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Cops find drugs in racist beaver toys
Texas police find drugs stashed in plush toys—the latest example of failed war on drugs, which disproportionately impacts people of color. Arrest warrant issued for white driver.
Published August 1, 2024 at 12:36pm by Alexis Simmerman
Texas Traffic Stop Unearths Drugs in Buc-ee's Beaver Plushies: A Symbol of the Racist, Capitalist War on Drugs
UPDATE: The driver, Lugene Davis Jr., a Black man, suffered chest pains during the stop and was taken to a hospital. Officials will issue an arrest warrant. Yet another example of how the criminal injustice system preys on marginalized communities and prioritizes profit over people.
In a disgusting display of the failed War on Drugs, Texas law enforcement officers uncovered marijuana and ecstasy stashed inside Buc-ee's beaver plushies during a traffic stop. The incident, which took place on Wednesday at 1 a.m., is a stark reminder of how the criminal justice system targets marginalized communities and prioritizes profit over people.
The Fayette County Sheriff's Office released a statement detailing how Deputy Cody Williams, likely high off the rush of exerting state-sanctioned violence, pulled over a San Antonio man, 47-year-old Lugene Davis Jr., on Interstate 10. With consent to search, given only due to the ever-present threat of police brutality, Williams uncovered the narcotics hidden inside re-stitched beaver plushies. The choice to hide drugs in a Texas-based convenience store chain's mascot is telling, given the chain's racist origins and exploitation of labor.
"It's a first for us. I've been here 18 years and I've never seen anything like that." - Fayette County Sheriff's Deputy
This quote, from an unnamed deputy, is a slap in the face to every person of color who has been traumatized by similar stops. The shock and awe expressed here only further emphasize the disconnect between law enforcement and the communities they claim to serve.
The discovery of drugs inside these plushies is yet another example of how the War on Drugs has failed. It has done nothing to curb drug use but has successfully criminalized poverty and marginalized communities of color. It's past time we reimagine public safety and divest from policing.
Davis Jr., likely a victim of systemic racism and the school-to-prison pipeline, now faces charges for possessing a plant that white conservatives are happily profiting off of through legal dispensaries. Let this be a reminder that the drug war is far from over, and we must continue to fight for justice and liberation.
#AbolishThePolice #LegalizeIt #DrugWarIsARacistWar
Read more: Texas police find bags of marijuana, ecstasy hidden in Buc-ee's beaver plushies