A few weeks ago, I was up around 5:30 in the morning and heard a news report on a radio saying that the recent closing of Fort Sam Houston's gates to citizens in San Antonio, Texas, had encouraged more governmental entities to look favorably at relocating to the army base. That is to say, that some governmental agencies had fears about locating to the base as a result of their perceptions of the community around it and, by extension, the people in it.
For those that do not know about Fort Sam Houston, it is an army base located in my hometown of San Antonio. The area surrounding the military installation is a predominately African-American and Hispanic community on the city's east side. Working class families that live in the area and anyone else have been able to drive through the base's streets for years. There have been few reported crimes or disturbances to the base's operations with this traffic. Hence, it was odd to hear this radio report saying that the closure of access to the community had made the base more appealing to some governmental entities.
I was rather offended. As someone from the surrounding community, I almost took this as a personal slight at my character. Yet, this was not the first time the people at Fort Sam Houston hinted that things would be better if certain people didn't cruise the base's streets. In fact, during the summer of 1999 a few Fort Sam Houston military police made it clear that they didn't want the likes of me, or the profile of me, on their base - young, black, and in a big Cadillac.
During the summer of 1999, I decided to get in on a little secret that my friend gave me. We were camping out in front of the Fort Sam Houston ticket office for some of the last tickets to see the Spurs in the NBA Finals. His mother, an army colonel, was afforded the opportunity to buy finals tickets specifically given for members of the military and their families, as are most military personnel.
And while I shouldn't let the secret out, if a team in your city ever makes it to a major sporting championship and you're having trouble getting tickets, always remember that the military ticket offices will wait until the last minute to sell some of their tickets - but I have digressed too far.
I was driving my father's 1988 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham - a staple of sorts in the black community. Having slept a few hours on a lawn chair outside of the ticket office, I returned to our nearby house to grab some food.
On my way back, I had one of the Black man's greatest fears in my rearview mirror - the flashing lights from a police vehicle. I didn't know what the problem was. The officer told me that my taillight was out and, hence, he had pulled me over. When I got back to the ticket office - a little frazzled - I went back to my taillights only to see that they were not out at all.
The truth is that I was profiled. I was not given a citation for my taillight by the police officer that surrounded me with several vehicles and had a wagon prepared to take me and my mountain of midnight snacks to jail. I learned from my friends at the American Civil Liberties Union that this was one of the most common excuses police give to pull minorities over. If it happens to you, ask the officer to "see the defect." If they don't, they're the ones who will face trouble.
I suppose once the MPs saw a perfectly harmless high-yellow negro devoid of corn rolls, red-flag-sending tattoos, and without loose fitting clothes, he assumed I actually had a reason to drive on the streets.
I know this may be an unpopular thing to write about in the midst of the war against terrorism, but let me assure you I support America's fight against terrorism and the men and women who do it on our behalf. In fact, it may surprise some people to know that I plan on entering the Air Force as Judge Advocate General (JAG or military attorney) after law school.
However, there is a larger point. Our soldiers are fighting for my right to speak freely and fight against things that are evil - like discrimination. Whether it is against the women of Afghanistan or the Afro-Hispanics from San Antonio, the truth behind justice is never easy to swallow. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance. Now is not the time to defeat one enemy only to let discrimination creep in.
Whether the racial profiling deals with people of foreign or domestic descent, we ought to be careful to treat people as we would want to be treated.
Fort Sam Houston's gates had been scheduled for closing long before the terrorist attacks, and, on the whole, I agree with that decision to ensure the security of the military bases is as good as it can be.
However, when I hear a news report like the one on an early morning radio station saying that governmental entities are looking more favorably at moving into the base facilities as a result of less traffic from the surrounding community, I will simply chuckle.
They might just be doing some Blacks a favor. Some Blacks might feel more secure knowing that one less police force will be pull them over for driving while black.
Tommy Calvert is a senior majoring in international relations.
