So, recently rapper Meek Mill was sentenced to 2-4 years in federal prison for violating the terms of his parole and his sentencing sparked outrage, for good reason.

Here's what happened...

In 2008 Meek was initially arrested on drug charges and for illegally possessing a firearm (because the clearly NRA doesn't show up and show out for Black people, but I digress.) He was sentenced to 8 months in jail and was given 7 years probation according to NPR.

In 2014, Common Pleas Court Judge Genece E. Brinkleyargued that Meek had violated the terms of his probation by performing out of state without first getting her courts permission and he was sentenced to another 5 months in prison, as well as given 90 days house arrest upon his release. She also cited that Meek had changed his phone number and failed to report it to his probation officer and the court as well as made numerous disparaging remarks on his social media accounts about his probation officer and prosecutor. His probation was then extended another 6 years.

In March of 2017 Meek was arrested in St. Louis after a scuffle with an airport employee who repeatedly tried to take photos of him, and then in August after popping wheelies on a dirt bike for a music video. Though both charges were dropped and it was found that no crimes were committed, last week Judge Brinkley sentenced Meek to up to 4 years in prison to serve out the remainder of his probation, overruling even the recommendation of the prosecutor who didn't think prison time was appropriate in Meek's situation. He committed no crime, but is being sent to prison anyway?

This last sentencing is what sparked the recent debate about our current prison system. Hundreds of activists and protesters, many of them prominent personalities, gathered around the Philadelphia's criminal justice center last Monday to protest the rappers incarceration, arguing that the repercussions for his violations were too harsh and should not have included incarceration. As stated earlier, although the rapper did violate his probation on more than one occasion, no actual crimes were committed.

It is also important to note that since Meek's initial arrest as a teen, he hasn't been in trouble with the law outside of his parole violations and has earned himself a pretty lucrative career.

Meek Mill's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, described the rapper as feeling "frustrated" with the whole situation because he knows that he is being "treated different than everyone else," a statement to which the attorney agree's, adding, "[Meek Mill has] been on probation for nearly 10 years. Nobody goes on probation for 10 years."

Meek's supporters include, Rappers Rick Ross and Jay-Z who described Meek's probation as a trap, along with quarterback and activist, Colin Kaepernick, who shared this image on social media.

In an op-ed for the New York Times, Jay-Z accuses the criminal justice system of stalking Meek Mill's and others in similar round-a-bout circumstances, arguing that the point of parole is to get people back in prison.

The rapper writes, The specifics of Meek’s case inspired me to write this. But it’s time we highlight the random ways people trapped in the criminal justice system are punished every day. The system treats them as a danger to society, consistently monitors and follows them for any minor infraction—with the goal of putting them back in prison. He also likens probation to a "land mine" where he writes that any misstep can carry consequences greater than that of the original crime.

And to give a bit of context as to how odd his 4 year prison sentence is, here are four infamous people who served less time in prison than Meek Mill . . .

1. George Zimmerman

In February of 2012, George Zimmerman fatally shot African American teen Trayvon Martin while he was walking home. His initial acquittal (one that had 'Merca completely SHOOK!) came in 2013 and sparked the Black Lives Matter movement across the world, as his defense case became one of the most racially charged cases the country had seen in a long time. Zimmerman has had over a dozen run-in's with the law dating back to 2005, and since his acquittal in the death of Martin, Zimmerman has been arrested multiple times for assault, including domestic assault. The last known incident happened in November of 2016, where he attacked a waitress at a bar before yelling, "I didn't know you were a n*gger lover."

George Zimmerman murdered someone and has assaulted a handful of others, including his own domestic partners.

He has never been to prison.

2. Brock Turner

Brock Turner gained national attention after he was caught by two students sexually assaulting an unconscious girl behind a dumpster. Turner was indicted on January 28, 2015, on five charges: two for rape, two for felony sexual assault, and one for attempted rape. The two rape charges were dropped after the victims rape kit came back negative, but Turner was convicted of the three remaining charges of felony sexual assault. The convictions carried a potential 14 year sentence, though prosecutors only recommended 6. Ultimately, Turner was sentenced to 6 months in the Santa Clara County jail and 3 years probation upon release. His father argued that his life shouldn't be "ruined for 20 minutes of action", and apparently Judge Aaron Persky agreed.

Brock Turner sexually assaulted a young woman.

He has never been to prison.

3. Casey Anthony

"Casey Anthony was "more than likely" the person who used too much chloroform that killed her 2-year-old daughter, the former judge who presided over the case told HLN," in March of 2017

On July 15th 2008, two-year old Caylee Anthony was reported missing by her maternal grandmother who stated she had not seen her granddaughter (whom she lived with) in 31 days and that her daughter's (Casey Anthony) car smelled as if a dead body had been inside of it. Four months later, Caylee's remains were found in a wooded area near the family's home. Though Casey Anthony originally stated that she believed the nanny had taken her daughter and that she had been looking for her for some two weeks, she was eventually arrested and charged with her daughters murder. Prosecutors alleged that Casey had used chloroform and duct tape to murder her child before dumping her body in the woods, while the defense argued that Caylee had accidentally drowned in the family swimming pool before Casey's father hid her body in the woods.

The lies and confusion became basis for reasonable doubt and Casey Anthony was acquitted in July of 2011.

Casey Anthony murdered her own daughter, dumped her body in the woods and pretended as if nothing happened.

She had never been to prison.

4. Donald J. Trump

Let's start with the obvious. Trump's alleged ties to Russia and their hand in swaying the 2016 Presidential election in his favor. Recently, Don-Boy J.r., admitted that he along with Paul Manafort and Jared Kushner met with the Kremlin back in July of 2016 where they were promised illegally obtained information on Hillary Clinton. It has also been reported that Russia infiltrated social media sites and put up fake pages and posts regarding Black Lives Matter and other race-related groups and movements in an effort to stage a race-war for the benefit on the Trump campaign. And this hot mess of a situation continues to play out in front our our eyes . . .

Since the 1970's, Mr. "Grab-them-by-the-pussy" has been also accused of sexual assault or rape nearly a dozen times. And in their divorce deposition, his ex-wife, Ivana Trump, accused him of forcibly having sex with her. Other women throughout the years have also accused Trump of inappropriately touching them and multiple teen pageant contests have said he had purposly walked in on them naked.

Trump has also been accused of housing discrimination by the Department of Justice. According to the suit, Donald Trump and his father, Fred, refused to rent to or negotiate rentals with people based on their color. He has also been accused of tenant intimidation. Former tenants have accused him of turning off heat and hot water as well as failing to keep up repairs in order to bully them.

It has also been found that Trump has illegally been doing business operations in Cuba for around 20 years, violating the Cuban Embargo, discriminated against his Black employee's as well as been in trouble with the Federal Trade Commission with antitrust violations, upset the New Jersey Gaming Commission by breaking operating rules, had ties with the mafia, refused to pay various workers, contractors and businesses, ran a scam "university" and institute, used campaign donation money purchase copies of his own book and ran a faulty charity, and most recently admitted to abusing bankruptcy laws, among other things.

Donald Trump had never been to prison and on January 20 2017, he was sworn in at the 45th President of The United States.

Though often referred to as the greatest country in the world, The United States of America is far from perfect. One massive problem we face is the inconsistency and the injustice within our criminal justice system. We live in a county where a Black man can face four years in prison for a driving offence, while a white mother can murder her own child and a serial law breaker, racist and rapist can become the most powerful man in the world.