I did a lot of traveling over the holiday break, and I saw a familiar scene play out with alarming regularity any time I was on a major highway: a state trooper (or two, sometimes more) searching a car on the side of the road, the owner of which is sitting or standing out in the grass with their hands behind their back.
Almost invariably, the driver is a minority. Never have I seen an old white grandfather sitting sheepishly on the ground while the police throw open the trunk of his Lincoln Continental and spread his luggage all over the highway.
Now, I’d be foolish to say that all of these unfortunate souls are innocent bystanders. I’m sure some of them have done or said something that give the officers sufficient cause to be suspicious and subsequently request a search. But the sheer volume of incidents I’ve seen just with my own eyes means that some of them are just being hassled for no good reason.
I know from personal experience. Until about a year ago, I had very long hair, dressed in metal band t-shirts, and generally looked the part of a metal-head or hippie depending on who was judging me.
I don’t use any kind of drug, but my outward appearance seemed to make people (and especially authorities) think I did. Any time I was stopped by law enforcement, I was asked if I would consent to a search, just because I looked the part of a pothead.
It is annoying, a tremendous inconvenience, and can be initiated with little or no evidence or provocation. More than that, it’s insulting to see that your words and character are not only not trusted, they are often outright ignored.
The traditional counter-argument is “Well, if you don’t have anything to hide, you shouldn’t have to worry,” but that’s not the point. Having to stand on the side of the road looking like a criminal in full view of anyone that drives by is embarrassing, especially knowing that you have done nothing wrong and that all you’re being put through will ultimately amount to nothing.
So whenever I see an African-American or Hispanic man standing helplessly as police rifle through his belongings, I automatically sympathize, because I know what it’s like to be discriminated against based solely on appearance and someone’s snap judgments. It almost seems like a form of social control, as if the officers are saying “You know, if you just looked and acted like us, this wouldn’t happen to you.”
I know the police generally have the public’s best interest in mind, and that searches like these sometimes do bring results. But, more often than not, it seems to be just unnecessary bullying, flexing the long arm of the law just to embarrass law-abiding citizens who just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
I just keep wondering when are stigmas like long hair and tattoos going to be removed from the most wanted list. There is no reason to assume just because a person does not fit the clean cut stereotype he or she is out doing malicious things trying to cause others harm.
There are plenty of people who have looked like every day joes and done horrible things. For example Hitler was a prime example of this.
It seems like innocent citizens are being punished because of a naziesque belief and I’m tired of it.
At least it sure feels that way when you’re sitting helpless in the grass with several cops surriounding you.