welcome back to the 1960s
Preface: My across-the-hall neighbor is a tall skinny white dude who is a painter by trade (and thus drives a big honkin' painter's van). He also happens to have a black God-daughter.
Story: Yesterday was the first Gator game of the season, and said neighbor was having a semi-loud party, as game parties are wont to be. About a half-hour in, I hear a very loud knock on his door and figure it's my downstairs neighbor asking him to keep it down. Feeling nosy, I peep through my peephole, and see not my neighbor, but a cop. I then figure someone's called the cops because his party is too loud or cars are blocking someone's driveway. Anyway, the neighbor answers the door and the following conversation ensues:
Cop: Hi, are you Mr. Lastname?
Neighbor: Yes, how can I help you?
Cop: Were you just at Wal-Mart?
Neighbor: Uh, yes, about an hour ago...
Cop: Did you have a little African-American girl with you?
Neighbor: Uh, yes...
Cop: May I ask your relation to the girl?
Neighbor: Well, she's basically my God-daughter. Why?
Cop: Well, someone called you in because they saw you leaving Wal-Mart with a little black girl and thought it was a possible kidnapping.
WHAT. THE. FUCK.
Seriously? Did we suddenly revert back to 1962 without my knowledge?
Someone saw him at Wal-Mart with his God-daughter and just assumed that because he was white and she was black and he was leading her to a big van, he had to be kidnapping her, so they took down his tag number and reported him! What the shit? And at Wal-Mart, of all places! There are more kids there with racially different parents than probably anywhere else on Earth. :P
So my neighbor then went on to explain that this isn't the first time this has happened to him and that someone had reported him when he took the girl to the park once (and he told me several months ago that our own landlord had gotten on his case for having a little black girl come visit and told him maybe he should stop having her over because people would "think things"). My neighbor offered to give the cop the girl's aunt's phone number, but the cop said he believed him and that he just had to check in on the situation as per protocol. He then asked the score of the game, wished my neighbor a good evening, and went on his way.
My jaw was on the floor for a long time afterwards.
Story: Yesterday was the first Gator game of the season, and said neighbor was having a semi-loud party, as game parties are wont to be. About a half-hour in, I hear a very loud knock on his door and figure it's my downstairs neighbor asking him to keep it down. Feeling nosy, I peep through my peephole, and see not my neighbor, but a cop. I then figure someone's called the cops because his party is too loud or cars are blocking someone's driveway. Anyway, the neighbor answers the door and the following conversation ensues:
Cop: Hi, are you Mr. Lastname?
Neighbor: Yes, how can I help you?
Cop: Were you just at Wal-Mart?
Neighbor: Uh, yes, about an hour ago...
Cop: Did you have a little African-American girl with you?
Neighbor: Uh, yes...
Cop: May I ask your relation to the girl?
Neighbor: Well, she's basically my God-daughter. Why?
Cop: Well, someone called you in because they saw you leaving Wal-Mart with a little black girl and thought it was a possible kidnapping.
WHAT. THE. FUCK.
Seriously? Did we suddenly revert back to 1962 without my knowledge?
Someone saw him at Wal-Mart with his God-daughter and just assumed that because he was white and she was black and he was leading her to a big van, he had to be kidnapping her, so they took down his tag number and reported him! What the shit? And at Wal-Mart, of all places! There are more kids there with racially different parents than probably anywhere else on Earth. :P
So my neighbor then went on to explain that this isn't the first time this has happened to him and that someone had reported him when he took the girl to the park once (and he told me several months ago that our own landlord had gotten on his case for having a little black girl come visit and told him maybe he should stop having her over because people would "think things"). My neighbor offered to give the cop the girl's aunt's phone number, but the cop said he believed him and that he just had to check in on the situation as per protocol. He then asked the score of the game, wished my neighbor a good evening, and went on his way.
My jaw was on the floor for a long time afterwards.