Bavarian police

Right now I am seeing so many things on my Facebook feed about racial issues in the US...it all gets quite overwhelming for me, and usually I don't even think about things like that. I was raised in a mixed racial household, and grew up in two different countries and cultures and was never taught to think of myself any differently than anyone else or think differently about anyone else because of what they look like. Well last week I had my first experience...I have been heavily debating whether or not to even write anything about it, because that would mean that I actually accept and admit that there might be a problem. 

Okay here is my story. Morning time in a small town outside of Munich, I am walking to catch the train to go to the city. I see a police car driving slowly beside me, of course, I think nothing of it, I have done nothing wrong. So I keep walking, and then they pull in front of me and stop me. There are two of them that look about 18 years old, and they say there was a theft in the area and that I am fitting to the culprit's description. Ummm okay?? I should have asked what that description actually was. So they say they need to see my passport and search my bag...fine..well cop #1 doesn't even know how to correctly read a passport, he turns to a visa I have from Brazil which is taped on, and starts pulling it off, then looking at me like what is this? You have to turn to the first page...OH..now he gets it, so he sees I am from America, I tell him where I am staying, and that I am visiting. So #2 is searching my bag, pulls out my wallet and asks if this is mine. Yes, I say, then proceed to open it so he can see my American drivers license with all the matching bank cards in my name. AH, they both say, YES you fools, it is all MINE. We are very sorry for any inconvenience they say, took my name down, and then left. The worst part was the manner in which they were asking if my stuff was mine. If there was a theft, they should know exactly what they are looking for, right??? Plus they made me miss my train :(

I was extremely upset by this situation. From the Germans I have talked to they say there probably was no theft, that the police in Bavaria have been known for this type of behavior. If this is true, it makes me extremely frustrated because someone is judging me based off of something I have no control over. I am a nice person, I go to church, I have a doctoral degree, I have never stolen anything in my entire life, and yes I like to travel and see new places. So its frustrating to think that people might be uneasy because I am in their area. Maybe the theft was real and they were doing their job or maybe I just looked suspicious to them:

At the botanical gardens in Munich.

Now, all that being said, this could have happened (to me or ANYONE of any race) anywhere in the US or probably even the world, but it happened here in Bavaria to me. Lets just say I was not sad to leave Munich at all, and am much happier here in Dresden, where I have had nothing but a great experience. I don't want to have to think that this is something I have to worry about the rest of my life, and what happened is not sitting well with me. And I cannot keep dismissing the fact that there might still be racial issues (for all races) in the world.

I guess what I really want to say is that we ALL need to have respect for other people, regardless of where they come from and what color they are: brown, yellow, black, tan, white, green, purple, whatever. If we always assume the worst in people, it will bring out the worst in them. I know we are better than this...