Guns and Racial Discrimination

Chicago had a "gun buyback."  As you may be aware, many cities pay, no questions asked for guns to be brought in and destroyed.  In some cases, very valuable  and rare guns have been destroyed.  In other cases, guns that were worthless and perhaps not functioning have been bought with tax money.  Here's a story of open racial discrimination by a buyback in Chicago:

White folks need not apply.
That was the message Guns Save Life took away from a foray up to the Windy City Saturday morning, May 14th, to trade unwanted firearms in for $100 pre-paid credit cards.  Our experience felt surreal to say the least in this era when profiling – especially racial profiling – is a big no-no, especially in government service.

It all began this morning as five Caucasian members of Guns Save Life waited surreptitiously in line at a Chicago gun buyback location.  Out of the blue, my wife and I were told by a surly, middle-aged woman from the Mayor’s office that “we won’t be taking those today” in reference to a dozen plus long guns my wife and I brought.

I asked if she had an interest in a zip gun and held it up.  She looked at it like I held a dog turd and said, “I don’t know what that is,” and walked away.  Pearls before swine.

 We left....

Fifteen minutes later, each of our Caucasian members were ejected by the surly woman.

As we chatted with very amiable and professional Chicago PD officers, we watched two other Caucasian males turned away over the course of the next half-hour.

In short, we watched first-hand as every Caucasian person who walked into the facility were curtly told their firearms would not be accepted, while African-American individuals with similar quantities and types of firearms were welcomed with open arms.  

Inside, before getting ejected, one of our party overheard the mayor’s flack explaining to a member of the media why she rejected my wife and I – people with guns.  “Oh, they are gun dealers who want to unload guns that won’t sell,” she told him.

Pressed for how she’s identifying these dealers by sight alone.  “You can tell who’s from the neighborhood and who’s not.”