Harvard professor and editor of The Root, Henry Louis Gates Jr., was arrested in his home late last week after police came to investigate a break-in, which has resulted a call by many for an investigation into racial profiling by the Cambridge police department.
Gates entered his home on Thursday afternoon after struggling with a jammed lock upon returning home from the airport. Shortly thereafter, Cambridge police showed up at his house (due to a call from a neighbor) where he was subsequently arrested, despite him giving them his driver's license with his address and Harvard ID card.
The officer apparently arrested Gates for disorderly conduct when he reportedly (and understandably) got pissed he was being accused of criminal behavior for being in his own home.
S. Allen Counter, a Harvard Medical School professor and colleague of Gates spoke with him on Friday, saying that Gates was "shaken" and "horrified" with the arrest. Counter is also black, and was nearly arrested in 2004 when two Harvard police officers supposedly mistook him for a robber suspect.
Pam has a good run-down of what happened, and asks very real questions to consider when thinking about Gates' reaction to the police officers and why this is a fucked situation:
- Would a white professor have been subject to the same suspicion by the woman who called in the report of a break-in?
- While a white prof wouldn't have yelled "I'm a black man in America", say he had said something to the effect of "is there some reason you're standing in front of my home?" and proceeded to engage angrily in the same manner. Would he be arrested?
- Would a white prof react as strongly to the police officer's initial inquiry since he would not be a victim of racial profiling?
- Did Dr. Gates's explosion of anger in his own home warrant an arrest? Is this a manifestation of the "angry black man" phenomenon, where the lower threshold of public anger by black men is seen as more threatening than it would be for a white man?
- Was the fact that Gates threw down the "don't you know who I am? card a mitigating factor?
Post-racial America, my ass.
Here is the police report. The Root also published a statement by Gates' lawyer.
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It's called Going Home While Black. At least the Cambridge police don't execute people on the spot for it like the NYPD.
Now that the facts are out I regret jumping to this conclusion, although it is obviously a pattern that exists nation wide.
The woman who called the police was not a neighbor and couldn't have been expected to recognize Gates trying to force open the door of his house. The cop had a duty to investigate. Gates, having lived the past 60 years of America's racial history, was understandably offended and mouthed off to the officer. The officer overreacted and arrested him on a laughable charge that amounted to being rude to a cop in his own home. There's no longer a reason to assume racism on the part of any actor in this sad little farce, although obviously the weight of hundreds of years of awful history lies on any interaction between blacks and police in America. Gates should have been mature and recognized that the cop was doing his job, and officer Crowley should have been mature and walked away from Gate's verbal abuse.
Ugghh this is so frustrating and angering! Of course he was pissed, and he had every right to be! How frustrating to be in that position, and reacting to the outrageousness of it just makes it more outrageous.
I hope the woman who made that phone call feels like a big old ass(/hole) for not recognizing her own neighbor as an INDIVIDUAL who LIVES on her street, but instead just seeing him as a supposedly-threatening category.
Ugh.
I don't know that the neighbor should necessarily feel like a total asshole (maybe just a little one) because the way it sounds like it she saw someone trying to force open the door However, the way the she views the police shows the disconnect between certain peoples experiences with the police.
You make a good point, whereas I am clearly blowing off steam. I'll give her the benefit of the doubt and remove the parentheses: if not asshole, she probably should feel like a bit of an ass.
I WON'T give her the "benefit of the doubt" at all.
Henry Louis Gates is a public figure - he's been on TV and he's one of the most famous professors at Harvard.
Apparently, the neighbor worked for Harvard Magazine.
Surely she knew what Professor Gates looked like, and that he was her neighbor!
If she didn't, she's not only a racist, but an idiot.
apparently she saw two people, only from the back. depending on what clothing they were wearing, she might not have noticed their skin color at all. so the benefit of the doubt is warranted.
in some neighborhoods, people don't get to know their neighbors, and that can cause danger. this behavior is actually *more* prevalent in high-SES neighborhoods; this is part of why gates and long setbacks are very popular in wealthier neighborhoods. statistically, however, many wealthy neighborhoods experience more crime than many middle- or lower-class neighborhoods.
again, i'll recommend jane jacobs' ***fabulous*** book "the death and life of great american cities", in which she exhaustively discusses "eyes on the street", or citizen surveillance, as THE common element in safe neighborhoods of every social class. knowing your neighbors, what cars they drive, their basic routines, when they're out of town, etc., and having them know about you....THIS keeps neighborhoods and people safer than police ever could. and it seems like this critical element was missing here.
