Fashion police

Watching civil liberties dwindle now post-9/11, this encounter may seem trivial. But surrendering even the smallest freedom is unsound.

One sunny day, two friends and I, black-clad, visited the Broadway and 10th cemetery for a photo shoot, a “Goth” cliché, but what’s the harm?

We were about to find out.

Upon our arrival, a law enforcement officer approached, bearing questions and accusations. He claimed my friends and I “matched the description” of cemetery vandals. He thought us suspicious, because we’d parked in Target’s lot, then entered through the main gate.

Suspicious? We’d entered within view of the caretaker’s office!

He asked why we hadn’t used the East gate. I’d never seen it. ’Tis south of Target.

He asked why we hadn’t parked inside the cemetery. We hadn’t known we could.

I tried to dispel some “Goth” stereotypes. I neither drink blood, nor worship Satan. I don’t consider death romantic.

Yet stone monuments evoke thoughts of castles in historical fiction. With no castle access, cemeteries are the next best setting. Primarily, cemeteries commemorate the departed. When my time comes, I wouldn’t want someone defacing my memorial stone. I certainly wouldn’t vandalize someone else’s.

Whether we were suspected of upsetting headstones or unearthing coffins was uncertain. Had such happened here, or was it an excuse to intimidate dark-garbed folk?

I’ve read countless cases of people being questioned, even arrested, because they “matched the description” of alleged criminals—by skin tone alone. Whether pigment or garment, people often notice only “black,” before assuming “criminal.” ’Tis prejudice: judging, prior to gathering evidence. Ironically, this officer was of African descent.

As he’d already prejudged our trio, I didn’t mention this irony. Still, I wondered if any member of his family had ever been pulled over for “driving while black.” If so, had he learned nothing? Perhaps he’d realized that uniformed men held power, and he wanted some. “Gothic” attire is sometimes called uniform. Perhaps official sanction makes the crucial difference.

Not that the Land of the Free requires official sanction, right? The officer photographed us, not celebrating an aesthetic, but apparently to discourage it, and to catalogue alleged “criminals.”

This may seem insignificant now, with surveillance cameras, X-rays, metal detectors and armed sentries becoming increasingly common. Here lies the danger of embracing a police state. When ruled by fear, it’s no longer the Home of the Brave.