Meek Mill currently sits in a jail cell after a judge sentenced him to 2-4 years in prison for a parole violation. Many are outraged after learning Meek’s sentence came as a result of two arrests for incidents in which charges were eventually dropped, and the stiff sentence has led many to speak out in support of Meek. There’s even a rally scheduled in his honor this week. Now, another huge name has stepped up to throw his support behind Meek during this turmoil: The newly-minted GQ Citizen of the Year, Colin Kaepernick.
Yes, Kaep — who is often criticized for his lack of statements during times of need — took to Instagram to post a lengthy statement about Meek’s situation, calling him a “victim of systematic oppression” and calling for sentencing reform to fight mass incarceration rates.
“Roughly 2.2 million people are incarcerated in the United States, an increase of 1.9 million since 1972,” he said in the post. “America professes to be the land of the free, yet it has the world’s largest prison population – with one-quarter of the globes prisoners, and just 5% of the total population. Disproportionately America’s prisons are filled with Black bodies.”
Colin went on to call the criminal justice system the “criminal (in)justice system,” adding that it’s “ripe with racial discrimination,” and “stigmatizes, profiles, and targets young Black men for arrest at a young age, having its roots in their hyper-policed neighborhoods that they are raised in, and sadly extending into what should be a safe space—the classroom, via the school to prison pipeline.”
Finally, Kaep pointed out the stark contrast the sentences handed down to Meek for “non-violent parole violations” and former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner for three felony counts of sexual assault. With as much as Kaepernick has been a symbol of the Black Lives Matter movement and the fight for equality, it’s as big a co-sign as Meek could possibly receive in his time of need. Check out Colin’s full statement below.
“Roughly 2.2 million people are incarcerated in the United States, an increase of 1.9 million since 1972. America professes to be the land of the free, yet it has the world’s largest prison population – with one-quarter of the globes prisoners, and just 5% of the total population.
Disproportionately America’s prisons are filled with Black bodies.
This criminal (in)justice system, ripe with racial discrimination, stigmatizes, profiles, and targets young Black men for arrest at a young age, having its roots in their hyper-policed neighborhoods that they are raised in, and sadly extending into what should be a safe space—the classroom, via the school to prison pipeline.
Meek Mill is a victim of this systemic oppression.
Yes, there needs to be action surrounding sentencing reform, but there needs to also be action taken around abolishing the racialized norms of injustice that can lead to Meek Mill serving 2-4 years in prison for non-violent parole violations, and Brock Turner only serving 3 months in prison for three felony counts of sexual assault.”