Uhmmm, he had fucking luggage with him and he arrived in a car from which someone exited to help him unload luggage.
Also it is being reported she worked as a University fundraiser, if that's true, as not only a member of the University but a fundraiser no less, how do you not know that you are neighbors with what is perhaps one of your University's biggest names and a HUGE drawer in of money. Not to mention how do you not recognize him.
I don't know... there are plenty of thieves around these days who'll break into your house just leave trinkets and freshly done laundry that never belonged to you in the first place. It's scary. I've been hit by these crooks a few times and now I have to rent a storage space for all of the junk they keep leaving - I wish they would at least take something on their way out!
Yeah well this burglar broke in after work every day, put up pictures of his family, paid the water bill, etc.
I know! How could the neighbors let him get away with such things? It's diabolical.
Won't someone please think of the property value.
Those questions are very real and yet the answers are very obvious. Anyone who tries to assert that a white man would have been subjected to the same treatment is just in denial. From other websites, I've read that racism among that PD is already quite an issue.
I'm trying to figure out the meaning of the last question, though - mitigating factor in what way? That the policeman's behavior is mitigated by the fact that the Gates used the "Don't you know who I am?" card and that we might understand the cop's ire at being asked that question? Or...? 'Cause if I was such an accomplished professor in my university's town, it might seem reasonable that people there know me. I think I'm also confused because of the accounts I've read, I haven't seen that he asked, "Don't you know who I am?" and only that he said he was a Harvard prof.
Just yesterday, I went over to my friend's apartment to feed her cats and collect her mail while she's out of town. I thought I had the correct mailbox number in my head, and I've done this before so I knew the general location of her mailbox in the very large panel of boxes. I was wrong, however, and then proceeded to try my key up and down the rows of boxes trying to find the right one. Several people came by and got their mail while I was doing it. No one called the cops or anyone else about a suspicious person trying to commit a federal offense. I'm also white, and it was a primarily white neighborhood. I think the situation easily could have been different if I was not white.
The charges were just dropped, I saw that on Gawker.
http://gawker.com/5319457/report-charges-dropped-against-henry-louis-gates
but still, I'm pissed that this even happened at all.
What...the...fuck...
Of course he'd get angry at the police when they accuse him of breaking into his own fucking house! He provided them ID with his picture and address on it, what more did they want?!?!
Who is the freaking jerk neighbor that made the phone call in the first place? I think Dr. Gates should walk his street and "thank" the good citizens for alerting the authorities. Christ!
Old white woman. This story migrated from The Onion to real life.
I can't believe that woman who called the police. She should be ashamed. Next time she should do what we do in black neighborhoods, if you see a crime being commit, look the other way. Stop snitching!!!
Maybe you should know your fucking neighbors.
Supposedly she called the cops because his taxi driver looked scary, she (again supposedly) didn't see her actual neighbor.
as What robber would be so conspicuous to take a taxi to the crime scene?
You haven't considered that robbers can have accomplices? A fairly cliche disguise for a get a way car.
Ah yes, the old "have a taxi/getaway car drop you off at the house to be robbed, then leave" technique. Brilliant!
This whole incident is screwed up in the highest order and the white nieghbor's behavior was flawed. But "stop snitching" is a really disgusting, destructive behavior to advocate in general, and if you are saying it in jest, then you are ignoring the seriousness of the problem this behavior causes.
Actually, I do advocate 'stop snitching' - basically, you should only call the cops on people if they are doing a violent crime - anything else, just mind your business.
After all, America has enough Black men in jail as it is!
So robbery (aside from armed robbery) is A-OK in your book? If you saw someone clearly breaking into your neighbor's house and you knew it wasn't your neighbor, you wouldn't call the cops?
My first thoughts were that they apparently didn't learn their lesson the first time. My next thoughts were annoyance, outrage, and that hollow-headed feeling resultant from an astonishingly high number of police actions. Those were within eight seconds of the news hitting me; after eight seconds, I've just been left with "Wuh‽"
Know your neighbors. Know your local academic celebrities. Know when not to arrest people.
It's not even clear that Gates said those things. His account (through his lawyer) does not include them--rather, they come from the police report, which has ample incentive to be biased toward the arresting officer. I'm sure he was angry--he had a right to be--but frankly, a distinguished Harvard professor has a little more credibility to me than a Cambridge police officer that would arrest a man on the grounds of disorderly conduct because he wasn't polite after being accused of breaking into his own home.
