Rev. Jackson Hits ‘Right-Wing Backlash,’ Asking Federal Hearing to Bring Justice to Jena

Rainbow PUSH support families with Grandparents, Resource Fair

CHICAGO (September 22, 2007) – The quest for justice in Jena, La., requires hearings at the federal level, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr., founder and president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, said during today’s live international broadcast of the Saturday Morning Forum. “Jena is a biopsy of the cancer of the criminal justice system,” Rev. Jackson said. “The right-wing backlash is taking away our rights, our votes – and making a profit.”

Rev. Jackson spoke here after participating in a massive demonstration Thursday in Jena. Thousands rallied in support of the Jena 6 and Mychal Bell, who was arrested last year with five other African American students after a white student was beaten during racial unrest in the rural Louisiana town. Bell initially was charged with attempted murder using a deadly weapon – his sneakers – but his conviction on a lesser battery charge was thrown out when a state appeals court ruled he had been improperly tried as an adult because he was 16 at the time of his arrest.

Bell has spent nine months in an adult jail with an excessively high bail of $130,000. He is now in a juvenile holding facility but last week was denied bail pending trial in the juvenile court.

Alleging prosecutorial misconduct, Rev. Jackson called for a federal hearing conducted by U.S. Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) of the House Judiciary Committee to investigate the continuing role of the same judge and district attorney in Bell’s trial as a juvenile.

“Jena is not just Jena; there is a Jena everywhere,” Rev. Jackson said. “This is not the start of a new civil rights movement – it is an extension of it. The battle with Jena is not over. Jena must inspire us to go back home and fight the criminal justice system.”

Rev. Jackson saluted broadcasters who helped bring together the Jena demonstrations. “Congratulations to Michael Baisden, NAACP, Dennis Hayes, Nelson Rivers, Ernest Johnson, Rev. Al Sharpton, Steve Harvey, Frank Ski, Rickey Smiley, Cliff Kelley, clergy and all other participants,” Rev. Jackson said. “This is Black radio’s finest hour.”

Following the Saturday Morning Forum, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition joined with Peoples Gas, Com Ed, and the Cook County Economic Development Association (CEDA) to host the GRANDFamilies Program of Chicago’s First Annual Grandparents and Resource Fair.

“CEDA values and supports grandparents who have so lovingly and willingly taken on the responsibility to raise their grandchildren,” said Robert L. Wharton, president and CEO of CEDA. “We salute the work that GRANDFamilies and PUSH does every day.” GRANDFamilies Resource Fair supports grandparents raising children by allowing them to meet with utility companies and discuss obtaining assistance on their utility bills.

“We are pleased to welcome the Grandparents and Senior Forum as part of the First Annual Grandparent and Senior Resource Fair,” said Rev. Jackson. “This program ensures that our community’s needs are met, from our young people to our seniors and their families.”

Source: Rainbow PUSH Coalition

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