What to Do When Being Robbed in the U.S.?

When San Francisco resident Li was making a phone call using his iPhone in front of his own house, several African youngsters robbed him of his mobile phone. He was beaten and bruised when he tried to get it back. The police arrived on the scene and said to Li, “First of all, you should not be using an iPhone on the street; second, you should not have fought back.” In another instance, two young Chinese men fought the African man who tried to rob them. The robber fired at them with a gun; fortunately, he missed them. The police rushed to the scene and also told them, "You should not have fought with the robber."

Those who have not been to America might not accept what the police said. What is wrong with making a phone call on the street in front of one’s own house? Isn’t it also quite normal for strong young men to react and fight back when being robbed? But the police blamed the victims instead, all while being subsidized by the U.S. taxpayers.

Actually, the police did not mean to blame the victims. On the contrary, they wanted to warn them not to make dangerous mistakes. In the United States, people should maintain a high level of self-protection in areas where public security is poor. Never show your money, valuables or fashionable things to avoid being robbed. What should we do when being robbed? You would be better off handing over the money and goods. Don’t fight robbers even if you hold a black belt rank in Taekwondo, because it is very likely that they have guns.

Some people think that if everybody gives in to the criminals, it is no different from giving up on crime. However, that is what’s like in the United States: People normally use credit cards or checks, and only carry very small amount of cash, so that they can give the cash to the robber when robbery happens. The infuriated robber may beat or even shoot you if he cannot get a penny from you. Some years ago, an overseas student was making a phone call at the entrance of a restaurant when a robber tried to grab his mobile phone. He immediately shot and killed the student when he was refused.

What should we do after being robbed? We must report to the police. Objectively, we are encouraging criminal activities if we do not. According to local Chinese residents, Chinese people in the San Francisco Bay area have been robbed and bullied by African criminals for decades. Why was it revealed only recently? First, Chinese people used to hide and tolerate it when something bad happened. They would rather give their money away than report to the police; second, a lot of people are reluctant to report and speak to the police due to the language barrier; third, after a long time, the criminals thought the Chinese people were weak and easy to bully. Therefore, they committed one crime after another, until it finally led to a number of murder cases that drew the attention of the police.

It’s the public’s civic duty to report crime. However, it is unrealistic to expect the police to break the case immediately after receiving a report. Minor cases like these are often only put on record and can’t always be solved. Last year, I left my purse inside the car in a decent underground car park of an apartment. My car windows were smashed up, my purse was stolen and the GPS was nearly pried away too. The police came to the scene very quickly after I reported it. One policeman was interviewing me and taking notes, the other was taking fingerprints. At that time, the policemen also instructed me not to leave my purse in the car again. They have especially made it clear that even if I saw somebody breaking into my car, do not try to stop him; the only thing I should do was report it to the police.

So the policemen questioned and took fingerprints, and that was it. In fact, that apartment implemented closed-circuit cameras. It should not be difficult to investigate. But the police will not give too much attention to this kind of minor crime. All they do is keep it on file, just as how they deal with street robberies. If the robber or the thief repeatedly commits the crime, then the chances of catching them will be increased. However, if nobody reports to the police, it is likely that they will remain at large.

Money comes and goes. Life is the most important thing. In the United States, the police teach people how to deal with robbers: After all, robbers are criminals. There is no point in reasoning with them, or even risking your life to fight them. When being robbed: First, abandon your money, don’t refuse or fight back; second, report it to the police as soon as possible. Protecting our lives is of most importance. It is the job of the police to deal with criminals. American people generally have this awareness.