See something, say something... unless...

rgambs said:

There's nothing suspicious about people of colour being places and doing things.
It's that fucking simple, and the bastards that have been vilified have deserved it.
If you are afraid of treading that line, what does that say?  I don't know, but nothing good is my guess.

But in the San Bernardino mass shooting 2 or 3 years ago, didn't several neighbors come forward after the shooting and admit they thought it was suspicious, but were afraid to say anything. Fearing if they were wrong they'd be sued and called racist.
I think there is some truth to the OP. Sometimes it is profiling, but sometimes it is suspicious behavior that turns out to be innocent, either way you'll be called racist (assuming they aren't white)..

mace1229 said:

rgambs said:

There's nothing suspicious about people of colour being places and doing things.
It's that fucking simple, and the bastards that have been vilified have deserved it.
If you are afraid of treading that line, what does that say?  I don't know, but nothing good is my guess.

But in the San Bernardino mass shooting 2 or 3 years ago, didn't several neighbors come forward after the shooting and admit they thought it was suspicious, but were afraid to say anything. Fearing if they were wrong they'd be sued and called racist.
I think there is some truth to the OP. Sometimes it is profiling, but sometimes it is suspicious behavior that turns out to be innocent, either way you'll be called racist (assuming they aren't white)..

people barbequeing is not suspicious behaviour. 

mace1229 said:

HughFreakingDillon said:

mace1229 said:

rgambs said:

There's nothing suspicious about people of colour being places and doing things.
It's that fucking simple, and the bastards that have been vilified have deserved it.
If you are afraid of treading that line, what does that say?  I don't know, but nothing good is my guess.

But in the San Bernardino mass shooting 2 or 3 years ago, didn't several neighbors come forward after the shooting and admit they thought it was suspicious, but were afraid to say anything. Fearing if they were wrong they'd be sued and called racist.
I think there is some truth to the OP. Sometimes it is profiling, but sometimes it is suspicious behavior that turns out to be innocent, either way you'll be called racist (assuming they aren't white)..

people barbequeing is not suspicious behaviour. 

Correct. I don't think anyone was talking about someone back who was BBQing being reported through.
This is the story I was referring to. Neighbors of those mass shooters were very suspicious, but were afraid to say anything.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3344736/Neighbors-Saudi-husband-wife-San-Bernardino-shooters-noticed-acting-suspiciously-did-NOT-report-fear-racial-profiling.html

And remember that kid who brought a homemade clock to school that looked like a bomb? The school was sued for that. I have zero doubt in my mind if it was a bomb and no one called, the school would have faced 100 lawsuits for not calling. But if it looks like a bomb and you're wrong, you're racist and get sued.

I gathered the OP was referencing the BBQ incident. 

anything that is credible and not just "oh my god he's brown and wearing a head scarf so he's a terrorist" should be reported. just use common sense and quit with the hysteria, people. 

full disclosure: I was on the bus the other day. a guy was looking for his cell phone. He was not from canada. someone then offered to call his phone so they could trace it wherever it was on the bus. Then he went to the front of the bus leaving his backpack on his seat at the back of the bus. 

my mind went there. 

then I realized how unlikely and preposterous it was that I was thinking what I was thinking. I had to actually think to myself "would this be on my mind if this guy was white?". I can honestly say probably not. I was profiling. and I was ashamed of myself. part of it, honestly, is my anxiety issue. My mind goes to those places often where "normal" people's dont, but still, the idea is the same. I was profling and it was wrong. 

the guy just innocently misplaced his cell phone. I can't imagine the pain he could have been caused had I or someone else reported him and acting suspiciously. which he really wasn't. 

mace1229 said:

I'm unaware of a BBQ incident. What happened?

https://sf.eater.com/2018/5/21/17378212/oakland-lake-merritt-black-barbecue-911-bbq-call

rgambs said:

mace1229 said:

Never heard that story.
I don't think that's what the OP was referencing, maybe he was?
Because that wasn't a case of "See something say something."
Sounds like she was just good old fashioned racist and didn't want a large group of black people at the park. I mean her 911 complaint was that they were using charcoal, which was against park policy. But it was a well organized event with some legit looking bbq.

The BBQ story has been widely lambasted, but across social media there have been several incidents that went viral recently.
In the past few weeks, these events have gone viral...a white female student called the cops on a black female student napping in the common area of the dorm the both lived in at Yale, 2 native American boys had the cops called on them by a white person while walking around on a college tour in very white Ft Collins Co, Bob Marley's granddaughter had the cops called on her because she was at an AirBnB in a white suburb, the 2 black men had the cops called at a Starbucks, a group of black women had the cops called because they were golfing "suspiciously slow", and there's another one that's slipping my mind right now.
One or more of these incidents surely sparked this thread.

I'm familiar with all those except the BBQ one. I have a range of opinions on those, some I think look very bad, and some I think may have been just an over-reaction, but not necessarily racially motivated.