Most of the time when I go to into the store, I get in, get what I need, and that's it. But there has been a couple times where it wasn't that simple. My dad had the issue a lot where he can't walk into the store and leave without buying something. If he entered, he had to pay for some item in the store.
One of my experiences is when I went the store with my cousin. I don't remember who else in my family was there (sibling / cousin wise), but I vividly remember me and my cousin walking through the store. There was a worker who I noticed seemed to be everywhere we went. At first, I thought nothing of it, it was very possible that they needed to be in the couple of aisles that we were in.
It wasn't until we had left the section of the store that we were in and headed to the snacks that I processed what was going on. A worker was following me and my family to watch us. They had to make sure we weren't trying to steal anything, going to sneak something into a pocket or purse.
We checked out and were headed to the door when someone stopped us and asked to check our receipt. They looked at everything we rang up, then compared it to what we were carrying out in bags. After they were satisfied, they handed us back the receipt and we left.
That was the first time I noticed having a shadow while walking around in the store. It's happened to my dad quite a bit, and from what I picked up on my cousins have experienced it before as well. But it happens to people of color all the time. Going into a store planning to buy one thing but having to get something else when what they originally wanted is out of stock, just so they aren't walking out empty handed. Or being followed the entire time through the store because someone is worried they're going to steal something - all because of the color of their skin.
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