i am Chinese guy who lives in States now and after today’s work i went back to my apartment and as usual, i was talking to my girlfriend on the phone downstairs. And after talking, just when i was about to go upstairs, i saw a black truck car stopoped in front of me. i thought it was because the speed hump cuz i have seen a lot of cars stopped at there because of that. so i didnt think about that at all. and the car started to move to the spot next to me and i thought the driver just tried to park his car and i turned around and about two seconds later a gun pointed to my head and i heard “give me your wallet.” i could realize that was a black guy cuz the deep voice. i was shocked ! i have never been pointed by a gun at head before even tho i have seen a lot movies about that before. and i turned around i looked into the black guy’s eyes and told him i aint got no money. and he said just give me your wallet. i panic and tried my best to stay clam because i have never gone through this before. i saw the gun and i had to give him my wallet and after he ran back to his car i shouted "just give me my ID back cuz i dont to lose my ID. otherwise it would have been a lot of trouble.He took all my cash form my wallet and threw my wallet on the ground and i even ran to pick my wallet back. after he shouted something he drove away. i am so angry now and i kind of cant stop thinking about that. Fukkkk!! what should i do ??
Sorry for your misfortune.
Since this is asking for advice, though, I’m going to move it to IMHO.
You’re alive, uninjured, and apparently retained your ID, credit cards, etc. You can make a police report, and probably should, just in case, but I would not expect much to come from it.
Otherwise, pour yourself a stiff drink of your favorite beverage, boink your girlfriend, and otherwise be glad you’re alive.
Did you cover your wallet in fingerprints? Of course, the normal person would do that in moments of great stress, but, there may still be some of his on it.
Sorry about your bad fortune. Call the cops.
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Agreed - so sorry you had to experience that trauma.
Sorry. It’s bad enough that it happens, and even more embarrassing when it happens to a foreign guest. Glad you weren’t hurt and the worst is out some cash. In the future, I would just give over the wallet. Your robber didn’t sound like a nasty guy intent on causing fear or harm, but some robbers are and it’s probably better to avoid anything that might set them off.
How long have you lived in the US and are you living in a big city?
Did you get the license plate of the truck?
Didn’t you file a police report? If you didn’t, you should. It’s likely that what happened to you has happened to other people, possibly in the area.
I was once robbed at gunpoint, too, by a 12-year old kid. I don’t know what was worse - the fact that a child was doing it or the gun pointed to my head. Well…yeah, it was the gun, but anyway.
Anyway, file the report now - the sooner the better. Sorry this happened to you.
You have already taken the most important step; By signing up on the SDMB so you could share your harrowing story, you have started the healing process that you so badly need!!!
I am just grateful that God, in His infinate wisdom, saw fit to give all black guys deep voices, in order to make identifying them during legal proceedings easier on their many, many Asian victims…
File the police report.
And get counseling. You need help to deal with this. It’s going to haunt you for a long time.
Several years ago, my son worked the night shift at Blockbuster video. Just before closing, two guys came in with guns and forced my son and his coworker into the back room. The robbers did tell the kids that if they did nothing stupid, they’d be okay, their gripe was with Blockbuster. Then they emptied the register and left.
When the guys were certain the robbers were gone, they called for help.
My son had a lot of problems dealing with the aftermath. A few sessions of counseling set him on the right path.
~VOW
I knew someone would scream racism! Anyone remember Johnnie Cochran telling the world that no one can tell a black by his voice? (And if they can, they must be racist?)
Must you? Seriously?
OP, that really really sucks Glad you’re ok, though!!!
i live in New York City but i was working in Chattanooga,TN which is a really small city
no, too bad i didnt cuz it was pretty dark and i was shocked i didnt know what to do
Being in a state of shock is not surprising. The fact that the guy gave you your wallet back and your id is huge in my book, as cash is renewable, but to replace the drivers license, credit cards, and everything else in there is just a pain in the ass. Not to mention any pictures.
Count your blessings, file the police report like others have suggested, and don’t torture yourself. if you need to speak to a therapist, do so. This is an event that can play serious havoc with your psyche.
And the deep voice may have not indicated a black man. It could have been Bowser from Sha Na Na, or that guy from the Oak Ridge Boys. Other than that, I think you are safe in not being called a racist.
Question for the over-sensitive:
If asked to describe your assailant, and he/she spoke to you, would you say “I’d like to say, officer, but since I’m an over-sensitive, politically correct asshole, I can’t tell you, even though I know in my gut the voice was of a black man.” Or, "I think by the curls on his head, his clothing, and accent, he was a hasidic jew. ", or “His lack of hair and tattoos and swastikas may indicate he was a skinhead”.
But of course, you hate labeling people, so you wouldn’t point out any of these terrible racist stereotypes. :rolleyes:
I dunno. I worked at a gas station when I was 16 and got held up twice. I quit after the second time, of course, but I didn’t need therapy and it didn’t really “haunt me” for more than a couple weeks and only then it was because the guy had been wearing a ski mask and this took place in MN in February, when ski masks (back when it used to snow during the winter…) were practically unavoidable. I’d get a little jumpy and nervous when I was buying gas, or whatever, and noticed the ski mask walking toward the store before I took note of the snow suit, helmet, boots, snowmobile, etc. People react differently to stressful situations and I wouldn’t automatically assume the OP needs therapy.
This exact thing happened to me just two months after starting work at a Tower Records shop in the SF Bay Area (early 90s). Two guys came in at closing, pointed guns at us, told us (3 workers) to go to the back room where the safe was, emptied it out, took our wallets and ran off. We had guns pointed at our heads for what seemed an eternity.
Police and store manager showed up within ten minutes of that. It wasn’t until I was giving my statement when the shock wore down and I finally cried and got angry at what happened. Manager asked if I wanted to take two paid weeks off and offered counseling. I came back to work two days later.
A subsequent investigation found that it could have been an inside job. That and later discovery of other employee theft led to the firing of half the staff. I became a supervisor and stayed with the company for 5 years and eventually brought me to Japan to work here for Tower.
Dude, that’s an awesome story. I knew loads of people in the 80’s that worked at Tower (Sacramento) and I used to shop at Tower in Tokyo in the early 90’s.