Acclaimed lyricist Mos Def recently spoke about his dissatisfaction by the non-involvement within the hip-hop community concerning the Jena 6 demonstration. “Shame on everybody who’s not here. I’m f*cking mad. I’m disappointed to always be coming to these things and it’s only one or two people [from the music industry here]. If you ain’t gonna use your voice, then be quiet. I’m disappointed and ashamed.”

The rally which took place last week, also had Bun B, from hip-hop duo UGK, in attendance, who drove all the way from TX to attend the demonstration. “I’ve been privy to these small incidents of violence in these all-White towns. We were blessed to find out about the Jena Six and we’re blessed to try to make some type of impact in this community before things went too far.” , Bun B said.

In related news Mos Def and other Artists, Students and Activists Call for a Student Walk out on Monday October 1st To Support the Jena 6:

Artist/Activist Mos Def, Idris Elba, Common, M1, Talib Kweli, MC Lyte,
Pharoahe Monch, the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, Sankofa Community
Empowerment, Change the Game, the National Hip Hop Political Convention,
The Hip-Hop Association, Color of Change and student leaders from over
100 campuses call for a National Student Walk-Out on Monday October 1 at
12 noon central time to support the Jena 6, who are being denied their
human rights by the Louisiana criminal justice system.

For more information: www.mxgm.org and
www.myspace.com/SankofaEmpowerment

SUPPORT THE MOVEMENT !
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CNN Reports…Mychal Bell, a black teenager accused of beating a white classmate and who was the last of the “Jena 6″ behind bars, was released from custody Thursday after a juvenile court judge set his bail at $45,000.
Bell’s release followed an announcement from LaSalle Parish District Attorney Reed Walters, who said he would not appeal a higher court’s decision moving Bell’s case to juvenile court. Wearing a blue striped golf shirt and jeans, Bell walked out of the LaSalle Parish courthouse a week after an estimated 15,000-plus demonstrators marched through Jena — a town of about 3,000 — to protest local authorities’ handling of the teens’ case. “We do not condone violence of any kind, but we ask that people be given a fair and even chance at the bar of justice,” the Rev. Al Sharpton said outside the courthouse. “Tonight, Mychal can go home, but Mychal is not out of the juvenile process. He goes home because a lot of people left their home and stood up for him,” he said.

source CNN

David Bowie has donated $10,000 to a legal defence fund for six black teens charged in an alleged attack on a white classmate in the tiny central Louisiana town of Jena.

The British rocker’s donation to the Jena Six Legal Defense Fund was announced by the NAACP as thousands of protesters were expected to march through Jena on Thursday in defence of Mychal Bell and five other teens. The group has become known as the Jena Six.

“There is clearly a separate and unequal judicial process going on in the town of Jena,” Bowie said Tuesday in an e-mail statement. “A donation to the Jena Six Legal Defense Fund is my small gesture indicating my belief that a wrongful charge and sentence should be prevented.”

Thousands of chanting demonstrators filled the streets of this little Louisiana town Thursday in support of six black teenagers initially charged with attempted murder in the beating of a white classmate. The crowd broke into chants of “Free the Jena Six” as the Rev. Al Sharpton arrived at the local courthouse with family members of the jailed teens. This could be the beginning of a 21st century’s civil rights movement to challenge disparities in the justice system, Sharpton said, adding that he planned a November march in Washington.

Rally on behalf of the Jena 6 will take place this Thursday, September 20, 2007 in Jena, LA. Those who cannot attend are being asked to wear BLACK to show support and those who will attend are asked to wear BLACK as well.  Support Jena 6!

A group of hip-hop artists that includes Chicago vet Twista, Atlanta’s Killer Mike and “Ay Bay Bay” star Hurricane Chris, are scheduled to descend on Birmingham, AL later this month for The “Jena 6” Empowerment Concert. The “Let Freedom Ring Weekend” will raise awareness and show support for the Jena 6 – six black students facing lengthy jail time for an attack on a white schoolmate in Louisiana. Visit freethejena6.org for more information on Mos’ rally.

State appeals court reversed on Friday the only remaining conviction against one of six black teenagers accused in the beating of a white schoolmate in a racially tense Louisiana town. The teenager, Mychal Bell, 17, should not have been tried as an adult, the Third Circuit Court of Appeal said in overturning his conviction for aggravated battery. He had faced up to 15 years in prison. Mr. Bell’s conspiracy conviction for the beating of the schoolmate, Justin Barker, last December, in Jena, had already been thrown out by another court, which ruled that conspiracy was not a charge on which a juvenile could be tried as an adult. The appellate court reached the same conclusion about the battery charge on Friday. It said the charges against Mr. Bell belonged in Juvenile Court. The district attorney, Reed Walters, said he would appeal the ruling to the Louisiana Supreme Court.

Mr. Bell, who was 16 at the time of the attack, and four others were originally charged with attempted second-degree murder and conspiracy. The sixth teenager was a juvenile. The charges brought widespread criticism that blacks were being treated more harshly than whites after racial confrontations and fights at Jena High School. Jena is a mostly white town where racial animosity flared about a year ago after a black student sat under a tree that was a traditional gathering place for whites. A day later, three nooses were found hanging from the tree. Reports of racial fights at the school followed, culminating in the December attack on Mr. Barker. The reversal of Mr. Bell’s conviction will not affect the four other teenagers charged as adults, because they were 17 years old at the time of the fight and not considered juveniles.

But Judge J.P. Mauffray Jr. rejected arguments that, for the same reason, he should throw out the aggravated second-degree battery charge on which Mychal Bell also was convicted. The judge’s decision means Bell will face at most 15 years in prison rather than 22 1/2 when he is sentenced Sept. 20. Bell, the first of the students known as the “Jena Six” to go on trial, was 16 when he was charged with attempted murder of the white student, Justin Barker.
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