WEBVTT - 052023 Racial Profiling Happens to Us Too! (Part 1) 0:00:00.360 --> 0:00:04.479 Welcome to another episode of Civic Cipher as we broadcast 0:00:04.480 --> 0:00:07.240 from the Hip Hop Weekly Studios. I am your host, 0:00:07.360 --> 0:00:08.280 Ramses John he. 0:00:08.640 --> 0:00:16.360 Is Ramses Joh, I am q Ward. That's important because 0:00:16.360 --> 0:00:25.640 people be reading my Instagram like I'm awkward, I'm quirk, 0:00:26.800 --> 0:00:27.920 I am. 0:00:28.760 --> 0:00:31.920 Q or write it down, that's who I am. People 0:00:31.960 --> 0:00:33.360 need to say, people need to know. 0:00:33.680 --> 0:00:35.519 And you're tuned in to Civic Cipher D. 0:00:35.680 --> 0:00:38.599 You are a lot to stick around for today because 0:00:39.280 --> 0:00:45.040 there's a lot going on in the world. I'm gonna 0:00:45.040 --> 0:00:49.760 tell a story about something that happened to me recently. 0:00:49.760 --> 0:00:51.640 You know a lot of times folks think on this 0:00:51.680 --> 0:00:56.760 show that we kind of ride above the the sort 0:00:56.760 --> 0:01:00.880 of racism and the prejudice that we report on because 0:01:01.080 --> 0:01:02.200 wait of our platform. 0:01:02.320 --> 0:01:03.320 Why on earth? 0:01:03.480 --> 0:01:06.880 Because w anyone assumed that part. We're going to let 0:01:06.880 --> 0:01:08.680 them know that it happens to us. I had an 0:01:08.680 --> 0:01:11.520 incident happened with me just the other day, so I'll 0:01:11.520 --> 0:01:13.479 tell you all about it. Also, we're going to talk 0:01:13.520 --> 0:01:18.199 about this strange thing that's happening in the country where 0:01:19.280 --> 0:01:22.600 people are getting to decide who gets to live and 0:01:22.640 --> 0:01:26.080 who gets to die based on what they're afraid of. 0:01:26.200 --> 0:01:30.240 In that moment or what they hate in that moment. Yeah, 0:01:30.280 --> 0:01:33.959 that's that's fear as a y, that's as escape. You're 0:01:34.000 --> 0:01:36.959 not wrong, you're not wrong. Cue. But of course people 0:01:37.080 --> 0:01:40.480 often hide behind fear. So we're going to talk about, indeed, 0:01:40.640 --> 0:01:45.040 the many high profile incidents of people who have lost 0:01:45.040 --> 0:01:48.480 their lives because somebody thought was their right to take 0:01:48.520 --> 0:01:51.600 a life. Oftentimes the victims end up being black and 0:01:51.680 --> 0:01:55.920 the perpetrators are not black. And then we're going to 0:01:56.040 --> 0:02:00.360 discuss the racist origins of the no trespassing sign, among others. 0:02:00.520 --> 0:02:04.200 So first and foremost, like we always do at this time, 0:02:04.560 --> 0:02:08.480 we're gonna start with some Ebony excellence. You wanna take 0:02:08.520 --> 0:02:11.080 this one? Cures? Nope, all right, then I'll take this one. 0:02:11.360 --> 0:02:14.600 Today's Ebny Excellence is sponsored by Major Threads, and we're 0:02:14.600 --> 0:02:19.600 gonna shout out Seila avant Garde. She was born in 0:02:19.600 --> 0:02:23.880 two thousand and seventy and Harvey, Louisiana. By age thirteen, 0:02:23.919 --> 0:02:27.919 avant Garde got her first world record for the most 0:02:28.000 --> 0:02:31.200 bounces in one minute with three basketballs. I've seen the video. 0:02:31.280 --> 0:02:34.760 She's bouncing three basketballs and it's kind of like a 0:02:34.840 --> 0:02:37.360 juggling patterns. Really dope. So She's got the Guinness World 0:02:37.360 --> 0:02:40.400 Record for that. Her second world record is for the 0:02:40.440 --> 0:02:44.320 most bounced juggles in one minute with four basketballs. And 0:02:44.360 --> 0:02:47.360 as if that weren't enough, her third world record was 0:02:47.400 --> 0:02:51.960 for the most basketball dribbled by one person simultaneously. And 0:02:53.080 --> 0:02:57.920 she also is a talented unicycle rider and in twenty eighteen, 0:02:57.960 --> 0:03:00.120 she was featured in an under Armor commercial way the 0:03:00.160 --> 0:03:03.680 NBA star Steph Curry, and has performed with basketball legends 0:03:03.720 --> 0:03:08.120 the Harlem Lobe Trotters. Now that would be enough for 0:03:08.800 --> 0:03:12.079 any measure of Emny excellence, but we're gonna take it 0:03:12.120 --> 0:03:13.679 a step further. This is somebody we didn't get to 0:03:13.720 --> 0:03:15.799 talk about on the show, and so we're happy that 0:03:15.840 --> 0:03:17.880 we get to do it today. I'll tell the story. 