I don't blame the woman who called the police in the slightest; in fact, I think that was a responsible thing to do. Apparently she saw two people from the back messing around with the door, which was jammed. Asking the police to verify that everything is A-OK is completely reasonable, to my mind. After all, the police *shouldn't* have to be feared, and their presence shouldn't have to indicate crime, just community safety.
But the cop, who, AFTER VERIFYING THAT THIS MAN WAS IN HIS OWN FUCKING HOUSE....***that*** is another story entirely.
Apparently Gates is around 5'6", 150 pounds soaking wet, and uses a cane because he walks with a limp. How much disorder could he cause, for God's sake?
This is another good argument for Neighborhood Watch programs. Know your neighbors and keep eyes out for each other. Jane Jacobs talked about "eyes on the street" being the common element in safe, healthy communities, no matter what the SES of the neighborhood.
Post-racial America? HAHHAAAAAHAHAHAHAAA.
This is a smart angle - thank you. I think the distinction here is calling the police out of concern for a neighbor's property vs. calling the police out of fear of an individual.
We have no way of knowing the woman's intentions and should probably give her the benefit of the doubt. But the police crossed the line from protection to aggression-- and THAT is where this sours.
I think we really need to be careful here - we don't know that this person was calling merely out of concern for somebody's property, because what if she was concerned because he "looked suspicious," as she said? A simple, "Hey, do you need some help?" would have solved the problem, but she felt the need to call the police. "Fear of an individual" is probably what stopped her from asking him if he needed help. We need to watch out that we're not asking people to subordinate their civil liberties in the name of property. That's a very dangerous historical pattern.
Good points. I think this issue my also underscore a couple elements of privilege. One, since white people, especially upper middle class homeowners, primarily have a positive relationship with police, calling the police just to be sure seems reasonable and inoffensive--they would want someone to do it for them if the situation was reversed. But they may not see and certainly not intend how much this might offend their neighbor or minorities in the community who are habitually maltreated by police.
Another element of privilege illuminated by the anger towards the woman calling the police: whereas a younger male neighbor may have left the house to investigate or check for himself (even just to get a look at the face of his neighbor), an older woman would have had considerably more reason to be fearful of interfering with what she believed to be a home invasion, and instead opt for the slightly more serious option of calling the police.
I agree. This is a responsible thing to do when you see someone struggling to enter a home. I probably would have done the same.
These are two issues.
1. the police call (which I believe to be justified) and
2. the police conduct (which is clearly not).
I'm curious about Prof. Gates' colleague who was apparently stopped crossing Harvard Yard in the middle of the day on suspicion of being a robber. Is there any more information on this? Was he carrying a huge TV in his arms or something? Doing anything at all suspicious? Or was he just a black man walking in a white neighborhood?
Anybody know if there is any more info?
This story is totally outrageous! Don't people watch PBS?? I am a history detective addict and i love to see black in america when Gates talks to African-American celebs about their lineage. Maybe I am a paranoid, but do you think the man's life's work is the root cause of the situation in some way? Seems ironic...
"S. Allen Counter, a well-known neuroscience professor, said two officers stopped him as he walked across Harvard Yard in 2004 and threatened to arrest him when he could not produce identification. Not believing Counter was a professor, despite his three-piece suit and tie, the officers entered Thayer Hall and questioned students about his identity.
Hours later, Counter learned that he had been stopped because he fit the profile of a well-dressed robbery suspect."
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/08/29/at_harvard_blacks_perceive_blatant_culture_of_prejudice/?page=2
Wow, just wow. I've been in precisely this same situation...I don't doubt that the cops were real assholes, but even despite the inconvenience Gates should've wanted the cops to search the house. The police don't know if he was being held hostage or what. Like I said I've been in precisely his situation where they searched my house, and I've also been in the situation where they took my word that everything was ok when they came out, and just walked away without searching.
Having been there I certainly commiserate with the huge inconvenience for Gates, but I also remember that Jeffrey Dahmer could've been stopped soon after he started had the police just searched his house when they got that 911 call instead of taking his word that everything was ok. I certainly don't fault Gates, or excuse the asshole behavior of the cops, but searching the house was the right decision.
No one searched his house. The police followed Gates inside to retrieve his ID. Besides, without a warrant, the police wouldn't have the authority to search his house against his consent.
Stories I read said they searched the house. And in this case they wouldn't have needed a warrant; they had probable cause to search & might even claim imminent danger.
Yeah, screw that inconvenient Fourth Amendment. I hope the police search every person and place they ever have contact with, I mean, it might possible once in a million times save someone's life someday! Civil liberties are waaaaaay overrated.
