Flutterby™! : Gates

Gates

2009-07-24 00:06:55.589004+00 by ebradway 7 comments

You all know that I'm the first to jump on posters on Flutterby for being privileged. But sometimes privilege doesn't always follow racial boundaries the way we expect. Even if you're the director of Harvard University's W.E.B. DuBois Institute for African and African American Research and close personal friend of President Obama, when you try to break into your house because you locked yourself out, loudly accusing the cop who shows up of racial profiling is a bad idea. Even worse when that cop is accompanied by a black officer. Worse still when that cop trains other cops on how to avoid racial profiling.

I really feel bad for this cop being called out by Obama. From the beginning, it sounded like he was just doing his job and that Gates was acting belligerent. In the photo, it looks pretty clear that Gates was yelling at Crowley was trying to calm him down.

[ related topics: Journalism and Media Law Enforcement Education Race ]

comments in ascending chronological order (reverse):

#Comment Re: made: 2009-07-24 02:18:12.952282+00 by: TheSHAD0W

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/a...ve/years/2009/0723092gates1.html

#Comment Re: made: 2009-07-24 03:35:15.665777+00 by: ebradway

Thanks - that was a good read. I hope Obama apologizes to Officer Crowley. Obama's comment about "cooler heads" sure wasn't a level comment. It sounds like Crowley was acting very cool and tried everything he could to cool down Gates' attitude.

#Comment Re: made: 2009-07-24 03:57:05.978247+00 by: JT

I'll admit I've been an Obama supporter, but I think he went slightly off the edge on this one. Reacting to a situation before he knew both sides of the story is always a bad idea. His first act should have been to have someone find more information on what happened before condemning an entire police department. Seems to me he was prejudging the situation, much of what he was accusing the police of doing in the first place...

#Comment Re: made: 2009-07-24 23:08:10.143031+00 by: radix

I'm still waiting for the 911 tapes to be released before making definite conclusions.

The police department did release that Gates' house had been broken into while he was gone (which might have been why the front door was stuck in the first place).

#Comment Re: made: 2009-07-27 16:49:40.954384+00 by: Mark A. Hershberger

Statements of racial profiling aside, I'm concerned that the police decided to arrest a man in his own home, regardless of how noisy he was. (But, yes, it would have been wiser not to start accusing the cops of racial profiling.)

Also note that Obama did retract his statement.

#Comment Re: made: 2009-07-27 21:07:06.035802+00 by: JT

They actually arrested him on his front porch in view of his neighbors while he was yelling. It actually fits the "disturbing the peace" statute in their state.

#Comment Re: made: 2009-07-28 15:14:20.713086+00 by: Dan Lyke

Giggle: Cambridge Police Profiling Still A Grim Reality for Harvard Faculty Assholes:

Case in point: last winter I was slated to deliver the keynote address for an intradepartmental asshole colloquium at Lowell House. Running late, I temporarily parked along Plympton. As I emerged from my Audi, I discovered that I had captured the unwelcome attention of a CPD officer. "Hey Buddy, is that your car?" he barked.