Stop Me When I Start Lying: Don't Be Fooled, Crime Ain't Random

Since I've been here, every few days I'm involved in a conversation where someone is asking me a lot of questions about what America is really like. Or they're making statements based on their pre-conceived notions of America. One of the hot-button topics is often crime. One female from my church, native of a recently war torn African country, told me she's interested in living in Canada but is scared to go to America because "it's so dangerous, I might get raped or something." I should've grabbed her by the shoulders and shaken the shit out of her. I don't get it becuz some Africans have seen some level of civil war but are scared of the image they have of American street crime. I shouldn't be surprised because much of the American population (middle or upper class white America mainly, but some minorities who have successfully disconnected from the hood; which isn't a bad thing) doesn't understand how crime works in America; how could I possibly expect someone who's never been there to understand? i feel like they're just taking the movies and tv they see way too seriously. It has somehow convinced them that crime is widespread and random. And for others, they have claimed they wanted to see some of these dangerous places they hear about; "I wanna go to Brooklyn, I wanna see the Bronx, I wanna see where Jay-Z is from." My response, "No the hell u don't" When I start hearing such ridiculous remarks, I know it's time for me to educate them. I'm not a thug, I'm not some hood dude, but I've been exposed to the hood and hood people enough to have a deeper understanding of how the crime works. The truth is that crime ain't random, it's targeted, for Americans just like foreigners. You have to find ways not to make urself a target. If u're visiting a America as a tourist and u go to tourist places or you go to places with a native who knows where they're goin, you should be ok. But if u show up to places u don't belong and have no business, or u're wearing a lot of valuables in plain sight, or u're starting shit with ppl, u're not in a good position. As an American - even if I was a New Yorker - I wouldn't go to Queensbridge or Marcy, I have no business there and the natives there know that. In the projects, the natives see and know everything and they're opportunists, looking for an easy come up. That's why someone who's not actually rich but flaunts his wealth in the form of material things such as these upstart rappers and athletes are much more often targeted than someone like Steve Jobs, who's a billionaire but doesn't flaunt his wealth. Plus, he's not trying to impress anyone by going back to sketchy places and showing off. That's why someone like Young Berg has been robbed more than once despite the fact that he's not actually rich. At the same time, the founder of Google could walk through a crowded mall without security and not be targeted; probably not even recognized. White collar crime, computer hacking and all those things are an entirely different issue, but as far as street level violence. People need to chill out with these hyperbolized notions. Just watch ur back, be smart, and don't go places u have no business and u'll be fine.