws should apply if there are any such hate crime laws that are applicable within the jurisdiction.

But then, since when have these ridiculous "hate crime" (actually 'thought crime') laws ever been evenly applied? It is up to prosecutors to decide whether or not to bring these charges forward and they have never been evenly applied.

No, it will not start a new civil rights movement. What civil rights are we talking about here? New civil rights for blacks to beat a white and be legally immune from criminal charges?

The law is supposed to be color blind. If you assualt, kill or attempt to kill another, regardless of the race of victim or perpetrator, the law should be applied evenly. Many are not satisfied with that concept.

White kids hang ropes (I can't spell neuse) from a tree and get detention. Black kids beat the white kids and get locked up. The black kids acted by beating the kids up and intended to assault them. The ropes hanging from a tree may have had symbolism but prove intent..you can't. So whats the problem? Rev Al Sharpton is claiming that this is unfair and they were locked up only because theyre black. Why can't they just see that they were locked up because they committed a crime. Do I have this all wrong?

We have a thread about hating illegal aliens and this one looks like a good candidate for some hate too. And while some things are better left than said, I want to scream "What the fuck?!"

This is supposed to be the number one country in the world and we are still playing hate games with nooses and whites vs blacks. UNITED States of America my ass. This country is so deeply divided on almost every issue ranging from race to abortion to the war in Iraq, it almost seems like we would be better off by splitting the union into several parts. Really, think about it.

Those of you who are familiar with software engineering know the rule: Build two and throw one away. Sometimes it is just better to start from scratch rather than to fix what does not work. Our country should not be an exception. It is clear that there are people who love to hate. Abortions, illegal immigrants, evolution, peace, freedom, etc. These people will never ever get along with the other half. It simply blows my freaking mind that in 2007 there is an "all white" tree in the country where everybody is supposed to have the same opportunities.

This whole humble concept of American dream has been gang banged by our politicians to the point where terrorism and 9/11 are the only topics that they are willing to discuss. Nobody gives a flying fuck about victims of Katrina, kids blown to pieces in Iraq or the fact that this country has a good number of closet homosexuals who are on a crusade to criminalize their own kind. Black people have been handed the short end of the stick sometime ago and while I cannot speak for them, I can only imagine what they feel every time they see some smart ass decides to burn a cross or hang the rope on a tree.

What would you do?

MM - This whole thing has been reported very oddly by the media. Leaving things out like the fact that the white victim was sucker punched into oblivion and then beat is an important fact in my opinion.

I also agree that the law should be blind, and that hate crimes have never, and never really can be applied fairly. It is up to an opinion and opinions are always biased.

Sharpton does seem to want to make it legal for black people to beat up white people without the fear of real justice. Ludacris, and sad at best.

My fear is that if these protestors do succeed, they will get off scott free and set a dangerous precedent in the area. Wouldn't that also mean that whites could also beat up blacks, just to fix a "wrong"?

I also would love to know what Sharpton would have said if asked whether both parties (noose guys and the Jena 6) should be charged with hate crimes. Or simply what the charges brought against both parties should be. Would love to hear him answer that.

According to Guardian (full article) :

"The beating victim, Justin Barker, was knocked unconscious, his face badly swollen and bloodied, though he was able to attend a school function later that night."

That my friend is a normal outcome of a fight. You don't lock people up for a scuffle that generates several bruises. Shit like that happened on an every day basis when I was growing up and nobody complained. You want to prove something and hang a noose? Then you better be able to stand the ground. In this case there were several incidents that led to the final fight and it sounds like both parties had scores to settle. They wanted to fight, they got a fight.

From snopes.com-
"During a fight that broke out in the lunchroom between a white student and black student, the white student was hit from behind, knocked out, then set upon by other black students who proceeded to kick and stomp his "lifeless" body ass he lay unconsious on the floor."
http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/jena6.asp

That soes not sound like a typical fight to me. Stomping someone in the head, who is unconsious (which seems to be the case considering he was treated for head and face injuries) is trying to kill that person. Maybe that didn't cross the minds of the attackers as they were doing it, but that is what it seems to me to be.

