Volume II. No. 53
 06-16-04
 Running O.J. Simpson Into The Ground
 { Why His Sensational Criminal Trial Was
   Always About Race }
 author: Vance Cureton
 © Copyright 2004
 

 The passing of Ronald Reagan and Ray Charles so close together has 
 been a sad affair. A true moment of national reflection. A time to take a 
 deep breath and value this precious thing we call "life."

 In all of the drama of the Reagan funeral and the upcoming funeral of Mr.
 Charles, perhaps there has been some advantage gained for America these 
 past few days in that O.J. Simpson - thankfully - has been kept out of the 
 headlines. Oh sure, a few rag newspapers and television networks - mostly 
 on the cable side of the dial - have tried to gain market share by exploiting 
 the so-called ten year "anniversary" of the murders of  Nicole Brown Simpson 
 and Ronald Goldman. Shamelessly hyping the tragedy of their deaths, as 
 if their murders were some great national nightmare we as a society, will 
 never recover from.

 Ten years ago evil doings in Brentwood, California sparked an international
 media extravaganza that lasted until the very day O.J. was found "not guilty" 
 by a jury of his peers. We are a decade removed from that time now. The 
 emotional pain within the hearts of the two families who lost a loved one, 
 is undoubtedly still sharp. But, there remains a great mystery as to why 
 the national media continually fan the flames of the  O.J. Simpson case as 
 if that trail and it's controversial resolution has somehow forever changed 
 the course of American jurisprudence?

 Here are a few samplings of how this sad "anniversary" was marked.

 Greta Van Susteren did an O.J. interview that was broadcast in two parts.
 Controversy immediately arose because O.J. mentioned during one segment
 that he was angry at Nicole. Presumably, because she is unavailable to 
 counsel her two children. Especially, her daughter Sydney. 

 It goes without saying the redicule O.J.'s poor choice of words, inspired 
 all across cable-land. But don't you just wonder if Greta's producers could 
 have just kissed O.J. when he said that? Afterall, controversy is always 
 a good thing in television. And Fox News exploited that precious little 
 sound bite for all it was worth.

 Let's move on...

 Catherine Crier also did a one hour O.J. interview on Court T.V. And this 
 past weekend there was an all too lengthy Geraldo Rivera interview of the 
 despicable Mark Furhman. Remember him? The "Honest Abe" ex-detective 
 who never used the "N" word.

 Debra Norville even gave airtime to Kato Kaelin the idiot houseboy. -- She 
 even aired the tape of an old 911 phone call where a horribly frightened 
 Nicole alleged that O.J. was angry and out of control. 

 Was any of this really necessary on any level?

 [ Okay, we realize all the media heads out there have absolute contempt for 
 Orenthal James Simpson, and these guys go out of their way to emphasize 
 that personal contempt in ways subtle and not so subtle, and even sometimes 
 unprofessional, as well. -- This is the contribution of cable television, anything
 for a ratings point, whilst, relentlessly lowering broadcast media standards
 for all... ]

 Sadly, the only reason anyone in this society cared at all about the O.J. 
 Simpson case was because of race. He represented the typical selfish athlete.
 An overconfident black man with an ego to match. A dark-skinned narcissist 
 with a preference for white women. Meanwhile, Nicole Brown was a radiant 
 blonde with good features and a gorgeous figure. But, for many in the 
 African-American community Nicole was disparaged as nothing more than 
 an opportunist of less than stellar virture. Add to the mix that she was several 
 years younger than her "good catch."

 Oh what racial stereotypes we have to play with here. Just imagine the 
 commotion deceased KKK'ers must be making down in hell, 'round about 
 now.

 The noise must be deafening.

 All the hysteria enveloping the O.J. trial was all about the dark prejudicies 
 we pretended to have forgotten about. If the Brown/Goldman murders had 
 been white-on-white or black-on-black, the media and the American public 
 at large would have lost interest ages ago.

 Johnnie Cochran didn't accomplish anything  that 10,000 white lawyers 
 haven't done before in keeping their wealthy, priviledged white clients 
 out of jail. And yet in some corners of American society  O.J.'s high-profile 
 African-American lawyer remains the object of coarse jokes and contempt
 almost equal to O.J.'s.

 Robert Durst was just recently found innocent in a "can't lose" criminal 
 case featuring human body parts and sexual perversion. Curiously, there 
 has been no outrage expressed in the media. The story was all but tossed 
 into the dustbin five minutes after the verdict was announced.

 Where was Geraldo? Debra? Catherine? And Greta? -- The world seemingly
 doesn't give a damn about disturbed, predatory white transvestites who 
 dismember their neighbors. On the other hand, one African-American 
 escapes jail and suddenly the entire criminal justice system needs an
 overhaul. Again, the perception of the whether the system works or 
 not is determined entirely by the race of the individuals involved.

 A wealthy white man with the means to purchase a standard of justice that 
 is unavailable to just common ordinary everyday folks is an outrage. But it 
 is not enough of an outrage to emotionally unsettle the American public at 
 large. Most people just shrug and say, "that's just the way things are..."

 On the other hand, an arrogant black man with a healthy bank account 
 who escapes justice - via the same methods legally available to his white 
 counterpart - somehow crosses a line that deeply offends white america.

 That in a word is a an attitude born of racism. Plain and simple. 
 No question about it.

 O.J. Simpson's double murder case was not "The Trial Of The Century." 
 We've just been brainwashed to place that level of significance upon his 
 acquital because of the respective races of the two victims.

 The Brown and Goldman families have our sympathy. And our prayers.
 But, the O.J. case was just one trail amongst thousands. The verdict 
 was merely a reflection of our humanity and not a sympton that there 
 is something grieviously wrong with juries bringing along their own life 
 experiences with them into the jury room. --- We are not machines. We 
 are but flesh and blood. 

 This fixation in the media about Simpson's freedom only exacerbates 
 the racial divide in this country. 

 Hopefully in 2014 the tragic Brentwood murders won't be exploited,
 again. Snarky talking heads who will forever despise this man should 
 let Nicole and Ron have their rest. Leave them with a little dignity. 
 None of us should have to suffer through any more pointless interviews 
 with dim-witted houseguests and racially-biased crime scene investigators. 
 -- And certainly don't put another microphone in front O.J.'s mouth.

 A twenty year anniversary should be out of the question.

 This one was spectacle, enough.
 

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