Doctors don’t know everything. They know a lot, though. And generally what they use to come up with a diagnosis is symptoms. It’s not an infallible science, but it’s the best we have.
The cop who decided to harass a Black diner for being all Black and eating in a place where people eat may not have been drunk but he had a lot of the drunk symptoms.
Let me explain.
Someone reportedly called the police to G&G Restaurant in Vandergrift, Pa., because Vandergrift doesn’t sound like a place where Black people are welcomed (I didn’t Google the population so please don’t comment bomb me about how Vandergrift was founded by slaves. This is a racial profiling story and I’m trying to get into character.)
According to the Daily Dot, the folks of Vandergrift, or at least some of them, don’t like the good green because the police were called about someone smoking marijuana in front of the diner. In the video, a white Vandergrift police officer, William Moore, can be seen telling Marcus Townsend, a Black man, who reportedly recorded the video, that he was called because of Townsend.
Notice the officer doesn’t say that he’s been called because of a crime, or even an alleged crime; he just says that he’s been called because of Townsend, who is Black.
Townsend can be heard asking the officer why he’s being bothered by the officer, who appears to be slurring his words and doing that one-word answer thing that people do when they are drunk. I am in no way insinuating that the officer was drunk. I’m just noting the symptoms.
Moore orders Townsend to show his ID, and Townsend correctly notes that he doesn’t have to show his freedom papers ID to an officer just because it’s been asked for. Moore insists that the Black man, whose only crime appears to be “eating in Vandergrift while Black” to go outside to which Townsend, is like, no because you’ve not even told me what I’m being accused of doing.
Townsend relents and gives the officer his ID and notes that he’s being racially profiled to which the officer begins mocking Moore, which is totally a thing that a person in a bar whose had a few too many would do. Not saying but just saying.
“Run that please because this guy is saying that I’m racial profiling him,” the officer says, Daily Dot reports.
“Oh yeah, ’cause I just don’t like Black people.” Moore continues. “Everyone who knows me knows that I don’t care whether you’re white, brown, or tan.”
From Daily Dot:
Townsend said that he initially went to the restaurant with his girlfriend and their service dog for breakfast. Townsend alleged that Moore first approached him about the dog, and his girlfriend left with the dog to avoid causing an issue. Then, Townsend said Moore brought up the marijuana call.
In a video showing Moore, Townsend, and another officer outside, Moore is seen asking his colleagues if they found any warrants out for Townsend. He then requests a full criminal history report for Townsend.
The Vandergrift Police Department noted “it’s conducting an internal investigation into the incident. Moore is currently on paid leave, according to TribLIVE. Once the review is finished, the town’s council will decide whether Moore will return to his post,” TribLIVE reports.
And this isn’t the first time someone has complained about Moore. He was “previously put on paid leave in 2017 after being charged with assaulting and harassing a 14-year-old boy. He was also reportedly suspended in 2018 for unknown reasons.”
No word on whether or not Townsend even received his meal because police harassment can ruin an appetite.