I’ve stayed clear of l’affaire Gates, not only because, 1) the facts weren’t clear, but 2) the entire thing bores me to death. But since everyone is talking about it but the E-Trade baby, I thought it was maybe time to weigh in: Both of these people suck.
Lady does her civic and calls the cops when someone appears to be jimmying the door of someone’s residence. Cops show up. The facts are explained. Up to now, nobody gets hurt. But that’s when things get ugly.
The nation’s foremost African American scholar decides to bait a patrolman doing his duty, because he’s all “Do you know who I am?” and “Your mama” and that. The patrolman gets his beak up because he frankly doesn’t care how y’all do it at Harvard. Prof heads off to the pokey in cuffs, brays that he’s being repressed. The Actual President of the Whole United States of America weighs in. Unadvisedly. Cop demands an apology, and a beer. Everyone gets a “teachable moment”, but the lesson plan is tuned to individual preference.
This has less to do with race in America than class. Which, when you think about it, says something about the state of play in these United States in the 21st Century.
Look, there’s a real problem in America with racial profiling. Which is not much ameliorated by the fact that there are valid correlations between race/class and violent crime. Which has very little to do with a tenured Harvard professor in Cambridge playing the race card to mask the fact that he’s basically being a prick.
But here’s the deal: It was the dude’s own house, his very castle. He had a perfect right to howl at the moon in his foyer, so long as he wasn’t disturbing the peace or threatening violence. The whole, “Shut your suck or I’ll haul you in” thing has no place in a functioning democracy. The police officer could have de-escalated the issue by swallowing his pride and walking away. He didn’t, because the gun and the badge gave him the implicit authority, he was embarrassed and angry. Fully knowing that the whole thing was an exercise in futility while real criminals looked for real victims. The Harvard professor, for his part, got to try the victim’s mantle on for size even as real victims get hidden in the shadows of anonymity.
Like I said: They both suck.
Bula, bula! You have summarized it perfectly. Both of them could have stopped it at any point. While controversial because it was said by POTUS all parties acted stupidly.
It was in city limits. Living inside city limits is almost as bad as living under a HOA. Your castle (city version) doesn’t start until inside your shut front door.
City cops can bust you in your front yard, or porch unless it is lockable, because it is in public.
Lex, isn’t it the case that the officer did walk out of the house? It was Gates who followed him outside and continued heaping his abuse. As I understand the police report, this part of which has been corroborated by neighbors, it was at that point that the cop told Gates that his conduct was disorderly and that he would be arrested if he continued.
I think we can all agree than any encounter with police on official business works best if it’s “yes Sir/Ma’am” and “no Sir/Ma’am”.
As far as I can tell, the cop put up with a great deal of backtalk that he ordinarily shouldn’t have had to endure….certainly until the time that he was satisfied that those present were entitled to be present and there was no other threat.
It was at that point he walked out.
Can you imagine such tolerance if, for example, it had been you in the house and behaved in that way?
Here’s a very interesting interview of his fellow cops. The (black) woman police officer said she voted for Obama….but wouldn’t again. As someone else observed, this is the true post-racial America at work.
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2009/07/26/nr.comrade.in.arms.cnn?iref=videosearch
I agree with you. There were definitely no saints in this situation. Far from it… And I had to read this twice and look to see who wrote it, to make sure you didn’t have a guest poster. It’s not your normal tone… and it did make me laugh in agreement.
Lex,
I it is extremely rare that I disagree with hizhonor….Gates was wrong. 30 years in public safety taught me that you don’t behave that way in public and especially with a copper. Nothing good happens. Gates was behaving badly and put the cop in the position of having to do do something about it. It is not a “king and his castle” issue…it is life. This was not a race issue, I have seen many people hooked up (of all races) for such behavior. I do not condone what happened, none of us were there. All that I am saying is that that “they both suck” is an over-simplification.