The class issues in this discussion are interesting as well. People seem especially outraged that a *Harvard Professor* would be treated this way. What if Prof. Gates hadn't been a middle-class, educated professor, but a regular working-class guy? Would the cops' behavior be any more understandable? Hell, would anyone even have picked up the story?
I think the point is that a white man who was seen forcing a door open and then showed evidence of his professional accomplishments to the cops would probably not have been taken away from his own house in handcuffs. Proving class privilege and formal credentials would have been enough to convince them he wasn't a criminal.
In this instance, a black man produced photo ID proving he has the highest possible professional accomplishments in his field, and the cops still didn't believe him. It means that NOTHING a black man can work for can stop some people from assuming the worst about him because of what he looks like.
I think one of the reasons that this article is being highlighted is that race still trumps socio-economic status and education. Mainstream society tells black people that if they simply work hard and get a good education everything will be ok. Mainstream society focuses on what blacks must do but doesn't talk very much about what whites should be doing to eliminate racism. It's akin to telling a woman to not wear skimpy clothes so that she doesn't get raped instead of focusing on rapists.
Can you imagine how many times this happens to innocent blacks who are not wealthy or famous?
I was in shock when I heard this. Given all the shit that wealthier whites (especially politicians) in this country get away with and police look the other way, there's just no way anyone can claim that a white man with less than half Gates' academic credentials would have been treated the same as Gates. No way.
But I kept thinking what a powerful, telling moment it must have been, this brilliant, accomplished black man yelling, "This is because I'm a black man in America!", and all these other comments about racial discrimination, ostensibly at these white cops, getting so angry, and it must've been just like yelling at a brick wall, like running with cement blocks on your feet. They don't hear the black person because it's not proprietary to say what he said, it's not supposed to exist, they have more power than you, you're not supposed to identify their personal privileges and prejudices. What the cops did to cause Gates to yell at them (racial profiling) isn't supposed to exist. I think it's just a fitting metaphor for current black-white relations.
And I have a problem with our police force in general, namely that they have FAR too much power for the inadequate education they receive. They receive little to no training in general social skills or social/emotional intelligence, the history of race relations in the U.S., sociology, etc. I know it can be a dangerous/crappy job, but, jeez, that gun and handcuffs are still a lot of power.
Lets be fair to the racists, I don't know if this is really racial profiling... just plain old "Let's treat the black guy like crap."
So, from what I can tell. He was arrested because her protested being approached by police.
Now, to be honest, if someone is locked out of their own house and has to break the door down, that is reason enough for police to check up on the situation.
But you can’t just arrest someone for claiming you are harassing them. Any other homeowner would have been let off when they proved it was their own home, but he was arrested for his conduct because he was black…
So in the end, Race and unfairness is the issue, but its not that a he was mistaken as a robber because he was black, its that he was arrested despite being the home's owner just for his protests.
More info:
http://www.newsy.com/videos/break_in_backlash
Okay. I lurk here all the time but rarely comment. Figured I'd take a stab at this one.
There was a report that two black men were breaking into a house. Responsible citizen calls the police who then follow up by doing their job and sending an officer. Nothing wrong here.
The officer gets to the scene to see what's going on, and encounters, from what I've read, a belligerent Gates. I've read nowhere in any official news piece that Gates was being "accused" of anything. He was asked what was going on, understandably. Nothing wrong there except Gates was being rude. And if Gates did raise his voice, yell, accuse the officer of racism, that is in fact disorderly conduct which is in fact an arrestable offense no matter how many "honorary degrees" you have.
I think Gates is really just a privileged man who thought his elite social status gave him the right to mouth off to a police officer, and he was shown 'Actually, no.' and wants to use the race card.
All Gates had to do was say "I lost my keys." or "My door is jammed." and show his ID. The situation would have been resolved immediately. Instead Gates got belligerent and to be honest if I was the officer in question I would have arrested him too.
I've been in situations where I've lost my keys and had to "break" into either my car or my house. I'm white and I was nervous each time of the police being called and giving me a hassle over it.
Police officers are the authority in civilian life. You don't have to respect, or like them, but you have to deal with them in a civil manner or you can and will be arrested.
Racism? Sorry, no, I don't see it, otherwise all the white people I've seen carted off to the police station for mouthing off were being racially profiled as well.
Did the cop *have* to arrest him? No, and I'm sure it's a little immature for the cop to throw his weight around, but I nowhere see any racism in the article what-so-ever except: "Black man is held to the same standards of conduct as the rest of society."
