Tonight here in Chicago, my buddy and I were walking back from the liquor store 2 blocks away from his girlfriend's house. The neighborhood is known to be fairly safe (Lincoln Park), and is populated by young successful professionals. My buddy's girlfriend and her roommate left the liquor store 4 minutes before we did to meet someone waiting at their door. On the way home they were mugged by two black men in their mid-twenties driving a early 90's Cadillac. Threatened them with a supposed gun, that they said was in their pocket. Dressed in all black, one with corn-rows. Unfortunately, many of these characteristics fit the "typical" repressed, low-income, driven-to-crime, that many people stereotype have about african-americans. These same individuals made two other muggings within one city block less than 3 minutes apart. The cops pulled over a young black man who was wearing the same clothing, and driving the same kind of car in the neighborhood. All the victims saw him and told the police that it was not one of the muggers, so the cops let him go.
Now, I consider myself a very liberal person who accepts diversity, and does not have any preconcieved notions about other ethnicities. But this experience brings a lot of rage into me because it effected people that I care about. At first I was pissed off, and thought to myself "These are the same kind of people that are always preaching about racial profiling, and judgement on the color of their skin. If they don't want that judgement, then don't pull sh!t like this. It only encourages stereotypes like this, so it's your own fault."
Now I know that these are the wrong thoughts, because they aren't that same people that are fighting for equal rights. And just because there are some african-americans that commit crimes, it doesn't mean that the majority of them are bad. That's racism. I know it's wrong to assume that just because someone is black that I see on the subway is more likely to mug me than the white person next to me. But I also know that presentation of ones self is a large part of the way people percieve you in all walks of life, whether its a job interview, or riding on the 'L'. So if people don't want to be judged before people get to know you, don't dress or present yourself like a thug, or a slob, or a drunk, or a badass because you are only setting yourself up for a bad situation.
I'm sure that I will probably get a lot of flaming for this, but I just had to speak my mind, and get my angry thoughts out so they wouldn't sit and boil into anymore rage.
My mom says I shouldn't talk to conservatives.
