JAY-Z wrote an op-ed for the New York Times where he once again criticized the incarceration of rapper Meek Mill, managed by his Roc Nation imprint.
In the piece, JAY-Z condemned the judge’s decision, and described it as how “criminal justice system entraps and harasses hundreds of thousands of black people every day.”
He wrote: “This month Meek Mill was sentenced to two to four years in prison for violating his probation. #FreeMeek hashtags have sprung up, and hundreds of his fans rallied near City Hall in Philadelphia to protest the ruling.
On the surface, this may look like the story of yet another criminal rapper who didn’t smarten up and is back where he started. But consider this: Meek was around 19 when he was convicted on charges relating to drug and gun possession, and he served an eight-month sentence. Now he’s 30, so he has been on probation for basically his entire adult life. For about a decade, he’s been stalked by a system that considers the slightest infraction a justification for locking him back inside…
”
Despite recommendations by a prosecutor and Meek Mill’s probation officer that he doesn’t deserve more jail time, the judge sent him to jail anyway, JAY-Z said, describing the sentence as one of the examples of how “the system treats [black people] as a danger to society, consistently monitors and follows them for any minor infraction — with the goal of putting them back in prison.”
He described probation as a trap, saying jails could be shut down if “people on parole or probation [are treated] more fairly.”
Read the entire op-ed HERE.
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