Crime & Federalism

When a black woman claimed she was raped by four white males, a media frenzy ensued.  People were outraged at this racially-motivated hate crime.  Eighty-eight Duke professors issued a strong proclamation denouncing racism.  Yet when a white Duke student claimed two black men raped her, those same professors were silent.

Meanwhile, in January of 2007, four black males raped a white University of Tennessee student.  The details are nauseating.  Where is the outcry?  Where are the protests?  Indeed, where is the media coverage? 

I just learned of this story from an acquaintance.  The media has been silent.  Indeed, in the limited coverage of the story, no reference is made to the race of the victim or rapists.

Is the message that when whites do bad things to blacks, race matters; but when blacks attack white, race is not a factor?  I wish news articles never referenced race, as most crimes are motivated by the color of anger and hate, not race.  But if the media is going to treat every white-on-black crime as a hate crime, shouldn't black-on-white crimes be treated similarly?