Imagine a small southern town, population 4,000. It’s a fairly quiet town, relatively unknown except to surrounding towns and cities. Now imagine 20,000 angry protestors bussed into that same town from across the country.

This was the scene in Jena, La., on Thursday.

Fueled by outrage and hope, the crowd was evidence of the largest civil rights demonstration the nation has seen in years.

The roots of this fight go back to September 2006, when a black student at Jena High School asked permission to sit under a tree, known as a common ground for only white students. Innocent enough, right?

Not so much when three nooses were found hanging from the same tree the following day. Now, anyone can see that this was not merely a practical joke – it was a racially prejudiced act reminiscent of a violent and discriminatory past.

This was a threat reminiscent of lynching. The students behind the act, however, were given a measly slap on the wrist as punishment. They only received in-school suspension.

Once word of the social unrest at the school got out, the entire town of Jena got involved. Tensions rose between blacks and whites and violence began to settle small disputes in school and around town.

The district attorney was called to speak to the black students of Jena High School. He reportedly explained to students that he “could take [their] lives away with the stroke of [his] pen.” He also remained idle when addressing violent acts against black students.

On Dec. 4, 2006, Justin Barker, a white student at Jena, reportedly taunted black students at school. Barker was beaten unconscious and taken to the hospital. Six black students were arrested just after. While Mychal Bell, Robert Bailey Jr., Carwin Jones, Bryant Purvis, Theo Shaw and Jesse Ray Beard were charged with attempted second-degree murder and conspiracy, Barker returned to school that day and later attended a school social function that evening.

Yes, they did beat someone up. Yes, he did end up in the hospital. And yes, they deserved punishment for their actions. The last time I checked, however, arrest and murder charges were not the proper punishments for a schoolyard fight. Of course, it was an unfair fight. But so was Bell’s trial.

Bell, 17, was tried as an adult in June 2007. He was the first of the six to be tried. After less than two days, an entirely white jury convicted Bell of aggravated battery and conspiracy, sentencing him to up to 22 years in prison.

While Bell is still in jail, his charges were dropped because he was only 16 at the time of the crime and should have been charged as a minor.

He is still waiting for further action from the district attorney, who refused to lower Bell’s $90,000 bail based on Bell’s previous offenses as a minor.

Bailey, Jones and Shaw also saw their charges reduced to battery and conspiracy.

Information on Beard is unavailable because he was only 14 at the time of the offense and is being held as a minor. Purvis is awaiting arraignment.

Thursday’s protest involved an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 people – and that only includes those in Jena at the time. Campaigns to wear black or green clothes, armbands and any other awareness-raising media went on across the country, including Elon.

Students wore green or black, and some even had black armbands displaying “Jena 6” in white. A nation, outraged and adamant for justice, is still fighting and rallying support.

Common sense was asked of our nation because we can remember. It is still asked of us today. Common sense without preconceived notions or judgment. That’s all it takes.

Columnist: Jennifer Hempel - 09/26/07