Boys to men.
The Scamp is a good-lookin’ little guy. We can barely get out the front door before people — women, men, young, old, rich, poor — are gushing ecstatically over his gorgeousness. And that’s before he breaks into a smile. The social impact of attractiveness has been well studied, from the heightened attention that cute babies receive from their own parents to the perception of greater intelligence, and we all hope (consciously or subconsciously) to reap the perceived benefits of beauty (the cosmetics and plastic surgery industries are big bucks for a reason, after all). The Hub worries that all of The Scamp’s handsome points have been used up in his infancy, that maybe he’ll be a dog of an adult. My worry about his adult attractiveness has a different edge: Will my brown baby boy be so adored when he’s a grown brown man?
After the Clifton Place shooting last week, someone diligently visited the police precinct to view a photo of the suspect and report a description on a local message board. The description this viewing produced went something like this: “black male,” “young,” “very short hair,” “thin face,” “well-defined top lip,” “frequently on a bike.” I wish this description hadn’t been posted at all. Why? Well, here’s a black male:
And here’s another black male:
Lookie, another black male:
Now that I’m done fanning myself, it seems safe to say that the suspect wasn’t Isaach de Bankolé, Gary Dourdan, or Boris Kodjoe. Was the Clifton Place shooter light-skinned, dark-skinned, or of medium skin tone? Long, thin, broad, stubby nose? Dark brown, light brown, hazel, blue, green eyes? Thick or thin lips? Curly hair, straight hair, kinky hair, shaved, dreaded? Square-jawed, heart-shaped face? I could go on, but you get my point: Black people are as multi-hued and multi-featured as anyone else. If you know this, then you know “black” is a near-useless descriptor, as useless as “white.” (Truly: Who is actually black? Who is actually white? Those words are just stand-ins for presumptions and stereotypes.) I can understand a victim being unable to conjure up more details, but not someone who actually viewed a photo (even a crap one) with the intent of reporting details.
I have long hated most suspect descriptions for precisely this reason, and using them propagates confirmation bias. (Suspect is a young black male? Then all young black males are suspect.) Some media, like the Baltimore Sun (bless), won’t even publish vague descriptions.
Someday, The Scamp will be described as a young black male with very short hair and a thin face; you could argue that his top lip is well defined, too, a Cupid’s bow that I love to see puckered in concentration or to give me a kiss. He, like his dad, will probably enjoy riding his bike. I wonder if the same people who coo over how adorable he is at 19 months old will assume he’s as magical and innocent when they see him coming down the street at 19 years old.