I can't seem to find exactly what injuries the vistim sustained, would like to know that if anyone can find it. Stitches, broken face bones? All could be fixed in 3 hours at an ER, if it wasn't crowded.

BTW the victim was not involved in the noose incident. This guy was apparently unrelated.

If the attackers weren't attempting to murder the guy, how is it attempted murder? What's aggravated assault these days, or ADW for that matter? The white students should get expelled for behavior unbecoming a student, have to go to fuckin' reform school or get their GED, and the guys who beat the fuck out of the white kid should be expelled, arrested and charged with felony aggravated assault or ADW. A stomping isn't attempted murder, and hanging nooses isn't a hate crime. Actually filling the nooses would have been a hate crime.

In one of the articles I've seen, they indicated that three months passed between when the nooses were hung and the beating took place, during which time the kids involved had no disciplinary problems, played sports together, etc. So what happened after three months?

I hate it when people jump on a protest cause just for the sake of it. It kind of seems like that's what's going on. Never ceases to amaze me when people rally around to support those who commit crimes. Just makes no sense to me.

If your kicking an unconscious guy in the head..what are you accomplishing other than "trying" to kill him? Hanging a noose from a tree is a silent statement..while not correct it was still somewhat peaceful. Kicking a man while he's down is just plain being an animal.

If 'The Guardian' newspaper from England is your primary source of information, that certainly explains a lot. Especially the previous post that you wrote.

It doesn't seem like they are telling the whole story. Why would that be?

..........................

The national media didn't pick up the story until recently. Now that the racial industry hucksters are involved it has become a national story.

It didn't meet the media requirements for a national story. First of all, it involved a crime where a group of black people had beaten up a white. That is not worthy of national attention according to media playbooks. Those that are doing some reporting on the story are also intentionally leaving out the fact that the defendant that was recently up for sentencing already had numerous prior convictions for violent crimes.

Secondly it is very difficult to find what political party the LaSalle Parish District Attorney is affiliated.

He is now being described as a racist and a "Jim Crow" politician on many websites. No legitimate media articles are mentioning under which political party he was elected.

Therefore it may be safe to assume that the DA in Jena is a Democrat or a member of some other party. If he were a Republican and could be portrayed as a racist, then the national media would have jumped on the story a long time ago.

So, yes. The media handling is strange but not unexpected due to their typical modus opendi.

Have you ever heard of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom? I'm willing to bet that you haven't. It was one of the most gruesome and violent kidnapping/rape/murder stories to come along in years. The mainstream media refused to make a national issue of the story because the victims were white and the perpetrators were black.

They also feared the story because the white male victim was also gang raped by all of the black male perpetrators. Among all of the other crimes that occurred.

Quote:

Sharpton does seem to want to make it legal for black people to beat up white people without the fear of real justice. Ludacris, and sad at best.

Sharpton cares about only one thing: Al Sharpton.

He couldn't give a damn about black people, white people, yellow people, any people. He only cares about advancing himself, his image, his national profile and his wallet.

Ludacris, and sad at best.[/qb][/QUOTE]Sharpton cares about only one thing: Al Sharpton.

He couldn't give a damn about black people, white people, yellow people, any people. He only cares about advancing himself, his image, his national profile and his wallet.[/QB][/QUOTE]

AMEN! You nailed it!

As animalistic as it may be, kicking someone in the head doesn't indicate an attempt to murder that person. Shit, I've kicked lots of people in the head, and as far as I know, they're still alive. And I've been kicked in the head myself more times than I can remember, and not only am I alive (and kickin'--ha!), I can still spell better than this motherfucker:

Hey, I'm just sayin'.

Who the hell are you trying to bullshit? You've never kicked anyone in the head. If someone looked at you crooked, you would shit in your pants. You cry about videos on the internet.

