Reverend Al Sharpton is taking a stand for Meek Mill.
After visiting the incarcerated rapper, the activist addressed the media alongside Meek’s attorney Joe Tacopina, where he explained why he decided to take the trip.
“I came because I feel that Meek represents thousands of people in Pennsylvania and tens of thousands around the country that have been victimized by an abusive probationary and parole systems that give room for judges to act way beyond what is necessary, palpable, and in my judgement what is ethical, to throw peoples’ lives away,” said Sharpton (via TMZ).
“If you can do this to a successful artist like Meek Mill, you can do this to many around the country,” he added. “That is why I wanted to come. He is representative of something far more than his stardom. He is a symbol of the abuse of the system that will violate you over nothing and end up ruining the potential and the ability to move forward in life.”
Furthermore, Sharpton urged Judge Genece Brinkley, who is presiding over the case, to reexamine her 2-4 year prison sentence for probation violations. “I would ask her to reconsider or at least step aside,” he said.
Meek’s legal team has argued that Judge Brinkley was inappropriate in handling the matter and they have reportedly filed a motion to remove her from the case.
Sharpton, who has a history of speaking out against injustice, announced his visit over the weekend. “Just because someone does something that is wrong, does not give you the right to do wrong to them,” he said during a National Action Network rally in Harlem on Saturday (Nov. 25). “The sentence must fit the violation.”