"It's Because I'm Black"

“It’s Because I’m Black”

Yes, I hear that phrase (and excuse) way too often in Vegas, 

and hear it daily on the bus.

Here is a news flash, people: YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE WHO CARES WHAT COLOR YOUR SKIN IS. Knock it off!

Nobody cares if you have red, blue, black, purple, yellow, green, white, or pink skin. Stop using your skin color against yourself.

Skin color does not determine one iota of how anyone behaves, how classy or trashy anyone is, or how much education one does or does not have. Skin color does not determine if you pay your fare-share in life, or try to ride for free. Skin color does not matter if a machine is out of order, or if it works. Skin color does not determine if you should follow the rules, or get special treatment.

Now, before anyone goes and gets their panties in a bunch about this post, I hope you will read it entirely rather than just read one or two sentences and take it completely out of context.  This Is Not a post against people with any certain color of skin, any nationality, or heritage. It is not even about everyone who might have the same shade of skin color. It IS About those few who think they deserve special treatment BECAUSE of the color of their skin. EVERY HUMAN is different than any other human. Every human’s skin is different than any other. There IS NO such thing as two people, or a group of people having “the same color skin”. What we all have in common is simply: We Are All Human. Shouldn’t We all Act like it?
Not a single human has any choice in what color pigment is in their skin. Whether you believe in God, or not, you were created, and you were created beautifully. I personally believe in God, and Know God does not create anything worthless. There is no such thing as an ugly human. We are all incredible works of art. Sure, everyone has the ability to choose what they do, or do not like about what they see in other humans. But Not a single living creature has any say-so in how they were created. We cannot choose, or even change our creation. But we fully have the capability to control how we behave, how we act towards others, and how we get along (or don’t) in this world. THAT IS What This Post is about.

Every day on the bus, I see the same thing. Most people who ride the bus do so in an orderly fashion, pay their fare, and know they need to follow certain rules for the privilege to ride the bus. (Yes, I said it is a privilege. It is not a right, or even supposed to be available for everyone.) When someone chooses to ride a “public transportation” vehicle (a bus), they agree to the terms of a civil-society to be allowed to ride. Nowhere is there a law that states anyone can ride anytime they want. Nowhere is there a law that states “if you don’t want to pay for bus ride, you can choose to ride for free”.  It is a service provided for those who wish to pay for that privilege. When one chooses to ride a bus, they agree to the terms which make it available. One of those terms is to pay for their ride. Most of the riders buy their pass, never make stink about it, come and go in daily life without a problem. Everyone riding knows that it is not free, and knows there are fines if you do not purchase a pass. It does not matter what shade someone’s skin happens to be. We all are the same. We all take up space on the bus. We all must pay our own way. Riding the bus is a very economical way to get around the places we need to go. It is much less expensive to ride the bus than any other form of motorized transportation. A monthly pass costs much less than a citation for riding without a pass. It is a minimal cost. If someone does not have the money, or feels they should not have to pay, The only option is that they do not ride. They can choose to walk, or ride a bike, or get a ride with another person who happens to have a vehicle.

But because not all people feel they need to pay for such a privilege, the bus company needs to hire fare-inspectors to patrol the buses. These fare inspectors do not have an easy job. Some people feel they are an exception and think they should ride for free, or even if they do have a pass, they feel they should never have to show it to any fare-inspector.

Fare inspectors are not on every bus. They board buses at random, so nobody knows which times they will be asked for proof of payment, and which times they will not. But every rider knows they will be given a $75 citation if they choose to ride (and get caught) without a pass.

Once a fare-inspector boards a bus, most people cooperate and know how to behave. The inspector does not check only one or two passengers. They start at one end of the bus, and check every passenger all the way to the other end. They do not skip anyone, nor do they only pick certain people to check. Most people will simply hold their pass up for the inspector to see as they walk past. It is a simple process, and to inspect the whole bus usually takes less than a minute. But there is always one who does not have a pass, or has it and thinks they should not be checked for it.

When a fare-inspector comes across a person without a pass, they simply ask that person to show their pass. The reply from that passenger is always one of the following: “Why, because I’m Black!?” Or “Because I’m Black, you think I don’t have a pass?!” Or “You’re only checking me because I’m Black!” The inspectors never fall for that garbage, nor do they sucked into the trap of entering the race-topic. They simply state: “I check every passenger for their pass. May I see your pass, please?”

