Jena 6 and Others

On the morning radio talk shows, I listen intently to coverage of Jena 6 and the situation with the six young Black boys in Jena, La. This morning on the Steve Harvey Morning Show, Steve talked with the Rev. Jesse Jackson. I admired his probing questions about what can be done, what purposeful action can be taken to make a difference where these boys' lives are concerned. And, while I am thrilled that a situation that for too long languished in obscurity, off the radar screen of the mainstream media, I think of all of the others who will not be known as the "Jena 6" or by any other name, but will suffer the same fate.

I am glad that Steve Harvey had to the wherewithal to call out the culprit of this injustice, the insidious force that caused six high school boys to be railroaded through the legal system. This same force caused them to be in this precarious situation of having to wonder and wait to see if their futures will be spent in freedom or behind prison walls, and all for what equates to nothing more than a schoolyard fight. That force, the culprit, the only person, place, or thing that should be standing trial right now is racism. Too many of our news reporters and media personalities are afraid to use the word. Thanks, Steve Harvey, for making it plain.

I used to work for an organization that had as its mission the promotion of racial justice and the proliferation of a racial justice movement in this society. I felt privileged to have as my career a position that required me to scrutinize the many ways that people of color are discriminated against, held back, held up, subjugated, and overlooked. In this day and time, people say, it is hard to believe that this type of injustice persists. I say, in any day and time, it is just plain wrong.

Unfortunately, I cannot be among those persons who will be traveling to Jena, La. on Sept. 20th to show support for Mychal Bell, the first of the six boys to face sentencing. I hope it is not too late for Mr. Bell. I pray that the spirit of God will descend upon the judge and anoint him with a sense of justice in delivering his interpretation of a fair and equitable punishment to fit the "crime." I pray that the judge will not use Mr. Bell's prior record or history against him as he levys the sentence. I pray that some of the pressure that has been applied by anti-racism and civil rights advocates falls upon his heart and his ears on that day as he renders the decision. Oh, for these things I pray unceasingly.

But I also pray for the other boys and girls--the nameless, faceless young men and women who are facing unjust persecution today because of the color of their skin. I pray that even though the world may never know them by name, that there are people who will take interest in them, who will care about them enough to help them in their time of need. And I pray the someday I will be able to look at my child, my grandchildren, my great-grandchildren and not think about the need to teach them about an ugly word such as racism because by then it will have ceased to exist.

In the meantime, I think I will write to Mychal Bell in prison, to send him some encouragement and uplift as he sits in jail waiting for sentencing. If you'd like to write to Mychal, send letters to:

Mychal Bell Inmate, A-Dorm LaSalle Correctional Center 15976 Highway 165 Olla, LA 71465-4801

I'm BAAAAAAAACK!

It's been a long time. I can't believe how fast the months fly by. When I checked back to the blog, I noticed that I last posted in February 2006 and now it's almost the end of '07. Well, so much has happened since I last posted. I have a new job. I work for local government now. Went from the big city (D.C.) to a small town. And I went from the private sector to the public sector -- BIG DIFFERENCE! But as with all things, time allows for adjustment and I'm settling in ok. It's weird because people always said that working for the government there is so much job security. I mean, people said to me that you literally have to embezzle money or something outlandish like that to be fired. Not true. There are folks where I work that are so concerned about possibly losing their job that if you hand them a nice thank-you note, they look at you with fear and wonder whether there is a pink slip inside. It's real like that.

But a friend of mine (well, two friend, actually) sent me links to their blogs recently. They were my inspiration for getting back into the swing of things. And also, my new job allows me to get home much earlier than before. I have time to have a life again, to do something beyond commuting to and from work every morning and night. You'd think with all that extra time I'd be writing a book, or starting a business. Unfortunately, inspiration comes in waves with me. I'd rather attempt (for the 99th time) to go back to the gym on a regular basis, or just catch up with some reading (books and magazines) that I've let slide. The trick is finding balance. Taking time for me and not crowding my schedule with "too much" of any one thing.

Anyway, I'm going to try to write something every day -- whether it's an interesting thing that happened to me or someone I know, or an insightful analysis of something in the recent news headlines, or just some questions that may require us to pause and think. And if I am able to contribute something to this vast blogosphere that people find interesting and/or enlightening, then so be it. If not, that's okay too. But it will be fun just going through the motions.

God bless!