A Houston teen has recently gone viral after he shared a video detailing the list of unwritten rules his mom makes him follow as a young black man in order to stay safe outside their home, Huff Post reported.
In the wake of global protests against racism and police brutality following the death of George Floyd, 18-year-old Cameron Welch posted the heartbreaking video on TikTok where it has over 11.3 million views.
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“Jus some unwritten rules my mom makes me follow as a young black man,” Welch wrote in the caption, adding the hashtag #blacklivesmatter.
The checklist the teen recites covers everything from how to dress while driving a car, to how to behave inside a store so you aren’t suspected of stealing.
Several of the rules have to do with how to act in the event you’re ever pulled over by a police officer.
The following is a list of all 16 rules Welch’s mother has laid out for him to follow.
– Don’t put your hands in your pockets.
– Don’t put your hoodie on.
– Don’t be outside without a shirt on.
– Check in with your people, even if you’re down the street.
– Don’t be out too late.
– Don’t touch anything you’re not buying.
– Never leave the store without a receipt or a bag, even if it’s just a pack of gum.
The list continues, eventually leading up to rules that prepare for the most tense of situations.
– Never make it look like there’s an altercation between you and someone else.
– Never leave the house without your ID.
– Don’t drive with a wifebeater on.
– Don’t drive with a du-rag on.
– Don’t go out in public with a wifebeater or a du-rag.
– Don’t ride with the music too loud.
– Don’t stare at a Caucasian woman.
– If a cop stops you randomly and starts questioning you, don’t talk back, just compromise.
– If you ever get pulled over, put your hands on the dashboard and ask if you can get your license and registration out.
In the comments on Welch’s video, many Black and Latinx TikTok users have shared that their parents taught them similar rules.
“The fact that our parents have to tell us this is sad,” one person wrote. “We have to do this just to go outside.”
And most confirmed that their rules were first introduced to them at a very young age.
Someone else said, “Got this talk at 10, and my brothers at 8 and 6.”
Another added, “When [white children] get ‘the talk’ it’s about the birds and the bees, but this is ‘the talk’ we get.”
Some users even said they were planning on having this same talk with their own children some day, if they haven’t already.
Someone wrote, “As a black mom of two, this is our unfortunate truth,” while another added, “I’ve taught my boys the EXACT same things. I’m afraid for them.”
“Saving this video for my future son,” one person wrote, prompting Welch to reply, “His future shouldn’t be like this.”
Welch said he’s had his mother’s list of rules memorized since he was 11 years old.
He also told Huff Post that he knew now was the time to speak out about his experience as a young black man living with such a heightened awareness of police officers.
His video leaves no room for confusion.
“In this moment in our country, it was necessary for me to use my voice, so I put out the video,” Welch said. “I wanted people to hear and understand the real truth of a Black man’s daily experience.”
In a follow-up video, Welch shared another “rule” of sorts that he and his black friends follow, one that white people typically don’t have to consider.
“What do y’all say when y’all parting from somebody?” he asks in the clip . “Say you’ve been with your friends all day… what do y’all say? You say, ‘I’ll see you later’? ‘I’ll talk to you later’? ‘I’ll see you tomorrow’?”
At this point, Welch and his friends know all too well that it’s not that simple.
“Me and my friends, we tell each other, ‘Stay safe’,” Welch continued. “I just feel that’s weird that we can’t tell each other, ‘I’ll see you later’, because to be honest, we don’t really know when we’ll see them again.”
He finished the video by saying, “Every black man has that feeling of, ‘Am I going to come home today?'”
Since his original TikTok video went viral, Welch said he hopes it’ll serve as an eye-opener to the unfair reality that black Americans face every day of their lives.
As he told Huff Post , “I want people to see that we need change and that no one should have to live like this.”
