The teens claimed CBP targeted them because they hadn’t booked hotels for their entire stay in Hawaii.
“They found it suspicious that we hadn’t fully booked our accommodations for the entire five weeks in Hawaii,” Pohl said. “We wanted to travel spontaneously. Just like we had done in Thailand and New Zealand.”
Like I said, I don’t know the full context of OP’s situation—I just wanted to offer another possible explanation, which may or may not apply to them.
I’ve come across similar comments from people who are convinced they’re facing discrimination, but when you take a closer look at the facts, it’s not always so clear-cut. For example, I once saw someone say they always get rejected from jobs, often instantly, and were certain it was because of the photo on their résumé. But when you actually read their CV and look at the roles they applied for, it turned out they didn’t meet any of the listed requirements. Having two years of bootcamp experience won’t typically land you a role at a startup asking for four years in a specific tech stack.
If you always assume you’re a victim, it can prevent you from growing and might lead you to overlook areas where you could improve.
Again, I’m not denying that discrimination exists or saying OP is imagining things—I just think it’s important to consider all angles.
You’re considering all angles except the one the op is telling you that they experienced.