0:03:17.960 --> 0:03:21.840 On July eighth, twenty twenty one, she became the first 0:03:21.880 --> 0:03:25.240 African American to win the scripts National Spelling Bee in 0:03:25.280 --> 0:03:28.639 the ninety six year history of the event. The win 0:03:28.760 --> 0:03:30.880 came of the trophy and over fifty thousand dollars in 0:03:30.919 --> 0:03:34.240 cash and prizes. Avant Garde won the championship with the 0:03:34.280 --> 0:03:40.120 word Maria. Mariah ever heard this word before, but it 0:03:40.200 --> 0:03:44.120 was defined as a type of tropical plant and The 0:03:44.160 --> 0:03:46.400 only previous black person to win the Spelling Bee was 0:03:46.400 --> 0:03:49.680 a twelve year old Jodi and Maxwell of Jamaica in 0:03:49.800 --> 0:03:55.840 ninety eight. So she was a Jamaican, not an African American, 0:03:56.040 --> 0:03:59.280 but back to a mont guard. When she grows up, 0:03:59.600 --> 0:04:02.440 she won to be an archaeologist, a w NBA player, 0:04:02.480 --> 0:04:04.360 and to work with NASA. So shout out to you. 0:04:04.960 --> 0:04:08.839 Sounds like she's on her way to doing all all right. 0:04:09.120 --> 0:04:14.160 Moving on, So, as I mentioned, I had a run 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:23.480 in with the fuzz the other day. And for folks 0:04:23.520 --> 0:04:30.000 that don't have for folks that don't walk the path 0:04:30.720 --> 0:04:33.840 of a of a black person or a brown person, 0:04:33.920 --> 0:04:38.440 or a marginalized person, you might not be able to 0:04:38.960 --> 0:04:42.560 really understand what discrimination looks like and how insulting and 0:04:42.560 --> 0:04:47.440 out how dehumanizing it can be. You might not walk 0:04:47.480 --> 0:04:52.960 around with a certain a fear. Fear might be too 0:04:53.000 --> 0:04:56.560 strong a word what a constant companion will call concern 0:04:57.560 --> 0:05:04.800 or yourself relative to your surroundings. You might not carry 0:05:04.839 --> 0:05:09.119 that with you the way that someone like me, someone 0:05:09.200 --> 0:05:15.920 like you would carry it with us. So I will 0:05:16.160 --> 0:05:19.640 give you some insight and something that happened. This was 0:05:19.920 --> 0:05:26.920 probably six days ago as of this episode. Now, let 0:05:26.960 --> 0:05:29.240 me back up a bit. A few weeks ago, I 0:05:29.279 --> 0:05:33.000 went and bought some little BMX bikes. Right, my little 0:05:33.000 --> 0:05:37.680 boy is big enough to ride a bike now, and 0:05:37.760 --> 0:05:41.120 so we've been enjoying our neighborhood riding bikes around. And 0:05:41.200 --> 0:05:43.200 I bought two of them, so I have a BMX 0:05:43.240 --> 0:05:45.279 bike too. Now I'm an adult man. My son is 0:05:45.320 --> 0:05:48.240 eight years old, but I used to ride BMX bikes 0:05:48.279 --> 0:05:50.360 when I was younger. That's the bike I'm comfortable riding, 0:05:50.400 --> 0:05:53.080 and that's the one I got. We got some gts 0:05:53.600 --> 0:05:57.240 for those of you familiar with those old school bikes, 0:05:57.240 --> 0:05:59.760 and we got the good ones because we're doing a 0:05:59.760 --> 0:06:02.000 little a little bit better these days than we were 0:06:02.040 --> 0:06:03.839 back in the nineties when we had to ride them huffies. 0:06:04.880 --> 0:06:09.440 So really exciting time riding around the neighborhood with my son. 0:06:09.640 --> 0:06:13.440 Just kind of enjoying this time together. He asked us questions. 