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What it means to look “suspicious”

Stephanie Benoit
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This post is LONG over due. But I wanted to make sure that I get this right. I don’t do the bandwagon thing. I’m kind of a hipster, I try to stay away from what is the popular thing to do. It’s rare when the popular thing to do and the right thing to do are one in the same. With that said.. What exactly does it mean to look “suspicious”.

When I was 18 years old, I was followed around a walmart in Carroll County, Georgia under suspicion of theft. Why did that man follow my friends and I? because a group of black girls at walmart in Carrollton is “suspicious”. When I was 19, a woman followed me around her boutique. Why because A black girl is not here to shop but here to steal. The term “suspicious” has been used to describe people who do not belong. It’s a term that has been used in Alabama’s Georgia’s and Arizona’s immigration bills. We like to point out that this is the 21st century and we have a black president and that we should be past race and race issues but unfortunately, That just isn’t true. Being a minority living in this country means living under suspicion. You are always up to no good. You’re always a thief, or a liar or a whore. I have goals and expectations for this life. I have the desire to be great and do achieve at the highest levels, but if i always look suspicious, If I’m always a thief or a liar or a whore, how is it possible to achieve? We live in a country where the culture makes it okay to disrespect and denigrate the PRESIDENT simply because he’s black. They suspect that he wasn’t born here because he doesn’t look like them. Yes this is the 21st century, but we are not accepting yet.

For this whole week I have been reading about Trayvon Martin. His murder occurred a while ago, but I’m just hearing about it. I hear about how the “alleged” murderer was never arrested or charged with any crime. I hear about how this young boy was killed and then held as a “john doe” in a morgue. I heard his cries for help on a 911 tape.( which crushed me) I hear about the short comings of the Sanford, Florida Police Department and the Prosecutors office. I hear about the laws that can prevent this man from being prosecuted for murdering a 17 year old boy. and all of this breaks my heart. While I fully understand the restraints of the police department and how the “Stand Your Ground law” might affect prosecution, I think to myself… the only reason that we are having this conversation, the only reason that that young man died was because of prejudice and stereotypes. Because of the criminalization of young minorities. How no matter how American you are, You still don’t belong. No matter how high a level you achieve, you still don’t deserve it. You are still foreign, still suspicious. The 911 tapes by themselves show what people believe about Black Americans. One of the female callers assumed that the person who did the shooting was a black guy.

I often think about my brothers and how no matter how great , how intelligent, how talented they are, they are still “suspicious”. I talked about preferring not to have kids because of the kind of world i’d be bringing them in to. It breaks my heart to see his mother crying because someone deemed her son “suspicious”. It’s heartbreaking. it’s disgusting. It’s disheartening. Is this all we have to look forward to?

I have seen the criminal justice system fail us. I have seen it let go of killers and prosecute innocent men. I have also seen all these cases become memes for social networks and passing fads for celebrities to get involved with. I hope this doesn’t become one of those things.

I’ve seen these cases compared to other UNRELATED cases. Michael Vick going to jail has nothing to do with George Zimmerman not going to jail. The Fact the Zimmerman is walking the Streets doesn’t have to do with his race, It has to do with Florida Law. Michael Vick’s jail sentence had to do with Virginia law. BIG difference. While I understand the Justice is racially biased this is NOT comparable to Vick’s case. It actually offends me when people say this. It trivializes what is going on. People who commit crimes should be punished Period.

Please let’s not make this another passing fad to get minimally informed about. This isn’t one of those things where you acquire just enough knowledge to tweet about it and not look crazy. Please follow the story, stay informed. Make sure that this man doesn’t get away with senselessly taking the life of someone who hasn’t even begun to live. This isn’t just about changing the way we deal with race in America, this is also about our gun laws and how we deal with balancing our right to bare arms and our right to life with someone else’s right to life. This issue is big and I hope that it doesn’t disappear at the end of the news cycle.

I hope we take this seriously. I hope that THIS is the change the America gets. I hope that this boys death isn’t in vain. I hope that We realize that we really can not wait and now is the time to make America the place we have been claiming that it is for so long. I hope that if I ever do find my self with children that they’re world is better than mine. I hope that this is is the end of an era and that 2012 is that last year that racism and racist stereotypes and racial profiling are acceptable.

I will be following this case closely, I hope that you will too.

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One response to “What it means to look “suspicious””

  1. Trayvon Martin, Neighborhood Watch and The Fear of Clothing « Progressive Scholar Avatar
    Trayvon Martin, Neighborhood Watch and The Fear of Clothing « Progressive Scholar

    […] What it Means to Look “Suspicious”  […]

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