Darrell Lamont Padgett

If I Were White: Crime, Punishment, and Injustice Darrell Lamont Padgett

In 2016, then-President Obama wrote he was inspired by Darrell's ending story.
A story of an African American child born and reared in a mostly white populace in Welch, West Virginia; Darrell's childhood goal was to become a police officer. But as daylight changes to night, so too does Darrell's moral compass.
He dropped out of college, and he became a street-level drug dealer in 1990. It wasn't long before the Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia has eyes on him. With his cleverness, Darrell evades the initial attempts to trap him. He's lucky because agents are secretly in his presence. They only need Darrell to slip once.
If agents arrest Darrell, a federal drug law that is statistically racist could allow a judge to sentence him to die in prison for street-level drug dealings. It is this reality that makes Darrell wonder-IF I WERE WHITE.

About The Author:
Columbia University and The Obama Foundation selected Darrell as a narrator on the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 for the Obama Presidential Museum. He holds a master's degree in Criminal Justice Administration. Darrell is a motivational speaker, an advocate for justice, a father to his son, Darrell Jr., and he is married to Dreama Padgett.