My Police Interaction Without an ID

My first time being asked for an ID by the police and openly and honestly sharing with them that I do not have a form of ID.

Transcript: The following is a transcription of My Police Interaction Without an ID.

I just had my first-ever police interaction where I shared that I have no form of ID. No government ID, no driver’s license, no passport, no birth certificate, no social security card. I shared that I’m just me, Robin Greenfield, just a human. This is something many of you have asked about, with me living in many ways outside of the system. What happens if I interact with a police officer? I thought I would share with you. This is an interesting experiment I’m on because I don’t have all the answers.

It started when a couple of people pulled over because they saw me walking. I’m walking from Canada to Los Angeles. Here is my cart I take with me to meet my basic needs. They asked if they could take a picture with me. I said, “sure.” At that same moment, a police officer, came by and said, “Is everything all right?” When they ask that question, they’re asking for a little more than that. I said, “Yeah, they wanted to take a picture with me.” She got out of the car, and one of the first things she wanted to know is who I am. She started to ask some questions. She asked if I have a form of identification, and I shared honestly and openly that no, I do not have a form of identification.

In that moment, I could see she was feeling some concern. I said, “I’m sensing maybe you’re feeling concern over my presence.” In that moment, there was a shift. She went from fear or concern to seeing me for the full human being that I am. Things relaxed a bit, and she looked down at my feet. She said, “Are those homemade shoes?” I said, “Yes. They’re made of wool and leather, and the leather is sewn on.” Again, it created a human connection.

I then interacted with the people who had stopped to take a photo with me, as we’re all a bunch of humans, and we’re all equal, and I spent time with them. The officer decided to ask me deeper information about who I am. She asked me my first name, Robin, my last name, Greenfield, my middle name, Julian. Where I would have had identification last… “Was it in Wisconsin?” she asked, and I said, “It’s been a long time since I had a driver’s license, but the last one would have been in San Diego, California.” I told her the former address and I continued to engage with her, but I also continued to engage with the others. They wanted to take a photo, so we took the photo.

The police gave me a warning about her concern for me being on the road with traffic and advised against it. I understand the advice against it, but I am a human being as are the people in cars are human. I also have access to the road, and I am utilizing that access. It was an interesting interaction. I felt a little anxiety, but overall it was relatively smooth. It was the first time interacting with a police officer where I openly and honestly shared that I have no form of identification. She said goodbye; the others said goodbye, and I was on my way, continuing on my walk. I’m almost to San Francisco from Canada. I’m about 1,100 miles in, four months in, and I’ll be in Los Angeles in mid-January. I have about 50 days left.

I want to share one thing that’s very important with this scenario: both interacting with the police and being able to walk the way I am and practice this level of autonomy and freedom. My needs for stability and safety are very largely met. A big part of that is the privilege I have. I don’t talk about privilege from a place of virtue signaling or from a place of wanting to be loved. I talk about it because it’s the reality, it’s the truth. I am going to be interacted with differently a large portion of the time from police officers because of who I am. Other people are going to have very different interactions with police officers because of who they are. Not because of doing anything wrong, but because of the societal structures of the dominator culture in this country. Being a white man, being a US American, I have many privileges. They play a role in my having this freedom and this autonomy.

I feel it’s incredibly important to acknowledge that because my intention is to ascend delusion, to live in a place of truth and integrity. To not acknowledge that truth is a huge part of the puzzle to keep in mind when we’re working to understand our place in society and working to deeply deprogram our mind and be of service to society. That’s the experience for today, and I’m glad to have been able to share it. I’m glad to be on this journey with you of breaking free from the systems that don’t serve us as humanity, as well as the Earth, plants, and animals that we share this Earth with.

What I’m doing is extreme in many ways, but I’m here with you to bring attention to how extreme our society is. I’m a human being. Remember this: It’s only a concept that we have to be identified. There is no such thing as an illegal human being. That’s a concept by humans, and this is what I want to bring attention to: that we are all human beings who have the same basic needs and desires. I’m here on this journey with you to be of support, to create critical thought and self-reflection. I hope you’re experiencing that with me.

Hours later

That right there is another police officer driving away. I’m 1100 miles into the trip and I hadn’t been stopped by a police officer. Now, two in one day. He was very curious about me not having an ID. This was a new experience. He asked if I had any hard thing, and I showed him a copy of my book. I told him that I did a year of growing and foraging all my food. Apparently something happened back in Point Reyes, which I walked through, and they thought maybe I was the person who did it. 1,100 miles into the walk and two separate police officers. Again, very authentic, very engaged, 100 percent open and honest. I could see that having gone a different way for sure. As I engaged authentically and openly and honestly, I saw the emotions change in him.

I saw him as a human being. I am not a fan of the police force in this country. I think it is an incredible issue. There is a lot of police brutality. The prison industrial complex is one of the greatest issues of our time. I am by no means an advocate for that style of care for our citizens. But I believe that every police officer is a human being. Some abuse their powers, and others use their power to be of service to people. I will continue to always see police officers as human beings — the human beings that they are. Underneath that suit, they are a naked body, like every one of us, with their own insecurities and desires to be safe and to go home to their families safely. I am committed to seeing them as human beings, as we all are. Let’s see when the next police officer interaction is. I’m guessing there will be another before I get to Los Angeles. I love you all very much, and for those of you I interact with along the way between here and Los Angeles, I look forward to sharing a loving hug and a connection.

Read in Depth:

Why I have No IDs – No Passport, Driver’s License, Social Security Card or Birth Certificate
On Understanding and Acknowledging My Privilege
My Experience with Nonviolent Communication (NVC) / Compassionate Communication
The Experiment in Non-Ownership