But for some reason, the ones making such a scene seem to think they are being singled-out. They will assert again that they believe they are being asked simply because they are black. The inspector will again ask for their pass. But they will not show it, and accuse the inspector of being racist. Then the inspector will point out that everyone else on the bus, many who also have similar-shades of skin have already shown their passes. Then they will ask how they feel they are being singled-out, if every person on the bus is asked to show their pass, and all the others show it without a scene. Then the inspector will ask for an ID to write a citation. Often, at this point the person will produce a pass, and again grumble that they were singled out “for being black”. The inspector will thank them for showing their pass, and inquire why they felt they needed to make it so difficult.  At this point the grumbling passenger will reply: “You only checked me because I am black, and you thought I would not have a pass because I am Black.” The inspectors are baffled by this, and often will again point out all the other passengers many who happen have “black skin” cooperated, showed their passes, and did not cause a disturbance. Often the inspectors will say something like: “If you have a problem with the color of your skin, that is your problem, because nobody else does.” Or “Why do you behave that way? I checked every person on this bus. You could have simply shown your pass, and made it easy?” For some reason the offended still believes they were the only one checked, will start getting belligerent, cussing, and causing a major disturbance. Then the fare inspector will have the driver stop the bus, and the offender is evicted for causing a disturbance. As they are leaving the bus, they will be swearing, grumbling, and hollering about “being kicked off the bus because they were black”. Everyone on board just shakes their head in amazement, and disbelief at how ignorant one person among fifty can be. How is it one person can believe such nonsense, yet all the others saw it for exactly what it was.  (One person causing a scene because they thought their skin color was somehow an issue.)

Often, the ones causing a scene do not have a pass. They seem to think it is ridiculous that they should have to pay to ride, and even more ridiculous that anyone would ask them for proof of payment. You often hear them say such bizarre things as: “I didn’t buy a pass, because I’m Black.” Or “I’m Black, you know I can’t afford a pass.” Or “I’m Black. I should not have to pay to ride.” The fare inspector will ask for ID to write the citation. They Never give an ID. They will find something to argue about until they see an opportunity to flee at the next stop and run away from the fare inspector. Even as they are running away, they are yelling about “being singled out because they are black”. The inspector will just shake his head, then radio to the other inspectors the description of the offender.

Sadly, not a day goes by that I do not see this same thing occur. Most of the people on the buses pay their fare. They show their pass, and never have a problem. But there is always one who makes a scene “because they are black.”

As often as I see it, I am sure the inspectors see it a hundred-times more often than I do. You would think that seeing it so often, I would be used to it, accept it, and not even pay attention when it happens. But it still amazes me every single day that any person could be so ignorant to think they are treated any different  because of the color of their skin, or to think the rules don’t apply, or they are singled-out solely because of their skin color.

The other day, I needed to validate my new 30-day pass. This can easily be done at any machine at any bus-stop. The machine at my stop was out of order, so I could not validate it. No problem, I would just use the machine located on the bus when I got on.  I sat down a few feet from the out of order machine, and waited. The next person to come up also approached the machine. I told him it was not working. He just glared at me, so I let him figure it out for himself. After many attempts to get the machine to dispense a ticket, he started hitting the machine, cursing at it and yelling about “The machine won’t give me a ticket because I’m Black!” I got up and waited far away from him. He then started hollering at me “You can’t stand to be seen near a Black Person! You went away because I’m Black!”  I just shook my head in disbelief. I tried to tell him it would not work for me, but he thought that I should not have spoken to him. He would not shut up long enough for me to tell him I went away from him because of his behavior, not his skin color. He could not even notice that I stayed sitting right next to him until he got violent, and start playing the race card. He clearly was the one who had the problem with the color of his skin, not me. Yet, he thought he could attempt to somehow make me into some horrible monster because of his bad behavior. It amazes me at the level some will go to just to isolate themselves from humanity.

When the bus came, he was still ranting, cursing, and complaining about the machine that would not give him his ticket because he was black. I went to the machine on-board the bus and validated my ticket. He chose to go find a seat, and not get a ticket, still trying to get others to feel sorry for him because of his skin color. Most people looked at him and shook their heads. The rest just ignored him.

At the next stop a fare inspector boarded. (He happened to be black.) Before the inspector even had a chance to begin asking for passes, the man started hollering at the inspector about the machine that would not give him a ticket because he was black. The inspector looked at him, laughed, shook his head and went about his normal business of checking for passes. When he got to me, I showed him mine, and told him what that guy had done at the previous stop. He laughed, and said “Yeah, it’s always the same excuse with some people. They cannot understand that machines do not see anything or know what the human looks like.” He laughed as he went on down the length of the bus. Most of the riders give no hassle, show their passes, and there is no scene.