I thought we were aiming for equality here?
I'm sure I'll get flamed or banned, but w/e.
Did you even bother to read Gates' statement?
Skip Gates Speaks
Or do you just believe everything as it's portrayed in the mainstream media and/or by the police?
My father's a cop & no, cops don't get a pass on being civil & accountable just because they wear a badge. "What's your name & badge number?" is entirely legitimate, and "You're just doing this to me because I'm a black man in America" also--even if it sounds entirely made up.
These reports that Gates were really belligerent, a little self serving no?
The only person who said that Gates was being "belligerent" was the police officer. Police reports are often not very accurate. I can give you examples if you would care to hear them. If you choose to take a police report at face value then be my guest.
I also suppose racism is highly rare. Just like rape is a highly rare occurence and most accusations of it are false. Correct?
This comment has been deleted.
My question is, WHY did the "responsible citizen" believe that they were breaking in? Gates walks with a cane and is 58 years old. The door was jammed, so he asked the driver to help out. Then he went around the back and got in the back door with a key. 12:30 in the afternoon - it's *possible* that the "responsible citizen" (WHO, IF SHE WAS REALLY RESPONSIBLE, WOULD HAVE SHOUTED, "HEY, DO YOU GUYS NEED SOME HELP?"), let the image of 2 black men trying to get through a door affirm to her that it was a break-in.
Most of the discussions on here are totally side-stepping WHY the woman was so certain it was a break-in in-progress, certain enough to call the police. Maybe we sympathize with this woman because WE would call the police, too - that's great. Subordinating people's civil liberties for what WE believe is other people's property, without even bothering to ask or lend a hand. Let the cops deal with it, especially since white people's philosophy about the cops is, "Just be nice and polite - no talking back." For black men, it hasn't mattered if they're "nice and polite," they're still worried about whether they're going to be beaten or shot by the end of the situation.
why was she certain is was a break-in??? because she saw two men from the back struggling with a door! and gates was apparently planning to be out of town for most of the summer, and that's presuming she even knew the house was his (in a lot of wealthier neighborhoods, there's a high premium on privacy, not to mention, the house is a rental and might have had lots of tenants). generally, people have keys to their own houses, and can open their doors without struggle.... that's a totally legitimate red flag, in my view.
i don't know about you, but i've been the victim of enough crimes that i wouldn't directly interfere in a situation like that, either. i'd call the police. and why wouldn't i think twice about calling the police? BECAUSE I'VE HAD MOSTLY GOOD EXPERIENCES WITH POLICE. to me, police presence doesn't equal harassment or arrest. i suspect that this woman felt that she was being a good neighbor, not understanding that some people might feel differently.
what is horrible about the situation is that the cop just needed to establish gates' identity, then leave, not inflame the situation by demanding deferential behavior from a black man. a simple, "pardon me, sir, we had a report of a potential break-in; i'm sure you'd understand if i could just verify your identity, just to be cautious," followed by a "thank you, sir, have a great rest of your day" would have ended it right there.
skip gates might have been rude to the cop. SO WHAT? cops experience rudeness, what, approximately 500 times a day? it's not an imprisonable offense. the racist part of this situation is that this cop, when presented with proof that this man committed no crime, essentially demanded that this man show him deference that wasn't warranted, and when he didn't get it, he decided to inflame the situation, rather than turn around and walk away. we haven't seen deference demanded of whites in the same way, so i think it's completely logical to say racism was at work in the police's actions. i'm far less convinced about the neighbor's.
It's really hard to be private in Harvard Square. If you live there, and especially if you work for the university, you're likely to know where all the big-name professors live. Plus it's a huge tourist attraction - it's hard to be private there.
Keeping all that in mind, a break-in seems so implausible in Harvard Square at 12:30 in the afternoon at a house very close to the street. The guy had his luggage with him. He struggled for a minute with the door, asked the driver for help, then entered with a key through the back. All the while there's a chauffeur car sitting out front. Unless he was beating the crap out of his door, from the street it had to have looked like he was just standing in front of his door or messing with the knob. Since the woman was with the police when they confronted Gates, I wonder how long she stuck around watching all this - when Gates got in and the driver left (without a big-screen TV), that should have tipped her off that the man with the cane must live there.
And I'm with you on the cop's role in all this - he probably expected total deference and didn't get it. But the call to the police could have been prevented in the first place.
You say all Gates had to do was show his ID and say he lived there...that is exactly what he did, and the cops still gave him a hard time. Why else would they do that other than racism?
