I am trying to explain one of my winger relatives that this culture of someone running

[Aerows]

4. Even if he didn't have a record before that

they were hell-bent on making sure he DID have one. That isn't exactly a abnormal thing, either, unfortunately.

The thing a lot of people don't understand is that even being white doesn't protect you - it helps, but you can be harassed by the police for any number of reasons just because they are on a power trip.

Unless you whip out names and they recognize you, it doesn't matter who you are, you can get harassed by corrupt cops. I grew up in New Orleans, I'm white, and had two bad confrontations with the police. I was threatened with arrest just because an undercover cop was hitting on my girlfriend outside of a club (and he was higher than a kite on heaven only knows what).

I also had to call my LOCAL police department on the NOPD because they came to my jurisdiction to threaten me with arrest for hit and run (which is a farce because me and the lady that got into the minor fender bender exchanged info and that is how they knew exactly where to find me). I had to call the police to REMOVE the police. Thank god it happened at my place of business, instead of at home, because I would have probably never been heard from again.

I don't trust cops. You'd better believe the SECOND I get arrested the first words out of my mouth will be attorney, I plead the fifth. The crime I am likeliest to commit is running a stop sign.