# Woman plays music loudly, gets noise complaint, writes WaPo piece **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 29, 2018, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019 "2018-05-29T03:57:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/41 "2018-05-29T18:10:57Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > It’s so cute when you bat your eyes like that. > > _[noparse]:pinches[/noparse] **BPC** ’s cheek:_ > > Regards, > Shodan Ha ha, see, it’s funny because it’s obvious what you’re implying and that what you’re implying is really shitty, but because it’s so obvious it’s basically impossible to say something that makes any fucking sense and doesn’t paint you as just a fucking terrible human being. An excellent jape, my good man. Regards, \*Not \*a racist fuckwit. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/42 "2018-05-29T18:33:17Z")
So…what’s the problem with the neighbor just knocking on her door and asking politely for her to turn it down? Why rush to calling the cops? I’ve had to ask folks to be quiet twice since I moved to my current apt complex in January (two different neighbors, it’s a large complex). One was someone one level lower playing some instrument I wasn’t familiar with at 1am with the window open; the other was the dude in the next apt over (whose bedroom walls adjoin mine) practicing the guitar at 11pm. Both were apologetic and I haven’t had a recurrence with either. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/43 "2018-05-29T18:41:07Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > Dammit snowflake, WiFi earphones. Problem solved. WiFi earphones? I use Bluetooth headphones, they work great. But I also live out in the country where I can play my music as loud as I want. And I’m white. As nervous as PoPo make me feel, I cannot imagine interacting with them while black. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/44 "2018-05-29T19:04:07Z")
All these people responding to \*\*Shodan \*\*while he trolls them will only increase **Shodan** ’s efforts to troll them. Same with Octopus, who will probably be here soon. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/45 "2018-05-29T19:09:40Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > All these people responding to \*\*Shodan \*\*while he trolls them will only increase **Shodan** ’s efforts to troll them. > > Same with Octopus, who will probably be here soon. And you. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/46 "2018-05-29T19:15:27Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > So…what’s the problem with the neighbor just knocking on her door and asking politely for her to turn it down? Why rush to calling the cops? Maybe it’s a white neighbor. And white people are afraid of black people. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/47 "2018-05-29T19:36:13Z")
Maybe the neighbor works graveyard shift and was trying to sleep. Could be anything, really. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/48 "2018-05-29T19:46:31Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > In these days and times, I would think thrice before calling the cops for a minor situation involving a neighbor, and it does annoy me that not everyone has gotten that memo. We can’t count on cops to have the diplomacy, the self-restraint, or the common sense to manage conflict without escalating it. Ek-fucking-zactly. Also it irritates me that you can do an infix in exactly without misspelling it, but you don’t see me calling the cops about it, do you? You see someone actively committing a violent crime, or actively and unambiguously breaking into a house, okay, call the cops. You see someone injured, or hear a sound that could very well be a sign of violence, call. Someone playing their music too loud? Man, fuck off with that cop-calling bullshit, unless you’ve asked them nicely to turn the music down and they’ve refused. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/49 "2018-05-29T19:46:45Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > Maybe it’s a white neighbor. And white people are afraid of black people. Yeah…the cop’s actions may or may not have been racist, but IMO the people who just jumped to calling the cops instead of being, you know, neighborly, were being pretty racist. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/50 "2018-05-29T20:25:18Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > Yeah…the cop’s actions may or may not have been racist, but IMO the people who just jumped to calling the cops instead of being, you know, neighborly, were being pretty racist. Eh, we don’t even know if they knew the race of the person playing the music. I’ve lived in apartments where I sort of knew the people next to me and that was it. If someone was blowing up music three doors down or below me, I’d have had no idea what race they were. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/51 "2018-05-29T20:44:41Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > And you. Rumpleforeskin, do I make you feel inferior? That’s what people are telling me. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/52 "2018-05-29T20:59:58Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Eh, we don’t even know if they knew the race of the person playing the music. I’ve lived in apartments where I sort of knew the people next to me and that was it. If someone was blowing up music three doors down or below me, I’d have had no idea what race they were. She said it was hip-hop - doesn’t mean the person playing it was black, but that’d be the balance of probability and the immediate assumption of most people. I didn’t note if the article mentioned if she’s in an apartment building or a house? Because it does make a difference in how well one might know one’s neighbors, as well as how loud music can be before disturbing the locals. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/53 "2018-05-29T21:54:54Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > I didn’t note if the article mentioned if she’s in an apartment building or a house? A bit of Googling brought up a house for one Mary Branch within walking distance of UNC Chapel Hill’s hospital. ---
