The Seattle Times: Privilege is the trump card, and not just in rural Jena

[SeattleGirl]

Add to American shorthand on racial inequality Jena Six, the now-famous case of six black high-school students who face outsized versions of justice for allegedly beating up a white classmate.

The case is nearly a year old but nationwide attention is recent, in part, because it takes place in rural Jena, La. Attention matters because it helped reduce criminal charges for the six and they no longer face 100 years in prison. Still, justice moves slowly for some of us. One youth remains in jail despite having his conviction by an all-white jury overturned by an appeals court.

Few here in the Northwest knew or cared much about the case until pictures of tens of thousands marching on the rural town made front — page and network television news. Suddenly, those who believed race is an outdated concept suspected something was amiss in the melting pot.

Suspicion was confirmed when President Bush and Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton began speaking about the case and another presidential contender, Barack Obama, was accused of being black and not speaking about it. A whiff of cause célèbre, courtesy of rocker David Bowie and his $10,000 contribution to the Jena Six legal-defense fund, cemented the case's news value.

Entire opinion piece here:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003902581_lynneb26.html

[flashl]

1. * response

President Bush was forced to weigh in. Asked about the planned protest at a news conference, he said the "events in Louisiana have saddened me," and advised whoever is elected next year to "reach out to the African American community."

[SeattleGirl]

2. Whoever is elected NEXT YEAR?

Why? Because you can't be bothered, Bush?

Oh, never mind. I know the answer.