The recent events of the Jena 6 case and the noose hanging at the University of Maryland main campus have awakened the conversation about racism in America. In the 40 years since the turbulent and assassination-prone 1960s, many across our nation believe that racial injustice has ceased to exist; many assume that the races are living harmoniously with each other and justice has shown she is truly blind.

The truth of the matter is that race relations in America have worsened since the murders of Martin L King Jr., Medgar Evers and Malcolm X. Many have po.jpgicated on the reasons why; however, it stands to reason that too many in the body politic and some of those who have benefited from the civil rights advances of the '60s have fallen asleep at the wheel. The idea that in 2007 not only is it necessary but it is knowingly necessary to ask if you can sit underneath a tree on school grounds that all the taxpayers own should be embarrassing.

The noose hanging in Jena, La., is not the first of its kind in recent years, nor is the failing of the justice system an anomaly. All too often events of this magnitude get little to no media attention, print or television, and if they make news, a couple of weeks later it is business as usual.

The outcry from black leadership and radio personalities is endearing and hopefully becomes an avenue for advocacy in these and other topics, but as the Rev. Jesse Jackson stated on a syndicated morning show this week, "There is a Jena in your [state]." The young men charged in this case are fortunate that the LaSalle Parish Branch NAACP and others in their community felt it not robbery to speak out about the injustice that was taking place. Before CNN and MSNBC, before Newsweek and a few local periodicals made this story "newsworthy" the local leadership in LaSalle Parish, La., stood with the young men and said: "Enough!"

The more important question beyond this case and the case at the University of Maryland is when will we in America demand that justice be carried out equally whether or regardless if you earn $12,000 per year or per month. Placing America's black and brown children in prison in order to generate money -- the prison industrial complex -- ought to be criminal for any jurisdiction and policies to halt this practice must be top priority on the list of every state in the Union. However, such is not the case.

I am proud that the National Youth and College Division of the NAACP, in particular, along with other organizations, spearheaded the march on Jena. Our generation is engaged with the civil rights struggle -- that never ended -- and is arguably more difficult to win than before. We must defeat terrorism wherever we may find it -- in Iraq or in Jena, La.

Khyla Craine, a civil rights advocate, registered nurse and 2004 graduate of South Carolina State University, is a member of the NAACP's National Youth Work Committee. She currently resides in Nashville, Tenn.

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