Discrimination Case

Dressed Up Discrimination

Sometimes some of the most culturally important moments in history have little to do with what happened--but what actually didn't. This is the case in Key Bank, Florida, where police were searching for a black man who robbed a bank, but instead found out that the man was actually a white man dressed in a mask that made him look like a black man. Hamilton County judge Marissa Powers referred to the arrested man, Conrad Zdzlerak, as a "master of disguise" when talking about his behavior of dressing like a black man, along with giving him his sentence. When Judge Powers commented on this, it is important to understand the meaning of what Zdzlerak's untrue impression really means. The case of the master in disguise is a an important incident because it gives us a look into racial profiling, the process of identity as well as cultural competence, showing that deep-rooted racial discrimination is still present in today's times.

Racial Profiling

Racial profiling is when someone assumes something about you just because of your race, such as a black or Hispanic person robbing a bank because this has happened in the past, or someone feeling afraid of a middle-eastern person on an airplane. When looking at Zdzlerak's case, it seems as though he understood that racial profiling definitely happens today, and used this fact to his advantage. It is also pretty important to note that the fact that Zdzlerak wore a black person's mask means something as opposed to not, meaning that he assumed that it is a negative stereotype that a black person would rob a bank. It is also possible he assumed it would be more difficult to track him down due to this negative stereotype. If he didn't really believe this, it is possible he would have used his own face as a white man. A case that also relates to this is recently an African American teenager was shot and killed for walking through a residential area wearing a hooded sweatshirt. He did nothing wrong and was feared by the local resident that shot him for no reason. It was assumed that the victim was guilty just because of his appearance, but not any evidence. So the difference in this case, is that the black teenager was not wearing a mask at all, it was his bare face, yet he was shot and killed. Even though the cases are opposites, both show that in life, people make race-based assumptions. People make snap judgments about others, and sometimes this even ends in death.

The Process of Identity

The process of identity is a theory about how you perceive yourself, understanding who you are, knowing what your social role is and what your values are. Zdzlerak's case is important because it shows that social identity took place in this situation, but unfortunately for a negative reason instead of a positive one. This is shown because when Zdzlerak wore a black person's mask, in order for him to put the mask on, he clearly knows that he is not black man and identifies himself as completely separate from the black race in many ways. What he doesn't really understand is that part of really knowing who you are and your social role seeing it from a greater standpoint, and doesn't see the fact that all people are human beings on an individual level, too. He doesn't identify with the bigger picture, and doesn't get the fact that in the modern age, all races are supposed to be accepted and treated as equal. If he really believed things were equal and everyone was treated the same and seen as the same, he wouldn't have worn a mask when he was committing a crime. If people like Zdzlerak's social identity processes work in this way, making things equal for all becomes more complicated, because people can't let go of their ideas about