Uh oh. I don’t even know what that means, but it doesn’t sound good! >:)
Yes, no doubt it was, @“Snowball City” .
@partyof5, I suspect most people get it, completely. They are just weary of the, “It’s all your fault because of white privilege” or the constant cop bashing stuff. The reality is, many of us feel that us or our kids are profiled. Certainly not to the level of being shot because cops feel they are being threatened because of the color of one’s skin, but yes, many of us are profiled in different situations often. It may not remotely compare to the fear that one may have about them or their kids getting shot or harassed by a police officer, but we do experience it, and it’s not our “white privilege” that is to blame for other people’s harassment.
busdriver as a white guy I do not feel bad that I get treated differently (better) than other people but I have to acknowledge that it happens.
I have told this story in the past here that all the way back in 1990 I took a part time job working for a large newspaper chain. I started the same day as an AA male my same age. We both took the job so our spouses could stay home with our new born. We worked either 2am to 5am or 3am to 6am. We trained the newly hired newspaper carriers or did the routes until we could get a carrier. One day we were talking about a customer who owed some money and was going to leave the payment behind a bush on the side of his house. The manger asked him to go get it. He had to explain that he could not because he was afraid he would be shot and that over the period of time we worked together he was pulled over by the police over 40 times. I was never pulled over- not once. I went and picked up the payment without hesitation.
By the way there were areas I went into that were drug infested and so the police could have easily wondered what I was doing going there. My co-worker was generally pulled over in suburban neighborhoods. But remember our cars were filled with newspapers so it was clear what we were doing.
@busdriver11 we are all entitled to our opinions based on our experiences and circumstances. I suspect most people don’t get it. Up until the advent of cell phones most people thought we were making these things up.
Now we can have footage of us being beaten and or shot and yet most times cop is not punished.
It’s ludicrous for you to even equate your child being profiled to the constant profiling that we receive our entire lives. It doesn’t stop once we are adults.
I dont think all cops are bad but they don’t hold their bad apples accountable. As long as I can watch video of a person being tased, beaten and or shot who had his hands up and was unarmed I will continue to bash cops. You have never heard me say just white cops because I’ve met cops of color were awful human beings.
If you are weary, imagine how we feel. As @tom1944 said, it’s not that you need to feel bad that you have white privilege, but most won’t even admit it.
I agree with partyof5 the biggest problem is the police know who the bad apples are that they work with and they cover for them
partyof5: hugs
To me, EVERY cop who will lie, plant evidence, etc. to protect another cop accused of a crime, is a bad cop. Therefore maybe not all, but nearly all.
According to this article, whether the guy had retired or been fired, he’d still be eligible for his nice pension and retirement benefits.
In case you missed it, I said that it didn’t remotely compare. I am just making the point that many of us feel profiled often. While not so much by cops, but many people do understand how others make assumptions about you based upon external factors. I could give you some examples, but you would think I’m equating my trivial experiences with the fear of harassment by a police officer. I am also extremely cautious of dealing with police, even though I look and act very non threatening.
And I think most people would admit they don’t feel their life could be in danger when confronted by a cop, in the same way that a young back man would. I’ll bet if someone phrased it differently than “white privilege”, there would be a different response. It is definitely a trigger word.
“And I think most people would admit they don’t feel their life could be in danger when confronted by a cop, in the same way that a young back man would. I’ll bet if someone phrased it differently than “white privilege”, there would be a different response. It is definitely a trigger word.”
Maybe you should stop letting it “trigger” you. It’s just words right? Don’t get hung up on the label. Understand the meaning behind it, which the above post highlights you kind of do, as you say " in the same way that a young back man would". Don’t get caught up with the 2 words chosen, “white” and “privilege”, when understanding the sentiment behind it and the destructive aspect it has for our country is MUCH more important. Maybe if we could turn back the clock a decade and choose different words to define the issue it would be better but that wouldn’t make the fact that there is an issue go away or any less important.
Well, at least I acknowledge it’s a couple of trigger words, it’s hard to control ones reaction.
But in these kind of situations, I find it inaccurate and self defeating to describe these problems as “white privilege”, because it’s really not. That sounds as if we could just get rid of it, the problems would stop. As if only whites have the privilege to not be harassed, and anyone else doesn’t (which is incorrect). Nobody is targeted as much as young black men. The reality is, it is racism, and assumptions about appearances. If everyone was treated with respect, many problems would disappear.
You know what’s really sad about this thread? A cop gets fired for joking about killing blacks yet the cops that actually kill us aren’t punished.
A part of this is the unfortunate reality that the “blue wall of silence” is usually backed up with strong peer pressure and/or threats against any cop who even attempts/thinks about breaking that well…much less actually go through with it.
One good case in point is how Frank Serpico was treated and to some extent, still regarded by some LEOs to this very day:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Serpico
The hostility from LEO colleagues and some incidents when he was refused backup in dangerous situations while on duty…including one in which he was shot as recounted in an article he wrote back in 2014 below:
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/10/the-police-are-still-out-of-control-112160
More ironic was that despite his account of how 2 of his backups on the drug raid in which he was shot not only refused to assist him when he was attacked and then shot by the dealer, but never radioed in the fact he was shot and needed medical assistance and was left to his own devices by them that they ended up being awarded medals for “saving his life”.
I completely agree, partyof5.
@tom1944
So you’re ok with people being treated differently because of their race/gender?
@sciencenerd, I suspect that tom means that he doesn’t feel bad when he is treated well, but he acknowledges that it happens, not that it is fine to treat others badly. He is a very conscientious man, and is always thinking of others.
I also don’t feel bad when I am treated well, I feel lucky and appreciative, because I am not always treated politely. However, I generally do not have to fear for my life in interactions with others.
sciencenerd- I want everyone treated with dignity and respect.
Why would you think my post indicates otherwise?