Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Phelps did nothing Wrong... however, 19,065 folks did

Total South Carolina Drug Law Arrests by Age, Race, Sex and Charge (2006)

Age/Charge Total Number Total Percent White Male Black Male Other Male White Female Black Female Other Female
TOTAL, ALL AGES 38,035 100.0 12,768 17,585 174 4,381 2,548 39
SIMPLE POSSESSION 27,723 72.9 10,302 12,441 131 3,156 1,666 27
Opiates/Heroin 610 1.6 318 100 3 163 25 1
Cocaine 2,283 6.0 813 1,100 14 255 98 3
Crack Cocaine 4,457 11.7 856 2,703 5 535 352 6
Marijuana 19,065 50.1 7,534 8,398 105 1,839 1,172 17
Hallucinogens 97 0.3 57 24 1 11 4 0
Other Drugs 1,211 3.2 724 116 3 353 15 0
SALE/MANUFACTURE 6,906 18.2 1,386 3,961 35 508 470 6
Opiates/Heroin 187 0.5 65 58 1 56 6 1
Cocaine 876 2.3 249 513 9 61 44 0
Crack Cocaine 2,415 6.3 173 1,920 7 99 215 1
Marijuana 1,876 4.9 516 1,086 7 124 141 2
Hallucinogens 28 0.1 14 10 1 1 2 0
Other Drugs 984 2.6 369 374 10 167 62 2
DRUG EQUIPMENT / PARAPHERNALIA 3,406 9.0 1,080 1,183 8 717 412 6
Source: South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, Crime in South Carolina 2006.

I don't feel sorry for Michael Phelps. He got caught, it's illegal, it's the law. However, he's sad and folks are outraged that he's being 'targeted'.

But I want people to look at the non-celeb-Olympic winners who also "did nothing wrong" in South Carolina. They get charged with possession and they don't have media attention to spin their stories. When they get charged, they can lose their jobs or the opportunity to get jobs. Phelps ain't suffering, so let's stop pretending he is. I'm not blogging about weed rights, I'm talking about this view of Phelps being a victim.

So you are going to fight the power, start with the non-millionaires who can't afford a way out and don't have a voice...or a gold medal.

via Jossip

1 comment:

Marker said...

Good point!

Check out the the Marijuana Policy Project's website at:

www.mpp.org

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Viktor is a small town southern boy living in Los Angeles. You can find him on Twitter, writing about pop culture, politics, and comics. He’s the creator of the graphic novel StrangeLore and currently getting back into screenwriting.