A Noose is More than A Prank

Did you know that hanging a noose is nothing more than a prank? Well that’s what the folks down at the Jena Times are saying, as they clearly stated that “there was no racial motivation behind the nooses and that the incident was a prank.” They went further to state that (the oppressors in Jena), “They honestly had no knowledge of the history concerning nooses and black citizens. This may seem hard to believe for some people, but this is exactly what everyone on the committee determined.” Sherrilyn Ifill, a law professor at the University of Maryland, concurred with the statements from the Jena Times as she stated that, “many white people are unaware of the incredible power of the lynching story for African Americans”.That was a hard pill to swallow as between between 1882 and 1968, there were a documented 4,743 lynchings in the United States, and most victims were black men.

4,743 documented cases and many white people are unaware that most blacks will not see the hanging of a noose as a harmless prank. I’m not believing that. Ask any Jewish person if a swastika painted on the side of a building is a harmless prank. I believe that their sentiments will echo those of the black population with their feelings toward the situation not only towards Jena but of the rise of noose hangings across the country. If what Sherrilyn Ifill is saying is true than we must question the reliability of our educational system in America, as Davidson alludes to in his article.

4,743 documented cases. A FBI report states that 67% of all hate crimes were against Blacks/African Americans. Yet many whites are unaware of the terror that the noose was in the chronicle of African American history.

So here’s a question: what are people (predominately white) trying to gain by stating that all recent noose hanging activities have been “pranks”? Do they believe that we will simply pass it off as a prank or will we (as a minority) finally fight for equality?

Sources:

• “Jena is More than Jena and a Noose is more than a Nuisance” by James West Davidson
• “Resurgence of nooses reminds African Americans of past horrors” by Leslie Fulbright