Have I been a victim of a crime?tech37 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 16, 2020 11:53 amIt all depends of course. If it's a high crime area I would cross the road whether they were black or white. Would I care how they felt? Not in the least, since I'm looking out for numero uno in that area.MDlaxfan76 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 16, 2020 11:46 amI'm with you 100% on taking care to avoid an "incident". We don't walk down a darkened alley by ourselves...tech37 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 16, 2020 11:30 amI worked in NYC for 2 decades, the 80s and 90s, catching the dubious end of the Koch admin and then the Dinkins mess. I traveled on foot and subways at all hours of the day, in good and bad areas, and I wasn't packing like Bernard Getz. Looking back, I was probably quite lucky not to have had any incidents. Would I cross the street or change train cars if I felt there was a chance of something happening? You bet, unless there was a cop or two (or back then, even a Guardian Angel) visibly in area, which was rare. Am I racist because of that? No F'ing way. That's called self preservation and has nothing to do with the color of anyone's skin.MDlaxfan76 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 16, 2020 10:54 am On a black person calling the police, you are again misunderstanding the challenge for black men and boys. It's not that the caller is racist, it's that they are more likely to perceive danger when the man or boy is black. This is true throughout the society, in all our messaging, and we see black police at times with these same reactions. And it doesn't matter whether the black boy or man is where they should be, dressed appropriate to their environment, driving a nice car...etc. A black person is less likely to have these perceptions of danger, but it's not a guarantee.
This doesn't make a you a "racist" and no one suggested otherwise.
Now if you're walking down a main Ave and see a group of kids walking toward you, bouncing a basketball, do you notice their skin color? Does it make a difference to your sense of concern? do you cross the street if they're black but not if they're white?
Do those boys notice your reaction on their way to basketball courts behind the church?
MD, you ever been a victim of a crime? Ever had you car stolen or your house broken into for instance?
Whole bunch of times. House, car, person.
We lived in the South End of Boston in the mid '80's, last block of half rehabbed brownstones before 5 blocks north to Mass Ave and Roxbury, all boarded up blocks. Played b-ball in the church park across Columbus Ave, sole white guy (and an ex-wrestler to boot). Took me quite awhile to even be allowed on the court, but once it started to dawn on them that we'd then win game after game, (I played tough D, set a hard pick, and passed...only need 4 shooters...) it was easier, though generally the #5 pick...win and stay on...
Car was broken into so many times, the lock didn't work anymore...was really PO'd when the thief broke the window instead of trying the door, in order to steal the AM radio out of the Toyola Corolla...thief in training.
Had a purse snatched from my wife as we went into the brownstone ground level after walking home from dinner, me in front, her mom, then her...we walked by the perp a few doors down, he came up behind us and put his knee in her back and ripped it off; I took off after the perp on foot in my suit and hard soles, he in his sneakers...car saw me chasing the guy, swerved to cut him off and he cut down an alley, I continued to chase...thank goodness he didn't turn around, he came back up on Columbus, me losing ground and yelling, a gay couple walking up their stoop saw me chasing and blew a police whistle, perp dropped the bag, turned the corner and kept going...police were there in 60 seconds...but no dice catching him. when we gave our statements, each of us had seen the guy as we passed him, but we all described him differently, black, brown, white, color of his jacket, all different...
One lazy Sunday afternoon, my wife and I were sleeping after a little 'afternoon delight' to awaken to a figure in our doorway of our bedroom...he'd come through the back garden and up the stairs..."is Mikey here?" Huh, no Mikey here...he turned and left...did it happen? Yup, found my wife's purse down the hall dropped as he ran out...
Later, we were commuting to Baltimore for business staying a week at a time...got 3 alarm calls three nights in a row...police have responded, no problem, everything looks secure...must be the rats...4th night, the police got smart and sent one cop back to the alley as well as to the front door. Saw two guys loading a TV into the trunk of a car...one guy took off, cop tackles the other guy who is yelling in Spanish....got him by the leg...and the leg comes off!!!...prosthetic leg...cop telling us the story was quite a character. Other perp running through the park got close lined by an undercover female cop...we prosecuted, but never did recover the last stuff...fortunately they didn't get the most precious stuff, though my album collection...
I've also been stuck up at gunpoint, though not in that neighborhood.