Krystol Diggs, in a blog post at CNN iReport, describes the harrowing police profiling that two Hollywood actors, Cherie Johnson and Dennis White, had to endure. "I hope that this article will show that we as people should be united as one and not divided," Diggs writes.
Being violated is something that many haven't had a chance to go through. Although we never want it to happen at all, it does and it happened to actors Cherie Johnson and Dennis White. Cherie Johnson, who is known for her roles in 'Punky Brewster', 'Family Matters', etc. and Dennis White who was in the film 'Notorious', a story about the late Christopher Wallace also known as “Biggie Smalls” never imagined their vacation to be an experience they would never forget. Dennis White explained to me the terrible ordeal; here is his story:
"On September 22nd, 2013 at approximately 3:40pm, I was reminded that at the end of the day I can be harassed by the police at their will. Regardless of how many movies or TV shows I have been in. Regardless of my education at WSSU. Regardless of how much money or accolades I have garnered. Regardless of my journeys across the globe. I will be forever at the white officer's mercy.
"My lady and I have had a long trip teaching our Acting workshops in NYC and in Fayetteville, NC, my hometown. We have been out of L.A. for about 10 days and we needed some R&R. I suggested Myrtle Beach because she has never been there before and it can be romantic in nature. Myrtle Beach was the place in which I acted in my very first film, 'Swimming,' so there is a special place in my heart for that town. Well, we decided to leave Sunday afternoon between football games and to avoid heavy traffic and to make it to Myrtle before the Steelers (her favorite team) played. We laughed, kissed, held hands, talked and had a pleasant time traveling from NC to SC. We had no idea that our trip would turn into a horrible nightmare.
Read Krystol Diggs' entire piece at CNN iReport.
The Root aims to foster and advance conversations about issues relevant to the black Diaspora by presenting a variety of opinions from all perspectives, whether or not those opinions are shared by our editorial staff.