0:06:13.440 --> 0:06:16.479 We ride around, listen to music and just enjoy the 0:06:16.480 --> 0:06:21.680 weather and enjoy each other's company, and we share. We 0:06:21.760 --> 0:06:23.479 have more than just the two bikes, so we'll share. 0:06:23.520 --> 0:06:25.200 We have other people come over and ride bikes with 0:06:25.240 --> 0:06:30.680 us from time to time as well. Well. There is 0:06:30.720 --> 0:06:39.760 a neighborhood near my house where I'm looking to make 0:06:39.760 --> 0:06:43.120 a purchase. I've been on tours and a couple of 0:06:43.160 --> 0:06:51.080 the homes, and I have relationships with the people in 0:06:51.120 --> 0:06:53.840 the community, of course, but also with the realtors, so 0:06:53.920 --> 0:06:59.839 forth and so on, And this neighborhood is quite a 0:06:59.880 --> 0:07:03.840 fluent It needs to be stated because I don't want 0:07:03.839 --> 0:07:09.760 to misrepresent what happened here. So the night of this incident, 0:07:10.880 --> 0:07:15.720 I was hanging out with a friend of mine, and 0:07:16.480 --> 0:07:21.280 she and I decided that we would go for a 0:07:21.360 --> 0:07:23.360 bike ride. This is my new thing. I invite everybody 0:07:23.440 --> 0:07:25.960 to ride bikes. Q is probably the only person who 0:07:25.960 --> 0:07:27.960 hasn't jumped on a bike with me, but everybody else 0:07:28.000 --> 0:07:29.320 has got to get on these bikes and ride around 0:07:29.320 --> 0:07:32.240 this neighborhood. Man. Now, I want to be clear. My 0:07:32.240 --> 0:07:35.240 neighborhood is different from this neighborhood. We rode the bikes too, 0:07:35.320 --> 0:07:36.960 but it's close enough for a bike ride, so very 0:07:36.960 --> 0:07:45.800 close neighborhoods. But I would say a definitive step step 0:07:45.880 --> 0:07:49.680 up in terms of how affluent the neighborhood is. I 0:07:49.680 --> 0:07:51.320 don't live in a bad neighborhood at all, but this 0:07:51.360 --> 0:07:56.760 neighborhood is just different. Okay, this neighborhood is called the 0:07:56.800 --> 0:08:02.880 Builtmore those who are familiar with the lay of the 0:08:02.960 --> 0:08:05.120 land here in Phoenix, But the Biltmore is kind of 0:08:05.960 --> 0:08:08.040 this affluent neighborhood that I was talking about. I don't 0:08:08.080 --> 0:08:11.080 live very far from there, just down the street. So 0:08:12.760 --> 0:08:15.960 this night, my friend comes over and we're hanging out, 0:08:16.000 --> 0:08:21.000 we're talking, and we decided to go for a bike ride. 0:08:21.360 --> 0:08:24.480 And it's night. You know, in arizona's very hot in 0:08:24.520 --> 0:08:27.080 the daytime, so you want to wait until the sun 0:08:27.120 --> 0:08:31.040 goes down just because it's cooler. I'm not getting dressed 0:08:31.120 --> 0:08:34.880 up to ride this bike. No one would because we're 0:08:34.880 --> 0:08:37.040 not going to see anyone. We're not going to do 0:08:37.080 --> 0:08:40.360 anything nothing like that. We're just going to get on 0:08:40.440 --> 0:08:46.640 comfortable clothes and ride the bikes. And while riding, I 0:08:46.679 --> 0:08:48.559 suggested to my friend, Hey, do you want to check 0:08:48.600 --> 0:08:52.839 out this house that I'm thinking of purchasing. Just did 0:08:53.000 --> 0:08:58.520 a tour there the other day, and I'm thinking that 0:08:58.559 --> 0:09:02.360 this might come together. Just waiting on a couple of 0:09:02.400 --> 0:09:04.320 things to pan out and see what, you know, the 0:09:04.360 --> 0:09:07.920 sellers are trying to do. But you know, I'm absolutely 0:09:09.080 --> 0:09:13.199 in talks for making this purchase. So she says, yeah, 0:09:13.240 --> 0:09:17.160 let's go check it out. So I want to paint 0:09:17.200 --> 0:09:22.680 a picture for an outsider looking in. After I paint 0:09:22.679 --> 0:09:27.440 this picture of me, me Ramses on a bike and 