When he got to a lady who did not show her pass, he simply asked to see it. Without even looking up, she started yelling “You’re just singling me out because I’m Black!” He just stood and smiled, waiting for her to look up. When she did not get a reaction, she looked up to find out why. (usually if they start hollering, they are seeking some sort of attention, and are surprised when they do not get it.) She was surprised alright! When she looked up and saw a guy smiling at her with a look of “I’m not buying your game” She did a fast look around, hoping to find others who would join her fight. Nobody said a word. We all just looked at her and gave her the same look of disbelief, and wondered what it takes for someone to think this kind of bad behavior is at all acceptable. Then she attempted to turn on the charm. She said “Oh, good, you’re Black, too. That means you’re on my side.”  The inspector looked at her and told her to “Knock off that crap. I Do not tolerate any form of racism. Either you have a pass, or you get a citation.”

She said, “But I’m Black!” He asked again for her pass. She looked in disbelief. Then said, “But Blacks are supposed to support each other, let me slide, sweetie!”  He told her “I am not your sweetie. If you think you deserve special treatment because of the color of your skin, you’ve got a lot to learn.” He was very stern, and not at all pleased with how she was being so racist. He told her “Until you stop making your skin color an issue, you will never get anywhere in life. There are no sides. We all are equal. Now, do you have your pass, or not?” She grabbed her bag and ran from the bus as soon as it stopped. As she left, she was screeching about “You’re Black! You’re supposed to be on my side!” Although she could no longer hear him, he said “There are no sides. We are all human, and we all have to pay our fair share.”

Then the inspector turned toward the belligerent man who was still complaining about the machine that would not give him a ticket because he was black.   He walked up to him, looked right at him, and said, “Now, Sir, What is this nonsense about a machine that is racist? No machine can see anything about your skin color. It was out of order for the guy who tried to use it just before you did. He tried to tell you, but you insisted on being ignorant and causing a scene. Now, you have two choices: you can give me your ID so I can write you a citation for not having a pass, or you can shut your mouth and go to the machine on this bus and buy your ticket.” The man started to argue again about “because I’m Black…”, but the Inspector cut him off quickly. He said, “You, Sir are the Only one who cares what color your skin is! Knock that crap off! There is no excuse for behaving that way. If you have a problem with the color of your skin, then I suggest you stay home, because you will never make it outside your home with that attitude!” The man shut-up, and just glared at the inspector. He refused to go get his ticket from the machine, so the inspector insisted on his ID. He ran from the bus as soon as the doors opened.  The inspector looked like he could not believe how hard some people like to make their own lives.

For those of you who happen to have a problem with the color of your own skin: KNOCK IT OFF! YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE WHO CARES. Nothing happens only to you because you have a certain skin color. What does happen is because of your attitude. There is a difference. IF YOU TRULY BELIEVE SOMETHING HAPPENS ONLY BECAUSE OF YOUR SKIN COLOR, You might try looking around. You are not the only one who has skin similarly shaded. If 99% of the people around you do not have issues, then you might look into your own behavior. Behavior is deeper than skin color. It might amaze some to discover they are the only ones misbehaving, or causing a scene. It might amaze some people to discover everyone else on the bus paid for a pass, showed it without a scene, and went on with their lives without feeling the need to pick a fight, or cause a disturbance. If you despise the fare-inspectors, you might notice YOU are the only reason those fare-inspectors exist. If YOU would just purchase a pass, and do what you are supposed to do, there would be no need for an inspector, and nobody would ever approach you and ask to see your pass. If YOU would learn to behave in society, and not think you deserve special treatment, you would be amazed at how smooth your life could be. The way YOU are treated has nothing to do with the color of your skin.

Here is a challenge for anyone who feels they are treated different because of the color of their skin: Rather than just assume someone has a problem with the color of your skin, why not ask them? … That is IF YOU Really Want the truth! But since you would rather isolate yourself with such ridiculous beliefs that it is “Because I’m Black”, then you likely do not want to know the real reason… that reason being because your attitude sucks. In case you did not yet notice, Attitude is not connected to any color of skin. But I challenge you: Ask, and seek the real reason you are treated differently. But you won’t, because that would mean you had the ability to make changes, but since you know you cannot change the color of your skin, it is easier for you to blame everything on your skin color.  Are you willing to change your attitude? Or would you rather go through life making everything difficult “Because I’m Black”? The choice is yours… so is the result you get.