Jailed rapper Tay-K has suddenly become the recipient of a wave of support since the sentence faced by Santa Fe school shooter, Dimitrios Pagourtzis, became public. Many who've come around to sympathizing with the accused killer are doing so on the merits of a meme that juxtaposes Tay-K fighting the death penalty while Pagourtzis faces life in prison. But the viral post has turned out to be a controversial one, as the information presented beneath each teen's mugshot is not all the way factual.
T.I. was actually responsible for starting the week off as the most notable proponent of the meme's message - which stands to expose disparities exhibited in the way the U.S. justice system handles cases involving Black people versus those of which white suspects are dealt. Comedian-turned-radio personality, D.L. Hughley, was among the public figures to follow in sharing the post. While a lot of fans have defended the entertainers' move to spark up discussion, there have also been a great many who've expressed disagreement with stars of their magnitude failing to properly vet the information they dispense.
The latest individual to chime in on the controversial meme was Tay's manager himself, Ezra Averill, who called for his client's release while correcting those who've been spreading the inaccuracy about Tay's fate. "Oh yea, and ain't no death penalty over here. #FreeTayK," Averill is documented as having said.
The fact of the matter is that both Pagourtzis and Tay are under 18 years old, and thus cannot be given a sentence that exceeds life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years.
