The Talk

[G-Man]

Been hearing a lot about "The Talk" that it seems occurrs within Black families.  This talk was described by a black man this morning on the radio.  He pretty much said it is a talk between parent and son in a black family when the parent tells the son that he will be hassled by police and authority figures just because of the color of their skin.

I'm a white, Jewish, male who grew up on the streets of New York City.  I hated being home in our very cramped two bedroom apartment with one TV and nowhere to hide from the wrath of Big Sy (Dad), so we were out in the street if we weren't in school or sleeping.  Being up north, we'd find creative places to hang out in the winter to get out of the cold or find parking lots, parks, ballfields to hang out when it was nice.  Invaribley, the cops would find us.  We weren't being loud or obnoxious, we weren't hurting anyone or even out in public....they came looking for us.  They'd hassle us, spill out our beers and whatever else they found.  Talk down to us, yell at us, belittle us, etc.  But guess what, we all went home. 

Big Sy had the same talk with me.  It went like this:  "When a cop pulls you over of confronts you, you say "Yes, Sir" "No, Sir" and everyone goes home."

That's it!  We didn't yell at the cops, or copp attitudes in front of them.  We kept our mouths shut and took it.  And if one of our group started to get out of hand, one of US would tell him to shut up.  And we lived another day to repeat this a dozen more times just Junior year alone.  When I was 15, a cop gave me 5 tickets while riding my moped, yes, a moped.  My mother had to take the day off, twice, to go to court with me.  Both times, the officer failed to show up. 

Behave!

[GiG]

...and just look at how you turned out... 

[Oss]

never saw a moped in the bronx

but couldnt get it into the apt anyways even if we had one

mostly if it was nice we were playin stickball in the street or hoppin the turnstile to watch yankee games from the #4 platform at 161 street

most of my friends was black, none of us had money for anything and we didnt miss what we didnt have

but by JHS things changed

1967-68 was when the world turned crazy I think

[cookiedough]

1967-68 was when the world turned crazy I think

Glad I wasn't born until 1970 then! 

Been crazy ever since - 

[czuch]

We rode our bikes to the beach then called home to let Mom know we made it OK. Same on the way home. Get stupid in front of the cops??WTF!!!!  My Dad was a high cschool teacher and most of the local constabulatory went thorough his class. They let us go knowing, and probably LTAO, we'd walk into the executioner's living room.  Good times.

[Skinhead]

My mother told me not to give them my real name if we got picked up by the cops, for some reason the cops in the 'burgh are still looking for a kid named Louie Berkowicz.  Didn't work with the cops that knew me of course.  I had 2 that told me they would be looking for me the day after my 18th birthday, so that was the day I joined the Army.  I sure showed them!!!

[Robert]

Chris Rock - police	powered by Aeva

[F6Mark]

I find the Chris Rock video funny as hell.
He needs to update it though, and add:
DON'T DRESS LIKE A THUG!!!
If you walk down the street wearing your pants down around your a$$ showing your underwear, wearing a hoodie, people WILL think you just robbed the nearest Wendy's.
I can hardly believe it but I was driving out of my neighborhood a couple weeks ago and there was a person walking on the sidewalk going the same direction as me.
His whole rear end was hanging out.  I have no idea which parents or which house he came from, but I am amazed any parent would let their kid go out in public like that.
I gave him the stink-eye as I drove by.   I don't necessarily think everybody whose pants are dragging and wearing a hoodie is a real thug,but I dislike the posers almost as much  as the actual thug.

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

Ha, the more things change the more they stay the same. Was different but the same growing up here in Po Dunk Indiana. We'd get pulled over for driving while young, in particular for driving while young and needing haircuts pretty often.

I had my car impounded one night for having a brake light out. That was after my car was ransacked by the local leo with an attitude. Same guy beat one of my buds bad after he was handcuffed at the station one night. The guy was eventually thrown off the force for pulling his gun twice, once while eating in the pizza hut and once on a speeder with his wife and kids in the car. His partner was arrested a few years ago for insurance fraud. No surprises there. To avoid trouble, I finally had to keep track of what nights they were working and just stay out of town on those nights.

That same dynamic duo rolled the city squad car on a city street once and shot the roof out of a different car with their shotgun once. A sad thing I saw when I was around 12 was the squad car driving slowly behind a 14 or 15 year-old girl as the leo's made loud passes at her over the intercom. Eventually, she got in the car.

But, I used to get a huge bang out of going into the local doughnut shop (friendly fosters?) when they were feasting there and playing Panama Red on the jukebox so I guess it went both ways.

Growing up here it was pretty much as Dylan said, "they don't need you and they expect the same".

[Red Diamond]

If you look the part and call attention to yourself, you will probably get the attention you are seeking. (White or Black).
Never heard of "The Talk", never had it with my sons, they never got hassled by anyone, other than by other teenagers their age. Never had that talk with my parents either, was never hassled by any LEO's either. Matter of fact, it was a white cop who informed me that I could protest a ticket. When I went to court, he showed up and helped me get the ticket dismissed. When I was 16 years old, I was rushing back to town (my dad was a rice farmer, we lived on a farm) to get with a young lady I had just met, doing 70 in a 55 MPH zone. State Troopers pulled me over, nervous as hell, one of them pulled me over to the side and told me not to be nervous, that I had just broken a law and people do that all the time. This was 10 PM at night, think I didn't have a reason to be nervous, in 1961.
24" mag wheels, old car, tatoos all over, gold teeth, pants below you butt, White or Black, you're asking to be harassed, hanging on the corner instead of being on someone's campus studying, I could go on,  you're being profiled fool. Everyone can be put into a profile, this particular one is not liked by anyone else, besides the ones putting themselves into this profile.