When you work hard as a POC you still get looked at as a criminal

All — well most of my adult life I have worked hard to improve myself and become a respectable person. I’m not desperate for respect it’s just good to have it from certain people as it shows you’re doing something right.

I wouldn’t blame you for calling me a bit rabid as a kid, I was. I had a short temper, I was dumb as fuck, and I didn’t give a fuck about much. The person I am today and the person I was back then are completely different in most ways.

I still am the same person at the core but a lot more polished and refined. I am much smarter, I have ambitions, and I am conscious about how I navigate life and treat others. I am not perfect but I am a productive member of society…

But people still look at me like I’m a drug dealing criminal, to the point even people who are around me most days are still suspicious of me. I must be up to something as people who look like me are always up to something.

Perception is everything

Different races have different expectations based on stereotypes, but they’re not all the same. I don’t look like a nice guy, and because of the way I dress, people think that I must be up to something. The best way I can describe the way I dress is Tommy Eagan from Power.