Black birdwatcher in San Francisco reveals that white people called 911 on him so many times he made custom signs explaining what he was doing
A black birdwatcher in San Francisco has revealed that he once created custom posters to explain what he was doing after white people kept calling 911 to report him as suspicious.
Walter Kitundu, 46, spoke out about his experiences during 'Black Birders Week', which was created in response to a false 911 report against another black bird watcher in Central Park last month.
In 2005, Kitundu spent seven months visiting Alta Plaza Park in San Francisco near daily, observing and photographing a young red-tailed hawk he named Patch.
But day after day, Kitundu says, he kept getting stopped by the police, and even heard other people in the park calling 911 within earshot.
Walter Kitundu, 46, spent seven months visiting Alta Plaza Park in San Francisco near daily, observing and photographing a young red-tailed hawk he named Patch
Kitundu created this custom poster to explain what he was doing after white people kept calling 911 to report him as suspicious while he photographed birds in the park
'I didn't have dog. I didn't have a partner. I didn't have a stroller. I didn't really fit into the generalized idea of who the park was for. And I was black in an affluent neighborhood,' Kitundu recalled in an interview with the Washington Post.
'And I was being still for long periods of time. I feel like the white people in the park who called the police were owners of limited imaginations that were stunted by racism. Because I think if I had been a white person in the park with my camera, I would have been given credit that I knew something that they didn't or I must have had a good reason for being there,' he said.
'I got pulled over by the police from a hummingbird bush once. I got stopped by police on two other occasions walking through the park. And then one person had the audacity to call the police on me within earshot,' he continued.
'I could hear him describing me to the police, and I turned around and I said to him, “Can I help you?” And he said, “The police will take care of you.” So after that incident, that's when I went home and made that sign,' he said.
Kitundu's sign titled 'Advisory!' shows a picture of him, and assures the public that although they may not be accustomed to black bird watchers, there is nothing dangerous about the combination.
In addition to being an accomplished birder, Kitundu is a recipient of a MacArthur 'genius' grant, Carnegie Hall performer, and inventor of futuristic instruments called Phonoharps
He also took the precaution of ordering a custom license plate to reassure bystanders if he pulled over in an unfamiliar neighborhood to capture a photo of a bird
'I needed people to know, in terms of trying to secure my safety as I photographed the birds,' he explained.
'I think as a black person, as a person of color in this country, every time you walk out the door, there's always calculus running in the background about how to present, how to keep yourself safe,' he said.
'It's a muscle that's well exercised by people of color in this country. I can't really think of anything more wholesome than standing under a tree and watching a hummingbird build her nest, but I think if our activities fall outside of the framework of possibility that's established for us by the white imagination, then we're at risk,' Kitundu added.
Black Birders Week, which started on Sunday and ends on Friday, is intended to promote diversity in outdoor activities and highlight awareness after a shocking racist incident in Central Park.
Amy Cooper was filmed falsely accusing a black birdwatcher of ‘threatening her life’ in Central Park.
Harvard graduate Christian Cooper, 57, had been bird watching in an area of the park known as The Ramble over the Memorial Day weekend when he encountered Amy Cooper walked her dog unleashed, against park rules.
Concern had been raised for the cocker-spaniel’s well-being, who appeared to be flailing around and trying to free itself from Cooper’s grasp throughout the video as she hauled the dog up by its neck harness
After pointing out to Cooper that dogs must be leashed in The Ramble at all times to protect wildlife habitats, she quickly became irate, with the 41-year-old hysterically dialing 911, wailing into her cell phone that ‘an African American man is threatening my life’.
In the hours that followed the video's emergence, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio branded Cooper as 'racist...pure and simple' as outrage over the incident – commonly referred to as Central Park Karen – rippled out nationwide.
Cooper was terminated from her $170k-per-year role at as head of insurance investment solutions at Franklin Templeton shortly afterwards. A petition to ban her from Central Park for life also emerged, as did new legislation that would make falsely reporting an incident as a hate crime illegal, should it pass.
In a statement, Amy Cooper offered her sincere apologies to Christian Cooper, saying she 'reacted emotionally and made false assumptions about his intentions when, in fact, I was the one who was acting inappropriately by not having my dog on a leash.
'I am well aware of the pain that misassumptions and insensitive statements about race cause and would never have imagined that I would be involved in the type of incident that occurred with Chris.
'I hope that a few mortifying seconds in a lifetime of forty years will not define me in his eyes and that he will accept my sincere apology.'
Black birdwatcher in San Francisco reveals that white people called 911 on him so many times he made custom signs explaining what he was doing
![Black birdwatcher in San Francisco reveals that white people called 911 on him so many times he made custom signs explaining what he was doing]()
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June 06, 2020
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