Jena Six

About Jena Six

Jena Six is the name given to a group of six black teenagers who were charged with the beating of Justin Barker, a white teenager at Jena High School in Jena, Louisiana, United States, on December 4, 2006. The Jena Six case sparked protests by those viewing the arrests and subsequent charges, such as attempted murder, as excessive and racially discriminatory. The protesters believed that white Jena youths involved in other incidents were treated leniently. On September 20, 2007, between 10,000 and 20,000 protesters marched on Jena in what was described as the "largest civil rights demonstration in years." Related protests were held in other U.S. cities on the same day.

At Jena High School, about 10% of students are black and more than 80% are white. Early reporting indicated that students of different races seldom sat together, although this has been disputed. According to early reports, black students typically sat on bleachers near the auditorium, while white students sat under a large tree, referred to as the "white tree" or "prep tree," in the center of the school courtyard. According to some of the school's teachers and administrators, the tree in question was not a "white tree," and students of all races had sat under it at one time or another.

A school assembly was held on August 31, 2006. According to media reports, a black male freshman asked the principal whether he could sit under the tree. According to Donald Washington, United States Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana, the principal stated that the question was posed in a "jocular fashion." The principal told the students they could "sit wherever they wanted." According to some reports, the freshman and his friends then sat under the tree.