Killer
of Four Little Girls on Trial
In
Birmingham, Alabama, the US Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy allowed
the prosecution to use FBI tapes of Thomas Blanton Jr., talking about
the bombing of a Black church that killed and injured many. This is the
38-year old case of the White Klansman who bombed a Black church, killing
four little girls and permanently injuring and disfiguring many more.
One other person has been tried for these brutal murders committed in
1963, during the heat of the Civil Rights Movement.
Blanton,
who is now 62 years old, has been free to enjoy his life without harassment
by law enforcement agencies. The government installed tapes and listening
devices in his apartment a year after the bombing and have possessed the
tapes of his conversation since 1964.
Blanton’s
defense attorney argued that the tapes were acquired illegally, and if
they are allowed to be used in court, they would become public knowledge,
and he would have no recourse because playing the tapes would cause irreversible
damage to his case. Justice Kennedy saw it differently--we shudder
to think how Clarence Thomas would have ruled on this matter.
It is disheartening to know that the government has had this important evidence since 1964, yet they have only now brought Blanton to justice. It is still true that justice delayed is justice denied. The four little girls who were killed and those who were permanently disfigured and injured have been denied justice by this 38-year delay. This is a race-hatred case, and we see the typical speed that racial justice is accorded in this nation. Those who would say that Blacks focus too long on these matters should advocate for speeding these matters up.[]
Gibbs
