Opinion by Areva Martin
Bill Cosby’s publicist Andrew Wyatt said that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Cosby’s sexual assault conviction was “justice for Black America.” As a Black woman, I disagree. I understand the inclination to make this claim given the criminal justice system’s well documented history of systemic racism and longstanding mistreatment of Black men. However, contrary to being victimized by the system — as many poor and low-income Black defendants are — Cosby had the wealth and fame to secure a cadre of private attorneys to pursue every legal option available to him and ultimately to strike alleged deals with prosecutors to evade prosecution.