It’s no secret.
Driving while black is not only a common phrase used among African-American communities to describe their interactions with law enforcement. It’s factual. According to the Justice Department, blacks are more likely than whites to be pulled over and have their cars searched.
And following the many incidents of black men and women being pulled over while driving (or walking) for erroneous reasons, a Portland, Oregon lawyer decided to create an app that helps educate drivers on how to safely deal with police during traffic stops.
“We use the name ‘Driving While Black’ because people of color experience a disproportionate number of traffic stops,” said Marianne Hyland. “African-Americans are stopped almost two times more than their white counterparts.”
“Black people talk about the phenomenon of driving while black and our yearning for resources to help navigate those encounters with the police so that they stay safe,” she said.
But given what we know about police brutality, it seems like the onus is misplaced. In all fairness, Hyland and her business partner have stressed that despite the controversial name, the app is for drivers of all races. The app will allow drivers to send an alert to friends and family if they have been pulled over, will outline the civil rights drivers have during stops, and will also include a recording function to document police interactions.
From Mashable:
Portland attorney Mariann Hyland got the idea for “Driving While Black” after learning of an app for drivers suspected of drunken driving. She approached Melvin Oden-Orr in April, and the two have been working on the app since summer with software developer James Pritchett.
[…]
The issue has been on Hyland’s radar since motorist Rodney King was beaten by Los Angeles police in 1991. Another key event hit closer to home. In 2003, a 21-year-old black woman was fatally shot by Portland police after she jumped from the backseat to the driver’s seat during a traffic stop and tried to drive away.
Oden-Orr hosted a forum after the death, and Hyland attended. Afterward, Hyland promised she would do something to educate black youth on handling traffic stops. For years, she didn’t keep that promise, and it bothered her.
The app is her attempt at rectifying the situation. Hyland and Oden-Orr say the key to surviving a traffic stop is to remain calm, keep your hands on the wheel, be respectful and make no false moves.
It’s an age-old “how-to-survive” guide that black mothers and fathers have been teaching their children for decades. But it seems, even with that knowledge drilled into drivers by concerned parents (or an app in this case), black men and women are disproportionately pulled over, harassed and in many cases, killed in routine traffic stops.
Seems the real challenge would be creating an app for law enforcement that rectifies a storied past and includes some sensitivity and culture training. But in the meantime, “Driving While Black” will hopefully quell the tension between the two communities — or any drivers who come into contact with police.
“It’s about being safe during a traffic stop so that everyone goes home alive,” Oden-Orr said.
The app will be available mid-December.
SOURCE: Mashable | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty
