Last night while watching Obama address the country on health care, I was indeed shocked like everyone else when Lynn Sweet asked Obama what he felt about Skip Gates. I was both, disappointed that she was derailing the focus on health care and anxious about the potential answer. Obama has not talked much about violence or police brutality, even though during his administration there have been many incidents of violence between police and people of color.
So what did he actually say? Watch the video below.
(Transcript after the jump.)
I never imagined that he would make jokes about "getting shot in front of the White House," and how "it could have been me." These comments show an understanding of racial profiling that no other president has ever had. Being so candid in expressing these comments, I almost wondered if it was political suicide. Granted, Obama has worked on the issue of racial profiling in Chicago so he has experience on the topic and maybe it would seem odd if he were to deny it.
But what are the implications of what he said? As Adam Serwer said on twitter (yes on twitter), " Reporters are going to act like this was a "betrayal" of a post-racial promise Obama never actually made." Obama is defying the most popular election/post-election meme which is that we are in a "post-racial" time. Many whites in this country are committed to the idea of being in a post-racial space, it makes them feel relieved and less bad about the racism of the past. It also gives them a pass on harboring racist sentiments about things like affirmative action. Furthermore, Obama's comments reminded Americans (who are more committed to the task of remembering to forget racism) that Obama is actually black like "those" that can be picked up by the cops, not "almost white" or a "decent black," that isn't a threat to you. That racism is so endemic in our society even the POTUS can't get away from it. I have written about this tension amongst moderate/liberals about the legibility of his blackness (and will shamelessly quote myself here),
With these two frames about race, you're damned if you do, damned if you don't. On one hand, we recognize the clear and blatant racist attacks that Obama is facing. On the other, we claim not to notice or care that the first black president is actually black. The simple truth is that in fact there are Americans voting for Barack Obama because he is the best choice AND because it is important for us to have a black president. As we said over and over again during the Democratic primary, gender is a factor but not *the only factor* in choosing a candidate to support. The same goes for race.But this tension -- is race a major factor or a non-existant factor? -- is at the heart of this election, and I don't believe it is proof that we are in a post-racial space. Perhaps we are stuck somewhere in the middle of two different ways of understanding race. It is so important that Barack Obama is elected (and obviously not just because he is black) but let us not forget what this election is bringing out in all of America -- and not just the "real" Americans as defined by McCain and Palin. We must continue to push the way we understand race in American society and push to change the racist conditions these beliefs have created. Saying that we are post-racial or don't see race does not change the actual condition of our country.
Given this ambivalent relationship Americans have with understanding race, holding the post-racial frame feels damn good. Sadly, what the situation with Skip Gates shows us is that we are not in a post-racial space, just like we are not in a post-capitalist space. Poor people, people of color, women and other disenfranchised communities are the ones suffering the most due to the economy and suffering from lack of health care. As Serwer states at the end of his must-read piece on Obama's comments from last night, the worst thing that could happen is that the GOP uses his opinions on the cops to stop health care reform,
My first thought upon hearing what Obama said was that he may have allowed his opponents a crucial opening to destroy health-care reform. He certainly should have chosen his words more carefully, and if I'm being completely honest I'd say this was the wrong moment to be real with the American people on race. There's an unfortunate, and longstanding myth that racism is something that victimizes people of color. The truth is that institutionalized racism has always been a disaster for this entire country, economically, socially, and politically. If health-care reform is derailed because the GOP effectively exploits racial fault lines, and allows the argument over health care to become one over how the president hates the police and doesn't want them to protect you from all the scary black men out there, it will prove that race still has the power to make Americans abandon their most immediate interests in the name of petty tribalism.
I am nervous to see what is to come.
(Transcript)
OBAMA'S ANSWER ON GATES
Well, I should say at the outset that Skip Gates is a friend, so I may be a little biased here. I don't know all the facts.
What's been reported though is that the guy forgot his keys, jimmied his way to get into the house. There was a report called in to the police station that there might be a burglary taking place. So far, so good, right? I mean, if I was trying to jigger into -- well, I guess this is my house now, so...
(LAUGHTER)
... it probably wouldn't happen. But let's say my old house in Chicago.
(LAUGHTER)
Here, I'd get shot.
(LAUGHTER)
But so far, so good. They're -- they're reporting. The police are doing what they should. There's a call. They go investigate what happens.
My understanding is, at that point, Professor Gates is already in his house. The police officer comes in. I'm sure there's some exchange of words. But my understanding is, is that Professor Gates then shows his I.D. to show that this is his house and, at that point, he gets arrested for disorderly conduct, charges which are later dropped.
Now, I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in that. But I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two, that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home; and, number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there's a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact.
