It seems like everyday there’s a new video of a Black man or adolescent being discriminated and humiliated and then be labeled a “possible threat.” Why is it that colored individuals spark such fear in the hearts of a society that is predominantly white?

Lolade Siyonbola, a student at Yale University, was napping in the public lounge of her dorm when officers woke her up looking for her identification. That’s because a white student had called the authorities at the sight of a Black woman at an Ivy League campus sleeping in the comnon area. This might’ve been the second occurance that this student ran to the police. Moreover, Anthony Wall was escorting his younger sister to prom when an officer forced him to the ground, even though he wasn’t resisting, and went on to choke him.

The stigma that Blacks are harassed more is because of their appearance and should be debunked this young Black man was wearing a three piece suit. It is evident that some police are actively seeking out people of color in their rightful space with the intent to harass. And why should we expect anything different? This is the same institution that protected slavery and upheld the laws of the Jim Crow Era. And now that the focus has shifted to incarcerated Black youth, the police seems to be upholding that too.

Mass incarceration sees black boys going to jail at an alarming rate, that one in four will end up in prison is a terrifying thought. Although drug use transcends race, colored people are arrested at a disproportionate rate. The goal shifted from outright racism to focused litigation, like sentencing those convicted of cheaper drugs to a larger stinct, which all but picks out Black people. Within many police forces, the term “Kissing the Frog” is popular in that if they stop enough Black people, you’ll eventually find a criminal. SWAT forces have become common, but in 1980 metropolitan hubs had the funds to establish a SWAT team. However today because of government incentives during the War on Drugs, small cities all across America have SWAT teams.

As a young black man, we can protest and we can scream change till we are blue in the face, but in reality the white student won’t face punishment and Anthony Wall will not find justice, instead the cycle will continue.

Whether it’s Anthony Wall in North Carolina, or a group of Black people in Oakland, this fear of Blacks is enduring. Ironically though, as a Black youth, seeing a police vehicle sparks a rush of fear and a feeling that today might be my last.