If the Glove Don't Fit
- Wade
As I got on my bus today, I found a bus card on a seat where no one was sitting. As I sat, I asked the person across from me if he knew who the card belonged to.
"Yeah, some black guy was sitting there and got off a couple stops ago. Must have been his."
Black guy, huh? Can't just be "some guy." Maybe it's because of the recent Rush Limbaugh / Donovan McNabb scrum, but that seemed to hit me. In Minnesota, a black man will always be noted with the skin-color qualifier. I don't think the man on my bus meant any harm, necessarily-- more of an indictment on our culture here.
With that in mind...
Eight years ago today a jury acquitted O.J. Simpson. I remember when I heard, a cool cloudy autumn afternoon at St. Olaf. As I headed towards my polical philosophy class, I stopped at the Cage for a much-needed caffeine enhancement. Walking out of the student center, I noticed a throng of students headed downstairs to the Alley. Figuring that the verdict was in, I followed downstairs and watched as the jury declared that the prosecution had not proven their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Was I surprised? Not really. Despite what was (in my mind) sufficient evidence for conviction, the lawyers for the prosecution seemed more wrapped up in facing the camera than answering tough questions. Besides the lack of alibi, testimony of the limo driver, the DNA match, the glove, the footprint, running away with A.C., recently purchasing a knife that matched the murder weapon, the motive.... To me it seems absurd that the verdict was what it was.
But that's to be expected. Polls taken after the verdict was reached indicated that a majority of black Americans believe in Simpson's innocence, while a majority of white Americans believe he was guilty. That 3/4ths of the jury was comprised of blacks did not help the perception that the verdict was racially motivated. But, maybe the charges were, too. It's hard to say since I'm, well, white and likely do not see the case in the same way as I would if I were black.
Irregardless, O.J. is vigilantly looking for the real killer on golf courses across America. Fred Goldman is still probably calling O.J. a bastard through clenched teeth, and rightly so in my opinion. And each new celebrity trial that comes up I wonder-- would the Kobe trial capture America's attention like O.J.'s did in 1994 and 1995? Would millions of citizens tune in to see what the lawyers were saying and (more importantly) wearing? Would each goofball witness get their own talk show or reality show? Would justice-- or the lack thereof when a celebrity is involved-- be mocked so badly right in front of our eyes?
I sure hope not.
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