As you know, Lynn, when I was in the state legislature in Illinois, we worked on a racial profiling bill because there was indisputable evidence that blacks and Hispanics were being stopped disproportionately. And that is a sign, an example of how, you know, race remains a factor in the society.
That doesn't lessen the incredible progress that has been made. I am standing here as testimony to the progress that's been made. And yet the fact of the matter is, is that, you know, this still haunts us.
And even when there are honest misunderstandings, the fact that blacks and Hispanics are picked up more frequently and often time for no cause casts suspicion even when there is good cause.
And that's why I think the more that we're working with local law enforcement to improve policing techniques so that we're eliminating potential bias, the safer everybody is going to be.
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Barack Obama talks more like President should than any President in the history of the US.
One need only to visit a right wing site like Free Republic to get a glimpse of the racism that is very much alive and targeted at Obama and his family. Here is one typical example sparked when one of his daughters dared to wear a t-shirt with the peace symbol. http://tinyurl.com/nh4ogt (links to a Canadian newspaper, not free republic itself)
So how do we as progressives effectively combat this sort of hate with having ourselves become consumed by race?
I now our media is petty, but I can't BELIEVE how sensitive everyone has been about Obama's answer!
For Republicans to have spent years denouncing political correctness, they're all about it with Obama and Sotomayor.
Not that I think what he said was un-P.C. I think it was fine. It's high-time people speak honestly, rather than circumventing questions with loosely applied Latinate.
President Obama: ...I don't know all the facts...
(A little while later)
President Obama: ...number two, that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home...
Does not compute.
My point is that police brutality and high handedness, more than being a function of race is, a function of giving too much power to flawed people like us and then not holding them accountable.
The following link is a news item about a Hispanic policeman dumping on a white woman. Everybody please watch the video.
http://www.policeone.com/investigations/articles/1857461-Store-video-catches-Philly-cop-confronting-woman/
As a side note, this tendency of being deferential and friendly to police and prosecution is what makes me wary about Judge (and soon to be Justice) Sotomayor.
http://www.politicsdaily.com/2009/07/09/sotomayor-and-sentencing-tough-on-crime/
One anecdote about a Latino cop is not data. However, this page has plenty of data about how POC are more likely to be stopped, more likely to be searched, more likely to have force used against them, and more likely to be arrested than whites in the US for the same offenses. Racism among law enforcement is real and not just a perception on POC's part, as is often claimed.
http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/node/31
Check the facts.
If the President really cared about police brutality against minorities (and everybody else) then he would repeal the Drug War (as the website you refer to admirably documents those civil liberty violations) ASAP.
However when asked about marijuana decriminalisation and legalisation in an online town hall he ridiculed it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuqvcMDqMn8
This comment about Gatesgate was just an easy and cheap way for him to signal his racial bona fides. I don't see him "doing" anything about it.
You seem to be under the impression that a President's power is unlimited. Presidents cannot repeal laws all by themselves. Obama is smart enough to realize that trying to persuade Congress to repeal drug laws would use up clout he has other plans for, and there is very little likelihood it would succeed.
"Presidents cannot repeal laws all by themselves."
Atleast they can appoint people who will nto follow the failed tactics of the past.
http://www.fresnobee.com/updates/story/1553061.html
What message does this send about the seriousness with which this administration treats the lives destroyed by an utterly useless war on its own citizens and one in which minorities are disproportionately targeted?
I actually don't think he said anything wrong. The fact is that Republicans have turned everything into a racial issue now more than before because they are inherently racist. And a half-black president freaks them out. And the last thing they want are "those people" getting an edge on "real" Americans. So they will use any opportunity to scream about anything they can.
Just like the next Supreme Court Justice, Obama can and should use his experiences as a black man in expressing himself and in viewing the world. Do Republicans think he should condemn the arrested man to prove he's not racist? That's the kind of thing black Republicans have to do. He doesn't.
Thanks for posting about this.
I read the NYT coverage of this comment earlier today, and I can't figure out why the writing felt so profoundly uncomfortable. I think our press definitely lacks a nuanced way to talk about racial issues. It also left the impression that Obama was "protected" from the effects of racism at the white house, which strikes me as a bit naive.
I agree that it was a rather explosive thing to say for people who always have issues about women/people of color/tools of social oppression on our minds.
I mean, that's me too. But at the same time, I think most people will think "Anyone would be shot trying to break into the White House." Heck, my first thought was "I would be shot trying to break into the White House." And then the second thought would be "Oh, he's also making a joke about black men and police." And the best part about this speech was, his comments reflected respect for the neighbor who was doing their duty to report suspicious behavior, respect for Skip Gates by not mentioning the "Yo' mama" comment, and respect for the police who did their job as responders to the neighbor.
