steven ray orr

Nicholas K. Peart, for the New York Times:

For young people in my neighborhood, getting stopped and frisked is a rite of passage. We expect the police to jump us at any moment. We know the rules: don’t run and don’t try to explain, because speaking up for yourself might get you arrested or worse. And we all feel the same way — degraded, harassed, violated and criminalized because we’re black or Latino.

This goes on the list of experiences that I can never share in. I am ashamed to live in a society where this is even remotely normalized.

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