Amanda Gorman says she was racially profiled near her home

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

NEW YORK (AP) — Amanda Gorman, the 22-year-old poet who captured hearts at the inauguration of President Joe Biden, posted to social media that she was followed home by a security guard who demanded to know where she lived because she “looked suspicious.”

“I showed my keys & buzzed myself into my building,” she tweeted of the incident Friday night. “He left, no apology. This is the reality of black girls: One day you’re called an icon, the next day, a threat.”

Gorman, the nation’s youngest inaugural poet, lives in Los Angeles but did not specify where the encounter occurred. Her spokeswoman did not immediately return an email Saturday seeking additional comment.

The post was met with thousands of messages of support on Twitter and Instagram. She followed up her post with a second comment that said:



FILE - In this file photo dated Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021, American poet Amanda Gorman recites a poem during the Inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, USA. Writer Marieke Lucas Rijneveld announced on Twitter Friday Feb. 26, 2021, that she has handed back the assignment to translate American poet Amanda Gorman's work into Dutch, following criticism that a white author was selected to translate the works. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, FILE)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/biden-inauguration-joe-biden-race-and-ethnicity-amanda-gorman-d986f597a840ff14fec7b37312a35a34

[rsdsharp]

1. Did this clown really think this young lady is a threat to anyone?

She looks like she fell off a charm bracelet.

[JI7]

2. black kids are treated worse than white adults in this country

[BumRushDaShow]

10. See Tamir Rice (age 12) in Cleveland

Dejerria Becton in McKinney, TX (age 15)



Kaia Rolle in Orlando, FL (age 6)



Every black person is a "threat", from birth until the time they die.

[Evolve Dammit]

3. Call him out. What company or who did he work for? Name or description? This is not OK. nt

[elias7]

4. It doesn't make a lot of sense

And I looked up everything I could find about this, but it doesn’t state why a security guard was tailing her and where that security guard was from. The security guard did not appear to be attached to her own apartment building, leaving after she let herself in. but where did he come from and why would he leave the premises of his own workplace to follow a person who “looked suspicious”. They have no jurisdiction for anything other than their own workplace. Something doesn’t quite make sense here.

[electric_blue68]

5. Good questions. And shouldn't have happened in the first place.

[mezame]

6. Stalker dressed as a security guard?

She'll likely have an escort now. Clever miscreants with intentions probably already on the table.

[abqtommy]

7. I'd gladly walk Amanda home. Anytime... Up with this shit I wil not put! I extend this

offer to all people of any color and ethnicity.

[movingviolation]

11. I think you might be onto something!

Could be a mobile app service!! Like uber for personal security, but volunteer.

[abqtommy]

13. You're right! Something like neigborhood watch. I hadn't thought that far ahead. Thanks!

[LymphocyteLover]

8. Absolutely disgusting this shit happens

[DFW]

9. I wish Joe Biden would demand to know who the "security" guard was

And once the identity is found, that he makes it public.

This would maybe raise the profile of the issue, and give these steroid-addled goons pause before making this their leisure sport.

[NH Ethylene]

12. Disagree. Biden should not get involved; that's something Trump would do.

There are ways the federal government can quietly investigate and/or exert pressure in situations like this.

[DFW]

14. He doesn't have to do it on page one

But he had this woman at his inauguration and put her in the national spotlight. She is the perfect example to put forth as one who is experiencing illegal harassment and her tormentor is the perfect one to be put in the spotlight as the sort of thing that will not be tolerated. No local cops will bother. Hell, he is probably one of them, moonlighting in a second job.

[NH Ethylene]

17. It might be appropriate to have it - and others like it - looked at as a civil rights violations.

I just don't want to see the favoritism and selective justice (or injustice) that we saw under Trump.

How would it be fair to others who suffer from this very same harassment to see her singled out and assisted because she is a celebrity? It would just add to the well-earned cynicism that it is all about "who you know."

[Blue Owl]

15. It must have occurred either on a college campus, or private grounds

Otherwise there would be no jurisdiction for a "security guard" to be patrolling a public space...

Wherever it was, it pisses me off!

[left-of-center2012]

16. "It must have occurred either on a college campus, or private grounds"

Not necessarily.
My apartment complex and others here have security guards.

[lagomorph777]

19. Your apartment complex is private grounds.

[Aussie105]

18. "Looking suspicious" while black can be bad for your health.

Especially with paranoid security people looking for a victim.

Do those types gravitate to certain jobs where they can act out their paranoia and inner hatred?