Unless Skip Gates is friends with Bill Ayers, I think we're ok.
I agree that many (probably white people) were taken aback by his frankness and obvious intimacy with the issues of racial profiling and of the historical relationship(s) people of color have with the police and vice-versa. The surprise probably comes from the expectation that as President, Obama should abandon those things (opinions, wisdom from experiences, biases) that prevent white people from being comfortable with him. This comfort, though, is framed as "representation," the expectation that he has to be able to represent or care about "everybody" as President (the presumption being that he only cares about black people, or, worse, that he naturally hates whites).
So being in a position always to have to prove his loyalty to white people, his frank comments (that probably sound frank because we're not used to hearing that knowledge being dropped on us from a President) probably alarmed some people only because it was a definite reminder of race in a climate where people are saying, "If we have a black president, we must be post-racial...so why would he 'make race an issue'?"
Overall I'd give him a B+ for his answer. The humor definitely helped, as did couching his answer with the appropriate disclaimers ("I don't know all the facts", "Skip Gates is a friend of mine"). I think there was a kinder way to call the cop out than call him "stupid". The reason to have him moderate his comments more than he did is because all the "poor sympathetic cop actually gave CPR to a dying black man" stories that we've gotten today were totally predictable.
This is powerful stuff because Presidents don't normally comment this specifically on individuals, or on real time news events. Moreover, BO normally avoids the sound bite, but the press is focusing on the "stupidity" remark instead of the fact that "the cop shouldn't have arrested him in his own house after he realized he wasn't a burglar."
But, in general, I'm just VERY GLAD that he stood up for people like me. Glad to have POTUS who can relate to everyday people.
I think there's a difference between saying someone "acted stupidly" and calling someone stupid.
I, for, one, think he showed remarkable restraint. I mean, I know that's he job, but still... "Acted stupidly" pales in comparison to "racist asshole."
^ his job
^ his job
It's possibly a distinction without a difference, but he did say that the PD acted stupidly, not that the specific cop was stupid. And (not in response to you) he never said or implied that the cop was racist, whether of the garden variety type or the sort of cartoon monster who would watch a black guy die on the floor without trying to help.
The media is good for blowing things out of proportion, out of all of the great stuff he said in that answer, they focus on the "stupidly"? Most of us had the same reaction when we heard Gates was arrested at his own house.
I agree and you knew that was going to happen and now we will hear about it for a month.
I saw that last night on TV. Right after that Chris Matthews and his guest (some white guy) started talking about racism being irrelevant now since Obama is president. (well, something on those lines.)
Hi
I think that Congress and the News Media loved the distraction from the medical debate that this caused.
From the months of April to June 2009 prescription companies along with their lobbying consortium known as PhRMA poured $40M into lobbying Congress. You can imagine what they other parts of the medical industry added to this huge amount.
I guess both Congress and the Networks would rather talk about Obama's comments on Gates than offend their Golden Goose.
More info
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106899074
Nice derail.
Oddly enough, Skip Gates in his initial comments said "The only blacks living in a post-racial society live in a very nice house at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave."
I just posted this link in the "what we missed" post. There is much more to the story to analyze than Obama's comments.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/07/cambridge_polic_3.html
1) Read the police report.
2) Democrats control congress and the white house we can't blame the repugs.
3) Crossover repubs helped elect Obama off-setting
southern racist democrats who would never vote for an African American.
4) How many people voted for Obama based on the color of his skin not the content of his character?
Sorry but I think clarity is more important than agreement.
4) How many people voted for Obama based on the color of his skin not the content of his character?
And white people don't do or have done the same thing for white or white male candidates sometimes?
1. Sure, read the police report, but keep in mind that the officer who responded wrote it, and he had good reason to make himself look good and Gates look bad. Police are human like everyone else and have agendas.
According to the police report, Gates was not "arrested in his own home."
What the police claim happened was that Gates got extremely upset with the officer and started yelling at him while inside. The officer left and Gates followed him outside on to the street. At that point he was arrested for disorderly conduct because he didn't stop yelling at the policeman.
I think it's valid to question the "racist" narrative of this incident: Gates was upset and yelled at a policeman who overreacted. I don't think it was appropriate for Obama to comment on this, especially given that he didn't know all the facts of the case.
Obama was ASKED his opinion. Should he always say "no comment"? He was asked and he gave it. Good for him. It was a stupid thing that happened. He was right.
And what the police claim is not what Gates' claims. And if (as the police also claim) they thought there might be bad guys (bad black guys with backpacks, apparently) in the house, why didn't the police officer search the house for said bad black guys? Or was that just something later they came up with to cover for the fact that they screwed up?
The officer has far more to lose for misrepresenting events than Gates does. So, I trust the police's version of events, at least for now.
