One is my clients' frequent use of the word, "Sir." Most of my male clients call me that. Often. Like at the end of every sentence. Until they get to know me. Then they'll call me Mr. Joshua or Mr. Kim. Until they find that I'm a recovering meth addict. Then they call me Josh.
I also noticed that the ratio of arrest (by the police) to a formal charge (by a prosecutor) is close to 1:1 for my clients--with one memorable exception. About a year ago, I had an opportunity to read the California Department of Justice rap sheet of a white woman (now in her 40's) who had a long history of disorderly conduct due to her activist background (and her frequent acts of civil disobedience). It showed that she was arrested about a dozen times. But not a single charge was filed by a prosecutor, until she was finally arrested and convicted for a theft about 10 years ago. Apparently, she is a kleptomaniac.
The recent story about Professor Gates' arrest reminded me of both. According to a diversity trainer interviewed for the article:
Quiet politeness is Rule No. 1 in surviving an incident of racial profiling, he said. So is the frequent use of the word “sir.”A small minority of my clients who don't call me "Sir" from the get-go, by the way, are conspicuously defiant, I also noticed. They take offense at my slightest suggestion that they may be at fault for the situation they find themselves in. And they almost never ever say "Thank you" after receiving my free assistance, which, in all honesty, annoys me. Nevertheless, I've come to realize that this is one way for minority members of our racial society to cope with "authority figures," one that, beyond my annoyance, is not harmful to anyone.
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