Race and Routine Traffic Stops

Ken Jones, who is a regular on The White Horse Inn, a radio show that I love, recently observed a traffic stop outside of his church. A car was directed into the parking lot and a young African-American man was taken from the car and patted down. The police man searched the young man's car. Pastor Jones went outside to take a closer look. He asked the officer if everything was alright and the officer told him that yes, everything was fine and that it was just a "routine" traffic stop. 

As a young man, I was pulled over many times for many stupid behaviors. I was never patted down.  My car was never searched.  Routine means different things to me and this young man.

Jones writes, "In far too many instances when young black males are involved this is 'the routine.' I recalled incidents from my youth in South Central Los Angeles, where standing on the street with two or three friends would prompt a U-turn from law enforcement passing by. We would be told by these officers of the law that we were gang members (when we weren’t); that we matched the description of perpetrators of some crime in the area, or they were sure we were on our way to no good. That was 'routine.' It was also routine, when I started driving, to be pulled over and detained for up to an hour. When my son came of age it was also routine for him to be detained on his way home from his university job for similar periods of time. There seems to be something suspicious about young African males that warrants re-defining 'routine' when dealing with them."

Raising sons is hard.  Soon, I will have two sons--one white, one black. I pray for wisdom to help my sons navigate these difficult waters. 

Read the rest here. 

DeYoung on racism

Kevin DeYoung offers some helpful thoughts about racism.  I am not sure he gets it entirely right.  I don't think any of us do.  But he is approaching it from a position of humility and seeking to understand, and that is a good thing.  I did like his concluding paragraph:

"In conclusion, let me suggest two simple things white Christians can do that would be huge steps in the right direction toward racial harmony. One, we can understand that we don’t understand what it is like to be black and then try our best to see what we don’t understand. Let’s admit we are clueless about a lot of stuff. Two, we could chillax on the racial front and just be normal friends with the minorities we know. Talk about stuff you like. Talk about your kids. Talk about the Bible. Talk about the gospel. Of course, be open to talking about the sticky racial issues, even though you might be uncomfortable or might see new sins. But don’t make friends with blacks so you can say 'my black friend says' or because you want to know 'how black people think' or because you are passionate about social justice. Just make friends because you are friendly. Don’t go looking for a social laboratory. Go out and meet someone you don’t know. Take it easy, be yourself, and see what happens."

Read the whole thing here:
On Race and Love and Trying to Understand