White People in Williamsburg Want Your Sympathy, Too
We talk a lot about white privilege, but what about the prejudices white people face on a daily basis? In a New York Daily News article, members of Williamsburg's white male population sound off on profiling. Of the 17,566 stop-and-frisks by police last year, 10 percent were white people.
Heartbreaking, right? Get ready to grab your tissues.
White guys in Williamsburg said that poor artists and aggressive bike messengers will easily catch an officer's eye.
"It's not about race. It's about class," said goth guitarist Nate Morgan, 20, detailing several recent encounters with cops in East Williamsburg. "I have a mohawk. They stereotype me."
Police asked Morgan if there was alcohol in his iced coffee, then checked his pupils. No arrests were made or shots fired. It's also worth noting that 88 percent of the people police stopped were black or Latino.
And yet, this is apparently a serious problem for white men in Williamsburg — one that must be addressed. A 27-year-old barbershop manager details his harrowing experience with the law: he was frisked by a cop as he was rolling a joint in Grand Ferry Park.
The manager, who asked not to be identified, said he confessed to having the drug, was patted down, and walked away with no summons.
"I had a bright pink shirt on that day," the manager said. "I was an easy target."
Yep. Definitely the pink shirt and not the joint.
