Does anybody else feel guilty being suspicious of anybody in a black hoodie with the hood up?
Specifically because I live in a hot climate, I’m always fighting the feeling of being suspicious of anybody I pass in the streets with a hoodie pulled up. I feel guilty because of racial profiling associated with hoodies, but gotta protect myself and my family, especially because in many cases the perpetrators of assault and murder seen in media are somebody with a hood and/or mask on.
i’m not only suspicious of hoodies, just feel guilty about it. a suit can definitely be suspicious under the right circumstances, but i wouldn’t feel guilty about it.
Just to comment on a specific part of your question, there’s probably some selection bias to seeing more criminals in the media masked/with their hood up.
Particularly in the case of notices requesting that someone be IDed, if their face is clearly visible and in good resolution, they may not need to publicize it to have the person identified (pretty sure they can search by face in correctional/dmv databases) vs if part of their face is obscured or the only visible marker of identity is something like a tattoo or scar, they might need to publicize it more to find someone who will be able to identify the person based on that limited info.
That’s true, but I’m not saying I’m more suspicious of hoodies vs something like trench coats. I’m just saying I feel bad about it because of a history of racial profiling. I don’t feel bad being suspicious of black caps and sunglasses or trench coats.
I remember as a kid I locked the door to the car whenever someone would walk by. Most people don’t really notice or care but once a black guy walked by and I didn’t know about the racist connotation, so I just did what I always did and was devastated when I could see that I really hurt the guy’s feelings. I stopped doing it after that, now I just give a little friendly wave or smile. I’m still as overly cautious, but I’d rather get stabbed to death than make someone feel like that ever again.
I think you can be aware or possibly even “wary” if you see that, but I think it is a little absurd to let that become actual worry or suspicion.
Just be aware of your surroundings. Clock the person in a hoodie, make a mental note of it, and continue on your way. I feel like this is “how to live in a modern city 101.” If you get this thrown by seeing someone in a hoodie, then maybe you’re too anxious to be around that many people
I don’t feel guilty. It’s fair to be suspicious of someone who covers their face without context like cold weather or a medical mask (could be sick or concerned about getting sick). The trick or test is to ask yourself “Do I/would I become equally concerned if this person was in a different racial category?” If the answer is “No”, de-escalate yourself. If the answer is “No”, look for the other markers that are actually setting off alarms for you. It’s not just covering the face. As others have pointed out there can be a variety of harmless reasons why people might do that. But look for how a person carries themself: where they keep their hands how they move their eyes. Or maybe you are just paranoid about hoodies in general, in which case you should try to develop a more holistic way of sizing people up.
More recently, I’m immediately suspicious of someone who is very obviously not immunocompromised; wearing a Covid mask with the hoodie up. Especially if they have sunglasses on. That person is either bipping cars or about to steal something. Best to just steer clear. I only ever really encounter these types in SF. They aren’t worried about Covid, they just don’t want their face to be seen.
What if they just have a cold and also are dealing with the cold weather? I’m not a hoodie guy but still often wear masks in businesses and on cold days might also wear a dark coloured touque to go with it. Plus it keeps your face warm in the winter.
Fair enough. Keep in mind you also can’t always tell if someone is immunocompromised, and it’s still totally valid to wear a mask because one is sick or has recently been sick.
I get it, but my point is the criminal element uses the Covid masks for a completely different reason than the immunocompromised, and it’s very easy to tell who that is.
So, I was given some advice for situations like this that changed my life.
The first thing that comes to mind in these moments isn’t what matters. It’s what a life time of indoctrinated racism/classism/sexism etc looks like. The thing that comes to mind here isn’t necessarily what you think, it’s what you’ve been taught to think,
What matters is what you do next, after the thought has popped in to your mind.
I was raised in a very racist environment, and I struggled with feeling guilt every time some racist thought I’d been trained with popped in to my head, because that’s not the person I want to be. Reframing it like this allowed me to stop getting hung up on the guilt part, and work on the part that actually means something
Well what I do next is keep them in my line of sight and avoid them. I’m not suspicious of their race, I’m suspicious of their clothes. If they happen to be a POC though, there is more guilt involved.
