6 ms·

It's scary that something like this could theoretically happen to any of us.

by jarin 16y ago

jbooth 16y ago
Well, most of us are white. So not really.
- jarin 16y ago
  Well, in an ideal world this would happen to all races equally. Wait, that doesn't quite sound right.
- xiaoma 16y ago
  Many white men have also been falsely accused, imprisoned for over a decade and then released on DNA evidence. If there's anyone that's somewhat protected from overzealous law enforcement officers, DAs and judges, it probably wouldn't be a racial group. It would be women.
  - cellis 16y ago
    And rich people.
  - dgabriel 16y ago
    Not entirely: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/08/26/48hours/main570187.shtml http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/08/26/48hours/main570187... http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/19/60II/main612675.shtml http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/19/60II/main612675.sh... http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Did-these-women-molest-two-girls-908873.php http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Did-thes... I'm sure I can find more evidence, but I'm procrastinating and need to get back to work.
    - deleted 16y ago
      [deleted]
    - xiaoma 16y ago
      The plural of anecdote is not data. Look for statistics relating to conviction/acquittal rates or rates of DAs deciding not to press charges for various crimes. The very worst thing for your odds of getting let go without prosecution or getting acquitted is being male. Next are being young or black. Being poor, foreign or unattractive(!) also hurt, but to a lesser degree and less uniformly. Obviously a middle-adged white female can be falsely prosecuted, but it's much rarer than for a random member of the population.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- extension 16y ago
  But most of us are "hackers" so yes, really.
- bugsy 16y ago
  I am not white myself and have never committed anything anyone sane would consider a crime. Yet I have been picked up and thrown in jail several times. Last time was because I was walking my dog at the park without a leash. I have never heard of a white person arrested for this. If someone was raped in the park the week I was walking my dog there, I know I would have been the primary suspect because that's how this works.
  - AndyKelley 16y ago
    Where do you live? I can't even conceive of something like that happening here in Phoenix, AZ. Seriously, until I started reading stories like this on the Internet, I thought people were needlessly indulging in fake drama when they talked about racism.
    - Natsu 16y ago
      > I can't even conceive of something like that happening here in Phoenix, AZ. Have you ever read Phoenix news as reported by out-of-state newspapers? I'm guessing that you haven't.
      - AndyKelley 16y ago
        I must admit that I don't read much news at all. What's our reputation?
        deleted 16y ago
        [deleted]
        wvoq 16y ago
        You're aware that you live in a state where the police can stop you and ask for your papers if you're brown and speaking Spanish, right?
        AndyKelley 16y ago
        It is my understanding that police must first have a "reasonable suspicion" in order to stop you, and only then under the new law, if they have "reason to suspect" that you are an illegal immigrant, that they are then required to ask for papers.
- nitrogen 16y ago
  Though racial discrimination is one of the most visible and widespread forms of discrimination, prejudices can apply to many other, sometimes unprotected classes in which some of us find ourselves. These include age, wealth (against both rich and poor), gender, occupation or interests, the color or make of your car, being a geek, or any other difference. Yes, it really could happen to you.
stcredzero 16y ago
"Something like this" happens all the time. Often, you find yourself in a situation where you're surrounded by people who view reality differently than you. If this comes to everyone's attention, then group social dynamics can come into play, where individual views of reality can be challenged by the pressure of a mob. Most of the time, people just shrug it off, go home or back to their usual community and dismiss this as an aberration. If you are in jail for a crime you did not commit, you face this every day. Racial prejudice is still a pressure like this. People who live in cosmopolitan areas can go home and shrug it off. People who are isolated and marked as different cannot, so they can see it more clearly. In either case, such prejudices are still with us, but since they've been driven underground, it's hard to know how to deal with them.

It's scary that something like this could theoretically happen to any of us.

by jarin 16y ago

It's scary that something like this could theoretically happen to any of us.

jbooth 16y ago

Well, most of us are white. So not really.

jarin 16y ago
Well, in an ideal world this would happen to all races equally. Wait, that doesn't quite sound right.
xiaoma 16y ago
Many white men have also been falsely accused, imprisoned for over a decade and then released on DNA evidence. If there's anyone that's somewhat protected from overzealous law enforcement officers, DAs and judges, it probably wouldn't be a racial group. It would be women.
- cellis 16y ago
  And rich people.
- dgabriel 16y ago
  Not entirely: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/08/26/48hours/main570187.shtml http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/08/26/48hours/main570187... http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/19/60II/main612675.shtml http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/19/60II/main612675.sh... http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Did-these-women-molest-two-girls-908873.php http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Did-thes... I'm sure I can find more evidence, but I'm procrastinating and need to get back to work.
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
  - xiaoma 16y ago
    The plural of anecdote is not data. Look for statistics relating to conviction/acquittal rates or rates of DAs deciding not to press charges for various crimes. The very worst thing for your odds of getting let go without prosecution or getting acquitted is being male. Next are being young or black. Being poor, foreign or unattractive(!) also hurt, but to a lesser degree and less uniformly. Obviously a middle-adged white female can be falsely prosecuted, but it's much rarer than for a random member of the population.
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
extension 16y ago
But most of us are "hackers" so yes, really.
bugsy 16y ago
I am not white myself and have never committed anything anyone sane would consider a crime. Yet I have been picked up and thrown in jail several times. Last time was because I was walking my dog at the park without a leash. I have never heard of a white person arrested for this. If someone was raped in the park the week I was walking my dog there, I know I would have been the primary suspect because that's how this works.
- AndyKelley 16y ago
  Where do you live? I can't even conceive of something like that happening here in Phoenix, AZ. Seriously, until I started reading stories like this on the Internet, I thought people were needlessly indulging in fake drama when they talked about racism.
  - Natsu 16y ago
    > I can't even conceive of something like that happening here in Phoenix, AZ. Have you ever read Phoenix news as reported by out-of-state newspapers? I'm guessing that you haven't.
    - AndyKelley 16y ago
      I must admit that I don't read much news at all. What's our reputation?
      - deleted 16y ago
        [deleted]
      - wvoq 16y ago
        You're aware that you live in a state where the police can stop you and ask for your papers if you're brown and speaking Spanish, right?
        AndyKelley 16y ago
        It is my understanding that police must first have a "reasonable suspicion" in order to stop you, and only then under the new law, if they have "reason to suspect" that you are an illegal immigrant, that they are then required to ask for papers.
nitrogen 16y ago
Though racial discrimination is one of the most visible and widespread forms of discrimination, prejudices can apply to many other, sometimes unprotected classes in which some of us find ourselves. These include age, wealth (against both rich and poor), gender, occupation or interests, the color or make of your car, being a geek, or any other difference. Yes, it really could happen to you.

stcredzero 16y ago

"Something like this" happens all the time. Often, you find yourself in a situation where you're surrounded by people who view reality differently than you. If this comes to everyone's attention, then group social dynamics can come into play, where individual views of reality can be challenged by the pressure of a mob. Most of the time, people just shrug it off, go home or back to their usual community and dismiss this as an aberration. If you are in jail for a crime you did not commit, you face this every day. Racial prejudice is still a pressure like this. People who live in cosmopolitan areas can go home and shrug it off. People who are isolated and marked as different cannot, so they can see it more clearly. In either case, such prejudices are still with us, but since they've been driven underground, it's hard to know how to deal with them.