Racial Discrimination

What memory do you have of an incident when you experienced bias, prejudice, and/or oppression, or witnessed someone else as the target of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression? Keep in mind that one can encounter such incidents in real contexts, including online environments, as well as in fictional ones, such as movies, books, television shows, and the like.

 

I was driving toward 422 going the speed limit and breaking no laws. A cop switched lanes and looked at me. I continued to drive normally. I didn't really worry until the cop got behind my vehicle and followed up the ramp. He followed very closely and never put on a siren. I had a bad feeling in my gut that he was a racist cop because he didn't start following me until he came to the side of my car and looked at me. At the end of the ramp, there were cones and flashing caution signs that said slow down. At this point, I was trying to figure out why this cop was following me and for what might he try to charge me with. I slowed down due to the signs and cones. The cop put on his sirens and pulled me over. He called over a walkie talkie saying that a black female has just been pulled over. A second cop showed up. He informed me that I was driving too slow and could have sped up to not stop traffic. I gave him my license and registration. The other cop used a flashlight to search my car. When he returned back to the car, he said that he was giving me a warning and to be safe.

 

In what way(s) did the specific bias, prejudice, and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity?

 

This unfortunate incident took away my rights to drive without being harassed based on the color of my skin. He followed me without a valid reason on purpose. He abused his power as an officer to intimidate a minority member of the community. In this incident, it seemed like he was looking for a reason to stop me. He knew that I was fully aware of his bias behavior and understand that I was going to the courts to fight him. The cop was hoping that I fit the stereotype of an angry black woman. He was hoping that I would talk back, accuse him verbally of prejudice, and give him a reason to put his hands on me. The cop didn't expect to come across an African American female who was raised to use the courts to fight a racist cop and not my mouth and fists. I feel he choose to give me a warning because he knew that his behavior would backfire on him.

 

What feelings did this incident bring up for you?

 

This incident caused me to mistrust cops. I felt very angry, vengeful, embarrassed, frustrated, anxious, violated, and extremely ANGRY. He took away my feeling of security and protection. African Americans are commonly victims of police brutality and sometimes cops get away with this kind of violent behavior. I was not sure I was going to get home that night. He could have hurt, killed, and/or probably spun the story to blame the incident on me. After this incident, I yearned to be in the company of my own people so we could protect each other.

 

What and/or who would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity?

 

The cop would have to change his discriminative views of African Americans. It is a true shame that a officer sworn to protect all members of the community would act in such a distasteful manner. He drove up next to me, looked at me, and then followed me. After being pulled over, he had to make up a reason for following me.