David E. Early, assistant city editor for the San Jose Mercury News. He has been a journalist for 35 years.
Posted on 09/05/2014 4:18:25 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
It's the time of year when hundreds of thousands of American parents are shipping their children off to college for the first time. For most, it's a time of celebration. But for the black parents of college-bound sons, the rite of passage has long come with a quiet, unique sense of dread.
These parents grapple with a scary open secret: Young black males -- more than any other demographic group -- are haunted by cultural stereotypes that foster fear, discrimination and police harassment. Sending sons away to other parts of the country greatly magnifies those fears, particularly in the wake of last month's fatal shooting of Michael Brown by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.
The uneasy preparation for life as a young African-American male often begins when black males are in their early teens and goes on for years. Black parents simply call it "The Talk."
"I taught him to keep his hands where cops can see them," said
Amelia Ashley-Ward, a San Francisco mom whose son, Evan, says he has been stopped three times by police for no apparent reason in the Tennessee town where he attends college. "I taught him that police are not your friends and that every traffic stop can lead to damage that can never be undone."
Evan Ward said each time he was stopped, he had passengers. "We were not speeding, or playing loud music or bothering anyone," said the 22-year-old, who attends Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro. "We got pulled over for being young African-American males riding in a decent automobile."(continued)
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
David E. Early, assistant city editor for the San Jose Mercury News. He has been a journalist for 35 years.
It was earned. Sometimes the hard way.
The cure is to continue to be very polite and cooperating with the police. Giving them attitude it the surest way to continue the abuse.
And 99.999% of the time that trouble will arrive in the form of other black sons.
Some of the best advice my parents ever gave me was
“You are judged by the company you keep.
Example: If you hang out with druggies... even though you are not one yourself... you will be seen as one, etc.
Very good advice... just work hard in school and don’t ever go anywhere or do anything you’d have trouble explaining to us if you are caught.”
I believe my boys seek trouble. My sons might believe that the random operation of subatomic particles leads them into difficulties, but I can point to specific choices they have made.
stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason. Some are actually earned and fit. Look at POTUS, he fits many of them.
For about three years I ran a large department in a company that had hired most of its employees from the welfare roles. (This was a tax and free building deal brokered by the local government.) These employees were mostly black males.
They were their own worst enemies. One nice, reliable 20 year old man was at a black bar in a black neighborhood at 2:00 in the morning playing pool. No gun. No drugs, He ended up shot nine times. If I could have given him advice I’d have said, “You’re in the most likely to die of violence demographic. Move into a white neighborhood and do not go out after dark. Wear more formal long-sleeved shirts and pants that cinch at the waist. Get married and stay out of places where you might get in trouble.”
Others, with good jobs and finally making it on their own got involved with their former friends who in turn involved them with drugs. They lost their jobs and ended in jail. It was as if they never thought anything through to the potential consequences.
One black told me that if he learned to speak better English it would be playing-to-the-Man. I told him living well was the best revenge. If he wanted to go somewhere he’d have to learn to speak better English. Amazingly, he did. When I left he was running his own department.
They can break the cycle. But for the most part they’re blind to the opportunities scattered in front of them.
“I taught him to keep his hands where cops can see them,”
Whereas white folk stopped by cops can keep their hands in their pockets.
I'm so sick of this "we are all racists" narrative. If these young kids would just pull up their pants and act civilized, the world would be a better place for them.
Gee,and all this time I thought it was the “boys” (many of them 6 feet tall and 180+ pounds) that were seeking trouble!
Maybe trouble isn’t seeking them, maybe its the fact that they are about 12% of the population and commit over half of all crimes in the US.
Having slipped the bonds of a single uppity mother Amelia Ashley-Ward, young Evan has joined the musicians at MTSU.
MTSU is the producer of educated young folks necessary to keep the music industry in Nashville alive and well.
That being said, if a young black man is more interested in emerging unscathed from an unfair interaction, and goes the "Yes sir", "No sir" route, rather than being pissed at the perceived "diss" from the man, the vast majority of the time he will indeed emerge unscathed from his unfair interaction.
Mom, that's what you need to tell your kids.
Contemptible.
It’s probably true that young, black males receive extra scrutiny, but it’s also true their actions often deserve it. It’s like the chicken and the egg argument.
Your advice is excellent regardless. Black males can change how other people perceive them by acting on especially good behavior at all times. Actually, that’s good advice for all of us. We all need to try harder to lift America up—restoring the civil society—by being considerate and polite towards others.
One thing’s for sure. Giving everyone attitude, demanding reparations for every slight, and acting rude and crude will NOT make the situation better.
Good point.It must be acknowledged that in *this* country,at least,young punks come in *all* shapes,sizes,colors and genders.
Maybe if they would stop teaching their sons that “cops are not their friends”, and did teach them good manners throughout life, their sons would be better served. Cops are not anyone’s “friend”, they are there to protect us.
I once saw a couple of cops stranded at an intersection because their car had broken down. I stopped and asked them if they needed any help. After picking up their jaws, they laughed and said that help was on the way, but thanks anyway. What does it say about the state of our society when cops are astonished that anyone would offer them assistance?
“cops are not their friends”, and did teach them good manners throughout life, their sons would be better served. Cops are not anyone’s “friend”, they are there to protect us.
_______________
The police are not here to protect us. The police are here to keep order.
Murfreesboro, TN? Isn’t that where the new Islamic Center of America mosque is? They’re not racially profiling this kid because he’s black. They just want to make sure he’s not some sort of jihadi! (sarc.)
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