___________ While Black

[Mark B]

This tragedy has a particular resonance for me in how people can be treated so differently based on appearance.

About 20 years ago I withdrew $100 cash at my bank (from a teller) and the next morning when paying for coffee and a pastry prior to work the cashier called for the manager and after a whispered conversation the manager told me that the $20 bill I gave the cashier was counterfeit. To my relief the manager handed the bill back to me and I paid with another $20 that was legal tender and went to work.

Later that day I went to my bank and presented the counterfeit $20 to a teller and explained that I'd gotten the bill from the bank the day before when I withdrew cash (I don't recall if I showed her a withdrawal receipt). She spoke with her supervisor and gave me a good $20 bill in exchange for the counterfeit bill.

I believe that the fact that I was white and apparently affluent was the reason I wasn't arrested & charged with passing a counterfeit bill.