As we all are aware, freshly debriefed Iraqi war veterans are coming back to their hometowns daily, with numerous joyous reunions captured digitally to go viral on YouTube, and broadcast on the nightly news. To thank returning military personnel, a parade was held this past weekend in St. Louis. But, here in New York City’s five boroughs, some folks are wondering what will happen when our brave black and brown soldiers come home to our neighborhoods and are subjected to routine stop and frisks by NYC police officers. The controversial policy of stop and frisk, called racial profiling by some, and called a blatant violation of constitutional rights by civil rights groups, has been only increased in recent years in non-white and predominantly poor parts of the city. Cited by police as one of the reasons crime rates are not significantly higher, and despite recent lawsuits, no real change in policy is in sight. Many men who have experienced being stopped and patted down by the police say they were guilty of nothing but ‘walking while black’. Then, their names and information are added to a database that the police keep. No NYC ticker tape parade, or displays of gratitude for their service for our fighting men and women, but at least they can look forward to being touched by the NYPD.