**Author:** ![excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e8c25b/32.png) [@excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/excavating_for_a_mind)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/54 "2018-05-29T22:05:27Z")
This really is a strange board. Hard to get a read on what the posters will react to. A few months ago, [in this thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=850687), a poster was concerned that someone in a new suburban development had a swimming pool that didn’t have a fence, and wanted to know who he needed to contact, perhaps the police? When, in over 20 replies, I suggested that he could contact the owner directly to find out about the fence, not only did NOBODY agree that talking to your neighbor will often yield better results than talking to the authorities, but several posters opined that confronting a someone over such an issue was dangerous and foolhardy. In particular, > [@Where to report a property violation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-report-a-property-violation/810191/29): > > What if you ask the neighbour and he’s antagonist and tells you to take a hike, or worse? > You’re then obligated to call the authorities, and now your neighbour knows exactly who did it. > I don’t need that shit. Which was followed by, > [@Where to report a property violation](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-to-report-a-property-violation/810191/33): > > I agree with Leaffan (at least, as far as this issue. The Leafs? ehhh…) Someone stupid enough to build a pool and fail to comply with obvious safety regulations, and then give you grief about mentioning it, is possibly equally likely to do things up to and including rocks through your window, slashed tires, etc. Never underestimate the power of assholery, especially if you both have to live there for the foreseeable future. … Now, I expect a boatload of dopers to respond with, “That’s not the same thing! Some kid could drown if there isn’t a fence.” That is exactly my point. The fastest and most efficient way to correct the situation is to talk to them directly, whether it is loud music or a fence around a pool. But, talking to someone in a quiet, suburban neighborhood is (apparently) much more dangerous than confronting someone in an apartment building? I have not read the article, but apparently the woman in question is either a doctor or studying to become one. As quick as she is to jump to conclusions about racism, how do you think she might treat a patient whose skin is not the proper shade of brown? Or a patient, perhaps, she feels (rightly or wrongly) that harbors racist beliefs (or, even beliefs that aren’t specifically racist, but ones that she personally disagrees with)? ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/55 "2018-05-29T22:29:23Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > Yeah…the cop’s actions may or may not have been racist, but IMO the people who just jumped to calling the cops instead of being, you know, neighborly, were being pretty racist. Why do you think they were racist? ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/56 "2018-05-29T22:35:49Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > I didn’t note if the article mentioned if she’s in an apartment building or a house? Because it does make a difference in how well one might know one’s neighbors, as well as how loud music can be before disturbing the locals. From the column: > [@](#): > > I wanted to celebrate by putting some ’90s pop and hip-hop on the stereo. I started singing and dancing around the apartment. I’ve known a lot of non-blacks who enjoy “pop and hip-hop”, especially older stuff from their golden 90’s high school/college years. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/57 "2018-05-29T22:42:40Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Here’s the problem, people are dicks sometimes. I think people are dicks to black people more than white people, but you never know which particular incident is triggered by conscious or unconscious prejudice. I was once at a restaurant with a colleague. We’re both white. The place wasn’t crowded. We were dressed normally. The white server was a complete asshole to us. Not just slow, but she was actively rude. If we were black, I would have bet the house that she had a problem with black people There could be no other explanation. Since we were white, it was just unexplainable. (maybe her cat just died or something). > > I’ve had cops act rude to me a time or two also. However, I have never worried the encounter would escalate to a point where I would be dead. That’s white privilege I suppose. > > Anyway, the cop could have handled this better, but she needs to shrug it off. On the other hand, maybe after a lifetime of slights and rudeness, she is tired of it all. A few years back I was running a