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Black Men Viewed as Criminals

In: English and Literature

Submitted By kclair12
Words 423
Pages 2
Black Men Viewed as Criminals I believe that in certain areas we have come a long way from when this essay was written, but some things are still the same for the black men and woman being viewed as criminals. In the story the main character is viewed as a mugger because he likes to take night walks, and a robber because he rushed into work one day. Today the young black men are viewed as criminals because others think you shouldn’t be living in a community. This happened to a young man named Trayvon Martin. In the story the main character is viewed as a robber where he worked. He was rushing into work, but because he is a black man running inside he is viewed as a burglar. The office manager called security on him. In another incident, he went for an interview at a jewelry store. The woman who worked there excused herself and when she came back she had a Doberman pinscher on a leash ready to attack. The last incident, he was working on a story about a murderer. The police mistook him for the killer and came after him. If it wasn’t for his press credentials the police would have tried to book him. Today we still have incidents like this. On February 26, 2012 Trayvon Martin was spending his suspension with his father and his father’s fiancée at her house in a gated community at twin lakes. At the time there was a lot of criminal activity in the area. George Zimmerman was selected to be the neighborhood watch. On the night of the incident Trayvon left the house to get some skittles and some tea. Zimmerman had spotted Trayvon and called the police to report a suspicious person walking between houses, Martin. Zimmerman agreed with the police not to follow Trayvon. After Zimmerman hung up the phone, he and Trayvon had a fight. The fight ended with Zimmerman shooting Trayvon in the chest. Because Trayvon Martin was a young black man who looked like he didn’t belong in the community and was up to no good, Zimmerman assumed he was the one responsible for the crimes that had been happening in the area. As times change and you think racism would be over, it isn’t. Racism just presents itself in different ways than it use too. Black men and woman are still racially profiled as criminals. Hopefully this can change, but it takes time. You have to take it one step at a time.

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