"Identity and Justice" Jena, Louisiana 2007

"Identity and Justice" Jena, Louisiana 2007

This photograph, taken at the 2007 Jena Six protest, features a handwritten sign that cuts through the legal and historical complexities of the case to identify the single root cause of the injustice. The sign states: "It ain't where you @ It's where you're BLACK!"

This powerful, colloquial slogan serves as a direct, blunt accusation against the legal system. It dismisses arguments about the details of the school fight or the specific location of the incident, asserting instead that the disproportionate and excessive charges brought against the six Black teenagers were purely a result of their racial identity. The use of an "@" symbol for "at" gives the sign a contemporary, grassroots feel, suggesting it was written by someone who understood the day-to-day reality of racial profiling and double standards.

By claiming that Black identity, rather than criminal action, determined the severity of the charges, the protester articulates the movement's central grievance: that the criminal justice system was not being applied fairly, but was instead functioning as an instrument of racial oppression. This sign functions as a clear statement that, despite the progress of the Civil Rights Movement, the decisive factor in an individual's legal fate remains race.