Black Banned From Barneys?
By Angel Pink
As we move into a era where everyone is mixed and no one is strictly linked to only one race, it's hard to believe that racist seem exist and it leads you to believe that they just may never go away. In this modern day, everyone has a name for people of a certain race and no one respects the boundaries of staying within a particular race to reproduce. We as human beings would like to believe that we have moved on from that era of cruelty but: we haven't. It still lives in some of us and in major corporations such as Barneys or Tommy Hilfiger. We as the public are unsuspecting of the largest criminals when it comes to this crime that is inhumane.
We don't pay attention to our surrounding as these things happen around us, but we notice it when it is broadcasted across the nation. We all remember the Trayvon Martin case and the Sean Bell case but how many of us know who D.J. Maiden is?
We, as humans and not as a specific race , have to open our eyes and realize that some things will always be there and as much as I would like to believe that in the coming years this will only be a distant memory: I don't believe that.
In my opinion, there are too many hateful people in the world and with hate comes pain and everlasting problems --
"Trayon Christian, a 19-year-old Black engineering student from Queens, was arrested after purchasing a designer belt at Barneys New York, a luxury department store. With several forms of identification matching his debit card and his receipt in hand, Trayon was arrested, handcuffed, and locked in a jail cell by undercover NYPD officers. Apparently, he isn't the only one; close to 50 others have been arrested outside the same store. Enough is enough. Shopping while Black is not a crime. We urge the NYPD to conduct a full investigation into these arrests." reads an email I received recently and that is only one of many -- and it makes you think about what people go through on a daily basis because honestly speaking it isn't only the African American race.
The store where this young man was arrested at is known for arresting young black men and has made it a tradition to arrest these young men who couldn't be any more further away from criminals.
Black shoppers are being routinely stopped outside of Barneys New York by NYPD officers after making expensive purchases at the flagship luxury department store. NYPD has become notorious for targeting Black and Latino residents, subjecting our communities to thousands of illegal and discriminatory stops, searches and frisks each day that lead to unlawful arrests, constant harassment, and in some cases injuries or even death has been the outcome. It's painful to know that the body of people who have sworn to protect us are the same people we find ourselves fighting against and harboring from. It's sad really and extremely heartbreaking. And as more and more politicians work to fix these problems in our justice system it appears to be getting worse .
So whats a person to do ? What would you guys do ? Does not having blonde hair and blue eyes automatically make you a suspect or a criminal and if so , how do you live in a society where you are pre-judged ?
