Jedi Mastering Racial Profiling

rpereira — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:48:55 -0500

As someone who has been a target of racial profiling several times, and was even arrested in front of my home and held in jail over the weekend for fitting the description of a burglar, I'm paying close attention to the White House hops invitational.

People joke that I'm King Anyi Howell, the King of getting pulled over, and they suggest that because I drive a Cadillac, I'm more susceptible to racial profiling. But I can say with confidence that Cadillac designers never said to each other, "Yes! With this year's model we focused on a scientifically advanced design that will get people of color pulled over and searched!"

I've been pulled over in an assortment of vehicles, foreign and domestic, often searched and rarely ticketed. Heck, I've been "pulled over" while on a bike and even on foot, belittling the term DWB -- driving while black. No it's more like LWB, and getting a citation for living while black makes me feel like something less than a real citizen. And I certainly don't feel served or protected. For many black people, police scrutiny is a given, and pretty institutionalized. But so is the "F the police attitude" that many people of color hold about the cops - neither side gives. Once you've been unduly sidelined by police, you lose trust in them as both enforcement and protection - the protection you're paying taxes for. If you're a victim of crime, you don't call the police. If someone breaks into my house right now, I say, damn, what do I do now?

And I've been profiled so often that I've developed almost an art form for asserting my rights, while not offending the officer while doing so. I read recently that black men, when pulled over, have to be some odd combination of Samuel L. Jackson and Sydney Poitier, the former being known for his aggression and the latter for his eloquence. It may sound appalling to some, but that's exactly the tightrope I've learned to walk in dealing with the blue line of racial profiling. Creating a customer care persona, cheerfully providing necessary information to police, while showing interest in their work, even though in reality that is a complete role reversal. I'm the customer.

There’s an unspoken understanding between the offending cop and me when I get pulled over. We both know it's not necessarily because a taillight is out, or my music is playing too loudly. And we both know it will likely end up in some sort of search, and as cops often tell me, it's because my sweater and my skin match those of some dude who committed some crime last week.

I don’t act indignant because I'm the Jedi master - employing mind control to get us both out of the situation as quickly as possible. But once I've turned the corner, then I turn my music back up. Because after all, that’s why I bought it. If our forefathers had cassette decks on their horses, they’d probably want to play their music loud, too. That’s life, liberty and happiness all in one action. That's the whole balancing act. I know how to not lose my cool and how to assert my citizenship at once.

No matter the details of what actually happened on Henry Louis Gates' front porch, there's again an opportunity for national acknowledgment of a divisive problem. It might take the form of increased candor about this issue from both police, and the people of color who are wary of them. It might lead to some policy changes, like a racial profiling task force.

No matter what follows from the beer at the White House this afternoon, I don't doubt racial profiling will remain a sobering issue in my life for some time to come.

WEB EXTRA: Youth Radio is curating other inspiring voices on the issue of racial profiling. Here is comedian Dave Chappelle in San Francisco: (download mp3)

Previously on Youth Radio:

Do You Remember?: Step-By-Step

ahowell — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 18:25:55 -0500

Since Hollywood likes to dig up shows, cartoons, comic books, and movies from the past to produce new feature films, I am offering up my favorites from the 90's.

..Like "Step-By-Step"

Filmed in Burbank, Ca (Lorimar Television), "Step By Step" was a show about a step-family. Frank Lambert (Patrick Duffy) is a construction worker and a single father of 3 kids: J.T. (Brandon Call), Alicia "Al" (Christine Lakin) and Brendan (Josh Byrne). Carol Foster (Suzanne Somers), a beautician, also has 3 children: Dana (Staci Keanan), Karen (Angela Watson) and Mark (Christopher Castille). After Frank and Carol run into each other on vacation and spontaneously get married, they and their children (who appeared to have known and hated each other) have to learn to live together and love each other. It's not easy, but they are trying to do this... step by step. It’s the Brady Bunch set in the 90’s, meaning, more sex! Even Alice, the caretaker of the Brady-Bunch family, was updated as the van-dwelling, catchphrase spewing, nephew of Frank, Cody (Sasha Mitchell).

The show ran from 1991-1997 on ABC, part of their TGIF lineup, before moving to CBS from 1997-1998. When Patrick Duffy agreed to return to the show, Dallas, in 1986, he had it put in his contract that he would get to be on another television show after "Dallas" ended. Honoring that agreement, this show was created specifically for Duffy, and it premiered the season after "Dallas" ended. Many sets used in scenes inside the house were also used in “The Hogan Family" (1986) and “Family Matters”. This show was set in the same television universe as Family Matters. Steve Urkel (Jaleel White) made an appearance in one episode. In fact, Family Matters left ABC the same season Step-By-Step did to join CBS’s “Block Party” Friday night lineup.

I used to like the show because there were always feuds between either the children of rival families, or an all-out battle of the sexes within the household (Frank, the father, was a bit of a chauvinist). The kids, though, feuded so much, it seemed a bit manufactured to me when they would reluctantly, yet conveniently claim each other as family around the closing five-ten minutes of the 30 minute program.

My favorite character was “Al,” Frank’s daughter. She was cast as the tomboy of the family and always wore what looked like her brothers’ hand-me-downs. I don’t know if it was because SHE was getting older or I was getting older, but I saw right through all those boy clothes and found myself a little TV crush. I remember watching one night with my family in the room and I got a view of “Al” in some heels, which prompted me to holler “Got Daaaamn,” and my father to holler, “Go upstairs!”

Christine Lakin, who played Alicia Foster, shared this with me about her time on Step by Step:

"Step by Step was my big 'break' as a kid, even though I'd been acting professionally in theater and TV for four years before I got it. I grew up on the show, literally, and couldn't ask for better memories of my time with the cast and crew. We were like a family. I still keep up with Staci, Suzanne and Patrick, and I think it's really cool when people tell me they watched the show or remember it, or how it was a part of their childhood. It was a great experience for me and only furthered my passion and comedic experience to continue performing as an adult... which is a sentiment other former child actors probably don't share."

It's likely that Angela Watson (Karen Lambert) is one who doesn't exactly share that sentiment at all. After the show, she decided to take time off for college, and to clear up some serious business after finding out her parents cheated her out of over $2.8 million of her child actor earnings. After winning reimbursement of her money and property, Angela has been working to enact laws to protect child actors. She also established the CAST (Child Actors Supporting Themselves) Foundation that provides free accountants, investigators and attorneys to help young performers who have been victimized.

Christine Lakin stars in Disney’s recently released, “Race to Witch Mountain.”

Youth Radio - Topic: Anyi

Jedi Mastering Racial Profiling

Do You Remember?: Step-By-Step