0:09:27.520 --> 0:09:31.240 a T shirt and some shorts at night, a BMX bike, 0:09:31.320 --> 0:09:36.120 mind you, riding around the neighborhood in Arizona. So harmless, 0:09:36.160 --> 0:09:38.560 nothing to see here, just a man enjoying a bike 0:09:38.720 --> 0:09:42.360 with a friend or by myself. But this evening I 0:09:42.400 --> 0:09:46.800 was with a friend. This friend was not black. Now, 0:09:47.120 --> 0:09:51.320 to an outsider looking in, I know this. This is 0:09:51.320 --> 0:09:54.200 a part of that constant companion. I know that I 0:09:54.280 --> 0:09:58.840 probably look like a drug person or I'm on drugs 0:09:58.880 --> 0:10:00.679 or selling drugs or you know. I mean, it just 0:10:01.120 --> 0:10:05.720 doesn't look This isn't the sort of thing that people 0:10:05.960 --> 0:10:10.120 see and are entirely comfortable with. Right, So I'm mindful 0:10:10.120 --> 0:10:14.160 of this. It's that constant commanding. I'm aware of that. 0:10:14.480 --> 0:10:18.920 Now it hasn't affected me, but I'm aware. It's impossible 0:10:18.920 --> 0:10:23.240 to be black and not be extremely self aware. And 0:10:23.320 --> 0:10:26.160 this is my estimation. Because I've lived this life for 0:10:26.160 --> 0:10:30.280 forty years. I know what it means to be black 0:10:30.400 --> 0:10:33.560 in this country. And something as simple as riding a bike, 0:10:33.640 --> 0:10:36.600 something as simple as existing in the wrong place at 0:10:36.640 --> 0:10:39.080 the wrong time, it would be a death sentence. This 0:10:39.120 --> 0:10:40.880 is what we cover on the show quite a bit. 0:10:41.760 --> 0:10:47.720 So I recognize that a bike looks youthful, and youth 0:10:47.800 --> 0:10:50.920 and black and male often looks like trouble. And if 0:10:50.960 --> 0:10:53.280 I'm not dressed a certain way, I'm not wearing my Rolex, 0:10:53.320 --> 0:10:56.240 I'm not driving my Corvette or Mercedes or any of 0:10:56.240 --> 0:10:58.440 this sort of stuff. I'm just riding a bike. It 0:10:58.520 --> 0:11:01.840 looks very different to people who have been taught to 0:11:01.920 --> 0:11:10.640 fear that combination of features manifest in one person. Okay, 0:11:10.679 --> 0:11:15.120 but I have something else on my side, and that 0:11:15.320 --> 0:11:19.640 is I know the people in the neighborhood. A couple 0:11:19.679 --> 0:11:22.360 of them own business partners with right, I'm in this 0:11:22.400 --> 0:11:27.160 neighborhood four or five times a week, have been for 0:11:27.360 --> 0:11:33.960 some time, and feel very comfortable having established myself over 0:11:34.040 --> 0:11:36.559 time in this neighborhood. People come up to me and say, hey, 0:11:36.600 --> 0:11:39.480 nice car, I love your hair, you know whatever. And 0:11:39.559 --> 0:11:41.040 you know, for those who know me, I'm like, I 0:11:41.040 --> 0:11:42.800 have a bunch of tattoos and all this sort of stuff. 0:11:42.800 --> 0:11:48.000 So these people, I've managed to ingratiate myself, if you will, 0:11:48.120 --> 0:11:50.120 to these folks who live here, so I know who 0:11:50.160 --> 0:11:53.920 I am. But I also know that these folks, if 0:11:53.920 --> 0:11:56.559 they see me, there's nothing to fear, right, they know 0:11:56.600 --> 0:12:03.200 who I am too. Oh, there's nothing wrong with riding 0:12:03.240 --> 0:12:05.960 the bikes over there, checking out the house just as 0:12:05.960 --> 0:12:08.880 a destination to enjoy the bike ride, and that's exactly 0:12:08.880 --> 0:12:12.280 what we do. The thing is turning into the Biltmore. 