You also don't know what the hell you are talking about. A prosecutor can sure as hell charge people with attempted murder if they are repeatedly kicking someone in the head. Especially someone who is unconscious. That clearly is an example of intending to inflict serious and possibly deadly harm to another individual. Prosecutors file numerous charges for an incident. It doesn't mean they will all stick, but they can bring all applicable charges forward.

QUOTE]alive (and kickin'--ha!QUOTE]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIRHZ2lFeIA

honestly, i can't say anything that hasn't been said. all i know is race relations will be better once jackson and sharpton die. they do more to stress relations. still waiting for them to apologize to the duke lacross guys (unless i missed it....)

I really just want to move to Montana someday. Society has become a world of shit and i'm living in the toilet called Florida.

well, i saw on the news this evening that there were 2 colleges up here in md (baltimore) protesting along with those people down there in LA. some had actually left baltimore to go down there and protest. it just doesnt make sense to me at all. we're no where close to LA but it seems to effect areas like baltimore just as much.

The whole thing is ridiculous.

Some white kids act tough and shit, and hang nooses on a tree outside school. Big tough guys...

Takes some time, and people find out who the little pussies were.

Then the little pussies get the shit beat out of them. Serves them right.

It's a school fight, nothing more, nothing less. The kid couldn't have been beaten all that bad if he went to a school game that same frickin' night.

If 6 guys are beating on a person with intent to murder, which is what they're charged with, no way in hell does that "victim" get checked out of the hospital the same day...

Come on. This whole case has been blown out of proportion. If the white kids that hung the noose were suspended from school like they SHOULD have been, and like the principal of the school recommended, then NONE of this would have happened.

I'm not condoning violence, in this case, but the white kid got what he deserved, and nobody was killed. Seems like "justice" has already been done. Nobody, on either side, ought to be held on charges or go to trial, at this point; both sides of the argument already handled their shiite.

(BTW: I'm white. So Madman and any of you other lackies want to try to hang that Sharpton crap on me again... STFU! You don't know what you're talking about.)

Bull shit. Hanging a noose is done to intimidate. Plain and simple. Not quite as "spectacular" as burning a cross, but it's the same kind of cowardly crap done by white trash that are too big of pussies to stand up and say something in somebody's face without a hood on.

It's pathetic. Can't prove intent... Bull shit. Crap like this has been going on in the South for over a hundred and fifty years. What the fuck do you THINK hanging a noose is for? Decoration? It wasn't Halloween. Wake up.

edited to add:
And to further clarify my "I'm white" comment from before. I have 3 BLACK brothers and 1 BLACK sister. All adopted. But they are no less my brothers and sisters than the WHITE ones by birth. Any son of a bitch says anything to my face about the color of their skin, or tries to intimidate them with cowardly acts like hanging a noose, and I'd be the first to take a fucking bat to their head.

I can't stand Al Sharpton or Jessie Jackson. But I ALSO can't stand poor white trash that act like they're better than someone because they're "white".

If you do things intentionally to terrorize or intimidate someone, aka, hanging a noose, you better hope your intimidation worked, or else they're gonna' stand up and kick your ass. Hope it's worth it to 'ya to take the risk...

The protest was heavily promoted on black radio stations, web sites, political activist web sites, and even on college campuses in many parts of the country.

Many colleges arranged buses to bring students down there to protest.

Yes, I do read international news. Surprise, CNN and Fox are not the only news channels!

For those of us who like only American News, here is a quote from Fox for you:

"The victim of the Dec. 4 beating, Justin Barker, was treated at a hospital for injuries and released the same day. The motive for the attack was never established, but it came amid tense race relations in Jena, a mostly white town of 3,000 in north-central Louisiana. Three nooses had been hung in a tree at the school earlier, and the students involved were briefly suspended."

Full article.