Power/bullying. That's not exclusive of racism, of course.
Power/bullying. That's not exclusive of racism, of course.
Oh I'd also like to point out:
"Moreover, police officers should be particularly aware of historical injustices suffered by African Americans, he adds: "Blacks have had experiences with bullhorns and dogs in the South, and those wounds go deep – they're more sensitive and we need to realize that.""
Why should the racial experiences of blacks be more relevant than, say, the racial experiences of Jewish people, or the Irish?
Personally I don't care if someone's sensitive. Especially if it leads to a society that resists following up on a report or investigation simply because it involves a black person and it's not fair to their feelings? No thanks I'd rather have a safe society.
Well, of course, you don't care if cops show common courtesy, you're rarely on the receiving end of the po po's nightstick.
And I'm sure you live on the receiving end of it, right? "Common courtesy"? Please, manipulative language fails.
Who ever said of any one group's racial experiences being more important than any others? The comment makes no reference to a hierarachy of racial experiences.
Would you prefer to live in a police state with martial law in order to live in a "safe" society? I suppose civil liberties are just silly notions. You have been privledged enough not to have to deal with the cops in any sort of negative way.
I'm Irish-American. My people faced horrid discrimination in this country a long time ago, but they really don't now. Black people still do. You're coming perilously close to saying that since police brutality has targeted other groups in the past, that makes it OK for them to target another group now.
I had a neighbor who saw a white man leaving a nearby house with a huge backpack. He immediately called the police. The police quickly showed up, threw the man to the sidewalk and arrested him. He was a friend of the owners of the house, and the owners were furious at the neighbor who called the police. If the man had been black, would there be immediate accusations of racism, media coverage, accusations of "walking out the door while black", etc?
I know many whites (mostly males) of means who have been abused by police with little or no "provocation". Not long ago a cop was caught on video aggressively pushing a white bicyclist over, for no reason. If he had been black, the instant conclusion would be that the cop was racist - and yet racism wasn't an issue, as the man was white.
I am very concerned about racism in our society, but am getting sick and tired of every injury experienced by Blacks instantly defined as about race, no questions asked, and no questions tolerated, unless you want to be accused of racism yourself.
I have had countless experiences where I am leading my normal life, and do some gesture, like change direction on a street, or lift up my lip in response to a story the person next to me is telling me, or daydream while waiting in line and don't notice that I have an extra foot of room in front of me -- which it turns out is all about and all in response to some nearby black person I hadn't even seen or noticed until they start yelling at me about my "racism." Imagine how much these people experience "racism" in their day to day lives - every moment, I would imagine. I am sick of the bullying and manipulation and toxic dumping justified by what is indeed a very important issue. And everyone is silenced when an accusation of racism is made. But it is made so freely, and almost blindly accepted by anyone within hearing range. Those sincerely against racism need to take a stand against the knee jerk accusations, and demand some evidence. Otherwise eventually, it will all amount to crying wolf. That's what I'm starting to feel, at least when I hear instant accusations of racism in circumstances as ambiguous as this. It sounds to me like Gates could have avoided arrest altogether if that wasn't his instant conclusion against this cop who, for all he knew, was facing a man who broke into someone's house. Is the cop suppose to think, "oh, you're black, and you look really important, excuse me, I won't even suspect you of any wrongdoing." That seems to be the conclusion of so many.
"Crying wolf" is exactly what society says about most rape accusations. Even though 1 in 4 girl children is sexually abused and 1 in 2 women will be sexually assulted in their life time.
Racism is very real, its just as real as rape. When people claim that others are "crying wolf" it tends to be because they do not have to worry about being a victim of such abuse. As a black woman and sexual abuse survivor I can assure you that both are very real. White adult males have very little to worry about in terms of these issues hence none of these issues are considered priorities.
And yes it's true that some people do use racism as a crutch just like it's true that some people do make false rape accusations. That does not negate the fact that it's still a very serious issue. It should not be an issue kept quiet about simply because those of us who are privledged enough in society to not experience it are "sick" of it.
[quote]I have had countless experiences where I am leading my normal life, and do some gesture, like change direction on a street, or lift up my lip in response to a story the person next to me is telling me, or daydream while waiting in line and don't notice that I have an extra foot of room in front of me -- which it turns out is all about and all in response to some nearby black person I hadn't even seen or noticed until they start yelling at me about my "racism."[/quote]
This description is problematic to me, and is the kind of thing I've only ever heard from people who already have a problem with race issues. This has never happened to me. There have been a few times in my life when I've been drawn up short because of an issue with my own privilege. On later examination I determined that the other person had a point. And I learned something about the world I didn't know before.
