5: Getting Pulled Over with Shawnta Marie
Do you worry about getting a fine, or do you worry about being incarcerated because of your color?
What happens to you when you’re pulled over? Do you worry about getting a fine, or do you worry about being incarcerated because of your color?
Shawnta Marie shares her story about being pulled over in her luxury SUV, not 1 or 2 times, but 4 times in a single 10-hour road trip. What was the response of friends and family? Victim Blaming.
Main Ideas
Why Shawnta Marie shared the story when she did.
- Why we need to create a safe space for racial conversations
- How you can create safe spaces for those in your workplace
- What may surprise you when you start sharing your stories
How can we support and be better allies in closing the race gap?
- Hosting vulnerable conversations
- Being aware that people sharing their stories may trigger or re-ignite trauma
- Making sure to observe your own thoughts/opinions
Where does real empathy come from?
- Learning about what your fellow humans are watching and listening to
- Getting to know more about Black culture
KEY Thoughts
6’18 There's just nothing, not even a hidden piece to this. You were simply in a high traffic area and being pulled over. Four different states, four different police officers, inside of ten hours. I’m trying to embrace what that would feel like.
9’01 I heard someone tell a personal story, in a very large setting, about being a Black man being pulled over. After I left that session, I said to myself, I have a story like that.
13’01 A friend of mine who's Black has said I am so sick of being the Black friend who has suddenly become the voice of Black people and the explainer of all things Black to my White friends and I have hit some version of Black friend fatigue. Have you heard or seen some of that going on for you or your friends?
17’51 We all live the same life, but we live it differently, right? Culturally, there are differences. And that's okay, learn them, understand them. Invite yourself to be open to learning what it's really like to be Black in America without judgment, without defensiveness, just with the expectation to learn and observe.
Links
Hamilton Think Tank: https://www.hamiltonthinktank.com