0:12:14.120 --> 0:12:23.720 There is a police car there, and I clocked that 0:12:23.760 --> 0:12:28.400 police car immediately, because that's what you do. But I also, 0:12:29.080 --> 0:12:31.040 in the amount of time that I've ingratiated myself with 0:12:31.080 --> 0:12:34.120 the folks that live there, I also know the police 0:12:34.120 --> 0:12:37.000 officers that are there during the daytime. Funny, I know, 0:12:37.320 --> 0:12:39.840 because this is rams this was always very critical of 0:12:39.880 --> 0:12:42.319 the police. But I've actually talked about both officers before, 0:12:42.360 --> 0:12:46.719 Suzanne and Daniel kind people, and I use them in 0:12:46.800 --> 0:12:50.680 another person. I don't want to say his name, but 0:12:50.800 --> 0:12:54.400 his last name, but Kevin, who is a now a 0:12:54.440 --> 0:12:59.040 Queen Greek police officer. I use them to ensure that 0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:02.640 I'm being fair when describing how policing should be done 0:13:02.920 --> 0:13:06.559 and referencing the system of policing, not the individuals. Okay, 0:13:07.840 --> 0:13:10.280 So the two police that are there and during the daytime. 0:13:10.360 --> 0:13:12.240 I know them very well. In addition to the mailman, 0:13:12.360 --> 0:13:16.679 and you know the people that do the caddies since 0:13:16.840 --> 0:13:21.720 the golf course as well, or our non black listeners. 0:13:22.800 --> 0:13:26.760 That mental inventory that Ramses has giving you right now, 0:13:26.880 --> 0:13:30.280 the names of the police officers, the mailman, the relationships 0:13:30.280 --> 0:13:33.080 with the neighbors and the people that live in this 0:13:33.160 --> 0:13:34.479 neighborhood in this community. 0:13:35.520 --> 0:13:37.120 That is normal for us. 0:13:38.240 --> 0:13:40.680 The noticing of the police officer that's here that uh oh, 0:13:40.760 --> 0:13:42.000 I don't know that one, yep. 0:13:42.480 --> 0:13:44.000 That is normal for us. 0:13:45.080 --> 0:13:47.079 Not just when you go to a neighborhood where you 0:13:47.160 --> 0:13:48.760 might buy a house, but if you're going to the 0:13:48.760 --> 0:13:53.080 gas station, or to your kids' school, or to the 0:13:53.120 --> 0:13:57.360 store or anywhere that's not home. Every time you see 0:13:57.360 --> 0:14:00.920 a police car, there is a mental inventory, a snapshot 0:14:01.400 --> 0:14:05.120 and kind of a checklist in your head. Is my 0:14:05.200 --> 0:14:09.080 seatbelt fast? Was I driving too fast? Did I signal 0:14:09.120 --> 0:14:11.000 when I got over? Did I come to a complete 0:14:11.040 --> 0:14:14.160 stop at that stop sign? Did I drive through that 0:14:14.200 --> 0:14:15.600 intersection while getting over? 0:14:15.880 --> 0:14:16.400 Like anything? 0:14:16.400 --> 0:14:18.439 That Because there's all these stuff that you don't know 0:14:18.880 --> 0:14:21.040 that you can be sighted and pulled over for that 0:14:21.120 --> 0:14:22.200 all of us do every day. 0:14:23.120 --> 0:14:23.960 I'll believe so it's. 0:14:24.000 --> 0:14:26.920 Just to the discretion of said officer if they feel 0:14:26.920 --> 0:14:30.000 like making your day hard that thank you every day, 0:14:30.160 --> 0:14:34.720 thank you, and for us as normal, it's more times 0:14:34.720 --> 0:14:37.240 than not they got time today. 0:14:38.000 --> 0:14:42.760 So watch this. I'm glad you said that. So we 0:14:42.920 --> 0:14:46.800 ride into the neighborhood on these BMX bikes. It's nighttime. 0:14:47.040 --> 0:14:49.040 It's not super late, but it's nighttime. Let's call it 0:14:49.320 --> 0:14:52.080 eight o'clock, nine o'clock at night on the way in. 0:14:53.240 --> 0:14:55.520 What this. So a friend of mine that lives in 0:14:55.560 --> 0:14:59.400 the boil her name is Cheryl. Her husband's name is Ira. Ira. 0:15:00.360 --> 0:15:03.920 They're very wealthy people. They both have rolls races, and 0:15:04.520 --> 0:15:10.800 IRA's rolls races very interesting color combination. It's a metallic 0:15:10.880 --> 0:15:15.520 blue and gold. So I saw IRA's car as I'm 0:15:15.920 --> 0:15:18.920 riding bikes into the to the Billbore, and I waved 0:15:18.960 --> 0:15:24.720 to him and just kept riding. Got inside and police 0:15:24.760 --> 0:15:27.000 officers sitting