Harvard Professor Arrested At Home

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Harvard Professor Arrested At Home
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Tue, 07-21-2009 - 10:28am

Police Report Says Henry Gates Called Officers Racist


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/20/AR2009072001358.html?nav=hcmodule


Henry Louis Gates Jr., one of the nation's most prominent African American scholars, was arrested last week at his home near Harvard University after trying to force open the locked front door.


According to a report by the police department in Cambridge, Mass., Gates accused police officers at the scene of being racist and said repeatedly, "This is what happens to black men in America." The incident was first reported by the Harvard Crimson.


Gates, the director of the W.E.B. DuBois Institute for African and African American Studies, has been away from his home much of the summer while working on a documentary called "Faces of America," said Charles Ogletree, a Harvard law professor and friend of Gates who is working as his lawyer. Gates returned from China last week and had trouble opening the front door with his key.


Gates, 58, was arrested Thursday by police looking into a possible break-in for disorderly conduct "after exhibiting loud and tumultuous behavior" at his home, according to the police report. Officers said they tried to calm down Gates, who responded, "You don't know who you're messing with," according to the police report.


Ogletree said Gates was ordered to step out of his home. He refused and was followed inside by a police officer. After showing the officer his driver's license, which includes his address, Ogletree said Gates asked: "Why are you doing this? Is it because I'm a black man and you're a white officer? I don't understand why you don't believe this is my house." Ogletree said Gates was then arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and racial harassment.


Gates did not return calls to his office Monday, and the police department would provide no further details on the arrest. He was released four hours later, and arraignment has been scheduled for Aug. 26, but Ogletree said they hope to resolve the case sooner.


Gates is resting on Martha's Vineyard, according to Ogletree, and will soon resume traveling. He is scheduled to interview cellist Yo-Yo Ma, whose genealogy he was researching in China.


Gates, is a founder of the Root (http://www.theroot.com), a Web site owned by The Washington Post Co. He is also host and co-producer of "African American Lives," a Public Broadcasting Service show in which he uses genealogical resources and DNA testing to trace the family lineages of prominent black Americans. He was named a MacArthur Fellow in 1981 and was among Time magazine's "25 Most Influential Americans" in 1997.


Gates's arrest points to broader racial disparities in the criminal justice system, said Ryan S. King, a policy analyst at the Sentencing Project, a think tank that researches incarceration rates.


"If you look at every stage of the criminal justice system from initial police contact all the way through sentencing and incarceration, you see that African Americans are disproportionately impacted by each stage," King said. "What we ultimately see as disparate incarceration rates are contributed to by all of these factors."


As news of the arrest spread Monday from Harvard into broader academic circles, one professor who follows Gates's work said the arrest was both "not surprising" and "disheartening."


"I felt bad that I would hear about something like this happening, especially to someone as recognizable and distinguished as , but in the academy we still sometimes encounter that. I've been in situations where I encounter people who don't believe I'm a college professor," said Jelani Cobb, an associate professor of history at Spelman College in Atlanta. "We have obvious signs of progress, but we're not there."

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-03-2009
Sat, 07-25-2009 - 6:01pm

It's still not clear exactly what transpired or in what order. At one time, the police report itself was on-line, though that's no longer the case. But apparently Gates was not willing to cooperate in providing proof of identity, while at the same time demanding name and badge number of Crowley; and making rather a big damn deal (at the very least) of his race. What was that about?

Bear in mind, as I have said before several times, that this was a man who made a point of "showing his black face" at the police station to let them know who he was and do a sort of "in your face" proof of his right to come and go. But he doesn't seem to see their point of view about settling a burglary report and making a careful explanation of the circumstances of his return and stuck door. In fairness to Gates, he'd had a long and probably draining trip (I've been on a transoceanic flight several times and was most emphatically exhausted at the end of it). BUT he didn't seem to be able to get any sense of proportion or insight into what he brought to the altercation, even a week after it happened. Rather, he seemed hellbent on prolonging the furor for as long as possible. What's that about? Enlisting support? Polarizing sides? Feeding an emotional frenzy?

It's not consistent, it's not logical and it smacks of victimism. Apparently, I am not the only one to think so either.

Here in Albuquerque, people have been ticketed for not complying with unwritten protocols, sometimes in cases where one wonders, for instance, HOW the driver of a vehicle is supposed to know what to do when pulled over. But the last thing anybody is supposed to do when stopped or asked to cooperate, is act belligerent and/or give a police person cause to think that there is something being concealed. Which, seemingly, Gates did.

AGAIN, the report of a break-in/burglary/home invasion had gone out--this wasn't some sort of random shakedown. Context matters. And drawing on recent local experience, terrible things have happened when the police were investigating a house break-in. http://www.koat.com/news/20119063/detail.html.

Last but not least, there is the issue of demands for apologies. Gates demands one of Crowley, Crowley wants one of Obama. Demanded apologies aren't about true remorse, they're about public humiliation. And as such, a demanded apology smears and diminishes the demander every bit just as much as it humiliates the apologizer.

Gates is a far from sympathetic figure to me. And I have my doubts about Crowley too. As I said in my first post in this thread--nobody seems to have behaved with exemplary thought, grace, or patience.

Edited to expand what it might be called when a door is forced by someone other than a residence's occupant.




Edited 7/25/2009 6:12 pm ET by jabberwocka

Jabberwocka

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Registered: 03-23-2003
Sun, 07-26-2009 - 1:52pm

...What was that about?


