To those reading the tea leaves, it’s no secret that America has a two-tiered justice system, one that affords privilege to white, wealthy people at the expense of Black, poor people. But those who stubbornly deny the impact of race needn’t look any further than the case in which authorities accused white college students of selling drugs on campus, turning their frat houses into trap houses for evidence of its impact. Media reports highlighted photos of the young white men, suspected ringleaders of this operation, wearing suits and smiling in their class portraits against a crisp bluish background. The use of these photos seems to suggest that, aside from recent transgressions, these were good schoolboys who deserve a second chance, that “boys will be boys.” This framing is problematic in a nation where racial disparities persist.

Indeed, the irony wasn’t lost on members of the black community that no mug shots circulated alongside national media reports of their alleged criminal behavior. Agostino Abbatiello, a 24-year-old accused of supplying students with drugs through the Signa Chi fraternity house, and Thomas Robinson, a 23-year-old white college student suspected of buying drugs in bulk from Abbatiello, were charged, along with a dozen others. Authorities believe they played a significant role in a drug operation, using pledges, students who want to formally join their fraternity, to distribute drugs at Penn State University. Yet, photos included in reports about this case that emphasize their academic careers provide further evidence that white people in America do not face the same level of scrutiny that others do.

When media reports choose to feature flattering photos of white people suspected of committing a crime, it exposes the racial bias in American society. And this is bigger than any one case. Consider, for instance, that one study found that 45% of images of Black defendants showed them in mug shots, compared with only 9% of White defendants. While 8% of Black defendants were shown wearing an orange jumpsuit, none of the White defendants were. And while 13% of White defendants were shown in media reports wearing a suit, only 6% of Black defendants were. White victims were “nearly 4x more likely than Black victims to have a photo with friends or family.” Coverage was 50% more likely to use White defendants’ names in reports. Together, their findings expose the prejudice behind seemingly neutral media reports.

While Black people are stereotyped as more likely to engage in criminal behavior, including drug use, a National Registry of Exonerations report found that innocent Black people are 19 times more likely to be convicted of drug crimes than innocent White people, despite using “illegal drugs at a similar rate.” So while Black people are more likely to face arrest for drug charges, the high rate of exoneration suggests they’re overrepresented in the criminal justice system. This is problematic because criminal charges diminish opportunities after release and can create lasting damage to a person’s reputation. It’s not a coincidence that America’s “war on drugs” targeted black communities. Nor is it happenstance that Black suspects are portrayed differently in the media when compared to White suspects.

Anyone suspected of a crime would want to put their best foot forward by hiring a good defense attorney, dressing well in court, and emphasizing their ties to the community. But Black people are more likely to be arrested on drug charges, denied bond, face conviction, even when they’re innocent, and serve longer sentences. On the flip side, White people are more likely to be seen in news reports as upstanding citizens who’ve temporarily fallen from grace. They have the privilege of being seen as human, separate from their actions, and of having their behavior seen as individual decisions rather than reflective of their entire race. After White students were allegedly caught selling drugs on campus, no one is making any sweeping generalizations, such as suggesting white fraternities have a drug problem, or that young White men are inherently criminal, or that their families are to blame.

The response would be very different if authorities suspected students attending an HBCU were involved in a similar scandal, selling drugs on campus. We’d be more likely to see Black students’ mug shots than their senior photos if that were to happen. Black people have been killed for less. Consider, for instance, the 2016 case of Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old Black father who was selling CDs and DVDs outside the Triple S Food Mart in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Two police officers confronted him and initiated a physical altercation, pinning him down and then shooting him six times. In America, a Black person accused of selling bootleg music and movies is treated worse than a White person accused of selling drugs on a college campus. Talk about a double standard.

Reports emphasizing class photos of a few White students accused of leading the frat house drug operation are reminiscent of a viral post by comedian Zack Fox of a White man riding on jet skis, with the satirical comment, “this how the photos be lookin in headlines when a white man kills his entire family.” This quote pokes fun at the way media reports tend to emphasize something positive about a White person accused of committing a crime, as a way to preserve their reputation in the public eye, even when authorities suspect them of committing a heinous act. But underneath every clever joke is at least an ounce of truth. While we haven’t seen photos of these White students accused of selling cocaine riding on jet skis, living their best life in photos, the use of class photos as opposed to mug shots exposes racial bias.

If authorities can prove these White students were selling cocaine on college campuses, using drug use as a sort of initiation into these fraternities, it will be interesting to see what their sentencing looks like. Based on America’s legacy of racial discrimination within the criminal justice system, they will likely serve less time than most Black defendants facing similar charges. It wouldn’t be shocking if they were put on probation or given a suspended sentence rather than facing a long period of incarceration. Black suspects are more readily criminalized before reaching trial, a problem exacerbated by the language used to describe crimes they’ve been accused of and the way they are introduced to the public, more often through the use of mug shots rather than graduation pictures. Nearly sixty years ago, authors of the Kerner Commission Report concluded that the nation was moving “toward two societies, one black, one white — separate and unequal.” And it’s sad to say that duplicity persists.