The article that grabbed my attention this week was one discussing famous rapper Meek Mill and the legal issues he has faced. Meek Mill was charged in 2008 for gun and drug offenses although he maintained innocence to the public. At the time Meek Mill was not well known and did not have the means to hire a team of law to defend his case. Mill would take a plea deal that involved 11.5 month to 23 month sentence in prison and 7 years probation. Meek would be released in 6 months, but faced issues with non violent parole violations that would extend his probation period. Then the storm hit its peak in 2017 when on Instagram Meek Mill popped a wheelie on a motor-cross bike and the judge sentenced him to 2-4 years in prison for the violation of parole. Meek, a well established celebrity by this time, received a response of support from the public including big name celebrities Jay Z, Michael Rubin, and Kevin Hart. A movement of “free Meek” started and Jay Z had the best lawyers working to get Meek out of prison. Lots of information was uncovered in the process, including the fact that Meek had been badly beaten by the police in his 2007 arrest, and that the cop who arrested him was part of a Philadelphia watch list of suspected dirty cops. Meek Mill would be freed in 2018 after serving 5 months in federal prison, but he remains on probation.
This article relates to our readings in the sense of how poorly the system is structured. If Meek Mill was not a celebrity he would be in prison for a crime he had to plead guilty to just so he would not receive an even worse sentence. There is a lot of people in the system that do not have the backing of billionaires Jay Z and Michael Rubin. The reading talks about inequalities and social biased/benefits throughout the whole book, not just the chapter and this is a prime example of a young black male being targeted unnecessarily. For Meek Mill’s luck, the system had to do something to free him as the public was enraged by wrongfully sentencing the rapper, and some world class lawyers were uncovering information to the public making the system look worse. The system only cared because it was being exposed. There have been and there will be plenty more individuals that did not get fair treatment by the justice system, and have suffered greatly from the power that the system holds. Meek Mill since his release, has gathered a group of rather wealthy individuals and is pushing for social justice reform. Those people include Jay Z and Michael Rubin. Mill has made it clear that he wants to protect people that cannot protect themselves.
PS: Meek Mill is my all time favorite rapper.
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https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/why-did-meek-mill-go-to-prison/
Alec's Sociology Studies 