That was one side of the story.


iVillage Member
Registered: 03-03-2009
Sun, 07-26-2009 - 4:48pm

I have not written that the episode was all Gates' fault. Go back and read my posts in the thread. Also have used modifiers like "apparently" or "seemingly" to reflect incomplete knowledge of what actually happened. But am getting very exasperated with what seems unwarranted and weakly reasoned defense of Gates. Why do some people find it so hard to believe that Gates could have contributed to the controversy? Is it because we all "know" that cops are racially bigoted pigs; and black scholars never lose their temper or have their own prejudices?

"Creeps and pervs" masquerading as police personnel are highly unlikely to be aware that a door was forced leading to a report of attempted burglary. Nor are we talking about mechanical false alarms. We're talking about somebody else seeing what she interpreted as a burglary/break-in. In other words, there was corroborative evidence from a third party that this was not likely a false alarm. Gates knew he had forced the door and should, had he been thinking clearly, have been at least a tiny bit aware of what perceptions might be--based not on race but on publicly forcing a door open. Or maybe he was very aware but far too tired and far too prejudiced against police to contain his emotions. Or maybe there's some other factor which he has chosen to keep concealed because it would reflect on him poorly.

Yes, I agree it's entirely possible that Crowley read Gates' suspicions, as suspicious. After all, Crowley might have reasoned, if the man was truly the occupant, why was he being so difficult about identifying himself? Sort of a Mexican standoff, if you will. "You show me your bona fides, then I'll show you mine" coming from both of them simultaneously.

Crowley has refused to apologize. Maybe he did nothing for which an apology would be warranted. And what about Gates? What's he done to Crowley's life and career by public hue and cry? Shouldn't HE apologize for such disruption? Or is he too self-absorbed in his new-found notoriety, protestations to the contrary notwithstanding? In my experience, demands for an apology rarely are met with agreement and good will. In fact, demands usually have the exact opposite effect. Maybe that's what Gates wants--further "proof" that he's a victim. After all, he's been upping the ante by way of continued media statements and attention instead of being perceptive and insightful enough to stand down publicly. IF racism was actually a factor, he could still pursue redress and justice privately. As it is, the Mexican standoff continues and racial tensions have been steadily ratcheted tighter.

My theory about Crowley's state of mind on the day when the initial altercation occurred: He got exasperated at being called a racist and was also feeling defensive because he's considered to be an expert at avoiding profiling. Yes, it's entirely possible that Crowley over-reacted too--have said so before. BUT he's not the one who's making a prolonged and national case of the episode. That would be Gates, in case you hadn't noticed, aided and abetted by the media hounds and attack dogs who bay loudest but not necessarily on the right scent (see: Tawana Brawley).

Police often have to deal with deceptive appearances. Here's a hypothetical: Gates was perceived as high or mentally disturbed. His speech is agitated and he's needlessly defensive. If you're a policeman who walks away from someone who presents a danger to either himself or others, then what? Another hypothetical: Gates actions were construed as some sort of indication that his statements were made under duress, that he was being held as a hostage and that's why he was asked to come out. Weird stuff happens.

Did you read the link I posted? About the harmless sounding "Cookie Bandit"? He was white. And armed. And dangerous. And wanted on very old suspicion of murder charges. Sandoval Country police didn't know any of that when they tried to nab the man who had been breaking into vacation homes and cabins. It's easy for us, with hindsight to say that Gates was not a similar threat, to make assumptions that racism was involved. But at the time of the episode, Crowley didn't know who he was dealing with or any of Gates background. Crowley truly did not know who he was "messing with". Blaming him for racial profiling would fit so patly into old stereotypes and reinforce the superiority of those who know all the answers. But stereotyping is no better than racism and that, in a nutshell, has been my point all along. There hasn't been near enough critical thinking.

I hope Obama has the ability to bring some measure of reconciliation but he definitely has a challenging task thanks in part to his earlier premature characterization of the Cambridge police force response (for which he earned a huge reduction in my approval rating of his job performance). Both Gates and Crowley are entrenched against the other, both have their own backers and both are proud of their reputations.




Edited 7/26/2009 10:03 pm ET by jabberwocka

Jabberwocka

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Registered: 05-23-2008
Sun, 07-26-2009 - 7:28pm

I have known good Blacks, and don't think that they are all bad.

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-23-2008
Sun, 07-26-2009 - 7:35pm
There was an old lady living next door to me who had been locked out of her home, she had to call the police to get her in.
iVillage Member
Registered: 05-23-2008
Sun, 07-26-2009 - 7:43pm

I think that cooler heads would have responded better in this situation.

Community Leader
Registered: 04-05-2002
Sun, 07-26-2009 - 7:48pm

Our country has a history of racism...and it's still alive and well.






iVillage Member
Registered: 02-20-2007
Mon, 07-27-2009 - 8:44am

We have neighborhoods in the city I live in that no white in their right mind would be caught in, even during daylight hours. It's a fact of life in most urban areas. I live outside the city limits, and although we have our fair share of crime, it's nothing even remotely close to what goes on in the city. Blacks and whites in my neighborhood all get along.....we have blocks parties, help one another out plowing whoever gets stuck in snow banks, stop at local taverns and share adult beverages, follow the children's progress in whatever sport he or she may be involved in, and the list goes on and on. Color is of zero consequence.


I wish we all could just get along. For a variety of reasons, we can't. Economic and academic inequities in most cases prevent it from happening.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-18-2000
Mon, 07-27-2009 - 9:28am

Interesting. I did the black/white test: Your data suggest little to no automatic preference between European American and African American.


I did find that

 


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Mon, 07-27-2009 - 9:33am

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