The guy was released the same day. It is called a fight and some minor injuries. Having a gun shoved down your throat is an attempted murder. Missing a tooth or being knocked out is a result of a physical interaction. What else did you expect to have in a town where a school has an "all-white" tree? Considering all things, that bafoon is lucky to be alive. Getting kicked an beated by 6 guys and he spent only a day at a hospital? In my opinion they did not do a good enough job to be tried for aggregated assault.

You are completely full of shit porsche.

This garbage sounds like more of your warped "Civil Rights Academy".

According to you cops suck and white guys deserve to get beaten for allegedly hanging mock nooses from trees.

Maybe you think a noose is some sign of oppression or something, but it doesn't give anyone a legal license to go out and beat people up.

Maybe the kid who was beaten was alright a few hours later. It makes no difference. He could have just as easily been dead a few hours later.

The intent was the same. You can't seem to grasp that concept. I'm beginning to think you don't grasp a lot of legal concepts.

You also don't seem to grasp the fact that the kid who came up for sentencing has a history of violent crime and assualt.

..........................

You may read other news sources, but it doesn't seem you are aware of the sources you are reading.

Your link is an Associated Press article, not anything created by FOX.

Have you ever actually been to the South? Stuff like this happens damn near EVERY day. Either some white kid mouths off and gets beat, or some black kid mouths off and gets beat. This situation isn't any different, except for whatever reason, the county prosecutor decided to go after the 6 instead of the original 3.

"allegedly hanging mock nooses from trees." Open your fucking eyes. There was no, "Allegedly", and there was no, "mock nooses". They hung REAL nooses from a tree on the fucking school property. And why? Because the WHITE kids didn't want the BLACK kids to sit under "their" tree before school... You seriously need to wake the fuck up and take a look at the real world around you...

Yes. I DO think it's ok for a white coward that hung up a noose to get his ass beat. He knew the potential consequences when he was hanging the rope...

Legal to beat 'em? Nope. Not legal at all. But it's vigilante justice to the coward that hung the rope, because the local cops and school administration wouldn't do anything about it.

I'm telling you right now, if there are 6 people with the intent to KILL another one in a beating, that victim doesn't go home from the hospital the same day. Sorry. Not buying that. There was intent to beat down, but not kill. Hell, even a good beat down puts you in the hospital for a few days... Unless this white kid's last name is, "Norris", I'd say the 6 guys had no intention to kill him, and really didn't even beat him all that fucking bad.

Can't kids have a fight on the "playground" without somebody getting all pissy?? People like you are the reason why you can't even play friggin' dodgeball in school anymore. Candy ass.

Maybe you didn't know, but hanging up a noose to intimidate ain't legal, either. According to most state laws, that's, "Terroristic Threatening". Look it up. In Kentucky, hanging a noose on school property would violate section KRS 508.078, Terroristic Threatening in the Second Degree. It's a Class D felony.

For the 6 that beat 'em down, in KY, they would have violated section 508.020, Assault in the 4th Degree, because no weapon was used. That's a Class A misdemeanor.

I don't know LA's laws, obviously. But if something like this happened in Kentucky, the 3 boys that hung the nooses would be looking facing 1-5 years of jail time, and the 6 that beat up 1 of 'em would be looking at 3 months to 1 year of time. Hmm... Tell me again which one is the "greater" of the crimes?

So where's your overwhelming support to send the first set of CRIMINALS to court for hanging the noose?

Yeah. Didn't think so you two faced piece of crap. Guess maybe I do know a little about the law, afterall... So bite me.

Ahh. I see you like to try people for things they may, or may not have done in the past, for current events. Hmm... Nice to see you're "fair and balanced" with your thoughts on this one... Last time I checked, juvy records aren't available to the public. How the hell do you know what "history" he does or does not have? Better yet, why does that even matter?

Evidently you think it's OK to hang nooses to intimidate people? Tell me something. Can you see well enough through those little slits in your hood when you're hanging up ropes, or burning crosses?