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Many years ago, I had a black boyfriend. At the time I lived in a predominantly white neighborhood. He came to my place all the time and I went to his all the time. One time he came over and I asked him to plant a tree with me out front. We were half way digging our hole when a cop came by. Said someone reported a suspicious person. He showed his ID and I explained to the cop that I lived there and we were just planting a tree. The cop went on his way.
When I started working in engineering, one time a there was an operation that needed precise surveying for elevations. Our surveyor was black. He was out there with his surveying equipment when a cop came by because someone reported a suspicious person.
Years later I had moved to a different company. While in the office I talked with my boss. He shared with me that many years ago he was a surveyor and while he was with a full crew playing out stations and forming up forms for a concrete pour a cop came by and asked him for his ID because someone reported a suspicious person. He was the only black guy there at the time.
I currently work with an older guy who's about to retire. The other day he told me he used to be a home inspector and one time while inspecting a property a couple cops came by asking for his ID because someone reported him.
I know there have been some high profile cases of black people doing every day things getting called on. These cases are high profile because there was a camera and social media. Just remember that for the longest time there was no cell phone cameras and social media. And not everyone makes a scene. Most people just show their ID to get it over with.
I know a lot of white people have trouble believing that cops get called on black people for doing ordinary things. Black people are too aware of this.
Sad but true. But they call them for something a lot of the time, too.
I think it will always be a part of the equation. When someone who doesn't look like the neighbors is hanging around, someone will call the cops. Could be black, Mexican, etc. Even someone dressed weirdly or acting bizarrely, even if they're actually harmless.
There's a flip side to this, too. In black neighborhoods, no one calls the cops. Not even the victims. Here, 4 people were shot the other night and not one of them would cooperate with the cops. So their attacker(s) is still at loose, destroying the neighborhood, shooting, stabbing, robbing.
Whether to err on the side of safety or give the benefit of the doubt is a tough call for most, I think.
Some white people are mistrusting of African Americans because of crime statistics, and crimes they see reported on the news. Remember when the knockout game was popular? There were lots of videos of black youth attacking (usually white) people from behind as they walked down the sidewalk. After that, many white people learned to be more aware of their surroundings, including who is walking around you.
These stories and incidents do have an impact on society. When white people are blasted with news and statistics negatively portraying the African American community, this is the result. The solution is to strengthen African American communities and encourage unity instead of racial division. When Americans start seeing their neighbors as Americans, instead of terms based on race, skin color, gender, sexual orientation, etc, things will change.
You realize it happens to anyone who looks "different " as well right? Bikers,Dead Heads,Goth,Emo etc have this happen all the time as well. If one looks or does something different than the place they are at it raises suspicion and has forever.
It's not just a race thing as some would love for people to believe, it's a human nature thing.
You realize it happens to anyone who looks "different " as well right? Bikers,Dead Heads,Goth,Emo etc have this happen all the time as well. If one looks or does something different than the place they are at it raises suspicion and has forever.
It's not just a race thing as some would love for people to believe, it's a human nature thing.
I'm east Asian descent. Never been called police on. I have lived in several whiter than white neighborhoods.
Most of the people who say blacks have the exact same opportunities as whites, and that racial profiling and "white privilege" don't exist....are white.
Do people randomly come up to you and ask you to solve math problems for them?
Even the most know-nothing of persons knows that an Asian is far less likely to be a criminal than he himself is. East Asians have earned a reputation as being law-biding, productive citizens. If only all ethnicities were as American as they are.
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