The border patrol pulled the woman aside and started questioning her. This went on for about an hour. In a rough, accusing tone, the guard asked fast questions and expected fast answers. He would often repeat the questions, as if trying to catch her in a lie.
While her friends stood at the side watching, the woman became, for the first time in her life, intimately aware of racial profiling. She was afraid she was not going to be allowed to return to her home, the United States. She realized the guard questioned her citizenship based on her appearance. As she answered his questions that came like rapid fire bullets, her mind was racing, "Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! What am I going to do if they don't let me go home? What am I going to do? What am I going to do?" Still, the questions kept coming and wouldn't let up.
"Where do you live? Where do you work? Where were you born? What is the name of your boss? Why are you here? Where do you live? What are your parents' names? were just a few questions that were asked over and over and over. She had already shown him her driver's license, college ID, military ID, and social security card but it didn't matter. She was in a state of panic and feared showing that fear might make him think she really was an illegal trying to sneak into the United States. She tried to remain calm, but inside she was shaking.
After nearly an hour of questioning, he let her go across the border. When she finally made it back into the United States, she honestly wanted to bend down and kiss the ground.
If you think racism and racial profiling doesn't exist, then you are kidding yourself. This is a true story and happened to one of the "women of color" below. See if you can guess which one.
Those are my thoughts for today.
Thanks for reading.
copyright 2012, Polly's Granddaughter - TCB
Tweet
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment
Your comments are welcome!