there. Just rode right past them because I'm 0:15:27.000 --> 0:15:31.560 assuming I'm not doing anything wrong, not harming anybody. And 0:15:31.600 --> 0:15:33.840 we didn't stop. We just rode. It's like a circle, 0:15:33.920 --> 0:15:38.720 so you just ride around, rode around about a two 0:15:38.720 --> 0:15:42.200 mile lap. Pointed out the house that I was looking 0:15:42.240 --> 0:15:46.479 at and we're just talking and riding. Rode back out. 0:15:46.720 --> 0:15:50.480 Now we're about three quarters of the way through, and 0:15:50.520 --> 0:15:54.520 then I see that same police officer ride. Now he's driving. 0:15:54.680 --> 0:15:57.320 He drives the opposite direction of where I'm coming. So 0:15:57.480 --> 0:15:59.920 I came in an entrance and it takes you into 0:15:59.920 --> 0:16:01.800 a circle and then let you back out at the 0:16:01.800 --> 0:16:03.960 same entrance. Right, So I'm about three quarters away through 0:16:04.000 --> 0:16:07.480 the circle going around, and he's driving the opposite direction. 0:16:07.680 --> 0:16:16.000 So he kind of prisscrossed right and he said, you 0:16:16.040 --> 0:16:20.480 guys need to make your way to the front. And 0:16:20.600 --> 0:16:30.480 I thought to myself, hmm, that's not right. And I 0:16:30.520 --> 0:16:41.400 thought to myself, who would I be if I did 0:16:41.440 --> 0:16:50.520 not step up in this moment? Expound? Would I be 0:16:50.560 --> 0:16:56.400 a coward? Would I be a person who has allowed 0:16:56.720 --> 0:17:01.400 my fear of this officer to cause me to tuck 0:17:01.480 --> 0:17:04.160 my tail and run? Or can I stand on the 0:17:04.160 --> 0:17:08.240 accomplishments of my life. Can I stand and say to 0:17:08.400 --> 0:17:15.840 this man, I belong here, I'm actively working with business 0:17:15.880 --> 0:17:21.560 partners in this neighborhood. I'm welcome at any number of 0:17:21.600 --> 0:17:26.840 these homes after so long, and in fact, I'm engaged 0:17:27.000 --> 0:17:29.640 in the process of purchasing one of these homes myself. 0:17:30.480 --> 0:17:33.439 The sad truth is if your name was Grayson and 0:17:33.480 --> 0:17:38.480 not Ramses, no, you probably don't need to stand up 0:17:38.520 --> 0:17:41.840 in this moment for what. Just ride the back the bike, 0:17:41.920 --> 0:17:43.840 back out and come home. And what are we talking about? 0:17:43.920 --> 0:17:46.320 This is not to take a stance moment, so to 0:17:46.400 --> 0:17:48.679 ride the bike night. Yeah, you're no. 0:17:49.080 --> 0:17:51.040 So this is this is absolutely is what my friend 0:17:51.080 --> 0:17:53.520 who was riding with me was trying to say. But 0:17:54.200 --> 0:17:58.800 here's the thing. It's incredibly embarrassing and incredibly dehumanizing when 0:17:58.800 --> 0:18:03.560 you've talked and you've painted this picture and you have 0:18:03.680 --> 0:18:07.000 this exciting thing on the frontier of your life and 0:18:07.480 --> 0:18:09.840 you're trying to share it with somebody show you know whatever, 0:18:10.200 --> 0:18:13.680 and then someone who doesn't know anything about you other 0:18:13.720 --> 0:18:16.359 than you're riding a bike at night and you have 0:18:16.400 --> 0:18:18.159 an afro. I have an afro for the folks that 0:18:18.200 --> 0:18:25.080 can't see me is using their modicum of authority in 0:18:25.160 --> 0:18:31.040 that moment to expel you from this neighborhood. It's a 0:18:31.119 --> 0:18:36.320 fluent neighborhood. So I took it upon myself to introduce 0:18:36.440 --> 0:18:42.240 myself to this officer. So I went back to the 0:18:42.280 --> 0:18:47.520 front where I saw the officer initially, and I sat 0:18:47.520 --> 0:18:52.199 there and I waited, and eventually the officer rode back around, 0:18:52.440 --> 0:18:55.520 and I waved to the officer, this is my way 0:18:55.520 --> 0:19:00.680 of saying, hey, come talk to me. It's we should 0:19:00.720 --> 0:19:03.800 probably know each other. I know, and I said this 0:19:03.840 --> 0:19:07.840 when officer pulled back around, because I know the other 0:19:07.920 --> 0:19:11.560 officers here. I'm bringing my children here, and I don't 0:19:11.560 --> 0:19:16.600 want any sort of prejudices to work their way into 0:19:16.680 --> 0:19:19.760 your decisions as you patrol this neighborhood. This is what 0:19:19.800 --> 0:19:21.679 I was thinking in that moment. I know this is dangerous. 