Capo
Because in my old age I’m a terrible cynic, I am in general agreement with you, Lex. But as my Dad always said, put yourself in each person’s place before you pass judgment [in my youth, I tended to jump to conclusions, sometimes without sufficient evidence]. As Juan Williams [of all people] said the night after the event, “you don’t talk to the cops that way. You start out with Sir or Ma’am, and do what they tell you.” And that’s whether you’re black or white or Asian or male or female. This is the guy with the Authority, charged with keeping civilians safe from predators. And that’s a dangerous job, sometimes. Gratuitous insults, such as Gates offered the cop who questioned him *are* dumb. You don’t brashly insult a man’s mother or his wife.
It just seems to me that Gates was trying to create something he could call “racial profiling.” It emerges that he had a PBS program on racial profiling pending. Perhaps he thought that he could get greater viewership if he escalated the incident. Another interview I read with him said that his mother hated white people … all white people. Which is just as bad as if a white mother who hated black people brought up her child to do so too.
So nobody’s hands are without stain here. Personally, I wouldn’t “join” Mr. Obama at the White House for a beer. He’s just trying to avoid having to say, “Hey, folks, I shouldn’t have jumped into this. I’m sorry. I didn’t have a dog in this fight after all.” But his ego’s too big and his compassion is too small for him to do that.
Lex is right. Everybody is wrong and they all suck. Including Mr. O.
Marianne
What few seem to notice is that police, responding to a call like this, can’t assume anything. The officer must evaluate the entire situation, not narrowly focus on the issue of the call. I am sure that the officer asked the professor to step out on the porch because there was a possibility that there was a person in the house threatening the professor. The woman who made the 911 call mentioned two men. The officer could not just see the ID and walk away; he’d be derelict to do so. Basically, a call like this isn’t over until the officer is certain that all is well.
Lex wrote “Like I said: They both suck.”
I can agree, but believe the evidence shows the homeowner sucked a bit more.
And, that the biggest suckee was he who decided that the Cambridge Police “acted stupidly” after admitting that he did not have all the facts. At that point, he put his blatant bias and racism on display for all to see. It is not pretty. It is not becoming a President. However, we are stuck with it, and fanning racist fires is the least of the damage he is inflicting on our country.
Sir -
I lived in Cambridge, MA for several years. I went to school there for several more.
Cambridge is a small city with some very big egos.
Some are on the police force.
More – many, many more – are on the faculties of the various schools.
That’s life there in that not-so-little little town.
Most times, it is a darn interesting place to be.
regards,
CT_Woods
Cap’n
Here’s what I posted over to ‘Phibs place a couple days back..
————————————-
Thing is, for those who don’t know what the “People’s Republic of Cambridge” is like, this incident would have played out EXACTLY the same whether Gates was black or white. In fact, Gates’ own mouthing off is nothing compared to what the local yuppie white folks would’ve done.
That whole area is filled with drain-bamaged college student/trust-fund babies, and over-rich white leftists, the creme de l’creme of the limousine liberal class.
The only reason that Cambridge even tolerates a police force, is because they try and use it to keep those making less than six-figure incomes, especially conservative ones, OFF of their streets and OUT of their neighborhoods.
Gates is acting exactly as the entire populace of Cambridge does. He doesn’t understand how to be any different.
——————————————————-
respects,
This is pretty much how I’m looking at it at this point.
Another good post!
Why did the Obama administration allow such a question to come up in a press meeting about health care? Obama does not take off the cuff questions from anyone. Everything he does is scripted. With the incident happening days before he made his comment, it is strange that he is playing the ignorance card.
This is another Joe the Plumber moment. The real Obama shining through.
He took the question because he knew he was losing his argument on health care and needed something to inject a little energy and attention into the proceedings. Don’t kid yourself – it was scripted so the “post racial” president could weigh in on a racial issue – that wasn’t.
What boggles me is the lady apparently didn’t recognise her own next door neighbour…. where the hell are these people living?
Sim – the women who placed the call didn’t live in the neighborhood, she was out walking. According to the 911 call there was someone else with her who didn’t have a cell phone, who pointed out the situation. The 911 caller really was a good samaritan in every sense of the word.
And she never mentioned race during the call. Not once.
I would like to wait for more details before I make a final judgment. But I generally agree with lex, to wit: Two probably both good guys collide, and both act like jerks in the encounter.
