The Jena Six case has underlined the way race and class bias continue to influence criminal justice in the United States. Long-haired celebrity civil rights attorney Tom Mesereau recently deconstructed the case to a full crowd at the California African American Museum in Los Angeles. For white Americans, he argued, the bias is easy to ignore because it’s more difficult to see, because on some level, even now, it can take a willingness, a cognitive leap, to initially recognize. For black Americans, however, race bias is a part of everyday experience and it’s a glaring, even defining, part of the criminal justice system, where the deck is stacked and the consequences enormous. (eg, It’s annoying on the corner when you’re trying to hail a taxi and terrifying in the courtroom when you’re waiting in the dock.)

The event was part of the organization’s Urban Issues Breakfast Forum, which has hosted speakers such as Sen. Obama, Rev. Jesse Jackson and Marcus Garvey’s son, Dr. Julius Garvey.

Tags: jena 6, race, tom mesereau