Jena 6 Controversy the United

Jena 6 Controversy

The United States claims equality and tolerance as part of its national policy. While this has been somewhat challenged since the 9/11 attacks, many Americans still feel that the country advocates the values of humanity over those of racial or ethnic segregation. It is therefore tragic when racial conflicts and hatred attacks occur, particularly among the young. One example of such a case is the "Jena Six" controversy.

The case involves six black high school students who were arrested on charges of allegedly trying to beat a white classmate to death. One of the young men, Mychal Bell, was recently released, as the court ruled that he should not have been charged as an adult, because he was only 16 years old at the time of the fight (Kovach, 2007). The others, whose charges remain in the adult category, had their charges reduced from attempted murder, which were ruled to be overly harsh.

The case has had a significant impact upon the community of Jena, as well as country wide. Not only local black residents, but many outsiders, hold that the murder charges were indeed overly harsh. The reasons cited for this is that no murder weapons were involved, and only tennis shoes were used as fighting instruments. The white victim was also not so seriously injured that he had to remain in hospital for even a full day (Kovach, 2007).

Being racial in nature, the case has also attracted the attention of civil rights activists, bloggers and black radio hosts. Many of these persons criticized the events leading to the court case and conviction, citing unequal justice as their opinion on the matter. Indeed, even the Rev. Jesse Jackson has been inspired to fight for justice until all the charges against the Jena 6 are dropped, and the American Civil Liberties Union is investigating the case for possible evidence of racial disparity. Kovach cites studies finding that African-Americans are incarcerated at nearly six times the rate of whites. Many reasons are cited for this, including the poverty level of certain ethnic groups, as well as the assumption of criminality that is associated not only with the poverty level, but also with the specific ethnic group.

It appears that the Jena 6 controversy is simply a school boy fight that escalated out of control. I do not believe that it should have gone beyond the school board in terms of disciplinary action. If I were an educational official, I would have handled the situation differently, via a number of steps. After obtaining the medical treatment needed for the victim, my first step would have been to speak to all the parties involved, and find out all the facts about the case. I would then call in the parents of each student, and have a conference with them and the students in order to find ways in which similar future events could be averted. Finally, I would confer with the parents to determine a punishment appropriate for the perpetrators of the violence. If this were ineffective, and the same students engaged in violence again, I would only then involve the help of the police and the court. I would however still not advocate murder charges.

The way in which the situation was handled has brought about many negative side effects. Jena is now in a position where its reputation is at stake. The initial charges against the six are very serious, and may set a precedent for the rest of their lives. I tend to be in agreement with advocates for civil rights, in that these charges were somewhat harsh. The new developments in the sentences are also not likely to mitigate the increasing racial tensions relating to the controversy.

Community leaders and educators would also have done well to consider the events leading to the attack. Racial tensions have been increasingly high in the town, with nothing done by education officials or others to mitigate the situation. One example is that white students hung nooses on a tree under which black students were standing earlier. This incident itself resulted in fights between white and black students at the school. The most severe of these is then the assault by the Jena 6. The difference between how white and black offenders are treated should also be taken into consideration.

The students who hung the nooses were briefly suspended, while several black parents felt that this punishment was not severe enough (Jones, 2007).

These tensions were not mitigated by school officials, and it seems to be little wonder that it culminated in more severe attacks. The way in which the whole situation was handled from the start of the tensions therefore contributed to the current controversy.

As a school official, I would have monitored the situation right from its start. Any dissatisfaction among parents or students would have been dealt with right away. Parents and students would be called into my office for a conference regarding grievances. This conference would then provide the opportunity for everybody to voice their grievances in a controlled session. As it was, the situation may have been exacerbated in the students' homes as well, by parents who were frustrated with the apparent unfairness of the school system.

The community's reaction can also be used as an indicator of how effective the actions taken towards remedying the situation were. Not only the local community at Jena, but also critics from all over the country have voiced their concern and frustration with the system that convicted the Jena 6. Indeed, the very fact that the charges were reduced demonstrates that they were too harsh in the first place.