They both managed to ’stupidly’ turn what should have been a routine check into a national news item, incredibly with the Pres. weighing in. What a worthless overreaction, tempest in a teapot.
I can imagine one having a rough day at the office, in a foul mood only to return home and find oneself locked out…. which would normally heightened ones agitation and adrenalin. Then imagine being personally questioned about allegedly breaking into your own home! (After a really bad day I have responded loudly and tersely to my wife – and I love her. Thus it is not surprising that Gates may have loudly and tersely responded to the patrolman…. regardless of any love between them.)
On the other hand, cops take an awful lot of abuse sometimes. Officer Crowley may have had an equally bad day. Maybe taking some guff at the end of the day, although not a crime, was enough to make the patrolman respond as he did. Probably no crime committed, but exercise of power in response. It happens. I have been there (more than once, actually.)
In my youth I had a similar experience. I was arrested, not for anything I had done but for my loud and vociferous denials. “Interfering with an officer,” they said. A plea of not guilty in a mass production city court resulted in a perfunctory guilty and a $10 fine. I couldn’t believe it. So I took it to appeals court on my own dime without my parents knowing, and lined up witnesses. But there was really no need; the appeals court threw the case out. No crime. No case. Not guilty. The law in our wonderful country protects protesting your innocence, it seems. And my ethnicity or religion had nothing to do with it, BTW.
I’m not saying Gates wasn’t a jerk, but I’d back off on the race-baiting business. I’ve known and worked with too many black men who’ve been hassled for no reason by cops to not understand their feelings on this.
I’m not saying it’s widespread. It doesn’t take that many bad incidents; one happened to you, one to your friends brother, a guy at the plant knows a guy, etch. Even a very tiny number of these incidents can create a bad taste in the mouths of black men in this country, and it wouldn’t surprise me if Professor Gates could tell a story or two himself.
I’m also not saying he was justified. But I will say that I could understand if he saw the event as race-based, even though that might not be objectively correct.
I’ll also say that Barry should have shut up right after he said “I don’t have the facts on this.” PERIOD. Bad move, there, boss.
As for what Marianne said; no disrespect, milady, but I’ll stand with Radley Balko on this one.
Not to mention I’d drink beer with the President, as long as he’s buying…
Another good take on this story over at: http://iowahawk.typepad.com/
Probably truer than the sarcasm intends.
Love Iowahawk.
Can someone ’splain to a po’ ole suthern boy jus what exactly is a “pre-eminent African American Studies scholar”? Where does one go to find gainful employment with such a degree? ACORN perhaps? The democratic fund raisers maybe? I get 30 resumes a week, many really really good ones in this economy, and I’ve yet to see one with a degree in African-American studies. Yet some educational institution pays this guy well over 6 figures to teach a subject that as far as I can tell provides no useful benefit to the nation, economy, the student, nor the institution itself. Of course, being a southern educated moron with a bachelors and masters degree, musician, and one that speaks 2 other languages probably qualifies me somewhere beneath a neanderthal to the Cambridge Culture Club. Well, maybe I WOULD be just above a Cambridge cop.
G-Man/
But barely….
Bottom line is that none of us reading or writing on this blog know the first damn thing about what did or didn’t happen at the Gate’s residence, nor do I much care. Lex nailed it when he said this was the “state of play” and the mere fact that this made anything other than a police blotter is sad to be honest. I received an email from a former French exchange pilot I served with on this topic. He sent a link to an article in a French newspaper with the quoote “Bad Boys Bad Boys, Whatcha going to do?” Enough said~
bdgerjmn/
Speaking of “COPS,” fairly soon nano technology will take care of all this to-and-fro BS as everything will be recorded via button video/audio-transmitters/recorders.
Several issues in this, that weren’t widely reported, steer me away from the “equality of jerkiness issue”, and towards Gates as the bigger jerk — chiefly because he was pissed there was a cop there to begin with, based on his own actions and statements.