I’m not only suspicious of hoodies. I understand where you’re coming from but I’m not suspicious of somebody in a hoodie because of race. It’s because I’ve seen a lot of people committing crimes in them. I’m also suspicious of people in black caps and sunglasses, but that’s not called racism/classism/sexism because celebrities wear that all the time.
One time I was walking through a city centre after midnight after drinks with friends - who told me to get a taxi because it’s so dangerous. I got to a pedestrianised street and there at the orher end was a group of tough-looking POC in hoodies. Uh oh. There seemed to be an argument in progress. Uh oh. I carried on though, to avoid a long detour. As I got nearer I caught the drift of the argument. “We’re only telling you this because we love you, mate.” Muffled sobbing. “Yeah, we worry about you! We want you to be happy!” It was teens in the midst of a full-on psychodrama, actually quite wholesome. I carried on home, berating myself for racial profiling. For a non-event it had quite a profound effect on my thinking.
And these are the kinds of interactions that people have in cities that terrify conservatives. Not the situation you described (although they’d be scared of that too), but the lesson you took away from it.
Just being around people that look, sound, behave, have customs, etc., different than you changes the way you view the world in fundamental ways. You may not even realize it is happening.
And most importantly, it makes everyone less afraid of one another. And this is how conservatives lose their power.
Where I live, people of all degrees of peace come in all colors of hoodies and hood positions. More often than not, the people here who give a hard time just present themselves like everyone else. If I saw someone with a black hoodie with the hood up, I’d be more worried about them being Death.
I dunno about that. If I saw a man with a white hood that completely covers his face with little eyeholes, I’m out. Because chances are, that dude has a flaming cross somewhere.
Grey, white, and red, though I don’t prefer them, in fact the grey one is usually to make up a third layer due to it being normal here to wear four layers (bra/underwear, clothes/uniform, grey hoodie, then jacket) and the red which I wear right now goes with my uniform.
When looking up your name on here, were the images/videos/audio you posted that are erased via error selfies/self-recordings too? An interesting question when you’ve said before you have the world record for having signed up for the most websites, if you know what I mean.
Media having the kind of identity crisis to go against functionality is something that tends to happen locally, so while your hunch is correct, I’ll say rely on exporting yourself to any aforementioned other places (look up my name for more) for anything like what you’ve seen of identically clad/headed me just now.
In the new Puss in Boots movie, the plot centers around him literally escaping Death because he realized before the movie’s events that he used up all his other eight lives. So it’s currently a meme that Death is envisioned in that context.
So I was at a convention that happened to be next to a horror convention. Someone from the horror convention decided to come to our convention in a pastel overalls outfit with bunny mask and lavender wig. Some of us were afraid of joining his basement convention afterparty.
I always think of that scene from Hot Fuzz where they’re talking about why someone wore a hat low on their face.
“Because he’s fuck ugly?”
“Or he has something to hide.”
Both can exist and I try to keep that in mind. Someone wearing something covering their identity either is cold or doesn’t want to engage with people. If the latter, there’s a slim chance they pose a threat, or they have their own reasons that are no concern of mine.
I note these people more than if they weren’t covered, but I don’t really change my behaviours in normal situations.
You’re not doing anything wrong. A hoodie is a yellow flag without more information. Keep doing what you’re doing.
haha that’s fair. totally understand wanting to cover up, but especially where I live and during this warm time of year, it’s suspicious. i think that’s a good way to describe my feelings. it’s a yellow flag. i’m not reaching in my pocket for a knife, but i’m on guard.
it’s just a common color in general and a common color in videos of people wearing hoodies and committing crimes. it’s easier to blend in with a dark colored hoodie than a brightly colored one i suppose.
Then again my PTSD keeps my head on swivel all the time, so I’m suspicious of five year olds that move too fast. Someone in a hoodie in warm weather? Nah, no guilt about scanning them at all
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