As a thought experiment, when people from an historically dispossessed group tell you about their life experience it is worthwhile to listen and give their opinion the benefit of the doubt. Because they know more about their experience than you do.
And in this case? Everyone is saying that this arrest is a racial issue because it definitely is.
No, the cops aren't supposed to avoid talking to black people. But the cops aren't the whole issue here. WHY did the woman call the police? Why was she so certain that it was a break-in? She could have said, "Hey, do you guys need some help?" Bingo. It's over. If it was a white woman struggling with the door, she would have gone up there and helped her struggle with the door, no questions asked.
We're all so quick to drudge up our own experiences or stories of when the cops have treated white people badly. Nobody is saying that bad treatment from the police doesn't happen to white people. But white people haven't been targeted by the police in the same way black people have. It doesn't mean certain groups of white people who fit certain descriptions aren't targeted by the police, but for black people, they don't always have to "fit a description" for them to "look suspicious" to a cop.
**As for how you feel about being accused of racism...if we've been white all our life, what's our point of reference for racism? I guess black people should just come to us and ask whether something is racist, and we can let them know. Is that the way it's supposed to work? Wouldn't black people know if something's racist? Why don't we trust black people to know? Why do we feel that they have to prove it to us? Racism is more than fire hoses and the N word. It seems that BLACK PEOPLE WOULD KNOW if something is racist, given that they've lived the life while white people look on and complain whenever they're accused of racism. If white people complain about that, they really couldn't handle what black people have gone through - they would crumble.
And I'm honestly very interested to hear those countless experiences of being accused of racism for no reason.
If it was a white woman struggling with the door, she would have gone up there and helped her struggle with the door, no questions asked.
I don't think that this is a reasonable assumption to make without access to more information.
What other information do we need? I'm guessing that if we asked this woman, "would you have helped a white woman struggling with her door?" and she said, "no," then I would be proven wrong. But that says nothing about the kind of dynamics I was trying to point out with this speculation (which is as useful as Vanessa wondering in her original post whether this situation would have happened the same way to a white man).
You must be new here.
*chuckle*
No, but your point is well-taken.
This comment has been deleted.
I don't blame the woman for calling the police. On the news in Boston they have been reporting that there have been several break-ins in that neighborhood recently.
So I don't think she acted unreasonably. Did the fact that Gates is black factor into her decision? Perhaps, but again I don't think she was out of line regardless of who she saw.
What the police did sounds ridiculous---they already assumed what the scenario was before questioning Gates. After they determined that it was indeed Gates's home, they should have left. There was no reason to arrest him.
Gates was justifiably angry--I would be. And I think racism did play a role in the actions of the police.
However, while I don't think Gates did anything wrong, it sounds like he didn't help to diffuse the situation either. The "don't you know who I am?" talk reeks of elitism, and yelling at police probably isn't going to help either. Again, elitism is not something that should get you arrested, but I think it needs to be brought up in this discussion.
I think the police definitely over-reacted and Gates deserves an apology. Arresting someone because you want to throw your weight around is not acceptable.
But I do think we need to be thoughtful when we talk about police in general, though. The police are called into potentially dangerous situations everyday with little, no, or one-sided information. I know that if I got called to what is described as a break-in, I would probably assume that a break-in is occurring--at least at first.
I'm not apologizing for the police in the Gates case, but I think we need to consider the challenges they face as well.
The problem is that he lives in Harvard Square, a really intimate place where everybody generally knows where the big-name professors live - especially if you're someone who works for the university, like the woman who called the police. I hesitate to say that "she did the right thing" because there have been break-ins in the city of Cambridge, none I could find in the news about Harvard Square.
Why didn't the woman ask if he needed some help? She just ran to a phone instead, at 12:30 in the afternoon, believing there was a break-in at a house in Harvard Square. I'm not bent on proving that the woman is racist - if anything it was probably subconscious - but I'm alarmed by all the people on this board saying that she was right to do it and that they would probably all do the same.
And if you're saying that perhaps Gates being black was part of her decision, but it was still the right thing to do, we're really privileging what we *think* is other people's property over people's civil liberties, and we're asking a lot of black people to just understand that property is more important. If you get questioned in your own house, you get questioned and that's just the way it is when it comes to property.
And yes, before people say it, this could happen to whites, too. But whites walk away from it a little peeved that they got questioned in their own house, but there is little chance that it was because they didn't "look" like they could live there, or like they didn't belong in that neighborhood. We need to think about these things before we say that the woman can't be blamed for calling the cops. If she was really responsible, she would have asked if the guys needed some help.