I’m not going to to into the details — you can read the police report here. It shows a guy with a chip on his shoulder from the git-go, and a cop that was just doing his job, at least at the start. Talk to a cop (like Knucklehead 1’s SO), and you will see that Crowley was just following good police procedure, to the letter, and every step of that process was greeted with racial epithets. As far as the arrest, there are too many cases of faux enraged citizens being so loud that they incited a riot, and the cop goes from dealing with one to dealing with fifteen. Easiest solution is to give the perp a chance to pipe down, or go back inside. When they don’t, get them out of there.
I appreciate your attempt at evenhandedness, Lex. But just imagine you are driving at MCAS Miramar, and get pulled over for speeding. Pleasant young Cpl comes up and asks for your ID, and you say “That’s none of your business.” You point to that nice eagle next to your parking sticker, and say “Do you know who you are dealing with?” Then grab your cell phone and loudly start calling information for the number for the CO of Miramar. I mean, you’re in your own car, right?
Next step would be working on your story for when the Hobbit comes to pick you up. Kinda like #8 on the controlled ejection checklist — get your story straight. Well, maybe that’s nothing single seat guys had to worry ’bout.
No one knows all the facts yet. The Prof is a typical elitist academic jerk. What did the Prof have to lose? Nothing. Nada. Zip.
What did the cop have at risk? His life.
While both parties made suboptimal decisions, one had a bit more skin in the game.
Sounds like they both are in need of a good Catholic confession session with Father Hooey at the Church of I don’t give a damn.
“Look, there’s a real problem in America with racial profiling”
Sir, speaking as an ex-cop, the problem with racial profiling is that the media perpetuates the idea that it is prevalent (it is not), and civilians believe them. There were just as many instances of black cops “over-enforcing” on whites as vice-versa, in my experience, but either flavor was exceedingly rare. Almost all officers try to conduct themselves professionally, as Sgt. Crowley did here.
Race was only an issue in this case because Gates made it so. I agree that a citizen in his own domain should be given wide latitude, but Gates chose to take the altercation outside.
Based on the 911 audio tape, Sgt. Crowley only knew that he was going to a possible robbery in progress, where 2 men had been reported to be seen trying to force a door and with one of them actually gaining entry to the house.
So – the officer knows that there is one man in the house and the other still possibly outside. Not exactly the safest situation is it.
The officer doesn’t even really know the race of either man; in response to a question from the 911 operator (who asked if they were white, hispanic or black), the caller said one of the men may have been Hispanic but she couldn’t really tell, and didn’t get a good look at the other one.
And yet one of those men insisted that he was being profiled and made some pretty serious and inflammatory accusations against the officer’s character.
I’m with others here – the officer may have overreacted in the end, but it is Gates who bears the majority of responsibility for this situation.
We have old friends who live in Cambridge. It is a town of immense privilege. Average home prices are in the $500K+ range. The officers who are sworn to protect the citizens of Cambridge can’t afford to live there.
“But here’s the deal: It was the dude’s own house, his very castle. He had a perfect right to howl at the moon in his foyer, so long as he wasn’t disturbing the peace or threatening violence. The whole, “Shut your suck or I’ll haul you in” thing has no place in a functioning democracy. The police officer could have de-escalated the issue by swallowing his pride and walking away. He didn’t, because the gun and the badge gave him the implicit authority, he was embarrassed and angry. Fully knowing that the whole thing was an exercise in futility while real criminals looked for real victims. The Harvard professor, for his part, got to try the victim’s mantle on for size even as real victims get hidden in the shadows of anonymity.”
Nope. Crowley hooked Gates when Gates followed him out of the house and continued his temper tantrum in front of the public after he was warned several times to cease. That’s Disorderly Conduct, it’s a crime and the statutes nationwide against it are constitutional. Gates should have shut his pie hole at the door but didn’t and Crowley did exactly what he should have done. Gates’ right to pitch a fit ended out in public. That’s the law, that’s the way it has been for ages.
Disagree. Cop following procedure. Needed proof of ID of the home owner. Cop can’t walk away from the issue until homeowner can prove it is his house. Anybody can come stand in front of my home and claim it is their’s until they fork up an ID. Homeowner became a prick. If he had shown ID we wouldn’t be discussing this. Race has nothing to do with it as you said.
