Driving while black

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Race race race. Don't be a bitch, don't disobey the law and don't sit in the left lane.

Keep enjoying your white privilege! I'm glad a few Brits have posted about the race problem in this country; whenever an AA brings it up, we get the ishtay the PP posted above. Also, we've become so inured in our own country to the racism that we have become used to being "go along to get along Negroes."

OP, driving while black does indeed apply overwhelmingly to males, but it is NEVER a good idea to sass any person of authority. Your daughter really does not want to learn this the hard way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm wondering if racial profiling is also effected by the kind of car a black man is driving. I'm white, my husband is black. He has only ever been stopped once by a cop who was checking seat belts. He also drives a beige Chevy Malibu. I'm wondering if he drove a souped up bmw or a car that's falling apart if it would make a difference?

FWIW, we live in NYC and no one seems to care that we are a mixed race couple.

However, if your daughter cannot control her sassing, it will cause her more problems in life than just when she gets a speeding ticket.

The car can definitely matter. I'm the 32 AA female who posted earlier.

Both my brother (aged 25) and my sister's boyfriend (24) were pulled over while driving my Dad's car (Cadillac and a Lincoln).

I also think the neighborhood matters as well (as experienced by the black female from the UK).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, we are also a biracial couple (I am black and my husband is white) who moved over here from the UK.  I also went through a culture shock -from never thinking about my color to being very aware of it. 

My experience has been different from the PP's. We live in a predominantly white (quite upscale) neighborhood and I have been profiled, as in stopped simply so the police officer can run my license. I get really annoyed  but I keep shtum and just call my husband afterwards to vent. I was in my 30s when we moved here from the UK and had never been stopped by the police. Since moving here I have been stopped about 8 times in 10 years and all of those times were around my neighborhood.  My husband has been stopped once for not replacing some permit.

I have also been profiled in stores a lot. It really used to upset me having never experienced that before on the UK and never in my country of origin in Africa but I take it in my stride now.  I am a SAHM and I admit that i am often on sweat pants and a tee shirt so I probably look like I don't belong.

My son is only 10 but I already worry tremendously about him already.

I'm the PP who gave examples previously of being profiled in stores, but not by the police. I'm sorry that this happened to you. I too live in an upscale area. One of the times I was stopped, I was in McLean, driving a car with expired CA licence plates. And I had no drivers license on me and no ID. I had left the house to pick up my son and forgot my wallet. The car had recently been sold to me by friend and I hadn't even put the plates in my name yet. I explained everything and apologized profusely and he gave me a warning - which was amazing. I must have an honest face. But I think if I were in a place with more crime, the cop might have been more suspicious and more on edge. I have a young son who's somewhat of a smart @ss. I worry about him as he gets bigger. DH and I were discussing lately that we'll have to have the talk with him soon - about being a black man in America. But we want to keep him innocent for as long as possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:AA woman here- I don't think I have ever been profiled by the police before. So I don't worry about that. But it has certainly happened to many AA men. But I have been profiled in stores. In my late teens, my sister and I were asked to leave a 7-11. I was a college student looking for some junk food, trying to decide what to buy and the guy assumed I was there to steel. Years later, an idiot at dress barn accused me of trying/attempting to steel their cheap @ss clothes. (i still refuse to shop there). This past summer at a county fair, I noticed a worker in a (fake) jewelry booth eyeing me very (too) closely, the whole time I was in his booth. The first 2 times, I was just in the store shopping and didn't even know I was being watched. And the reaction from the store keeper was shocking and humiliating. It really upset me. The county fair guy was annoying and stupid. I just told myself that he has just lost a sale. I am in my 40s and can only think of 3 times that this has happened - so it has been a rare thing. With the police, I've been stopped several times for traffic issues (that were my fault) and the cops have always been nice and I'd say when I was younger I usually got a ticket (speeding). In the past 5 yrs, I can think of 5 times where I was stopped and they let me off with a friendly warning. But as I said, I know of AA men who have had completely different experiences.

PP, I am an AA woman and I got stopped 3 times in DC in one month. The crazy thing is that I drive a Prius. Really?? I am sure that that is the car du jour for criminals in DC.

[Anonymous]

no but it is the car for greenies that think that traffic laws don't apply to them sicne they are being "kind" to the envionment

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a huge problem with people like OP, and feel that their attitude is a reason a good chunk of people.don't take some race issues seriously. If your daughter gets in trouble for sassing a police officer it's because she sassed a police officer. I find it ridiculous that you'd pull the race card on that. Are there asshole cops who profile? Sure. But anyone knows that sassing back a police officer will not end well, no matter what race you are.

What happened to the pp in the stores is inexcusable profiling because she didn't do anything to bring on the negative attention.

Driving while black is a documented occurrence that has been academically studied. I'd trust the word of researchers over your opinion.

[Anonymous]

prepaidlegal.com

$26 a month, you can use it for multiple situations, and I've found the phrase "I'd like to call my lawyer" along with a flash of their keycard a great deterrent to profiling. Cops actually start to treat you like a member of the human race.

well worth the cost.

[Anonymous]

OP, I think your daughter will simply, if she lets her sassy mouth run, get a ticket instead of a warning, and since of COURSE you would make your teen pay for any tickets they get, she will hopefully learn through that to keep her mouth shut.