Jackson and Nagin inspire crowd in afternoon heat
Rev. Jesse Jackson addressed the crowd as only he can. In the early afternoon when others had left (more on that later) Rev. Jackson excited a crowd that seemed to have grown weary from the heat. I know that CNN has run clips, but here are some of the highlights I got from Rev. Jackson's speech:
"End the War in Iraq, Invest in America, put America back to work."
"Fight for Katrina AND Jena."
"5 g of crack – mandatory sentence; 500 g of cocaine – probation."
"Jena is just a biopsy of a bigger cancer.
"Don't walk in Jean if you don't vote at home."
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin also had words for the crowd that was gathered in from of the LaSalle Parish Courthouse. When Rev. Jackson introduced Nagin, he received a warm greeting from the crowd.
Nagin said, "I have young sons, I as a parent am concerned about (something like) that happening to a young man, especially a young black man." He went on to say, "When my kids do something wrong, they should be held accountable. But I don’t want them to be overcharged and in jail when they should be in school." Mayor Nagin went on to march with other attendees to Jena's Ward 10 Park which was about 4 miles from the courthouse.