On the other hand, I am sensitive to having one’s home invaded by anyone and ordered around in my own home. The other end of the spectrum and an extreme example of abuse of police authority was that case in Maryland, also discussed here where the mayor had his dogs shot.
One more item — K1’s SO pointed out that what is labeled “racial profiling” is nothing more than “not quite right” meters going off — and it works on both sides of the racial fence. Be a minority, driving a beater hoop-d in Rancho Santa Fe at 3 AM, and a cop is going to find a “reason for contact”. You don’t fit the neighborhood, and he wants to know why — and the residents want him to know as well. You might just be lost, you might be looking to break into a house. Let’s find out why.
Now, be a white guy, driving a late model BMW in Barrio Logan at 3 AM, and you’ll get the same result, for the same reason. You might just be lost, you might be looking to score some heroin. Let’s find out why.
Is either “racial profiling”? Maybe, but more the NQR meter. But only one side gets to scream at “racist cops”.
Your point about the “NQR meter” is well taken. Just on the other side of the Ohio R. from Cincy is a strictly all-white bed-room community called Highland Heights with a six-man Police force (maybe it was a 6-man SWAT team, memory fades). Young blacks come across the bridge at all hours to drive/roam the streets looking for tgts of opportunity, i.e., they ain’t ALL visiting their white girlfriend at 3am. The Police Chief once told a friend of mine years ago that he felt that he was abrogating his sworn duty “to protect and to serve” if his guys didn’t find some technicality to stop EVERY black in a car in Highland Heights before they made it back over the bridge to Cincy.
And I’ve been on the other side also. Back in ‘99 my wife and I took the wrong turn off the NYC-NJ bridge and ended up in the WORST part of Camden NJ driving lost aimlessly looking for the way back to the entrance ramp. The proverbial fish out of water/stick-out-like-a-sore-thumb sort of thing. We didn’t look suspicious, naw….
I dunno. Taking the police report just as it’s written, Crowley had established Gates as the legal resident of the house and “invited” him to step outside if he wanted to berate the officer further. When Crowley asked Gates out, he invited the public nuisance that he arrested Gates for committing.
I still think they were both being jerks, but only one of them had a badge and a gun.
Lex, I’ve butted heads with more than a few folks about this, mainly to underline that, for many American black men, there is no question. The cops are out to get you. Period. This is not a question of scientific accuracy, but of perceptions, and many American black men agree 100% with Professor Gates. Not because they are liberal, or because they are highly-paid college professors, but because they are black. Heck, I know a (black) guy who was 200% certain that Obama would never be elected. Why? Because he was black. “Something” would happen. End of story.
Try walking a mile in the other guy’s shoes. That’s what I’ve been trying to get across the past couple of weeks. Alas, too many folks are obsessed with ideology as well as race, so Professor Gates is not only a “race baiter,” he’s a lousy stinkin’ “liberal race baiter.” This, of course, ignores Professor Gates own personal experience. He saw racism because that’s what he has been attuned to. Many conservative opponents see a “race card player” because that’s what they’re attuned to. One hopes reality eventually makes her appearance, and adds a leaven of simple sense to the recipe…
From what I’ve seen lately the greatest irony is that Barry will have turned out to be right. That there is (in a perverse way) still a sort of racism in society, but a 90-degrees-sideways sort of racism wherein conservatives mindlessly and reflexively reject any and all claims of racist behavior, not to mention the grey areas where there is putative racist behavior, but one must rely upon various independent sources to determine to what degree racist behavior existed. The latter is where conservatives, in my analysis, fall down. By reflexively rejecting ALL claims as “race baiting,” they beg the question when honest difference of opinion results.
Casey, I get that. I really think I do. But I’m one of those old fashioned types who continues to believe in an objective reality apart from our immediate perceptions of it. Mr. Gates may have perceived a racist element in Officer Crowley’s quite reasonable initial request to show some ID. Gates’ reaction was – to my mind anyway – objectively objectionable.
Lunatics can be absolutely certain of quite impossible things. I can understand the way that lunacy influences their world view without being forced to participate in it.
Cops who put their set point for putting the cuffs on at “medium low” have a statistically significant better chance of living to collect a pension. They understand that maintaining the dominant position is key to going home at the end of the shift.
The cop gave fair warning that the point of imminent arrest had been reached.
The prof. should have known this, given his alleged area of expertise. He wouldn’t back off. Still won’t, really.
The cop has to go back on the street, authority intact. He’s smart and sophisticated and can fight well in the cage match of notoriety that the media has called down on him. He’s in a fight for survival. At the first sign of submission the gallery howling for his head could well get it, career wise.
The President shot himself in the foot. Rookie mistake. No executive experience. Not his first. For him the way out is to find a way out for the other two, face intact.
The media should just move on. Best thing for all concerned.
Interesting viewing, if you like blood sport, slightly subliminated. Bad business if racial harmony has a priority for you.
Business as usual…
I have to wonder why people feel like they have to be so distrustful of your local patrol officer. By and large, they are decent people doing a difficult and dangerous job. Officer Crowley worked under the assumption that there were two people, as the 911 call said. He HAS to make sure that this is the case, he can’t work under an assumption made by the recently-identified homeowner. In order to protect himself, and the home owner, he needs to look and make sure there truly isn’t someone else inside the house.
Had I been in Mr. Gates shoes’ I’d have gratefully complied with the officers request, because I know he’s trying to keep both of us safe. Now, if it’s about being a jackass, well, I can be a serious jackass, and I also know a very good lawyer…the kind that can have my name on the front door of the cop shop, and who lives for things like wrongful arrest cases.
I have always, and always will, cheerfully cooperate with law enforcement. Doing so has served me well over the years, including keeping me from paying huge fines (and instead, paying small ones) or going to jail. Doing so has also helped to rid my neighborhood of some drug-dealing trash.
Out of all the statements Lex made in this post, I’m surprised no one else has taken issue with this one:
“Look, there’s a real problem in America with racial profiling”
I’m curious how Lex defines this problem. I think there is one, too, but it may not be what Lex thinks the problem is.
I think we need to be careful about casually making statements like the one above. It’s the sort of conventional wisdom type statement that could undermine national security or further the efforts of the PC police.
I took issue with it – see comment #24
I agree it’s a screwed up situtation, but I think how I would have reacted. First, make sure my hands are in plain site, and don’t make any quick moves. Second, smile and say good evening officer. Third, after being asked, say yes sir, my ID is right here in my pocket, may I reach for my wallet? And just like that the situation is defused. Also, thank the officer for keeping my neighborhood safe, ’cause that might not have been me breaking in.
Then I’d probably go in the house and swear to myself, but that’s a different story. If Gates had shown a little humility and humanity Crowley wouldn’t have had to react as he did. I guess it’s the chicken and the egg, but I know which one I think came first.
And Mr. President, once you say I don’t have all the facts, shut the heck up. You look like an amateur bad enough already.
And it’s so nice to see in this day and age that one of Gates’ own neighbors, who says he didn’t recognize Gates, decides it’s in his own best interest to photograph the entire scene, and then sell the images (he’s made $4,000 already). He only did so after he found out what went on, four doors down the street, and who it was. Don’t people know their neighbors anymore? Or care? True I’m not friends with everyone on our street, but I can certainly point to someone and say, yep, they live around here.
Oh, and if one of my neighbors is getting hauled out of their house by the police, my first instict would not be to grab my camera. Sheesh.
Lex,
After reading, hearing, and watching way too much about this whole thing, I believe you have it exactly right.
Can’t go with you on this one Lex. I’m going to have to logic profile my choice of jerks here; We can leave the local participants aside. When someone says “I don’t know the facts here” the ONLY words that should follow that statement are “and so I can’t comment”.
Gates and Crowley were in an exchange with some heat. There are arguments as to who provided either all, or at least most, of the heat.
Obama was a fool to step in and violate the rule about not commenting about what you don’t know. This isn’t the first time, and unfortunately it darn sure won’t be the last.
Having arrived home twice to find that my home had been burglarized, I can’t begin to tell you how thrilled I’d be if at some future time a police officer knocks on my door and tells me there’s been a report of a possible break-in at my home and would I mind identifying myself. I wouldn’t care what race the officer was, I’d be thrilled to comply and would thank him/her for showing up.
Difference is that I’ve lived a life filled with soldiers (and civilians) of all races and ethnicities (and both sexes) and know that they are all pretty much the same.
One would think that a ‘Professor’ of African-American Studies might have come to realize that as well. One would apparently be wrong. Perhaps he spent too much of his life picking at scabs and dwelling on finding the worst he can find in people. Strikes me that his ‘personal insult’ meter is set on high with a hair trigger.
At #17, above, G-man says: “Yet some educational institution pays this guy well over 6 figures to teach a subject that as far as I can tell provides no useful benefit to the nation, economy, the student, nor the institution itself.” Could not have said it better myself. In fact, I can’t see where the ‘professor’ provides any useful benefit to the nation . . . .
Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work around and get to know a fair number of police officers and deputy sheriffs — from the Chief to the newest patrolman — in a variety of West Coast cities and counties. The best are the same type of person you’d want in your unit covering your back (at least I would). The worst (and I’m not talking the truly criminal here) are the same type that you’d give a little UCMJ training. The officer involved in the case at hand strikes me as being on the upper end of the curve (the media will do it’s best to change that I suspect), but it’s still unknown to those of us outside.
For my money the ‘professor’ is/was a jerk; the cop was doing his job. Am I biased? Sure. A long time ago I bought in to the concept of protect and defend — even for those who may not seem to deserve it — it was in my oath.
Ladies and Gentlemen;
This country ain’t Russia or Nazi Germany. (well, not yet anyway). You do what a cop says. (Pretty much whatever that might be). Speak to him politely. If the cop’s in the wrong, get him later in front of a judge and really twist the knife.
For the “universal truth” about dealing with cops, go here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uj0mtxXEGE8&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Egrouchyoldcripple%2Ecom%2F&feature=player_embedded
The kid makes a lot of sense.
An afterthought. What if the cop allowed himself to bullied and left the scene without a proper identification and explanation? And, later that night, someone found a dead body in a pool of blood in the hallway of that house?
This was a “no win” situation for the cop.
Just saying…..
Pixelkiller/
GREAT vid, and believe you me the “don’t ride with a mad women applies in spades (no pun in–yes it was) to we white folk as well. I’ve always said never, ever, under ANY circumstances, get into an argument with your wife/girlfriend if you know in advance that shortly the two of you are going to have to take a ride together sealed in close quarters in an inclosed car which lasts over ten minutes in duration. The possibility/probability of a homicide, major accident or one’s death due to massive stroke and/or MI is WAY too high….
Concur with idea that both could have done better by each other. I am never comfortable with Police Officers who, having had training in the ins & outs of the law, then use that knowledge to hook a citizen into a situation where they can be arrested, simply because the Police Officer didn’t feel like taking any guff. Espeically since there was no crime here (no break in).
By “inviting” Prof Gates outside — he set Prof Gates up. Doesn’t excuse Prof Gates extremely poor behavior. However, this should not have resulted in an arrest. As soon as the SGT Crowley saw proper ID, he should have excused himself, and simply walked away (perhaps muttering under his breath once he got back into his car).
Concur that Pres Obama should not have addressed this “tempest in a teacup”.
Lex, I love your blog, but tell you what; forget the police report. Read Prof. Gates own words about what happened and see what you think. As far as I can see the man stands condemmed out of his own mouth.
Some excerpts:
After jimmying around his lock, going around to the back and letting himself in, and then having his driver knock the front door open with his shoulder,
All of a sudden, there was a policeman on my porch. And I thought, ‘This is strange.’
Someone breaks his door open in broad daylight and he thinks its strange a cop shows up?
So I went over to the front porch still holding the phone, and I said ‘Officer, can I help you?’ And he said, ‘Would you step outside onto the porch.’ And the way he said it, I knew he wasn’t canvassing for the police benevolent association. All the hairs stood up on the back of my neck, and I realized that I was in danger. And I said to him no, out of instinct. I said, ‘No, I will not.’
Danger? Danger? And then he decides to be uncooperative.
He said ‘I’m here to investigate a 911 call for breaking and entering into this house.’ And I said ‘That’s ridiculous because this happens to be my house. And I’m a Harvard professor.’
Again – someone breaks down his door in broad daylight and his reponse is to a) belittle the idea that someone called it in and b) try to claim privilege because he’s a Harvard professor.
He says ‘Can you prove that you’re a Harvard professor?’ I said yes, I turned and closed the front door to the kitchen where I’d left my wallet, and I got out my Harvard ID and my Massachusetts driver’s license which includes my address and I handed them to him.
Cop asks for ID, he gives it to the cop, and the cop examines them. Now check out this fantasy:
And he’s sitting there looking at them. Now it’s clear that he had a narrative in his head: A black man was inside someone’s house, probably a white person’s house, and this black man had broken and entered, and this black man was me.
Oh, no racism there. None at all.
So he’s looking at my ID, he asked me another question, which I refused to answer.
My guess is that the question was “Sir, what’s your name, address and date of birth” so that he could verify the ID was his and not something he found, stole or had made. But Prof. Gates is way too important to be bothered answering that question. BTW, remember when people were told that Gates was cooperative?
And I said I want your name and your badge number because I want to file a complaint because of the way he had treated me at the front door. He didn’t say, ‘Excuse me, sir, is there a disturbance here, is this your house?’—he demanded that I step out on the porch, and I don’t think he would have done that if I was a white person.
Apparently the Sgt. was guilty of not kissing Prof. Gates’ ass, so he was going to file a complaint. And yes, Prof. Gates, he certainly WOULD have asked a white person to step out on the porch. There’s a whole slew of possibilities that include you BEING the legal resident while someone you didn’t know was even in the house was sneaking up on both of you while you stood there wasting the cop’s time.
But at that point, I realized that I was in danger. And so I said to him that I want your name, and I want your badge number and I said it repeatedly.
Here’s the “in danger” riff again. This cop was trying to keep him OUT of danger.
Anyway, it goes on. Read the whole thing, but wait at least one hour before or after a meal.
The question that Crowley asked him, that he refused to answer, was “Is there anyone else in the house?” Remember, the initial report had two perps — Crowley was just trying to determine if Gates knew where the other one was. Standard police procedure.
What is fascinating is the “pre judging” that was going on here — but the “prejudice” was all on Gates’ side. He wrote the narrative before Crowley opened his mouth, and it was based on the basest of prejudice
I won’t defend the legality of the arrest. But Prof. Gates got arrested for being an a$$hole, not for being black.
Not pointing any fingers, but just noting what I’ve seen in my readings here.
1)You routinely defend(ed) the Iraq war and all its potential legal quandries, while acknowledging that war is a messy business. Collateral damage, extraordinary rendition, etc.
2)But the officer, who broke no laws and calmly performed his duties, is a “jerk” and “sucks” for an outcome that you don’t approve of but is legally valid.
Gonna have to respectfully disagree with you on this one.
You’ve a perfect right to pard, and I value your opinion. While pointing out there is and ought to be a difference between a military force whose mission is to “fight and win” and a civil constabulary whose mission is to “serve and protect.”
Where those lines get blurry, the Republic suffers. Just in my humble.
VOTE TALLY:
Few think the good Sgt. Crowley is a racist.
Most think Prof. Gates injected race.
All think Obama committed a rookie error.
Obama buys the beer. Priceless
Actually there 2 A-holes (one with a hubris chip the other with a standard power chip) who unfortunetly collided here and one orbital jerk who injected himself. B.H.O. being the latter!
b2
Gotta weigh in on the side of “two jerks, but only one abused his authority” faction here. I don’t get to punch you for being a mouthy jerk. Why does a cop et to arrest you for it? Both are violence and force against an indivudual, and in neither case was there any danger.
The problem here is not racism, but fascism. I wonder why more poeple don’t see this clearly.