To mark my final week writing this column, I’ve fired up the “Ask Amy” Wayback machine and am re-running some memorable Q&As culled from the last 21 years of “Ask Amy.”I’m a college student from the suburbs of San Francisco. I’ve been attending college in New York. My best friend from school is coming to visit me this summer, and I couldn’t be more excited! But, excitement aside, I do have concerns.
In a time where people of color, especially men, are having the police called on them for everything from waiting for a friend in Starbucks to taking a nap in a common area of a dorm building, I am worried about my neighbors' potential reaction to a man of color showing up in their predominantly white suburb.
I have toyed with the idea of making a post on nextdoor.com, a neighborhood social media site, asking people to think twice before panicking should they see my friend walking down the street, as he belongs there as much as they do. But I know my county prides itself on being a liberal and progressive area, and I don’t want to insult anyone.
You should start this process by notifying your friend that your neighbors are somewhat likely to “panic” and call the police if he is bold enough to walk through the neighborhood while also being Black. Strangely, you seem to worry more about offending your neighbors by challenging their lofty notions of themselves than you do about the risk posed to your friend if he walks through your neighborhood alone.