On May 19th, Atlanta based hip hop producer, Dallas Austin was arrested for alleged possesstion of 1.26 grams of cocaine while in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The AJC reports that on July 2nd, Austin pled guilty to the possession charge and was sentenced to four years in prison. The next day, he was pardoned by Dubai ruler Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum before flying back to the United States. I haven't heard of anything like this happening before. But I don't doubt rock and rap stars, other celebrities, entertainers and rich folks in general jet around the world in possession of various illicit drugs and drug paraphernelia. However, I do wonder if other millionaires end up in Dubai prisons for weeks. If it's been happening, like I said, I've never heard about it.

So why am we hearing all of this about Dallas Austin?

It should be enough to say that Dallas Austin is a black man from the southern United States. But I know that isn't enough. There are still some that don't see any difference in the manner in which black and white Americans are treated because we've progressed beyond that....right?
To those of you who think this is straight reporting and that those who see something else are paranoid or just wrong, I have a question and a challenge.

Is it reasonable to assume that other rich celebrities carry and use drugs? Would it also be safe to assume that most of those, by far, are white? I challenge those who doubt that race or white privilege is what this is really about, to find the stories of white American celebs locked in foreign prisons for weeks at a time. Because unless rich black folks have some kind of greater propensity to do or get caught with drugs, something unequal is happening.
Why?
This story constructs the picture of a black person using drugs with legal impunity. Common or rare? The story makes no distinction and leaves it for white Georgia readers to decide. And we all know the historical decision that white Georgians have made regarding the character and subsequent treatment of black Georgians.

That's the purpose of this story. This story and others like it.