0:19:21.720 --> 0:19:23.440 I do not recommend to anyone else. 0:19:23.280 --> 0:19:26.639 But listen to me. Pointing out you don't want these 0:19:27.440 --> 0:19:34.320 prejudices to make their way into the decision making processes 0:19:34.359 --> 0:19:39.040 of said officers not only increases the chances that they will, 0:19:39.640 --> 0:19:43.040 but even causes some of them, in order to prove 0:19:43.080 --> 0:19:46.480 to you that they don't have such prejudices, to become 0:19:46.880 --> 0:19:51.919 more confrontational with you. So, so if his name was 0:19:52.160 --> 0:19:54.960 Grayson and not ramses that you can go see their 0:19:54.960 --> 0:19:57.600 house tomorrow in the daytime, when the cops that you 0:19:57.760 --> 0:20:00.000 know will be patrolling the neighbors those that don't know. 0:20:00.080 --> 0:20:02.080 It'll be a way safer time for you. 0:20:02.119 --> 0:20:04.000 For those that don't know, Grayson is the name of 0:20:04.520 --> 0:20:07.600 Q's Sun. So we raise our we tell our children, 0:20:09.240 --> 0:20:12.080 do as I say, not as I do. To your 0:20:12.160 --> 0:20:19.919 dad's well to continue. I stayed still waiting for the 0:20:19.920 --> 0:20:22.280 officer to loop back around because I knew he wouldn't. 0:20:22.359 --> 0:20:24.680 And then my friend, she was on her bike, and 0:20:24.720 --> 0:20:27.240 she just kind of parked off to the side, and 0:20:27.359 --> 0:20:32.560 I had a little rubber band thing around my phone. 0:20:33.040 --> 0:20:35.080 It was playing music, so I tried to turn the 0:20:35.160 --> 0:20:38.560 music off as the officer was pulling up, and then 0:20:38.600 --> 0:20:41.399 I realized that probably looks suspicious. These are things that 0:20:41.440 --> 0:20:43.040 may not go through other people's head. But I was like, 0:20:43.080 --> 0:20:45.600 that probably looks suspicious. Let me just turn the volume 0:20:45.640 --> 0:20:48.199 down and keep both hands on the handlebars so he 0:20:48.240 --> 0:20:50.080 doesn't think i'm you know, even though he got all 0:20:50.119 --> 0:20:55.560 them bright lights on me. Okay, So he hops out 0:20:55.560 --> 0:20:58.400 of his car and the first thing he. 0:20:58.400 --> 0:21:04.000 Says is, hey, this is a private property, so you 0:21:04.040 --> 0:21:13.200 guys can't be here, And so I said, well, sir, 0:21:13.880 --> 0:21:15.360 I want you to know that. 0:21:17.400 --> 0:21:19.679 I know a couple of your colleagues that work at 0:21:19.720 --> 0:21:23.399 your same precinct. I mentioned Susanna, I mentioned David, I 0:21:23.480 --> 0:21:25.520 mentioned my business partners. I mentioned that I'm here all 0:21:25.560 --> 0:21:28.560 the time, and in fact, I'm putting an offer on 0:21:28.560 --> 0:21:33.400 one of the houses here, and he says, well, that 0:21:33.440 --> 0:21:37.040 doesn't matter. This is private property. So they tried to 0:21:37.080 --> 0:21:42.040 double down on that. So I says, well, if this 0:21:42.119 --> 0:21:51.120 is private property and you're a public servant, and are 0:21:51.200 --> 0:21:56.399 you being paid to be here and indeed off duty 0:21:58.400 --> 0:22:03.200 or is this indeed public property? And he says, well, 0:22:03.200 --> 0:22:07.199 that's not the reason that I pulled you over. I 0:22:07.240 --> 0:22:12.040 waited for you. But he says this, He says, the 0:22:12.080 --> 0:22:15.280 reason I pulled you over is because your bike doesn't 0:22:15.280 --> 0:22:15.920 have a headlight. 