Black Yale Student Investigated For Sleeping On Campus

If you listen to the Whiskey Congress podcast, you know that my co-host Steve and I are more than comfortable criticizing the police when they deserve it. When society entrusts a person with the right to take someone’s freedom away (even if it is just temporarily) or to use force (including lethal force) based on their judgement, then we need to hold them to a higher standard of behavior. In case you don’t know the story, there was an incident at Yale University a few days ago involving two students. One of the students is a black female graduate student and the other is a white female student. The black female was in a common area of her apartment building (at Yale they apparently call dorms apartments because, well, they’re Yale). If my public university jealousy and snark came through there, I offer no apology. In any event, the white female student called the police because the black female student (Lolade Siyonbola) was sleeping in the common area. In my opinion here is how this event should have unfolded:

Yale Police: “Yale Police”

White Female Yale Student: “Hello. I need help. There is a black person sleeping in the common area of my dorm…um I mean apartment.”

Yale Police: “Is there a disturbance or threat?”

White Female: “Well no, but this is Yale and she’s black. Obviously something is wrong.”

Yale Police: “Actually Maam, Yale allows black students to attend this fine university. Is there anything else we can help you with?”

White Female: “Didn’t you hear me say that she was sleeping?!?!?”

Yale Police: “Yes Maam, Yale also allows their black students to sleep. It is a common occurrence at dorms.”

White Female: “APARTMENTS. THIS IS YALE!”

Yale Police: “Thank you Maam. Have a great day and if you feel unsafe in your dorm, I mean apartment? Please feel free to call us back but if the only issues that you need to report is that there is a black person sleeping, please just let them alone unless their is a threat or disturbance”.

White Female: “I need my safe space”

Yale Police: “Good day Maam…click”

Ok, there are several things wrong with the conversation that I just fabricated. But I do blame the police for feeling the need to respond to such a non-issue that seems to clearly be race based. Having said that, when the police did arrive, they were polite and professional. Ms. Siyonbola was diligent in recording the encounter and she made little or no effort to hide her frustration with the situation. At time she was irritable and snarky (yes, that is the second conjugation of “snark” in one article). I am not saying that as a criticism of Ms. Siyonbola. She handled the situation better than most people (including myself) would have. I am giving the responding officers credit for being professional and polite. My biggest concern is why they felt the need to respond in the first place. Yes, we will talk about this on the next episode of the Whiskey Congress podcast. Please listen and let us know what you think.

(CNN)A white person voices suspicions about an innocuous person of color. Police are summoned. And the encounter is posted on social media, sparking outrage about racial profiling.

In what is becoming an all-too familiar episode, a black Yale University graduate student was interrogated by campus police officers early Tuesday after a white student found her sleeping in a common room of their dorm and called police.

The black student, Lolade Siyonbola, posted two videos of the encounter to Facebook, where they have been widely viewed and drawn thousands of comments.

“I deserve to be here. I pay tuition like everybody else,” an annoyed Siyonbola told responding officers in one video after they asked for her ID. “I’m not going to justify my existence here.”

The incident is one of several in recent weeks in which police have been called on people of color for seemingly harmless acts. In one of the most recent, two black women and a black man were detained while leaving their California Airbnb after a neighbor called police, thinking they were burglars. Last month two black men were arrested at a Starbucks in Philadelphia after a manager called 911 on them because they didn’t order anything.