[sloanst]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

Suppose a black man grows up in a good family, gets a good education, gets a good job, gets married, and has a few children. He never breaks the law, never gets arrested, and is a good family man. One day, he is pulled over by a white police officer and is not treated in the same way that the police officer would normally treat a white man. But, the black man obeys the police, shows his valid license and registration, and is eventually released, even though he feels like he should have been treated with more respect. Who should he blame? The police officer because he is obviously a racist? Maybe. But, how about placing at least some of the blame on the disproportionate number of black men who did not follow the same law abiding course in life, and had some influence on the police officer's perception about life. Police officers are supposed to follow a standard procedure, but they are only human.

I disagree that the police officer is racist. Nothing of what you stated illustrates that the officer thinks he is superior to the black man in any way. The officer IS prejudiced. He has pre-judged the situation because of his past experience. One can be prejudiced without being racist. Word definitions matter.