Over the past two weeks, I’ve been reflecting on the nature of racism in America. Maybe you too have read a now-viral Twitter thread about comedian Dave Chappelle’s experience talking about racism in a comedy club in New York. It’s a good thread, and one that invites people into a necessary conversation. But a different part of the story jumped out at me: Mr. Chapelle described his interaction with a police officer, in Ohio, the place he and I call home. The officer who pulled him over recognized him immediately and let him off with a warning. That officer would later go on to shoot a man who was looking at a BB gun in a Walmart—while black. Mr. Chapelle is right. He shouldn’t have to be famous to survive an encounter with the police.

I obviously can’t speak to what it’s like to be black in America. But I want to share my own thoughts and recollections given recent events: