.Rashad’s father asks him if his pants were “sagging” at the time of the incident. “What they see is what he presents. And it sounds like he presented himself as just another…” What role do stereotypes play in our society? Are stereotypes dangerous?

Baggy clothing is a recurring motif in All American Boys, and it is closely associated with a thug stereotype. One of the first things Rashad's father asks him is if his pants were sagging when it happened, and continues on saying "if it walks like a duck, and it talks like a duck..." before he is cut off by his wife (49). It's clear, that even though Rashad's father was an officer, he held the same stereotype.

Reference to Rashad's clothing occurs once again while he watches the news from his hospital bed. The station interviewed various people on their interpretations of the incident, and one of the subjects was a taxi driver who says if he saw Rashad at night hailing a cab he "would keep on going" because "he was dressed just like" the man who once robbed him (187). The authors continue to reinforce a common prejudice that people have towards people of color.