W. Kamau Bell Writes About What It Feels Like to Be Black, and Afraid of the Police
“I am afraid of cops the way that spiders are afraid of boots. You’re walking along, minding your own business, and SQUISH! You are dead. ”
W. Kamau Bell recently wrote a piece for Vanity Fair where he explains why he is afraid of being a black man in America.
Bell makes it clear up front, that he doesn’t engage in any behavior that would “deserve’ scrutiny by the police. He doesn’t participate in shady behavior, live in a bad neighborhood or hang out with the wrong crowd.
“Simply put, I am afraid of the cops because I am black.” he says. “To raise the stakes even further, I am male. And to go all in on this pot of fear, I am six foot four, and weigh 250 pounds.” Someone that size normally doesn’t fear other people, but Bell explains that his size is comparable to Michael Brown who was shot and killed by a Ferguson, Missouri police officer. He also talks about how the deaths of others like Oscar Grant, Kajieme Powell and Eric Garner have affected him.
He imagines how a convenience store misunderstanding could lead to him being taken down in a hail of police gunfire, and takes precautionary measures. Measures like taking the hood of his hoodie down when he walks to the convenience store late at night, even if he’s cold and keeping his hands visible while he buys ice cream.
It’s an interesting read from one of our smartest political comedians. Read the entire piece at VanityFair.com.