Neil

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“Have you ever been pulled over for nothing and the seats ripped out of your car? Have you ever had to inform a police officer that you are only reaching in the glove box for your registration? Have you ever had to think about how unsafe it is when traveling to other states not knowing if they are more racist there? Have you ever had to put a bike rack on your car to look more like a family man to not get pulled over as much? Have you ever had to wear eyeglasses as a prop hoping that police officers would think you’re older or smarter in hopes they would leave you alone? When dating outside your race, have you ever had to think about what your girlfriend or boyfriend’s parents would think and if they would except you into their family because of that reason? Have you ever had to answer the question of what is it that you do for a living assuming the person who’s asking is only asking because they assume all black people sell drugs? Have you ever fit the description of a person the police are looking for but they then say you’re free to go after running your license and wasting your time for an hour? Have you ever had to question whether or not you didn’t get a job because of you complexion? Have you ever been turned away from meeting a family member? Being biracial I have not met many of my family members on my mother’s side because they didn’t approve of her being with a black man. Have you ever been unarmed and had the police shove their firearms in the back of your head so hard that you had bruising on your head for a week? These are just some of my experiences living in America as a black man. When I see the character of some of these young black men being questioned (he smokes weed, he sells drugs, he’s a thug, he steals) let me remind you of how people grow and change over time. I was a knuckle head when I was a kid but now I have a great job, wonderful family, nice home and I am a good citizen. In life people are supposed to grow and evolve and do better when they know better. These young black men don’t get a chance to turn themselves around.”