As an African American male, I have a deep appreciation for the work of civil rights lawyers in this country. My father attended segregated schools his entire life and when he relayed his interest in the University of Syracuse to his guidance counselor, she responded, “You are too dark-skinned to go there”. Through the work of preeminent lawyers, dedicated to justice and equality, his son graduated from an Ivy league institution. With the gift of security I was bestowed, I fell into the trap of complacency. It took a personal experience with racial profiling and discrimination to realize the importance of protecting and cultivating the rights that were fought for just a generation ago.
During the fall of my first year back in Philadelphia, I put on a hooded sweatshirt and proceeded out the door to the train. When I approached the train entrance, I greeted a man standing out on the corner. For whatever reason, this drew the attention of a police patrol car in the area. The officers came out with guns drawn, screaming obscenities, pronouncing that someone with the same color sweatshirt participated in a shooting. When I explained that I was teacher, I was threatened, frisked …show more content…
Although I was free, I never felt less human. My thoughts then went to the students of color I had the honor of teaching. As their teacher, I taught them that by following the rules and going to college you can excel in society. I tried to instill the resiliency in them, that no matter the obstacle, life has value. They have value. But for me, being having an Ivy league education did not change the fact that I wore a blue hoodie that day. Following the law did not change the fact I was an African American male at the wrong place at the wrong time. My privilege of having a father as a prosecutor, allowed me to respond in a way that kept me from being arrested or worse. My students did not have that
During the fall of my first year back in Philadelphia, I put on a hooded sweatshirt and proceeded out the door to the train. When I approached the train entrance, I greeted a man standing out on the corner. For whatever reason, this drew the attention of a police patrol car in the area. The officers came out with guns drawn, screaming obscenities, pronouncing that someone with the same color sweatshirt participated in a shooting. When I explained that I was teacher, I was threatened, frisked …show more content…
Although I was free, I never felt less human. My thoughts then went to the students of color I had the honor of teaching. As their teacher, I taught them that by following the rules and going to college you can excel in society. I tried to instill the resiliency in them, that no matter the obstacle, life has value. They have value. But for me, being having an Ivy league education did not change the fact that I wore a blue hoodie that day. Following the law did not change the fact I was an African American male at the wrong place at the wrong time. My privilege of having a father as a prosecutor, allowed me to respond in a way that kept me from being arrested or worse. My students did not have that