register. As one of the customers walked away, she said to the owner “I love your store, but it’s too bad your employees are racist”. A few seconds of back and forth between her and the owner and it turns out she decided I was racist because I didn’t say “hi” to her as she approached the register, but I did for the [white] customer right before her. As I said earlier, if you go looking for racism, you’re going to find it. And if you throw the term around that loosely, it’s really going to lose it’s impact. > [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > So…what’s the problem with the neighbor just knocking on her door and asking politely for her to turn it down? Why rush to calling the cops? A lot of people aren’t all that confrontational. Besides, if you ask someone to quiet down and later the police or landlord shows up, regardless of who called them, they’re going to assume it’s you. Neighbor wars get really ugly, really fast. IME, it’s easier just to go directly to management or police. Especially when we’re they’re loud enough that most people would know that it’s not being contained in the apartment. (ie loud music vs walking too hard) > [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > Yeah…the cop’s actions may or may not have been racist, but IMO the people who just jumped to calling the cops instead of being, you know, neighborly, were being pretty racist. Well, if the police were called because she was black, sure. But they were called because the music was too loud. I think you might have a different definition of racist than I do. > [@Jophiel](#): > > Eh, we don’t even know if they knew the race of the person playing the music. The title of the article is “I’m a black doctor. My neighbors called the cops on me for listening to Biggie”. The URL contains the phrase “my-white-neighbors-called-the-cops-on-me-for-listening-to-hip-hop” > [@Maggie the Ocelot](#): > > I didn’t note if the article mentioned if she’s in an apartment building or a house? Also from the article “I started singing and dancing around the apartment” and (also quoted in the OP) “I felt bullied in my own apartment” ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/58 "2018-05-29T23:12:48Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > The title of the article is “I’m a black doctor. My neighbors called the cops on me for listening to Biggie”. The URL contains the phrase “my-white-neighbors-called-the-cops-on-me-for-listening-to-hip-hop” Maybe she doesn’t have any black people in the building. It would be very weird (in my experience) for the police to explicitly say who made the noise complaint so, unless her neighbors came by later and said “Haha, we called the police on you because we hate Biggie!”, I’m guessing there’s a bit of assumption going on in the author’s mind. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/59 "2018-05-29T23:25:41Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Maybe she doesn’t have any black people in the building. Huh? You said we don’t know the race of the people playing the music and I replied that we do know. It’s, at least in part, the point of the article. > [@](#): > > It would be very weird (in my experience) for the police to explicitly say who made the noise complaint so, unless her neighbors came by later and said “Haha, we called the police on you because we hate Biggie!”, I’m guessing there’s a bit of assumption going on in the author’s mind. Perhaps that depends on department policy. I once called the police over loud music from another house 4 or 5 times during the course of a summer. At some point I ended up talking to the police chief about it and asking him why nothing was be done about it. His reply was that I was making the reports anonymously and because of that the officers have to hear it for themselves otherwise all they can do is advise the homeowners that people are calling in about it. He went on to say that if I didn’t make the report anonymously, they’d ask me to meet them there when they respond. With an actual statement from the person reporting, they have a lot more leverage to encourage them be quieter. Besides, plenty of times the police will say ‘you’re downstairs neighbor’ or ‘the people across the street’ when responding to this. On top of all that, if you don’t make the complaint anonymous, you’ll be named in the police report that anyone or their mother can get from the police station. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2018, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019/60 "2018-05-29T23:38:29Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Huh? You said we don’t know the race of the people playing the music and I replied that we do know. No, I said we don’t know who made the call nor do we know if the caller knew the race of the music playing person: > [@](#): > > Eh, we don’t even know if they [the caller] knew the race of the person playing the music. I’ve lived in apartments where I sort of knew the people next to me and that was it. If someone was blowing up music three doors down or below me, I’d have had no idea what race they were. The column wants me to imagine that some racist white person was rubbing their hands and saying “Haha! I finally have that black doctor NOW!” when, in reality, it could have just as likely been someone saying “God damn it, some moron won’t turn their music down. I’m calling the cops”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/woman-plays-music-loudly-gets-noise-complaint-writes-wapo-piece/815019.md?page=4)