How to Alter Public Space for Dummies

Brent Staples comes across as a menacing, towering, young black male to all of his "victims". He describes the pain of being labelled and ostracized upon entering the social stage, and calls his ability to alter public space an unfortunate "inheritance". He is mistaken as a mugger, a potential attacker, and a thief time and time again. The black men are all connected in this way; they have experienced it and can only cope by sharing their stories. Staples understands that this idea has been deeply planted in society, and he does not expect it to change because despite the unfairness, there is a seed of truth. After all, how are you supposed to decide whether someone is a mugger or not when it is dark outside in a secluded place? (And if the news about last night's mugging is still fresh in your mind, it's bound to have a negative effect.)

This piece reminded me of the Trayvon Martin shooting incident that actually occurred just last year. Martin was an unarmed 17-year-old African American male who was suspected because he was in a guarded neighborhood, "cutting in-between houses...walking very leisurely for the [rainy] weather", and "looking at all the houses" as well as wearing a shifty-looking hoodie. Although there was a violent confrontation between Zimmerman and Martin, it's unclear who began it. The sad part is that black males take to violence more often and are more prominently featured in news stories than anyone else. This leads to the mentality that all black males are the same...which can be understandable to a certain extent. I've read Duke "alert emails" to all students, where the perpetrator of the muggings is described as a "tall, young, black male, wearing a grey shirt and blue jeans". The only difference is that some wear masks while others don't, so it's almost questionable as to who actually did it. So should we continue to allow black males to alter public space or should we stay cool and change this mentality? It's hard to say.

Well folks, I suppose the lesson is: When you're in doubt, always whistle Vivaldi Four Seasons.