I imagine the reason that the house wasn't searched was that Gates provided ID when requested. After that he yelled at the officer and continued yelling as he followed him into the street. At which point the policeman made a bad (or "stupid" if you want) judgement call and arrested Gates. It's not clear to me why this requires a racist narrative.
Because an elderly white man would not be suspected of being in the "wrong neighborhood" and breaking into houses in the first place, that's why.
Because the officer has more to lose, I would not be so quick to accept what he says. Because he has more to lose, he is going to say what he can to make himself look good.
And I heard he was asked to go outside of his home and then he was arrested. Because you can't really arrest someone for public disorderly conduct INSIDE their own home, can you?
Oddly, I never assumed Obama was talking about race when he commented on being shot if he tried to jimmy his way into the White House. I took it more as ANYONE trying to break into the White House would be shot.
As for his response, he said it would be a biased answer. And it was. But it was honest. I guess 8 years of Bush in the White House still make us a little surprised at honesty.
Conor Friedersdorf hits the nail on the head here
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/07/is-this-the-instance-of-police-misconduct-to-obsess-about.html
Obama chose the Gates incident because it makes him look good supporting a fellow Ivy Leaguer. If he really cared about police misconduct then he would tackle issues like, I guess I should rather let Conor speak here:
"Whereas if President Obama spoke up at a press conference on behalf of people wrongly imprisoned due to "testimony" by police dogs, or advocated for those sexually assaulted by an officer, or spoke against prosecutors who block access to DNA testing, or called out the officer who choked a paramedic, or objected to the practice of police killing family pets, or asked the Innocence Project for a clear cut case of injustice to publicize..."
As Conor Friedersdorf himself said, Obama was asked to comment. And he did. To pretend that he was just trying to stick up for a "fellow Ivy Leaguer" is kinda farfetched. But if you hate Obama, I guess it will make sense to you.
"But if you hate Obama, I guess it will make sense to you."
Please don't put words in my mouth.
You are right that Obama was asked to comment. And he did.
But then:
1. Nobody forced him to comment. He could have passed on the question especially when he himself conceded that he didn't know all the facts, something he has done.
2. He could have made a better, wiser comment, something he himself acknowledged today
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/24/obama-expresses-his-regrets-on-gates-incident/
At the time, Obama did not know much about what happened (and he said so) but from what he and everyone else knew, what happened sounded stupid. Like it shouldn't have happened. Which it shouldn't.
I'm actually glad he gave his opinion. I'm so tired of always hearing "No comment" from politicians. Just say what you think. He is entitled to his opinion. He didn't go into a huge tirade; he barely said anything. Look what a media circus his haters have made of this all. It is so ridiculous.
At least he's not a liar like Bush and Co. They could lie to your face about everything (and they did) and they usually always got away with it. I'd rather have a president that's honest, even if he occasionally upsets his critics, than one who lies about nonexistant weapons of mass destruction in order to slaughter a million people.
At the time, Obama did not know much about what happened (and he said so) but from what he and everyone else knew, what happened sounded stupid. Like it shouldn't have happened. Which it shouldn't.
I'm actually glad he gave his opinion. I'm so tired of always hearing "No comment" from politicians. Just say what you think. He is entitled to his opinion. He didn't go into a huge tirade; he barely said anything. Look what a media circus his haters have made of this all. It is so ridiculous.
At least he's not a liar like Bush and Co. They could lie to your face about everything (and they did) and they usually always got away with it. I'd rather have a president that's honest, even if he occasionally upsets his critics, than one who lies about nonexistant weapons of mass destruction in order to slaughter a million people.
I honestly wish Obama had declined to comment on it. For thing I hate it when elected politicians get involved in on-going cases (like when Bloomberg in NY commented on the Burruss case).And for another now we will have this long drawn worthless discussion on a case that is ridiculous from the outsst no matter whom you think is right. There is no news here.
I totally agree... the President should not have spoken on the matter. He even admitted he didn't know the situation, and to comment on something he didn't have all the details to wrong on his part.
I totally agree... the President should not have spoken on the matter. He even admitted he didn't know the situation, and to comment on something he didn't have all the details to was wrong on his part.
But then when the details came out, he would have been asked again. And should he have said, "The police did their duty" to make conservatives and racists happy? I think there's a huge expectation for him to prove that he's not favoring blacks over whites. I think he's expected to pretend not to see racism, even though he's experienced it in his own life and he's not blind. And if he says what he thinks, based on what he knows and what he's experienced, he's lambasted.
He gives in too much to those who think opposite of him. I wonder what black men and women would think if he never commented at all or if he blamed Gates, as all the conservatives are doing.
He can't win.