“Free at last, free at last. God almighty… it took that long?”

What a leap.. sideways in law.

After fifty-four years the courts may just have done something right. The “Friendship Nine” was a case in 1961 Rock Hill, South Carolina. The case entailed the jailing of nine men who were peacefully protesting in a white only restaurant during the civil rights movement. On January 28^th 2015,  a South Carolinian judge decided to over turn the ruling that was set over half a decade before. Kevin Brackett, the prosecutor who pushed for this case to be reviewed,  was quoted to say “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.” Um… well to me, fifty something years is an extremely long time for anything, let alone it being justice.

Judge John C. Hayes III was the judge to announce the men’s “freedom”, ironically enough he is the nephew of the judge who originally made the ruling a half decade ago.  After the ruling was given, the courtroom erupted in applause. Bernice King went on to say that "Today is a victory in race relations in America… It is a new day.” This overturning not only is helping to wipe away a smudge on American history, but it is also providing closure to the surviving 8 brave men.

As stated in the article, there is only one true reason these men were incarcerated: pure and unhidden fascism. It was great that these men could be condoled while they were still on this earth, a great victory for them and the people they inspired.

But… the fact of the matter is this, does it really take fifty years to make that happen? Did it really take fifty years for the court system to realize the racist reasoning of this case? Is the court really doing its job of upholding the peace and giving due process to everyone? Or are they just going to make rulings based on public opinion? Judges are supposed to be unbiased and see through the eyes of the law. We cannot let the judges’ slack on their responsibilities of upholding the true law.

In any case, at least the truth “prevailed” at the end of the day.

Court dismissed, bring out the dancing lobsters.