A few weeks back I came home early on a Friday and noticed from out my window that a guy was yelling in the street. I looked out the window and it was the white guy on my block who blast loud rock music from his car from time to time. He was walking, flustered and full of wrath, up and down Hancock Street like some one had literally stole something from him.
To add vocals to his anger, he started yelling “nigger” to every car that passed by. I live in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, so that means every car that passed by was his target. I felt like I was the only witness to a midday crazy scene. My assumption was that someone Black did indeed do something to him like…stole something or vandalized his property. Who knows?
I saw this white man for the first time today since that Friday, getting into his car. This time he was calm and cool as he usually is. I didn’t speak. All I could think about was the word “nigger” and I began to question if the word and the thought behind it, is secretly under the tongue of every calm and cool white person that profess that they are my neighbor.