Sorry, but I can't agree that the woman is to blame for having called the police just because she *should* know who Gates is. Obviously she didn't.
Besides, how close was she to him? Could she see his face?
"I hesitate to say that "she did the right thing" because there have been break-ins in the city of Cambridge, none I could find in the news about Harvard Square."
The area surrounding Gates' home did see an increase in burglaries this year.
Here's a link to a crime report by Cambridge police that highlights this:
http://www.cambridgema.gov/CityOfCambridge_Content/documents/2009FirstQtr.pdf
"Why didn't the woman ask if he needed some help?"
Probably because she was afraid---I would be if I thought someone was trying to break into a house. If she truly thought a crime was being committed, why would she approach?
"And if you're saying that perhaps Gates being black was part of her decision, but it was still the right thing to do, we're really privileging what we *think* is other people's property over people's civil liberties"
No, that's not it. I'm saying that we can't know if her decision was racially motivated. She reported what she thought was a crime, which I believe is the right thing to do, regardless of who it is.
I don't really understand your argument about property vs. civil liberties. If the police only questioned people they were 100% sure were guilty, I think there would be a lot more crime.
Again, I think the police greatly overreacted in this case (i.e. to arrest Gates), but I don't think they were wrong to at lease investigate the situation.
Everyone's making a big to-do because a black INTELLECTUAL and a black PROFESSOR and basically a black RICH GUY got arrested.
It's only wrong in people's eyes because he's upper-class. Most of the people making a fuss wouldn't give two shits if it were a working-class black guy. They'd just take it in, go "hmm" about racial profiling, and move on.
Classist bull.
I would agree that the only reason we are even hearing about this is because he is a professor at Harvard University and someone of high regard in American scholarship. Being confronted by law enforcement for doing nothing is commonplace in black men's lives, so why would it reach national news if you weren't ever seen through the media as being nationally important?
But to say most of the people "making a fuss" (phrasing that makes people's anger sound unnecessary) wouldn't care if he were a working-class black guy is just off-base. There are working-class black guys who are *identifying* with this situation because this has happened to them. And there are middle-class blacks, black college students, black professionals, all identifying because they know that you don't *need* to be a working-class black man to be confronted by police for doing nothing.
It seems that Gates's visibility, and the visibility of this situation, is bringing to light many questions and unearthing many people's thoughts about what is/isn't racial profiling, what is/isn't racism - I think this is where the arguments and the debates are happening. I haven't seen many black people out there getting into debates over this because they're mad that this happened to a rich man - he's just proof that it doesn't matter what credentials you have as a black man, someone someday will think you're breaking into your own house.
I didn't mean to make people's anger sound unnecessary-- it absolutely is necessary. I just think that the anger exhibited by mainstream news sources comes more from a place of class entitlement than from genuine concern about the racial issues at stake.
I know Cambridge like the back of my hand and you can bet the white people here will be outraged-- but that's because he's an intellectual, not because he's black. "How dare they question a rich man!", not "How dare they assume he is a criminal just because he's black!"
I don't think this incident will actually have an impact on people's views on racial profiling.
Credentials shouldn't matter. People shouldn't assume a poor man is a criminal, either.
Cops harass poor people, and that's a big problem. But in this case, the police had every reason to believe that the owner of the house wasn't poor. They had no reason other than racism to assume that the owner wasn't black.
Analysis of the detailed police report by Crowley (used to be available on boston.com, but now replaced with less detailed report by Figueroa) at
http://www.samefacts.com/archives/crime_control_/2009/07/nightmare_on_ware_street.php
(also includes pdfs of the reports)
Well most of my really good posts got deleted. I should have known better than to disagree in a thoughtful, concise, and accurate manner. I must have proven too many points and gotten my post deleted, because I know I wasn't rude to anyone.
"Everyone's making a big to-do because a black INTELLECTUAL and a black PROFESSOR and basically a black RICH GUY got arrested.
It's only wrong in people's eyes because he's upper-class. Most of the people making a fuss wouldn't give two shits if it were a working-class black guy. They'd just take it in, go "hmm" about racial profiling, and move on.
Classist bull."
Yeah, really, this whole thing isn't racist at all, it's classist. Gates thought he was higher class than the cop, mouthed off cuz he thought he could, and then got put in his place. Pulling the race card is more laudable than pulling the class card, which is why Gates is doing it. And all the sheep are following rank and file right behind him.