IN THE aftermath of the controversyin Jena, Louisiana, civil rights advocates such as Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have been quick to argue that the demonstrations are the start of a new civil rights movement. While this discourse may have been powerful during the heady days at the height of the protest, it will be impossible to replicate the success and the energy of the sixties.
While social inequalities and institutionalized racism continue in American society, the draconian sentences doled out by the La Salle County district attorney represented a rare instance of visible, governmental racial bias. Although the old tactics of marches and protests are somewhat effective measures against incidents such as the Jena sentencing, which exhibit blatant racial bias, movement leaders must embrace new tactics in order to successfully combat the bulk of modern manifestations of racial inequality. By dropping the metaphor relating this generations efforts to the struggles of the 1960s civil rights leader and public commentators acknowledge that the manifestation of racial inequality has radically evolved over the past 50 years, and, in so doing, help focus attention on the new tactics that will be needed to address today's problems.
The controversy which catapulted the sleepy town of Jena Louisiana into the national consciousness started at unassuming Jena High School. The events began when a group of black students sat under a tree that had traditionally been a white hang out area. In response, three white students draped nooses from the tree as an act of intimidation against the black students.
Tensions came to a head when six black students got into a school fight with one white student, sending him to the hospital for a brief stay. The District Attorney representing Jena and the surrounding area through more flame on the fire when he charged the six students with attempted murder -- a charge which carries a potential sentence of up to 80 years in prison. As the controversy over the incident spread, civil rights leaders were drawn into the protest organizing a demonstration in which thousands of protestors congregated in Jena last Thursday.
As the national media descended on Jena to cover the brewing controversy they discovered that black and white residents had starkly different perspectives on the issues. Many black residents have argued that the case represented just one instance of the institutional bias against African-Americans common to the local criminal justice system. Cleveland Riser, a 75-year-old former school superintendent told an Associated Press reporter, "What this boils down to is: Why is there a double standard?"
Anecdotal reports from black Jenans are backed up by studies of racial bias in the Louisiana criminal justice system. For example, one study conducted by researchers at Louisiana State University and cited in an article published by the Associated Press noted that "black youths were four times as likely to be sent to the state's chaotic juvenile prisons as whites with similar records for the same types of crime"
Although instances of racial bias within the criminal justice system may not be unique to the Jena cases, the degree of prosecutorial abuse -- and, not incidentally, the public outcry -- was truly uncommon. While sentencing high school student to decades long sentences for a high school fight is a clear instance of inappropriate prosecution, the vast majority of the cases of racial bias are much less visible. While both white and black offenders are sentenced to punishments that are within the range of accepted punishments for a given crime, within this range whites commonly receive more lenient penalties than black offenders. A study conducted by the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana, a law and advocacy grouping supported by Southern Poverty Law Center, noted that "White youth are more likely to receive probation or non-secure care than African-American youths adjudicated of delinquent offenses."
While rallies and protests may prove effective in addressing the injustices perpetrated on the "Jena Six," such a model will do little for the vast majority of victims of judicial prejudice. By summoning the metaphor of a "new Civil Rights Movement" advocates and commentators present a false image of the nature of racial bias in modern America. When civil rights leaders like Al Sharpton call on this false metaphor they build an unrealistic expectation that progress can be attained through dramatic events like the Jena demonstrations, with its lavish media attention and its definite conclusion.
Although the events surrounding the Jena 6 have been a cathartic experience for many Americans, national civil rights leaders should emphasize the unique aspects of the case, and call on individuals to focus their energies on the less glorious work of pressuring political figures to take actions to address this inequality by instituting measures such as sentencing guidelines which leave less room for unequal sentencing by prosecutors, judges and juries. This way, leaders can build on the momentum generated by the events in Louisiana, and work towards lasting change.
Adam Keith's column appears Tuesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at akeith@cavalierdaily.com.
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