0:22:16.720 --> 0:22:21.040 So if his name was Grayson and not Rams, he's 0:22:21.080 --> 0:22:24.680 not sitting there being told why he was pulled over, 0:22:25.000 --> 0:22:28.359 when indeed he wasn't because he just went home and 0:22:28.440 --> 0:22:32.119 came back tomorrow in the daytime when the officers that 0:22:32.200 --> 0:22:35.320 he know would be present and it would be way 0:22:35.359 --> 0:22:39.720 less dangerous and way less likely that something stupid would happen. 0:22:40.400 --> 0:22:42.760 But his name is not Grace and his name is Ramses. 0:22:43.280 --> 0:22:44.720 And the story continues. 0:22:45.280 --> 0:22:53.280 So the officer I took the same rubber band that 0:22:53.359 --> 0:22:55.600 was holding my phone listening to music, and I turned 0:22:55.600 --> 0:22:57.959 the light on my phone. I was like, okay, there 0:22:58.040 --> 0:23:01.760 you go, and he's like, huh, give me your ID. 0:23:02.359 --> 0:23:05.040 I was like, okay, took my ID out. I gave 0:23:05.080 --> 0:23:08.000 it to him. And while he's looking at ID, my 0:23:08.040 --> 0:23:09.959 id's a little beat up. So he had to desern, 0:23:10.640 --> 0:23:12.800 like figure out what it said if his name was 0:23:12.880 --> 0:23:19.359 Grayson and not ramses this thing that he calls an ID, 0:23:19.640 --> 0:23:23.159 because it's not that anymore. It's just whatever material that 0:23:23.200 --> 0:23:26.240 it's made out of. It's just that last in paper 0:23:26.359 --> 0:23:26.800 or whatever. 0:23:26.840 --> 0:23:31.160 It's just that it is no longer a suitable form 0:23:31.160 --> 0:23:32.080 of identification. 0:23:32.320 --> 0:23:37.080 So it's terrible. So watch this. So my question is, okay, 0:23:37.119 --> 0:23:40.520 so if this is indeed private property, do you need 0:23:40.560 --> 0:23:43.600 a light to write on private property? Or do you 0:23:43.640 --> 0:23:47.040 need a light to write on public property? And he 0:23:47.119 --> 0:23:50.280 started to get frustrated because I'm catching him up in 0:23:50.320 --> 0:23:52.199 these stories and he kept trying to pivot and switch 0:23:53.400 --> 0:23:55.479 this is private property, Oh it's your light. Oh well, 0:23:55.480 --> 0:23:57.240 if it's private property, you don't need a light. You know, 0:23:57.280 --> 0:24:02.040 the sorts of thing. And the fact is that I 0:24:02.119 --> 0:24:04.520 wanted to introduce myself and I did, said I want 0:24:04.560 --> 0:24:07.359 you to know who I am because there's a very 0:24:07.359 --> 0:24:09.040 good chance, I'm gonna end up living in this house 0:24:09.119 --> 0:24:11.040 right here, next to the person who's just running for 0:24:11.080 --> 0:24:15.040 Attorney General. Rodney Glassman was also a friend of mine, 0:24:15.160 --> 0:24:20.280 you know, and he's a publican. He's always been kind 0:24:20.320 --> 0:24:24.560 to me, and it's important that you know who I 0:24:24.600 --> 0:24:27.919 am and who my children are because we're going to 0:24:27.960 --> 0:24:31.560 be living here soon. And then he took my license 0:24:31.560 --> 0:24:33.600 and he came back and he said, all right, well 0:24:33.640 --> 0:24:36.639 you're good. I said, oh, I know. And then he 0:24:36.680 --> 0:24:39.919 asked me what I was doing for work, and I said, 0:24:40.160 --> 0:24:47.399 I do what I want and then answer, you can 0:24:47.440 --> 0:24:51.440 google me, dude. And then as I was riding away, 0:24:51.480 --> 0:24:53.760 I realized he never carded the lady that I was 0:24:53.800 --> 0:24:57.480 with at all. And that's what it's like to be black. 0:24:57.520 --> 0:25:00.560 So shout out to officer Am your name, and I 0:25:00.560 --> 0:25:03.240 guess you know who else he did in cart Grayson 0:25:03.840 --> 0:25:07.840 because Grayson was at home with his dad, not looking 0:25:07.880 --> 0:25:10.639 for a police officer to have a confrontation with.