John Conyers: “in the 21st century, there are some things that I had hoped we would have put behind us as a society. As we move to…”

“in the 21st century, there are some things that I had hoped we would have put behind us as a society. As we move to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ``Little Rock Nine,'' there are things that I had hoped today's children would not need to suffer. But as the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, I know that we are still in search of equal justice across this Nation. There are still places where the progress of the civil rights era have not fully taken hold. The tragedy of the Jena-6, which is unfolding right now before the eyes of the Nation, shows us that we still have some distance to travel before putting the demons of the past behind us. The controversy dates back to August 2006 when black students at Jena High School attempted to sit under a tree where white students socialized exclusively. The following day, three white students, who would later be punished only with suspensions, hung nooses from the tree. A series of racially charged episodes involving off-campus violence soon followed the noose incident.”