Muncie Times, Muncie, Delaware County, 15 November 2007 — Page 33

The Muncie Times • November 1, 2007 • Page 33

continued from page 32 case rejoiced at the news of his release last Friday following the Supreme Court ruling last week. Wilson's has been one among a string of recent high-profile civil rights cases - including Jena Six - that activists have pointed to as examples of racial inequities in America’s criminal justice system. But, even Wilson’s lawyer described the victory as only bitter sweet amidst a system that has not changed. “What’s difficult about this case is the subtle racism here that’s dangerous,” says B. J. Bernstein, the pro-bono lawyer for the teen, in a CNN interview. “[Prosecutors] see the video tape. There’s rap music. Genarlow had dreds at the time. He was a great student, but he looked like a thug on a music video.” Wilson was a football star and Homecoming king who maintained good grades. But, it is often the kind of imagery that Bernstein described - or simply the color of African-American skin - that can cause a predominately White criminal justice system to convict a Black suspect, render an abusive sentence or acquit a law enforcement officer in his/her abuse or death. That is the sentiment expressed by Bernstein as well as other legal experts who have followed the Wilson case. At 17, he was sentenced to a 10year sentence for receiving consensual oral sex from a 15-year-old girl at a New Year’s Eve party Dec. 31, 2003. The legal

age for consensual sex in Georgia is 16. After two years of legal hurdles, Bernstein, who is White, says the picture to her is clear: “If this had been a young man from a wealthy family of Whites I don’t think these 10 years would have been there,” she said in the CNN interview. According to reaction statements that flowed into the NNPA News Service, supporters rejoiced in Wilson's freedom. But only amidst agreement around the nation that the system must be changed. “Today is a day to celebrate a young man’s freedom, but also to rededicate ourselves to the task of correcting the glaring inequities in our criminal justice system that led to his ordeal,” said U. S. Sen. Barack Obama (DI1L). The correcting must take place within the system says the Rev. A1 Sharpton, among the activists who kept the case alive. “The release of Genarlow Wilson by the Georgia Supreme Court is a significant victory in redressing the reckless and biased behavior of the criminal justice system that now operates in many states across the union,” Sharpton says. “The Justice Department and federal government must review state courts that willfully and almost without pause violate the civil rights [of] people, particularly young Black men around this country. We

must continue to fight because Mychal Bell is still in jail and others are under the same state’s rights judicial runaway system.” A national march being organized by Sharpton and others is slated for Nov. 16. He says the march on the Justice Department will serve to “raise the awareness about the Genarlow Wilsons all around the country that still await delayed justice.” Now 21, Wilson says he is headed to college to study sociology or business. He says he is excited about reuniting with his mother, Juannessa, and his 9-year-old sister. Douglas County prosecutors had offered Wilson a plea deal to cut his time significantly if he had confessed to aggravated child molestation, the crime for which he was convicted. But, in confessing he would have labeled himself a sexual predator and the system would not have allowed him to be near his sister, nor other children. The principle alone made his Ireedom worth the wait, he said. Visiting Atlanta’s historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where he worshipped on Sunday, Wilson said, "No words really can explain how thankful I and my family are...The Bible says there's a time and season for everything. I guess that time finally came." He reportedly told reporters at the church that he felt no “negative energy” toward prosecutor David McDade who

fought to keep him in the maximum security prison. Georgia’s General Assembly last year changed the law under which Wilson was convicted, making it a misdemeanor rather than a felony. That was too late for Wilson, who was already serving his time. Short of divine intervention, his last hope was in the Supreme Court, which ruled 4-3 that his sentence "constitutes cruel and unusual punishment." Reflecting on his past in a CNN interview, he said this week, “That night, I don’t think any of us made very wise decisions...It should have been something to teach us a lesson, but I don’t think it should ever have come this far.” Rights activists fear that such court decisions will continue if the system as a whole is not fixed rather than fighting case by case. “The Genarlow Wilson tragedy is another example in an alarming series of cases that demonstrates overly aggressive prosecution against AfricanAmerican youth,” says a statement from Kimberly Alexander, president of the West Metro NAACP Branch, which intervened and fought for Wilson alongside the Douglas County NAACR “Wilson’s case and countless other recent dehumanizing attacks led the NAACP to declare a ‘State of Emergency’ that requires immediate action by local and state authorities as well as the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Congress. The NAACP has called for hearings in Congress and

every community around the nation in order to clearly understand the scope of this problem and most importantly craft viable solutions.” Those solutions are largely in the hands of Black people, says Todci “Black people have to understand that they should use their political and economic muscle and hold Black [lawmakers] accountable as well as White people accountable. This should not be confused by race. Unless this is focused on and dealt with, it will happen again,” he says. Congressional Black Caucus Chair Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (DMich.) says the CBC’s “43 Members representing 40 million Americans from 21 states will continue to confront the crises of injustice and change course to ensure equal protection under the law for all Americans, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, religion, or socioeconomic status.” She continues, “The Wilson case, along with Jena 6, and countless lesser known rulings speak to a systemic flaw in our nation’s criminal justice system. There must be a thorough assessment of both state and federal laws to ensure that the punishment parallels the crime. Overzealous prosecutors must be condemned for allowing their political aspirations to prejudice the judicial process.” The fight will always be worth it, says Georgia Rep. Sandford Bishop, also a CBC member: “As continued on page 34