Six young black men are being charged for attempted murder after they
beat up a white student who taunted them with racial slurs and who
supported other white students who hung three nooses from the high
schools "white tree" after a young black man sat there to have lunch
the day before.
Citizens CAN make a difference by standing up
to this social injustice and demanding Governor Blanco and the corrupt
Distric Attorney to see justice and the harm that this has done
to six young men, their families, the black community of Jena, the
black community of the United States, and to those who fight for human
rights.
Please sign this petition and let your voice be heard.
Dear Governor Blanco,
We the undersigned are writing to
request your intervention into a situation of great injustice taking
place in Jena, LA, as well as a written response to this letter.
Last
fall, when two Black high school students sat under the "white" tree on
their campus, white students responded by hanging nooses from the tree.
When Black students protested the light punishment for the students who
hung the nooses, District Attorney Reed Walters came to the school and
told the students he could "take [their] lives away with a stroke of
[his] pen."
Racial tension continued to mount in Jena, and the
District Attorney did nothing in response to several egregious cases of
violence and threats against black students. But when a white
student--who had been a vocal supporter of the students who hung the
nooses--taunted a black student, allegedly called several black
students "nigger", and was beaten up by black students, six black
students were charged with second-degree attempted murder. Last month,
the first young man to be tried, Mychal Bell, was convicted. Later this
month, he will be sentenced to up to 22 years in prison for a school
fight.
We would like to believe that what is happening
in Jena is not consistent with your values, or with what the State of
Louisiana sees as justice. We have asked District Attorney Reed Walters
to drop all charges against the five young men awaiting trial. You
should act immediately to prevent the sentencing of Mychal Bell--the
young man who has already been convicted--via a pardon if necessary.
And you must investigate the conduct of District Attorney Reed Walters,
whose actions are a blatant and unacceptable abuse of power, to begin
the process of healing in Jena and to make sure this never happens
again. As citizens of the United States of America, we are shocked and
appalled that something so heinous could go unknown to our leaders and
the people whom we have elected into office.
As always we thank you for your time and hope to hear from you soon.
