Black Men and Public Space

In a society as culturally diverse as the one we live in, you would think that people would learn to be more accepting of others. Nevertheless, there are still those who simply cannot. In his essay Black Men and Public Space, Brent Staples describes something that most young black men experience on more than one occasion in their lives. Being perceived as a criminal simply based on his "unwieldy inheritance", the color of their skin. …

…make others around him more comfortable. He figures no one would expect a mugger to whistle classical music. He claims, "It is my equivalent of the cowbell that hikers wear when they know they are in bear country". For his own safety, he has learned to deal with the way society sees him. And even though it may not change everyone's perception of black men in public, he may be able to change someone's mind.