A few weeks ago, Elon Musk, the face of Tesla, smoked weed during a live interview on “The Joe Rogan Experience.” Since, the Tesla stock has fallen, but no major consequences have followed Musk’s actions. Why would he? It’s 2018, and no one cares about weed anymore.

Well, I guess that can only be said for some.

On September 6, Botham Jean was killed in his own apartment by Officer Amber Guyger. He was 26 years old, a St. Lucia native and a college graduate living in Dallas. The day after the shooting Guyger was placed on paid administrative leave, and a warrant was issued allowing items to be seized from Jean’s apartment. On September 9, Guyger turned herself in and was charged with manslaughter, and within an hour, posted bond and walked free. The details of the murder were made public on September 10.

This is where the story gets especially tragic, and all of this is documented in the public affidavit. After shooting Jean, Guyger called 911 and went to the front door to verify the address. It was not until this moment that she realized that she was on the third floor, not the fourth, and was in the wrong apartment. On September 13, the media began its field day with the findings from Jean’s apartment, which included 10.4 grams of marijuana and a grinder. After this was made public, Jean’s mother pleaded with the Dallas Police Department that Guyger be fired for not only murdering her son, but for ruining his name. All of this information I have just provided is public and can be found through Dallas News by The Dallas Morning News.

Currently, weed’s legality is a hot topic, but concerning its practice, no one seems to care. It was a joke when Elon smoked on the YouTube show, yet possession of marijuana was used to villainize Botham Jean. I believe this was a rhetorical strategy used to save Guyger’s reputation, and that of the Dallas Police Department, create drama and to distract the public from the issues at hand. If that is not enough, Guyger was charged with manslaughter instead of murder.

The culture in which this crime was committed favors the police over the lives of the people they are sworn to protect. There is no excuse for Guyger’s actions, but she is not a unique figure. Across the country, countless innocent lives have been stolen, and even more bodies have been brutalized, by militarized forces. For what reason?

The media talks endlessly in circles on the topics of respecting the flag, honoring armed forces, celebrating the police and so on, but the same respect does not extend to the victims of these same powers, which is absolutely infuriating and unacceptable. It is shameful that our country can react to Musk smoking weed with a flood of viral memes while the family of Botham Jean, while in the deepest depths of mourning, watches his legacy go down the drain over possessing less than an ounce of weed.

Abby Carlin is a senior English language arts major. She can be reached at 581-2812 or at [email protected].